Wounded Bear (Whiteheart Clan Book 2)

by Chloe Peterson

"Give her enough time and she will," Jade called, before heading to the open plan living room to watch TV.

  "Would you look at that? Jade's finally right about something. I knew you had it in you." Giselle blew a kiss in Jade's direction, and the green-eyed woman lifted up her middle finger in response.

  "Wow." Emma chuckled. "You guys like to keep things lively around here."

  "That's what happens when you get a bunch of women in one house."

  "Why do you all live together? It sounds like you all have jobs and Rowan has a mate, which I'm assuming is a wife."

  Giselle placed her elbows on the kitchen table and grinned. "We're a clan. You may not understand it, but we're like family. No, closer than that. We live together to stay safe. The Whitehearts are new, and we started off with a bang.

  "A bunch of guys tried to kidnap Eva; then a powerful clan put out a contract for her." Giselle shook her head. "It sounds like a movie, but it was real. Boy, those were the days. But, on the bright side, you've brought some action back into our lives. So, thank you for that."

  Emma winced. "I wouldn't call having an assassin out to kill me a positive."

  "Sorry." Giselle bit her lip. "I put my foot in that one. I just miss getting to put my fighting skills to use. Don't get me wrong. I support the Whiteheart mission of creating a safe, peaceful place for any shifters that would like to join us. But I didn't think things would be so quiet."

  Emma tilted her head. "Why don't you work with Jade and Rowan? It sounds like they get plenty of action."

  "It's not all action. They have more quiet days than fun ones." Giselle sniffed. "Besides, patrolling isn't my thing. Jade's the kind of person that's boring enough to do that kind of thing day in and out."

  "I do it too. Am I boring?" Rowan asked, walking back into the kitchen.

  "Of course not. But you talk to Jason and come up with plans and that kind of stuff." Giselle waved a dismissive hand in Rowan's direction. "Jade just follows you around."

  The room went silent, and Emma turned to see Jade get up from her position on the couch, placing the remote on the coffee table, before walking out and slamming the door.

  Emma wanted to run after the older woman to make sure she was okay, but she knew the connection she and Jade had had somehow been severed. Her advance would not be welcomed.

  Rowan sighed. "Why do you keep making jabs when you know Jade isn't a hundred percent right now?"

  Emma's ears perked up. It appeared she wasn't off base. Jade really was a lot warmer than she was currently acting.

  Giselle shrugged. "It's our thing. We fight. It's always in good fun, but now, nothing I say will get her to stop and have a proper conversation."

  "Are you sure you don't have a crush on Jade?" Rowan teased, rubbing Giselle's short hair.

  'Hey! Don't touch the hair." Giselle shoved away and glared at Rowan. "You know Jade and I are probably the closest out of all of us, which is weird because we fight so much, but its true."

  Rowan's smile fell. "I'm sorry I didn't realize how hard all of this was on you. If you need to talk..."

  Giselle scoffed and got up. "I swear, ever since you and Eva got together, you've turned into a pile of mush. I'm not going into a depression. I miss my best bud, is all."

  Rowan turned to Emma and smiled. "Welcome to the family fun."

  "It looks like you're the momma bear trying to keep it all together."

  Rowan shook her head. "That's Mara. I'm just filling in while she's at work." Rowan held up her keys. "I've got to head off, but I'll be back in the afternoon to talk about your situation. I already asked Jason to put out some feelers and find out if anyone found the body you saw. Is that okay?"

  Emma nodded and smiled tightly. "It's perfect."

  When Rowan left, her shoulders slumped. She didn't have a phone to contact her mother with. And even if she asked Giselle or Brooke for one, she probably wouldn't get one. Rowan had made it very clear to her the day before that she would have to go dark until they came up with a solid plan. Emma couldn't see anyone going against her orders.

  If Emma wanted a phone, she could leave the Whiteheart home, and walk straight into potential danger, or she could wait for Rowan and try to convince the gray-eyed woman that she needed to at least warn her mother about Derek, if not get her entirely.

  Emma decided the second option was her best bet.

  "Hey guys," Rowan called as she walked into the living room late that afternoon.

