by Ellen, Jo
“Um, okay, sorry. Not my business. I think I’ll go back to bed, I’m sleepy now.”
Rafe sighed, frustrated. He would not keep repeating himself. He had to give her time. Someday, hopefully soon, she would believe him.
“Before you go, I’d like to know if you’d like to spend the day with me tomorrow? Give us some time to get to know one another better.”
She hated letting him down again. She knew he was annoyed at her for constantly doubting being his mate.
“I already told Stephanie I’d go to the zoo with her and the girls. You’re welcome to come along, if you’d like.”
“Sounds like a girl’s day out. I’ll stay here so you and Steph can have some time together.”
“Aw, you’re just chicken. Can’t handle four women, tough guy?”
“I don’t believe anyone has ever called me chicken,” Rafe said, bemused. “And no, I don’t think I could handle the four of you together.”
Chuckling, Lisa stood and bent over to kiss him goodnight. She had surprised him by taking the initiative. It was over before he realized that she’d turned to go back inside.
Exhaling, he got up and followed her back in.
Chapter 12
After an early breakfast, the girls packed up the car for their trip. The drive was a little under an hour, but traveling with small children was always a challenge. Almost like going on an overnight trip, Lisa thought. Besides a change of clothes in case of accidents, finger food and juice drinks were all important. Not to forget favorite stuffed animals and the diaper bag.
Seeing Anna at the kitchen table, they had invited her to go with them. She declined, saying she had work and errands to do. Rafe assured her any work in the house could wait, but she insisted she had things to do. Lisa thought she was probably still overwhelmed from yesterday’s revelations.
With Sarah and Amy strapped in their seats, they waved to Rafe as they took off. Colin had already gone in to work.
“I was out on the patio last night when Rafe and some of the guys came back from a run. I’m pretty sure it was Ian, Devlin and Dunstan with him. It’s weird how I recognized Rafe right away in his wolf form.”
“That’s interesting. I couldn’t tell Colin from the rest of them at first. Once we were mated, it was no problem, of course. Seems to me your witchy half knows more than your human side.”
“Do you think it’s the witch part? Because I’m pretty sure I could tell them all apart. I knew just looking at them.”
“Maybe you’re more intuitive than you knew. Hey, next time see if you can speak to them telepathically. You know mates can, but it’d be cool if you could do it with anyone.”
“Maybe. I’ll try it with you when you’re not driving. Then try again when you shift. By the way, Rafe asked me to help Chase’s seer to see if she could learn anything new. I said I would of course, but I’m not sure what I can do,” Lisa said worriedly.
“Doesn’t matter. If you help with a vision and she gets something, then great. If nothing happens, at least you tried. Think of it like more testing. We know you’re still learning what you can do. No one expects you to be omnipotent.”
“That would be awesome. Just think, I’d never have to shave my legs again,” Lisa joked.
After parking at the zoo, Stephanie worked on getting the girls out of their car seats. Lisa had gotten the double stroller out and was setting it up. Once everything was organized, they were off.
Slowly pushing the stroller, they stopped often to hold the girls up so they could see the animals better. They spent more time at the elephant exhibit since everyone loved watching the huge beasts. Sarah walked most of the time, shunning the stroller. Of course, Amy wanted to walk too, once she saw Sarah walking. It was slow going, but they weren’t in any hurry. Thankfully, it wasn’t too crowded since it was a Monday.
Once they saw the wild wolves, the girls went running up to their enclosure. Which wasn’t very fast for Amy. Lisa followed behind Sarah with the stroller, while Stephanie made sure her toddler didn’t hurt herself rushing.
“They look just like Gamma and Grampa,” said Sarah.
Stephanie was laughing as she picked Amy up. “Yes, they do. Never a good thing to see a relative in the zoo,” she joked.
“Has that happened before?” Lisa asked.
Setting Amy down so she could move closer to Sarah, Stephanie spoke quietly to Lisa.
