“I missed you, douce enfant.” Doug handed her the meal he had purchased for her. “Sorry, it’s no longer warm.”
“Thank you,” said Evangeline when he placed the food on her lap.
I smelled another werewolf on her, but I saved my comments for later, far too grateful to find her, mostly safe.
She didn’t speak much on the ride home. Neither did I, though there was plenty I wanted to say. Doug and I seemed to have a silent agreement not to discuss Evangeline’s delinquency in front of Bob. This was pack business. Family business.
I realized that I had indeed started to think of Evangeline as part of my little family. When had that happened? I wanted to say it was long ago, but I suspected I hadn’t thought that way at all until I saw her tearstained face, sitting alone amidst her zombie guard.
I had plenty of time to think about what we should do, in regards to punishment/consequences. My big plan was to have her do as I’d said, a day or two before, school with Doug and work with Christina, plus have check-ins with Doug or me, so we’d know exactly where she was and what she was up to at any given time of day. I might even buy her a planner so we could put it in writing for her each day.
How organized was I? Now I just needed to discuss this plan with Doug whenever we could get a moment alone. Ha! That would be the hardest part.
We arrived home quite late, as we had stopped for dinner on the way home. Percy stood on the front steps of the vast mansion we all lived in, waiting. She ran down to us as soon as we parked.
“Oh thank goodness!” she exclaimed when she saw Evangeline climb out of the van.
Bob disembarked as well, his zombies remaining inside. “I’d like to have a word with Hades, and then we’ll be off.”
“What do we owe you?” I asked.
Percy waved a manicured hand at me. “Oh, don’t be silly, we’ve had all that taken care of,” she said. “Bob, Hades is waiting for you in the library.”
“I’ll go right in then. Good night, your majesty.” He bowed to Percy, then turned to Doug, Evangeline, and me. “It’s been a pleasure working with you, Mr. and Mrs. Wolfemin. Pup, I hope that your pack won’t need my services again.”
“Me too,” I said, and Doug smiled as he shook Bob’s hand.
“Well then,” said Percy after Bob left us. “Let’s get you settled, shall we, dear?” She placed her arm around Evangeline’s shoulders in a motherly fashion that I wish I could have achieved and walked my daughter inside.
I took advantage of our alone moment and filled Doug in on my thoughts and plans.
“I think this is reasonable, but how long do you think we should continue doing all this scheduling and checking in?” he asked.
“Good question. I haven’t gotten quite that far yet,” I admitted, burrowing myself into his arms.
“Let’s tell her she made a mess of things, and she is grounded—”
“Probably for the first time in her life anyone has bothered,” I interjected, lifting my face so he could see my smile.
“Indeed,” he continued, “and she will remain grounded for the length of one month.”
I nodded. “You’re good at this dad thing.” I tucked my head into the crook of his neck.
“Thanks. Don’t worry, you’re starting to catch on. I think that hug was a turning point for both of you.”
I rolled my eyes. Doug laughed and kissed my hair.
“Come, I’m hungry. Let’s get a snack,” he said.
“Sounds good to me!” We headed, hand in hand, for the kitchen entrance.
We were almost to the back door when I caught the scent of a strange wolf. I tensed, as did Doug, giving a low warning growl.
At first, the darkness gave nothing away, then slowly, hesitantly, a half-grown male came into sight. I was surprised to find I recognized the young wolf and came out of the tense and ready position I’d adopted.
“Emery?” I hoped I’d tacked the right name onto the adolescent boy.
“Yes, ma’am, that’s me,” he said, hunching his shoulders and back, hugging his arms around his ribs in an attempt to look smaller.
Doug took a step in his direction and Emery flinched.
Doug stilled. “No need to fear us, pup, at least not at the moment. Why are you here?”
“I came to rescue my sister. We planned on going it on our own,” Emery admitted, straightening, though his shoulders remained drooped.
“I can’t say I’m sorry for ruining those plans,” I said. “Evangeline doesn’t need rescuing. She is, however, grounded, so she won’t be going anywhere at all for a while, with or without you.”
“Grounded?” he asked, his brow furrowing in confusion.
“Yes, grounded. She’ll be on a strict schedule, having to check in with us, and won’t be leaving the grounds,” I explained.
“So she’ll live then?” he asked, his eyes lighting up with hope.
“Of course,” said Doug, placing a gentle hand on the boy’s shoulder.
“Oh, well then, I . . .I—” Emery seemed to be unable to go on from there.
“Do you need rescuing?” Doug asked, his voice full of compassion for his newfound daughter’s brother.
His gaze was fixed on the grass below his bare feet. “I just left. I didn’t tell anyone. I just left.”
“Why don’t you stay with us, for now at least. I will get in touch with your pack and see what can be done.” I surprised us all with this suggestion. It may have meant that I would have to have it out with Emery’s alpha again.
“I can stay here? With Eva?” he asked, hesitation clear on his face as he lifted it, though not quite high enough to look in our eyes, remaining submissive.
“You will have your own room, but yes, you can stay here. In fact, I insist,” I said.
Oh brother, what was I getting myself into? A pack of two 15-year-olds? Was I crazy?
