“Ah, yes.” He stood up and nodded, glancing at the three of them. “I, ah, t-thank you.” Then Thaniel hurried to his room.
***
THANIEL SAT IN THE CORNER of his room facing the door. He clutched the duvet from the bed to his chest, and thought about the last six months of his life.
Before they rescued him yesterday, he had existed, cold and alone in the dark, in mindless agony for the last couple weeks. Despairing of ever seeing anyone again, and starving, he had thought up ways to kill himself and end his suffering. But after one failed attempt, he realized killing oneself was not easy when your body healed super-fast.
With another friend gone and likely dead, he struggled to accept that Tierney, Jax and Sami cared about him, and yet his new friends seemed to. He just didn’t understand how or why, and alternated between wanting to belong, and being too scared to hope. All this seemed too good to be true. Just like the last time he’d trusted someone who called him a friend.
Elianna had seemed like a dark-haired angel in rags when Thaniel first met her. He had sensed her presence as she stalked him, while he scrounged for food in the city’s alleyways. But every time he searched around, he couldn’t spot anyone.
Until one evening when she stepped out of the shadows. It was while he rooted through a dumpster out back of an expensive restaurant, and he’d just hit the jackpot. He’d found part of a steak, half a chicken thigh, a baked potato and a few dinner rolls, when her lilting, feather-soft voice reached his ears. Startled, he had popped up to find an exotically pretty young woman staring at him with shiny golden eyes. That night Thaniel shared his food with her.
She befriended him, and then turned on him. Thaniel would never forget how she turned him into the monster he was now. But as he thought about the three in the other room, he realized that he liked them a lot, and while they may not know, they had saved him in more ways than one. Still, it was not easy to let it all go and trust once again. People—friends tended to turn on you, or leave, and he didn’t know if he could survive anyone else leaving him. Yet, he was growing weirdly attached to his three new friends. Still, the Pack was coming, and even though Tierney said they wouldn’t let the wolves take him, Thaniel feared they may not be able to stop them.
Chapter Twenty-One
Monster From The Past
JAX SET THE PLATE of sandwiches on the counter in disgust, as Sami prepared to leave for the city. “You’re going to at least eat something before you go, right?” He stared pointedly as his brother.
On his way into the mud room, Sami glanced back and hesitated. Then with a smirk he walked over and grabbed one of the sandwiches and bit into it. “So, Thaniel wasn’t hungry—or he doesn’t like your cooking?”
Jax glared at him as he grabbed a sandwich himself and took a bite. “Kitty says he isn’t hungry,” Jax said defensively.
“Kitty?” Sami raised an eyebrow.
“Yeah, well, it’s just something I started calling him. He does change into a cat,” Jax said.
Sami rolled his eyes. “You better make sure it doesn’t offend him. He could eat you.”
Jax looked at his brother incredulously. “Really? I can change into a dragon. You really think he could eat me?”
Sami smirked. “Have you changed yet?”
“Sami,” Jax growled, glaring at his brother once again. Sami shrugged.
“Still, I find it hard to believe Thaniel isn’t hungry,” Jax added.
Shy and self-conscious at first, Thaniel had been hesitant to eat too much once they got home, even though they reassured him they wouldn’t run out of food. They had even shown him the pantry. It was Tierney who had finally convinced him it was okay to help himself, when she told Thaniel that he needed to get his strength back. She said that if he wasn’t hungry, he’d have an easier time controlling his leopard. That seemed to work and Thaniel overcame his hesitation and started to eat. Then he didn’t stop, it was like his body sought to make up for a lifetime of starvation.
Jax sighed. He felt the same way Tierney did about Kitty. It seemed that Thaniel had wormed his way into Jax’s heart like a kid brother, and now Jax wanted to protect him. He just hoped Kitty wouldn’t bolt, and it bothered him that Kitty claimed not to be hungry.
After Sami left, Jax walked into the great room and spied the woman constantly in his thoughts, as she absently flipped through channels on the TV. He couldn’t believe he’d kissed her and how decadent she had tasted. If Thaniel hadn’t interrupted them, there was no telling how far it might have gone. He always seemed to lose himself around her.