“Colin’s dad was picked up one time. It was before he met me. They all joke about it, but his dad didn’t find it very funny. They were hoping to breed him with a female they had at the time. His mom still teases him about replacing her with that ‘zoo bitch’,” she said chuckling.
“I remember meeting Colin’s parents when you got married. He seemed like a pretty easy going guy.”
“Oh, he is, but it was a matter of pride. Once you get to know these wolves, you’ll find pretty much all of the males have an alpha complex. He thought it made him look weak. Doesn’t go with the ‘tough guy’ image,” Stephanie smiled.
“Yeah, I don’t think any of the ones I’ve met are a momma’s boy,” Lisa said laughing.
It was getting close to lunchtime, so they found a grassy area to place their blanket. They had made sandwiches to take with them before they left. After eating, both girls went back into the stroller to see the rest of the park.
Watching the chimpanzees for a while, they then moved on to the amphibian building. The girls were starting to get whiny, so Stephanie decided to call it a day. Once back in the car, it wasn’t long before both Amy and Sarah were asleep.
“That was nice. I felt like I was back in my normal world,” said Lisa sleepily.
“When everything settles down, and this prophesy crap is over, you’ll see that we live basically normal lives. Except when we howl at the moon, of course.”
“Of course,” Lisa said dryly.
Arriving back at the castle, Colin came out to help get the girls from the car. Waking up, they started chattering telling him all about the animals they’d seen.
“And there were two wolves that looked just like Gamma and Grampa,” said Sarah.
Colin glanced over at Stephanie, grinning. “Are you sure it wasn’t?”
“I’m gonna tell them,” said Devlin in a singsong voice coming up behind him.
Rafe came out and helped carry in all the baggage that was necessary with young children.
“Enjoy the zoo?” he asked.
“Yes, although I’d forgotten what it’s like going anywhere with toddlers. I think Stephanie brought everything they owned,” said Lisa.
“Just you wait. Someday you’ll see what it’s like. I’m just an exceptionally prepared mother,” Stephanie said in a superior tone.
Entering the great room, Lisa saw Ian and Dunstan with their heads together. Robert was leaning against the fireplace. She could hear snatches of conversation, something about a dirk.
“My dirk was in my house in Denver. I don’t know how it could have gotten into an auction. My house hadn’t been broken in to, there’s no way. I have wards set up that would stop any human,” Dunstan said slowly, realizing the implications.
Lisa and Rafe sat listening, while Colin and Stephanie went to give the girls their baths.
“Why would your father take it? Couldn’t he just summon you and bind you to him?” asked Rafe.
“A fae cannot summon or bind another fae,” said Robert.
“Assuming Ciar was the one, and then used Stephen to summon you, what would be his goal? We have to think like he would,” said Ian.
“We’re making a lot of assumptions without any real facts. Ian said he and Dunstan couldn’t locate Stephen. Then with Dunstan telling us his name just came to Stephen when he touched the dirk, doesn’t add up. Again, too many coincidences,” said Rafe.
“My father does not involve himself in my life. Unless he feels the urge to punish me for some infraction, he thinks I’ve made. Mostly, he leaves me alone and yet, when I went looking for
my mother, he put me in his dungeon. I think he did take my dirk. He is one of few that could get past my wards. By using Stephen to release me, it would move suspicion away from him. What I can’t figure out is why? Why make sure I got released?” asked Dunstan.
“Your mother,” said Lisa. “He knows you won’t give up. If we’re right, then she is alive and he’s hoping you’ll find her for him. She hid Anna from him and taught her to stay away from the fae. I think she did everything she could to lead him away from her. Sending you away cleared the way for her and Anna to escape. He wouldn’t have any leverage if her children were gone.”
“And since he couldn’t summon you from this realm, he used Stephen to get the dirk. I don’t think there ever was an auction. He planted those memories in Stephen, I’ll bet,” said Ian.
“Going with this theory, how would he know if you did find your mother? Is there a way he could track you?” asked Rafe.