  "Hey," Emma and Giselle responded. Jade, once again, waved before walking past them.

  "Everything okay?" Giselle asked when Rowan fell back into the armchair.

  "Yeah. Just a long day. We had a wolf go loose, and Jason wasn't around. That meant I had to shift and fly all over the forest, hunting for this itty-bitty speck on the ground. I'm exhausted."

  "Then you'll be a perfect TV mate for Emma." Giselle got up. "It's time for me to head into work. I have a lot of prep to do."

  Emma smiled. Her day spent with Giselle had been a lot of fun. She could see why Jade responded to Giselle more out of all the women.

  The wolf shifter could be quite insistent. That combined with the fact that her brain jumped from topic to topic lightning fast, made for a fun time.

  "You didn't have to keep me company," Emma said. "I understand that you all have lives."

  "Oh, but it's part of my charm." Giselle winked before leaving.

  "I swear that girl's going to flirt with the wrong woman one day and get her face smashed in."

  "I heard that," Giselle yelled from the top of the stairs.

  Emma chuckled. "She is pretty special."

  "That she is." Rowan sat up and placed her elbows on her knees. "Look. I know the way we left things couldn't have been easy for you, but I want you to know we're doing everything we can for you. Before I get started, is there anything you want to say?"

  Emma crossed her legs under her. "Yeah. I'd like to call my mom. I thought about it again, and it seems like she and Derek haven't been seeing each other that long. I seriously doubt they see each other every day. If I could warn her, then maybe she could leave town before he returns for another visit."

  Rowan sighed. "I wish it were that easy, but it seems the Eboncloak are a lot more powerful than I thought. Jason found a report of a dead body, mauled by a wolf and dumped in an alleyway in Conventon. The report said that these types of attacks are rare, but that they do happen from time to time. If I had to guess, I'd say the Eboncloaks have the cops in their pocket."

  "I own this city," Emma mumbled, repeating Derek's words. She uncurled her legs from beneath her and sunk into the couch, shutting her eyes as she did so. This nightmare was only getting worse.

  Emma had lived her entire life in Conventon and never heard of a single wolf sighting, let alone attack. This was the work of someone evil, and if Derek had the cops in his back pocket, then they would all be on the lookout for her.

  "I'm sorry, Emma," Rowan said, but all Emma felt was numbness. She needed to get her mother away from Derek, but her options were limited, and Rowan didn't seem eager to take a bold risk.

  Emma couldn't even blame her. She was a perfect stranger to Rowan. Why should she bring heat to the happy little space they'd carved out for themselves?

  "I can't just leave my mother with him. Especially without warning." Emma clenched her jaw as she forced the words out. She'd always been a fighter, and right now she'd fight for her mother. Shamelessly if need be.

  God, why didn't I think to pass by her place and get her? she thought.

  "I know, and I promise you I'm working on that. I can see how badly you want to go. I saw it this morning when you first came down to breakfast." Rowan scooted forward in her seat. "I am working on a plan that will keep you and your mother safe while making sure my clan and I don't get killed in the process.

  "The Eboncloak are powerful and wealthy. They could send out a contract for you. You won't get to your mother in time if you decide to leave this house alone. Der
ek probably asked your mother if she heard from you the moment you ran away. I bet you he'll ask her again. If you call her, then she'll say yes. Then she'll really get mixed up in this mess. I know you don't want that."

  Emma felt her stomach harden and her blood pressure kick up the more Rowan spoke. Rowan was trying to lay everything out on the table for Emma to make her case, but Emma was getting frustrated with the lack of action. She'd been up all last night thinking through this exact process.

  While the odds didn't look good on paper, she needed to get both she and her mother out of Conventon. That was the end game, and all she wanted to hear were plans to achieve it. Not in-depth analyses.

  "Please give me a little more time," Rowan continued. "I'm doing the best I can. We all are. What we can't afford is to make a bad situation worse. Can you give me twenty-four hours? With the team busy with work, it's hard to get everyone together for a good brainstorming."