As he approached Tierney, he noted how exhausted she appeared. “You okay?” he asked and sat down beside her.
Without taking her eyes from the TV, she sighed. “We aren’t any closer to finding Dad. We didn’t find Kyrian’s son, and now Sami’s mourning someone he never met. A Were-wolf is dead on our property, and the Pack’s coming for Thaniel.”
Jax’s heart wrenched at her words. What a shitty week it had been, and she was correct. He could sense their window of opportunity fast slipping away and not being able to fix everything left him feeling useless and frustrated. With an inward sigh, he slid his arm around her shoulders and pulled her close. Then he stifled a groan when she snuggled in next to him and closed her eyes. She fit so perfectly, so why did he ever think he needed to stay away from her?
Jax replayed their earlier kiss and desire flooded him, making him harden. Damn—not now! He silently swore as his body continued to react to Tierney, wanting even more. This was the wrong time. Still, as her fresh, wildflower scent filled him, Jax struggled to remain calm even while he ached to lower his lips to her sweet softness once again.
“I miss Dad,” she said, breaking up his thoughts.
“Me too.” He prayed Zander was still alive and something would give, allowing them to find him. It had to, nothing else was acceptable, and he couldn’t bear the thought of it being otherwise.
“This is nice.” Tierney glanced up, her amethyst eyes filled with desire as she rubbed her hand against his chest. His skin tingled and his blood sang. Unable to help himself, he started to lower his mouth to hers, when Tierney sat up.
“It’s Kyrian,” she said, and another kiss was once again interrupted. Jax wanted to groan in frustration
After a silent conversation with Kyrian, Tierney stood up. “He wants to talk to me. I’ll only be a few minutes.” She licked her lips and smiled at him, making his cock twitch.
With a barely audible groan, Jax admired her backside as she walked across the room. Her hair was a tousled mess that he ached to run his fingers through. Then he dreamed of everything he wanted to do with her when she came back in. This is it, he decided, no turning back. I’ll take her up to my room and—or maybe I should take her up to her room? Shifting to get comfortable, he laid his head back and slipped into sleep, while dreaming of tasting Tierney’s decadent lips once again.
The harsh ringing of the house phone just a few feet away snapped him awake. Who the hell is calling? Not many people ever called the house. The second ring sent a shiver up his spine. Jax reached out and snatched up the handset. “Hello?”
A moment of silence filled the air, before a voice he hoped never to hear again doused him in cold water. “Jaxxsssyyy.” His hated nickname came out in a long drawn out hiss. Jax couldn’t speak as dread rushed through him. “Jaxxsssyyy,” the voice taunted, making him want to sink into a hole—anything to get away from answering the voice on the phone.
“What do you want Marcius?” he snarled.
“Jaxsy, watch your tone,” his father snapped back at him.
“Yeah, no—don’t think so,” Jax growled, hatred filling him.
“Jaxsy, I demand your respect.”
“No, Marcius. You lost my respect a very long time ago.” Jax struggled to hold onto his control.
“I am your father.” Marcius hissed.
“No—” Control unravelling, Jax fought to reign in his rising fury. “
You are not my father, and I don’t recognize you as such.”
He started to hang up when Marcius said, in a very quiet-dangerous voice, “You forget who you are. Remember, I know who and what you are, and everything that happened.”
Jax shook with rage as he fought not to smash something. A million memories surged like a kaleidoscope through him, making him want to puke. Knuckles white around the phone, he listened to Marcius taunt him with a past he battled to forget every single day.
“Your little girlfriend has become a very pretty woman,” Marcius taunted and Jax’s heart started to race at the mention of Tierney. Just the thought of Marcius spying on her—or worse, getting a hold of her—made him sick.
“Are you threatening us?” Jax ground out.
“No, merely stating fact. Sure would be a damned shame if something happened to such a pretty little thing, don’t you think?” Marcius asked.
