by Mason Sabre
Cade’s house only had a small square patch of grass at the front of it, but at the back it had a vast span of land. It was uncared for and overgrown; Cade hadn't yet got around to fixing it up. There was enough of a path trodden through it, where the tall grass had been beaten to the side. That was all Cade needed. He ran sometimes on the land behind. It led to the estuary, but he found that it was often a bother if the animals were in the field—he would set them off bleating and charging in fear.
To one side of Cade’s garden, there was an old shed. It looked okay from the distance, and at least it was in one piece. On the other side, there was a greenhouse—or what remained of one. It was half caved in and Mother Nature had moved in and wrapped her hands around it firmly, vines and weeds entwining the metal frame in an intricate pattern. A patch of cut grass just at the back of the house was where he would sit out in the evenings and soothe the need inside for nature and earth. Cade had done enough so that he could enjoy some of the garden—enough for him.
Gemma stopped when they got to the patch and the small wolf—who had kept himself close to Cade the entire way, having finally given in to the dominant wolf once more—flopped himself down onto the grass, panting from exertion, tongue lolling. Before Cade went to check that he was okay, he opened up his senses, listening for any sounds that were out of place, sniffing the air for any foreign smells. He already knew that Stephen and Gemma would be doing the same–after all, it was in all Others’ nature—but instinct wouldn’t let him relax if he had not scoped the area himself. Only when he was absolutely satisfied there was no imminent danger did he pad over to the small wolf, Gemma and Stephen standing on the lookout behind him.
Cade was the first to make the shift from his wolf to man again, hoping the boy wouldn’t suddenly make a run for it. As a man, there’d be no way to catch him without shifting back first, wasted time which could prove crucial. Stephen and Gemma could catch him, of course, but if they were forced to protect themselves from him, they would, which would mean physical injury to the cub that Cade could have avoided. Communicating with him through their bond seemed to be quite effective. The pup now recognised Cade as his dominant. Cade shifted, making sure to keep their minds together as he did.
Gemma and Stephen shifted back a minute after him. Gemma crouched down to rummage in the bag she had managed to carry, the side caked in mud and god knows what else from where she had dropped it when she had run for the boy. Hopefully the clothes inside weren’t terribly wet. Gemma handed Stephen his and Cade’s clothes, and then proceeded to pull out her own. Stephen walked over to Cade, totally comfortable in his nakedness, the impressive tattoo that ran all the way up his back and down his muscular arm adding an air of danger to the already lethal predator. It covered a network of scars—scars that Stephen would not say how he got. Those, too, had come from the night when he had escaped the cage. Cade had often wondered if he had tried to chew his own arm off, but the thought of Stephen going to those lengths as a means to escape just seemed too extreme, and Cade had ruled out the possibility. He handed Cade his clothes before starting to pull his own back on.
Being naked might be as natural as breathing to them, except right now, Cade felt acutely aware of Gemma’s eyes on him as he reached for his clothes. He pulled his jeans on, ignoring the wet spots from where the water had soaked into the bag. Baffled by the glances Gemma was sneaking him as he dressed, he tried to control the rapid beat of his heart at the way her eyes lingered on him. She turned her back to him as she started to dress, but from where he stood, her reflection in the glass panel of his back door made every curve of her beautiful form clear as day to him. Distractedly, he pulled his shirt on around him, too captivated to focus on buttoning it up. He fumbled with the buttons as he watched her, managing to fasten a couple—only in the wrong holes. Swearing, he glanced down to redo them, and when he looked up again, his eyes clashed with hers in the glass. His breath caught in his throat. She watched him, staring at him in that soul piercing way, making him feel so very exposed to her. She pulled her shorts up her legs, her eyes never leaving his. Her auburn hair just fell short of the full roundness of her naked breasts, but she did nothing to hide from him. His breathing grew ragged, and he felt his body start to harden in response.
