“Thanks, Brenton,” Abigail said gratefully. “That means a lot to me.”
“No.” Brenton shook his head. “Thank you. And maybe one of them will call you and need some help before you move on to better things than a Pride of six, a pack of wolves, and a fox who refuses to speak to anyone unless it’s about an engine.”
“I don’t know,” Abigail mumbled. “Are there better things?”
“To me?” Brenton laughed, and she saw his youth in it. It was still weird to her that Brenton was only in his late twenties. He waved out over the crowd, all preoccupied with the food and bothering Jessie over names, the sex, and a thousand different other things. “No. There is nothing better out there for me. But you? Abigail, you are career-oriented, and successful to boot. People might not pay you as much as I have, but you call a high price.”
“The SSTF didn’t pay me my private rates,” Abigail informed him. “Government salary and all that.”
“Hence why you gained a name for also seeing private clients,” Brenton reminded her. “And we private clients pay you very well. I do believe I’ve nearly doubled your net worth.”
“I think you have.” Abigail giggled. “It’s not about the money though.”
Brenton just hummed an acknowledgement, nodding. She followed his gaze to see Riley sitting on Andrew’s lap now, laughing over something. She checked the time and cursed.
“I need to go,” she grumbled. “I have an appointment.”
“Have a nice day,” Brenton called to her as she walked away, humor in his tone. “Tell the wolves I say hello.”
She ignored the second part, pretending like she didn’t hear it. She was seeing Finn today, for only the third time since she’d been in Wild Junction. Nearly four full months in the town, and she’d seen her hardest patient three times. He skipped appointments, refused to schedule follow-ups, and evaded her calls. Then he would get drunk and call to make one and actually show up.
She quickly said her goodbyes to everyone, hugging Riley, Phoebe, and Jessie before running out the door. She pulled out her keys and slid into the rental car she was still using. She was tired of it, but she didn’t want to get her own car shipped in from LA just to leave and need to ship it out. So she wasted Brenton’s large fund for her on keeping the rental.
She made it back to her hotel and was pleased to see Finn waiting. His red, shaggy hair was unkempt, dirty, and his clothes were too big. He was dropping weight from his slight frame, and that didn’t bode well for her. His skin was too pale, his freckles even seeming washed out. Orange eyes were vacant, and he reeked of alcohol. Abigail’s last patient was definitely a disaster.
“It’s good to see you, Finn,” she greeted him gently. “Let’s go inside.”
“Ok,” he mumbled, following her all the way up to the hotel room in silence afterwards. She locked them in and led him to sit down in the softest chair the room had. He wasn’t the tallest shifter, only five-nine, maybe five-ten. She probably weighed more than him at this point.
“Finn,” she began, sitting down in the desk chair. “Where have you been this last week?”
“In the apartment.” She didn’t note any slur in his speech. It made her wonder if he was sober, but in the same disgusting clothes he got drunk in.
This was going to be a long appointment. She wanted to be back at Jessie’s house, talking about babies.
First, she had to keep trying to save this fox from himself. She just didn’t know how to convince him into the first step. She might need to force him, and that meant handling it right.
4
Abigail
It was the day of Starry Night Diner’s reopening when Abigail had an idea. This was perfect, really. Everyone would be there. She was running out of time to get this fox out of his apartment and into the real world again, and she had to try something; this would seem friendly and not like a doctor trying to medicate him. He had been very against taking any sort of medication to manage the depression.
“What’s whirling around in that head of yours?” James asked softly, as he pulled on his leather jacket.
She grinned and finished applying her mascara. The guys kept telling her she didn’t need the makeup, but she liked to doll up for things like this. She always applied a little when she woke up - normally a touch of eye shadow, a favorite lipstick or lip-gloss. Today she was going all out.
“We’re leaving a bit early. We’re picking up Finn on the way,” she told him, smiling at herself in the mirror. She didn’t look at him in the door to the bathroom yet, putting her makeup away. When she finally turned to him, she nearly lost her breath and her mind raced with ideas of just not leaving the house.
