All she wanted was Knox. And he wasn’t coming back.
11
Katherine
Katherine pulled aside her front curtain window, pausing her cereal eating for a moment. A familiar red truck was still sitting on the road just a little way down from her driveway. Same thing every day for two days now since Knox left. Since Owen and Tara had barged into her house and demanded to know where Knox was.
The Tribe was watching her. Waiting for Knox and the others to show himself. They even sat in the Community Center parking lot while she worked during the day.
But Knox hadn’t shown himself.
Nothing.
No contact.
Not even a brief flash of fur out of the corner of her eye.
Today her room had felt like ice when she woke up. A little reconnaissance had revealed her back door wide open. They had dared to come snooping to see if he was hiding in her home. Rat bastards. She’d teach them.
Katherine chomped on another bite of cereal, finishing the bowl of Cheerios. Just because she was going to shoot that damn truck this morning before she headed out, didn’t mean she was going to go to work on an empty stomach.
She washed out her dishes, pulled on her jacket, and grabbed the shotgun off the rack above her door. A gift Harrison had taught her to use years ago as a form of unorthodox therapy for her trauma—mastering the weapon that had almost ended her life.
Katherine locked the door behind her and stomped across the yard, bypassing her truck and heading straight for the blood red ass ugly rusted truck she wanted to kick and smash and shoot until it was in pieces. That wasn’t going to happen. But it was nice to imagine.
The Tribe was the only thing standing between her and Knox being together. Unfortunately, that group now included her best friend.
She crossed the street and leveled the shotgun at the door of the faded red truck.
The door opened immediately, and her best friend climbed out of the passenger front seat. Owen climbed out the other side and moved around the truck quickly to block her aim at Tara.
“I’m not going to shoot you,” Katherine said, lowering the gun.
Tara peeked around Owen and glared. “Could’ve fooled me.”
Katherine ground her jaw. She loved Tara like a sister. Would never hurt her. But right now, she wanted to hurt everything around. Everyone. “Oh, I was going to shoot.” She raised the gun again and aimed at the engine of the red truck. “Just not at you.”
Owen grabbed Tara and jumped away.
Katherine squeezed the trigger. The shot rang in her ears painfully. The barrel kicked in her shoulder. The smell of gunpowder burned her nose. But she grit her teeth and pulled again, sending another round of buckshot into the old truck grill.
“Katherine!” Tara’s voice cut through the ringing in her head.
“Get out of my house didn’t mean sit on my damn street and stalk me. It didn’t mean follow me to work every day. You made him leave me. You and your new friends.” She opened the barrel and dumped the empty shells, replacing them with two fresh ones. Then snapped the barrel back into place.
“He was part of the pack that attacked me. Attacked Naomi.”
“Nope. You don’t know everything, Tara. He helped you.” Tears streamed down her face. “Knox isn’t a monster. He protected you. He said he protected you and kept his brother from killing you.”
Owen huffed out a heavy breath and met Katherine’s gaze. “His brother?”
Katherine nodded, wiping tears from her cheeks. “Raish was Knox’s older brother. Raish was the alpha. He was the one calling the shots. There were plenty in the pack that didn’t agree with Raish’s choices.”
“They had Tara. What would you have had us do?” Owen’s eyes sparked with gold.
Katherine watched with a mixture of fear and curiosity as his fangs descended. What was with all the teeth showing? They weren’t very good at hiding when they were upset. How had they hidden what they were from the town for so long already?
“Everything,” Katherine answered simply. “I would’ve killed to save her too. Tara you’re my best friend, but I know a lot more about the pack. Probably more than you. It isn’t right what you’re doing. Just hunting down people and executing them.”
“They are a threat to the Tribe.” Owen straightened, releasing his hold on Tara’s arm. “They won’t stop attacking.”
“Maybe you’re not giving them a chance to stop.”
“He’s a liar, Katherine!” Tara shouted, her face red and blotchy and angry. “His brother bit me and turned me into one of his kind. Knox will do the same to you. He’s a wolf.”
Katherine sucked in a breath. She couldn’t believe the words coming out of her best friend’s mouth.
Tara’s eyes sparked with gold. Fangs were beginning to peek out from beneath her top lip.
“You’re a fucking wolf too, Tara. And you’re not dead because of Knox. And if becoming like Knox is the only way for us to be together, then that’s something that I will decide on my own. You don’t get to decide it for me. Knox doesn’t get to decide for me either. And you’re done stalking me. All of you.”
She raised the shotgun again and fired two more rounds into the engine of the red truck. That thing wasn’t going anywhere except to a junk yard.
She grimaced. The ringing in her ears would be with her all day, but at least they would have to walk home. Or at the very least be inconvenienced while they waited for someone to come get them.
“I don’t want to see you again until you’re willing to stop being stupid.”
“But Katherine,” Tara said, taking a step closer. Her eyes were red and glassy.
“No.” Katherine spun on her heel and headed for her truck, leaving Tara shouting at her back about how they had been friends too long.
That she was just trying to look out for her.
That she didn’t want Knox to hurt her.
