Finding His Family: A Howls Romance (The Shifters of Sanctuary Book 6)

by Kasey Belle

  “How did you get from Spokane to here?”

  “Bus.” The girl shrugged a shoulder.

  “Nobody inquired as to why you were traveling with two small children.”

  “You’re surprised that people turn a blind eye to stuff that doesn’t concern them? When I picked up the tickets at the bus, the lady asked where my mom was. I told her we were traveling our grandmother and pointed at an old lady. The lady didn’t even question it.”

  “Damn. The bus arrives in Sanctuary at one in the afternoon. Where have you been and why didn’t you call?”

  “The park. We had to wait until dark to walk so nobody would see us. That didn’t work out.” She gave him a sheepish grin. Her expression grew serious. “I didn’t contact you because I couldn’t chance you’d turn us away. Figured it be harder to say no to our faces.”

  Koda didn’t like it but he couldn’t fault her logic either. “You realize I’ll have to contact Spokane DCFS, right?”

  “If you’re gonna do that, then we’re leaving. They’ll separate us. Didn’t you hear me?”

  “They’ll be looking for you,” he reasoned.

  “No.” Emmarie crossed her arms over her chest and narrowed her eyes in defiance.

  He placed his hands on her shoulders. “Listen to me, Emmarie.” Koda put his alpha power behind his words. “No matter what happens, you are staying here. I will make sure you are safe. I won’t let them take you away or separate the three of you. But, I need to do what is best for the pack and that means not getting myself or anyone else here in trouble with the law. Ms. Caldwell is a shifter. She’ll understand that Sanctuary Pack has placed you under its protection. We just need make it legal. I need you trust me and also promise me that you won’t take off.”

  Emmarie sniffed, and a tear rolled down her cheek making Koda feel like a monster. “You promise you won’t let them take us?”

  “I swear on my pack. This is your home now. I’ll give you guys time to settle in before I contact her. Unless she or the cops come calling first. Let’s hope that doesn’t happen because it will make things harder.” He held out his hand. “Do we have a deal?”

  Emmarie eyed his hand for a moment then took it. “Deal. Thank you, Alpha.”

  “You’re all exhausted. Why don’t you go up and help Lula and Sage get ready for bed?”

  The pup gave him a quick nod then raced up the stairs. He said a silent prayer to whoever was listening thanking them for delivering the children safely to the pack. He hoped he could keep his word.

  After Koda completed his final check of the house and children, he joined Ella in bed. He slid under the sheets and spooned her from behind.

  “Your feet are cold,” she pouted.

  “That’s why I have you to warm them up.” She elbowed him in the stomach making him snicker.

  “Are the children asleep?”

  “Yep. All of them. Lula and Sage are cuddled up with Emmarie in her bed like a pack of puppies or kittens. I guess either would apply to them. Doesn’t look like they even touched the toddler bed or crib.”

  “Makes sense. I’m sure they feel safer with Emmarie. I’m so glad we decided to open the sanctuary to military spouses and children. I hate to think of where The Bennett children would have ended up if they didn’t have us to run to.”

  “I’ve been thinking the same thing. I can’t believe they made it here. Anything could have happened to them. What Emmarie did was both brave and stupid. I made her promise me she wouldn’t do anything like that again.”

  “Those poor children.” Ella let out a heartfelt sigh. “I feel so blessed knowing that if anything happened to us our children have plenty of people who love them and would happily adopt them.”

  He kissed the back of Ella’s neck and breathed in her scent. He hated to imagine a scenario where he and Ella left their children orphans, but his mate was right. Stephanie Ann and Liam would never be alone in the world if he and Ella weren’t in it. “We are blessed, spitfire. I love you so much, Ella.”

  She squeezed his hand and snuggled into the curve of his body. “I love you too.”

  Chapter 4

  Matt trotted up the steps and knocked on his uncle’s door. He’d learned the hard way to not walk in unannounced. He had mental pictures in his brain he didn’t want. Stephanie Ann pulled the door open a few moments later. “Matt!” The redheaded imp jumped into his arms.

