He nodded and bent down, never taking his eyes off me and Nash, before rising again with the basket. He picked up a light blue ball and handed it to me. “This is chalk. I learned to make it after my mates and I adopted twin novuses. You can write with it.” He pointed to a few stones that lined the front garden. “Go head, try it out.”
I rolled the ball in my hand, which left a pale blue powder on my fingers. I bent over and ran the ball along the stone, writing my name. The dense, packed powder of the ball rasped along the stone, leaving behind my name scrawled in blue. I peered up at Nash. “Mav will love this stuff.”
“Told you,” he said.
I scowled at him, then wrote “B+N” on another rock. I stood up and smirked at him, and he rolled his eyes. I juggled the ball in my hand. “I’ll take a dozen of these,” I told the wolf. “What can I give you in return?”
He shook his head, holding his hands out. “Oh no, nothing. They cost me nothing to make but labor, and I understand your pack plans to help ours so…” He kept shaking his head. “Nothing. Please.”
I’d have to have Dal and Vaughn drop something off later. “Okay, well thank you very much. My nephew especially will love these.”
He smiled, seemingly grateful I was happy. “I’m so glad. If you need more, I can send some anytime.”
When we walked away from his hut, I was a dozen pieces of chalk heavier. He’d even given me a black fabric bag to hold them all. “Thanks for leading me to his hut.”
Nash rolled his shoulders. “Of course. Glad his mates weren’t home. Saw them once and they are possessive as hell of him.”
“Males?”
He nodded.
Back when I was a novus, we’d had several poly matings in our pack, but we hadn’t had any new ones in a few years. “He seems sweet, so good for him. So now we eat and make the journey home, yeah?”
“Guess that’s the plan.” His muscles were tense, his jaw set. I wanted him to be happy about going home, but he was anything but. I was tempted to argue with him again, but I needed food in my belly first. I had time before we got home to get to the bottom of whatever was going on Nash’s head.
If he let me.
Something solid hit my leg and I looked down to see a ball rolling away. A couple of feet away, two small novuses—probably not older than five—stood watching me, their eyes wide, as another half-dozen novuses stood beyond them, like they didn’t dare to get too close to me.
The two novuses—girls—glanced back at their friends as I stooped down and palmed the ball with one hand. “Look, Nash, a ball.”
He watched me with a furrowed brow, like he was unsure what I’d do. “I see that.”
“I guess we can keep this, right? I don’t see anyone around.” I scanned the area, purposefully not looking at the novuses. One began to make a tittering sound, like a giggle.
I bounced the ball off my knee, then the top of my foot, and it sailed toward Nash. He trapped it cleanly with his foot before kicking it back to me.
“Nice ball,” Nash said. “I’m sure whoever lost it is pretty sad about it.”
“Devastated, I’m sure.” I kicked it back to him, and I loved the gleam in his eye.
One of the novuses came closer. “It’s ours!” she yelled, her voice carrying loudly and drawing a shushed admonishment from her friend.
I flipped the ball up with my toe and caught it in my palm. “This one?” I asked.
She nodded furiously. She was barefoot, wearing a simple shift dress, her long dark hair in waves down to her elbows. A smudge of dirt was streaked on her cheek, and her knees were scuffed up.
“Would you like it back?” I spun it on my finger.
She watched me and her fingers twitched, like she wanted to try the move. “Yes.”
“Yes? Just yes?” I was used to Cati hammering Mav on his manners.
She swallowed. “Yes!”
Her friend nudged her with a sharp elbow.
“I mean, yes please!” she corrected, her cheeks coloring.
With a laugh, I tossed it to her. She caught it cleanly, but didn’t make a move to dart away. I raised an eyebrow at her. “You okay?”
“Can you show me how to do that thing?” She gestured to my hand. “The ball spinning on your finger?”
I handed Nash the chalk, which he took with a silent nod. I spent some time with the little girl, teaching her how to hold her finger taut, spin the ball, and balance it on the tip. It took her a couple of tries, but by the time she had it down, we’d attracted a crowd of novuses, all who wanted to learn.
