True North (The Bears of Blackrock Book 4)

by Michaela Wright

  “You finally awake?”

  Theron turned on the couch to see Darrell sitting in the beaten up recliner across the way. Theron’s head swam from just the small effort of turning and he groaned.

  “Yeah. They did us both in with that shit,” Darrell said, a groggy disinterest to his voice.

  Theron touched his hand to his head. “Where the hell did they get that much alcohol up here?”

  Darrell raised his eyebrows and gave an almost satisfied smile. “You know vodka is made from potatoes, right?”

  Theron thought of the greenhouse and the thriving crop Darrell was tending when he found him the night before, and he gave a half laugh. “And here I thought you were trying to feed everyone.”

  “Well, that, too. Still, I wasn’t the only person who thought having the option to drink one’s self to death instead of starving might be nice.”

  Theron glanced across the living room of his grandmother’s house. There was no sign of Pearl or Sinead in the afternoon light. “Where is everyone?” He asked.

  Darrell took a slow breath. “Sinead is down the school. Pearl is going to each house to check on everyone. Trying to figure out how we’re going to go forward.”

  Theron lingered on these words. Go forward? What had changed since the night before?

  “Is everyone else ok?”

  Darrell shrugged. “No. We’re the only ones who almost died, but no. They didn’t find the greenhouses, thank god, but they took one of the generators. And they’re cutting our rations again.”

  “Are you fucking kidding me?” Theron said, his tone dropping to a near growl.

  Darrell snorted. “You sound surprised. They put us in an internment camp, but it’s this detail that really surprises you?”

  “Did they find your wires?” Theron asked, his stomach dropping for an instant.

  Darrell stared at Theron. “No. They did not.”

  Theron slumped back into the couch, his head punishing him for the sudden movement, but he was relieved. They’d be able to grow at least some food, and if they stripped a house of some of its wiring, they might be able to expand what they had.

  Fuck that, he thought. We need to get out of here.

  “Have you tried rerouting the current? Not sure how much wiring you have, but it might be possible to render a section of the fence. The gate. If you hook up to the connectors on either side, you might be able to bypass -”

  “I’m gonna stop you right there. I wouldn’t know the first thing -”

  “But the greenhouses? That was you, wasn’t it?”

  Darrell gave a half laugh. “If that shoddy craftsmanship gets you off, I’m beginning to question your credentials.”

  It wasn’t perfection, by any means, but it got power where it needed to go, and it held a charge. With the right tools and crazy enough bastards to test it, there might be answers in Darrell’s ‘shoddy craftsmanship.’

  They both sat there for a long moment, neither one speaking. Theron glanced at his cousin from time to time, finding a distant expression on his face.

  Darrell caught him looking by the third time and met his gaze. “I suppose I should thank you,” he said.

  These were not the words Theron expected. “What? No.”

  “That fence killed my little brother when we first arrived. If it’d taken me, too?”

  Darrell turned, staring off into space.

  Theron thought of Buniq. He remembered what it felt like to lose a sibling. Candyce had only been gone a few years, but he felt her absence everyday. He couldn’t imagine Buniq losing both her older brothers on the Extension.

  It would be too much for a grown woman, let alone a child.

  “Hey, man. It’s – don’t even worry about -”

  “I think about that from time to time, you know. What would’ve happened if I wasn’t here?”

  Theron watched Darrell, waiting for a sign of more. “What do you mean?”

  Darrell gave a half smile. “You know I’m the reason your Mom and Pearl don’t speak anymore, yeah?”

  Theron’s mouth fell open, but he didn’t speak. He remembered the one time his mother mentioned their falling out. Karen had been so absent much of his childhood, he didn’t see her often enough to really notice.

  “Aunt Karen had given me the welcome to come down your way. Was gonna take classes at the University of Maine. That’s somewhere near you, right?

  Theron’s eyes went wide. Mom had never once mentioned his cousin Darrell, or that she’d welcomed him into her home so he could attend the University. “Yeah, Machias.”