Then the words changed. The hurt in her friend’s voice changed to anger. Now she shouted that Knox would hurt her. That his leaving was just the first betrayal. That she didn’t know wolves. That she’d never be able to trust him or the others.
Katherine bit down on her bottom lip to keep from screaming back at her former-best friend. She’d gotten her pound of flesh out of the truck. It would hold her together for a little longer.
Work that day came and went like she’d pressed fast forward on a tape deck. The words and conversations and everything just ran together in a mixed-up jumbled mess. Nothing made sense. She didn’t see anyone watching her in the parking lot when she left, but it didn’t help. She was floating and aimless and anchorless, waiting and watching for Knox to return.
It didn’t matter if she was at home or at work. She missed his voice. His touch. She’d thought she’d seen him several times in the crowds of people at the MCC today. She thought she’d seen him on the edge of the woods when she took out the trash.
She glanced in her rearview mirror. A flash of white fur flashed in the woods she’d just passed. Wrenching the steering wheel, she threw the truck into park on the side of the road.
“Knox.”
She climbed out of her truck and ran along the shoulder. Her work boots crunched in the gravel. The brisk afternoon air bit her face. “Knox come back. Please. Please come back. Knox.”
Katherine wove through the trees, eyes straining for another glance of the furry creature she hoped was her mate. You’re losing it Manitok.
She’d already lost her heart.
According to Knox they were soul mates. Did that mean her soul was next? Could this feeling of listless sorrow and anger and frustration get worse?
She rolled her ankle and hissed between her teeth. Pain shot up her calf. She caught her weight on a sapling next to her.
“Knox!” Her tone split the silence with the haunting sound of pain and distress any animal would recognize. She sank to the ground. Tears poured down her cheeks, burning her chilled skin.
A stic
k cracked ahead of her in the woods.
Katherine’s gaze snapped to the sound. “Knox?” She yanked on the tree and pulled herself to her feet but had to stand on one leg. She’d twisted the left badly and weight on that foot right now wasn’t happening.
More noise.
Something big was moving through the forest, but it wouldn’t have been Knox. The wolves were quiet. They wouldn’t lumber around like a damn… Frack. A massive bull moose stepped into view.
“At least it’s not a damn bear.” Katherine hopped a step over to another tree. She wasn’t going to outrun the enormous awkward antlered giant. The best she could hope for is that it wouldn’t take offense to her presence, run her down, and trample her just for looking at it.
Moose could be like that.
They weren’t scared of people at all.
Ever.
Knox
Knox shifted into human form at the edge of the woods near Katherine’s home. He slipped the spare key out from under the pottery turtle on her back porch and entered the kitchen of the cozy little home he missed dreadfully. Of the scent of the mate he longed for and needed more than he needed food to eat. His beast agreed and wanted nothing more than to hunt her down and drag her into a cave somewhere and claim her. Tell her he’d never left. That he’d been watching over her from a distance and it was killing him, but he couldn’t put her in danger from the Tribe.
They’d been following her.
They’d caught sight of him one day, but he’d lost them only by hiding in the freezing cold water of a stream. He’d trudged through belly-deep water for a mile before daring to climb out and circle around to the east side of town where he’d stashed the Callum and the other two juveniles.
He moved quietly through the living room, pausing for a moment at the couch. He picked up a blue blanket and put it to his nose. He inhaled deeply and clenched his free hand into a fist. Her spicy sweet scent wrapped around him like a warm hug. Like her body pressed against his. Like they should be every night.
She wasn’t home though. He couldn’t hold her. Couldn’t claim her as his mate. Fate had been cruel once again.
He replaced the blanket on the couch and walked through her home, pausing here and there, remembering her words or her smile from memories. If only their world consisted of just her home, everything would’ve been perfect. But the world, like Fate, wasn’t kind either. The Tribe would eventually drive him away.
Or kill him.
There would be no peace for Katherine until one of those things happened.
He stopped in the doorway to her bedroom. The bed was disheveled, like she’d thrashed in her sleep. Pillows were on the floor. The made-with-love quilts she’d told him about were scrunched up at the foot. The smell of sweat and fear permeated the room. A growl rumbled in his chest. He should’ve been there for her. She shouldn’t have to deal with her nightmares alone anymore. She had him.
But she didn’t.
Every time he was reminded, his heart was torn from his chest anew. Shredded by the teeth of his enemies. Blackened by the fire and longstanding feud and hatred of the Li’Vhram. The pain of failing his mate overwhelmed him like a thick fog descending and choking all the air from his lungs.
He sunk to the floor at the foot of her bed and roared his frustration. The sound ricocheted through her bedroom as his pain mixed with the echo of hers. Eventually silence settled again in the small room along with his despair.
How was he going to save what was left of his pack and be faithful to his mate? A mate who already believed he’d completely abandoned her. Because if he tried to be with her, he would die, and she might be collateral damage in the process. That wasn’t a risk he was willing to take.
But not being with her wasn’t really working out for him either.
12
Katherine
“I just need to put some ice on it. I’ll be fine. Thank you.” Katherine smiled at Connie Callahan and waved her back to the EMT truck parked behind her truck on the side of the road. She’d been lucky Connie had happened along when she did. The woman was fearless and had trekked right into the woods looking for her. Luckily the moose had wandered off on its own, but Katherine’s ankle was still in bad shape and getting back up to the road on her own had proved impossible. Her phone had also been conveniently on the dash of her truck and not in her pocket.
