Merle

by Catherine Lievens

  “They insisted on keeping the tents,” Tom said as they strolled toward the fire in front of the leader’s tent. Nootaw wondered who it was now that Annawon was in jail, and he was surprised when he saw one of his brothers step out of it.

  Achak was the oldest one, and he’d probably killed the wendigo who’d been Annawon’s second to take his place. It wasn’t surprising, and it wouldn’t be the last time something like that happened.

  Tom stopped in front of Achak. Achak lowered his eyes, something Annawon never would have done, and Tom said, “Look who I brought back to you.”

  Achak looked at Nootaw and reacted in seconds. His arm snapped forward and he tried to seize Nootaw’s neck, but Nootaw had known his brother wouldn’t take his presence well, so he was ready for it.

  He grabbed Achak’s wrist and pushed it down, then punched his brother on the nose. Achak stumbled backward, shock written all over his face. Nootaw had never hit his brother. He was the youngest of the family beside Chogan, and he’d always been expected to obey his older brothers.

  “Now, now,” Tom drawled. “Is that a way to welcome your brother back in the family and to greet my new bodyguard?”

  Achak’s eyes snapped to Tom. “You already have a bodyguard.”

  “Keme? He got into a fight with another one of you. I can’t accept that from my bodyguard. Besides, Nootaw is trained.”

  “He’ll betray you.”

  Tom smiled lazily. “Ah, but I have Aranck and Nepi.”

  It took a few seconds for Achak to understand what Tom was saying, then he smiled, too. He wiped the blood from his face and looked at Nootaw. “Of course.”

  “He’ll stay in Keme’s room, so go tell your brother to gather his things and move back into his tent.”

  Achak nodded and Nootaw fought the urge to say something. What kind of leader was his brother? He was letting Tom boss him around without saying anything. And if Tom could do that to Achak without repercussions, it meant he could do it to every single member of the tribe.

  “So,” Tom said as he looked around. “Where are Nepi and Aranck? I’m sure Nootaw wants to see his girlfriend and his son.”

  Achak frowned, but he didn’t point Tom’s mistake out to him. “In her tent.”

  Tom started to walk toward their left, but when Achak tried to follow him, he raised a hand. “I told you to go to Keme’s room.”

  “I can’t let them talk alone.”

  Tom laughed. “Why not? You’re afraid he’ll fuck her and get her pregnant? Good, at least if he does he’ll have another reason to stay.” He gestured at Nootaw to follow him and they left Achak standing in front of his tent.

  “When did he become leader?” Nootaw asked.

  “When I asked the old leader to join my council. The guy said no, but your brother was obviously smarter than him and killed him.”

  And that had made him leader, just like Nootaw had expected.

  Tom paused in front of a small tent and turned to look at Nootaw. “Now, I’m going to leave the two of you alone. I wouldn’t want you to have to wait for your reunion, if you know what I mean.”

  Nootaw wanted to punch Tom for being so slimy, but he nodded instead. Better for him that Tom thought he actually cared for Nepi. Maybe Nootaw would be able to grab his son and leave.

  “I expect you to be at the big house tomorrow, though. I need you close, since you’re my bodyguard. So fuck her as much as you can now, because you’ll have to stick by me for the next few days. I have a meeting with the other council members the day after tomorrow, and I don’t trust any of them.” He leaned forward in what he probably thought was a threatening gesture. “Don’t try anything funny, Nootaw. Your little lady knows how bad things get when I’m angry. She can tell you all about it if you want, and you wouldn’t be able to get past all your brothers here.”

  “I’m not going anywhere, not as long as you have Nepi and Aranck.”

  Tom nodded. “That’s what I thought.”

  He patted Nootaw’s shoulder and walked away. Nootaw couldn’t believe the guy. Did he really think he was so scary? Nootaw knew what he’d done to the pack, and he knew Tom could be dangerous with enough men to command, but he clearly was an idiot. He hadn’t even thought to take Nootaw’s car keys away.

  Nootaw shook his head. He was attracting attention and he didn’t like it, so he pushed the tent flaps to the side and called out, “Nepi?”

