I turned back to Carl, but he still shook his head. “It’s too late.” I begged him with my eyes, but I saw the decision on his face. He was set on this outcome, but I wasn’t.I pushed. “I healed from the brink, so can you.” I tried to pull back my hand, but he shook his head again. His face was turning gray, and the light was fading from his eyes. But he took a deep breath and rallied.“Daddy, let Amy help us.” Carly’s little voice was heart wrenching. “Please.” She tried to pull away from his chest, but he started coughing, and his eyes widened a little as blood poured from his lips. “Daddy!” She screamed as she tried to pull away again. Blood coated her back, as Carl lost his grip on her as he choked on his life’s blood. He finally caught his breath, and he stared into Carly’s eyes. I watched as his defeated eyes filled with all of his love for his daughter. “Baby girl. What is the first rule of our kind?” His laboured breathing was starting to gurgle, fluid building in his chest. H
Carl looked up at her. “Leeway? How?”“What’s leeway?” Carly sat up against Carl, still clinging to him, but grasping on to the tiny thread of hope she was being handed. “Leeway, my girl, means the goddess looks away when I nip down here to see my girl here.” She leaned over and I felt the ghost of her lips on my forehead. “When something like this happens, Carl. The goddess looks the other way when, say, someone calls for you.” “How is this possible?” Hanna looked at me, and then back at my grandmother. She smiled up at my friends. “You know of her magic.” The girls nodded, but Erubus stayed still. I saw the tiny smile that sprang to her lips as her eyes landed on him. “Well, Amy sacrifices a tiny amount of magic to call for me, and another to help me come to this plane.” She waved her hands at me. “When she needs me, I come. Do you know what that means, little one?” Carly shook her head as my grand mother dropped to her knees beside me. She raised her hands to hold Carly’s face.
“Amy…” Toya followed me into the house, but Carly pulled her head up. She pointed at the wall beside the door. “Daddy said your friends would need robes, so we have them up and waiting for them.” Her little voice was barely above a whisper as I kept walking. They would figure it out. I headed directly upstairs. I wasn’t exactly sure where I was going, but I knew I didn’t want to deal with that man right this second. Anyone really. But I was in charge of this little girl now, and she needed me. I hit the landing and stared into each room. There were so many bedrooms up here. “What the hell.”“Daddy said we would need the rooms until everything settled down. Your friends are going to be here with us until you find your way.” Until I find my way. My stomach clenched. Carl saw all of this. He knew exactly how he was going to die and he prepared for it all, fully knowing it would never be long enough with his daughter. “Which room is your bathroom?” I looked and found none in the hall.
The tub finished draining as Carly stood there, and I nodded. “Yeah. Yeah, he is.” She shivered as I turned the warm water back on, allowing the tub to refill. But I doubt she felt any of it. I helped her back into the water and squeezed more shampoo into her hair, the water barely changing color this time. After I rinsed, I added the conditioner. I knew I was stalling. What do I say to a kid who just lost everything? “Carly…” She barely registered me, but her eyes finally met mine. “I won’t lie to you and tell you that the pain, this hurt, will go away anytime soon.” She whimpered, her little lip trembling as she turned to face me fully. “Pain like this, loss like this. It’s going to hurt for a very long time.” How do you explain this kid of loss to a child?But she nodded. “I don’t think I’ll ever not miss my daddy.”I cupped her face. “And that is okay.” I wiped her tears. “But daddy wants you to be okay. And he wants you to be happy. Right?” She nodded as she bit her bottom lip. “
I opened the letter in my hands, and a wave of raw pain hit me in the chest. Carl’s neat handwriting met me. Amy, I know right this minute I am laying on the cold earth after doing everything to save my little girl. I know you just spent an hour taking care of her, and for that, I am eternally grateful. But if you allow her to stay awake, she will hurt herself. I’ve seen it. So I beg you to put her to sleep. Use your magic, and put her to sleep every night for the next few months. She is a child, but she is my child, and I know her. She is an old soul in a tiny body and she sees more than you think she does. But she doesn’t see the entire picture yet, and if you allow her to, she will put herself in danger. And with it, the world. I looked up from the letter to see Toya standing close. “What’s wrong?” She came closer.“He wants me to put her to sleep. For the next few months.”Toya took the letter and read it. “He’s seen it.” She handed me back the letter. “I can’t blame the child
I had to cover my mouth before any sobs broke free. I couldn’t break down yet. Not yet. I looked to the ceiling, praying for a bit more time. I had things I needed to do. I put the letter on the desk and took in a deep breath. I looked at Toya. “Have everyone picked bedrooms.”“What are you going to do?”I stared down at my dirty dress; I turned to the closest. I probably wasn’t going to find much to wear, but I was going to need something else to do what I had to. I opened the closet and UI stumbled back a step. There was a sticky note on a shelf and I pulled it off. This room was always yours. I was just using it. The closest was filled with women’s clothes. I grabbed a black sweat suit and pulled off my dress. Toya came over, confusion on her face. “What is all this?”I had to bite back a sob. “He filled it for me.” There were two laundry baskets pushed into the corner. One clean, and one obviously dirty. “He lived out of baskets.” I walked over and grabbed a shirt, pulling it to
I was out there for over an hour before someone came out and checked on me. I had zoned out, sinking deep into the rage I had pushed away as I dug into the soft dirt. Every time I blinked, my mind flashed to Carl’s last breath, me looking up to seek my friends, my people and having my eyes fall on Rowan. “So fucking stupid.” I mumbled to myself.I gave a soft sigh. “I should have figured you were out here, brooding.” Toya sat at the edge of my hole. I kept digging, ignoring her words. I wasn’t brooding. I was digging a grave. I must have mumbled exactly that, because Toya chuckled. “Two things can be true at the same time.”I snapped my head up and I pointed at her. “Shut up.” She raised her hands in surrender, and I had to close my eyes and clench my jaw. “Sorry.” But I turned back to digging. She sighed again. “Amy…”“No.” I wouldn’t let her finish.“Just listen to me.” She huffed out and I slammed my shovel into the ground.“Fine. Say what you came out to say and be done with it.”
