by Kimber White
Even though she’d warned me she was about to do it, nothing could have prepared me for what happened next. Rowan ran her fingers along my jaw. There was heat, but it wasn’t coming from me. My heart skipped. My wolf tried to tear out of me. Eyes blazing, I gripped her hand and cast it off me.
“What have you done?”
She let out an exasperated breath. “Quit asking me that. I told you. Not a thing. Oh, except for the part where I tried to save your ass. Get a grip, Jagger. Did you forget where you are?”
I’d forgotten nothing. Heartland. Just a few miles from the Alpha’s lair. That had to be the reason for all of this. I knew what the Pull of the Pack felt like. This was different though. That was like an undertow. You could swim in and out of it. This was something else. This seemed to be coming from inside of me. I hadn’t felt an ache like this since…
“What are you doing here?” I asked.
“Just checking on you. Are you touched in the head or something? Man. That’s my act, remember? I wrote that little play.”
Her words came out in rapid-fire succession. Undaunted by my earlier reaction, Rowan reached for me again. This time, she took my arm and flipped it over, feeling along the corded veins until she found my pulse. She closed her eyes for an instant and swayed on her feet. Then, her eyes snapped open and she dropped my wrist.
“I don’t think it’s a fever. Your chest looks all but healed. How do you feel?”
How did I feel? How did I feel? I stood there dumbstruck. This woman had me at a complete loss for words. I flat out didn’t know what to make of her. She was bold. Strong. Beautiful. She had the strength of a shifter, but her scent was purely human. She’d shown no fear around me or any of Able Valent’s shifter patrols. She lived in the backwoods of Kentucky and as far as I could tell, had never been around anyone who wasn’t Pack. And she’d stirred something in me I hadn’t felt for years.
“I’m fine,” I said through a clenched jaw. I could hear Keara’s voice in my head. She’d cluck her tongue and run through a list of all the reasons I wasn’t fine and wasn’t fooling anybody. For the first time in almost three years, the memory of her made me smile. What the actual fuck was happening to me?
“I have to go,” I said. A fresh panic quickened my pulse. There was something about this place. It had to be the Pull. Just another one of Able Valent’s tricks to make me feel safe here. To make me not want to leave. It meant he was getting stronger, more ingenious.
“You’re right about that,” she said. “The Pack’s going to tear these woods apart trying to find you.”
“Are they still looking?” Dammit. I’d bungled this little recon mission on every level. I’d found the house from Lena’s vision, but little else of use. Unless…
“They’ll never stop looking. And for the record, I have no idea why I decided to help you. It’s just...I don’t like them. The patrols. They’re mean. I’ve seen what they do to people who trespass. Good people.”
“But they leave you alone,” I said.
Rowan took a step back. Her eyes took on a haunted look that tore at me. I went to her, putting a gentle hand on her shoulder. “Not. Not...all the time,” she answered. Then, she pulled away from me and headed toward the mouth of the cavern.
“I have to go,” she said. “It’s time for me to get back.”
“Rowan…”
She had her back to me but went rigid as I approached. “I didn’t say thank you.”
She tilted her head toward me, meeting my eyes. “You’re right. You didn’t.”
“And I know I have no right to ask you for anything else. For that matter, I’m not even sure I should trust you. But, like you said, if you wanted to turn me in to the shifter patrols, you’ve had about twenty chances to do that already. So again, thank you.”
She shifted her weight. “And why do I get the feeling you’re about to ask me for a big favor?”
“Not a favor. Just information. You know these woods. You watch the patrols all the time, don’t you?”
She chewed her bottom lip, regarding me. “Jagger, I have to go. I’m already way past too late.”
“For what?”
“That’s my business.”
“Fair enough. Before I go, I want to know more about the patrols. Because, you’re right. They’re more than mean. They’re killers. They’ve done things to good people I know too. Not just in Heartland. All over the state.”
