Silver Mine

by Vivian Arend

  “You’ll be better than fine.” Caroline stood in their path, arms spread wide.

  Shelley accepted her sister’s hug eagerly. Chase refused to release her fingers, Jones sat on her feet, and she was completely good with all of it. For a moment she just soaked it in. The love, the caring. Her sister’s arms around her, the man she cared deeply about holding her as if he didn’t want to let her go.

  Maybe this would work out with a happy ending easier than she thought.

  Caroline stepped away and looked Chase up and down. “If it isn’t the walking dead. Well done, by the way. Sounds as if you personally took out seven bears during the fight. Remind me not to get on your bad side.”

  Chase nodded, but didn’t answer. He was too busy looking around, drawing Shelley close to his side as if ready to protect her.

  Someone waved from the corner, and they headed into the wide living space. The pack house was simply furnished, comfy couches and tables grouped in small settings all over the extra-large living room. A spacious kitchen stood on one side with a massive dining room table running along the length of one wall.

  Doors led off toward the dorm rooms and downstairs to what had been a game room back when she was young. Ping-Pong, foosball. TV and computer games. She hadn’t been in the place for nearly ten years, but it felt far different than it should have.

  It felt…warmer. More accepting.

  Or maybe that was just her wishful imagination. Being accepted by one group of shifters didn’t mean everyone else on the planet who could turn furry was going to instantly be her best buddy.

  Either way, she stayed close to Chase and avoided making direct eye contact with any of the pack relaxing in the common areas. They found spaces around the coffee table by the fireplace, massive plates of food arriving as soon as they sat.

  Shaun winked as he slipped into a chair next to a pretty black woman. “I called ahead to make sure we wouldn’t have to wait.”

  “He’s dealt with shifter appetites before,” Evan drawled lazily. “Welcome back to Whitehorse.”

  “Wasn’t how I’d planned on returning, but thanks,” Chase responded. “I didn’t expect to see you tonight.”

  Evan shrugged. “My place, you’re bound to see me.”

  Caroline pulled out a chair to Evan’s right and scooped nachos onto her plate before staring pointedly at Chase. “Did Shelley say you’re ready for normal food?”

  Shelley was going to have an attack of the giggles right there and then. She wadded up a napkin and threw it at her sister. “What are you, his personal nurse? Stopping being mom.”

  “What? I’m not allowed to ask a question?”

  “Bossy pants.”

  “Troublemaker.”

  Bickering with Caroline made her smile. It had been too many days of not knowing if the inoculation was going to work or not. Wondering if Chase would ever wake up again.

  He tugged her tighter against his side and filled a plate with one hand. Either he was sticking close for that mutual-protection thing, or he really was claiming a bit of territory.

  He settled the plate in front of her. “Eat. You look like you’ve been sharing my IV.”

  Great. “Love that you think I’m so attractive,” she muttered, sinking a little farther into the couch.

  Chase ignored the wolves around them. Ignored that Jones had draped himself over the seat to Shelley’s right and had his muzzle resting on her thigh. He cupped her face in his hands and brought them so close together his warm breath fanned past her cheek.

  “You are beautiful. Inside and out.”

  He didn’t whisper, which wouldn’t have kept his comment private anyway, not with shifter hearing. Everyone in the place still would have heard him. But then he kissed her, drawing her mouth so tenderly against his and giving passionately. Like a blessing and a benediction all at once. She wrapped her arms around his neck and wiggled closer, slipping her tongue along his and breathing in his air. The scent of the wilderness and the taste of freedom—he carried them with him.

  The sense of being totally and fully alive welled up until she was ready to burst.

  Someone coughed, and she realized where she was. What she was doing. But hell if she was going to stop kissing him a second before she had to.

  Chase nipped at her bottom lip right before he tugged her hair gently to draw them apart. He was staring, his bright blue eyes looking straight through her, ignoring everyone else.

  His gaze dropped to her lips. “Beautiful.”

