For Her: A Malsum Pass Novel

by Kimberly Forrest

  Alek made his way back to Mrs. Potter’s. Daisy was avoiding him, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t still keep an eye on her. He’d pushed too hard, tipped his hand, and scared her off. He wasn’t sure how to fix it, but he needed to check in with his client and at least give the male something.

  Seeing a strange truck in Mrs. Potter’s driveway had him growling. Stalking carefully around to the side of the house, he crouched down and then carefully lifted his head to glance into the window. Tarvahl Pierce was sitting on the couch enjoying a cup of tea while he chatted with Mrs. Potter. He had expected the male much sooner than this. He couldn’t hear the conversation but he could assume they were talking about the bit of gossip that Mrs. Potter had shared with Conner. He heard a bark of laughter from the male followed by Mrs. Potter’s signature cackle suggesting she had said something risqué and Alek relaxed. Assured that Mrs. Potter wasn’t in danger, he made his way to the hayloft in the barn where he could use his sat phone to call Kramer with an update while keeping an eye on the house and their visitor.

  The pride leader answered on the fourth ring. “Stepanov, I was beginning to think you’d gotten lost.”

  Alek ground his teeth together to keep from snarling at the obvious condescension in the male’s tone. “I’ve got a lead on your females. Picked up their trail heading into Canada.”

  Kramer’s tone switched to one of excitement. “Excellent. I assume you’ll be able to run them to ground within the week.” Alek could practically hear the male rubbing his hands together in anticipation.

  “It may take a bit more time than that. There’s a lot of forested area this far north. Lots of places to hide.” Alek hedged.

  The pride leader snarled. “This is already taking too long. That bitch killed my son and she needs to pay. Now do your fucking job!” The phone beeped, the call disconnected.

  And there it was… Kramer had deliberately misled him as to why he wanted the females back; implying they were in danger, how worried the pride was for their safety, and how much their family missed them. It had been cues he’d picked up from Mrs. Potter and Daisy, as well as the fact the females had stayed in this area despite the death of their kinsman, that had had him suspecting otherwise. These women hadn’t been lured away by one of their pride as he and Dev had first thought. They were running from a death sentence.

  Noise from the house attracted his attention and he turned to see Tarvahl Pierce leaving. He was smiling as he bid Mrs. Potter goodbye and made his way to the truck. Alek noticed he lifted his face to sniff a bit at the air, but since his expression didn’t change to one of concern, Alek didn’t worry. The male would have picked up the scent of his cologne as soon as he’d arrived, may even have asked Mrs. Potter about it, but the only thing she could tell him, aside from her own opinion of his character, was the back story she herself had been given. So far, his cover was still solid.

  Once the truck had reversed out of the drive, Alek dialed Devon to give him an update as well. He and Devon, as well as their third partner Samuel had all been taken from their families and raised in the compound; conditioned, trained, and honed into assassins for hire. Once they had been freed, they had banded together and vowed to hunt down the remaining members of the traders and dismantle their operation piece by piece until nothing remained.

  “Alek, give me good news, buddy.” Devon said when he answered.

  Alek released a low growl to express his frustration. “Another dead-end. These females weren’t lured away, they ran away. And from what I can tell, for good reason. How did your lead pan out or are you still working it?”

  Dev grunted. “Got a tip on an old warehouse but by the time I got there it had been cleaned out. Trace scent tells me they were there though. Bastards are staying one step ahead.” He snarled.

  “What about Samuel? Anything from him?”

  A long, low growl from the other end of the line, “He located a small cell; was able to free three women who were in pretty bad shape. Last I spoke to him the women were too traumatized to say much. The traders made it out before he could get his claws in them.”

  Alek growled as well. “We will find every one of those bastards, Dev, and destroy them.”

  Dev sighed. “We will,” he agreed but Alek knew he was tired and frustrated. They all were. For too long they’d been hunting without result. They had managed to save so few while the traders continued to slip away only to set up camp elsewhere and begin again.