On a roll now, I showed them how to bounce the ball on their foreheads, which lead to a few bruised novus noses, but eventually they were able to do it with no injuries.
I managed to extricate myself a little bit later to look for Nash. He wasn’t where I’d left him standing holding the chalk bag. A deep murmured voice drew my attention, and I followed the sound to the side of the main building. Nash was crouched down next to a boy novus—who was maybe ten—their heads bent together as they drew on the stone wall.
I crept closer as silently as I could. The drawings were numbers—they were doing math. Nash had always loved numbers—they were constant and made sense to him—while I preferred to roughhouse and get into trouble and make up stories. We were night and day, really, which was why I always knew we’d complement each other.
Nash’s voice was deep and soothing, and the little boy crossed out a number, then wrote another. Nash nodded, his big hand patting the boy on the shoulder. The boy looked up at his Were teacher with adoration.
My heart squeezed. I pictured Nash at home, helping G teach the little ones math and science while I worked out on the training grounds. We’d meet for dinner, and I’d be sweaty, and Nash would be tired from a long day with novuses, but he wouldn’t be able to keep his hands off me.
I knew that the Nash now wasn’t the Nash he was then, but I liked this Nash too. The one who’d seen things and fought so hard to survive, the one who’d have so much to teach novuses. The one who’d I’d spend my every waking moment taking care of—ensuring he was happy he’d lived. I vowed that Nash’s life would be peaceful and happy from here on out, even if he didn’t spend that life with me.
I stepped closer, this time stamping my feet a bit so they’d hear me. Nash glanced up, his gaze locking with mine immediately.
“How’s class going?” I asked, going for levity.
Nash opened his palm to show a half-used piece of chalk. “I hope you don’t mind I used this. I saw him using a stick in the dirt and thought this would be easier for him to see.”
I waved away his concern. “Of course I don’t mind. Let him have it.” I pointed to the bag at Nash’s side. “I got all of those.” Like I was going to argue with him for wanting to teach a novus math.
The little boy murmured a thanks to Nash, then to me, then ducked his head and ran off to join his friends. Nash rose to his feet with a wince that he tried to conceal.
“Hey, you all right?” I asked.
“Compared to how I was? I’m great. Just a few aches left.” His gaze drifted behind me to where the novuses were playing with the ball. “Do you spend a lot of time with novuses in the pack?”
I shrugged. “It’s not my job, no. But I like playing with them. Mav’s getting older and he’s fun as hell, as are his friends.” I followed his gaze to see the young ones racing across the dirt after the runaway ball. “I figure if we don’t value and take care of the young ones, why are we even bothering, you know? What’s the point in continuing to go on?”
I turned to see Nash watching me carefully. His hand lifted, and he ran the back of his knuckles ever so lightly down the front of my throat. It was a simple touch, feather-light, but my skin prickled, my heart raced, and I had trouble swallowing because of my suddenly dry throat.
I’d never reacted to anyone like I did with Nash. I tried to imagine Nash with another Were, him touching them, them touching him, and my pulse pounded in my ears. I had to k
now, and I wasn’t known for keeping my thoughts to myself. “All this time, did anyone else ever make you feel like us?”
His gaze was heavy lidded as he dropped his hand back to his side and met my eyes. “You know the answer to that, Bay.”
“Do I?”
He stepped closer, so his chest brushed mine, so his breath fell across my face in a hot blast. “You want me to say it.”
I clenched my fists to keep from reaching out to him. “Yeah. I do.”
“Then, no. No one else even came close to us.”
He walked by me, his shoulder knocking into mine so I rocked back on my heels. I squeezed my eyes shut and counted to ten, wanting that answer, but at the same time, wishing he’d had someone all these years to keep him company. Sure I’d missed him, but I hadn’t been miserable. I’d had partners I’d enjoyed spending time with. Had Nash had anyone at all? Or had he suffered all alone?
Despite my selfish urges and possessiveness over Nash, I still wished he hadn’t been alone. Maybe that would be a question for tomorrow.
