Mika stood still, legs parted slightly and arms crossed over his chest. He narrowed his eyes on her, waiting for her to acknowledge him.
It wasn’t a long wait.
“Well, look who has graced us all with his presence,” Kaley finally said without looking at him. “How lucky we all must be to have the Almighty come home at last.”
“Hello, Kaley.”
Slowly her head turned, and those eyes landed right on him. Eyes he hadn’t seen in so many damn years. Eyes that were so dark blue it had you thinking of oceans far away. Eyes that bored right into his soul and had him feeling like he was being punched in the gut.
“Welcome back to hell, Mika. Hope you don’t plan on staying long.”
“Still a pain in the ass I see,” Mika said, looking around the cell. “Doesn’t seem like your kind of place, but I’m hearing you’re starting to make a home out of it.”
She cocked her head to the side. “This place is about as warm and inviting as the house.” They stared at each other hard before she spoke again. “What are you doing here?”
“Well, at the moment, I guess I’m getting your ass out of trouble.”
Her eyes narrowed, mouth opened slightly, and she looked him up and down. “Save it. I’m not interested in you being my damn hero.”
“Yeah, that makes two of us,” he snarled. He swung around and walked back to where Maddock was waiting for him. “Car wrecked?”
“Nope. Got it out front.”
“What’s the fine then?”
“Said this one was a freebie. You just need to sign for her, and she’s all yours.”
“Great.” Mika followed Maddock back to his office only to stop when Stray came up to him. “What the hell is going on?”
“Don’t really know myself.” Mika gave him a half smile, then looked over at where Maddock had stopped at the doorway to his office. Mika dug into his pocket and brought out his keys. “Here. You’re going to take the truck and follow me to the Wisemyer house.”
Mika rubbed his face, then the back of his neck, the tension rising fast in him. Already he wanted to just walk away and run as far as he could. Yet on the flip side he also wanted to stay. That confused the hell out of him. But then, there was something about Kaley and what he saw in her eyes that had him deciding right then that he was going to stay and do what Brian wanted.
“Wisemyer house?” Stray’s eyes widened. “Are you shitting me?” he hissed. “Why the hell would we go there?”
“I’ll tell you later.”
“Mika…”
Mika looked around the room only to stop when another deputy brought Kaley out, holding onto her arm.
“Is that—”
“Yeah,” Mika finished.
“Holy shit!” Stray hissed low.
“How about you just wait for me outside,” Mika said, forcing his eyes off Kaley and back to Stray. “I’ve got to sign some papers before we can go.”
“Papers? What the fuck is going on?”
“Stray, for Christ’s sake, will you just do as I’m asking and give me a break with the fucking questions, please. I’m still trying process this crap as is.”
Stray kept his mouth shut, and Mika walked away. He watched him and picked up that there was way more to this story, as well as something he couldn’t put his finger on with Mika. He knew that coming back here would stir up things better left alone, but that wasn’t it, and Stray couldn’t quite figure it out either.
“What’s going on?” Vesper came up behind Stray, grabbing both of his arms with eyes wide open. “Is it Hayden? He’s found us, right?”
“What? No.” He turned and wrapped his arms around her, not giving it a thought. “This has nothing to do with him. He’s not going to find you here, I promise.”
“Then what’s wrong?”
“Not sure.” Stray looked over his shoulder again at Mika. He was talking to the sheriff and Kaley sat in a chair.
“Who is that girl?”
“Lora’s sister,” he mumbled, studying her. “Man, I can’t believe that’s Kaley.” Tearing his eyes from her he looked back at Mika. Didn’t take much to see the tension in Mika and he wondered what they were talking about. Mika began to pace back and forth, one hand flying in the air, the other on his hip. Mika always put his hand on his hip when he became irritated or pissed off. “Would love to be a fly on that wall.”
“Huh?”
Stray shook off the tunnel vision he seemed to have and focused all his attention on Vesper. He still was holding onto her and it felt good. Very good. Gave him a bit of hope even, until that old sensation of needing to run hit again.
“Nothing.” He tried to smile at her but failed as he lowered his arms. “We should go wait outside I think. Everyone is staring and this is a small town. News of Mika being back will spread and all will know before morning.”
She nodded, he took hold of her arm and started to walk her back to the door. Then she stopped. “Um, Stray?”
“Humm.”
“Can we maybe get a burger?” That had him stilling, brow drawn in together as he looked at her. “I haven’t had one in a long time and I’m hungry,” Vesper added.
“Yeah, that might be a good idea. Let me just tell Mika and get some cash.”
“Oh, well, if you don’t…”
“No.” He held one finger up, silencing her. “He has all our cash on him. If I don’t use it now, I will blow it on bullshit. Stay right here.” Stray walked back over to the sheriff’s office and knocked on the door. Before either answered he walked in. “Sorry to interrupt. Um, Mika, I’m going to take Vesper to get a burger real fast, then meet up with you later.”
