I was fighting for Bran.
Tony released Bran as I crashed into the pair, grabbing the kid by the shoulders and slamming him to the ground. As I straddled the kid, Bran scrambled away, one hand on his cut neck.
“Fuck you!” Tony yelled as he swung at me in an eerie reversal of our first meeting. His paw landed on the left side of my face, the nails digging into my cheek.
I slapped it away before he could get in too deep and returned the favour, clubbing him in the side of the head. His left ear began to swell like the proverbial cauliflower, throbbing red through the greasy black hair. I didn’t try to get a grip, landing another punch to his already sore nose.
He bucked his hips, trying to unseat me, except I had been here too many times before and I wasn’t going to be tossed off that easily. Digging my knees into his ribs, I continued to smack him around, letting my nails just scrape the skin.
Kolanski continued to flail back and forth, grabbing hold of my leather jacket in the same way that Jess had his own—but it wasn’t working out the same way. Instead of trapping my arms, he was instead tying up his hands and kept taking my blows to the face.
“Reb.” A hand landed on my shoulder. “Stop. He’s not going anywhere now.” The grip increased. “Rebecca. Look at what you’re hitting.”
I glanced down at the battered and bloodied face under me, panting for breath. Tony had Changed back, probably more out of fear and pain than any other reason. He blew scarlet bubbles out of his nose and mouth as he stared at me, his eyes now fully human. His hands fell away to the ground, digging into the sand.
“He’s a kid Reb. You told me that. Let’s take him away from here and get him some help.” Jess’s soothing tone ran over me like a cold shower. Closing my eyes, I exhaled, the blood rush leaving me as quickly as it had come on. The sights and smells of the playground returned to a dulled state, the muted tones of the city overwhelming the base feral odours and images. I didn’t need a mirror to know I had Changed back.
Sliding to one side, I got to my feet, leaving the kid on the ground. He didn’t move, glancing back and forth between Jess and myself. A low whimper came out every few seconds from between his cracked and swollen lips.
“First lesson, kit.” Hammersmythe leant over him, a single index finger in the air. “Know when to stay down, and there’s no shame in being beaten by a woman.” She gave me a sideways look. “Especially that one.”
Kolanski rolled on the ground, shifting his hips around in the sand. “What are you going to do to me?”
Jess held out her bare hand. “We’re going to take you home first. Then we’re going to teach you how to be more...” Her lips twitched. “More human.”
The teenager took a firm grip on the hand, pulling himself to his feet. Turning to one side, he spat out a mouthful of blood, wiping his nose on the sleeve of his torn leather jacket. “Yeah. I guess so.” Tony looked up at Jess. “My parents?”
“We’ll take care of it.” She kept hold of Tony’s hand, turning the handshake into a test of strength. “But if you try to run or do anything without asking me...” A burst of anger shot through her blue eyes. “I will rip your throat out. And no one will be able to stop me.” Jess’s eyes flashed to mine then back to locking with the kid’s. “No one. Understand?”
“Yes, m’am.” Kolanski muttered, breaking the lock to stare at the ground, both hands tucked into the top of his jeans. At least he’d accepted Jess as an Alpha. That’d take a bit of the edge off the training.
Jess offered me her hand now, a wide grin on her face. “Suppose it goes without saying that you’re welcome back at the Farm, no questions asked.”
“What?” I spat into the sand, covering the detritus with a kick of my sneaker. “You toss me out on my ass and now it’s all forgiven ’cause I freaked out once?” A pain started in my chest, something that could have been a panic attack. It burnt and throbbed, stretching out tentacles to shred me from the inside out. Then it began to die down, leaving only a ball of nausea in my belly and a headache that demanded quick and heavy medication.
“I never doubted that when push came to shove you’d have it in you.” Jess nodded to the kid who was busy brushing sand off his jeans. “We’re going to the Farm. You go find your man.”
I spun around, digging a hole in the sand. Brandon was nowhere to be seen.
