"No. Shawnee's reaction to him is different," Caden returned his attention to me.
I shook my head. All I could think about was Robbie and the bullet I shot into his heart. I thought nothing about removing it in front of Vanessa. My heart pounded in my ears louder than it had in a while, I gripped my hair and breathed through the panic.
A teacher stands up from behind her desk to address us. Her platinum blonde hair, pencil skirt, and white blouse make her look pompous and proper.
"My name is Ms. Stevenson. Welcome to fifth grade." The teacher offers a soft smile. I think it's fake. So I'm in fifth grade. For now. Until they find out I've never gone to school. "Let's begin with the roster. Please raise your hand when I call out your name."
I watch as each kid raises their hand. There are two Jessica's and three Joseph's in the room. Finally, she calls out Robbie's name who turns out to be Robert Hawkins.
"Shawnee… Shawnee, how do you pronounce your last name?" Ms. Stevenson's scowling gaze falls upon me when I raise my hand.
"Twofeathers… like, two and feathers?" I don't intend for it to come out sounding sarcastic but it does. Some of the kids laugh.
"Well then, Miss Twofeathers. I won't forget next time." Ms. Stevenson tilts her self-important nose toward the ceiling. I sit back in my desk and pick at a leftover strip of tape stuck to the top.
"All right, today we'll begin with an essay." Some of the students groan and the teacher writes the topic on the blackboard, "What I Did This Summer."
Fresh sheets of paper and sharpened pencils appear on the desks of all the kids. I stare blankly at the chalkboard. Ms. Stevenson sits back down behind her desk while the kids scribble away.
An unexpended rumble of thunder rattles the windows on the far side of the classroom. I gaze outside and imagine what some of the kids would write. Stories about going to the beach, or water parks. Maybe even flying to faraway places like Alaska or Ireland. My essay wouldn't have any of that. What would the teacher think if I wrote the truth? Just the thought of it makes my insides twist. My stomach squeezes and the gurgling sound seems to echo throughout the room. Robbie glances over his shoulder at me, as does the girl next to me. Maybe I'm hungry. It had been awhile since my father gave me something to eat anyway.
I resign to putting my head down on my arms as residual fatigue presses on my shoulders. Why am I here? Why did I bother to listen to my stupid father anyway?
Robbie turns in his seat, and a pencil and paper appear on my desk. He meets my gaze for an uncomfortable few seconds. His gentle brown eyes remind me of a baby deer, soft and innocent. I offer him a half-smile of thanks.
"Robert, eyes forward," the teacher snaps.
"Sorry," he mutters.
"Shawnee?" Vanessa's voice drags me back to the present.
"What? Sorry?" I clear my throat and brush off the memory of Robbie's kindness.
"Caden asked you how you knew Robbie." Xany nudged my foot under the table.
"Oh, sorry. I went to school with him. We lived in the same trailer park after my father took me from the rez."
"Were you friends?" Mal asked.
"Yeah, I guess so. He helped me out in school. I followed him around and he taught me how to go to school and how to act. Peter looked after us mostly. He was older by a year or two. A lot of the kids in the park stuck together," the words tumbled from my lips even though I didn't want to keep talking. "It doesn't matter. I knew him, that's what counts."
"That's six people," Adia said.
"Well, five point five. If a kid is only half as good for a leech." Xany's giggle was only slight. Her dark humor made Caden smirk faintly.
"Five point five…" Where had I heard that before? Voices echoed in my head, catching my breath in my throat. Ileana's voice pressed forward as clear as ever.
Now this is just damn annoying. Do you know how many humans I'm going to have to drain to fix these holes? At least five and a half.
"Five and a half!" I slammed my hands down on the table. Everyone except Vanessa started. "She said it. She warned us."
"Who did?" My mother's voice pressed through my internal chaos. The reminder of her presence stopped me from shouting.
"Ileana. She said it after we shot her up. Remember? How many humans is she going to have to drain? Five and a half?" I looked between them, desperately seeking validation.
"Shit," Mal was the first to respond.
"Yeah she was all prissy about it like we ruined her Pradas or something,” Xany said, her lip curled in disgust.