  “No new leads at this point, Alek, so you may as well stay put for now. I’ll call you when I have something solid. Be safe.”

  “Be safe,” Alek repeated before he disconnected the call.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Daisy lay on her bed looking through her sketches. All of her recent ones were of Alek and she had to admit she missed him. It had been so wonderful to hear him say they were friends, but if she was honest with herself, she had to acknowledge that she wanted to be more than friends. For the first time in her life she wasn’t cringing at the thought of taking a mate; not if that mate was Alek Stevens.

  When she’d contemplated joining her life with Bryan, it had been his sweet nature that had attracted her; his generous heart. He would have been a safe, comfortable choice and the two of them could have lived together amicably. She never would have had to worry about him striking her, belittling her, or abusing her in anyway like she would have had at the hands of Garrett Foley, but she hadn’t been physically attracted to Bryan. He had never made her long for his touch.

  Alek, on the other hand, attracted her on a physical as well as an emotional level. Both her human and feline side wanted him for more than comfort and security. Just the thought of him stirred up a storm of desires that she had never experienced prior to meeting him. She wanted to rub up against him, touch every part of him, and know him completely. She wanted to share her stories with him and hear his stories in return. She wanted to be part of his life.

  Tossing aside the sketch pad she got up from the bed. She certainly wasn’t going to get to know him better by avoiding him. Squaring her shoulders as if she was girding herself for battle she went to her dresser and pulled out her favorite outfit. Most all of her clothes were hand-me-downs, provided by the townspeople, and some were nicer than others, but this one outfit she especially loved because she had bought it herself with money she’d earned from her work at the grocery store during the holidays. The sweater was incredibly soft, which appealed to her tactile nature, and in a deep emerald which brought out the green in her eyes. Paired with black jeans, the look was flattering yet comfortable. Dressed, she went into the bathroom to fix her hair. Staring at her reflection she leaned in and gave herself a pep talk. “You are going to march yourself over there, Daisy Munroe and make this happen. You are not weak. You are not worthless.”

  “No you’re not.”

  Daisy let out a scream that should have deafened her sister who was standing in the doorway to the bathroom. Holding a hand to her pounding heart, she turned to glare at Lily. “You scared the crap out of me!”

  Lily didn’t look apologetic, in fact she looked fierce. “Who has been telling you you’re weak and worthless? I want a name.”

  Daisy shook her head. “No one here.”

  Lily’s face turned sad before she came forward and wrapped her arms around Daisy. “Oh, honey. You have never been weak or worthless, they were just too ignorant to see. We should have left that place a long time ago. I’m sorry.” She finished with a sniffle and then pulled away to peel some toilet paper off the roll. She handed a wad to Daisy before taking some for herself.

  Dabbing at her damp eyes, Lily gave her a watery smile. “But we’re out of there now. We have new lives.”

  Daisy nodded, tossed her used tissues in the trash and then checked her reflection once more. Clearing her throat, she ran her fingers through her hair. “I thought you had to work today.”

  “Just the breakfast shift. I have the rest of the day off. I take it you have plans?
”

  “I thought I’d go over to Mrs. Potter’s house. It’s been awhile and I have a knitting project that she’s been helping me with.” Daisy almost cringed. It wasn’t exactly a lie. She was going over to Mrs. Potter’s house and she did have a knitting project in progress. That just wasn’t the reason she was going but she still wasn’t ready to share Alek with Lily.

  Lily frowned, her eyes moving over Daisy’s form. “You’re dressed really nice for knitting.”

  Daisy shrugged, feeling suddenly uncomfortable. “I just wanted to look nice.”

  “And give yourself a pep talk?” Lily asked, her head tilting to the side as she eyed Daisy speculatively.