  She blushed again—she felt it in her face. The heat that covered her was so not wolfish, but maybe that was another thing she needed to acknowledge. She was wolf, but not. If she wanted to blush, she was allowed to blush. To feel pleasure in the compliments from a good-looking man who not only lit her senses on fire, but also made her heart come alive.

  “Thank you.” She touched his cheek briefly before twisting to face the crowd, her chin held high.

  Caroline’s mouth hung open a little, but her eyes were happy. Evan wore a smirk, plus his nothing can faze me expression. Shaun simply ate a chicken wing as the woman beside him turned to speak to Caroline.

  Chase linked their fingers together and tugged lightly. “I suppose I should apologize, but I’m not going to.”

  Evan leaned forward and grabbed a drink from the table. “If you’re talking to me, I saw nothing to apologize for.”

  “I meant Shelley. I should have asked if it was okay to be kissing her in public.”

  This time it was Shaun’s jaw hanging open. “Dude, you cats are weird creatures. Seriously.” The woman to his right slapped him on the arm. “Oww, what was that for?”

  “For being you.” She sat back and crossed her legs. “Ignore them, Shelley. Chase, how are you feeling? I’m Gem, the one responsible for hauling Shaun’s butt out of trouble most of the time. He doesn’t mean any harm, he’s just a puppy sometimes.”

  “Not housebroken?” Chase drawled.

  Evan choked on his drink. When he could speak again, he raised his glass in the air.

  “And on that note, welcome to a typical evening at the pack house. Where insults and happy fisticuffs are a common way of saying ‘I love you, you fucking asshole’.” He glared pointedly at Shaun who flipped him off. Evan laughed. “Yes, I’m talking about you, sweetheart. Hey, Chase, I wanted to mention. You did a good job taking care of the bear issue in your territory with a rather motley crew. Well done.”

  Chase nodded. “I still need details on what exactly it was that I was doing, other than bleeding.”

  Shelley laid her hand on his arm. “Remember Frank told you about getting some weird bear call to gather for the jamboree and that he ignored it?”

  Chase nodded. “Delton mentioned they’d tried to round up the outcasts before as well. Was that it, the bears?”

  “Yes, and no,” Evan cut in. “It was bad timing on both sides’ part, well, as much as a disease can have timing. The bears left Dawson about when you left the north. They were herding all the loners they could find south to be gathered up and shipped here to Whitehorse for the next set of votes.”

  “Still say bears are weird, dude. Voting to make decisions?”

  “Shut up, Shaun.” Evan said it like he’d said it a million times before. “However this disease started, it had already begun to spread through the shifter population of the north, including the bears. Turns out it hits their system differently than the rest of us. Increases their aggression, inhibits the reasoning sections of the brain.”

  Chase kept eating even as he listened, but now asked Shelley directly. “Did you say that inoculation you made crosses species? Does it work on the bears?”

  She nodded. “It’s looking positive so far. And the bear council is extremely pleased with you. First, your pack managed to stop a rogue group. Plus, you’ve probably saved their lives since the infected bears would have rolled right into Whitehorse. They could have started a pandemic amongst the entire bear shifter population with how many
clans are arriving in town the next couple weeks.”

  Chase shook his head. “The north is such a quiet place.”

  “And for that you should be thankful. They’d only managed to round up a couple dozen captives by the time the posse hit your territory. The men in your pack were more than enough to face them down.” Evan rose and reached into his pocket. “That reminds me. This is from the bear head council.”

  He passed over a cheque, and Shelley leaned against Chase’s arm to read it. She’d never seen that many numbers in her life, except on the Reader’s Digest sweepstakes ads.

  “Holy moly. What’s that about?”

  Chase shook the paper in the air. “Why the hell would they want to give me money?”

  Evan leaned back and relaxed, sprawled comfortably. “I’m not going to make any wild assumptions. Assumptions like the bears you caught before they could finish their rampage all turned out to belong to one of the least desirable clans of the entire bear population. Like maybe you having a small part in not allowing said group to get an upper hand in the next stage of votes was appreciated by more than a few people… Or maybe it has something to do with that small detail that you ended up being the cure for something that could have wiped out most of the shifter population in the north… But I’d hate to assume.”

