Forbidden Shadows (Lee County Wolves Book 7)

Chapter 11

Clare watched the reunion between brother and sister with tears in her eyes. She knew that Tammy would now be in good hands…safe hands. Her gaze went to Tammy’s young son, who clung to his mother’s leg, peeking up at the stranger, his uncle.

Letting go of Tammy, Brock examined her battered face with an angry scowl before kneeling. “You must be Ben.”

The boy hid further behind his mother, his thin body shaking. “He’s afraid of men.” Tammy’s voice cracked with tears.

Brock gave the boy a smile and, in a calm voice, said, “We will fix that.” He continued to kneel. “I have a feeling Ben and I are going to be best friends.”

Tammy sniffed as she gently pulled Ben from behind her. “Ben, this is my brother,” she leaned down to tell him. “He’s your uncle Brock. Remember me telling you about him? About our fishing trips?”

He continued to look at the ground but nodded. Finally, his eyes rose to meet Brock’s, and the sadness Clare saw reflecting in those innocent brown eyes about drove her to her knees. “Are you gonna hurt my momma?” His whisper reached every ear in the small hotel room.

Clare watched Brock swallow hard, and she knew he was keeping his rage in check for the small boy. “I will never hurt your momma, Ben,” Brock whispered, and everyone heard the truth in his words. “I’ve been looking for you for a long time. I’m sorry I wasn’t there to help your momma and you.”

She saw the emotions playing across their faces when she glanced at Devon and Malcolm. It was a mix of rage and sadness for what this little boy had suffered at the hands of a monster. This was her life, something she saw way too often. It was hard to watch.

Turning her attention back to Ben, she saw his chin wobble just as he threw himself at Brock, wrapping his tiny arms tightly around his neck. Brock’s eyes closed as he held his nephew. Tammy knelt, taking them both in her arms. Clare wiped a tear away as she nodded for Devon and Malcolm to follow her outside to give them some privacy.

Clair leaned against Devon’s car, slowly cranking her neck from side to side, trying to ease the tension from the stress. Her eyes caught both Malcolm and Devon staring at her.

“What?” She stopped and looked at them both.

“How long have you been doing this?” Devon asked with a frown.

“When Garrett brought Roxy to Lee County after she had been brutally attacked by her ex, I began helping her,” Clare replied with a shrug. “She had no one and nowhere to turn. Unfortunately, that’s the case for a lot of these women and children. If I can help them, I will.”

“It’s dangerous,” Malcolm said, watching her closely.

“For them, yes, it is,” Clare replied, knowing that’s not what he meant.

“And for you.” Malcolm countered, his eyes narrowing. “Even the police don’t like to get involved with domestic issues.”

“Which is another problem that needs to be addressed.” Clare agreed with that part. “I’m careful.”

Clare had some close calls but had always been able to escape with the women just in time. She didn’t want to confront the abusers because she did, in fact, know how very dangerous that would be. It was also a lot harder when children were involved.

Before anything else could be said, Brock walked out and headed their way. “I want to thank you again for what you did for my sister. She told me everything that happened.”

Not comfortable with any type of praise for something she felt was a calling, Clare just smiled and nodded. He reached into his pocket, pulling out his wallet.

“How much was the room?” Brock asked, looking up from his wallet.

“It’s taken care of,” Clare replied with a shake of her head.

“Clare, I’m going to pay you for what you’ve done for my sister.” Brock’s eyes narrowed. “Look at it as paying it forward to help someone else in trouble.”

Clare glanced toward the hotel office and then back at Brock. “I have something worked out for the room,” she replied, then frowned. “What I would like is for you guys to stay with me tonight or until you find a place. I want to talk to Tammy about her experience with the women’s shelters refusing to help her. I have an extra room and a big couch.”

Brock stared down at her as he slowly put his wallet back in his pocket. “That’s up to Tammy, but I’m sure she will be okay with it.”

“Good,” Clare said with a smile. “I’ll go help Tammy get her stuff together, and then we can go. I know Dell wants to talk to you.”

“And you.” Devon reminded her…like she could forget that.

Walking past Malcolm, she noticed he was frowning at her as if he wanted to say something, but he quickly looked away. Her feelings for this man confused her, and she didn’t like it. She had way too much going on to be distracted, especially by a man.

Walking into the hotel room, she noticed that Tammy had her and Ben’s meager belongings on the bed. “You ready to get out of here?”

“Yes!” Tammy said, her voice sounding lighter. Clare smiled, feeling happiness in her soul. This is why she did what she did. Tammy and her son had a chance to have a normal life, which was all that mattered.

“I told Brock that you guys are more than welcome to stay at my place,” Clare said, taking the hotel key Tammy handed her as she picked up her bags.

“Clare, you’ve done so much for us already.” Tammy frowned, putting her hand on Ben’s shoulder. “We couldn’t impose more on you than we already have. I don’t know what would have happened or where we would be if you hadn’t helped us.”

“You wouldn’t be imposing,” Clare said, then sighed. “Actually, you would be doing me a favor. I really would like to talk to you about your experience with the women’s shelters. I had no idea that was happening, and if it happened to you, then I’m a hundred percent sure that has happened to other Shifter women. It must change, and I’m going to do everything in my power to make that happen.”

Tears welled up in Tammy’s eyes as she reached out and hugged Clare tight. “I will do whatever it takes to help you make it happen, Clare. Thank you so much.”

