Uncaged
Chattanooga Supernaturals #4
Candace Blevins
Contents
Connect with Candace
Blurb
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Also by Candace Blevins
Excerpt ~ The Dragon King
About the Author
More From Excessica!
eXcessica publishing
Uncaged © February 2017 by Candace Blevins
All rights reserved under the International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
This is a work of fiction. Names, places, characters and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to any actual persons, living or dead, organizations, events or locales is entirely coincidental. All sexually active characters in this work are 18 years of age or older.
This book is for sale to ADULT AUDIENCES ONLY. It contains substantial sexually explicit scenes and graphic language which may be considered offensive by some readers. Please store your files where they cannot be accessed by minors.
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Cover design © 2016 Syneca Featherstone
First Edition February 2017
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Blurb
It’s been fourteen years since Keisha’s criminal actions put their son in foster care while Darnell was out of the country on a Navy SEAL mission. His attorneys handled all communication with her during the divorce proceedings, and he hasn’t spoken with her for nearly a decade and a half.
When she’s finally paroled, his wolf is insistent he makes sure she has a place to live and help getting on her feet.
Wolves mate for life, but the man can’t forgive her for putting their son at risk.
Chapter 1
Darnell
Wolves mate for life. Not all wolves marry their true mate, so you see divorces occasionally, but when the mating bond forms, it’s a done deal.
Sometimes, life intercedes and fucks everything up.
I stood with my arms crossed, and leaned against my car as I watched uniformed guards escort Keisha out of the prison. My wolf was insistent we help her, but the father in me didn’t want anything to do with her.
The last time we spoke — fourteen years ago — I’d kissed her goodbye before leaving on a deployment, fully expecting to come home to my wife and son in six to nine months.
Keisha had bulked up a good bit. She’d been a willowy, fashionable five foot eight when we’d been married, and she’d probably put twenty or more pounds of muscle on since I’d last seen her. She’d obviously made good use of the prison’s workout facilities. Her waist was still small, but her arms and legs showed bulk and definition. She walked like a badass, too. Not like someone trying to look tough, but with the confidence of someone who can handle whatever comes up.
She stopped in front of me, awkward, as if she didn’t know what to say. I wasn’t of a mind to help her out, and after at least a moment of silence, she finally said, “Thank you.”
I’d hoped she’d start with an apology, but I’d take the thanks… maybe.
“For what?” I didn’t uncross my arms, didn’t smile. I was only here because my damned wolf insisted.
“For picking me up, for getting me transferred to Tennessee so I can get a cosmetology license — and so I can be close to Darius. For… everything. The attorney you hired for me says you’ve even arranged a place for me to live?”
“Had one of those tiny houses built on my property. You’ll apply for your cosmetology license and get work. You can borrow one of my motorcycles to get back and forth to work until you can afford a car.”
She looked down, scraped one foot on the pavement. “I was stupid, Darnell. Darius has forgiven me.” She looked up, met my gaze. “I hope you can someday, too.”
Unfortunately for her, nothing was going to penetrate my wall. I’d see she had a place to live and I’d help her get on her feet, but that was all she was getting from me. Besides, saying she hoped I could forgive her one day wasn’t exactly an apology.
I walked to the driver’s side. “Get in the car. We have an eight-hour drive in front of us. If you aren’t hungry, I’d like to get a few hours behind us before we stop to eat.”
She got in and kept her mouth shut, but I could smell her hunger and disappointment.
My wolf was restless, but I reminded him she wasn’t trustworthy. He snapped at me, walked in a few little circles, and plopped down inside me. He knew she wasn’t, but he didn’t like her being this upset. He wanted me to hold her, touch her. Feed her.
“Let’s get away from the prison at least, and we’ll find a place to eat,” I told her. I’d managed to control my wolf through the hell of BUD/S training to become a SEAL, but he wasn’t backing off when it came to making sure Keisha was okay.
“Why are you helping me?” she asked, her arms crossed over her chest. “You obviously don’t like me and don’t want to be around me.”
I kept driving and didn’t answer, and after several moments she softened her voice to say, “I appreciate all you’ve done for me — helping with my parole, picking me up, building a house for me — but if you want me close so you can punish me more, I’m not sure I can take it, Darnell.”
Eight damned hours of driving with her sitting beside me. Fuck.
“The wolf wants to make sure you’re safe. Doesn’t want you starting over alone.”
