by K L King
“She’s not your problem. She’s really Tessa’s problem. Let her deal with her. You don’t even seem to like her so forget about her,” Finn said nonchalantly.
“I can’t,” Deacon said in a quiet voice, turning to stare at his friend.
“What do you mean?” Finn asked.
Deacon opened the car door and got out, glanced around the now busy parking lot to make sure no one was eavesdropping, and said in a quiet voice, “I don’t know why, but I need to protect her. My wolf insists on it.”
Finn’s eyes widened slightly. “Well, let’s get her to the station and get this interview over with at least, so she can go home and rest. We can have someone keep an eye on her house. Tessa can protect her at the bakery.”
Chapter 8
“This is not good at all,” Iris said quietly as she scratched Riley’s head. She was trying to soothe the agitated dog. She and Riley were in the back of Deacon’s police car and on their way to the station. At least they hadn’t put her in cuffs. Deacon was driving with Finn in the passenger seat. Deacon hadn’t said a word the whole ride over. She noticed he kept glaring at her in the rearview mirror. Finn, on the other hand, had tried to lighten the atmosphere by asking her about the bakery. She noticed Deacon frowning at him each time he paid her baking a compliment. Iris didn’t get what his problem was. A few minutes later, the cruiser pulled into the parking lot of the modern Grey Lake Police Department. Deacon walked into the building without so much as a glance in her direction. Finn opened the back door of the car and led her and Riley to the chief’s small office, then told her to sit tight. “It’ll be alright. Try not to worry,” he said with a smile.
Sit tight, right? What else am I supposed to do? She glanced around the small office. The walls began to close in on her. Her heart began to race. Shit! This is how all her panic attacks started. “And you!” she said to Riley, who had been walking around in circles in the tiny room. “You need to calm down, please.” Tears sprang to her eyes. “I don’t want them to take you away from me.”
After about 30 or so minutes, the office door finally opened and another unfamiliar officer came through the door with a grim-faced Deacon.
“Hi there.” A tall, older man, probably in his late 40s with graying brown hair sat across from her at Heath’s desk. “I’m Officer Cal Harris. I know you’ve met Officer Clay. I’m sorry to meet you under these circumstances. I think we can take care of these questions pretty quickly and get you two home. Why don’t we start from the beginning, Miss Williamson. How long have you been in Grey Lake?”
“I’ve been here for a little over a month now. I was hired by Tessa Lane to work in her bakery,” Iris replied while staring a hole in the table.
“Where have you been staying?” Cal asked.
“Tessa has a small cottage behind her house. She’s letting me and Riley”— she patted the wolf’s head—”stay there for free as part of the job. Well, I don’t think free exactly. I think the rent is taken out of my pay somehow,” Iris rambled. When she finally lifted her eyes to sneak a peek at Deacon, she found him staring at her intently. She shivered. His jaw was clenched, and his hands were clutching the side of the desk so hard his knuckles were white.
“Is anyone else staying there with you, a roommate, boyfriend or husband?” Cal continued.
Iris snuck a glance at a red-faced Deacon. Why was he so mad at her?
“No, just Riley and I live there. We’re mostly at the bakery, though. Tessa lets him stay in her office while I’m working. It helps keep me and him calm,” she said as she continued to stroke the wolf’s gray fur. “We’re there from four in the morning until one or two in the afternoon Tuesday through Saturday. I have Sundays and Mondays off.”
Deacon cut in with a question, “How long have you had this wolf?” He gestured to Riley with his head.
“He’s not a wolf. He’s an Alaskan Malamute, at least partly, I think. I found my dog about ten months ago in Providence where I’m from. I was walking home from the restaurant I worked at when I heard whimpering in the alley. I found him there almost unconscious and bleeding. It was as if he was hit by a truck. I brought him home, cleaned his wounds, and bandaged him up. He was starving so I fed him. He healed pretty quickly. I tried to bring him to the vet, but every time I tried to take him, he freaked out and ran away from me back into the house. It was like he knew where we were going. He seems really smart. I guess he decided to stay with me.”
