Mating Games

by Nikki Jefford

  Hudson frowned.

  Jordan cleared her throat. “Need I remind you boys that these are my sisters you’re talking about?”

  Chase stroked his chin. “Uh, yeah, maybe we shouldn’t discuss this in front of Jordan.”

  She huffed and rolled her eyes. “Sure, that will make it all better.”

  Chase shrugged.

  When Jager limped into the clearing, everyone quieted. He stood waiting for Palmer to ring the gong in case any shifters were still sleeping or changing.

  The clang of the gong vibrated inside Jordan’s chest. Palmer set the mallet on top of a tall stump and strutted forward. Even as shifters gathered round and stepped in front of her, her father’s eyes managed to find Jordan. His brows shot up and he grinned, lips rolling back to expose too much gum. Jager lifted his arms for attention.

  “Good morning, everyone, and thank you for patrolling with your partners a little longer than usual while we recovered Tabor.”

  “Rescued” was more like it. Under normal circumstances, Jordan would have come up with a snide remark to share under her breath with Chase and Hudson. Today, her throat tightened, knowing what was to come.

  Tabor and Sasha wandered in, openly gazing at one another with love and longing.

  For a moment, Jordan envied them the additional independence they gained from claiming one another as mates. Jager could no longer pair them up with other shifters. They got to spend their days and nights together for the remainder of their lives.

  “Before I begin, the council wishes to remind all of you that we expect a new claim to be made before the next full moon.” Jager grinned. “Who knows, perhaps this month’s new partnerships will lead to something more.”

  Jordan ground her teeth together. Not happening.

  “Without further ado, I will announce the new pairings.” The old man winked.

  Squeezing her eyes closed, Jordan silently beseeched Jager to mix up the names. It could happen. The elder was getting up there in years, and she’d always done her best to avoid his notice. Maybe, if she got really lucky, Jager would slip up and pair Raider and Camilla together, as he had for the ceremonial dance.

  Hudson nudged her gently. “Gonna miss patrolling with you, Jord. But not chopping firewood. I won’t miss that part.”

  Jordan’s laugh was cut off by frantic shouting.

  “Something’s wrong with her!”

  “Back off. Give her room to breathe.”

  Everyone had turned their attention away from Jager to stare at a woman heaving her guts out over the ground. It took Jordan a moment to register that the blond head kissing the dirt was her sister’s.

  A strangled scream rose up her throat. “Emerson,” she cried, rushing to her sister.

  The contents of Emerson’s breakfast was spewed at the ground beneath her feet. Jordan hadn’t quite reached Emerson when her sister curled into a ball, groaning in agony.

  As shifters leaned in, Jager snarled. “Clear the way.” Hobbling over and too old to crouch, he bent beside Emerson. “Where does it hurt?” he asked in a tone slightly less gruff than usual.

  A miserable moan ripped through Emerson’s lips as her eyes rolled up into her head.

  Panic flooded Jordan’s chest. Her sister had looked perfectly healthy moments before. What had changed? What was happening to her now? Jordan felt utterly helpless kneeling beside her, rubbing her arm in stunned silence.

  “What’s wrong with her?” Olivia asked from nearby.

  “I don’t know,” Rosalie answered beside her. “She just keeled over all of a sudden and started vomiting.”

  “Ew.”

  Ew?! Jordan was about ready to slap them both. Before she could get to her feet, Jager’s voice rose above the crowd.

  “Pipe down, all of you. With the exception of Tabor and Jordan, I want everyone on duty, immediately! Same assignments and partners as yesterday. I’ll announce new pairings tomorrow. Get on with you!”

  Several groans of discontent followed.

  “Not another day with Carter,” Rosalie grumbled.

  The voices quickly faded as Raider helped order lingering shifters away. Soon, only a small gathering remained. Jordan’s stomach sank in disappointment when Hudson left to cover their territory without a word to her. He’d stood by loyally when Chase’s sister was put down after she wandered into camp in her maddened state. Rebecca meant much more to him than Emerson, but it still would have been nice if he’d lingered a moment, the way Sasha had with her mate.