  Emma shot up and threw her hands in the air. "Fuck your brainstorming! An assassin is after me, and my mother, who thinks he's her boyfriend, is firmly in his grip. If you won't do anything to help me, then at least spare me your carefully planned speech. I don't need to hear it. I already thought about everything you've mentioned. This is my real life, not another side project for your clan," Emma spat.

  She ran up the stairs, past a frozen Jade and straight to her room. Slamming the door behind her, she threw herself on her bed and let the tears come. Her shoulders shook as guilt ravaged her mind.

  It's my fault, she thought. I brought all of this about with my codependency issues, and I can't find a way to fix it. All I can do is yell at a woman that's been nothing but kind to me. What is wrong with me?

  6

  Jade waited ten minutes before she walked to Emma's room and knocked on the door. She had been having a difficult time with the anniversary that would fall tomorrow, and she had been blind to what Emma might have been dealing with. While Jade had the utmost confidence in her clan, the blonde woman didn't know them enough to feel the same.

  "Come in," a quiet voice called.

  Jade pried the door open quietly, then poked her head in. "It's me."

  Emma sighed. "Oh, thank god! I'm not ready to face Rowan right now."

  "You shouldn't worry about that." Jade walked into the room and sat a respectable distance away from Emma when the younger woman indicated that she should do so.

  "Why, is she Gandhi or something?"

  Jade smiled. "No. But Rowan has dealt with a lot of personalities, especially back at her old clan. She's the kind of person that lets things roll off her shoulder. Ever since she and Eva got together, that ability has only grown." Jade scoffed. "Who knew being in love was a positive personality pill."

  "Not me, that's for sure."

  Jade raised an eyebrow. "You've never been in love?"

  "Nope. I've never even had a proper relationship. I never had time for that with my mom."

  Jade saw her opening to establish trust with Emma and decided to dive head first into the conversation. Secretly, she wanted to learn more about this beautiful woman she couldn't have.

  "Tell me about her. It sounded like she's been going through a difficult period."

  Emma snorted. "Only since my father died over twenty years ago. I don't remember much, but that's what my sister told me. She said Mom was a happy, sober person before Dad died. Then she went into a depression and never really came out of it.

  "Amy, that's my sister, left home as soon as she turned eighteen. I was twelve, and I had to grow up first. Whenever mom came home drunk having pissed herself, I helped get her changed. When she passed out on the front porch, too drunk to come inside, I was the one that went and got her."

  Jade tutted. "Wow. That sounds intense."

  "IT was." Emma smiled sadly. "But she's my mom. I can't leave her."

  "It must have taken quite the toll on you."

  Emma pulled her shoulders back and took a deep breath. "It did, which is why I moved out and put some distance between us. Mom is still an alcoholic that refuses to get help, but I leave her to deal with the repercussions of that. She's survived so far, so I'm not too guilty. I mostly handle the big stuff. Whatever big is when you're dealing with an alcoholic. Overdoses, rent, and getting rid of bad boyfriends."

  "Which is how you met Derek."

  Emma nodded. "I knew there was something off about him the moment I met him. I should have thought things through. If I had, we wouldn't be in this mess." Emma looked up and shook her head. "But instead of doing what any logical daughter would, I had to play the investigator."

  Jade wrapped an arm around Emma's shoulder and gave her a comforting squeeze. "You did what anyone in your situation would have done. Didn't you say you'd spied on one of her exes and caught him before."

  "I did. But I was tempting fate then, and my card finally got called." Emma stared at her feet. "Rowan wants me to stick to our original plan of not contacting my mom or leaving the house. I know it makes sense logically, but I'm finding it hard to sit still and wait for you guys to come up with a plan. If anything ever happened to my mom..."

  "Don't even think about that." Jade pulled Emma into a side hug and held on a few seconds longer than average. When they broke away, she locked eyes with Emma. Gone was the need to make sure Ema didn't do anything rash. Now, she wanted to make sure Emma felt as good as she possibly could under the current circumstances.

  "Rowan hates making promises she can't keep, and so do I. I will promise you that we will do everything we can to make sure both you and your mom are safe. Shifters all have animal instincts, and when we get emotional, they take over.