He was wearing those sinful leather pants, and she loved them. They made no effort to look anything except skintight and the bulge he put in them was impressive. They hugged his muscular thighs like a lover, and she knew they gave him a fantastic ass.
She didn’t say anything for a moment, which made James reach out and push her mouth closed. She wondered if she was drooling. She didn’t doubt it.
“We’re taking Finn?” he inquired, smiling at her.
She looked up to his eyes and nodded, swallowing the desire for a moment. She didn’t want to ignore her want, but they were going to the diner’s opening and she wanted to help Finn. Or try to.
“He needs to get out of his apartment,” she told him. “I shouldn’t be talking to you about it, doctor-patient confidentiality and everything, but I need help with him and this much, you guys can help me with. We’ll go to the…Dump – god, I hate that name for the place - and one of you can barge in there, force him to shower, and drag him out.”
“He doesn’t want it,” he cautioned her. “He doesn’t want people looking too closely at his depression or his behavior.”
“That’s why we’re doing this.” She groaned. “James, you all got out of the hunting compound over four months ago. No one in this town has been normal about it except Sheriff, whose wife kept him under near-lockdown until she knew he was going to be okay. Finn…He needs friends to pry. He’s a fox. He’ll never come out of his shell if we don’t. He’ll keep spiraling, and eventually crash and burn.”
“He lost his twin,” he reminded her. “That’s a hard blow.”
“And I can accept him grieving if he was doing it in a healthy manner. He’s not. If there’s one thing this town has taught me, though…” She took a deep breath. “None of you want a doctor, and my normal way of going about things isn’t working and hasn’t worked with any of you. So I’m taking drastic measures with Finn, and I want your help.”
“Okay,” he said finally, nodding in agreement. “I’ll tell Thomas. You go get Tony before he tries on everything in his closet.”
“Okay,” she responded, going on her toes to kiss his cheek. He returned it before walking away to find Thomas.
She moved to Antonio’s room and slipped in to find him pulling up a pair of jeans and checking himself out in the mirror. She enjoyed the sight, seeing he was shirtless with only low-cut black jeans on. “James would like you to pick an outfit,” she teased, making him jump in surprise.
He turned to her and grinned. “Help me out?” he asked, waving to all the clothes on his bed.
“Those pants are a yes,” she chuckled, pointing to the perfectly-fitting jeans he had on. “Throw on a nice black tee and a jacket and be done with it.”
“We can’t all be as effortlessly good looking as you,” Antonio said, laughing.
“Oh, but you are. More so, actually. Hurry up. We have a long stop to make before going to the diner.” Abigail giggled.
“I heard what you were saying to James.” Antonio sighed. “I’m down. I think we can help you.”
“Let’s just get him out of his apartment, preferably bathed.” She chuckled as Antonio pulled on the shirt.
“Let’s get out of here,” he growled, pulling her close to him. “Before I ruin your makeup.”
“You would never.” S
he gasped in mock shock. He would. Ruin her makeup, her hair, her clothes, and leave her a panting, disheveled mess on the bed, totally unprepared for the world.
He just laughed and picked her up, carrying her out of the room. They met Thomas and James at the trucks. She rode with Antonio while James and Thomas took Thomas’ truck. They met again at the apartment complex, a place the locals called the Dump. It wasn’t really that bad, in Abigail’s opinion. Just cheap apartments in a small town. They weren’t like the projects in LA or anything, but the locals had their beliefs and they believed the single apartment complex in their town was a dump.
Abigail led the wolves up to Finn’s door and knocked gently. Riley had told her this apartment was once hers, until someone had broken into it and Star, her cat, had been hurt. It was the incident that had Riley moving in with the Pride and that turned the cat into a tripod. They had kept paying for it, and when they got back from the hunting compound, they put Finn in it. A stranger that needed a place to stay and now would never leave it.