“He could use a witch,” Robert stated baldly. “If he has one under his control, he could use them to ‘see’. He may already know about Anna now. She would be his bargaining chip to control Dunstan, if he could take her.”
“We’re going with that assumption then. Put extra guards on Anna, but let’s not forget the pond. Maybe when Melissa comes tomorrow, we’ll be able to get more information,” said Rafe.
The meeting broke up and Lisa went to shower. Rafe told everyone he was grilling steaks for dinner, giving his mom a break from cooking.
Robert followed Rafe to the patio, watching while he got the grill ready. Going over what they knew, Rafe was thinking Ciar had done a lot of planning to track Dunstan.
“Do you really think this is about finding his wife?” asked Rafe.
“From what I already knew of him, and Dunstan’s views, I’d say yes. He doesn’t let anything go that he considers his. He’s power hungry and arrogant. He also wouldn’t want anyone else to have her. I don’t think he cares anything for Anna personally. Control is everything to him,” said Robert.
“Would he send someone for Anna or come himself?” asked Rafe.
“He’d come himself,” Dunstan came out to the patio. “He would get pleasure out of thwarting you and hurting me.”
“I hope he does come himself. I’ll rip his throat out before I let him take Anna,” Rafe said grimly.
After her shower, Lisa went down to see if she could help with dinner. Seeing the men outside in deep discussion, she decided to raid the fridge to make a salad.
“Thanks, that will go well with the steaks. I’ve got baked potatoes in the oven,” Rafe said coming in to get the steaks.
He stepped behind her and slid his arms around her waist. Leaning down, he lightly kissed her neck, making her giggle.
“Stop,” she laughed. “You’re going to make me drop this on the floor.”
He took the bowl from her and set it on the counter. Turning her around, he pulled her close to him, sliding his arms around her. Moving in to kiss her, she stood on her tiptoes, winding her arms around his neck. She loved the way he held her so tight. Pressed against his chest, she could feel his heartbeat.
“Hey, where are the steaks? The grill’s ready and I’m starving. Oops, sorry. You two just ignore me, I’ll cook the steaks.” Devlin had come in and moved around them to get the steaks from the fridge.
“You don’t know how lucky you are by not having little brothers,” Rafe murmured.
Stepping away from Lisa, Rafe took the steaks from Devlin. He didn’t trust him not to get distracted and turn them into briquettes.
Lisa turned back to her salad, trying to ignore Devlin, as he insisted that Rafe get back to what he was doing. Rafe shoved Devlin in front of him back out the door. Lisa finished preparing the salad and then set the table. With nothing else to do, she went outside with the men.
They were no longer talking gloom and doom when she joined them. Someone had brought out a football, so they had started a game. Lisa sat down on a lounger, shaking her head. It was too hot to run around chasing each other.
There seemed to be more tackling than actually playing a game. They also didn’t follow any game rules. She saw some of the guards had joined in the game also.
Stephanie and Colin came out with the girls and he immediately went to join the game. Steph sat next to Lisa, telling Amy and Sarah to stay on the patio and watch.
“It looks more like a wrestling match than a football game,” Lisa said.
“Yeah, it’s just an excuse to wrestle and pound on each other. Male bonding, wolf thing you know. And fae thing now, I see,” laughed Stephanie.
Anna came out and sat down with them, watching. She quietly observed the game, then grinned and said she was going to join them. She seemed more comfortable already, Lisa thought.
“She won’t get hurt, will she?” asked Lisa.
“She’s fae and wolf. Even though they’ll tone it down, she can take it,” Stephanie said.
Watching Anna get the ball and run for the touchdown, Stephanie stood up and yelled, “You go, girl!”
Rafe left the game to take the steaks up and tell them dinner was ready. They all went back inside to wash up and eat.
They were teasing Anna, saying that she cheated by tripping Ian to score a touchdown.
“It’s not my fault he tripped over his own feet. I know it’s difficult competing against someone so much younger than you,” Anna said with sympathy.
