by H. D. Gordon
In fact, I wasn’t sure there was ever a good time for that.
Even though there was so much going on, I couldn’t help but ponder the way I was beginning to feel about him. There was a reason people in The Mound used to call me cold-hearted Dita, and it was not because I was a warm and fuzzy female when it came to matters of sex.
I was more the hit-it-and-quit-it type, and this had served me well for the most part, but whatever was blooming between Elian and I was different. My instinct was to pull back and shut myself off, to protect against any potential fallout.
Of course, I had to tell my brother about what Eli said, and of course, this only led to yet another argument between us. Why I thought he would take Eli’s word when he wouldn’t listen to mine, I didn’t know, and the whole thing only served to heighten the tension between us.
I slept on the roof again, and dreamed of a pale Wolf with icy blue eyes, sneaking into the twins’ room in the dark of night. This nightmare jolted me out of the meager sleep I did manage, and after, I went to the twins’ room and slept on the floor in my Wolf form.
I strongly considered disobeying my brother and just going after Cartier myself, taking care of the whole matter under the cover of darkness. While I never relished the idea of harming another, I was quite certain I could get the job done. When it came to protecting my family, there was little I wouldn’t do.
But days passed, and there was no attack from Cartier, no unexpected visitors to the house or to our places of business. I knew Devon paid what Cartier had asked, and for now, it was enough, but payment would need to be made again and again. At some point, we wouldn’t be able to make it. Then, just as Eli had said, we’d have to sell shop and leave, and everything that I had spent the better portion of my life working for would be gone.
With no money, where would I take the family? What would we do? How would we survive?
In the calmness that followed, however, Devon seemed to think that everything was finally settled. He’d met Cartier’s demands for the time being, and in his mind, it was taken care of.
In my mind, my older brother was a Gods damned fool.
On top of all this madness, Delia was moving along in her pregnancy, and she was still treating me as if I was the main villain of her personal existence. I told myself to make the best of it, to help my little sister navigate what lie ahead, but in all honesty, I was angry with her, too. I resented her reckless choices, and the difficult life she’d now enlisted herself for. She’d watched me struggle so hard to raise our siblings when I was her age, and I simply could not understand why she’d voluntarily take on the burden for herself.
For all of us.
Another mouth to feed was exactly the opposite of what we needed.
Demarco seemed to be the only one in high spirits, and his newfound passion for the arts was clearly the source of this. He beamed bigger than I’d ever seen in my life when he brought home his first painting, going over every detail of it as I showered on my praise.
“I’m very proud of you,” I said. “You’re quite talented.”
Demarco blushed. “I don’t know about that, but I’m getting better. Miss Charlene is teaching me so much. I never thought it was possible to actually enjoy learning.”
“Purchase whatever materials you need,” I said, reaching into my jacket and handing him some money.
Demarco took it and kissed my cheek. “Miss Charlene is putting on a showcase at the gallery in Faerport at the end of the month. She’s going to put one of my paintings in it. I hope you can come.”
“I wouldn’t miss it,” I said, smiling as he all but floated away down the hall.
“He’s like a new person,” Kyra observed, standing beside me in the foyer.
I snorted softly. “If only it were that easy.”
“Maybe it is,” she said.
I went to go outside.
“D, wait,” Kyra said. “Can we please talk? This tension between us is killing me.”
The better nature in me wanted to agree, to pull my old friend into a hug and tell her that all was well between us, but the other side of me still felt betrayed and petty.
“Tension is not the thing that will kill us, Ky,” I mumbled, and walked away.
A small blessing was the fact that despite the turmoil within our household, both Analise and Ada were still thriving in our new home.
No more were they witness to the violent fights between Demarco and our father, or the drunken stupor of the latter on a regular basis. Steady food and comfortable beds had worked wonders, and their little bodies had gone from those of scrappy pups to perfectly plump in a way that could not have more satisfied me.
Their smiles were bigger, their laughs longer, and I knew they genuinely loved the Warner Plantation and all the places there were to discover on the hundred acres that belonged to us.
I’d kept close to them as of late, closer than usual, because I knew that if someone really wanted to hurt me, the twins would be the most vulnerable place to strike. Being by their side was the only thing that made the underlying anxiety of it all bearable. Maybe I’d failed in the raising of the older siblings, but I would not fail by them.
One early evening the following week, the girls convinced me to take them on a run in the woods. They were too cute to deny, and I grinned at the way they jumped around excitedly when I finally agreed and stood from my comfortable seat on the porch.
“I’m gonna catch me a rabbit!” Ada proclaimed, and had shifted into her Wolf form before I even had a chance to chuckle.
“Yeah, right!” Ana replied. “I’m going to catch a rabbit.”
She also shifted and went bounding off after her sister.
Sighing, I followed after the little rascals, laughing as they squared off and tackled each other along the way.
“Wait for me, girls,” I called after them, but of course, neither appeared to be listening.