Caden stood from his seat to pace the floor. He remembered, too. Hank clapped Caden on the shoulder and they stood beside each other as if contemplating me at the same time.
"This ancient plays games," Adia said. "Did you get a piece of her?"
"No. I was too busy killing my undead friends while she was eating another." I scowled at Adia.
"Was there any blood left on the dagger?" Vanessa asked me.
"What dagger?" My mother, Mal, and Hank all asked at the same time.
"Jinx!" Xany giggled. "The silver one that follows her around, duh."
"Um… I don't know." I patted the back of my scrubs where I tucked it after the fight. "It's gone again."
"What do you mean a following dagger?" Adia asked, her brow narrowing. "Go get it."
"I can't. It's a silver dagger that shows up whenever it feels like it. The same one that nearly killed…" I glanced at Vanessa. "Today it decided to drop into my hand as I was punching Ileana. It stabbed her in the gut," I said, fighting the urge to shove the little wolf off the chair.
"She made Dugan go all blistery when she put it near him," Xany said. Gavin appeared by the refrigerator and joined the conversation as if he hadn't missed a beat. "Hi Gavy." Xany perked up.
"Talking about the magic dagger?" he asked.
"Yep," Xany said.
"Dodi," my mother pressed through the questions. "Where is this dagger?"
"I don't know, Mom. It just shows up when it wants."
"A dagger can't want." Henry looked between us oddly.
"Son, there are some magics we jus' don' get. It could want for all we know." Hank gave his son's shoulder a squeeze. Henry nodded and returned to listening.
Adia turned to my mother and said something in a language that I couldn't understand. It was Mal who replied.
"Don't be presumptuous, Adia," he said. "And be careful what language you choose."
"Tla." Adia waved him off.
"Dodi, listen to me," Mom urged.
"I am, Mom." I returned my gaze to her as fatigue dragged me downward. I wanted nothing more than to sleep forever and get the image of Robbie's doubly-dead body out of my head.
"You must call this dagger to you," she said.
"I don't have its number," I muttered. Xany giggled and Mal gave her a light shove.
"Watch it, bub." She shoved him back.
"You are unpleasant when you are upset, Shawnee Twofeathers." My mother grabbed me by the elbow and tugged me to stand.
"Mom…" I nearly whined. "I'm not unpleasant."
"She's usually pretty rude," Xany chimed in.
"You are and I do not like the way you are feeling right now." She let me go once I stood facing her. "Look at me."
"I am."
"In my eyes." She nudged my chin.
It took me a few seconds to muck up the courage to look at her, fearing the emotions I'd have to experience by doing so. My stomach swirled and I tried to block thoughts of Robbie, of the trailer park, and everything else from my mind. She stroked my cheek, her amber eyes shimmered in the dim light of the kitchen. I wondered if mine did the same as I leaned into her touch.
"This is important, Dodi."
"Everything is always important. I'm tired of important things."
"I know this but you cannot leave your mates and family because you are tired."
"How do I call the dagger then?" My lips pursed with the final word. She was right and I was trying to pull away
as I usually did when overwhelmed. Constant attention in my direction, I hated it.
"If it belongs to you, ask it to return."
Ask a dagger to return? How on earth? Here dagger dagger. Show up in my hand while I'm punching a leech. Everyone needs to see you for some messed up reason. Here dagger dagg—
"Shit." The weight of the dagger dropped against my ankle sheath the same way it had in the past. I crouched down and rolled up the leg of my jeans, then pulled the dagger free. "I was kidding," I told it.
Vanessa and Mal leaned away as a cringe rolled over my mother's shoulders. Silver.
"Show me the handle," Mom requested.
Adia hopped up beside her to look on. I gripped the dagger by the blade and turned it around to show them the etching on the hilt.
"Hot damn, open it up!" Adia bounced on the balls of her feet.
"Open it up? It's a piece of metal."
"No, it's a vessel." Adia frowned at me.
"Adia—"
"Dodi, this dagger belongs to our bloodline," Mom interrupted my verbal attack on the Shaman. "It has been missing for some time. Its return to you is with reason."
