Wolf's Choice

by Laura Taylor

  “What the hell is this?” Baron demanded, thrusting his phone at her. She took one look at the message, then the sender… and cursed like a seasoned sailor.

  “You know that Heron went to see the girl?” she said. “Tansy? I’d say this means she’s bringing her in.”

  “She can’t bring her in. We can maintain lockdown for a couple of hours, but not for days. How the hell are we supposed to live here with an uninitiated newbie? Who, from the sounds of that file, is a potential basket case as it is?”

  Caroline stared at the screen again, as if it could answer their questions. “She must have a good reason for it.”

  “A fucking good reason! Do you realise what-”

  “Baron!” Caroline yelled at him, cutting off his rant mid-sentence. “You know Heron. She’s solid. Sane. Reasonable. She would not be doing this without a good reason.”

  “Fuck… all right. Standard lockdown protocol. And I want everyone in the kitchen, right now. Game faces, people. The world just got a little more crazy than usual.”

  CHAPTER FIVE

  Tansy helped Heron collect their bags of shopping out of the car, and then followed her apprehensively up the stairs to the manor’s front door. It was a huge building, grey stone and tall chimneys lending it a distinctly old world quality. Inside, the foyer was beautiful; worn wooden floorboards that gave the place a lived-in feel, a high chandelier, gleaming banisters sweeping up a grand staircase.

  Heavy footsteps sounded almost immediately, and despite Heron’s assurances that they were wonderful people, Tansy felt suddenly nervous about meeting her new friend’s ‘family’. She worried about what they would expect from her, Heron’s insistence that she had to do little more than maintain their computers sounding too good to be true, and then she felt self conscious about the school uniform she was still wearing. It was hardly appropriate clothing for such an important first meeting as this, and her father would never have allowed her to meet any of his business associates dressed the way she was.

  Two people appeared out of a side door, and Tansy shrank back behind Heron. One was a woman, dressed in jeans and a black t-shirt, with short black hair and a fierce look on her face… which immediately brightened into a smile when she saw Tansy. She was a little intimidating, but not overly threatening, and Tansy tried to smile back, hoping the woman would be friendly.

  But then she looked at the man beside her and her smile faded. He was huge, thick muscles, a wide neck and a short beard, with a scowl on his face that made him look like a thug. Tansy felt herself shake in fear.

  “I’m so sorry I’m late,” Heron apologised immediately. “But I met this charming young lady in a park, and we got talking… and long story short, she isn’t terribly happy with where she’s living, so I’ve asked her to come and stay with us. Her name’s Tansy,” she said with a smile, beckoning Tansy forward. “And this is Caroline, and Baron. Baron runs the house, for the most part.”

  Tansy tried to smile, and politely offered her hand for them to shake. Caroline’s hand was firm, but warm… but Baron’s was huge, a strong grip that engulfed her hand and made her feel tiny, and Tansy felt her face heat as she completely forgot her manners. She should have said it was a pleasure to meet them, she realised afterwards, embarrassed at making such a bad first impression.

  “We’d love to have you stay,” Caroline said sincerely. But Baron looked far less happy about the arrangement.

  “You should have called,” he said to Heron, his voice deep and grim. “We were worried about you.”

  “I’m sorry. We stopped on the way to do a little shopping for Tansy,” Heron said, holding up the bags. “I completely lost track of time. We’ve missed dinner, haven’t we?”

  “We kept some for you,” Caroline said dismissively, but Tansy felt another wave of embarrassment. Being late was unacceptable, as her father had told her often enough, and she was ashamed of herself, realising that they were late because she’d taken too long to choose her new clothes.

  “I’m sorry,” she apologised anxiously. “I didn’t mean to make us late.”

  Strangely, Baron’s expression suddenly softened at the apology. “It’s no problem,” he said, his voice much less harsh than it had been a moment ago. “There’s plenty of food left. Are you hungry?”

  Tansy nodded, then thought perhaps she shouldn’t have.

  “Let’s get you something to eat then, and afterwards, Heron can show you to your room.”