  “Yup, that’s the one. Pearl and everyone told me I was abandoning the tribe if I left. That I was trying to be something I’m not. Pearl wanted me to stay put and carve boats like my Dad. When I told her that I wanted to pass on more than just my carving skills, she went after Karen.”

  “And she rescinded her invitation?”

  Darrell gave Theron a side eye. “Nice fifty dollar word, pal. You learn that one in college?” Theron stopped, searching for a response before he realized Darrell was joking. “No. I cancelled my plans. Gave my spot up at the University to stay here.”

  Theron thought back to his teenage years and imagined having another polar shifter on the rez. Darrell was five or six years older than Theron. He would have been around right as Theron was first joining his family’s hunts.

  “Why? Why didn’t you go?”

  Darrell shrugged. “Our Mum died. Couldn’t leave Eddie and Buniq. They were just kids.”

  Theron took a deep breath, letting silence coax more from his cousin.

  “Then a couple years ago, I went behind Pearl’s back – signed up for classes again.”

  “You did?”

  Darrell nodded. “Your mom knew. Buniq and Eddie knew. Had my bags packed up, ordered half of my textbooks for my first semester as a thirty three year old college freshman.”

  “And you didn’t go?”

  Darrell gave a sad smile. “The day I was going to tell Pearl was the day the officers came and took Buniq. By the end of that day, it was ‘get on the bus, or you’ll never see your sister again.’ I got on the bus.”

  “Holy shit,” Theron said in a half whisper.

  “Yeah. Managed to read every page of my textbooks while up here, though. So you’re not the only pseudo-college educated asshole in this family.”

  Theron opened his mouth to deflect, but Darrell simply took a swig from a small metal flask, then tossed it to Theron. Despite the weight of the silence between them, Theron took a swig. His head was pounding.

  “Is that how you knew to set up those greenhouses?” Theron finally asked, taking a second swig.

  “Pfft. Naw, that is good ol’ Shinny’s handiwork,” Darrell said, giving a nod toward the east. “That wiring job, though. That’s me.”

  Theron’s eyes went wide. “That’s fantastic. You were going into the Sciences?”

  “Hell no,” Darrell said, holding his hand out in wait of the flask. “Shinny had that covered. No, I was going for English, actually.”

  “English?”

  Darrell nodded. “You sound disappointed.”

  “No, no. I just -”

  “As I saw it, your Sinead there has Math and Science covered. Kids want to build a rocket? Dig a pit and grow potatoes? She’s got it handled. But what if some kid doesn’t swing that way, you know? Who’s gonna teach them how to write stories? Or poetry? I figured I could come back and offer something to the creative kids – more than just the carving, you know?”

  Theron stared at his cousin as though he’d just discovered a secret passage through a mountain.

  Darrell noticed the look and gave Theron a glare. “What?”

  Theron shook his head. “Nothing. I’m just finding it harder and harder to dislike you.”

  “Fuck off.”

  “I mean, you write poetry.”

  “I’m gonna stab you,” Darrell said, but he was laughing through the words as he took another swig
from the flask.

  “What light through yonder window breaks?”

  Darrell chucked the flask at Theron with all his might, Theron flinching, taking the full hit against his thigh. He hissed in pain, not only from the impact of the flask, but from the wound in his chest being jostled.

  Darrell glared at him, pointing a warning finger. “Serves you right, dick.”

  Theron pressed his hand to his chest, feeling the bandage shift and stick from his drying blood and remembered the night before. The comfort of their exchange caught him off guard. This was his nemesis, wasn’t it? This man tried to kill him.

  He met Darrell’s eyes and saw a similar expression there.

  It seemed Theron wasn’t the only one surprised to be enjoying the conversation.

  The front door to Pearl’s house burst open and Buniq rushed in, coming around to settle into Darrell’s lap. Darrell took a deep breath, letting her curl up there. He muttered something to her, assuring her he was alright.