  There was a shuffle inside. “Nootaw?”

  “Yes. Can I come in?”

  “Yes.”

  He slid in and was greeted by a baby’s gurgles. His heart felt like it was in a vise and he slowly lowered himself on his knees. He crawled inside the tent and let the flaps fall down behind his back.

  Nepi was sitting in the middle of the tent, a candle tied to the central beam behind her back. It didn’t illuminate the tent a lot, but at least it wouldn’t set it on fire. Her legs were crossed and a baby was crawling toward Nootaw, toppling down every so often.

  Nootaw looked at her in question, and she nodded. “He’s yours.”

  “You’re sure?”

  “Yes.”

  “Can I?”

  She looked surprised at the request. “Yes.”

  Nootaw opened his arms and Aranck tried to climb on his knees. Nootaw took him and sat down, mirroring Nepi’s position. He set his son in the groove his legs had created and looked at him.

  Nootaw remembered Chogan as a baby, and Aranck could have been him. Same dark skin, same black hair, same glinting eyes. Aranck reached up and touched Nootaw’s cheek, and Nootaw swallowed against the urge to cry.

  He looked up at Nepi and noticed the bruise on her cheek for the first time. “Who did that to you?”

  She looked down and didn’t answer, but Nootaw wanted to know. Not that it was unusual in their tribe, and he didn’t have feelings for her, either, but now that he’d lived away from the tribe, he knew how wrong it was. “Nepi?”

  “Achak.”

  “Why?”

  She shrugged, and Nootaw knew he wouldn’t get a better answer. “Do you want to ask me anything?”

  Nepi’s head snapped up and she looked at him with wide eyes. “I can?”

  “Yes.”

  “How is it? Living away?”

  Nootaw hummed at Aranck, who was trying to pull one of Nootaw’s braids away, and answered. “Good. I have enough food that I know I’ll never go hungry. I have clothes, and a house, and I don’t have to do anything I don’t want to.”

  Nepi was silent for a while, and Nootaw knew she was summoning the courage to speak again. “Is it... can you save us? Me and Aranck?” she asked in a whisper.

  Those were the words Nootaw had been waiting for. He looked at her, his son still in his arms, and nodded. “You need to be sure.”

  “I am. I want Aranck to have a better life. Things have been worse since your brother—” She clamped her lips together, but Nootaw had heard enough.

  “I know. I saw him and Tom earlier. If you want to go, we need to go tonight. Do you know how many guards there are at night?”

  “None in the camp, but I don’t know about the big house.”

  Nootaw nodded. “We’re going to have to do with what we have. Pack anything you really can’t leave and be ready to go at any time. You’ll have to do what I tell you, okay?”

  Nepi nodded and got up. Now that Nootaw could see her better, he noticed more bruises and wounds on her skin. She was also limping slightly, and he hoped it wouldn’t be a problem.

  He played with Aranck for a while longer, then Nepi fed him. He fell asleep while suckling and Nepi helped Nootaw strap a sling around his torso. They put Aranck in it, and his light weight was both heavy and reassuring.

  Nootaw listened to the sounds of the camp. They slowly faded, until he couldn’t hear anything but a few snores. He shook his head when he stuck his head past the tent flaps and didn’t see guards. He didn’t completely trust
Nepi, but the months of training had honed his instincts and his senses, and he was reasonably sure she was right and there were no guards around.

  He snuck out and held his hand out to help her. He nodded at her and started walking. They were lucky the moon was new. The only light on their side of the big house came from what remained of the fire, and Nootaw could see there really were no guards.

  They stayed close to the side of the big house as they crept toward Nootaw’s car. He sneaked a glance at Aranck, but the baby was peacefully sleeping.

  When he got to the corner of the house, Nootaw peeked in front of it. He could see two men talking and smoking in front of a smaller structure to his right, but there didn’t seem to be anyone else. The sound of voices and laughs came from what Nepi had called the big house, though, but it looked like most men were there, having dinner instead of guarding the settlement.