I closed my eyes and leaned against the end of the shovel. “Go ahead.” I was over this night, and I still had to dig a few more feet before I could bring Carl over. You are planning to use Brandon to get closer to Vince. You have been laying the groundwork for months. Letting him closer. Talking to him more. She sat on her haunches and glared at Nix and I.What’s your point? We need to get close to him so we can do what we have to. Nix snarled. That is my point. We are doing what we have to do. We will use my ex mate to get what we need to figure out who is behind the attacks on the packs. So that our father, Toya’s father, can come out of hiding. So that our mother can be with her mate. “And?” I tilted my head back and stared up at the moon, glared really. She was above me, staring down at me and, in that moment, laughing at me. And maybe that is exactly what Rowan is doing. I sighed. “But what if he’s not?” The question hung there. Megan looked between us again, only this time
I opened myself up as I sat down and sent out a call. “Sorry it took so long.” I sighed as I sat down next to her. “You were busy.” Carl’s voice was sad, and as I looked over, both he and my grandmother looked worried. “But you are here now.”“I didn’t expect both of you.” I sighed.“Daddy.” Carly called as she jumped up, but I grabbed her. “He’s not really here, baby, remember? You can’t touch him.” She trembled and then she sat back down. They settled across from us with the grave between us. “I forgot.” She looked at him. “I miss you, daddy.”“And I miss you too, baby.” He leaned over, then need to touch his daughter too much. “I heard every time you prayed to me.” His eyes softened. “And I want you to know, baby. That if you want to call Amy mom, or if at any time Amy gets a mate and you want to call him dad, your mother and I won’t mind. We will always be your mommy and daddy.” The tears in his eyes were full of love.Carly looked at me and I smiled down at her. “You don’t hav
I pulled into the house a little earlier than I expected. The grocery store was pretty empty. I only saw two workers. I grabbed my groceries and was out of the door before anyone said hello to me, which was fine. I needed a shower, and to see my girl. I brought everything inside and put it next to the closet. I left the door locked until I was ready to go over. I would do everything I needed to first because I knew if I went to the cabin, I was going to get an earful. I hopped in the shower and groaned. It felt amazing to have my shower again. I had bought new shampoo, conditioner, and body wash. I had a brilliant idea as I was shopping. One that was sure to make Brandon go slightly insane. I smirked as I sniffed the strawberry scent I had missed the last few years. Nix and Megan both sniffed the air and sighed. I missed this smell. Nix purred in my mind.Megan nodded. It makes me feel at home. I finished my shower and got out, covering myself in more strawberry scented product. My
I ran past my house, and I wanted to turn in, to check in on everyone. But I had to run back and pretend I just got back in. I ran past guards and patrols, gaining speed. When Nix got tired, Megan took over. I kept feeding magic into our feet, and after a few hours of running back and forth, weaving through the groups of wolves, I was finally off pack lands. Nix? I turned back to my exhausted wolf.Yeah? She rolled over to look at me. Use the vacuum. She furrowed her brow. What the hell are you talking about?Remember when we were learning to change our scent? The candle changed it and the vacuum…Made it disappear completely. I nodded. Exactly. I don’t want anyone following our trail. She nodded and hopped up. I watched as she dragged herself to the clearing and I summoned the vacuum. Itg was funny to watch her blow out the candle and then turned on the vacuum. She got the switch on the third attempt with her claws. She grabbed the hose with her teeth and sat down with it pointe
I heard Vince call out behind us, but I pushed Megan to run fast. I felt the first trap try to pull strength from us, and I realized I hadn’t carved the rune onto Megan yet.Fuck. I pushed forward, shoving my wolves back. The instincts were telling us to run, to flee, but I needed to get the rune on to her skin or else we wouldn’t make it very far. Amy, we have to run. Nix screamed from behind me, but I still forced Megan’s body to freeze. I stretched out our leg and used a claw to cut into the skin. I could hear the footsteps coming behind me. Amy! There is more the Vince chasing after us. We have to go. She tried to push, but I held her back. Trust me, we need this or else we are cooked. I looked behind us as Vince pushed through the last trees, blocking our view. His face broke into a smile, but then he faltered as he saw what I was doing.“Hey, what are you doing?” Vince stepped closer and the smell of blood hit his nostrils. His eyes snapped to my leg. “If you wanted to die, yo
