Skin Walkers: Monroe

by Bliler, Susan

  Unable to help the smirk that twisted his lips, Monroe simply allowed it. “They’re fine. As usual.”

  Eden frowned, “As usual?”

  “You ask every time you wake up. The situation hasn’t changed any. The kids are fine.”

  “I wouldn’t be much of a mother if I didn’t ask.”

  “They’re safe, angel. Trust me.”

  “Trust you?” she scoffed ignoring the endearment, “I don’t even know you.”

  Reclaiming his seat, he spread his legs and leaned forward to rest his elbows on his knees. “What would you like to know?”

  As if she’d been waiting for the invitation, Eden didn’t hesitate. “Why am I here? Why are you trying to take care of me…of us?”

  Now was his chance to get his story straight. “I’m not sure how much you remember, but I was the one who found you. How you survived those two morons, a grizzly, a wounded wolf, and a damn bear trap I don’t know. I was waiting for your truck to pass by the cabin and when it didn’t I decided to go looking for you.”

  There was a knock at the door and annoyance bunched the CEO’s brows together as he growled, “Enter!”

  A slight woman with short black hair cut into a sleek bob entered carrying a covered tray. She wore faded jeans and a t-shirt emblazoned with a letter ‘B’ inside a circle that Monroe had been taught was the symbol for a hockey team called the Boston Bruins. Cindy KillsPrettyEnemy was one of only a handful of humans that were employed at StoneCrow. It was a risk having them onsite, but with so many Walkers and so few skilled to perform any menial labor, Monroe had no choice but to hire outside his kind. The woman was mated to the lone Indigenous Walker at StoneCrow, RedKinfe KillsPrettyEnemy.

  “Set it on the table, Cindy.”

  Cindy was the bartender at the Crows Nest, the estate’s lone tavern that was on the top floor of the main estate house. When she wasn’t bartending she often assisted the kitchen staff in the large cafeteria, or the restaurant staff at the penthouse’s fine dining establishment.

  Wordlessly, Cindy carried the tray to the table, left it, and exited the room.

  Monroe liked the woman. She was a hard worker who didn’t ask questions. If only everyone on the estate was as willing to do as they were told. He had to smirk. It wasn’t Cindy’s willingness to follow orders that endeared him to her. Once, without provocation, she’d risked her own freedom to save that of RedKnife KillsPrettyEnemy. That lone act had cemented her place at StoneCrow, as well as earned her the affection of the only known Indigenous Skin Walker. RedKnife had mated her, and now he worshiped the ground she walked on.

  Crossing to the tray, Monroe removed the lid from a plate of still-hot pizza that had cheese melting off the sides. He growled in disapproval. When he’d summoned food, this junk isn’t what he’d expected. He knew it wasn’t Cindy’s fault; she’d only delivered the tray.

  “Sorry,” he apologized picking up the plate and the linen napkin on the tray, “this’ll have to do for now but I assure you the next meal will make up for it.” Turning, his anger skyrocketed when he realized that Eden had gone back out.

  Peeling back his lip he growled in frustration. She’d finally woken and asked for one simple thing. He sneered at the plate of pizza wanting nothing more than to fling it across the room and smash it against the wall. Not only was she forced to go hungry, she’d have most likely been appalled if she’d have remained awake long enough to see what had been served.

  With great restraint, he returned the pizza to the tray and placed the lid back on top before crossing to the door and jerking it open. In the hall, King instantly jerked to attention, focusing on the CEO.

  “Contact the Chef. I want hot meals delivered to this room every twenty minutes. Not a minute sooner, not a fucking second later!”

  King nodded.

  “And if he sends down pizza again, I’ll gut him in his fucking sleep!”

  Without a word, King stalked off down the hall and Monroe returned to keep vigil over Eden. He knew she needed the rest but damn he wished she’d wake up. They needed to talk. He’d sent King and Lilly to retrieve Eden’s children. Apparently the teenager had been a little trouble, but Lilly had calmed him enough to get him to come to the estate. That was of course, after King had contacted him to let him know that there was a very serious problem. He’d refused to report until he’d arrived with the children and once he had, Monroe didn’t need explanations.