“You. Leave. Her. Alone.” Jax fought to keep his voice lowered and not scream.
“Oh Jaxsaron, you fell for her, didn’t you? You little fool.” Marcius’ evil chuckle grated on him. “I wonder what she would say if she found out the truth about you.”
Shame ripped through him. If Tierney ever found out about what those men did to him, she’d … what? Jax didn’t know, but he didn’t want to find out. What if she pitied him, or looked at him in disgust? Jax didn’t think she would, but he’d lived with the fear and shame for far too long, to be able to get over it at a moment’s whim.
“What do you want?” he ground out as anger raged inside of him, building, his control hanging on by a thread.
“Well, for one thing, you’ll talk to me with more respect,” Marcius said with obvious relish.
“Respect needs to be earned,” Jax snapped.
Marcius sighed. “Did you like my gift?”
“Gift?” The dead Were? “You killed the Were? Why?” A chill ran up Jax’s spine at the thought of Marcius on the property, spying on them.
“Why not? Wolves need to be kept in line, and one who attempts to betray his Alpha needs to die. Besides, I didn’t kill him myself.” Marcius sounded pleased. “I happen to work with someone who isn’t very happy with the three of you.”
“You’re the traitor,” Jax whispered, as everything suddenly clicked into place.
“Don’t get all righteous, Jaxsy. You aren’t exactly an innocent, are you?”
“What do you want?” Jax ground out again, knowing that if the man appeared in front of him, he would kill him. Father or not. He almost wished Marcius would show up.
“Finally, you ask the correct question,” the hated man said.
“Marcius. What. Do. You. Want?” Jax shouted through clenched teeth, barely hanging on.
“How is Zander?” Marcius asked with a sneer in his voice as he changed topics.
“Where is he, you fucking traitor?” Jax shouted, and the plastic of the phone cracked in his hand.
“Zander recently came close to death, until the Ilyium discovered his daughter. Imagine the Master’s surprise to find Zander’s daughter is a powerful Dracones who can spirit walk.” His father’s words left Jax shaking, his heart pounding with fear for Tierney.
“You leave her alone,” Jax growled again, ready to go nuclear on his father and the Ilyium’s asses.
“So, here’s the deal. The Master wants Tierney,” Marcius said, as if Jax would hand her over.
“Yeah—no fucking way!” Jax’s rage and his dragon roared inside him, ready to tear them all to pieces.
The near miss yesterday, when Serena attacked Tierney, had done something to him. Sure, he knew he loved Tierney, but it took almost losing her, to finally realize he couldn’t live without her. That he didn’t want to. But the thought of Marcius and the Ilyium getting their hands on the woman he loved with his whole heart and soul, filled him with such a deep churning fear, that he wanted to throw up.
“And if the Master doesn’t get Tierney, well, you can say bye-bye Zander,” Marcius continued.
“I’m going to kill you, you bastard,” Jax growled. His darkness started to seep out and swirl in a cloud around him. Then, at Marcius’ next words, the table lamp went crashing to the floor. If he heard, Marcius didn’t give any indication. He just kept talking in the same grating voice that Jax detested with his whole being.
“So, I told the Master I had someone even better,” Marcius said, ignoring Jax’s threat. “What do you say, Jaxsy? How much do you love this female? Will you give yourself up for her?”
Grateful that the Okami wolves guarded the property, keeping Tierney and his brother safe, Jax fought to get his darkness back under control, and took deep-even breaths. “You can spy on us and leave dead Were-wolves behind the barn, but you’re a coward. I don’t believe you’ll try anything, and if you do, you’ll have to go through me first. I’m not a little kid anymore. So tell me, why should I do anything you want?” Jax’s heartbeat calmed as he anticipated killing his father.
“Yes, you are a big strong male now. But inside, you’re still a sad little boy, crying for his mama.” Marcius chuckled and Jax ground his teeth. “So, this is what I offer. Zander. He’s a little worse for wear, and may need a few months—or more—to get back to his old self, but he’s alive. For the moment,” Marcius snickered.