  “Hey, munchkin. Where’s your dad?”

  “He’s in the den with Mommy. They said I could answer the door ‘cause it was you.” Stephanie Ann rolled her eyes. “Like it’s gonna be anybody other than family knocking on our door.”

  She was just a spunky as her mother. Damn he loved his cousin. Hell, he loved all the pack children blood related or not. Matt tossed her over his shoulder and carried inside. Stephanie Ann squealed and slapped at his back. Matt stopped short just inside the threshold when he noticed his uncle had company.

  “Hey, Uncle Koda.” He shot a wave at Ella who was sitting on the sofa reading. “You needed to see me?”

  Koda stood from the sofa and walked over. “I do.” He pointed to the unknown children. An older girl with short brown hair and toddler occupied the over-stuffed chair in the corner and a little girl was on the floor coloring. “That’s Emmarie Bennett.” Koda indicated the older girl. “Her brother Sage and their sister Lula.”

  Lula was on her stomach. Her feet kicking back and forth in the air. Matt couldn’t see the little girl’s face because it was hidden by her thick curly hair.

  “They arrived last night.” Koda’s pointed look told Matt not to ask questions. “I wanted you to take a look at them and make sure they’re okay. They just got out of the hospital and traveled a long way. I’m sure they’re fine, but Ella didn’t trust her assessment since she deals with animals, even though the siblings are shifters.” He smirked and winked.

  “They are still children,” Ella said giving Koda a bit of shade as she joined them. “Thank you for coming, Sir Matthew.” Ella’s cheeky grin made him laugh. He couldn’t believe that nickname still stuck after all these years.

  He gave a mock bow, “Anything for you, m’lady. Where’s Liam?”

  “He’s over at Nikki’s playing with Jamie.”

  “Pawning off your kid again? Nice.” He playfully offered Ella a fist bump. She smacked his hand away making him laugh. He felt eyes on him and glanced over. Emmarie was watching him. Matt took a deep breath. “What kind of shifters are they?” he asked in a low voice. “I don’t recognize the scent?”

  “Maine Coon and Mastiff,” Emmarie answered with a glare. She moved the boy off her lap and stood in front of the chair her hands akimbo. “Is that a problem, wolf?”

  Ella snickered, and Matt couldn’t help but grin. “Not a problem at all, warrior princess.” He stepped away from Koda and walked toward the young girl. “I guess it’s true what they say about cats. You guys can hear everything, and you have a lot of attitude,” he teased

  Emmarie’s lips twitched. “We do and sharp claws. I’m also half Mastiff. We’re extremely protective.” She tilted her chin in defiance. “You’d do well to remember that.”

  “I doubt you’d let me forget,” he deadpanned.

  She finally gave in to her amusement and giggled. “You’re alright, Matt.” She eyed him up and down. “So, you’re a paramedic.”

  “Yep. For a few years now.”

  “I told Mr. Koda we were okay. But I guess you can check us over.” She looked at her siblings and nodded. “Start with them first. They might be scared of you, so I’ll help.”

  Emmarie stepped out of the way. Matt went to the chair and squatted down so he would be eye level with Sage. “Hey there, little man.” Sage stuck his thumb in his mouth and glanced at his oldest sister for reassurance. Matt couldn’t see what Emmarie did, but Sage looked back at him and smiled around his thumb. The boy wasn’t scared of him. That was all that mattered to Matt. He’d always had a way with kids. He was happy to see The
Bennett children were no exception. Matt brushed the boy’s brown, wavy hair off his brow. He looked over his shoulder at Emmarie. “How did he get this bruise?”

  “We were in an accident.”

  The tiny voice startled Matt, and he jerked his head around. He hadn’t noticed Lula joined them. It gutted him when her lower lip quivered.

  “Mommy died,” she whispered. Tears leaked from her eyes and rolled down her cheeks.

  Matt didn’t stop to question his actions he just pulled the little girl into his arms and hugged her. Lula’s quiet sobs set off a chain reaction starting with Sage then Emmarie. He inched closer and coaxed Emmarie to join them in a group hug while she held Sage.