  Feeling her defenses rise, Daisy tried not to snap at her sister as she moved past her. Grabbing her coat she shrugged into it. “I’ve been feeling a bit down. It’s no big deal.” Heading to the door so that Lily couldn’t read the guilt that she was sure was written all over her face she tossed over her shoulder. “I won’t be home for dinner. Don’t wait up.”

  With a sigh of relief, she leaned back against the cabin door and took a deep breath. The cold air was refreshing and snapped her back to her purpose. She was going to go see Alek. She was going to ask him out to dinner, and she was going to get to know him better. She wasn’t weak. She was strong. She was worthy.

  Lily stared at the cabin door for several minutes, her eyes narrowed and her lips pursed in thought. Daisy was a grown woman and could do as she liked – within reason, but she was certainly acting odd. The scent of bacon grease and stale coffee reached her nose and Lily grimaced. She needed a shower.

  Clean and dressed in fresh clothes. Lily stood next to Daisy’s unmade bed staring at the sketchpad lying forgotten on the rumpled sheets. With a grin she picked it up. Daisy had been mighty protective of this lately. In fact, she had blushed when Lily had asked her what she was working on. Fully expecting to find nudes or something equally embarrassing that she could use to tease her sister as payback for the Conner Pierce jokes, Lily sat down and flipped through the pages. Her sister’s skill had improved exponentially since coming here. There were sketches of many of the townspeople, including Conner, in both wolf and human forms; their likeness incredibly well done. Sketches of a fox, and the bobcat that Daisy insisted was not a pet, as well as other animals she had come across in her treks through the forest.

  When Lily came to an image of herself she just stared, tears prickling in the back of her eyes. Daisy had drawn her smiling softly, her look wistful, her face unmarked by scars. Lily touched the unmarked cheek on the page before her and then raised her hand to her own. Growling at her own wishful thinking she flipped the page. The next one was of a rather cherubic looking woman with a twinkle in her eye and knitting in her lap. This could only be Mrs. Potter, a woman who had befriended Daisy and to whom Lily would always be grateful.

  The next set of images had Lily sitting up and taking notice. A handsome, yet intense young man. Daisy never used color in her images, but the darker shading on the hair with lighter shading in the eyes suggested brown or black hair with blue or green eyes. He seemed quite fit – or at least Daisy had drawn him that way, his shirt hugging his broad shoulders.

  Lily flipped the page to see more of the same. One page just had what might be considered doodles: eyes, though it was easy to tell they were his, masculine hands, a mouth, the lips compressed but tipped up in the corner in a hint of a smile. A symbol was also on that page; what looked to Lily like it might be a backward, cursive Q. It didn’t make sense, mixed with the other images of the unknown male, until she turned to the next page. Daisy had drawn the male from head to toe, shirtless and barefoot, in a pair of sweatpants as if he had just finished a workout. And there, just above his pectoral was the symbol from the page before. Lily stared at the image. He really was quite handsome and if Daisy had a crush, she could certainly understand why. But Lily didn’t recognize him. Working at the diner, she had met most of the townspeople, but it was possible that she hadn’t met them all. Why hadn’t Daisy told her about him? Was she afraid Lily wouldn’t approve of her becoming involved with a wolf?

  Or was he human? Someone Daisy had met in her travels to Mrs. Potter’s house. That thought opened up an entirely new set of problems. If this male was human and he was oblivious to shifters then it was not up to Daisy to enlighten him. She would need permission from the council and shifters did not reveal themselves for just anyone. The relationship would have to be serious – really serious – for them to even consider it. Lily groaned. It was entirely possible that Daisy was setting herself up for a huge disappointment.

  Closing the sketchpad, Lily grabbed her coat taking the pad with her. She would go see Tarvahl Pierce. He knew everyone in town, and pretty much all of the neighbors surrounding the area. If anyone would know who this male was, it was him.

  Chapter Fourteen

  When Daisy got to Mrs. Potter’s house, she found most of the furniture pushed back and Alek kneeling on the floor beside what would eventually be a large quilt. He was arranging squares of fabric according to Mrs. Potter’s direction while Landslide by Fleetwood Mac played softly in the background.