  Tansy glanced at Heron. They were going to let her eat dinner, after they were already late? But Heron gave her an encouraging nod, and Tansy fell in behind her as she led the way to the dining room.

  Tansy stared at her plate, fighting back tears as unfamiliar emotions swamped her. Caroline had prepared a meal for her, twice the amount of food she was normally allowed to eat, and she’d sat beside Heron as they both ate, listening as the others discussed the day’s events, a few of the names Heron had told her in the car popping up in the conversation. Tansy had finished her meal, waiting politely for Heron to finish… and then Caroline had asked if she’d like some more.

  More? After she’d already eaten a full plate? Tansy fought with the urge to say yes. Proper young women were expected to be thin, and she was already feeling guilty over the amount she’d eaten. But she was still hungry… She glanced up at Heron, unsure what her response should be.

  But then Heron nodded to Caroline, the decision made for her, and Caroline had refilled the plate and set it in front of her again. Now, she tried to eat politely, blinking back the tears that threatened to fall, relieved as her hunger was assuaged for what felt like the first time in years, and yet also apprehensive about the consequences of her greed. When she had finally finished, she was struggling to stay awake, the drastic changes of the day suddenly catching up with her.

  “Come on,” Heron said gently. “I’ll take you upstairs. You look exhausted.”

  Tansy managed to say goodnight to Baron and Caroline, then followed Heron up the stairs. She was shown to a room right next door to Heron’s, and she stared about herself in awe. It was a large room, a double bed in the centre, beautiful photographs of wolves on the walls, a huge wardrobe and her own ensuite bathroom. “My room is right next door,” Heron said, setting her bags of clothes by the wardrobe, “so if you need anything, you can just knock on the door. Or even knock on the wall, if you prefer. I’ll come right over.”

  Tansy nodded, then glanced anxiously at the door. “Does the door have a lock?” she asked meekly, not wanting to be rude.

  “Yes, of course.” Heron showed her the mechanism, locking and unlocking it… but Tansy wasn’t convinced. “Can you lock it from the inside, and I’ll test it from the outside?” she asked, fear overcoming her natural timidness. There were men in this house, big, strong men, and the thought of one of them being able to get into her room at night was making her bold and stubborn about the lock.

  But Heron simply nodded. Tansy went outside, heard the lock click shut, and jiggled the knob. Secure. She pushed her shoulder against the door, jiggled the knob more firmly. Still nothing.

  Heron unlocked it from the inside. “Is that okay?” she asked gently.

  But Tansy shook her head. She’d never been allowed to have a lock on her door at her old house, but she also knew she wasn’t particularly strong. “Maybe someone stronger than me could break it,” she suggested fearfully.

  A strange look of grim determination appeared on Heron’s face, and Tansy worried for a moment that she’d upset the woman. She didn’t want to make a fuss in her new home… but she was going to be behind that door, taking her clothes off, getting changed, sleeping helplessly… It was too important a thing not to ask.

  Heron stepped outside the door for a moment and glanced up and down the hall. “Caroline!” she called suddenly, and a moment later, Caroline appeared in the doorway.

  “Tansy’s worried about how strong her lock is,” Heron explained. “Could you do us a favour, and try to break i
nto the room?” She turned to Tansy. “Do you think Caroline would be strong enough to break it?”

  Tansy looked the woman up and down. She’d seemed very friendly at dinner, smiling at Tansy, and not complaining about how much she ate, but as she looked at her now, she noticed that she was indeed a strong woman, biceps thicker than many men’s, her stomach washboard flat, her shoulders wide. She nodded. “Yeah, that should test it out properly.”

  She followed Heron into the bedroom and turned the lock. Caroline jiggled the knob. Nothing. A thump sounded against the door, like she’d just thrown her shoulder against it. A scuffling sound… and then a booming thud, and Tansy imagined the woman had just kicked her booted foot against it with all her might. Another thud. More jiggling of the knob. And then a muffled curse.