“Come inside. We’ll get you settled. You can take a shower and get a bite to eat while we talk to your sister, then you can see her.” Doug’s hand went from the teen’s shoulder to his bicep.
Emery’s face broke into a smile. “Okay, sir. That sounds good.”
We entered the kitchen, where Doug started scrounging up some dinner for the half-starved teenager.
“Is that everything?” I nodded at the pack slung around Emery’s shoulder.
“Yeah.”
“All right, follow me then. It might take a while for you to get used to this house. It literally has a mind of its own.” I led the way up the back stairs, then tried several doors, before finding an empty suite.
“This should do.” I ushered him inside and noted the look of awe on his face upon entering the room. I left the door open so Doug wouldn’t have any trouble finding us. “So these are your rooms. You have this main room as your bedroom, a bathroom, and a dressing room. The house will accommodate some of your needs, but let Percy, she’s the lady of the house, or me know if you need anything like clothes or toiletries.”
“Dinner is served,” Doug announced, setting a tray on the bedside table closest to the door. “Eat up, take a shower, then meet us across the way in your sister’s room. We’ll leave the door open so you’ll know which it is.
“All right,” said Emery as we left him to it.
I heard Percy’s voice, so I knew which room was Evangeline’s right away. I knocked softly on the door, then let myself in.
“We have a new guest,” I murmured in Percy’s ear.
“I thought I heard a new voice,” she whispered, her head turning away from Evangeline.
“I’ll tell you all about it later,” I promised.
“Be sure that you do,” said Percy, then left the room.
Doug took a seat at Evangeline’s desk, while I sat next to her on the bed.
“Doug and I have discussed what should be done,” I said, then gave her a moment to stew on that.
Evangeline’s eyes and smell were wild with fear, and her fingers clutched her bedspread.
; “We have decided that you are grounded for the next month. I’m going to buy you a planner tomorrow in which I will help you put together a schedule including check-ins. In the meantime, you are to remain in this room, unless accompanied by Doug or me. Do you understand?”
A slow smile spread across Evangeline’s face, and she nodded vigorously.
“Good, in that case, we have a surprise for you, but it will be a few minutes. In the meantime, do you have anything you’d like to say or any questions?”
She shook her head.
“Well, I have something to say. I’m glad you’re home, and I hope you never feel the need to run away again. I’m sorry I gave you reason to fear. I’m trying to do right by you, but obviously I’m not always successful. I do hope you’ll forgive me someday.”
I heard the door open across the way and nodded at Doug and we stood.
“Your surprise is on its way. We’ll leave you alone. Oh, and please don’t stay up too late,” I said, then walked out into the hall where Emery was waiting.
Doug grabbed his arm gently before he could go through the open door. “If you could both be in bed by midnight, I’d appreciate it. Also, Eva isn’t allowed out of her room without Gretchen or me.”
“Yes, sir,” said Emery.
“Very good. If you need anything, don’t hesitate to knock on our door, though I can’t guarantee it will stay put. I doubt Percy would mind either, but leave Hades alone,” said Doug.
“Yes, sir,” Emery said again, then walked through the door into his sister’s room.
“Emery!”
Evangeline’s muffled squeal followed us as we made our way down the hall to our own room.
“Hey, Eva,” said Emery.
We shut our door, closing out the voices, wearing matching grins on our faces.
I woke up early enough to go for a run with my husband. I have to admit, it was much more fun to run when there was someone to race against. That, and I don’t think I’d gone since I had gotten skunked.
On the way back, we stopped in with Christina and got a work schedule for Evangeline. She already had everything neatly written and contained in a folder. I thanked her, then went to check on the child of the hour.
I cracked her door open a bit, hoping to catch her attention. She opened it the rest of the way, revealing a head of tousled blonde hair and flannel Eeyore pajamas.
“G’morning,” I said.
“Morning,” she replied with a sleep-heavy voice.
“I’ll come get you in half an hour,” I promised, gently touching her cheek, then left to get ready for the workday.
I took a quick shower, then threw some curl cream into my hair, before attacking it with my diffuser, scrunching it until it was nearly dry, then pinned it high on my head, allowing just a couple of curls to escape.
My makeup was done five minutes later, and I threw on the clothes I’d laid out the night before, then I collected Evangeline and knocked on her brother’s door.
“We’re headed down to breakfast if you want to join us,” I called through the closed door, not knowing if he was even awake.
I passed my charge off to my husband after we ate, then took my tea into the salon to set up my things, in hopes of a walk-in. I took up position behind the front desk, armed with a book, Magic Hour by Kristen Hannah, about a wild child and her therapist. I needed to move on from all the books in the 1800s that I had an impossible time relating to, due to my station in life at that point in time. Maybe I’d come up with some tips for dealing with my adoptive pack.
The creepy caller struck three times in the first hour and I dutifully dialed *57 after each one. His questions got lewder as the day wore on. Seriously, didn’t this guy have a job? I was placing my bet that he lived in his mother’s basement.