Picking up my pace, I caught up with them just before their furry little tails disappeared into the tree line. The sky was just beginning to darken, and the air was blessedly crisp after having gotten rather warm during the day.
When I stepped under the shade of the canopies, the temperature dropped a few more degrees, and the shadows of the old pines and oaks made for a rather gloomy effect. Up ahead, I caught a glimpse of Ada’s fluffy head as she stalked through the underbrush, no doubt searching up a trail.
When I glanced around and couldn’t see Ana, a small burst of panic weaved through my belly, but I assured myself that she could not have gone far, and that no one would be on this part of the land but us.
Still, as more seconds ticked away, and I called out her name but did not receive a response, the feeling of alarm ramped up rapidly. I sniffed at the air, breathing a small sigh of relief when I came upon Ada evacuating on a tree and picked up the scent of her sister.
I followed the trail of it a few paces, and stopped dead in my tracks when I came around the thick trunk. A low growl tore up my throat.
Standing within the shadows, under the dying light of the day, was Arsen Bain.
And Analise, still in her Wolf form, was cradled in his pale arms.
My hands went to my sides, but I remembered there were no irons hanging there, and cursed foul enough in my mind to make a sailor blush.
“Put her down,” I said in a cold, flat voice.
Arsen Bain’s mouth pulled up in a slow smile. He stroked the top of Ana’s head between her ears, making me consider lunging for his throat on the spot.
“You ought to keep an eye on these ones,” Bain said as Ada joined me, her ears pressed flat atop her head.
“Who is that?” she asked into my mind, but I shushed her as I stared down the Wolf holding Ana.
“They’re fine looking pups,” Bain added. “And I hear there’s quite a market for such things.”
Now I was sure I was going to kill him. If not here and now, then soon. Very soon, if I had my way about it.
“Put her dow
n,” I repeated, each word laced with a growl.
Bain stroked the spot between Ana’s ears again, and she let out a low whimper.
“Shh, little one,” the bastard crooned. “You don’t have to be afraid of me.”
My eyes glowed like duel moons as I teetered on the edge of shifting and attacking. Ana looked so fragile in his muscular and pale arms, so breakable, and I was afraid that if I jumped, he’d hurt her.
Or worse.
But standing rooted to the spot and doing nothing was agony, worse than any beating I’d ever endured.
Arsen Bain held my gaze for what felt like a small eternity, his bald head gleaming in the shafts of fading light filtering through the trees, his icy blue eyes alight with enticed amusement.
Slowly, as if to purposely draw out the process, he bent and placed Ana on the ground. As soon as he released her, my sister scrambled over to where I was and hid behind my legs, her furry head peeking out at the male before us, the danger of him obvious even to children.
“Girls,” I said into Ada’s and Ana’s mind, “Run back to the house as quickly as you can. Find Devon or Kyra and stay with them until I return.”
The expression on the twins’ furry faces was identical, and I could tell that they did not want to leave me alone with Bain. But I’d given them an order, and as they hurried away, heading toward the house, I felt marginally better at each inch they put between them and the Wolf standing before me.
“Alone at last, Miss Silvers,” Bain said.
Chapter 24
A flash of violet light exploded on the tree beside Bain’s head, making both of us jump in surprise.
“Think again, mother fucker,” Kyra said, as more of the glowing magic circled her fingertips. In her other hand, I saw that she had one of my long-barreled revolvers, the weapon cocked and ready. “The next one won’t miss,” she promised.
Bain bared his teeth at her, clearly not happy about having been interrupted. “Why do bitches always travel in packs?” he spat.
Kyra’s beautiful face was aglow with her magic, her eyes were locked on Bain. “I’d reconsider my words if you want to keep what hair you have left on your shriveled little balls,” she replied.
I could almost see the wheels turning in his head, could see him teetering on the edge of the decision. Would he try and take us both on, and risk getting bested, or would he bide his time and wait to catch me alone again?
Apparently, he wasn’t as stupid as he looked, because he began to back away through the trees.
“Don’t come back,” Kyra warned.
This made him pause, and from the look he gave us, I knew that he would indeed be back, that it was only a matter of time.
But, for now, he started to walk away.
As he did so, all I could think of was the way he’d held Ana, the way he had stroked the spot between her ears as if she were a pup of his own Pack.
And I saw red.
In the next instant, the revolver that had been in Kyra’s hand was in mine, the familiar curve of it on my palm like the handshake of an old friend. My vision narrowed down to a tunnel, and one side of my mouth pulled up in anticipation of what would follow next.
I squeezed, but just as I did so, my arm was shoved to the side. A fantastic bang sounded in the trees, and a flock of birds erupted from the canopies. It took a moment for my mind to realize that I had missed the target.
Arsen Bain ducked upon hearing the shot, glanced back with hate in his icy eyes, and hightailed it out of sight
He’d gotten away.
My head turned as if in slow motion, and anger crashed over me in a wave as I saw Devon standing beside me, having been the one to push my hand off target, the one who had made my shot miss.
“Are you out of your fucking mind?” he snapped, though whatever expression was on my face took the bite out of the words, made him take a step back from me.
