by Lori King
A moment later, she caught the scent of home on the air, and she squealed, releasing Thomas’s hand, and pulling away from Bryson. “Home!”
“Wait a sec, KJ, we’re almost there, sit still.” Thomas—ever the reasonable one—was trying to pull her back in her seat, but her need to see her family had her wolf busting at the seams.
Ripping away from him, she squeezed through the narrow gap between the bench seat and door, and threw the lever to open it. The van was slowing, and she could hear everyone yelling at her, but she could also feel her body shifting. Its truest nature coming to the surface and all of her fears, sadness, and the exhaustion of her long journey were melting her control. She leapt from the moving van into the grass at the side of the road, and shifted before her feet even touched down. Her clothes ripped away from her, and she had a momentary thought of how limited her wardrobe was getting to be, before she scented her family again on the breeze. Like that, all of her other thoughts were gone, and she was racing through the trees around the bend and into the clearing she had called home for the last decade or so.
Just like always, the pine trees soared into the blue sky and the mountains curved around their little clearing, leaving only room for a few cabins, a storage building, and a meeting hall. All were crudely built, but they represented home to her. She was brought up short as the pungent scent of smoke hit her wolf, and she took in the missing homes around her.
Her place of security and comfort was a ravaged shell of war. The Griffin cabin was completely gone, only the stone chimney remained in the midst of the charred earth. Nearby, there were only remnants left of Wesley and Zara Todd’s cabin. What had happened here?
Warmth at her side, and the scent of Bryson and Cash drew her attention and she glanced at the two wolves before turning back to the devastation. She was grateful for their presence as she slowly made her way closer to the camp. A roaring sound in her ears blocked out any voices, as she struggled to keep her emotions under control, but a flash of movement and then the sight of her father in human form walking toward her with Rafe and Owen sent her running in his direction. She shifted just before she jumped into her father’s arms, and wrapped her own tightly around his neck.
“Daddy! What happened?” Tears were falling down her cheeks unchecked, and she took deep gulping breaths just to get his scent back in her brain.
“It’s okay, Katie-baby. We had a little rough patch with the Kaplan wolves last night, but now that you brought your brothers here we’re going to be okay. I’m so proud of you, baby!”
Ryley parked the van just as Thomas caught sight of a naked KJ fly into the arms of a tall blond man. Jealousy balled in his gut, until he saw Rafe and Owen right behind the man. The way the guy held KJ told him that this had to be her father, Graham Whetstone. Moving a little slower just because his nerves were jangling, he made his way from the van over to the small group with Ryley and Noah at his side.
Bryson and Cash were standing naked next to Rafe and Owen, and Thomas marveled at how comfortable everyone seemed with their nudity. He wasn’t thrilled that his woman was standing here in the buff for the whole world to see, but clearly he was the only one with the issue.
When KJ finally released her father and turned around, she sought him out with her eyes and his jealousy was soothed. Even with tears on her cheeks and worry in the blue depths of her eyes, she was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. Without thinking about his surroundings, he stepped to her side, and tugged her into his arms, kissing her temple as he wrapped his arms protectively around her. If she was hurting, then he was going to do his damnedest to make things right for her.
Bryson seemed to feel the same need to hold her close, as he moved to them and pressed against KJ’s back, nuzzling her neck, and gripping her hips. A chuckle and a growl drew all of them back to the present, and Thomas looked up to find all eyes on them.
“So I heard that you found your mates, Katie-baby. I sure hope these two are the right wolves, because otherwise they are dead men walking,” Graham teased, and Thomas glanced down at KJ worriedly.
She rolled her eyes at her dad, and smiled back at Thomas. “Yep, Dad, this is Doc and Rambo, otherwise known as Thomas Jameson, and Bryson Samuels.”
Graham shook Bryson’s hand first, albeit warily. “You’re a Kaplan.”
Thomas saw Bryson flinch, but he held Graham’s gaze. “Yes, sir, I was born a Kaplan. However, I’ve severed my ties with the pack now that I’ve found my mate—your daughter.”