“You have your dog lead hook in the wrong place,” Stephen taunted, snapping Cade out of his trance. Cade frowned in confusion for a moment, his mind still filled with images of Gemma’s perfect naked reflection. Stephen grinned and then reached out and grasped the ring that went through Cade’s left nipple. “This,” he said, and twisted it.
Cade yelped and bit out a curse. “You shit.” Stephen laughed and walked over to where the boy was. Cade cast one last glance at Gemma before quickly fastening his shirt and joining Stephen.
The small wolf whimpered and Cade crouched down next to him.
“Is he okay?” asked Gemma as she came closer.
Cade hesitated with his hand over the small wolf’s head, then changed his mind and lowered it to stroke the fur on his back. He was warm still. Even as his wolf, he was burning up. Cade pushed the fur back from his face and examined the cuts there. They looked less angry than they had before he was in wolf form. That could mean he was healing well. “I hope so,” Cade said to Gemma. “Are my keys in the bag?” Gemma rooted into the boy’s bag, where Stephen had thrown them after locking the car and securing it.
“Can you open up?” Cade asked her when she finally pulled them out. “I’ll take him upstairs.”
“Like this?” she asked, gesturing at his wolf form.
“I’d rather take him inside to bring his shift back on. He’ll be easier to contain in a room.”
“You mean before he flips and rips us to shit?” Stephen asked as he finished dressing and buckling his belt. “Maybe we can just lock him in the room like he is now. We can wait for his change to come on itself. If you make him shift back, your link gets stronger and you’ve bound yourself damn well enough already.”
“It’s not such a bad idea,” Gemma said. “We put him in your back room and just wait it out.”
“It could take hours.”
“Well,” Stephen said, “are we going anywhere?”
Cade glanced down at the young wolf once more. His eyes were closed again and he looked like he was sleeping. He supposed it wasn’t so bad. They could put him in the back room. There wasn’t anything in there really, just a small bed.
“He looks as if he could be Evie’s age,” Gemma said softly, lightly touching the boy’s head. “He’s just a kid.”
Cade nodded and sighed. “Yep. And those Humans will kill him if they get a chance … all because he was turned. Who the hell bites a child?” It didn’t make sense to Cade. Who would want to hurt a child this way—ruin his life? Cade couldn’t imagine any reason that was good enough.
“Someone with no fucking sense,” said Stephen. “Are you two going to stay here petting him, or should we get him inside before he shifts on us and tries to rip us to crap?”
“We need to put food down for him,” Cade said, lifting the small wolf in his arms. “I’ll carry him up.” He glanced at Stephen. “There’s rabbit in the freezer. Maybe you can throw a couple in the microwave to defrost them. We can leave them out for him.”
The look of horror on Stephen’s face was almost comical. “What the hell did the boy ever do to you?”
“We can't all have fresh meat,” Cade ground out. “I keep some there for when I need it.”
“I’d rather starve that eat radioactive bunny.”
“Well, it’s a good job I wasn’t inviting you to dinner then, isn’t it?”
“I’ll go and hunt something,” Gemma said, earning herself two very male, angry scowls.
“No,” growled Cade and Stephen in unison.
“I’m very capable,” she huffed, hands on hips. “You two can sit and get into a bitch fight about it, but we really should be putting something live in the room with him for when he wakes. He needs th
e feel of the hunt—even if it is just in the confines of a small room.”
“You’re not going out hunting,” said Stephen. “Can you imagine the shit I’d get off dad if his precious tabby cat got her ass caught by the Humans tonight?” He deepened his voice, squared his shoulders and spoke in a voice mimicking their father. “Think about your responsibilities, Gemma. To this family and this pack. What will the Council say if we have to get you back from the Humans?”
“I’m so glad that your concern is for my welfare and not the shit you might get off dad,” she drawled sardonically.
“I have to have priorities,” he said with a grin. He glanced at Cade and gestured to the wolf. “I’ll go get his dinner. If we’re going to introduce him to this life, let’s do it properly. I can grab him something live and the boy can learn to kill like a proper hunter.” He smacked his hand against his chest and saluted with a growl.