  Then he turned back to Theron, Buniq content to stare off at the wall. “So you’re officially one of us, now,” Darrell said, gesturing to Theron’s hand on his chest.

  Theron frowned. He felt violated by the tracker’s presence – violated and furious. “I guess so.”

  Darrell groaned as he hoisted himself up from the chair, keeping an arm around Buniq’s shoulders. He held a hand out to Theron in wait. Theron took it, letting his cousin help him to his feet.

  He met Darrell’s eyes and nodded. “So what do we do now?”

  Darrell’s brow set, shooting a sideways glance down at his baby sister. “We find a way off this fucker or we die trying.”

  The words rattled in Theron’s ribcage.

  Yes, he thought. Yes!

  They both took a moment to eye each other as they made their way to the door of Pearl’s home. They were both weakened by the night before, but neither dared question the other’s strength. Such a thing simply wasn’t done in male circles, not in Holden male circles, at least.

  Theron stepped out into the gray day and looked around. There was no sign of anyone at the windows of the nearby homes. There was just a hint of light peeking around the doors of Pearl’s shed, betraying the greenhouse within. Theron stopped, glancing back toward the fence on the eastern side of The Extension.

  “Has anyone been down to see the damage? Anyone hook your wires back up?”

  Darrell shook his head. “Do I look like I’ve been fit to go anywhere today? I’ve no fucking clue.”

  No, neither of them were in a state to do much of anything. “But the greenhouse lights are – which generator did they take?”

  Darrell groaned as he stepped off Pearl’s front steps. “The western side’s. We’re relocating this one once I get power back up over here -”

  “You mean they took the generator to the school?”

  Buniq looked up and Theron and nodded.

  Darrell stopped and stared at him, a sad look of almost pity on his face. Darrell’s expression was that of a man who’d seen far worse than the simple cruelties of hunger and cold. Theron was new to this misery, and every crime felt like a new brand on his skin, fueling a constant rage that burned just beneath the surface.

  Neither said another word as Darrell let Buniq take his hand and lead him down the way toward home.

  Theron watched them go, fuming.

  Theron was sure the officers had done this on purpose. They might not know that the Eastern side had power by other means, but they sure as hell knew the school would house children for hours, every day. These Holden children would fair the cold just fine – they were shifters and the officers knew that well.

  And Theron was sure they also knew Sinead was not. Denying her warmth was personal, denying her warmth would be a death sentence.

  Theron headed toward the school, rattled now in a new and urgent way.

  CHAPTER TEN

  SINEAD

  The school doors were shut tight and the windows dark. Only seemed fitting given the cold creeping in. Sinead sat at her small desk, wrapped in as many coats as the Holdens could spare - which wasn’t too many. None of the Holdens wore coats.

  School had been rough that afternoon. She’d snapped at Sivoy and zoned out during Andrew’s attempts to read Huck Finn. Her head simply wasn’t in it. Her head was a quarter mile down the way, fretting over Theron.

  She didn’t want anyone to know that, but Sinead caught Pearl giving her looks that morning – knowing, gentle looks that spoke volumes. Darrell might’ve made jokes, but there was truth to Pearl’s expression.

  Sinead stared at the pages of her worn book and smiled at the familiar words. She’d reached her favorite part.

  “You must allow me to tell you how ardently I admire and love you.”

  Sinead exhaled. Her choice of reading material was only making her want to go check on him more. She couldn’t have everyone seeing her fawn over the outsider – the new comer. What would they think?

  She turned her attention back to her book. Another hour and she could go check on him. That wouldn’t look so bad, would it?

  Yet, before she could delve into her favorite scene, the door to the schoolhouse opened, letting in a quick blast of frigid air from outside.

  Despite the chill, Sinead didn’t scold her company. She launched up from her chair, knocking her mug of tea sideways. “Oh, hey – I – Are you – Should you be on your foot?”

  Sinead closed her eyes for a second in embarrassment.