“How long were you in Providence?” Cal asked, smoothly changing the subject.
“My whole life until I moved here for this job. I was born there, went to school, and then college for culinary arts. I worked in a few restaurants for a while in the city, but it never worked out. I hated working in those crowded kitchens. It was like working on a factory line. It was joyless. Also, too many people make me uneasy.” She dropped her gaze back down to the table.
“There you are!” Tessa came in with a bang, knocking the door against the wall, causing Iris to yelp and jump out of her seat. The feisty redhead frowned down at the officers. “What the hell are you doing with my one employee? I need her. Thank god, I heard about this. What happened to your eye?” she yelled, looking at Iris’s left eye, which was bruised and swollen.
“Calm down, Tessa, please,” Deacon huffed. “She’s been checked out by the doc. She has a mild concussion and a nasty bruise, but no serious damage. We’re just trying to get a handle on how Miss Williamson came to be in a physical altercation with two men at Shanley’s.”
“And how did you happen to hear about this?” Cal asked.
“Iris attacking two men! Who? You’ve both lost your minds! She wouldn’t hurt anyone.” Tessa frowned at the two cops. “And never you mind how I found out. I have my sources.” Tessa scowled at Cal who visibly flinched.
“They haven’t even asked me about that yet. I’ve just been telling them my life story,” Iris muttered.
“We were just getting there, right, Officer Clay?” Cal asked.
Deacon glanced at Iris and nodded.
“Well, then, you fine officers won’t mind if I stay?” Tessa pulled a chair over from the corner of the room and sat down with a plop.
“Don’t you need to be a lawyer to stay with me here?” Iris asked. At least she thought that was the case based on the murder mysteries she loved to read.
“Technically, that’s correct, but you, my dear, are lucky that I was an attorney in my previous life.” Tessa smiled at Deacon and Cal who both blanched.
Deacon cleared his throat, staring at Tessa. “It’s fine. She can stay.”
“Oh, OK. I was minding my own business just shopping with Riley. He was on a leash behaving himself. I just needed to run into the hardware store to get some painting supplies for the cottage.”
“The wo—dog was with you?” Deacon asked.
“Yes, he pretty much goes everywhere with me. He sort of acts like my support dog now,” Iris answered.
“Why do you need a support dog?” Cal asked. “You seem perfectly healthy to me.”
Iris lowered her eyes to the table once again. This was so embarrassing. She wished the walls would swallow her so she didn’t have to deal with these questions. A soft, low-pitched growl rumbled from near where Deacon sat. She glanced up to see him staring at her with his nostrils flaring. Why did he look so pissed? What was his problem? She cleared her throat. “I have these panic attacks and freeze up. Sometimes it feels like I’m suffocating, like I can’t get enough air into my lungs. Other times it feels like I have a crushing pain in my chest. One time, it was so painful I thought I was going to die, but the doctors at the hospital ruled out anything serious and said it was all related to anxiety. It used to be real bad before I got Riley, but the attacks happen less often now.”
“Ok, so you and Riley were in the store…” Deacon interjected.
“We were shopping in the paint aisle when I noticed these two big guys staring at me and talking real quietly to each other. They were a
cting creepy.” Her cheeks warmed again. “I walked away down another aisle to get away from them. I moved into a more crowded area, but everyone left as soon as those two followed me.”
“So you tried to get away from them?” Deacon asked.
“Yes. Contrary to what you seem to think, I do not go hunting for trouble,” Iris said angrily, peering down at the table.
“OK. That’s good. So, you tried to get away from them and they followed you? No one tried to help?” Cal asked.
“People seemed to be scared. I saw the older man, Eddie, leave. I thought he ran away, but I guess he went to get help. They cornered me against the wall. When I couldn’t get any further away from them, Riley lunged at one of them to protect me. He wasn’t being aggressive.”
“Then what happened?” Deacon asked. His face was red and his jaw was tight.
“The one Riley lunged at, the blond one, he moved to hit Riley with a closed fist. I got mad so I hit him to protect my dog. He fell down. I’ve never hit anyone in my life. I don’t know what happened.” She fidgeted in her seat, her cheeks becoming hotter. “The other guy threatened me and came at me. I don’t remember him actually hitting me. I just remember his fist coming at me, and then I woke up on a couch in the store office.”