“I’d feel better if I followed you home and helped you into the house.” Connie put her hand on her hip in a gesture that said she wasn’t taking no for an answer.
“It’s not that far—”
“I’ll see you at your place.” Connie’s tone was final. She turned sharply, her short ponytail bouncing with the same fierce determination as her personality.
Katherine watched Connie’s retreating figure in her rearview mirror for a moment before pulling her truck out onto the road. Ten minutes later she was parking in her driveway. Connie parked right behind her and was standing next to her door before Katherine had even removed her keys from the ignition.
“Keys.” Connie held out her hand.
Katherine dropped the requested keys into Connie’s hand and released a slow sigh. She slid out of the truck, careful to land on her good right foot. She closed the door behind her and waited for Connie to return. The throbbing of her ankle distracted her from the crunch in the gravel.
Connie touched Katherine’s arm and her heart stopped for a second, startled more than she should’ve been. The pain was really getting to her.
“Come on, girl. Let’s get you into bed with some ice on that ankle.” Connie’ ducked under Katherine’s arm and shouldered her weight easily. Connie was several inches taller and had to hunch a little to keep from pulling Katherine up to her tip toes.
“Thank you. I really do appreciate it, even though…”
“Even though you’d rather not have help. It’s okay. I get it. People don’t like to be vulnerable. Believe me. I’m an EMT. I deal with it all the time. But I’m good at telling people ‘too bad’.” She laughed and hauled Katherine up the stairs and through her front door seemingly without effort.
“Sorry it’s a mess.” Her bedroom was exactly as she’d left it this morning. Unmade bed all rumpled from another crappy night of sleep without Knox.
“Honey. Your bed isn’t made. That’s not a mess.” She chuckled and helped Katherine around to the side with the nightstand and lowered her down to sit on the edge. “Let me pull that other boot off for you. I’ll grab its mate from your truck too, just in case you need it. Not sure you’ll be able to wear it for a day or so. Got anything softer?”
“Yeah, I have some soft ones in the closet. Thanks.” Katherine let Connie pull off the other boot and then laid back on the pillows.
Connie grabbed an extra one and propped it under the wrapped ankle. “Want some water? Anything to eat? I can grab it for you before I go.”
“That would be great. Thank you.”
Connie’s face split into a wide grin. “There you go. See that wasn’t so hard to just let someone help you out, right?”
Katherine chuckled. “It was painfully hard. Felt like a knife to the gut.”
“It’ll get easier. Call me tomorrow if you need something. My schedule is usually flexible since I’m either in the office or on a call.”
“I should be good. I’m going to call and get Shirley or Carol to cover for me tomorrow at the MCC. I’ll need at least a day off this foot.”
Connie nodded her agreement and added a grunt of approval. “Probably more than that. But at least a day is a start.” She disappeared down the hallway, back a few minutes later with a glass of water and an apple from the fridge. “I’ll just leave these here.” She put them both down on the nightstand. “Get some rest, okay.”
Katherine nodded. “I will. I promise.” She waved Connie off. A few minutes later, the house was empty, and Katherine was alone with her thoughts and throbbing ankle. She closed her eyes and breathed in and out slowly—a sad attempt to meditat
e her mind away from the pain. Why had she chased that wolf? Knox had made it clear he couldn’t be with her. Didn’t want to be with her. That he had to take care of his pack.
Still, she missed him. Wanted to see him. Wanted him to change his mind.
Dammit.
She’d do almost anything to touch him again. Feel the warmth of his skin against hers. See the magickal glow of his golden eyes staring at her the way he only could.
Thunk.
“Dalmeck.” The muttered curse came from the hallway. Or from her bathroom?
Katherine held her breath. It couldn’t be. Could it? She tried to call his name, but her mouth wouldn’t open. She couldn’t draw breath. She just waited, frozen in time. Frozen in the moment of hope she’d all but banished from her heart.
The bathroom door opened and closed. Soft footfalls thumped in her hallway. Knox’s tall muscular form appeared in her doorway. His long dark hair was tied back with a leather strap. Several days’ worth of beard made him look like a sexy lumberjack. The clothes he was wearing, a plaid shirt and old jeans were faded and torn. His face was a little smeared with dirt.
He looked like…a fugitive.
Her fugitive.
His gaze darted to the windows, then back to her. He was on. Waiting. Listening. He was still being hunted, but he’d come to her. The question was how long he would stay. She wanted to be angry about that. Hurt that he would likely leave her again. But the truth was that her soul sang with relief and excitement.
Knox was in her bedroom.
He’d come back.
No matter how long it was for, she would treasure every moment she got with him. There were no guarantees in this life. She’d learned that the hard way years ago and she’d forgotten it. She’d forgotten to be thankful for the now. For today.
That was all she wanted right now. This moment. With Knox.
Wolf At The Door: Soulmate Shifters World (Soulmate Shifters in Mystery, Alaska Book 5) Page 11