Jax closed his eyes as he imagined the horrors they’d put Zander through. He loved Zander like the father he should have had, and no matter how much he loved Tierney, he couldn’t let her dad die. Jax swallowed. “Where, and when?”
After slamming the phone down, he ran a hand through his short hair as he tried to reign in his emotions. He needed to hurry before Tierney came back inside. He rushed up to his room, grabbed his wallet, car keys and a jacket, absently patting the pocket with his cell. Then, with a last glance around, he made his way back downstairs and outside.
He tried to walk normally, but it was all he could do not to begin running over to his car while Tierney talked with Kyrian.
Still, as Tierney caught sight of Jax, she hurried over and cut him off. “Hey. You going somewhere?”
Even though his heart was pounding frantically, and a pain was building inside of him, he tried his best to act normal. “Yeah, heading to the city for a few days. I need to take care of something,” he said and ducked around her to open the door to his car.
“With everything going on, you’re going back to Spokane?” she asked in disbelief, making him cringe inside.
“Yes. Call me if anything comes up about Zander, but I think you have enough help, with Sami and the Okami, and Cujo.”
Tierney stared at him. “What’s going on Jax?”
Frustrated, and with his soul breaking, he avoided her knowing eyes, hating himself for what he was about to do. “Look Tiern, You and me—I’m sorry, I can’t do this.”
“What? No, no way. I don’t believe you. What happened, what changed?” The shock and hurt on her face almost stopped him, but he needed to stick to the plan. He couldn’t cave, she had to believe he’d changed his mind—otherwise she’d come after him.
“I’m sorry, but I can’t be what you want,” he finally said, the pain digging deep and gutting him.
Tierney’s eyes narrowed. “And what is it you think I want?”
This wasn’t going well and he really needed to get away before he spilled the beans about what was really going on. “Look, I just can’t be around you right now.” Damn. As the words left his mouth and hurt filled Tierney’s eyes, he wanted to die. But first, he needed to take Marcius—the bastard, with him. The fucker better hold up his end of the bargain! “Promise me, Tiern, give me space. Don’t come after me,” he said, knowing how badly he was hurting her.
***
TIERNEY STARED AT JAX, tears shimmering in her eyes as she tried to understand what he was saying. His words hurt too badly for her to go chasing after him like some lost puppy, but she’d be damned if she’d give him the satisfaction of wringing a promise from her. Instead she shook her head. �
�If you do this Jax, if you leave, then we are done.”
Without meeting her eyes, he nodded.
“I mean it, I can’t do this, go through this again. If you go, I won’t wait for you.” Her voice shook as she battled not to start wailing at the heavens.
With a guilty look, Jax turned and climbed into his car, closed the door and started the engine.
“Jax,” she called, suddenly ready to beg, to forgive him, if he’d just stop and talk to her, just stay. Instead, without looking at her, he put the car into drive and drove away.
Agonizing pain pierced straight to her soul, making it hard to breathe. But she refused to cry as Jax drove away. A sudden, raw anger began to fill her. What the hell is his problem? How can he do this to me again? She just couldn’t believe him, things between them had seemed great—or so she’d thought. What a freaking roller-coaster! She should’ve guarded herself better. Really, if this was what being with him would be like, she didn’t need it. Her emotions couldn’t take the up and down any longer.
“Tierney?” Kyrian said softly behind her.
Tierney shook her head. She needed to get away. “Sorry, I need—want to be alone,” she whispered, and without looking at him, she turned and began to race along the well-worn trail leading up the mountain. She ran until the sun started to set, then slowly wandered back home, replaying Jax’s words over and over in her head.
The one thing she couldn’t understand, was why he had tried to get her to make a promise. Jax knew she avoided making any without good reason. So why? The more she thought about it, the less sense it made and suddenly, a feeling that something was wrong began to fill her. Still, she ignored it as she replayed the rest of his words. How could he do this to her?
Dracones Boxset Books 1-5 Page 25