“Well, I think Iris has been through enough for one day. Don’t you think it’s about time I took her home? That is…unless you’re arresting her for defending herself and her pet against two known troublemakers who were intimidating her and her support companion? I assume charges will be filed against the two men?” Tessa asked and stood, putting her hand on Iris’s shoulder.
“Charges will be filed against them. I’ll go have a word with them to make sure they stay away from both of you,” Deacon said, nodding at Iris and Riley.
“But I still need to go shopping for supplies. There are things I need for the cottage,” Iris spoke up as she stood next to Tessa.
“Why don’t you get together a list, and I can pick up what you need and bring it to you tomorrow,” Deacon offered. “I can bring you your statement to sign then, too. You should rest now. You’ve been through a lot.”
Iris just stared at him. Maybe he wasn’t just an arrogant, domineering bastard.
“I think that’s a fine idea,” Tessa answered before Iris could say a word. Cal handed her a paper and pen to make her list as Tessa pulled Deacon out of the office.
Just before they were out of earshot Iris heard Deacon’s deep voice ask, “Tessa, why doesn’t she know?”
A few minutes later, she finished her list, and Cal led her and Riley out to the hallway where Deacon and Tessa were having a serious conversation. Concern instead of rage marred his features, but Tessa seemed her usual carefree self.
“Let’s go, kids. We’ll pick up your jeep tomorrow, Tyson.” Tessa joked as they left the station.
Chapter 9
Deacon finally lay down after a long hot shower. He had shifted and let his wolf have a rigorous two-hour run through the woods around the periphery of the town. Instead of his usual nightmares, though, his dreams took an even more disturbing turn. The dream started off nicely with him and the mysterious new resident baker going on a hike in the woods near Grey Lake. Dream Iris seemed happy to be with him, unlike real-life Iris. Her honey-brown hair was loose and blown by a gentle breeze as they hiked along the trail together. She kept throwing wide smiles his way as they stopped to study wildflowers along the trail. They were side by side, holding hands as they walked in the sun. The leaves on the trees were the oranges and reds of autumn. The sky was a clear blue and the sun was shining against his skin. A sense of contentment filled him. He couldn’t remember feeling that happy.
Then the dream changed to a different day, or at least a different time. They were in his childhood home, or rather he was in his childhood home in his bedroom. He was ten years old again, hiding in the closet. Both hands were covering his ears, and his eyes were scrunched shut. He tried not to hear his mother’s screams. But he did hear his father yelling, cursing. Objects slammed against the wall or the floor, he couldn’t tell. A woman’s voice cried out for help, but this time it wasn’t his mother’s voice. This one was different, slightly huskier.
He heard footsteps running toward his hiding place. He cowered behind the clothes. He crouched into a ball with his arms protecting his head as his mother had once instructed him. The door opened suddenly, letting in the light from the hallway outside his bedroom. Dream Iris was standing there crying, bruises painting her beautiful face. She was bleeding heavily from claw marks on her neck and shoulder. “Get help, please,” she said weakly before falling to the floor. A large pool of red surrounded her on the rug. Deacon awoke with a shout. He was sitting upright in his bed, his sweat-soaked sheets tangled around his legs. His skin was clammy, and he was shaking like a leaf. A burning pain throbbed in his chest. What the hell? Was Iris in trouble? Was this some kind of warning?
He glanced at the clock on his bedside table—3:20. He had only been asleep for a little over two hours. Shit, even shifters needed more than two hours of sleep a night. He knew he would never get back to sleep until he made sure Iris was safe. He dressed quickly and jumped in his truck, heading for Iris’s cottage.
As he drove, he went over the conversation he had with Tessa at the station yesterday. The two had stepped out of the office as Cal watched Iris make a shopping list of supplies for Deacon. He had asked how Iris could have no clue she was a shifter.
“It’s complicated, but it’s not the right time yet. She’s still not ready. She’s getting there. Why don’t you spend some time getting to know your mate?” Tessa asked.