  Nootaw could see his car only a few feet away. He’d have to unlock it manually so the lights wouldn’t go off. He leaned backward toward Nepi. “I’m going to go first to unlock the car. Wait until I’m in it to come, okay?”

  She nodded and Nootaw crept away from the relative safety of the house wall. He quickly moved around the car and unlocked it. He carefully opened the door, his eyes on the two men who were still talking, and he slid inside, closing it as slowly as possible. He saw Nepi come his way, but just as she stepped on the sandy road, the big house front door swung open and a beam of light hit Nepi.

  The man who’d opened the door yelled, “What are you doing here, girl?”

  Nepi looked at Nootaw’s car, fear in her eyes. When she didn’t answer, the man started to come closer, and Nootaw knew it was now or never. He turned the car on and reached over the passenger seat, opening it. “In!” he yelled.

  Nepi scrambled to follow his order. There was a gunshot, and she yelled in pain, but she managed to slide in. Nootaw turned the car around even as she closed the door and pressed his foot on the accelerator.

  He never slowed down, not even when he couldn’t see the buildings in his rear mirror anymore.

  Chapter Six

  Merle couldn’t sit down. He’d tried, but he kept bouncing his leg and tapping his fingers on his chair, and after Kameron had scowled at him a few times, he’d decided he might as well go outside and walk it out. It wasn’t like he was helping anyway. He’d been just a recruit even before the mess with Tom, and he’d spent most of his time hidden either in his parents’ house or in the forest since then.

  He paced the porch length, his gaze flitting to the road that led to Kam’s house. His wolf wanted him to shift and to go look for Nootaw, but he was almost two hours away by car. There was no way Merle could get there sooner than he would once Kameron and the others finally decided what they wanted to do and called the Nix to take them there.

  The front door opened and closed and Merle paused. He was at one end of the porch and had to squint to see who had come out. He relaxed only when he saw it was Chogan, only to remember Chogan was his brand new brother-in-law and that he had no idea what to say to him.

  “Hi again,” Chogan said.

  “Hey.”

  Merle leaned against the railing and looked up. The night sky was clear, but there was no moon, so it was dark. It would have been nice, if only Nootaw had been by his side. Merle didn’t know when his mate had become such an important part of his life. Yes, they were mated, and Merle liked Nootaw very much, but it wasn’t only that. He missed his mate. He missed Nootaw’s awkward touches and the way he smiled when Merle said something funny. He missed the hesitant kisses and the way Nootaw always looked around to check if someone was watching them.

  “He’ll be fine,” Chogan said, his voice penetrating the curtain of Merle’s thoughts.

  “How can you know that? We don’t even know what happened to him.”

  “No, but Isaiah was able to use the satellites, or whatever he said he did, to check the place Nootaw’s car is. There are tents.”

  “So?”

  “I recognized them. He’s with our family.”

  Merle laughed darkly. “And how should that mean he’ll be fine? I know he never wanted to go back.”

  Chogan came to lean against the railing next to Merle and looked at the sky. “I know. I never want to go back either, but at least it’s something we know. It’s easier to work with than with the unknown.”

  “Right.” Merle would never admit it, but he was afraid Nootaw might want to stay there. As bad as Merle might think the wendigo tribe was, they still were Nootaw’s family. Could a year with the pack really win against that? Could he?

  “He’ll come back if he has anything to say about it.”

  “I’m scared of what will happen if he doesn’t have a say.”

  “I know. Me too.”

  That wasn’t really helpful, but then Nootaw was just as important to Chogan as he was to Merle. Chogan was probably just as scared for him, if not more.

  “You accepted him,” Chogan said, startling Merle with the change of topic.

  “Uh, yeah.”

  Chogan looked at him. “Has he told you what he did? What being a wendigo in our tribe meant?”

  “If you’re asking if he told me he hunted and ate people, then yeah, he did. Everyone knows about it.”

  “And you accepted him?”

  “Jared accepted you.”

  “Yes, but I’ve always been different. I never ate anyone.”

  Merle crossed his arms on his chest and scowled. “So what? You’re saying you’re better than him and that I shouldn’t have accepted him?”