Then another.
In my hand, a wisp of smoke rose out of the iron’s barrel, the bang it had made still ringing in my ears, a haze of angry red still ringing my vision.
I shoved the gun into my brother’s hands and made him stumble back a couple more steps with the force of it.
“No,” I said through gritted teeth. “I’m the only one who’s thinking straight in this fucking family.”
Neither my brother nor Kyra seemed to know what to say to this, so I left them to their stupefied standing, wishing my bullet would have found its mark.
He would be back. I was sure of it.
And I would blame my brother personally if something happened as a result of him stopping me from killing Arsen Bain. That was another thing I was sure of.
Kyra could not say how he’d gotten past her magical wards, so to be safe, Devon decided to move the family to another location for the time being, agreeing that the main house was too much a risk. When they thought that risk would be over with was beyond me, since they’d stopped me from nipping it in the bud, but I begrudgingly admitted that I felt better having the others stay at a safe house hidden on a small plot of land nearby.
I’d purchased the place for just such a reason, though I supposed I’d always thought I’d need it because of my father or the Bordens.
But those troubles really did seem to be in the past, which was damn good, since the present had enough of its own to account for.
The safe house was little more than a two story structure with five bedrooms and two bathrooms, which was quite a bit more cramped than we’d grown accustomed to living, but no where near as cramped as we’d lived growing up.
“It’s just for a few days,” Devon had promised the group. “Just to be safe.”
I snorted when I heard this and exited the safe house. I couldn’t bring myself to look at his face without seeing Arsen Bain’s escape and the bullet that had been intended for him embedding itself into a nearby tree instead.
Now, I found myself in Faerport, walking along the canal, pretending that I wasn’t heading anywhere in particular.
The hour was getting late, and most of the colorful shops along the water were just getting ready to close up for the night. Overhead, the sky was clear, and the stars slowly blinked to life as a quarter moon hung faithfully beside them.
I made it all the way to the outside of the building where I knew his loft to be before I admitted to myself that I had come to see Eli. In fact, I made it all the way to his door before admitting to myself exactly what I wanted to do.
And though I had always been very forward in the past when it came to sexual partners, my hand shook slightly as I raised my fist and knocked on his door.
Right after I knocked, however, I very uncharacteristically lost my nerve, and turned on my heels so that I could hurry away before he saw me. What if he wasn’t alone in there? I would be mortified.
But the door to his place opened just as I was reaching the stairs, and his familiar voice spoke behind me.
“Dita?” he said. “Where are you going?”
Feeling heat bloom behind my cheeks, I considered briefly how ridiculous it would look if I just ran off down the stairs and out of sight.
I turned back to face him and took in the dimples of his smile.
“Well, I was in the neighborhood…” I said, and did a mental face-palm at how lame this sounded.
Eli’s smile only grew, his dimples deepening as he slipped his hands into his pockets and nodded, leaning against the doorframe. “Very convenient,” he replied.
“I should go,” I said, and turned on my heels.
Eli grabbed my arm, gently but firmly. “Don’t,” he said. “I was just joking. Please stay.”
I looked at where his hand was still holding me, and he misread my reaction by dropping it. Swallowing hard, I stepped passed him and into his loft. Eli shut the door gently behind me.
The last time I’d been here, I hadn’t taken in very many details, seeing as how I’d had the shit beaten out of me and was eager to get home. The place was large and modern
, with a wall of floor-to-ceiling windows looking out over the canal. A floating staircase led up to the loft portion, where I knew his bed to be, and the rest of the space was one open area, each room flowing into the next.
“Would you like a drink?”
I shook my head, my emotions in turmoil while my face remained impassive. “I don’t know why I’ve come,” I admitted.
“I’m glad you did,” Eli said, and something fluttered in my chest. He led me over to where there was a long, soft couch positioned to look out over the water. I followed and sat beside him.
“Do you want to talk about it?” he asked.
I didn’t know where to begin, or if I should at all. I wasn’t lying when I’d said I didn’t know why I’d come here. When things were troubling me, I never turned to someone outside my family. The thing was, this time, all the trouble was my family.
“I’d rather a distraction,” I said, and when his brows rose, I added, “Not that kind. A story or something. Tell me a story.”
“A story?”
I nodded. “It doesn’t have to be true.”
Eli settled back in his seat, his handsome face pinching as he thought for a moment. I watched him, thinking about how perfect his light brown skin was, how beautiful his big hazel eyes, and when he smiled, I was sure it was lovely enough to make a heart break.
He held one finger up in the air. “Ah,” he said. “I’ve got it.”
Eli settled back into the cushions, adjusting his body so that he was angled more toward me. His grin was contagious as he waved his hands gracefully through the air in front of us and said, “Once upon a time…”
I felt a smile pull up my mouth and kicked off my boots so that I could tuck my legs beneath me and turn toward him. He waited patiently as I did so, his hands still slightly raised.
“You ready?” he asked.
I nodded.