She blinked rapidly, taking a backward step toward the cave entrance. I didn’t think I was telling her anything she didn’t already know. But she’d never seen it. Her entire world was Heartland. I had a million more questions, but the main one was why.
“They won’t just kill you. I’ve heard rumors. Jagger, I’ve heard things.”
“Why haven’t they already? Why didn’t those men who attacked me call down the Pack?”
I’d taken a shot in the dark, but the flicker in Rowan’s eyes gave me my answer. It was her. She’d done something. I bit my own lip past the urge to repeat a question I’d already asked her more than once. What the hell was she? I knew I had one answer with cold certainty. Rowan had saved my life.
“I have to go,” she said. “I can come back. If you want.”
My answer was instinctual. Yes. I wanted her to come back. But instinct gave way to unbidden anger. She saw it flash in my eyes and her face fell.
“Suit yourself,” she said. “The patrols are heaviest during the day. You leave this cave by yourself, you’ll likely bring the whole Pack down on your head. So, do me a favor. Wait at least an hour, preferably more before you go outside. I don’t need you leading them to my doorstep.”
“I would never do anything to put you in danger,” I said. I meant it, but it rang hollow. I knew a hell of a lot more about the world than she did, but Rowan knew Heartland.
“Right,” she said, giving me a weak smile. “Anyway. Just give me a healthy head start, will you?”
Silence fell heavy between us. I knew I should say other things. Thank her again, maybe. Maybe she should have said something else. We grew instantly awkward with each other. A small kernel of truth rose up inside me. Rowan and I might have more in common than I first realized. For our own reasons, we’d both led solitary lives. Being around other people and knowing the right things to say were no longer second nature to me.
She waited a beat. Up against my silence, Rowan finally just turned and dashed out of the cave.
A blast of cool air hit me in the chest. The cave spoke like all caves do. Hollow breaths and ancient creaks. I hadn’t noticed them about this cave before. Since the moment Rowan brought me here, my head had filled with noise. Pain from my wounds. Keara’s ever-present pain, the Pull, and something else. Something I couldn’t name.
Now, everything fell silent and I was truly alone for the first time in two years, ten months, and five days.
Nine
Jagger
I waited for nightfall. I would head back to Mammoth Forest before dawn, but not before I got one more look at the farmhouse behind the old prison gates. Able was there. He had to be. There’d been no sightings of him anywhere in the state for weeks.
He’d been wounded badly in his last fight with Payne. He was old. Ancient by Alpha wolf standards. As old as eighty-five, maybe. Dr. Olivet couldn’t explain it. She thought maybe his absolute control over such a large pack for so long had something to do with his longevity. Maybe he’d found a way to suck the strength out of his most powerful generals. It gave us the idea that killing them off might be the way to get to him. She wouldn’t give voice to it, but I knew Molly and Dr. Olivet were hoping for something else. They hoped if Able died, it would free the rest of the Pack. I knew different. Those men were twisted and too far gone.
I kept to the densest part of the woods. I knew Able’s house was due north. I found myself veering east, to the small cabin where Rowan lived. As soon as I became aware of it, I tried to course correct. No matter what she was, I hadn’t come here for her.
She’d lived this long near the Pack and had proven she could take care of herself. As much as it bothered me, I had no choice but to let her keep doing that.
I was about to turn away from the overgrown trail leading to the cabin when pain seized my heart. A scream ripped through the night air. I heard the sound of wood splintering and a great thud.
Before I knew what I was doing, I was in my wolf. Teeth bared, I skidded to a halt just before I hit the clearing. The door to the cabin was torn off its hinges. Two shifter patrols stood on either side of it, their arms crossed in front of them, their eyes stone cold. The real drama was happening inside. I could see papers and clothing flying through the air from the window. I sensed two more shifters inside, tearing the place apart.
“You’ve no right!” It had to be Rowan’s aunt Grace. Two seconds later, she burst out the front door, pushed from behind. The old woman took a stumbling step forward but quickly caught her balance. I bit my tongue to keep from growling. My fur bristled and my vision tunneled as I sensed the predatory rage coming off the shifters behind her.