“Fine,” Mika snapped.
“Need some cash, buddy.”
Mika sighed, slid a hand into his front pocket, and brought out some money. He didn’t even look at it, just handed a bunch to Stray. “Thanks, man.”
Stray got out of there as fast as he could. Grabbing hold of Vesper’s arm, they walked from the police station and down the sidewalk.
It had been a long time since Stray was in Haven. He left way before the shit that happened to Mika, and when he came back his cousin had already left. Stray only got bits and pieces of what happened and never asked Mika for the rest.
They walked into a small restaurant before the noon rush. Seated in a booth to the back, Stray tried to relax, but it was hard. Mostly because there were so many people around and many kept looking back at them.
“Are you always this tense?” Vesper asked.
“Huh?” Stray stopped checking out the room to look at her.
“You seem miles away,” she said and smiled. Funny how her smile had him relaxing.
“Still not used to being around lots of people again.”
“So then take your mind off of it.”
“How?”
“Talk to me.”
“What would you like to talk about?”
“You.”
“Me?”
She shrugged her shoulders. “Why not? I know nothing about you.”
“Okay, what would you like to know?”
She bit her lower lip as if thinking hard. The motion of her biting that lip had something inside him stirring. Something he hasn’t felt naturally in a very long time.
“Hum, what are your favorite things to eat?” she asked. Stray narrowed his eyes for a moment, then busted out laughing. “What’s so funny? It’s a legitimate question.”
“Yes, but not one I thought you would ask me.”
“What can I get you?” Both looked up the same time at the waitress with a pad and pen in hand.
“How about your best burgers, fries, and Cokes,” Stray ordered, then looked at Vesper. “That okay with you?’
“Sounds great.” She smiled.
“Be right back with the drinks.”
“My favorite thing to eat, huh?” Stray acted like he was thinking hard also. “Don’t really have just one. I like food, period.”
�
��True, but everyone has one thing they just love.”
“Okay, what’s yours?”
“Well, I think pizza is mine. I ordered it all the time.” She laughed. “The place I used to go to all the time knew my order by heart.”
“Then maybe we should have gone for pizza.”
“Burgers are my second. Besides, I could smell them cooking from the station.” Their drinks came and Vesper sucked half of hers down with eyes closed. “Oh, that is good,” she said and sighed.
“A girl after my heart.” Stray chuckled.
“It’s strange how you miss the little things when they are taken away from you.”
“Yeah, that I can agree with you on.”
“So what did you do before what happened to you happened? If you don’t mind me asking, that is.”
“Just tried to stay alive.”
“What’d you mean?”
“I mean, we were being hunted and killed off. The ones the bitch didn’t want, that is.”
“Killed?” She spoke low and then jumped when their food arrived and was placed before them.
“There’s a private war going on. One that not many humans know about.” He picked up the ketchup bottle and put some on his burger then more on the fries. “Someone has been raiding families and killing them. Young males taken and used up. When they’re finished they also are killed. I just happened to get lucky and get away before that happened to me.”
“How did you get away?” she asked low again.
“Luck.” He nodded toward her plate. “You better eat.”
“Only if you’ll answer my questions.”
He sat back in the booth, staring hard at her. “You like to hardball me, don’t you?”
Vesper shrugged and picked up a fry. “Just trying to understand you as well as get to know you. I mean, Mika said something about mates and that sort of translates to a couple, right?” Stray could only nod. “Then couples share things.” The fry went into her mouth, she chewed then smiled. “So start talking.”
“I was with another,” Stray said after a few minutes of watching her eat the fries. “He was the one really rescued. They came for him and I got to go with them. Later, when we were safely away I left them.”
“Why?”
“Because I wanted to find you.” That had her stilling and her throat moved like she swallowed hard or something.
“Hayden liked to do crazy things to me, like keep me awake for hours and starving,” she said, looking down at the food for a second. “The one thing that made me know he still had a small amount of that brotherly love in him was that he didn’t let the others touch me.” She looked up at him and a shameful chill went down his spine. “We both have damage, Stray, but mine is not nearly as bad as what you went through. I can’t even think what it was like being used the way you were.”
“I really don’t want to talk about it.”
She grabbed his hands fast when he started to put them in his lap. Stray stared down at the hand on top of his own. Once more that calm, safe feeling hit.
“Please don’t.”
“Don’t what?” he asked, this time low. He couldn’t tear his eyes from her hand.
“Don’t pull away from me.” That had him looking up at her. “I need someone to make me feel safe.”
“You are safe. I swore to you that no one will hurt you again.”
“And so are you.” His hand moved and fingers linked with fingers.
“You know, I have a good idea.”
“Another one?” She smiled as well as cocked her head a bit. “Hey, the burgers are a great idea so far.”
“Well, I was thinking that after we’re done, how about we go look around? It’s been so long since I’ve just seen things, you know.”