  “I didn’t do anything special.”

  Chase made as if to tear up the cheque. Shelley laid a hand on his to stop him. “Think about it. This isn’t for you, it’s for the pack.”

  All eyes turned on her, and Shelley stiffened. Okay, maybe it wasn’t her place to say such a thing, but…but…

  Chase smiled, a slow melting smile that traveled from the corners of his mouth until she was staring at him, mesmerized. “You’re right. You’re absolutely right.”

  He tipped his head toward Evan. “Pass on our thanks.”

  Shelley finished eating, only partly listening to the continued conversations about politics—wolf and bear. She was far more interested in soaking in the heat from where Chase’s body touched hers. Her mind leapt from idea to idea about what should and could come next.

  She didn’t want him to leave, but she didn’t want to force him to stay. Asking him to stop being who he was, stop being there for the men of the north, would be far too selfish of her.

  A loud clatter rose from the front door, the wolves who’d answered the door shouting at someone who obviously wanted in.

  “What the hell?” Shaun was across the room and dealing with it, but conversations stopped to take in the disturbance.

  “I know they’re in here.”

  Frank’s deep voice was instantly recognizable, and Shelley shot to her feet. She and Chase headed to the door, Jones dogging her heels.

  “Look, go chase your bloody tail. I’m not budging until I see them.” The bear shifter was just settling his massive shoulders against the doorframe like an immovable brick wall as they rounded the corner into his view. “Hey, see, there’s what I mean. Move it, you mangy mutts.”

  Oh yes, Frank was so diplomatic.

  “Frank? What you doing this far south?” she asked, easing around one of the pack members who’d opened the door. The man sniffed and made a face before turning away.

  Frank’s huge grin flashed as he held up a set of keys. “Brought your car.”

  Chase laughed and leaned against Shelley’s side. “Told you hiding the keys would come in handy.”

  Shelley ignored him and stepped forward, squeezing Frank hard for a brief moment. “Thank you so much for doing that.”

  When she stepped back the big man was blinking hard. “Weren’t nothing. Wanted to see what the hell was up with Silver.”

  Chase nodded briefly. “Still kicking.”

  “Damn. Means I don’t get your cabin.”

  Shaun gestured into the pack house. “You want to join us? We got food.”

  Frank sniffed suspiciously before waving a hand. “Ate at the gas station.”

  Shaun raised a brow. “Really. You want a beer or two instead?”

  “Pfft. Beer.”

  The brief pause was barely noticeable. “Harder drinks? Something to relax you after your long drive?”

  Frank straightened off the wall, his grin spreading. “Well, if you insist, I might be able to at that. Stay a while, that is.” He eyed the room warily. “Is it safe, Silver?”

  Shelley heated with pride that Frank looked for assurance to his Alpha before coming in. She was on the verge of bursting, she was so happy and sad, and didn’t know what to think right now.

  She tugged on Chase’s arm and whispered she was going to the washroom, then slipped away for a moment of alone time.

  She’d done what she’d set out to do—she’d discovered a cure for Chase, and in the process found a group of people she truly admired. People who had made their way in the world against all odds and without approval.

  And they were doing just fine in the place they’d chosen.

  She stared out the window at the bright summer sky and tried to organize all the recent lessons she’d learned. What the things she’d learned about family and friendship and…love…really meant right here, and right now.

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Chase remained alert as they headed back to the corner with Frank. Shelley had vanished. He kept an eye on his friend, but whether it was Frank on his best behavior or Shaun on his worst, there wasn’t much difference in the language or jokes escaping the two rascals as they sat at the edge of the group and broke open the biggest damn bottle of rum Chase had ever seen.

  He wondered if he should warn the wolves about Frank’s drinking capabilities, but figured this was one of those things that would work itself out in the end.