  Once the children cried themselves out, Matt went to his truck and grabbed the professional first aid kit he carried in his truck. He inquired about their injuries. Emmarie surprised Matt by giving him a thorough list as if she were the one with medical training.

  “How did you get here?” He asked as he rubbed antibiotic ointment over a still healing scrape on Lula’s cheek. “Wasn’t anyone suspicious of the three of you traveling alone?”

  Emmarie shrugged a shoulder. “We attached ourselves to an elderly wolf shifter. I noticed she was traveling alone and told her we were trying to get to our family. I asked if she’d pretend, we were together when I picked up our tickets. She was only going as far as Missoula but agreed. She was a nice old lady. I told the person at the counter she was our grandmother.”

  Smart and brave, he thought.

  Emmarie snorted. “The driver in Missoula didn’t even blink when we boarded alone.”

  He looked them over as best he could. Matt checked them for signs of concussion and tended to their still healing cuts and scrapes. Since none of the children had the ability to shift in order to heal yet, they needed to keep an eye on any open wounds or complications. He didn’t see anything that would require a trip to the ER or a doctor’s office. Sage had fallen asleep by the time he was finished so Emmarie took him upstairs. Stephanie Ann joined Lula on the floor with extra coloring books.

  Emmarie met him, Koda, and Ella in the kitchen. Matt explained what they needed to watch for, but that he didn’t feel there would be any issues as the hospital in Spokane had planned to release them the day Emmarie and her siblings skipped out. “Still, the journey was hard on you.” He addressed his next statement to Emmarie. “You were traveling when all three of you should have been resting.”

  “They were going to separate us,” Emmarie stated in a belligerent tone. “I wasn’t about to let that happen.”

  Matt squeezed her shoulder. “I understand. If I had siblings, I would have done the same. If Lula or Sage complain of stomach pain, headaches, dizziness, or any of the other issues I mentioned tell Koda or Ella right away. The same goes for you if you start to feel off.”

  He said his goodbyes to the children and asked Koda to walk him out. “What are you going to do with them?” Matt asked once the door shut behind him and Koda.

  “I told Emmarie I’d give them time to settle in before calling their case worker. She’s a shifter as well. Hopefully she’ll help me turn this around legally, so the pack can take custody.”

  Matt pushed his fingers through his hair. “Shit, Uncle. What they did was equal parts dangerous and brave.”

  “Right? That Emmarie is something else.” Koda looked back at the house with a sad grin. “You got more out of those children than I did. I feel so bad for them.”

  He put an arm around Koda’s shoulders. “You’re a good man. I’m glad they came here. How did they know about the place, anyway?”

  “Their mother, Katie petitioned to join the pack. I served with her husband, William. He died before Sage was born. Neither his pack nor Katie’s clowder wanted anything to do with them after they accepted each other as fated mates. They were shunned.”

  “Those assholes turned their backs on them because they mated outside their species?”

  “Yep. Seems like it. Emmarie said Ms. Caldwell was going to speak them. I guess it didn’t go well.”

  “I get people have prejudices. That way of thinking will never go away. But, to turn your back on innocent children?” Matt shook his head. “Well fuck them.” His body seethed with anger. “Those children are better off here.” He tossed his bag into the truck. “I better get going. I promised the rents I’d have dinner with them. Let me know if you need any help with your new charges.”

  Koda pulled him into a strong hug. “I will. Thanks, Matty. Oh and―”

  “I know nothing. I see nothing.”

  Chapter 5

  Callie climbed into her car and tossed her leather messenger bag on the passenger seat. She’d completed her last scheduled home visit, but her workday was nowhere near over. She still had to follow up with Spokane PD to see if they’d had any leads on Emmarie and her siblings. It had been four days since she’d heard from the detective assigned to the missing persons case. She thought because Detective Ballas was a badger shifter he’d be more inclined to find missing shifter children. Callie was beginning to believe that wasn’t the case.

  The fact that they disappeared without a trace worried the hell out of Callie. Her mind kept wandering to morbid scenarios like human trafficking. Where could they be?