Graham grunted as if to say “yeah right” and faced Bryson head-on. “Really? So if your pack mates attack us again…would you kill them to protect her?”
There was no hesitation in Bryson’s words, and they echoed the thoughts in Thomas’s head. “Sir, I would kill for her, and I would die to protect her.”
Graham nodded after a moment, and seemed to accept Bryson’s proclamation, as he turned to shake Thomas’s hand. “Jameson? You’re the human doctor the guys were telling me about. Thank you for coming. I hope you’re able to help Tasha, but…well, we’ll get to that in a minute.” Graham glanced over at his daughter and lifted an eyebrow. “Why am I not surprised that you ended up with two mates, Katie-baby?”
“Well it wasn’t my idea!” she said with a frown. “I didn’t even want one mate!”
Thomas heard Bryson growl low in his throat, and he wished he could do the same. It didn’t sit well with him when KJ started talking about how she didn’t really want the future that she had now.
“Do you want to tell me why one of your mates is still human, and why you don’t have mating marks just yet? My understanding is you three spent the night together.”
“KJ wasn’t expecting to find her mates yet, and Bryson and I didn’t want her to feel forced into making a decision while she was so emotional. It was important to complete our mission first,” Thomas answered.
The answer seemed to please all of the wolves present, and the subject was dropped. Everyone’s attention was diverted as an older woman with long blonde hair the color of wheat appeared on the path. Her movements were slow and unsteady, and her skin tone was a sickly gray color. The medical practitioner inside of him blasted to the front, and he let go of KJ to move to the woman’s side. His hands went to her arm, acting as support as she moved closer. She was clearly very ill. When the woman turned two clear blue eyes up to meet his gaze, he realized this was KJ’s mother, Tasha.
“Ma’am, you need to be resting. You don’t look well.” He stood as still as possible, while she gripped his arm to hold herself steady.
“Thank you, but I’ll be all right. I had to come see my baby.”
“Mama!” KJ ran into Tasha’s arms, and the two women clung to each other for several moments, tears blending together.
“KJ, your mate is right, we need to get your mama back into the cabin and in bed. That way Doc can check her out,” Graham said, moving forward to take Thomas’s place next to Tasha.
“Oh hush, you didn’t think my girl was going to arrive without me greeting her, did you? And to finally see my baby boy again…” Tasha looked up at Ryley who looked like he had just seen a ghost. “Ryley?”
Chapter 9
Yesterday when Rafe stepped out of the van and stood before a man who could be no one but his father, the air vanished from his lungs and his mouth dried up. His own blue eyes stared back at him, and even his eyebrow had the same arrogant arch. It was uncanny. Today he was face-to-face with his biological mother and father, as well as his younger brother who had turned a sickly shade of green.
He had been delaying asking the questions his heart ached to have the answers to, until Ryley was there. The pending conversation was absolutely necessary, but at this moment he wished that he was anywhere but here. He needed answers, and the only way to get them was to sit down and listen with an open mind.
How am I supposed to be open-minded to the two people who tore my heart out when I was just a kid?
Anger bubbled and chu
rned in his gut as they all entered the Whetstone’s cabin. The living room was small, made smaller by the crowd of werewolves who settled themselves around it patiently waiting for the fireworks to start. A sofa, two chairs, an ottoman, and a window seat were filled to capacity, leaving just the dining set for Rafe, Ryley, KJ, and their parents. Bryson and Thomas hovered close to KJ, refusing to leave her even to sit across the room.
As he took his seat, Rafe stared down at the scarred wooden tabletop, seeing himself in it. He had only recently realized that happiness was possible after meeting his new wife Shandi, and yet here he sat just days after his wedding, with strangers in a strange place. His heart and soul were bruised, and scarred, just like the oak under his fingertips, but just beneath that mottled surface he could see the strength, and resilience of the solid piece of furniture. He hoped that he would be as resilient after hearing what his parents had to say to him, because right now he felt pretty weak.