“Sounds great, but only if you eat all your food. I need to get some meat on those bones of yours. You’re too damn skinny.”
“Just try to stop me.”
4
Mika drove Kaley’s car in silence, and thankfully she didn’t speak. After he signed the papers of release, Maddock was kind enough to fill him in on a few things that sweet little Kaley had been up to. None of it good, either.
Seemed she started hanging with this group that were a mix of shifters and humans. And all were up to no good. They drank, partied, had races outside of town, and Lord only knew what else. Maddock said he had busted many in this little group, and Kaley now at least twice, this last time being the worst because she was drunk and driving. Maddock also said how worried he was about her. Since her father got sick, Kaley just started to not give a damn about life. That is what got Mika’s full attention. After everything that went on in her life, not giving a damn whether she died or not didn’t sit well with him.
“So I was told you’ve been hanging out with a bad crowd,” Mika said, breaking the silence as they left the town behind. “A mixture of humans and shifters.”
“So…”
“That can get dangerous and you know it.”
“For who?”
“You.”
She snorted. “Doubt it.”
“You sleeping around?”
“None of your fucking business,” she snapped, turning in the seat, looking right at him. “Who the hell do you think you are asking me that kind of question? And where the fuck do you get off coming back to town acting like you’re going to save us all!”
“I’m the one now, reluctantly, in charge of your ass.”
“I don’t give a fuck if you’re in charge or not.”
“Watch your mouth.”
“Kiss my ass! Get this through your head right now, Mika. What I do is my business, not yours, and that includes whether I want to screw someone or not.”
“You are so wrong there. Everything you do now is my business. Your father left me in charge.”
“Of the estate, not of me.”
“Wrong again, little girl. I’m your new guardian, so you better get your shit together. The wild bullshit you’ve been doing is over. End of story.”
“End of story, my ass!” she yelled. “I do what I want, when I want, and with who I want.”
“Not anymore.”
“Who the hell do you think you are? You have no right to come back here after five years and act like you own it all. I don’t need you, Mika. Never have and never will.”
“No, what you need is a good spanking to get your bullshit in order. You’re out of control.”
She snorted again and settled back in the seat, looking forward. “No way in hell will you ever fucking touch me.”
“What…where the hell did you get that mouth from? Your new friends?”
“Listen, Prince Fucking Charming, things have changed around here. Life went on without you. So drop me off and get the hell out of here like you did last time.”
“Jesus, when did you get so damn hostile?”
“You think I’m hostile now, you haven’t seen shit yet.”
Thankfully she went quiet again, and the rest of the drive to the house was in silence. However, when he made the all too familiar turn into the drive, Mika’s gut dropped.
The grounds were just as he remembered. Nothing it seemed had changed, and yet it didn’t have that familiar feeling to it either.
A brick, three-story Colonial house, with four bedrooms, each with a bath of it’s own on the second floor and about three more on top, stood in his line of vision. He hadn’t even stopped the car all the way when they got to the front door and Kaley was out. Mika stayed put as she went into the house, slamming the door shut. He didn’t seem to be in that big of a hurry to go inside.
He just looked around, taking the place in. The grounds were perfect, roses and other flowers in full blossom. Man, he couldn’t believe he was back and felt the old ghosts once more touching his shoulders, giving him the chills.
Shaking it off, Mika got out of the car, slid his hands into the pockets of his jeans, and started for the front door. Before he could even grab onto the knob, the door ope
ned.
“Mika!” A short, elderly woman grabbed him and pulled him into her arms. “Oh, it is so good to see you again.”
“Margret, you haven’t changed one bit.” Mika pulled out of the hold and smiled down at the woman.
Margret had been the one to run the household since Mika came to live with them all. A short woman, but one that could pack a punch if needed. Only five feet tall, she was plump and had short wavy hair that now had a bit of gray showing. She always wore black slacks and a white top. She also seemed to know everything that went on in the house and with the family.
“Oh, you have no idea how glad I am to see you back.” Margret practically pulled him into the house, closed the door, and led him toward the large family room.
Nothing had changed. Same furniture, same spots. Pictures, lamps, rugs—everything. Margret shoved him down onto the large sectional sofa. She also kept hold of his hand, sitting down next to him.
“Now, tell me everything,” she said. “I want to know what you’ve been doing all this time.”
“How about you tell me what’s been going on around here instead.” He saw the happiness in her eyes fade away. “That bad?” Margret patted his hand, then let it go to sit back on the sofa. She didn’t look at him, and that set off red flags. “Margret, what’s going on? Why the hell is Kaley so wild, and why was I given this job?”
“Because you are the one who can handle it and her.”
“Not too sure I can handle her, and my own life is a big mess.”
“Bull!” She stood up and he watched her go over to the fireplace. Oh, he could see it burning in the winter, stockings hanging from it around Christmas. So many memories in this room.
Awakened Animals (A Shifter Novel Book 15) Page 5