“He ran off. That way.” Hammersmythe shrugged. “Hope he can handle it. Not a bad guy.” Grabbing Kolanski’s arm, she began to walk away, keeping a firm grip on the leather. “I’ll call you with an update. Cheque’s in the mail.”
“Wait!” The throbbing in my chest began to expand, threatening to steal my breath. “You...me...” I swallowed, my throat bone dry after being so full of saliva and blood only a few minutes ago.
“If you’re going to challenge me it’s a damned bad time to do it.” She smiled. I could see the weariness in her eyes.
“I’m not coming back.”
“I didn’t expect you to.” She licked her lips. “I guess I could apologise for screwing things up all those years ago but I’m not sure if it’d make a difference.”
“It would.” Every cell in my body ached.
“Then I do.” She extended a hand. “I’m not too big to say when I’ve screwed up. I could tell you that it was all tradition but I think we’ve had enough of that lately.” Her eyes went to the kit next to her. “Times are changing. Either we adapt or we’re going to end up with more problems than we know what to do with.” Tilting her head to one side, Jess smiled. “Good to have someone with a firm grasp on the outside.”
I rubbed my eyes, thoughts spiralling out of control. “Was this all part of a master plan, then? Did the Board send me out to start building bridges? Was that why Ruth kept contact with me?”
Jess shrugged. “Worked out well in the end, didn’t it? Besides, how smart do you think we really are?” She turned away, yanking on the kid’s arm. “You so much as twitch and I’ll give you a beating that’ll put your dad’s to shame.”
The two stumbled off the playground leaving me alone. I limped over to sit on one of the benches, letting the cool night air wash over my heated skin. My hands were sore and the scratches on my cheek still oozing enough blood to remind me I needed to get cleaned up—you’d be surprised how much crap you can catch from a cat’s claw, never mind a Felis’s. I took a deep breath, searching.
Bran’s scent was long gone and I couldn’t find it on the wind now sweeping up the street from the evening commuter traffic. I sat there for a while, letting the shadows cover me and the cool night air clear my mind.
The taxi dropped me off at the condominium on King Street. Dan grabbed the front door’s metal handles with a wide grin as he opened it. He touched the brim of his hat.
“Pleased to see you again, Ms. Desjardin.” His left eyebrow twitched once, twice. “Are you all right? Your face...”
I held up a hand. “I’m fine. Just need to clean up a little bit.” The smile on my face was extremely forced. “You know how kids are.”
The eyebrow twitched again. “Mr. Hanover hasn’t returned yet.”
“Figured as much.” I forced a smile, knowing the older man wouldn’t fall for it. “I need to get my cat out of his apartment. May I request your attendance for same?”
He let out a soft sigh. “I usually don’t allow admittance to anyone’s apartment without the express written permission of the owner.” One side of the moustache came up. “But I can understand your position. I shall accompany you to the door and assist you in removing your feline.”
“Wouldn’t have it any other way.” I replied. Not that I couldn’t have broken in and retrieved Jazz on my own, but I figured Bran deserved better.
The doorman opened the lock with his passkey, stepping aside to allow me to walk in. Jazz, ever the attention-whore, sauntered out to curl her whiteness around Dan’s legs where he stood.
“Stay.” I waggled a finger at the cat. “Let me get your food and litter box and
we’ll be off.” Making sure Dan had me in full view, I grabbed the necessities, with the travelling container for Jazz. Within ten minutes we were back down at the front counter, the bright lights of the security camera monitors flashing on and off as they cycled through their routine.
“Can you call me a cab?” Jazz mewed pitifully from inside the dark blue plastic box, sticking her paws between the metal bars. I reached in with one finger and stroked her soft white fur.
“Of course.” The elderly man picked up a phone and tapped in a number. “Shall I take a message for Mr. Hanover?”
I paused for a second, weighing my options. “No. He’ll know where to find me. Or not.” Turning around, I offered my hand to the doorman. “Thank you for your help.”