  The ladies of the group rearranged themselves, letting the guys take over most of the space. Bullshit stories and voices grew louder, and Chase listened in, but kept a lookout for Shelley. She seemed to be taking the longest time.

  Something wasn’t right.

  Didn’t feel right.

  His body itched, almost as bad as when the bears had approached. The sense of other telling him to be careful.

  He found himself on his feet and headed back toward the door. Caroline rose to march at his side.

  “You took good care of Shelley while you were gone. Thank you.”

  Chase snorted. “Yeah, such good care she got menaced by a bear, attacked by a puma, stolen by a wolf, and then had to draw me back from being nearly dead with her sheer willpower.”

  Caroline rocked to a stop. “Really?” She leaned closer. “Really? Dammit, the girl didn’t tell me a word of that stuff.”

  Shit. “Well…”

  A loud crash rang out. A picture skittered across the floor followed by a small side table. A decorative vase shattered a second before Shelley landed on the broken pieces.

  Chase saw red.

  Incredibly, Caroline responded faster than him. She tore forward and in a second had the two shifters who were standing and jeering at Shelley by the necks and slammed face first into the wall. “What the hell do you think you’re doing?”

  One of the wolves all but squeaked in fear. “She’s mutant. Can’t you smell it?”

  “It’s Caroline, you idiot, she can’t smell like a wolf,” the other moaned.

  Caroline smacked their heads together. “Don’t need to smell to be able to know you’re both assholes. Stand up and shut up.”

  Chase had Shelley on her feet, the area around them now crowded with bodies.

  The two wolves turned their faces from Caroline, fear in their body language. “She doesn’t belong.”

  Caroline stepped forward. “You bet she belongs. My sister can go where she wants to go, you got it?”

  “Sister?”

  “Shit.”

  The two backed up, cocky attitudes completely vanished. “No problem. Of course your sister is welcome.”

  The idiots retreated, moving closer to where Chase and Shelley stood, obviously far more afraid of Caroline th
an they were of anyone else. Chase growled—his anger escaped unintentionally, but damn if he would let that kind of behavior be accepted.

  Like hell would Shelley belong just because Caroline said so.

  He opened his mouth to suggest they get the fuck out when Shelley pushed herself free and blocked the two chastised wolves’ path.

  “No. No, you’re right. You have every right to question why I’m here.”

  Caroline sighed. “Honey, don’t worry. I’ve got this under control.”

  Shelley shook her head. “This isn’t about you. This isn’t about you being strong enough to make a place in a pack of wolves so that when I show up you can force them to accept me. Because that’s not about me. That’s you. And damn it, if I’ve learned one thing these past days, it’s that I do not need to be ashamed of who I am. I do not have to strive to be something I’m not because what I am is pretty incredible in my own bloody way.”

  The circle widened, everyone giving Shelley space as she faced the wolves who’d pushed her around. “You aren’t the first to trip me up, but dammit, you’re going to be the last. Because you are wrong. I’m not a mutant. I’m not something less than you. I’m something different, and that means I’ve got skills and abilities and experiences that you can’t possibly know.”

  The wolves lowered their chins, unable to look her in the eye.

  Shelley nodded, widened her stance and turned to face Caroline. “And you. Lord, Caroline, you are so determined to make me happy, you miss what makes me the happiest—when you just love me. Not when you do things for me, not when you wrangle your way into sleeping with the Alpha to set up a safe haven for me to come home to.”

  Behind them Evan groaned, but he didn’t speak. Caroline’s face flushed, but she didn’t say a word either.

  Shelley twisted again, this time to focus her bright eyes in Chase’s direction. He held his breath. It seemed Shelley was on a roll, and it was his turn. What sin had he been guilty of?

  Her mouth twitched as she fought a smile. “Even you, although I trust your motivation about the best of the lot, but that he-man Alpha thing? I swear if another one of the Keno shifters refers to me solely as ‘the Alpha’s woman’ or ‘Silver’s treasure’ again, I will start conducting castrations.”