  Chogan turned to face Merle and raised his hands. “No, that’s not what I meant. I was just thinking how hard it’s been for me to accept that I’m not a monster.”

  Merle let his hands fall to his side. “I’m not sure he really accepted it. He doesn’t like to talk about the past much, even though he did tell me about some of it. But, you know, it’s the past. He can’t change what he did, so it’s best that he doesn’t think about it too much.”

  Chogan nodded. “You’re right. Thank you for accepting my brother. No matter what you say, I know not many people would have, and it means a lot to Nootaw.”

  “He’s my mate.”

  “It doesn’t mean you had to accept him. It wouldn’t have been unheard of.”

  Merle opened his mouth to answer, but a car turned sharply in the clearing in front of Kam’s house. Several cell phones started ringing inside the house and voices rose, but Merle had eyes only for the car that was stopping in front of him.

  He flew down the porch steps to the driver side door, almost crying in relief when Nootaw came out. There was an odd bundle on his chest and he smiled at Merle, but instead of coming closer, he quickly walked around the car and opened the passenger seat.

  “Chogan, is Jared here with you?” Nootaw asked.

  “Yes.”

  “Go get him. Nepi is hurt.”

  Merle didn’t know what was going on, so he kept his distance as Nootaw opened the passenger door and leaned in to talk to someone. Chogan disappeared inside the house, reappearing a handful of minutes later with Jared, Kameron, Zach, and Jago trailing after him.

  Jared and Jago rushed toward Nootaw and Nootaw moved away so that they had enough space. He looked at the bundle on his chest and hushed at it. Merle frowned, wondering what the fuck was happening.

  Then Nootaw took the bundle with gentle hands and slowly extracted a baby from the fabric. Merle gaped, unable to speak. It was obvious that the baby was somehow related to Nootaw. He had the same cinnamon skin, the same black hair. It could have been just a random baby from Nootaw’s tribe, but the name Nepi had sparked Merle’s memories, and he remembered who she was. The baby could only be Nootaw’s. Merle’s mate was a father, and Merle didn’t know where that left him.

  He wanted to go to Nootaw, to comfort him, but he didn’t know if he’d be welcome. Nootaw had brought home his son and th
e baby’s mother. They could be a family if Merle wasn’t in the picture.

  He briefly toyed with the idea of slinking away to leave Nootaw some space, but his wolf was very much against it, so he didn’t try as hard as he could have. There was also something else happening, people moving in and out the house, talking loudly, phones ringing, and lights turning on.

  The clearing was flooded with white light and Merle blinked. He was about to ask someone what was happening when he heard a name he’d never wanted to hear ever again.

  “They’re coming. Nootaw said Tom didn’t seem to have many men, but he’s not sure he couldn’t have gathered some more on the way.”

  Merle froze. Tom was coming to Gillham?

  Someone put a hand on Merle’s shoulder and he jumped. He swirled around, relaxing only when Zach’s worried gaze crossed his. “Are you all right?” Zach asked.

  “Yeah. I think so.”

  “Have you heard?”

  “That Tom’s coming? Yeah.”

  “I think you should leave. Tom will gun for the alpha’s house.”

  “I know.” Would Nootaw come with him, or would he stay with his family? Would he want to fight Tom?

  “Go to your parents’ house and tell Brent to stay there with you, just in case.”

  Merle nodded and Zach left. Merle looked around, trying to see where Nootaw was, but he wasn’t able to find him. He noticed Jared and Jago weren’t by the car anymore, so Nepi had probably been moved. Maybe Nootaw had gone with her, and that told Merle everything he needed to know right now.

  * * * *

  Nootaw followed Jared and Jago into Kameron’s house, his attention divided between Nepi and Aranck. Chogan walked beside him, and Nootaw could feel his brother’s eyes on him. He waited until Jared started working on Nepi’s leg to talk to Chogan, though.

  He slightly raised Aranck in Chogan’s direction. “This is your nephew, Aranck.”

  Chogan stared at the baby for a few moments before slowly raising his hand. Aranck grabbed one of his fingers and tried to stick it in his mouth. Chogan laughed and took his finger back. “He’s beautiful.”