“Tripped? You deliberately stuck your leg out! I want a rematch. We’ll see how much ‘older’ I am,” Ian demanded.
After debating the winner of the game, without coming to an agreement, Rafe decided it was time to inform Anna of her extra guards.
“You would be a huge asset to Ciar if he took you. Even though we don’t know for sure that’s his plan, we have to be aware of the danger. He could hold you for years while Dunstan searches for your mother.”
“I understand and I want to help if I can,” she said turning to Lisa. “If you’re up to it, I’d like to see if you can help me remember anything more tonight.”
“Only if you understand I’ll be getting in to your mind. I don’t want to invade your privacy, but it’s pretty intense,” said Lisa.
“Maybe after dinner?” asked Anna.
“Okay. This is how it works, at least, how it worked with Dunstan. I’ve only done it once. I’ll try to help you remember the old or buried memories. If either one of us gets uncomfortable, Robert can help pull us back.”
Finished eating, they carried their dishes to the kitchen to clean up. Afterward, they moved into the great room. Lisa and Anna sat beside one another on the sofa.
Taking Anna’s hands, Lisa asked if she was ready. After seeing her nod, Lisa closed her eyes and sent her mind outward. Dunstan sat on Anna’s other side, with Rafe beside Lisa. The brothers and Colin stood back and watched, while Robert knelt in the floor in front of them. Stephanie had taken the girls up to their room.
Lisa was probing Anna’s mind. At first, all she saw was a dark cloudy area. Eventually it changed to grey. She pushed further until there was a white mist. This is it, she thought. Moving through the mist, she saw flashes of images. They moved too fast for her to understand them, so she pushed them forward in Anna’s mind, thinking they would mean something to her. Suddenly, she started feeling distressed, and realized it was coming from Anna. Then Robert was there, pulling her back.
Opening her eyes, she saw Dunstan cradling Anna, who was making small mewling sounds.
“Oh my God, did I hurt her? Anna, please, are you all right?” Lisa asked concerned.
Anna worked on pulling herself together. The memories had all come so fast, she was still processing what she’d seen. She could hear Lisa worriedly asking about her.
“I’m all right, just give me a minute,” she said quietly.
Rafe was slowly running his hand up and down Lisa’s back, comforting her. Lisa was gnawing on her bottom lip, worried. Robert rose, patting Anna on the head. He knew it was difficult f
or her, resurrecting memories she’d buried.
Dunstan simply held his sisters hand, waiting while she collected herself.
Taking a deep breath, Anna spoke. “I remember. I was playing in my mother’s room. I couldn’t have been more than five or six years old. She came in, scared. She was rushing around the room, gathering clothes and stuffing them in a bag. She was saying we had to go right now, while he was gone. I didn’t understand what she meant.”
Devlin had left to get her a glass of water. He handed it to her, gently patting her shoulder. She paused, taking a sip.
“It’ll be all right, Anna. These are just memories from a long time ago. Obviously, she got you away. Do you remember where she took you? That might give me a starting point to look for her,” said Dunstan.
“Yes, it was Altus, Oklahoma. She took me to a family of wolf shifters. I don’t think they were her family, just friends of hers. Guess it would have been stupid if she’d taken me to her family. Ciar would probably have known where her relatives were. Their name was, um, Stewart, I think. Bob and Eva! They had two boys, Sean and David. I can’t believe I’d forgotten all this. They were like brothers to me,” Anna had started to cry.
She was remembering this family. Her family. They had taken her in and raised her as one of their own.
“How could I have forgotten them?” she said sadly. “They raised me, treated me like their daughter.”
“It sounds to me like someone blocked your memories. That would have taken some magic,” said Rafe.
“I agree. Something must have happened for her to have her memories hidden. We won’t know unless we can find that family,” said Robert.
“I’ll leave tomorrow,” stated Dunstan.
Robert told him he would go with him, just in case he ran in to any trouble. Anna told them she was worn out and going to bed.
“One more thing,” said Rafe. “How did you end up at that hotel where my dad found you?”