  When Camilla and Sydney closed in, Jager ordered them away. “You’ll only crowd her,” he snarled.

  She was glad when they left. Jordan would take Tabor’s help over her siblings’ any day of the month. Relief filled her to see him studying Emerson, who moaned softly. Sasha gave Tabor’s arm a quick squeeze.

  “Let me know if there’s anything I can do,” she said before backing away.

  Tabor nodded gently, eyes locked on Emerson.

  With a jerk, Emerson got onto her hands and knees and vomited again, weeping when she’d finished. Tears streaked her face.

  Having stopped in her tracks at the sound of Emerson’s retching, Sasha turned and crouched beside the regurgitated breakfast porridge, poking at the contents with a small stick.

  Rubbing his elbow as he paced several feet away, Palmer cast an uneasy look at Emerson.

  “We should get her to the den,” he said at last.

  Emerson made a slight gurgling sound.

  Jordan’s head jerked up, her eyes narrowing on her father. “She’s in no shape to walk.”

  “We’ll give her a hand,” Palmer said, puffing out his chest.

  Body quivering, Emerson moaned, “No.”

  Palmer came a little closer, his voice softening as he said, “Francine and Trish can take care of you in the den.”

  “No,” Emerson moaned again, sounding as miserable as she looked. “Leave me.”

  “She can’t stay here,” Garrick said, lip curling in revulsion when he looked from Emerson to the puke splattered over the ground.

  The bastard’s sneer made Jordan feel a fierce urge to rub his face in the regurgitated chunks of vomit. Good thing she felt no affection for Raider, because one asshole father was already one too many. Both Palmer and Garrick cared more about getting Emmy out of the way than her suffering. And both stayed back a couple feet as though they might catch whatever had taken her down.

  Brows furrowed and lips pinched together, Jager at least bothered to look concerned, though he remained strangely silent.

  Meanwhile, Tabor placed his hand gently over her sweaty forehead to feel her temperature while his mate set the stick down and scooped up a portion of Emerson’s breakfast contents. Sasha rubbed the remnants between her fingers as she studied them with a steady look of concern.

  Palmer stopped his pacing to hover above them.

  “Come on, Emmy,” he coaxed. “You’ll feel better once we get you to the den.”

  A noise between a wail and a moan ripped through Emerson’s lips. She sounded like an animal dying a slow, painful death.

  “She should shift,” Jager said. “As a wolf, she’ll recover faster.”

  Yes, of course. Her wolf’s digestive system would easily process whatever wasn’t sitting right. Finally, someone with a sound plan.

  But Emerson groaned miserably. “Can’t,” she said, panting. “I can’t. I can’t. I… Ohhhhh.” She curled into a ball and shivered.

  With a grunt of impatience, Garrick turned to Palmer. “Maybe you should stop coddling the girl and make her shift.”

  A growl rose up Jordan’s throat. She jumped to her feet. “You both need to back off and give my sister a moment.”

  “Ohhhhhhhhhh,” Emerson bellowed, her moans becoming longer and louder.

  “Take her to the cabin,” a
male voice said firmly.

  Craning her head to see who’d spoken, Jordan was surprised when her eyes landed on Raider, who’d been standing just outside their group. In the anguish of the moment, she hadn’t noticed him remain beside them after the other shifters left the glade.

  Tabor stood up and nodded once. “Good idea. The cabin is close by and will shade her from the sun.”

  Sasha swiped her fingers before rising. “You guys get her there. Jordan and I will fetch fresh water from the river.”

  As much as Jordan wanted to stay by her sister’s side, Sasha was wise to suggest fresh water. Reluctantly, Jordan touched Emerson’s shoulder gently.

  “I’ll be right back, Emmy. You’ll feel better once you’ve had a fresh drink of water.”

  Emerson’s tear-soaked lashes lifted to stare miserably at her. She gave a slight nod—or perhaps it was only her body quivering.

  Seeing her that way shredded Jordan’s soul. Emmy had always seemed untouchable, a ray of sunshine that nothing and no one could block. To see her crouched in the dirt suffering made Jordan’s stomach twist painfully—as though she, too, had been sickened.