  Theron stood just inside the steps, stomping his feet to clear whatever snow he might’ve trekked. Like all the shifters on the extension, he clearly didn’t feel the cold outside, even as the wind whipped up. He was in nothing more than jeans and a flannel button down shirt, one she recognized as Darrell’s. She set down her book, almost afraid to make eye contact as her breath formed a wisp of vapor just under the nose. She couldn’t help but enjoy the notion that he’d arrived at just that moment in her book.

  “You walked in at just the part when Mr. Darcy rudely declares his love for Lizzy.”

  What the hell, Shin? Why would you just up and tell him that? Stupid, stupid, stupid.

  There were columns of gray light cast across the tired linoleum floor, and the chalkboard looked near black in the dim space. Still, his dark eyes lit up the space as he moved toward the desk. She kept her back to the window, letting the light filter in from outside.

  Theron stopped dead as he closed in, looking at her with a strange expression. She glanced down at herself, bundled there like a baby in some fur lined papoose.

  Theron smile, but it didn’t seem the least bit jovial. “That’s the best part, I take it?” He said.

  She raised an eyebrow. “You haven’t read it?”

  She couldn’t decide whether or not to be disappointed.

  Theron let the corner of his mouth creep up and shrugged. “No, I haven’t.”

  She gave a patient exhale. “That’s alright. I didn’t read it until I came up north, either. If you like you can borrow it. I’ve read it more times than I can count.”

  Theron crossed the room toward her. She didn’t move. She wanted to be welcoming, but she was afraid. Theron had shown two sides to his character, one that felt like being wrapped in a warm blanket, and the other than felt like hugging a cactus. She wasn’t sure which one she’d find if she reached out.

  Theron stopped at the corner of the desk, standing over her a moment. “You should come back with me. We have power on the Eastern side. I’m sure Pearl or someone will have space -”

  His expression made sense now. Concern. He was concerned for her.

  Sinead shook her head, fighting to hide a smile. “I know that. It’s fine. I’m due over at Greg and Pam’s house this evening if they can’t get the generator over her. I just wanted to sit for a while and – I don’t know – be alone.”

  She wanted to keep up appearances. Waiting with bated breath for school to finish so she could run and fawn over Theron wouldn’
t look good. She couldn’t be so brazen. She didn’t need Pearl looking at her that way again.

  And above all else, she didn’t need Theron reading into it. He might turn into a cactus again.

  “Oh. I’m sorry. Do you want me to go? I can leave you -”

  “No! No,” she said and stifled.

  Damn it, Shin. Can you at least try to be cool?

  She swallowed. She was sure by now the damage was done. He knew damn well she liked him. He must.

  And not just liked him. She’d nearly fallen apart when he collapsed out by the boundary, blood seeping through his pristine flannel shirt. She’d thought he was dying. She’d felt more lost in that moment than in any moment since Davenport and his friends locked her away there, unable to leave or speak to her family again.

  Sinead let him see her smile now. “I can’t think of anyone whose company I’d like more, actually.”

  Theron’s face lit up and he leaned his hip onto the corner of her rickety desk. It creaked under his weight. “If you like, I could rudely declare how ardently I admire you.”

  She feigned a glare. “I thought you said you haven’t read it.”

  Theron smiled. “I watched the mini-series.”

  Sinead felt her cheeks burning. The thought of Theron Talbot curled up on some couch watching the seven or so hours of Colin Firth’s Mr. Darcy vehicle tickled her. It seemed watching the mini-series was almost more endearing than the fleeting hope he knew her favorite book.

  They sat there for a long moment, neither speaking as Sinead fought for things to draw her eye. Anything to stop her staring.

  Theron towered over her now, closer than he’d been before, and his shoulder length hair was tussled by the wind outside, giving it a rough, almost wild look. He looked like some hunter in from the cold, and with his arms crossed over his chest, his forearms seemed the glide from beneath his rolled up shirt sleeves.