When Finn didn’t answer, Thomas reached over her and knocked harder. Her eyes widened at the sounds coming from inside the apartment. Thumping and shattering sounds like glasses were being knocked over. Finn finally answered the door, releasing a reek that made her nose scrunch up.
“What the fuck?” Finn growled softly, rubbing his face.
“Hello. All right,” Thomas growled, looking annoyed as Abigail turned away to get a bit of fresh air. “You are coming to the diner for the reopening, Finn. You’re also going to fucking shower.”
“What?” Finn sounded confused as Thomas and James stepped into the apartment. Abigail could hear cursing as Antonio groaned.
“Don’t look inside the door. This kid hasn’t cleaned in weeks, if not months.”
“I hope he has clean clothes,” she mumbled, peeking into the door. Trash was everywhere. She wondered if she should have called him and warned him, but it was too late now. If anything, seeing the reality of her patient’s existence made her feel more right. “I figured it might be like this,” she continued, shaking her head. “I need to convince him to keep a clean environment. That might help him feel better.”
“Really?” Antonio looked down at her, wrapping an arm around her waist. She nodded as she thought about it.
“Yes. Normally having a clean space makes one feel cleaner themselves, more productive. Wallowing in filth makes a person feel filthy themselves, more out of control about their situation. If he keeps his space clean, he’ll feel better about his space and maybe even feel a bit better about himself,” Abigail explained. “Ever feel good about having a clear floor? Clean dishes?”
“Of course,” Antonio murmured, nodding as well. “I’ll see what I can do to help him out with that.”
She heard water running after that as James walked back out.
“He’s in the shower,” James groaned. “We found some clothes for him to wear. We’ll drive him. You two can go on ahead.”
“We’ll wait,” Abigail told him, smiling. “Thank you for helping me pull him out.”
“Well, it’s disrespectful for him to skip anyway,” James muttered darkly, glaring back inside the apartment. “He fucking knows better. Brenton has given him a place to stay, a job as a mechanic, and free rein to figure himself out. If he skipped the diner opening, it could be seen as a slap to the face. I don’t think Brenton would hold it against him, but…it’s just fucking rude.”
“He didn’t put up a fight?” Abigail asked. She’d only heard the cursing from Finn, but nothing else.
“He knows he needs to go and was hoping no one would notice him. He probably expected one of the Pride to come, if anyone did. Wasn’t expecting us.”
“Well,” Thomas growled as he stomped out, “he can expect us more often.”
“Oh?” Antonio perked up at that.
Thomas pointed wildly at the mess in the entryway. “This shit can’t continue. The Pride fucking pays for the apartment. Riley lived here for over two years. Finn’s paychecks go to his fucking booze and maybe some food. He’s wasting a great thing and ruining property that isn’t his. I would rather us handle it than Brenton find out and cut him the fuck off.”
“I should have gotten nosy sooner,” Abigail said softly. She knew it. She’d been enjoying her new friends, and her time with the wolves, too much to press what was going on with Finn, even though it was her job. Only the threat of losing the time had made her take this step to really dig into his situation. A bit of guilt ate at her over it now.
“We all should have been,” Thomas said with frustration. “Well, spring cleaning for this kid is going to happen. Tomorrow, James, Antonio, we’re coming back and fucking cleaning this up.”
“Oh, I was going to talk to Finn-”
“He wouldn’t clean, and you know it,” Thomas cut her off. He didn’t do it harshly, just reminded her of a truth she didn’t want to deal with. Finn just didn’t care. He needed others to care, and it was time others really started to.
“I’ll come help,” Abigail offered. “I won’t let you guys do all of my job for me.”
“You take him out on a hike. Get him out into the woods. Ask the Pride to use their property, actually, and get him to shift. Hell, take Riley. We’ll clean while he’s gone.” Thomas fixed his jacket, which had been ruffled when he’d dragged Finn around. Abigail liked his plan. Get Finn out, force him into some company again, something clean like getting some shifting in, and let the wolves sneak in and clean up. He would come home to clean and realize he had people really looking out for him.