  "Derek is a shifter. We're not supposed to hang around humans much, let alone date them. He was already breaking the rules by doing that. He's not the alpha of his clan, so that means he could get in trouble. Right, now, he's scrambling trying to find you.

  "Derek doesn't want his clan to find out about how he slipped up. That's a good thing. It means he'll probably make a rash decision. That he won't think things through. Given enough time, he'll make a move, and when he does, we want to be ready to respond swiftly. That's what all this waiting is for."

  Emma sighed. "On a logical level, I get it, but on an emotional one, I'm wracked by guilt."

  "I know what's that like."

  Jade thought of Danny and their last day together. They'd been planning a trip to the movies that Friday. Danny had already come up with a plan for them to sneak out, and hitch a ride.

  By that time, Jade had come to terms with her shifter identity and had even confided in Jade about it. She was open and carefree. Jade was a teenager with hopes and dreams. Then she'd gotten too comfortable, and everything changed.

  No, a voice deep down inside said. You ruined everything.

  A wave of self-hatred crashed into Jade, and she stood up abruptly. Her pulse raced, and adrenaline shot through her veins. She needed to take off and do something before she gave into the darkness.

  "What's wrong?" Emma asked, frowning. "You spaced out for a second.

  Jade stared at the door, her feet eager to leave. Then she glanced at Emma. Seeing her blue eyes wide with concern, Jade took a deep breath and forced herself to calm down.

  "Let's go for a walk."

  "Excuse me?"

  Jade nodded. "Yeah. A walk. You've been cooped up inside for hours. You must want to stretch your legs, and maybe get some fresh air."

  Emma stood up and smiled. "That would be nice. Am I allowed to?"

  Jade shrugged. 'I don't see why not. You're not in prison, you know. You just can't wander off where someone may see you. Besides, you're with me. Patrolling is my thing, apparently," Jade said, imitating Giselle.

  Emma laughed. "You two are just like sisters."

  "We're nothing alike. And the fact that you'd compare us seriously offends me."

  Emma leaned forward and flicked Jade's nose. "That's what a sister would say. I should know, I have one. We're like night and day, to
o."

  "Ouch." Jade rubbed her nose and glared at Emma. "That wasn't very nice."

  "What? Can't a big bad bear take a little flick?"

  Jade rolled her eyes and left the room with Emma on her heels. "Don't spend to much time with Giselle. There's already too many of her in the world."

  "The same goes for you, green-eyes," Giselle called, walking down her stairs.

  "Damn wolf ears," Jade muttered. She turned to see Emma with a hand over her mouth, her shoulders heaving gently.

  Something about seeing the younger woman happy after she'd been so upset warmed Jade's heart. She had something to do with making Emma happy. She vowed then and there to let Emma tease her as much as she wanted. It was all worth it, as long as she got to see that light behind those beautiful blue eyes.

  "Whoa!" Giselle yelled from downstairs. Jade quickly followed the noise and found a harried-looking Mara stepping into the living room. The two women must have bumped into each other on the way in.

  "What's going on?" Rowan asked, gently pushing Eva off her lap, standing up to face her second.

  "I've got news. Where's Brooke?"

  "Right here," Brooke called walking out of the office with her arms up in a stretch. She'd been setting up the website for her online shop, and the activity had been taking up most of her days. Jade wondered how much of that had to do with the difficulty of the task, and how much had to do with Brooke missing her best friend.

  "Good. You all need to sit down for this. Emma especially."

  Jade unconsciously placed a hand on the small of Emma's back and led her to the couch.

  "This had better be worth me getting marked for another late start."

  Jade rolled her eyes. "You're always late. This is more important than that."

  Giselle mouthed the word "whatever."

  "Enough with the bickering guys," Mara said, in her motherly tone. "On my way out of the bakery, I saw a guy putting up posters. More importantly, missing person posters with Emma's face on them."

  Jade felt Emma stiffen beside her, and her skin tingled as the information sunk in. Derek was playing his hand carelessly by putting up his poster in the Central, which was a human territory. It seemed he didn't care about the rules that shifters had lived by for centuries.