"The Andrus had it. My old boss used it to torture me and nearly gutted Vanessa," I hadn't considered the harsh nature of my words until my mother's brow narrowed with the anger she kept hidden deep behind her steady demeanor.
"I am not surprised. Did it begin following you after that?" she asked.
"Yeah, it did."
"It tasted your blood," Adia jumped in. "When a vessel finds the bloodline, it follows it again. Now open it."
"It's a Breeder's weapon, forged for protection. Our history recounts it presenting itself to powerful healers.” Mom cupped my hand in hers. "Twist the silver plate of the hilt."
I glanced at my mates. Vanessa offered an encouraging nod. Mal looked on with a furrowed brow. A firm twist on the hilt loosened the silver piece at the end. It unscrewed and after several rotations, it broke free.
"Pull it out," Adia instructed.
I listened to her and tugged it apart. Attached to the silver plate in the center, a skinny glass-like vial the length of the handle held red liquid.
"Tada! You got it." Adia nearly leapt for joy. She nudged her way past my mother and pried the silver plate from my hand, tilting the liquid back and forth.
"Is that blood in there?" Xany scrunched up her nose.
"The vessel holds the blood of its last victim." Mom nodded her answer to Xany.
"Why?" I turned the dagger over to inspect it further. In all the time it followed me, I never gave it much thought. "Does that mean it held mine and Vanessa's at one point?"
"And Dugan’s," Xany reminded me, her tone sour.
"Yes, Dodi. When it tasted your blood, it recognized it as the blood of a pure one and bound itself to you."
Adia returned with the cap from the dagger hilt and screwed it back on. The vial held only one drop of blood.
"What've you done with the rest of it?" I gripped the dagger when it was once again intact.
"Dia collected it."
"In what?" I glanced at the pouches settled against her leather-clad hip. Adia lifted a tiny canteen-like container. It reminded me of a small animal's bladder.
"Well… that will do it." I turned from Adia to my mother, her gaze remained on the dagger in my grip. "Do you want it?"
"Tla, Dodi. It is not for me." She paused, or hesitated, I couldn't tell which. "That vessel holds great tales."
"Does it have ghosts attached to it?" Something tickled the back of my neck and I glanced around.
"Some."
"Can you see them?" A lurch tugged at one of my mate bonds. Vanessa caught my eye when I glanced at her.
"Some," Mom repeated. "But not the ones you are worried about."
"What are you gonna do with that blood, Adia?" Xany's perky voice drew my attention back to the others.
"Examine it. Dia think the magic will reveal itself." Adia eyed Vanessa and held up the canteen. "Magic?"
"Voodoo," Vanessa answered, accompanied by a faint nod.
"Good."
"Katherine will visit soon. She has the most experience with ancients." My mother placed her hand on my shoulder. "Replace that dagger securely, Dodi."
"My mom's coming?" Vanessa asked.
"Yes. But not until it is morning there," Mom answered.
"You asked her?"
"I did."
"Why?"
"She knows much more."
I listened as my mother and mate went back and forth. Vanessa's anxiety about seeing her mother settled heavily in our bonds. I glanced at Gavin and lifted a brow at him.
"Don't look at me. Vinnie's been ignoring me for ages." Gavin waved his hand in Vanessa's direction. She didn't respond to him.
"I think we all need some rest," Hank spoke up. I'd nearly forgotten he was there. "An' we'll gather again tomorrow."
"And showers. There's way too much blood in this room," Mal said.
Chapter Twenty-Six
Nightmares of Robbie's embrace and death kept me up most of the night. A dawn-lit kitchen met my presence while the rest of the pack slept. I settled myself at the table and watched the morning snow float past the window. The rising sun melted any flake that fell on the eastward window. I pulled my damp hair into a ponytail as I thought about Robbie. How did Ileana find him? High school was the last time I saw him. He was as quiet then as he was when we were kids. He wasn't quiet in the morgue last night, though. Something about him changed. He said something about laying off the drugs. It didn't surprise me. Our upbringing offered the perfect breeding ground for addiction. I was no exception. I worried for Peter and wondered what had happened to him. Would Ileana find him next? Maybe she would continue to pick off everyone I cared about just to get to me. Just to get me to bend to her will.