She slid her feet out of the dirty white sneakers, pulled her feet onto the seat, and wrapped her arms around her legs. “You wouldn’t talk to me — not even on the phone! You never came to see me. The last time I saw you was when we kissed before you left for god knows where. Now you’re here, cold as ice. I never got closure. You divorced me and I didn’t get to talk to you, not even once!”
The bitter scent of her grief seeped past whatever walls she’d put up, and she spoke lower, deeper. “I didn’t know you could break our mating bond, but I felt it when it happened. It fucking hurt, like a piece
of my soul had been cut away. I thought I’d die. They took me to the infirmary and said my pulse was irregular and my blood pressure dropped. But as bad as it hurt physically… it crushed me emotionally. Before, I always knew when you were in trouble or when you were okay, even when you were on the other side of the world. But you were suddenly just gone. It was like I wasn’t whole anymore, and you’ve been this big, open wound for fourteen damned years. I don’t know if I can see you every day and be okay.”
Prison had changed her. The old Keisha would’ve been bawling her eyes out, but this woman was a fortress. I could smell the edges of her sorrow and pain, but she’d learned to put up walls and be cold. Her voice was rational, reasonable. She was telling me about her emotions without seeming to have them.
The wolf was pissed. He wanted to rip the walls down and see the woman again.
I was intrigued, though.
“If you’d done it when Darius was at school, and not when you had him, I’d have still been pissed, but I might could’ve forgiven you. But you cooked meth with our son a few rooms away. What kind of mother does that?”
My CO had gotten copies of her arrest reports and arranged for me to talk on the phone to the lead detective when I’d come in from our mission. I’d found out all I needed to know from him, and I’d focused all my energy on getting Darius out of foster care from that point forward. He’d been half-crazed when I got to him. He was probably hours from losing control, and his wolf would’ve likely killed every human he could reach in an effort to get to the forest. The Concilio would’ve taken him and he’d have lost his freedom for good. Once I saw the shape our son was in, there was no way I could forgive her.
“I was pissed at you,” she told me, “trying to teach you a lesson. I realize now how stupid it was. You provided for us and I demanded more. I’m sorry, Darnell.”
The old Keisha would’ve defended her actions no matter how wrong. This one was admitting her transgressions and apologizing — finally. Was it an act? Her scent was so fucked up, I couldn’t tell.
I took a breath and tried to break it down — overwhelming grief, shame, fear, uncertainty. I also got the hint of joy at being free, but it was drowned out by everything else. I focused on the fear. It wasn’t fear of physical safety, more fear of the unknown. Certainly understandable, but I still wasn’t sure if she was putting on an act.
“Cellphones have come a long way since you went in. Look in the glove compartment and I’ll give you your first lesson.”
Ten minutes later, she had a list of restaurants close by, and I let her choose where we ate.
Prison food must really suck, because from the moment they put food in front of her, I smelled nothing but joy, hope, and pleasure. I took her to a little market when we finished eating, and let her load up on snacks.
“It’s good you taught me to fight,” she told me when we got back in the car. “Once people realized I wasn’t a pushover, things got easier.”
I’d kept tabs on her, and the divorce had only been final a few weeks when she’d gone to solitary after beating the hell out of another inmate. As far as I knew, she hadn’t been in major trouble since.
I’d paid someone to send me monthly reports on how she was doing, and they’d reported she’d been in a relationship with another female inmate for several years — until the other woman was released. I didn’t want her knowing I’d kept up with her though, so I didn’t ask about it.
“I’m glad you were able to hold your own, but I hope you remember things are different on the outside. You need to react with tact and diplomacy first — don’t go straight to hostility. Darius and Hailey want to take you shopping tomorrow to get you clothes and shampoo and whatever the hell else you’ll need. Not want, but need. I’m giving you a thousand dollars to live on until you start working for yourself. I expect you to use that money for whatever you buy. Don’t accept handouts from our son, Keisha.”
“Even if I pass the boards on the first try, it could take six weeks to get my license. I may need to get another job while I wait.”
“Buy two pair of jeans, a few inexpensive t-shirts, and one nice interview outfit. I’ve already stocked your pantry and refrigerator with the basics so your first trip to the grocery store won’t break you. You won’t owe me rent as long as you stay out of trouble, and I’ll give you four months before you need to start paying for your electricity. It’s a tiny little house, so it won’t use much. You have a television, and I hooked cable and internet up from my house. Darius has an old laptop he’ll set you up with in a few days, once you have some time to get settled.” I glanced at her, looked back to the road. “You’re a felon, Keisha. Getting a good job won’t be easy, and the last thing you need is a string of jobs you only work at a few weeks. Manage your money and work towards getting a job doing hair. I know someone at a salon who’ll give you a chance once you have your license.”