  What happened? It had struck so suddenly.

  Everyone else appeared fine.

  A dark feeling of trepidation whispered in Jordan’s mind. As she stood, she glanced around the empty glade, attempting to recreate all that she had observed before Emerson collapsed.

  “Ready, Jordan?” Sasha’s prodding reminded her she had more immediate concerns.

  They walked to the cabin ahead of the rest of their party. Sasha hurried inside, returning with two large clean pots. Jordan appreciated that Sasha didn’t waste precious moments stopping to hand over one of the pots. Without a moment’s pause, Jordan took hold of a deep pan that was discolored from years of use. They walked swiftly toward the river.

  “Did you see anything unusual in her vomit?” Jordan asked, keeping a steady stride beside Sasha.

  They had to walk close together as the path narrowed, and they had to be mindful of not tripping over thick tree roots that snaked across the path.

  “Nothing stuck out,” Sasha replied, stepping over a large rock embedded on her side of the trail. She set a quick pace, one Jordan matched easily.

  “But it had to be something she ate, right?” Jordan prodded.

  “I couldn’t say for sure,” Sasha said, keeping her attention on the path directly in front of her. “A few weeks ago, I believed something toxic had ended up in Trish’s food to make her ill.” Sasha sniffed derisively. “Turned out she was pregnant.”

  “Emerson’s not pregnant.”

  Several moments of silence passed. Sasha missed the looks of contention Jordan shot her way. The pureblooded she-wolf could be maddeningly subdued, similar to Raider. Did serving on council do that to them?

  “I’ve learned it’s best not to jump to conclusions.” Sasha’s mouth curved into a sardonic little smile. She looked over for the briefest moment to flash her teeth before picking up her speed.

  Normally, Jordan appreciated Sasha’s calm wisdom, but when it came to her favorite sister, she wanted to get straight to the truth. If anyone had purposely hurt Emmy, they’d better run for the hills before Jordan ripped out their throats.

  Water babbled up ahead. The sky brightened where the trees dispersed, making way for the river. Without pause, Sasha waded in to her knees and filled her pot in one scoop. She’d already turned around and waded back to shore while Jordan dipped her pot into the river sideways and tried not to slosh water when she lifted it out.

  She needed to set aside her suspicions to focus on Emmy. Revenge could wait, but her sister couldn’t. Emerson needed her.

  Maybe her illness had been a fluke, and Jordan knew she had a tendency to jump to the worst conclusions, but now her gut told her that someone had poisoned her sister, and she knew exactly who had done it.

  chapter six

  Jordan wrapped her arms around her stomach and watched Tabor mix charcoal and water to make Emerson throw up more, hoping that if she emptied her stomach completely, she would recover sooner.

  They tried to make Emerson comfortable on the bed, but moments later, she slid her legs over the edge to get to the floor where she curled onto her side, moaning miserably.

  Palmer scratched his chin, head lowered as he studied Emerson on the ground.

  “She just needs to let this thing work itself out of her system,” he said. “We should leave her to recover in peace.”

  Sasha chewed on her lip, eyes downcast, not looking convinced that they should all leave, especially when Emerson jerked onto her hands and knees and dry-heaved.

  Once she regained her breath, Emerson moaned, “Go. I need rest.” Messy strands of blond hair swept the floor and curtained half her face.

  Unable to keep her suspicions to herself any longer, Jordan motioned for the rest of the group to follow her outside. Once they were clear of the cabin, she planted her hands on her hips.

  “I think Emmy was poisoned, and I have a good idea who did it.”

  Palmer blinked rapidly. “What makes you say that?” he asked.

  Jordan’s jaw clenched. She didn’t like sharing her personal business with the group, but her poor sister had taken the fall when it should have been Jordan curled up on the floor.

  “It was Taryn,” Jordan said. “She meant to poison me. Actually, she had her friend Janelle try to poison me with bad meat the night of the claiming ceremony. She made sure to hand me a contaminated squirrel stick. After she left, I gave it to Emmy to eat. I never dreamed Taryn would take things that far. She already tried to drown me later that night.”