  He’d met King at the front doors of the manor. He’d attempted to look approachable, but knew he’d failed when the two youngest boys actually recoiled to hide behind Lilly. King had followed the group in and with the door open, wind had whooshed in and scents had assailed Monroe’s senses. In mere seconds he’d discovered that not one, not, two, hell not even three, but all four of Eden’s adopted children were Skin Walkers.

  Keeping his word to Eden, he’d had the children assigned to rooms on the third floor. His office and personal suite occupied the entire west wing of the floor, while the east wing housed individual offices and several VIP suites. He’d had two of the conjoined suites remodeled for the children so that they’d be close to him while still being able to stay together.

  Somehow, word of the children’s Walker status had gotten round to Jenny Arkinson, the estate’s Chief of Surgery and lead medical advisor. She’d come to Monroe wanting to take blood samples to run tests. He knew her hope. She wanted to run the samples through StoneCrow’s database in an attempt to find thier parents. He’d refused. Jenny had been shocked and then angered, but he’d sworn to Eden that he’d care for the children as if they were his own, and he’d be damned if he’d allow some near-sighted doctor to examine and jab his kids with needles in the hopes of finding families that clearly didn’t want them. No, he’d wait until Eden could decide what was best for the children under her care.

  “Monroe?”

  He had to pull his gaze from Eden’s sleeping form to concentrate on Bishop’s words as he contacted him through the mist, a telepathic means of communication for Skin Walkers.

  “What is it?”

  “The little girl is crying for Eden again, the two youngest boys have disappeared, and the teenager has locked himself in the bathroom. Lilly’s gone to town and Jenny’s busy working. I need….” Bishop’s voice sounded baffled when he finally spoke again, “reinforcements.”

  Monroe loosed a low growl of frustration, “Can’t Cindy help?”

  “She’s working too.”

  The CEO frowned his displeasure. Standing, he crossed to the bed and brushed his knuckles over Eden’s cheek. “I’m on my way.” He had no idea how to care for children, but it couldn’t be that difficult.

  ***

  Eight weeks later and Monroe was ready to eat his words. Taking care of children wasn’t merely difficult, it was pure hell! When one wasn’t crying or needing something, the other two little ones were. He’d had to clean up more spills, dry more tears, and pull gum and playdough out of more ears and noses then he ever thought was possible. But whatever hell the little one’s created, the teenager, Micah, was the worst. His sour moods and defiant attitude had Monroe wishing the child were a man on several occasions so he could put him on his ass. How in the world Eden had managed to do it, and in her small cabin nonetheless….in Monroe’s eyes she was nothing less than a fucking saint!

  Caring for the children coupled with his typical duties and responsibilities at StoneCrow left him haggard at the end of each night, but that didn’t prevent him from getting the children ready and tucked into bed himself. He wouldn’t delegate duties where they were concerned simply because Eden wouldn’t want it. So, each night he ensured all four children were bathed, brushed, and ready for bed. He’d assigned them a large suite next to his own. It had been costly to get the space remodeled on such short notice. He had to have a wall knocked out in order to conjoin two smaller suites into one that was comparable in size to his own. It was a perfect fit for the family. The three smaller children shared a room�
�as requested—while Micah had his own. There was even a much larger room with an ensuite bathroom for Eden when she was able to join her family. He hoped she’d approve. The area had its own living space, much like his, replete with small kitchen, dining room, study, and family room. His lips tweaked at the fact that he found himself spending more time in Eden’s family living space than in his own.

  “Contact me if there are any problems,” he commanded standing with hands planted on his expensively tailored hips as he frowned at the family room and the four children housed within. As usual, Micah’s attention was engrossed in his i-pod, or i-phone, or i-don’t-give-a-damn as Monroe liked to think of it. Where he’d gotten the supplies to change the color of his mohawk from purple to vibrant red, Monroe didn’t know, but he had intentions of finding out.

  “That’s mine!”

  His eyes darted to where Cole and Ransum were wrestling over a muscle-bulging action figure. “Boys,” he spoke evenly, “do we remember how to share?”