Deacon flinched. “She’s not my mate. I can’t have a mate. It’s not safe,” he said glumly.
“Nonsense. Regardless, you can be nice to her. Pretend she’s May and just treat her like you treat your sister,” Tessa said to an ashen-faced Deacon.
“I’m not nice to May,” Deacon grumbled.
“Then treat her like you treat me. I know you’re only nice to me because you think I’m a witch, but still.” Tessa let out a huge high-pitched cackle just as Cal let Iris and Riley out of the office, ending their private conversation. He’d need to speak to her again. She knew something but wasn’t telling him. That woman could be so frustrating.
He parked a little bit down the road away from the house so the noise from his truck wouldn’t disturb her or her wolf shifter “pet.” He was surprised to see that lights were on in the little cottage. He easily climbed over the fence and then moved quietly through her yard, trying to get a glimpse of her through the window. He finally saw Iris standing in her kitchen. Her long hair was bound up in a loose bun at the top of her head, and she was dressed in a tank top and boxers. He could see the outline of her full breasts against the thin white fabric. His cock stiffened. Shit. He shook his head. This is not why you’re here. You’re here to make sure she’s safe, that’s it.
Thank God, she was OK. As he moved closer to the house, he could smell coffee brewing. She must be getting ready for work. He remembered she got up early to bake for the shop. He could hear the wolf shifter whining and scratching at the door. Iris let him out into the fenced-in backyard. The wolf immediately trotted over to where Deacon was crouching low to the ground and gave the beta his neck. He immediately reached out to rub the gray wolf’s head. “I don’t understand why you can’t shift,” he said in a low voice. “Don’t worry, I’m just here to check on Iris, to make sure she’s safe.”
The wolf huffed what Deacon assumed to be an indignant response. Deacon chuckled. “I know you’ve been keeping an eye on her. I just had a bad dream and needed to check on her. That’s all.” He rubbed the wolf between his shoulders. They both turned to face the house when the sound of the shower turned on. They sat in silence for a bit. The wolf turned to Deacon and tilted his head to one side, staring.
“What?” Deacon asked as the wolf continued to stare. Deacon turned to face away from the house, sitting against a lar
ge pine tree. He was trying to avoid the temptation of Iris’s showering body. The wolf moved to sit beside Deacon. “I wish you could talk to me,” he told the shifter. “There are some things I’d like to ask about Iris.”
The wolf huffed again. Before he could say another word, Iris’s voice called from the back door, “Riley, breakfast!”
The wolf jumped up and trotted right in through the open door, giving Iris a big smile. He then turned and faced the spot where Deacon sat, hidden in the shadows.
Deacon stayed hidden until Iris had climbed into her jeep and drove off to the bakery. He followed her in his truck from far enough away that she wouldn’t see him. Once she was inside with Tessa, Deacon headed back home for a shower. She was safe there as long as Tessa was with her. No one in their right mind would mess with a phoenix shifter.
Afterward, he stopped at the police station to talk with Heath. The chief told him that after holding the two cougar shifters for a bit more than 24 hours, some lawyer from Providence had shown up to bail them both out. Before releasing them, Heath had warned them that if they came within 100 feet of Iris or Riley, he would haul them back in with no chance of parole. While Deacon was not thrilled, he had worked in law enforcement long enough to know that sometimes this was the best that could be done within the existing laws. No matter, I’ll just have to make sure they don’t go near her myself.
He had promised Iris that he’d bring her some painting supplies so he was headed to Shanley’s right after he left the station.
Upon hearing him tell Heath where he was going, May, who was on duty at the station, stopped typing up a report to interrupt. “Wait, what?” she asked, grabbing Deacon’s arm. “You’re going to see Iris? I knew this would be interesting.”
“I told you. I’m going to help her paint Tessa’s cottage. Tessa thought she could use some help,” he replied, trying to keep a neutral expression on his face. If May knew how riled up he was, she’d keep needling him. His wolf was ecstatic, but he was firmly intending to keep his distance for Iris’s sake. But it was going to be tough.