Chapter Seven
I rubbed at the back of my hand, where shiny oil swirled the fine hair. Pace had said that they’d recently found traces of a Nowere pack nearby, and, although he suspected it had moved on, he wasn’t taking any chances. So we were all rubbed down with ruebane. Vaughn, for once, didn’t grumble. He stood shirtless, flexing his pecs and biceps, marveling out loud at how the sun shone off his “chiseled body.” He was ridiculous.
The pack on my back was designed to stay in place as I shifted. Inside was food, the chalk, and spare changes of clothes for Nash and I. He didn’t have a pack, and I didn’t want him to carry the extra weight, anyway. He complained that he was capable, but I ignored him.
Dal was ready, standing quietly at the gates, while Pace spoke to his two pack members who would be traveling with us. Baron was a large werewolf with a broad chest, his features sharp and skin slightly darker than mine. His eyes were so dark they were almost black, and he never took his eyes off Pace. His loyalty was evident in every line of his body.
Tati was a petite wolf, even for a female, but I suspected she was fast and agile. Even now, she held a short staff and spun it in her hand effortlessly as she listened to Pace’s instructions.
Nash stood next to me, so close that our shoulders brushed. His long hair was slicked back into a small knot at the base of his skull. I couldn’t believe how much better he looked after only a short time, since that night I’d burst into his hut. He’d always been a sleek Were, and his sinewy muscles flexed beneath his skin.
The pack stood behind us, gathered and waiting for their alpha to make an announcement. Pace finished talking to Baron and Tati and strode to the front of the crowd. It was odd not to see any elders in the pack. They’d all died, and so all that was left were werewolves Pace’s age and younger.
“I’m proud of this pack,” Pace’s voice boomed over the gathering. “I’m proud of all of you. We’ve come so far from the day of the attack, but we’ve survived and worked hard to remake our home.”
Nods rippled throughout the crowd.
“But I can’t let my pride be the reason this pack suffers.” Vara stepped next to him, and they stood shoulder to shoulder. “Bay is the brother to the Silver Tip pack alpha, and the alpha’s mate is Reese, a former Whitethroat.” Several gasps followed that statement, as well as a cry. “Yes, Reese has survived, and I look forward to seeing him and returning to tell you about his life. Bay has offered to open up trade between our packs. They have crops and livestock, all of which we need if we’re going to continue to sustain the growth of this pack. So along with Baron and Tati, I’m traveling to the Silver Tip pack to discuss trade.” There were quiet murmurs among the crowd, but the sound died quickly as Pace continue to speak. “In my absence, Vara will be the alpha. I hope you understand this is something I have to do as your alpha and for my love of this pack.”
We stood by patiently as werewolf after werewolf walked up to Pace to thank him and wish him well. Tati waved to each one, while Baron only nodded if he was acknowledged.
When the pack began to return to their homes, Pace turned to his sister with wet eyes that he wiped at. “You’ll be okay?”
Vara patted his cheek. “You know I will, brother. I worry more for you than for me. Be safe and be smart.”
He nodded, and then she turned to me. Her face was expressionless, but her voice was a firm threat. “If anything happens to him by your hand or that of your pack, know that I will hunt you down and you will pay in ways you can’t imagine.”
Nash stiffened next to me, and I brushed the back of his hand with mine. I knew about sibling love. “I understand, Vara.”
She nodded and then, with a squeeze to her brother’s hand, she walked away, her long skirt kicking up clouds of dust.
“She’s intense,” Vaughn muttered.
“Fuck you,” Pace spat. “You wouldn’t know loyalty and love if it was shoved up your ass.”
Vaughn’s face instantly contorted and he stepped into Pace’s space, sneering down at him. “You don’t know me, brat. You have no idea what I’ve done for loyalty and love.”
“Vaughn,” I began, worried a fight was going to break out before we even left the compound.
Vaughn turned away, spitting on the ground and wiping his mouth with the back of his hand.