  “Nope,” came her reply. “Can’t break it. You’re going to have to let me in.” Tansy was startled to find herself grinning, and she glanced up at Heron mischievously. She unlocked the door, finding a very frustrated looking Caroline on the other side.

  “Who the hell installed that lock?” she said gruffly, winking at Tansy. “It would take an elephant with a battering ram to break through that.”

  “Thank you,” Heron said with a smile, and she and Caroline shared a look that Tansy didn’t quite understand. “Everything okay now?” she asked Tansy, and she nodded. “Okay, then get some sleep, and I’ll come and take you down to breakfast in the morning. I’ll be right next door if you need me.”

  Tansy thanked them both, said goodnight, and closed the door. It was at once lonely and exhilarating, being in her room by herself. Heron wasn’t far away, she reminded herself, feeling the quietness settle in around her. And then she looked at the bed. She got to sleep in it all by herself tonight. No one opening her door in the middle of the night. No fat, grey-haired men shoving her about. Nothing at all to fear.

  She changed into her pyjamas, settled herself under the blankets, and, leaving the lamp beside the bed on, she wrapped her arms tightly around her new bear, and was soon fast asleep.

  Heron waited in her bedroom after putting Tansy to bed. She was half expecting the girl to call her back, perhaps with questions, perhaps with fears that needed to be allayed, but after twenty minutes, she was more or less convinced that Tansy was settled for the night, so she headed out of her room and down the stairs.

  Baron was waiting in the library, staring out the window at the darkness while Caroline paced the room, and they both looked around when Heron came in. An explanation was in order, she knew, and she wasted no time in giving it, knowing that the security of the Den had been compromised by her actions.

  “I know this was not the plan,” she began immediately. “But you’ve both read her file, and you know what was going on in that house.”

  “True,” Baron agreed, “but that in itself isn’t a reason to risk public exposure by bringing her here. Or rushing her into things she’s not ready to accept. There’s a big difference between wanting to escape her father, and wanting to be turned into a wolf.”

  “I know,” Heron said contritely. “But for the record, I wasn’t the one to suggest Tansy leave her home. I was talking to her in the park, and when it was time to leave, she flatly declared she wasn’t going home. Bringing her here seemed like the only viable option, given the situation. But aside from that… in all honesty, even if she hadn’t said she wanted to leave, I would probably have tried to talk her into it.” Baron’s expression turned grim at that, so Heron rushed on. “Her father was pimping her out to other men,” she said flatly. “Tansy told me that he’d invited some men over for dinner tonight, and that she was expected to ‘be nice’ to them.” Her throat tightened, the fiery rage she’d felt at the news flooding back, and she was suddenly blinking back tears. “And so help me God, I was not going to leave her there. Not to go home and be molested by a bunch of adult men.”

  Baron turned away, letting out a deep sigh and cursing under his breath, while Caroline looked like she wanted to break something.

  “Fair enough,” Baron said, and Heron imagined that he must be feeling rather conflicted at the moment. He was too compassionate to allow that kind of evil to continue to be inflicted on the girl, but at the same time, he also cared deeply about his Den, and anything that put it at risk was a cause for concern. “What’s done is done,” he conceded finally, “and I can’t say you made a bad call, given the circumstances. But what about the rest of it? We’re shape shifters. We can’t keep the Den in lockdown for days at a time.”

  “We won’t need to,” Heron said firmly. “Tansy accepts a world of fantasy quite readily. Before we left, she asked me if I was magic; she seems to be under the impression I’m some kind of fairy godmother, or guardian angel. I have every hope that she’ll accept the truth of this place much more easily than most people do. So tomorrow, after breakfast, we can all sit down together, and I’m going to tell her what we are.”

  “That’s a hell of a short trip into a very strange new world,” Baron pointed out darkly.

  “No argument from me there,” Heron agreed. “So if you have a better suggestion, I’m all ears.”

  It was a little past 1am when Silas headed down to the kitchen. He wasn’t paying too much attention – the house was dark and quiet, and he was used to being the only one up at this time of night. Sleep never came particularly easily for him, and a midnight snack seemed in order.