Feather-soft fingers brushed against the back of my neck. I hadn't noticed Vanessa's entry until her caress announced it. She perched herself on the table, crossing her ankles. Her black skirt clung to her legs, emphasizing the muscles in her thighs each time she swung her legs. Neither of us spoke for a while, letting the emotions settle between us. I wanted to talk to her about Robbie but feared finding out about the others I'd left behind. Instead, I placed my head in her lap and she stroked my hair. Her ever-growing belly pressed against my cheek, hints of movement evident beneath her skin. A soft smile curled my lips, breaking me from my grief.
"We don't have anything for her." I sat up and Vanessa stroked my cheek.
"Hmm?"
"For the baby. No crib or bottles, or even a bedroom." Why was I thinking about this now?
"We have what we need," her voice was steady and sure in a way I hadn't expected.
"But… we don't have anything at all, baby. We're not ready."
"Nappies and bedding aren't going to make us any readier."
"Are you sure?"
"She'll grow too quickly for most things." A gentle smile met her ruby lips as she squeezed my hands.
"You sound like our mothers. Are you thralled?" Even though I was teasing, it made me a tad nervous at the possibility.
"No." She laughed. "I don't get thralled. I do the thralling."
"That's true. You thralled me with your sexy girl body," I said, chuckling at the swat she aimed at me after. "So are you going to tell me why you're avoiding the Pride and ignoring Gavin?"
"Maybe later."
"Kat's going to be here in an hour," I said. "Are you angry with them?"
"Not really."
"Which means yes."
"Does not."
"What then, baby?"
"I don't know. I feel…" She glanced over my shoulder as she searched for the right words.
"Let down?" I offered.
"Sort of."
"Betrayed?" That seemed to ring a bell because she looked back at me.
"It shouldn't have come to battle like that. I didn't want it to. I told them about Dugan years ago. They didn't listen or didn'
t believe me. Only after I left, and when he started on other people did it matter." She pursed her lips. "Why didn't I matter?" Vanessa's gaze met mine. Sincerity touched the corners of her eyes, deepening my desire to soothe her.
"I don't know, baby." I stood up in front of her so that we were equal. "It mattered to me, when you told me."
"I know. And it mattered to the pack, too." She looked away again for a moment.
"Of course it did." I caressed her cheek, guiding her chin back to me.
"You mattered to me the first time you told me about the things that happened to you. You mattered before that."
"So did you."
"I'll kill anyone who touches our baby." Her eyes flashed yellow at the same time her brow narrowed. "If someone even dares to make her frown, I'll tear their head off."
"I'll help you." I leaned forward and bumped my forehead with hers. "You matter to me," I whispered.
"I know." She nuzzled her nose against mine then hugged me. "Mal will kill them, too."
"Yes he will." I laughed softly against her shoulder as we embraced. "There's something you should know, Ness."
"Hmm?" She leaned back to look at me.
"Your hurt mattered to Gavin. He was little when Dugan started bullying you but I think he noticed. The day Dugan attacked Maeve, Gavin went after him even before we got there. For a submissive, he's rather brazen. When he found out that Xany and I were planning to take Dugan out ourselves, he helped."
"Gavin," she said, her eyes searched my face, for what, I couldn't be sure.
"Yes. And he's been here in Utah every day since. Not because he likes us weird wolves or American food, he's checking on you. You're his sister." I stroked her hair with both hands, holding onto the ends that nearly fell to her waist.
"He likes playing with Xany," she said, doubt lingering in her tone.
"He likes Xany because she's loud and spills everyone's secrets. He's here for you, trust me. I can tell. He looks at you the way Mal looks at Xany. Always checking, always making sure. Even though they argue a ton, they worry for each other regardless."
Finally, she nodded, growing quiet as she pondered my thoughts. "He'll protect the baby, too."
"Gavin and Mal will, yes." I nodded.
Bound (Legacy Series Book 4) Page 24