The guard was pacing, nervous. He kept glancing back at me and muttering to himself. That put me on edge. Why does he keep looking back here? Nix stood and started to pace. I don’t know. But it’s not good. I moved to the clearing, checking on my magic. I had been funneling all of mine and Nix’s extra energy into our well. Building it until our flame turned into a giant bonfire. The magic was burning bright, and it took effort to keep it contained, my like my aura. How are you doing? Megan called back to me. We are ready. I shot back. I had been studying the book for days until I figured I could use a reversal rune to block the drain of our power. It will actually pull power from those chasing us and feed it into our bodies until we remove the rune. I had carved the rune into Nix and myself. Megan, I left for last. The door slammed open and Brandon strolled in. I wanted to recoil from the look on his face; it was so vicious. But I would never hide or cower from this man. “Looky l
But Megan ignored him. He stood and crowded the bars, drawing in more air and her scent. “Fuck.” Then he turned and spun away. “I’ll be back with your next meal.” He walked to the door, grabbed a tray he had left there, and came back. He pushed the food through the tray slot at the bottom of the door. Megan popped up. She walked over slowly, watching Vince. She stopped short of his hands. Then she pawed the food tray the rest of the way to her. We walked Vince’s eyes almost completely disappear into his pupils before his wolf took over. His eyes flashed to a soft chocolate brown, and there was a deep rumbling in his chest. “You smell good.”Megan rolled her eyes and sniffed the food. Each item had to be sniffed, tasted and then we had to wait for any reactions. But as soon as Megan sniffed the meat, she pulled back and swatted the tray against the bars. Vince’s wolf watched her, and then he smirked. “Smart girl. Most don’t notice the silver.” Megan let out a low growl before she tu
There was a bang, and a door slammed open. “Alpha.” The guard at the door called, and instantly we were all on guard. “Leave us.” He motioned for the wolf to leave, and he strolled down to my cell. “Hello.” He watched me with hooded eyes. “Still vicious?” Megan growled, causing Vince to chuckle. “I find it interesting that you aren’t afraid of me.” We barked out a laugh. “Why would I be afraid of you?”Vince froze. “You speak?” Megan rolled her eyes and turned out back on him. “Stupid male.” She tossed her head, glaring at him over her back. He chuckled, then turned back to the door. He grabbed the chair there and pulled it over in front of my cell. “Well, you kept your mouth shut the first day we met. I assumed you were mute.” I huffed out a sigh. “I nearly bit half of your face off. My mouth was very much open.”He threw his head back and started laughed. “You did. I will give you that.” Vince leaned closer to the bars and Megan lifted her lip. “You don’t like me, do you?”“Sho
“You are going to let me die here?” Megan let her words sound incredulous. Rick walked to the bars. “I don’t want you to die. But I have no way of getting you out of here without being seen or found out. If I could save you and only lose my own life, I would do it. You don’t deserve to be here…”“But?” Megan cut in. “But I have a pup and a mate who would be executed if I went against Vince.” He grabbed the bar and I heard the sizzle of his skin against the silver. “I can’t risk them. I hope you and Amy will understand that.” He pulled back and turned away. “Wait!” Megan called after him.He turned. “The guard is coming back in a minute. Be quick.”“Will you come back to speak with me?” She tried to get close. “I have so many questions.”Rick looked back to the door. “I can try. But Rick doesn’t like random people coming in here.”“Then why did you come in now?” Megan pushed. “Because…” His shoulders sagged. “Because I felt like a monster and I felt like I neede3d to explain. If I
He knows. Nix’s words were soft, her eyes fully focused on the man in front of us. What are you talking about? Megan turned back to us. He’s scum.Nix shook her head. Look at him, Megan. Truly look, and push away your hatred towards Brandon, Vince, and well, all the male population. Megan snorted but turned back.What am I looking for? Megan sighed, but focused. I stepped closer, trying to see what she was seeing.Nix was focused on Rick. Look at his skin. He is sweating, he’s pale, but his eyes are focused. His hand… She trailed off.He’s clutching at his neck. Megan tensed beside me. “What happened first, Rick?”He turned his haunted eyes back to us. “What?”Megan sighed as she crept closer. “What came first? You working with Vince? Or Abby getting branded?”“Does it matter?” He slammed back against the wall and dropped to his ass. “It changes nothing.”“It matters.” She growled. “It matters to me, and I know it will matter to Amy.” “Why?” He dropped his head into his hands. “It