  “Daisy!” Mrs. Potter greeted her with a smile. “You’re just in time to help pin.”

  Alek had looked up from his task as soon as she walked through the door. He actually looked pleased to see her and Daisy’s heart gave a little kick of hope. She couldn’t hold back a laugh when his look turned pleading and he mouthed the words save me. Shaking her head in amusement she pulled off her coat and knelt beside him before relieving him of the red and green pincushion that resembled a tomato.

  She could actually feel Alek’s eyes moving over her form. “You look nice, Daisy.” He said, and she felt her cheeks pinking with pleasure at the compliment.

  With a thump of her cane, Mrs. Potter was back to directing the work in progress. Suddenly feeling shy, Daisy kept her eyes on the brightly colored squares. “Do you have dinner plans?” She asked Alek.

  “Are you asking me out on a date, Daisy?” She could hear amusement in his voice and she hoped he wasn’t laughing at her. Silly, Daisy. No, she pushed those doubts aside. She was strong. She was worthy.

  She gave a sharp nod. “I am.”

  She could feel his eyes on her, and even though mere seconds had passed, anxiety was creeping up her neck in an uncomfortable prickle. She had to look and see his reaction. Relief was immediate when she saw he looked quite pleased. “I would be honored.” He said softly and Daisy wanted to melt like butter all over Mrs. Potter’s quilt.

  A thump of the cane had her jumping slightly. Mrs. Potter cackled. “If you two could pin and plan at the same time this would go a lot quicker.”

  Daisy and Alek both grinned but turned their attention back to the pinning. “Tyrant!” Alek yelled only to receive another unapologetic cackle from the task master.

  When they were done and the pinned quilt had been carefully folded and put away, Daisy helped Alek move the furniture back in place. They had moved on to other conversation while they had been pinning, but now Alek brought it back to their evening plans. “Did you have a restaurant in mind?”

  Daisy had been so focused on getting past her nerves enough to ask the question she hadn’t actually contemplated beyond that. She bit her lip. “I don’t really know the area. Well, aside from the diner in town.” She scrunched her face. “They have good food and all, but I’d rather not eat there if that’s okay.” If she wasn’t ready to share Alek with Lily, whom she adored, she certainly wasn’t going to share him with the rest of the town.

  “There’s a great surf and turf place that’s about a twenty minute drive down the mountain.” Mrs. Potter said, proving that there was absolutely nothing wrong with her hearing.

  With the place agreed upon, Alek went up to shower and change while Daisy sat with Mrs. Potter. “There’s no reason to be nervous, gal.” Mrs. Potter said as she picked up her knitting.

  Daisy realized she had been tappi
ng her fingers on the arm of the couch as the heel of one foot bounced repeatedly. She stilled the motion and tucked her hands beneath her thighs. She shot Mrs. Potter a sheepish grin. “Sorry. I’ve never actually been out on a date before. I’m not really sure what to do.”

  “Well, in this instance, you eat and you talk. Not at the same time, mind you, or you risk spitting your food at each other.” Mrs. Potter winked as Daisy laughed. Then she continued, “Alek’s a good boy and he likes you. He asks about you all the time so he’s definitely interested. You just relax and enjoy each other’s company.”

  Daisy felt a pleased blush rush into her cheeks. “He asks about me? Really?”

  Mrs. Potter nodded as her hands continued to work with the needles and yarn while Daisy sat there with a goofy grin on her face.

  That grin was still in place when Alek came down the stairs. His hair damp from his shower and curling slightly around his ears and at the nape of his neck. He’d donned jeans and a black pullover sweater that he’d pushed up to reveal his impressive forearms. He looked a bit sheepish as he said, “Sorry I don’t have anything nicer than this to wear.”

  “You look great.” Daisy said. Actually she thought he looked scrumptious and was happy her brain had filtered that thought before she’d opened her mouth.