  Sasha frowned and scrutinized Jordan as though she was the one under suspicion. The pureblooded female could be really irritating sometimes.

  “If she tried to drown you the night of the claiming ceremony, why are you just now bringing it up?” Sasha asked shrewdly.

  “I already took it up with her. She denied it, of course.” Jordan huffed.

  Sasha’s brows slashed across her forehead. “You said she tried to drown you. Where? How? Did she hold your head down? What happened, exactly?”

  Jordan narrowed her eyes on Sasha. The she-wolf should have been grilling the suspect, not the victim.

  “The night of the ceremony, I was pushed from behind on the plateau above the Sakhir River.”

  Sasha raised her brows. “Is that it? You didn’t actually see anyone?”

  Jordan crossed her arms over her chest.

  “She’s been getting in my face, warning me to stay away from Chase. She sees me as an obstacle standing in her way.”

  “That’s a grave assumption, Jordan. Are you sure you didn’t fall in?” Sasha asked.

  “Yeah, I’m sure,” Jordan replied through gritted teeth. “I can tell the difference between a hard shove and a stumble.”

  Garrick rubbed a hand beneath his chin. “Why would Taryn try to poison and drown you in the same night? I mean, if you were already handed bad meat, why bother pushing you into the river?”

  “I don’t know, Garrick. Why don’t you enlighten us, since you’re the one with the criminal mind?” Tabor said sarcastically.

  A vicious grin curved Garrick’s lips. “I won’t pretend to understand the female mind, but if it was me, and someone was standing in the way of what I wanted, I wouldn’t pussyfoot around with rotten meat or rivers.” He cracked his knuckles, his gaze homing in on Tabor. “You know what I’d do.”

  Sasha hissed air in between her teeth. “Keep talking that way, Garrick, and I will make it my personal mission to see you banished from Wolf Hollow.”

  Garrick shrugged. “Only trying to help.”

  “I don’t think Taryn would do anything that vicious, honey,” Palmer said gently. “She knows you and Chase are just friends.”

  “That’s right,�
�� Sasha said, latching onto Palmer’s words. “There’s no reason for her to go after you, and I can’t imagine she’d get a friend involved. What motivation would Janelle have? Absolutely none that I can think of,” she rushed in to say, as though to cut Jordan off before she could answer.

  “She did it for her friend.” Jordan knew her response sounded weak, but she’d seen how Taryn and her friends stood together at the river like they were their own little pack. And packs looked out for their own at any cost.

  Sasha shook her head. “You can’t go voicing your suspicions around the hollow. I don’t think it’s true.”

  Palmer cleared his throat. “Right now, Emerson needs her rest. Jordan, why don’t you stay with her, and fetch me if she needs anything.”

  Garrick and Raider were the first to go, soon followed by Tabor, who twisted his lips to the side, deep in thought as he slowly shuffled away. Sasha flashed Jordan one last warning look before jogging to catch up to her mate.

  Palmer held back, reentering the cabin behind Jordan to force one last smile at Emerson. “You’ll be okay, Emmy.”

  His attempt at reassurance was lost on Emerson, who faced the floor from the same place they’d left her in.

  Their father cleared his throat gently. “I’ll let Francine and Trish know you’re unwell and have someone bring over a light meal at midday.”

  “Great,” Jordan said, ready for him to leave.

  The cabin’s floorboards creaked as Palmer walked out, leaving silence in his wake.

  Emerson propped herself into a seated position on the floor, wrapped her arms around her legs, and rocked herself.

  Jordan wrung her fingers, filled with anguish.

  “I hate seeing you this way, Emmy.”

  Bowing her head, Emerson groaned again. “I feel like I’m dying.”

  “Let me get you a cup of water.” Jordan headed over to the wood desk where she and Sasha had set the pots of water.

  “No,” Emerson croaked at her back. “I just want to rest.”

  “Good idea,” Jordan said, spinning around. “Let’s get you on the bed.”