“Thank you.” The man smiled broadly, showing off a set of perfect teeth. “You’ve brought a bit of...excitement to these old bones as of late. Can’t say that I haven’t enjoyed it.”
“Good. Just stay safe.” I grabbed the handle of the cat carrier as the cab pulled up. “And thanks again.”
The hotel’s management was understanding, at least after I promised to pay any damages caused by Jazz sharpening her nails on the furniture. True to her innate ability to tell my emotional mood, she spent the two days we were there lying either on my lap or curled around my neck, purring softly while I worked on the paperwork to get the house repaired, the cheap bandages from a store-bought first aid kit helping the cuts on my cheek heal. True to his promise, Hank had the contractors in and out so quickly I was able to move back in and re-open the business before the hotel got uppity about the cat.
I was sitting behind my desk, working on yet another set of insurance papers when I heard the front door creak open. Jazz lifted her head from the couch and let out one of her enquiring trills before returning to her usual position. My pulse began to race when I tracked the familiar scent then slowed as I placed a name with the smell.
Jess stepped through the hallway into the small lobby. “Hey.” She stood there, her hands tucked into the front pocket of her jeans, a smile on her face.
“Hey.” I didn’t get up. “How’s it going?”
“Pretty good.” Pulling a small envelope from the inside pocket of her leather jacket, she advanced. “Cheque for your services. Thought I’d deliver it personally.” The woman walked forward, stopping just in front of the desk. She didn’t move to sit. I didn’t offer.
“Thanks.” I got up and took the envelope, placing it on the desk atop the stack of unpaid bills. The repairs might have been paid for but living still cost.
One eyebrow rose. “You’re not going to open it?”
I shrugged. “I know you’re good for it.”
“You should.” Looking beside her, she sat down in the empty chair, gazing around the office. “They did a good job.”
“Sure did. Still looking for a new Brown Betty, but beggars can’t be choosers.” I sat down, rocking back in the squeaky wooden antique. “How’s Tony?”
Hammersmythe let her breath out slowly in a low whistle. “He’s working. Hard. Got him putting in so much time on the chores, he barely has time to think.”
“And Mike? The kids?”
“They’re...coping.” Jess nodded to Jazz who returned her look with a quiet purr. “I let Mike and Tony slug it out once already. Mike about killed him, but he understands it’s partially our fault. Shouldn’t have happened.”
“The kids? They’re in the same age group.”
“The younger one’s still confused. The girl’s going back and forth between swearing a blood oath to kill him and falling in love with the bastard.” She shook her head. “Teens.”
“Tell me about it.” I rocked forward again, enjoying the scream of metal on metal. “And Tony’s real father?”
“Kelly beat Frank up pretty badly, and now she’s smothering Tony with so much affection that I think she’s going to offer to bottle-feed him next.” Jess shook her head. “We screwed up. Can’t take it all out on the kid.”
“Right.” I glanced at the sealed envelope. “As long as the kids and Mike can live with it.”
“They’re more understanding than I’d thought they could be.” She flexed her fingers, knuckles popping with a loud crack. “Tony’s been pretty contrite. I think he’s getting his emotions under control.”
“His...other parents?”
“They’ve agreed to send him to our ‘special school’ for the time being.” Jess grinned. “Dad didn’t care as long as the kid was out from underfoot and Kathy, well...” Her face softened, suddenly reminding me of my mother. “She knew this day was coming. She just didn’t know where to turn but he’s in a secure environment and learning how to live in both worlds, and to control himself, rehabilitation and all that.”
“Until he pisses off the wrong kid and gets himself killed.” I pushed papers around the desktop.
The woman shrugged again. “Nothing I can do about that. He’s got a temper and he’s full of hormones and that’s what got Janey killed.” She shook her head again. “There’s a reason why we want you to marry in the Family.”
“Except that Janey and Tony paid the price, not Frank.” I pushed a stray paperclip across the papers.
Jess leant in, her voice low. “Look, no one’s perfect. No system’s perfect. This is all new to us. We never had a human Felis kit before.” She let out a sigh. “Wish we still had Ruth around. She’d be able to sniff the kid right straight up.”