  She checked their old house every day on her way to work then on the way home since the three children went missing, but nothing had come of it. She didn’t know what belongings the children had prior to entering the house with the police that first day making it impossible to tell if they’d come home and took anything with them after they left the hospital.

  Callie walked up the steps to the police station’s entrance nodding at a few officers she recognized. She hated that she knew so many of them. Some people just shouldn’t have children. Callie stood in line and waited her turn to see the desk sergeant. Sergeant Helmsley was probably in her fifties. It was hard to tell because the woman never smiled. Not that Callie could blame her. The sergeant cut her teeth on the boys club mentality of the police department. She had to be tough as nails to deal with all the misogyny and make them respect her as a fellow officer.

  “Well, if it isn’t Ms. Caldwell,” the sergeant said as Callie stepped forward. “What can I help you with today?”

  “I’m here to see, Detective Ballas. Is he around?”

  The woman grunted. “Of course.” The arched eyebrow Sergeant Helmsley shot her said it all. Callie had already gotten the feeling the man was lazy.

  “I’ll let him know you’re here.”

  “Thank you, Sergeant.” Callie sat in one of the chairs along the wall across from Sergeant Helmsley. She pulled out her cellphone and listened to her voice messages and checked her email. Still nothing new on her missing kids. Hopefully the detective would have something to tell her.

  Detective Ballas stepped through a set of double doors. “Ms. Caldwell?” He called out.

  Callie stood and made her way over to him. Meeting the man for the first time a few days ago had been a shock. Most of the shifters Callie knew took care of themselves. The detective was a short, portly man with dull brown hair and rheumy hazel eyes. Having shifter genes didn’t make you immune to such things as weight gain and a bad complexion. The size of his waist and color of his skin spoke of too many fast food meals and alcoholic beverages. “What can I do for you?”

  “I came to check on the status of the Bennett case.”

  He narrowed his eyes at her and huffed “Come on back.” She followed behind the man as he led her to a desk in the far-right corner of the room. He indicated the metal chair on the side of his desk. “Have a seat. I told you I’d call you if I had any updates.”

  “Yes, but it’s been days,” she shot back. “Someone had to have seen them or something.”

  “Do you know how many runaways there are in this country? Too many to count.”

  “I realize that. I’m sure you’ve looked into several of those types of cases. It’s only been a short time. Certainly,
the trail hasn’t gone cold.”

  “Cold enough.” He narrowed his beady eyes. “They’re hybrids, Ms. Caldwell. Don’t worry so much. Their kind are a little feral. If they don’t want to be found. They won’t be.”

  “How can you have such an ignorant attitude? Do you live under a rock, Detective?” Callie hissed as she leaned in. “They may be hybrids, but they are not animals. They are children. None of them have had their first shift. Sage Bennett isn’t even two years old!” She adjusted her tone when she noticed the other detectives staring. “You’re not only a shifter but also a cop. It’s your job to find them.”

  “And I’m doing my job. I’ve been in touch with the bus stations and airports and am waiting to hear back so we can check their surveillance. I’ve done an initial tower dump on the mother’s cellphone. I’ve put in a request for a court order in order to obtain more information, including addresses, billing records and logs of calls, texts, and locations. I’ve put in a request for a warrant to check the mother’s bank records and track her credit cards. It’s a waiting game now.”

  Callie huffed out a breath. “What about an Amber alert?”

  “Doesn’t fit the criteria.”

  She knew that. Damn it.

  “Look, Ms. Caldwell. See all these files? These are open cases and they all need my attention. If I receive any new information, I’ll call you. Now if that’s all.”

  Callie decided to alter her pattern and stop by the Bennett house on her way back to the office. She was still cursing Detective Ballas when she pulled up to the curb in front of the single-story ranch style home in Maron Prairie. What an asshole! Callie glanced up at the house and saw an older woman with short grey hair dressed in a blue jogging suit walking away from the Bennett’s front door. She hopped out of the car. “Excuse me.” Callie trotted up the walk toward the older woman. Her kitten heals―no pun intended―click-clacking against the pavement. “Are they home?”

  The woman shook her head and kept walking.