I smelled distress, and shook my head at my wolf when he wanted to comfort her.
“It’ll work out,” I continued. “Take it one day at a time. You have an appointment with your parole officer tomorrow afternoon, so we need to get to Chattanooga today, get you some new clothes in the morning, and then get you to your appointment.”
“Darius says you work for a security company. Why’d you leave the SEALs?”
“I had enough years in to retire, so I did. I make more than double what Uncle Sam paid me, and I risk my life a whole helluva lot less. Plus, my boss knows what I am. I get the full moon off to run, most months — and if he needs me during the full moon, he makes sure I have the night before or the night after. He also makes sure we have food if we have to change for a job. It’s easier.”
After a few moments of silence, I broached an uncomfortable topic. “You know I was married.”
“Darius told me you paid her to marry you and take care of him.”
I nodded. “You know Hailey is Aggie’s daughter?”
She looked straight ahead. “Hailey was his stepsister — they didn’t see each other for six years after you left her mom, and now they’re together. Yeah. I know.”
Finally, I saw a little of the Keisha I’d known before. The wolf rubbed against my skin and I pushed him down.
“They weren’t a thing when they were teens. I’ve recently discovered Darius used to spank her instead of tattling on her when he caught her breaking the rules, but nothing sexual happened.”
“Our son’s grown into a wonderful man. We did good. Or, you and Aggie did good after I fucked up.” She looked out the window, uncomfortable, and finally added, “His claustrophobia’s better. He came to see me and he wasn’t as jumpy.”
I couldn’t tell her why it was better, because Keisha only knows about wolves. When Darius’s true love had been killed and brought back as a supernatural, she’d had to be caged until she learned control. He’d had to learn to be okay in the cage with her if he wanted to be near her.
“I just wanted to make sure you knew the connection, and that you aren’t rude to Hailey because I was married to her mom.”
“I took so much for granted, Darnell. I’m sorry for the hurt I caused you. I never got to apologize, so thanks for letting me say it now. You gave me so much, and I was a brat who wanted more.”
Yeah, but she’d been a lovable brat, and I wasn’t sure who the woman sitting beside me was. I didn’t recognize her. Prison hadn’t been kind to her. She was harder, harsher.
Maybe Darius was right. Maybe she’d been punished enough.
Chapter 2
Keisha
Darnell had always been self-assured to the point of being cocky, but it worked for him.
Before, he’d been mine and I’d been his. He was my cocky, bad-ass Navy SEAL. He smiled, he flirted, he held me — and he glared at everyone else. I’d been special.
Now, he was an emotionless wall. I’d wanted closure, but I wasn’t going to get it.
I’d accept his help and keep my distance — and I’d find a way to repay him for
everything he was doing for me.
I focused as he spent a few hours of the drive explaining my new smartphone, and how to watch how much data I use, and coaching me about not falling for spam or phishing scams.
So much had changed since I went inside. The world kept moving, but I’d been in a cage.
I was a bundle of nerves when Darnell finally pulled into his driveway, but fourteen years in prison had taught me not to show any weakness. Darnell could smell how I was feeling, but he wouldn’t see it.
I followed him around his garage to a small house slightly behind and a good ways to the side of his house.
“You have a mailbox in front of your house, but no driveway. When you get something to drive, I’ll have one put in.”
I’d been expecting an actual small house when he’d said tiny house, but this was… tiny. I’ve seen bigger campers.
No way was I going to bitch about how small it was though.
He stepped onto the large, covered front porch and handed me a keyring with a single key.
“Darius and I both have keys to your house, but if you prove trustworthy we won’t use them without letting you know first. I showed you how to get into the contacts on your phone. Either call or text him to let him know you’re here and safe.”
He turned and left, and I used my key to let myself into the tiny structure.
I breathed out as I switched the light on. It was like a camper in house form. A small modular loveseat to my right. A table to my left was in front of a ladder, and a sticky note on the table said, “This folds up when not needed. The small chairs on the front porch can be used if you’d like to eat at a table.”
A sticky note on the ladder informed me the bedroom was upstairs.
Uncaged Page 1