In a moment of shameless emotion he had hugged his mother when he came face-to-face with her after so many years, weeping on her shoulder like the child he was when he’d last seen her. She cried and held him, rocking with the intensity, but neither spoke of their pain, or questioned their anger. Now she faced him head-on. Her chin was tilted defiantly, and her blue-green eyes were steady even as pain etched deep grooves into the skin around them. When she lifted her hand to place it in her husband’s, Rafe could see it trembling though he didn’t know if it was from the weakness in her body, or the emotional situation.
His eyes jumped from Tasha to Graham to KJ to Ryley in quick succession, unable to settle and express what he needed to get off of his chest. Ryley didn’t seem to have such problems.
“Well, this is not exactly the family reunion I had always hoped for,” Ryley cracked, sending a nervous chuckle through the other Gray wolves around the room.
Tasha smiled wistfully at her younger son. “No, it’s certainly not what your father and I had hoped for when we first left the Gray Pack den all those years ago.”
“But you still left,” Rafe snapped a little too harshly, drawing a hiss of irritation from KJ.
Tasha flinched, but turned to hold his gaze. “Yes, we did. Rafe, I can see you’re full of anger, and for that I’m so sorry. I wanted to be the mother you needed, holding your hand as you walked to school, reading you stories at night as I tucked you into bed, watching you grow and change…but that wasn’t possible. Nicolas Kaplan wouldn’t have left us alone.”
Rafe held his tongue for a moment, thinking through her words, and biting back the tears that burned his eyes. “I’ve heard that part from KJ, but what I want to know, is why you didn’t want us with you when you ran? You can’t say it was too dangerous, because you took KJ with you when you had her.”
Graham shook his head, “Son, it was too dangerous. Nicolas had already threatened to take the two of you away from us if he caught us. He said that he would torture Tasha with her own children if she didn’t fall into line. He’s a nasty person, Rafe, and we could only imagine what he would have done to two small boys to get your mother to do what he wanted.”
“And KJ? She wasn’t worth protecting?”
“KJ came a couple of years later, after we’d managed to lose Nicolas for a little while. Graham wanted to go back to get you boys, but I wouldn’t let him. I couldn’t tear you away from the only life you had known, and the happy family that you had built with Henley and Victoria. Not for my own selfish need to have you with me. I knew that Nicolas wasn’t done with us, but I couldn’t bring myself to let go of another child. The most selfish thing I’ve ever done was keep Katie Jo with us. I should have let your father take her to Victoria too, so that she could be raised with you two.”
“What? Mama, why would you say that?” KJ’s face was a pale gray color and her mouth dropped open as tears started to fill her eyes.
“Because, my love, you have grown up to be resentful of your own family. You have spent your whole life hiding and running and avoiding the world, and it’s because I was too scared to face-off with Nicolas Kaplan. I’m sorry for that.” Graham moved to wrap his arm around Tasha as tears slipped down her pale cheeks to match her daughter’s.
Rafe watched as KJ began to shake with the release of emotion, and Thomas lifted her into his arms, settling into the chair with her cradled in his lap. Bryson’s hand found her shoulder, and he rubbed small circles against her skin, trying his best to soothe her. Rafe couldn’t help feeling a wave of acceptance for the two men. They were silent, but supportive, which was just what was needed. Homesickness and longing for his own mate curdled his stomach further, and he realized he was grinding his teeth.
“So what now? You want us to just forgive and forget, and you come live with us in Kansas City like nothing ever happened?”
Graham growled at his oldest son’s anger, but Tasha stayed him with a pat on the hand. “He’s right, Graham. We can’t just pretend this didn’t all happen. I had hoped you would be able to forgive us when you heard the truth, Rafe, but I understand if you can’t.” She paused, and leaned into her husband. “The truth is, children, that I’m dying. I can feel it, and I have known it ever since the moment I was shot. The bullet was silver, and it is poisoning me slowly. I can’t eat anymore because I can’t keep anything down. My blood pressure has dropped, and my body is growing weak.”