“He needs to hurry, or we’ll miss the ribbon cutting,” James groaned, looking back inside. The shower cut off at that moment and he smiled. “Time to go dress a fox.”
“Let’s get this done,” Thomas growled. “Why couldn’t he be like the Pride? Young and capable.”
“He’s not a wolf, Thomas,” Abigail reminded him. “And he lost his twin. He’s hurting. He has no family. He’s alone.”
“I know,” Thomas sighed, sounding chastised. “I just wished I had paid attention sooner.”
“Me too,” she whispered as the two of them walked back in. She leaned into Antonio, who just held her.
“Finn isn’t your fault,” he said gently. “If anything, we all should have paid more attention. Us, the Pride, Jessie, Sheriff. We all should have realized we had a fox who wasn’t handling it.”
“We knew he wasn’t handling it,” Abigail muttered. “We just ignored it, hoping he would come out on his own. He won’t, though, so we need to drag him out.”
“I agree, pretty doe,” Antonio whispered, kissing her cheek.
Ten minutes later, they were back in the trucks. Abigail looked back into Thomas’ truck behind them and nearly giggled at the sight of Finn crammed between James and Thomas, looking small and upset.
Half the town was at Starry Night Diner’s reopening. She hadn’t been to the original, since it had burned down long before she met the Pride, but even she could feel the excitement in the air. It was like the town was reclaiming its heart, and the people were ready for it. Seating inside was closed, the Pride opting for a party in the parking lot and only letting people in to buy food and then sending them to sit outside on the warmer spring day.
Abigail climbed out of the truck and walked towards Thomas, James, and Finn, who were getting out of the other. She touched Finn’s shoulder and turned him to look at her.
“You are going to mingle. Talk. Anything,” Abigail told him firmly. “Just for a couple of hours.”
“Why is this so important to you?” he growled, which made James growl louder. He shot a quick glance at the wolves surrounding him and his shoulders slumped, defeated.
“Because I might be leaving soon,” Abigail answered him honestly. That made Thomas give her a wide-eyed look, and she winced. She’d been so preoccupied with Finn over the last few days that she’d forgotten to tell them. She would need to make sure they knew everything after she w
as done with Finn.
“Leaving?” Finn asked, his own expression becoming one of pain. She hadn’t expected that. “Who would I talk to then?”
“Anyone you want to,” she whispered to him. “Go meet people and see who you might want to talk to.”
“I…” Finn trailed off, nodding. He closed his eyes and just walked away.
“Leaving…” Thomas began softly. “Abigail.”
“Brenton’s going to stop paying for me at the end of April,” Abigail sighed. “Let’s talk about it later?”
“How long have you known?” James pressed, and she didn’t look at him. She hadn’t meant for it to be a secret, even just for a few short days.
“Only since Jessie’s house. But then I had an appointment with Finn and it got forgotten,” Abigail admitted. “I never meant to keep it from you. Just wasn’t at the top of my thoughts because I realized I need to really focus on him.”
“All right.” Thomas groaned. “We’ll talk about it later.”
“Thomas, I’m sorry,” Abigail mumbled.
“Nothing to be sorry for,” Thomas growled softly at her. “I understand why it didn’t get brought up. I just…” He trailed off like Finn did and just left as well.
She looked at Antonio and James, hoping they weren’t mad at her.
“Let’s get some food,” Antonio whispered. “We’ll figure this out later, Abigail. We’re not mad at you.”
“We’re not. Neither is Thomas.” James grumbled. “We just…well, I forgot for a minute that you were just here since Brenton hired you to be. I don’t know.”
“We have over a month,” Antonio said, with false brightness. “Plenty of time. No reason to freak out now.”
“Of course not,” Abigail chuckled weakly. No reason to freak out at the party.
She found Riley and the other girls hanging out inside. Jessie had been given permission to sit inside and relax in the AC, since she was pregnant and being coddled by the entire shifter portion of the population.
Heart of the Pack Page 4