Clare pulled away, giving her a watery smile. “Come on, let’s get out of here,” she said, then looked down at Ben. “I think I’ve got some chocolate chip cookies just waiting to be eaten.”

Ben smiled the first smile Clare had seen from the child, and it made her heart melt. She took one of the bags from Tammy and headed toward Devon’s car. Putting it in the trunk, she turned toward the office.

“I’ll be right back,” Clare said as she walked away. “I need to turn in the key.”

Opening the door to the office, she smiled. “How you doing, Elmo?”

“I’ve had better days, Clare.” The old man started to get up from his chair, but Clare stopped him.

“You stay put.” She walked around the counter. “I know where the key goes. Is your arthritis acting up again?”

“Again?” The old man who ran the hotel snorted. “It never went away. Some days are just better than others. Today isn’t one of the better days.”

Clare leaned against the counter with a frown. Elmo was a Godsend. She couldn’t do what she did without him and could never repay him for his kindness. “Are you taking the syrup Mabel made you?”

Elmo made a scrunched-up face. “That stuff tastes like something she scraped out of a toilet.”

“That may be true, but it helps, doesn’t it?” Clare cocked her eyebrow, trying to look stern instead of smiling like she wanted to. Elmo was a very stubborn character.

“Yeah, dammit. Though I don’t like to admit it since it came from a witch.” Elmo huffed, looking conflicted.

“Elmo, Mabel isn’t really a witch,” Clare said with a sigh. “She just knows a lot about herbs and things that can help people.”

Elmo gave a snort. “She also knows how to turn a pecker black.” He said, then pointed at her. “You can’t tell me that isn’t some witchery shenanigans. Heard all about that Foster boy and his pec?—”

“You need to stop listening to gossip, Elmo.” Clare cut him off. All of Lee County had heard about Mabel’s threat to Hunter, even from Hunter himself.

“Gossip my bony ass.” Elmo sputtered, then looked past her. “Can I help you?”

Clare turned to see Malcolm standing there with a full grin on his face. “How long have you been standing there?” Clare asked, surprised because she never heard the door open.

“Long enough.” He chuckled, his grin growing.

“You needing a room?” Elmo stood slowly, then painfully made his way behind the counter. “Plenty available. Soft beds and clean sheets. Changed them two weeks ago.”

“Elmo, stop telling people that.” Clare rolled her eyes. “I change those beds every time a customer leaves.”

“No, sir,” Malcolm replied respectfully. “Just waiting for Clare.”

Elmo’s eyes opened wide, his gaze shifting from Malcolm to Clare. “Well, ain’t that something?” Elmo said as he sized up Malcolm. “I’ve been telling Clare she needed to find herself a good man.”

“Is that so?” Malcolm said cocking his eyebrow at Clare.

“Okay, Elmo,” Clare said, walking around the counter. “I’ll be back tomorrow to clean room seven, so don’t rent that out to anyone. We need to get going. I’ve got people waiting for us.”

“They left already,” Malcolm said, his grin still in place. “I told them I would wait for you.”

“Oh.” Clare bit her lip, really wanting to get out of there, nervous about what Elmo might say next. Elmo had lived in Lee County all his life, never married, and knew everyone and everything that was going on in Lee County and the surrounding area.

“You new around these parts?” Elmo’s aging eyes squinted as he observed Malcolm closer.

“I am,” Malcolm replied, not giving any more information.

Elmo stared at him a little longer, then nodded. “Well, welcome. Any friend of Clare’s is a friend of mine.” Elmo finally said, then went to sit back down. “Clare needs a good, sturdy man with what she does for them girls. Had a few close calls here a time or two with them sons of bitches coming here raising all kinds of hell looking for those poor women. Someone needs to show them how a real man treats a female after knocking them on their no-good asses. I ran a few off with my shotgun, but my old ticker ain”t what it used to be, and too much excitement gets it pumping.”

“Okay, and on that note.” Clare cleared her throat, ignoring the look she knew Malcolm was giving her. “Elmo, you’re going to miss Gunsmoke.” Clare walked over and made sure it was on the right channel, then handed him the remote.

Checking his watch, he frowned. “Dammit, I didn’t get my dinner ready yet.”

“I’ll get it for you,” Clare patted his shoulder as she passed to go into the back room. “I made you vegetable soup and chili. Which do you want?”

“Since I ate all the chili already, I’ll take the soup,” Elmo called out, turning the volume up on the television just as the theme song for Gunsmoke came on.

“You ate that whole pot of chili I brought yesterday?” Clare gasped; her eyes wide with shock.

“You brought it yesterday morning, so I had breakfast, lunch, and dinner yesterday. Same for today with a few smaller snack-size bowls in between.” Elmo looked at her over his shoulder. “A man’s gotta eat, Clare. Isn’t that right, son?” He looked toward Malcolm for confirmation.

“Yes, sir.” He smiled with a nod.

“You had her chili yet?” Elmo asked, then frowned when Malcolm shook his head. “Don’t know what you”re missing. Just the right amount of spice to light ya up, but doesn’t give ya the winds.”

Clare rolled her eyes but stopped when she heard Malcolm’s deep, rumbling laughter. Her head slowly turned toward him, and the attraction she felt for him at that moment was overwhelming. Quickly, she disappeared into the back of the office and went to the small kitchen out of view. She stopped and took a deep breath, letting it out slowly. She could hear the rumble of his voice as he talked to Elmo about Gunsmoke and chili. She put her hand over her racing heart, knowing she was in big trouble. This man had the power to turn her whole world upside down, and that thought terrified her.