Stephen didn’t give them a chance to argue. He had turned and disappeared down the path they had come from before they could say a word. He wasn’t going to shift again, but then most weres could catch small animals quite easily with their hands. They still held their abilities in watered down forms. Stephen could still slink like his tiger with ease. He could still stalk and hunt prey before it even knew he was there.
“Unlock the door, Gem,” he finally said. “I’ll take him to the back room.”
He laid him on the small single bed in the corner, not wanting to put him on the floor. It was, at the moment, just a mattress and a frame. Cade didn’t bother to make it up if there were no guests—not that he had any that often. Mostly it was Stephen or Gemma who stayed over. They would often shift together and go running and hunting in the woods. Then they would spend nights sitting outside drinking beer, talking and laughing. Sometimes Cade’s older brother, Aaron, joined them, but that was a rare occasion. He had met his potential now and would soon be mated and down with kids, tied down with all his beta stuff. Danny and Evie came along for the runs at times, too, but they also didn’t tend to stay over.
Cade liked having the house to himself, though. He liked the solace and the chance to read or work on his house. Most of it was nothing but bare walls and bare floorboards, but he was still in the process of fixing things up. There were times he got so lost working on it that hours went by without him realising. The back room wasn’t one that he had done anything with yet. It just held the small bed, a chair, and a curtainless window. It wasn’t exactly inviting, but it served its purpose when needed.
Cade’s own bedroom was just next to it and not any better really. Not decorated in any way, the only furniture in it was a bed, a bedside table with a small lamp on it. Many of the rooms didn’t have lights in them and Cade relied mainly on table lamps and candles until he got round to installing the actual lighting. It was all a work in progress.
“Do you know anything about the boy?” Gemma asked from the doorway, the boy’s bag in her hand.
“I didn’t check. Maybe there is something in there?” He nodded towards the bag.
She shook her head. “No, just stuff. There’s a notebook.” She pulled it out. The corners were a little damp, but it hadn't been damaged with the swim. She leafed through the pages.
“What’s in it?”
“No name,” she said. “Numbers, drawings ...” She turned the pages and stopped on one of them. “He’s pretty good,” she said and showed Cade the book. There was a drawing of a rose with drops of blood spilling from it.”
“It’s bleeding? The rose?”
“Crying, I think,” she said softly as she inspected it closer. “I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean it. Please forgive me. I’m sorry. I'm sorry.” She glanced at Cade, her expression a combination of pity and concern. “That’s what it says, over and over again. Maybe I shouldn’t be reading this.” She closed the book and took it over to the chair in the corner. Taking his clothes from the bag, she piled them on the seat and then put his book on top, hanging his bag over the back of the chair. “It can dry out for him for when he wakes up,” she said. Walking over to Cade, who stood staring at the wolf, she rested a gentle hand on his shoulder. He tensed under her touch, muscles bunching under the flimsy material of his shirt. He didn’t dare reach up and place his hand on top of hers.
“You saved his life, you know. I think it’s wonderful.”
“Not yet I haven’t,” he replied. “We have to get through tonight first.”
He closed his eyes and hoped.
Chapter Ten
Closing the door was perhaps the hardest part for Cade. He paused with the door slightly ajar and watched the young wolf for a few seconds more. The boy was awake, his eyes unfocused, staring out at nothing.
Perhaps it was the bond that made Cade stand there and watch him. Whatever the reason, Cade’s heart was heavy with the weight of things he didn’t really understand. It was only when the boy’s eyes snapped wide open and his head jerked up, that Cade took a quick step back and pulled the door closed with him. He held onto the door handle and listened. The boy had got off the bed, the thud of his paws vibrating through the floorboards.
“What’s wrong?” Gemma’s voice was filled with concern behind him.
“He’s up—and getting restless. He doesn’t know how to fight the hunger yet.” Cade knew this would be one of the hardest obstacles to try and overcome. “No Stephen yet?”