“No, Mama! We brought Doc so that he could get the bullet out. You’ll be fine after he does that!” KJ’s voice was high-pitched and panicky.
“I’m sorry, my love. I am so thankful that you were able to find him, and your other mate, and I appreciate the thought, but even if the bullet comes out the damage is done,” Tasha said sadly.
“With all due respect, Mrs. Whetstone, it doesn’t hurt to try. There is no excuse for a person to give in to death when you have so much to fight for,” Thomas said, and Rafe felt even more pride for this strong man that would care for his little sister.
“I didn’t say I wouldn’t try, but I need Katie Jo and her brothers to accept the inevitable and move beyond grieving. It is important that everyone be moved to the Gray Pack den as quickly as possible. I’m afraid that Nicolas is regrouping for another attack like the one Rafe, Owen, and Luke came upon last night. Our numbers are too small to continue to fight like this.”
Rafe looked to the silently brooding Ryley, and sent his thoughts at his brother.
Well? What now?
I thought that we would have some sort of family after they came back, but now…well look at her, man! She looks like she’s dying.
I think she’s right, but I don’t want to push KJ. She’s been through a lot.
Wow! That’s something I never thought I’d see!
What’s that?
You protecting your little sister!
Shut up, asshat.
“Stop it, boys,” Graham said loudly, and both brothers turned matching looks of shock on him. He just laughed at them both and shook his head. “No, I can’t hear you, but I’ve been around enough sets of siblings to know when you’re having a silent conversation.”
The brothers breathed a sigh of relief, but the tension remained high in the air.
“I think I need to lie down for a little while. KJ, love, will you help me to the bedroom?” Tasha looked as if she had aged a decade in just the few moments they had been talking, and Rafe watched as KJ jumped from Thomas’s lap and helped her stand. Thomas rose too, and followed the two women into the bedroom after exchanging a silent look with Bryson. When the bedroom door clicked closed, Graham dropped his head into his hands, and let out a long shuddering breath.
Rafe couldn’t find the right words to comfort him. As much as he hated seeing someone hurt, he wasn’t yet sure of Graham’s place in his life. He had a father. Henley Gray had been the man who taught him to throw the perfect spiral pass on the football field, and how to track other animals in the woods, and he stood beside him on his wedding day. Graham Whetstone had barely been a blip in the life he re
membered, so why did his heart ache to hug the man and ask for his approval? Nothing seemed to make sense in his world anymore.
I need to talk to Shandi, she will help me put it all into perspective again. With that thought in his brain he stood and moved toward the front door. “Ryley, I’m calling home if you would like to join me.”
Ryley was on his feet and moving to his side before he finished the words. Graham stopped them both as they opened the door. “Boys, thank you for at least hearing us out. I know we made a mistake, and I also know we can’t go back in time to fix it, but I hope that somehow, some way, you will find it in your heart to forgive her before she dies. Let us go in peace.”
The cold reminder of Graham’s fate hit Rafe like a sucker punch. Werewolves couldn’t survive without their mate after bonding. In a triad, two of the three could continue, but in a pairing when one died, the other would shortly follow. It was something about the mating bond that caused them to just wither away. If Tasha was right, and she was facing the end, then it meant that Graham, who was otherwise healthy, was also facing death. What a clusterfuck this trip had turned out to be.
KJ and the others waited in the living room of the Whetstone cabin, while Thomas took care of her mother’s wound in the master bedroom. Rafe and Ryley had just gotten off of the phone with their mate, Shandi, and they both looked homesick and shell-shocked. After settling her mother into Thomas’s care with Graham at her bedside, KJ had immediately moved to introduce her Quiver Creek family to her new Gray Pack family. The room seemed even more crowded as they all came together to discuss the attack that Rafe, Luke, and Owen came upon the night before.