She turned on them. “You’re wasting your time. I don’t know anything about a trespasser. Neither does Rowan. Look at her!”
One of the shifters came out. He held Rowan’s upper arm in a firm grip. She’d adopted a crooked gait. For a moment, my heart flared with alarm that they’d broken her leg. I quickly realized she was doing it on purpose. Her act. She’d written the words to this play.
Rowan dropped her head back then let it loll to the side. Grace grabbed her and pulled her to her chest. “Leave the girl alone,” she said. “We are under Able Valent’s protection and you know it.”
The leader of the group took three quick strides, putting himself an inch from the old woman. She craned her neck to keep his gaze. Rowan. God. He could touch her if he wanted. She pressed her body against Grace’s and kept her eyes unfocused. I could sense the fear coming off the patrol leader.
“We are here under Valent’s orders.”
“That may be,” Grace said. “But I’d wager he didn’t give you orders to trash my home and scare the hell out of my ward. Now, you have what you came for. There’s nothing here. Get out. Go back to Valent and tell him what you found. Jack Squat.”
He moved toward her. I could feel the murderous rage bubbling up. He was barely able to control his wolf. My God, he wanted to tear the old woman apart. Then, his focus shifted to Rowan. He was torn. He lifted one finger and tucked it under her chin.
Lightning went off inside my head. A low growl emanated from me. Rowan staggered forward but kept her neck loose. It was just an instant, but she looked across the clearing and locked eyes with me. Hers flashed silver. A warning. Don’t move. Stand down.
Then, she focused her attention on the patrol leader. Lust coiled through him. I could feel its sickening tendrils. If he touched her. If he hurt her.
Rowan barked. She honest to God barked at him. The man blinked and staggered back.
“Come on,” he shouted. “Time to go.”
With a sharp whistle, he rounded up the other three members of the patrol. They fell in line behind him. As soon as they were a few feet from the women, they each shifted into their wolves and tore off through the woods in the other direction.
Grace’s shoulders dropped. She let go of Rowan. Rowan straightened her back and turned her attention to the old woman.
“Are you okay?” she asked, feeling along her arms, the back of her head. But, the old woman was strong-backed and defiant.
“Come on,” she said. “Let’s get you inside.”
She wouldn’t take no for an answer and I hung back. As if it weighed nothing, Rowan lifted the broken door and leaned it against the frame.
I should have left. It would have been the safest thing to do for Rowan and for me. The shifter patrols could come back. I sensed them moving deeper into the forest away from us, but the longer I stayed, the more likely they’d be able to scent me.
But, I didn’t leave. Instead, I moved through the shadows, drawn to what I saw through the window.
Rowan. Her dark hair pasted to her forehead with sweat. She sat at the kitchen table, her arm stretched across it. Her aunt Grace held a syringe between her teeth as she held a medicine vial up to the light. It had reddish, viscous liquid inside. Grace plunged the needle into the rubber top of the vial and drew out the medicine. She held the needle up and squeezed the plunger until a thick bead of red formed at the tip. Then, she wiped Rowan’s arm with an alcohol swab and stuck her with the needle. Rowan blew out a hard breath as the medicine went in.
Her eyes glazed over and her body went slack with unnatural calm. Aunt Grace kissed the top of her head and tossed the needle away.
Ten
Rowan
He was still out there. All day. Watching. Waiting. I bided my time, hoping Aunt Grace would either go into town or fall asleep so I could go out there and tell him to get the hell gone. If she saw him. If she even sensed he was lurking, there’s no telling what she might do.
It wasn’t her fault, I told myself. Grace knew what the Chief Pack was capable of more than anyone. But, she loved me. She’d given her life to raising me and keeping me safe. No matter what else he was, Jagger Wilkes was a threat to me. At least as far as Grace would be concerned.
“You sure you’re feeling all right, honey?” Grace asked me for about the tenth time. “You can take another dose. In fact, that’s a good idea for a lot of reasons. There’s been a lot of excitement.”