I nodded, twisting the metal clip straight. “Except she’s dead, and you’ve got Davis to deal with.”
“It’s all a mess.” Leaning back, the older woman sighed again. “And it’ll take a while to clean up. We nominated Harry Wheaton to the Board, just so you know.”
Now it was my turn to shrug. “I’ll make a note.”
“You know you’re welcome to come home. I made that clear to everyone.” Her eyes went a steely blue. “If they had a problem then they’d have to deal with me.”
“Yep.” I raised my head to meet her gaze. “But that’s not home. Not anymore.”
Jess cleared her throat. “I understand. Still, it’s good that you’re all right again.” She paused, staring at me.
I looked away. I’d never been a good poker player. Too many tells, as they call it.
“You can’t do it again, can you?” she asked, a bit of sadness creeping into her usually neutral tones. “You’ve tried and you can’t Change again.”
My tongue rolled into my cheek and around to the other one before I responded. “Would it make a difference?”
“Not really.” She shrugged. “Not now.”
“Not going to beat me up again? Revoke my status?” I felt my blood pressure rising.
She put up her hands. “Don’t put words in my mouth. I didn’t say that.”
“Then what?” My voice rose. “What happens now?”
“You do what you do. We do what we do.” Jess shrugged. “Hey, we all screwed up on this one.” Getting to her feet, Jess shook her head. “Can’t say that I’ll be any wiser in the future, but at least we can start making things better.” A half-smile appeared. “Could say that I’m sorry, but you know that’s not really my thing. Besides, words aren’t everything.”
“But they sure don’t hurt.” I glanced at Jazz who tilted her head to one side and rolled onto her back. “Guess we’re all learning.”
“Ain’t that the truth.” Getting to her feet, she extended a hand. “You’ve caused quite a stir, by the way. Between your...change of status and Tony’s existence things are changing quickly and furiously.” She grinned. “Tell you the truth, it’s sort of exciting. Been a long time since the Pride’s been rocked with this sort of news. Suddenly people are thinking and talking and asking questions, and wondering what else is out there that we’ve ignored or missed along the way.”
I returned the smile, forcing myself to stay silent on that particular interpretation of “exciting.” “Well, keep me in the loop.” Getting to my feet, I poked
the envelope with the metal spear. “That had better not bounce.”
“It won’t. We appreciate the help.” Jess turned as if to leave then paused. “I’m sorry it didn’t work out with him.”
I took a deep breath, grateful she hadn’t used his name. I wasn’t sure I could stay in control if she had. “Thanks. So it goes.”
“He’s a good man, just so you know. I liked him.” Jess stepped away from the chair, stopping to pet Jazz’s exposed tummy. “That’s why we’d like you to marry inside as well—some people just can’t deal with it.”
“I guess not.” I didn’t move out from behind the desk.
Jess smiled as she reached the hallway. “You never know what you can handle until you try, Reb. Never underestimate yourself.”
Suddenly I caught it on the air, the faintest of scents carried in from the street outside my front door.
The woman grinned like a Cheshire cat, stepping out of sight. “Or others, it seems.” The words hung in the air for a second before she vanished into the shadows again. I had to get her to teach me that trick.
Bran appeared in the doorway. He was wearing his black leather duster, as usual, with a white t-shirt and jeans. He shifted his weight from one foot to the other while staring at me.
“Hey.” I exhaled the word, still standing behind the desk.
“Hey.” His hands moved to sit in his coat pockets, then to his jeans pockets then to flop around in front of him like fish out of water. “Jazz okay?”
“Well, she misses all the extra treats.” The white cat let out a full-strength yawn, letting everyone know we were talking about her and she knew it. “Other than that, she’s fine.”
He shuffled his way into the lobby, waving at the walls. “They did a good job.”
“Yep. Hank said they were good and they were. Expensive, but good.” I floundered through the conversation. “Jess was just here.”
What God and Cats Know Page 25