Around noon, an unscheduled walk-in arrived, or so I thought. She was a professional looking woman, dressed in slacks, jacket, and heels. I judged her age to be in her mid-40s. She had an attaché case tucked under her arm.
“Good afternoon, how may I help you?” I greeted her cheerily as she approached the desk.
“Good afternoon. Are you the owner?” she asked, her tone as businesslike as her attire.
“No, I’m not. That would be Percy, down there,” I pointed to where Percy was waiting. “I can check her book and see if she has an opening if you’d like. Or I can take you myself.”
“No, thank you. I actually would like to talk to you all, when you have a moment. My name is Vanessa Clearing and I’m with the Bureau of Fae Affairs.” She held her hand out to me for a shake.
I took it with a much firmer grip than I intended.
“What can I do for you?” I asked, trying to keep the growl out of my voice.
“It has come to my attention that there has been suspicious activity going on around here for the last few months to a year,” she said, placing her case on the counter and pulling out a brown file folder.
Meredith snorted at her station, where she sat waiting for her next client to arrive. “You could say that.”
“Anything you know about?” Clearing turned her attention to Meredith.
“Well, I’m sure you already know that there are fae here,” said Meredith, “since you’re here, I mean.”
“Are you one of them?” Clearing asked, leaving me to approach her station.
Everyone stopped what they were doing to listen in, as we were powerless to keep Meredith from giving away all our secrets, without revealing them ourselves.
I held my breath and my heart stuttered, as this child held my life in her hands and squeezed.
“Ah, no. I’m all human,” said Meredith. “But Percy is definitely something, and so is her husband. Gretchen and Doug are werewolves, and I bet the kid they took in is too. Doug was just changed a little while ago. I don’t know about anyone else.”
The little bitch. She knew exactly what she was doing.
“I see. And was this Gretchen the one who changed him?”
“I don’t know, you’d have to ask her, but he was a bloody mess when she brought him home. She’s the one you were just talking to.”
I closed my eyes and tried to keep my heart rate down with deep breaths as my coworker, and supposed friend, betrayed me. Kill it. No.
“Percy is the one who healed him, otherwise, I think Doug would have been a goner.” Meredith kept talking, unaware of the damage she was doing.
“I see. Well, I need you ladies to fill out these forms, then turn them into your town hall.” She pulled out a stack of stapled papers and sent them on the counter directly in front of me. “Then I need you to see one of these doctors for evaluation.” A single sheet went down next to the stack. “You have one week to do this. There are copies for your husband, Percy, and yours, Gretchen, as well as the child.”
I felt numb as I took a packet of papers and glanced over it. Restraining myself from lunging at either Clearing or Meredith was a challenge.
For once, Percy had less control than I. She dropped her sweet, plump, Greek lady glamour and revealed the buxom, caramel-skinned, blonde, violet-eyed goddess.
“I think you better leave, child.” Persephone stalked forward with everyone’s eyes glued to her movements. “We’ll fill out your paperwork and visit your doctor. But you best leave now.”
“Have a nice day then,” said Clearing. She closed her case and click-clacked her way to the door, doing her best not to show the fear she reeked of.
Everyone’s eyes, including mine, remained on Percy as the front door closed. She turned and fixed her eyes on Meredith.
“You’re fired.”
“But I—” Meredith started.
“Gather your things and leave. I’ll mail you your last paycheck.”
Meredith shut her mouth with a click of her teeth and began packing up her station. I resisted the urge to “help” her hurry the process along.
“If anyone else has a problem with what I am, they can leave as well,” said Percy.
“What
are you?” asked Percy’s client with genuine curiosity.
“I’m Persephone, goddess of the underworld and your stylist if you still want me to be.”
“That’s so awesome! Like the one and only?” the client continued asking Percy questions and seemed rather smug that her personal stylist was a literal goddess.
“You’re a werewolf?” Amanda asked me after finishing her own client.
I was able to pull myself together. “Yeah.”
“And Doug? And Evangeline?”
“Yup and yup.”
“Did Doug really almost die when you turned him?” Sweet fear wafted from her. Fear of me.
“I can’t turn people into what I am, but yeah, there was a good chance he would have died. There is a good chance anyone will die that chooses to be turned.” I sat down with my hands wrapped around my mug of tea.
She sat with me, though she was careful to keep her distance. I was hurt by her sudden distrust, even though I understood it. It was a big secret to keep.
“And your kid? She chose to be changed?”
I shook my head. “Evangeline and her brother were both born werewolves. It’s probably why she’s deaf, shifting is hard on developing fetuses.”
Amanda stared at her cup of coffee, searching for words. “Have you attacked anyone ever?” she asked finally.
“I’ve been alive for a very long time. Yes, I have.”
“Recently?”
I thought about the hunter a few months ago and thought about lying. I studied Amanda for a moment and decided to tell her the truth. I needed her friendship more than ever, and I wanted to be all in.
“Honestly, I don’t know. I don’t really know what happened when I took my trip to New York.”
“When you visited Lacey-Marie.” She paused. “Wait, is she a werewolf too?”
I shook my head. “No, a vampire.”
Pack of Freaks: Beasts Among Us - Book 2 Page 27