  He stepped into the darkness of the kitchen, fumbled around to find the light switch, and flipped it on-

  “Aaaaah!!”

  The scream came from the far corner, followed by a thud, then the sound of crockery breaking, and he jerked backwards, automatically reaching for his daggers, only to find they weren’t at his side.

  Fucking hell. Tansy stood in the corner, arms up in front of her to defend herself, a box of cornflakes lying on the floor surrounded by the pieces of a broken bowl.

  “Fuck! I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you. I’m really sorry.” After two weeks of tailing the girl, seeing her downcast face and wary behaviour, he’d come to feel a strong protectiveness towards her, and he cringed at the idea of scaring her now. She’d been through enough pain and fear in her life already.

  They both stood there for a moment, frozen at opposite ends of the kitchen… and it occurred to Silas to wonder which of them was more startled.

  Finally, when Tansy didn’t move, Silas took a tentative step forward. “Here, I’ll help you clean that up,” he said, retrieving a dustpan and brush from beside the back door.

  “I’m sorry,” Tansy whispered, sounding like she was holding back tears, then she darted away from him, cowering in the corner as he slowly approached her.

  He stopped. “Hey, it’s okay. It was my fault for startling you. I didn’t expect anyone to be down here.”

  “I shouldn’t be here,” Tansy said, her thin frame shaking. “I’m sorry…”

  “It’s okay. Let me just…” He carefully swept the shards together, then tossed the pieces in the bin and put the dustpan away. “See? No problem.”

  Tansy was edging away to the door. “Hey, no,” he said, holding up his hand. “You’re hungry, right?”

  “I’m sorry,” she said again. “I already had dinner, and I’m not supposed to…”

  “Look, if you want some food, that’s totally okay. You want cornflakes? I can leave, if you’d rather be alone…”

  She glanced at the pantry longingly. Silas moved towards the door.

  “No,” she said softly. “You don’t have to leave. This is your house. I can… I can go…”

  Fuck. What was he supposed to do now? Silas had no idea how to relate to people in normal, everyday circumstances. The way he usually dealt with them was that if they were his enemy, he killed them, and if they weren’t, he killed for them, protected them with deadly force. He was sadly inexperienced when it came to more placid forms of interaction. “We can both get some food. It’s okay.”

  “But I broke something. I’
m not allowed to break things.”

  “We have plenty more bowls.” Shit, what had this kid been through that breaking a bowl was such a big deal? But then again, Silas knew exactly what she’d been through. He’d seen such atrocities back in Afghanistan, before he came to England.

  “I’m just going to make a sandwich,” Silas told her, thinking maybe if he stopped staring at her, she wouldn’t feel so scared, and he headed for the fridge at the other end of the kitchen. Actually, what he really wanted was a chunk of raw meat, eaten in wolf form. Baron had told them all they could shift in their bedrooms, so long as no wolf was seen or heard out in the main house until tomorrow morning – supposedly he and Heron were going to tell this girl all about their world early the next day – but he could hardly just pick up a raw bone and walk off with it with the girl standing there. So a sandwich would have to do.

  He took out bread, a side of cold roast beef, a tomato, and set about making a snack on the kitchen bench. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Tansy still standing frozen in the corner, watching him nervously. And when it became apparent that she wasn’t going to get any food for herself, Silas quickly made a second sandwich. He put it on a plate, cleaned up the bench and then set the plate on the table, taking a seat a good distance away from it with his own plate.

  “There’s a sandwich for you,” he said calmly. “If you want it, it’s yours. If not, that’s okay.”

  He took a bite, making an effort not to watch her, and was rewarded when she very slowly edged towards the plate. Took a seat. Picked it up and took a tiny bite, watching him all the while.

  “I’m Tansy,” she said unexpectedly, fiddling with her food.

  “I’m Silas,” Silas said. Silence fell again, and he ate quickly, finding the entire situation unbearably awkward. He’d just finished his sandwich and was clearing the plate away when Tansy suddenly spoke again.

  “How did you hurt your face?”