Gemma shook her head solemnly. “Not yet.”
The door rattled, and Cade instinctively gripped the handle tighter even though the boy wouldn’t be able to get it open. He turned the key in the lock—they needed to keep him contained until they could get him his quarry. He didn’t want to reach out with his mind and connect again, but something inside called to him, a curiosity perhaps to see what was going on. He gritted his teeth and forced the need down. Communicating with the half-breed this way was draining him—he could feel his body being sapped of all its strength. He couldn’t remember the last time he had ever felt so weak. His body was that of an Other, meaning he had incredible strength, more than any Human could ever comprehend, so to feel this powerless was just not normal.
“Will he be okay in there?” Gemma whispered.
“As long as he doesn’t figure he can smash the glass and get out, he is.”
The door rattled once more, and then there was the sound of claws against the bare wooden floor. They heard the creak of the springs on the bed, then a thud onto the floor, and pacing anew. It grew louder and faster until it sounded like he was running around in circles. A sudden slam against the door had Cade instinctively pushing Gemma out of the way and behind him. “Go and check for Stephen,” he said gruffly, his wolf’s protectiveness over Gemma fighting for control to eradicate any threat to her. “Gem?” he stopped her as she was about to walk away. “Check for Stephen, but don’t go out there. Okay?”
The expression on her face was a mixture of concern and fear. Cade wanted to reach out and cup her face in his hands. He wanted to … He gave himself a mental shake. He didn’t let himself think about what he wanted to do.
“I’ll be back in a moment,” she whispered, then turned on her heel and left.
He listened to her run down the stairs and into to the kitchen. The boy had grown quiet on the other side of the door, and Cade crouched down so that he could peer through the keyhole. He pulled the key out slowly, trying to be as silent as possible so that it didn’t rattle in the lock and set the boy off again. Cade couldn’t see anything—the bed was on the other side, empty and bare, just like before they had brought him in. But the boy was close—Cade could sense him, could hear his deep, husky breaths.
Cade placed his hands against the wood, an incredible connection drawing him to the young wolf.
The sound of movement against the door pulled at his heartstrings. The pup was rubbing against the door because he sensed Cade there. He came into view through the keyhole just as Gemma was returning.
“Still no sign of him,” she said breathlessly, mor
e from edginess than any physical exertion due to running up and down the stairs. Cade knelt down and sat back on his haunches, rubbing his face as he did so. Suddenly, he was too weary to stand, an intense heaviness weighing him down.
“Cade?” Gemma’s voice seemed to carry from far away. “Cade, what’s wrong?”
“I don’t know,” Cade rasped, the words feeling too heavy to even utter. He was drowning in some kind of murky darkness.
“Is it the boy? Did you connect too much? Cade, is he dying?”
“I don’t know,” he repeated slowly. He could hear the desperation in Gemma’s voice, but there was nothing he could do to ease it. He shifted his body around and let himself slide down the wall. He breathed in deeply, slowly, but even that seemed to require more energy than he could muster. His eyelids grew heavy and it seemed too much of a fight to keep them open.
“I’ll get help.” Gemma set her jaw in determination, but her eyes shone suspiciously with unshed tears. “I’ll go find Stephen. Don’t move.”
Cade shook his head slowly. “Wait.” Wait … He didn’t know what for or what he could manage to do, but he closed his eyes and searched his mind for the anchor that was holding him down, but it was like searching a grand hallway with only a penlight to check each spot. All he could find was thick, dark emptiness. “It’s the boy,” he said hoarsely. “It’s his hunger. Maybe it’s killing him.”
Gemma knelt by Cade and reached out to cup his face gently, her fingers as delicate as feathers. He grabbed hold of her wrist and kept her hand against his face. His mind was almost gone, he was certain of that. If he let go of her, he would fall. He gripped on with both hands and pressed her arm against his lips and nose. He could smell the sweet scent of her, that scent that was uniquely Gemma. It was intoxicating in itself.