  “Well I had it first!” Ransum pouted, his lower lip jutting out as he crossed chubby arms across his chest in a show of dissatisfaction.

  Just then, Peyton squealed and raced over, jerking the action figure from Cole’s hands and thrusting the figure’s head into her mouth. Both boys slumped to the ground deflated as they turned wistful eyes on the now gone forever action figure.

  Whether it was self-taught or the result of Eden’s tutelage, Monroe didn’t know, but it made him happy and…proud to witness how all three boys not only doted on their baby sister, but were willing to sacrifice even their own happiness so that she could have whatever it was she desired.

  “They’ll be fine,” Lilly supplied. She and Aries had taken turns and sometimes doubled-up to assist Monroe with watching over and caring for Eden’s children.

  “I won’t be long,” Monroe spoke without taking his eyes from the children. His heart contracted painfully when he realized that while he longed to see Eden, he was equally as reluctant to leave the kids.

  “Go,” Lilly laughed, “they’ll be here when you get back. Find out if their mama’s coming home anytime soon.”

  Micah lifted his head to frown at Monroe. He’d been eavesdropping. The boy pretended to be disinterested in the children and Eden, but Monroe saw through it. He fussed over the little ones when no one was looking and anytime someone mentioned Eden, his head slightly inclined, his eyes giving it away that he was curious about his caretaker and secretly listening.

  One night, he discovered Micah in Eden’s room crying. At first, he thought they boy had been missing Eden, but when he got further into the room he scented the truth. Micah was at the age where he was struggling to accept the changes he was experiencing. It had to be terrifying for a teenager to go through alone. Micah had tried to pretend that he’d banged his shin on the bedside table but Monroe prevented any further lies by shifting.

  The fully black eyes of his wolf’s form took in first Micah’s shock and disbelief and then—to Monroe’s delight—relief. Shifting back he’d explained to Micah what he was and how they’d come to be. He’d told the story a hundred times to the Skin Walkers that found their way to StoneCrow. Admittedly, he didn’t have all the answers, but he had enough to settle the lost souls and to make them comfortable and welcome.

  The boy had explained that he thought he was alone that even Eden couldn’t help him understand no matter how hard she tried, and it was then that Monroe realized she knew her children were different. She knew there was something wrong, something different about them and instead of casting them out as any other human would have, she pulled them closer and lied to protect them. He was drawn to her, intrigued by her, and the more he learned of her, the more interested he became.

  “Micah.”

  The boys head snapped up, his eyes expectant.

  “Keep an eye on the kids,” Monroe ordered, seeing how it pleased the eldest to not only be singled out from the group but given a semblance of authority over the little ones.

  Micah nodded solemnly and pulled the ear buds from his ears while turning his focus on the children.

  Monroe couldn’t help his flare of self-satisfaction. Over the weeks that Eden had been confined to the infirmary, he’d come to learn how to deal with her children. So used to manipulating adults, he’d never thought he’d get the hang of dealing with children, but he had.

  Nodding to Lilly, he exited the suite and made his way to the infirmary. A few short minutes later, he was standing in Eden’s exam room frowning with his arms crossed over his chest, while the fingers of one hand pulled at his bottom lip in worry.

  Both Eden’s tibia and fibula were crushed under the pressure of the spring trap. The damage had been so severe that surgery had been required and steel rodding had been put in place to hold the alignment of the bone. Today she was finally getting her walking cast and Monroe was highly opposed to the idea. It was too soon in his estimation; he didn’t care how Eden or Chief of Surgery Jenny Arkinson argued.

  “Are we doing this or not?” Jenny demanded in annoyance, holding the black and gray walking cast in her hands.

  “Yes!” Eden replied, her gaze narrowing on Monroe as sharp pinpoints of fury exploded in her chocolate eyes.

  “We need more x-rays,” Monroe countered speaking more to himself than to Jenny or Eden.

  Jenny exhaled, her shoulders rising and falling sharply with the action. “Christ’s sake Monroe! We’ve already taken more than necessary. If she gets anymore radiation exposure she’s going to glow green!”

  Perfect brows speared down as his expression darkened. His eyes held Eden’s.