I glanced worriedly at Dal, and she was as concerned as I was, frowning at Vaughn’s back. He was my friend, but he’d always been a mystery to me. A jokester who didn’t take anything too seriously, at least that’s the way he appeared to be. He hadn’t found a mate, but fucked just about anything he wanted. I had always thought he was happy that way, seeking intimacy with others since he’d shown up at our gates alone as a novus seeking refuge. We all kind of assumed Vaughn loved himself most of all, but below the surface, who knew where his loyalties lay other than to his adopted pack?
All I knew was Pace had touched a nerve in Vaughn, a Were typically unbothered by anyone, and even the wolf looked a little shaken up as he watched Vaughn carefully. Finally he blew out a breath and turned to me, his face still clouded. “Ready?”
“We’re ready.”
“You said about five days, right?”
“Yeah, and with a group this size, we might be better off shifting for some of the harder terrain.”
“Werewolf form?” he asked.
I nodded. “Were form is mostly for fighting—offense and defense. We want to get somewhere fast? We move on four legs.”
He smiled at that. “Sounds good. Let’s get out of the immediate area on two legs, then we’ll really cover some distance on four.”
I rubbed my hands together. “That’s a plan.”
Chatter was light as we started off, especially after the argument between Vaughn and Pace. Vaughn led the group along with Dal. Nash and I were in the middle, with Pace, Baron, and Tati bringing up the rear. Separating the Were and werewolf like naughty novuses was apparently the way to go, because we didn’t have an incident all day.
The sun had begun to set when I first caught a whiff of Nowere stench. My initial reaction was panic, followed quickly by a bit of eager anticipation. I wanted to know how well this ruebane shit worked, and when I caught Vaughn’s eye, he winked at me. Dare always said that was why we were friends—we were both crazy fuckers.
Pace signaled for us to huddle around him and he talked quickly and quietly as the sound of the Noweres’ shuffling drifted closer to us. There was no chatter, that eerie sound that they made when they smelled prey. Because they didn’t smell us. Already the ruebane was making an impression on me. “They rely on smell, so with ruebane as a blocker, you’ll be like a squirrel to them. If you want to move, move slow. Any sharp movements could draw their attention or let some of your scent loose. Don’t touch them. If we stand together and wait for the pack to pass, that’s our best bet.” He glared at Vaughn. “We’re not trying to tempt fate here. Listen to what I’m saying.”
“I listened, asshole,” Vaughn shot back.
Pace straightened and faced the direction of the pack. Baron and Tati stood flanking him. Her spear was tucked into her harness on her back, while Baron’s hand rested gently on the hilt of a knife strapped to his side.
Vaughn shifted his weight from foot to foot, craning his neck to catch a glimpse of the pack through the trees.
Nash stepped closer to me and slipped his fingers into mine. “Please don’t move, Bay.”
“Pace said—”
He stepped in front of me, still gripping my hand. “I’m asking you to stay still and be safe. Please.”
His gaze was imploring, and I snapped my mouth shut. He was worried, and after all he’d been through, I wasn’t about to give him a heart attack. “Okay.”
He nodded just as the first Nowere came lumbering into the clearing. They weren’t dormant, but they weren’t in hunting mode either. The first one only had half a skull, the wound seeping with blood, pus, and brain matter. He walked with his head tilted to the side, like he wanted to keep in the rest of his useless brain. The sight of the gore never fazed me. My mother used to say that she wanted me to react to it, that it was a sign of humanity, but I figured there were other things about me that reflected my human side.
Like love.
I stared into Nash’s eyes as the first Nowere passed, shuffling by Pace and his wolves as if they weren’t there at all. He drew closer to us, and I held my breath as his one good eye saw right through us. Right through us.
Out of the corner of my eye, I watched Vaughn raise his hands slowly, bringing them up and out, a huge grin on his face as two Noweres walked in front of him without even a look.
When I turned back to Nash, he still hadn’t taken his eyes off me, his expression hard to read. I mouthed, “Can we make a sound?”
“Whisper,” he said.
“This works.” That was all I wanted to say—my awe was that great.
Nash’s lips twitched. “It does. Well.”
“The pack isn’t that big. Maybe a dozen.”
Chasing Destiny (Silver Tip Pack Book 2) Page 7