“I’m fine,” I answered, smiling brightly. I’d just about finished rehanging the front door.
“Beasts,” Grace said as she stood in front of me, hands on her hips. “There was no cause for any of this.”
“You sure they didn’t break anything else?” I asked.
“Nah,” she answered. “That was all just for show. Except the door. That was just flat out rude. If Able really wanted to shake me up, he has other ways.”
There was a darkness to her tone I didn’t like. Aunt Grace’s true past with Able Valent was yet another secret she kept from me. I’d always believed she did it to protect me. I still did. But, I was no longer sure it was.
“Honey.” Grace came to me after I’d finished with the door. It wasn’t heavy to me, but the effort of holding it in place while I straightened the hinges had me dripping with sweat. The last week of August and it was hovering around a hundred degrees out there. More than anything, I wanted to head down to the stream and dip my toes in. No, that was a lie. More than anything there was someone else I wanted to see.
Jagger. Since the moment I’d laid eyes on him, he was all I could think about. I knew what he was even if I didn’t want to give voice to it. Yet.
“Rowan?” I jumped when Grace touched my arm. Smiling, I gave the door a good swing to make sure it was right.
“There,” I said. “We might have to give it more of a yank now to get it to close, but that’ll do.”
“You shouldn’t strain yourself like that.”
“I’m fine.” Lord, if I had a nickel for every time I said that to her.
“Rowan, we need to talk.”
Strike that, if I had a nickel for every time she said that to me.
“What happened out there?” she asked. “Don’t tell me nothing. Don’t tell me I’m imagining things. I know you. And I know these woods. Somebody came through here who shouldn’t have and you know about it. Now, I need to know what you do know. Now.”
I drew a breath, preparing to launch into rapid-fire denials. Before I could even say one, Grace’s eyes told me it was useless. This was different. She was scared.
“No,” I said, taking a seat at the table. When she reached for the syringes and medication, I put a hand up to stop her. “You don’t need to know. And you don’t need to lecture me. I’m fine. That I can promise you.” It was an empty promise, but it was all I had. Something was happening inside me. A rift. My need to protect Jagger rose up with such fury it took my breath away.
She banged a fist against the table. “You have no idea what you’re messing with, Rowan. None.”
“So, why don’t you tell me? Why don’t you tell me what you’re so scared of? Or where you go when you disappear for days. Or who my parents are.”
Her eyes filled with the same tears she cried every time we had this argument. I felt like an ass for challenging her. This woman raised me. I was her life. But, I just didn’t know how much longer she could be my whole life.
“They’re dead, Rowan. I’ve told you that a thousand times. Your parents are dead. Your daddy worked for the Alpha. He got himself killed on patrol.”
“What was his name, Aunt Grace? Do you have a picture of him? Of my mother? Yes, you’ve told me that a thousand times. But you never answer my questions about her.”
She squeezed the bridge of her nose with her thumb and forefinger. “We’re not doing this. Not now. Don’t turn this back on me. This is you we’re talking about. What did you do? Did you hide that man? He’s a shifter, right? Of course he is. No way the patrols would give two shits if he were just some lost deer hunter or something. Tell me something, Rowan, does he have a mark? On his chest? Wolf tattoo with wings and shit?”
I dug my nails into the rough wood of the table. I kept my face a mask. I wouldn’t give her that. I wouldn’t give her anything and I hated myself a little bit for it. But, this worked when I was a little kid. She could make me feel guilty for the sacrifices she’d made. I know they were huge. And yet, she still wouldn’t tell me what I knew I had the right to know. It gave me childish satisfaction to know for once I was the one with the information she desperately wanted.
“Fine,” she straightened. “Keep your little secrets. But know this, whatever you think you’re doing, you’re not helping anybody. Not him. Not you. If they find out you had anything to do with hiding that man or just any of it, you’ll be in a world of hurt, baby girl.”