  “I know you’re worried, but she’s been working really hard for this. Physical therapy, water exercises, her own private specialists. You haven’t spared a damn expense and it was all so we could get to this point. Right?” Her brows hiked as she prodded, “Come on, you and I both know she’s doing this with or without your approval.”

  Jenny was right and he hated it. No matter what he said or how he protested, Eden would do as she pleased and he had no right to stop her.

  As if to cement Jenny’s claim, Eden spoke with determined affirmation. “I am walking out of here today. My kid’s won’t be visiting me in this damn infirmary again!”

  Monroe’s eyes slid from Eden to Jenny and he gave an imperceptible nod.

  “Yes!” Jenny’s fist punched the air.

  The next hour was spent preparing Eden and getting her fitted with her cast. It was hard to endure. Every wince, every sharp intake of breath, every barely disguised show of pain and he was ready to call the whole damn thing off.

  When Eden finally took her first step and grinned, Monroe’s scowl deepened. He could scent only the faintest hint of pain but it was enough.

  “You’re hurting,” he accused gritting his teeth at her damn stubborn nature. He only wanted to protect her, to shelter her from pain and here she sat hating him for it.

  “No, I’m not!” The scent of her lie mingled with the scent of her pain and he wanted to howl. He couldn’t even call her on it because he’d have to explain how he knew, so instead he relegated to what he knew best…barking orders.

  “King, clear a path from here to her suite. I’m taking her up.”

  King disappeared out the door.

  “Jenny, I want a nurse on-call on the third floor. Put her in one of the west wing suites. Make sure she has all the supplies and pain meds she’ll need to make Eden comfortable. Get it done now.”

  “Aye, aye,” Jenny gave him a mock salute as she turned to grin at a beaming Eden before exiting the room.

  “And you,” Monroe growled as he turned to Eden now that they were alone. “You are going to sit your pretty little ass in that wheel chair,” he jabbed his finger to where the contraption sat in the corner, “and let me usher you upstairs.” When she opened her mouth to protest he held up a hand, “And if you refuse, if you balk for even a blink, I’m having you confined to this fucking exam room for the next
four weeks until I’m certain your healed enough to be moved!”

  Eden clamped her mouth shut and scowled up at him.

  Wordlessly, Monroe retrieved the chair, assisted Eden into the seat and with painstaking caution, took the slowest walk from the infirmary to the lobby elevator that he’d ever taken in his life.

  Chapter 11

  Eden was delighted to be back with the children. It seemed as if they’d grown so much in the few short weeks she’d been stuck in the infirmary and while they’d visited her daily, it wasn’t the same.

  Sitting in her wheel chair with Monroe standing close behind her, she hadn’t even had a chance to get up before the kids rushed to her. They were mindful of her injured leg as they all spoke at once.

  “Me an’ Ransum an’ Peyton have our own room…”

  “Mama!”

  “Cole said we have to be in charge of Peyton until you was better.”

  Smiling, Eden held up a hand, “Whoa! Not everybody at once.” She was elated and more than a little surprised to see Micah standing behind the children, listening to their stories with interest and actually being a member of the family. Taking it all in, she couldn’t help but feel a pang of jealousy. Monroe had done with Micah in eight short weeks what she’d been unable to do in over two years.

  “Enough,” Monroe laughed. “Let’s let mama see her room.”

  Peyton squealed and dashed down the hallway followed by Ransum and Cole, who yelled officiously, “No running inside!”

  “Hi Eden,” Micah offered when the room was finally silent.

  Smiling up at him, Eden offered a soft, “Hi baby.” She knew he hated the endearment. He’d told her a thousand times, but she couldn’t keep herself from using it. He was her baby. They all were and whether he wanted to accept it or not he was part of her heart.

  Wordlessly, Monroe turned the chair to push her down the long corridor that led to the bedrooms. One door was wide open and as they passed she saw Ransum and Cole building a Lego castle on the carpet in the center of the large room while Peyton jerked a stuffed bear off a tiny, pink quilt covered, bed before approaching the boys and plucking a Lego off the top of their structure, sending it crashing down. “Awwww, Peyton!”