six
I lay still, not wanting to jostle her. Cavi had said to keep her still until he could assess her. The phone tucked into my hoodie vibrated, and I moved as little as possible, tilting my head so my good eye could see the text. Everyone was on their way.
I winced.
Everyone meant my five brothers and Kendal. They’d want answers about why I was anywhere near the human neighborhood. Why I’d killed the piece of shit on her lawn. I sighed and she snuggled back into me. I wanted to throw my arms around her and hold her tight. I wanted to take her back to my house and never let her out of my sight again.
It was an impossible dream.
The wyrfang’s van pulled in behind her car and my brothers poured out of the side door. Cavi came directly to me while the others fanned out around the yard. None of us needed to be told what to do. Tactical maneuvers were what we were literally made for.
I growled as Cavi’s hands probed her head and neck, her arms and legs. “She wasn’t hit on her arms or legs, Cavi.” The venom in my tone shocked me.
His eyes popped to mine. “All right. She took a good hit on the head and maybe has a concussion. A human doctor should see her.”
“Fuck. I wish I could kill him again.”
“We’ll let you tear him apart after we get her taken care of.” He turned to Kendal, standing nearby, her face a mask of worry. “We need your help.”
“Anything.”
My heart warmed. We’d been shown kindness only once before Kendal—when we escaped our captors. Our creators. Her daily hugs reminded us that not all touch hurt. She was kind and gentle and each of us would give our lives for hers.
He turned back to me. “You’ll need to carry her to the van. Gently. Try not to jostle her too much.”
I nodded and scooped her into my arms, ignoring the way she felt like she belonged there. I set her down in the back and fought the urge to crawl in with her. Kendal would take her to the hospital. Somewhere I couldn’t go.
She laid a small hand on my forearm. “I’ll take good care of her, Thurl.” She pointed over my shoulder. “Help your brothers clean up. I’ll keep you updated with text messages and call when I can.”
I felt empty when I pulled my arms from around her. “Thank you.”
Kendal nodded. I watched as she slowly backed the van out of the driveway and disappeared down the street.
I turned around to face the gauntlet of my brothers.
“What the actual fuck, Thurl?” Quin, ever forthright, said.
Kragen put a hand on Quin’s shoulder. “Let’s not interrogate him, Quin. Let him explain.”
Our leader was a strategist. A tactical mastermind. Like any older brother, he was harsh when needed, but we knew he loved us.
“I went for a walk in the woods last week. I couldn’t sleep. I ended up here.” I shrugged.
I knew they wouldn’t let it go at that, but it was worth a try.
“And then what?”
I looked up at him. “And then I saw her. In the backyard, calling for a cat. She was worried, so when the cat appeared a minute later, I put him inside.”
After a moment of dead silence, Quin snorted. “I’d get more information from a rock. Even Roul talks more than you.”
“I talk.” Roul grumbled from the edge of the group.
Quin waved a hand as if to say see?
Kragen rubbed the bridge of his muzzle. “Go on, Thurl.”
“I came back the next night to check on her.” I hung my head. “And every night since. Tonight, she wasn’t home when I arrived, so I waited. I was only going to stay until she got safely inside, but then that,”—I pointed to the dead man—“came out of the bushes, snarled at her and then hit her on the side of the head with something. She slumped to the ground and I…”
Kragen dipped his head to look into my eyes.
I stared at the ground, not wanting to answer.
“You what, Thurl?”
“I lost it. I tore him away from her, and he was dead before I really knew what I was doing.”
Cavi stood from where he’d crouched next to the body. “He ripped him apart.”
I looked at my hands, covered in blood. My claw caps were gone. Probably torn to shreds inside the body.
Kragen sighed. “Let’s get this cleaned up and go home.”
The flash as Drym took a photo on his phone momentarily blinded all of us. He shrugged in apology. “We should see if Bacon or Bull can find out who he is. That’ll help determine if she was targeted or just a random victim.”
The idea that someone could target her, that someone would plan violence against her, made my fists clench.
Roul hauled the body up and over his shoulder and I was grateful I wouldn’t have to carry it. They started walking toward the backyard, but I stopped them.
“I need to pick up her things. Feed her cats. Lock up for her.” Care for her in the only way I could.
Kragen nodded. “Make it fast. We’ll wait beyond the tree line.”
I found an outside faucet and washed my hands. I didn’t want to leave blood all over her things. I picked up her bag. Her keys were still in the door. I let myself inside, quickly closing the door behind me so none of the cats would escape.
Her house was small, but comfortable. It felt like home—if home had a dozen cats who stared at you from their various perches. The biggest of the bunch, an orange cat I’d seen in the window earlier, sashayed to me and rubbed itself against my legs.
That seemed to unfreeze the others and they all rushed me, some chirping and others meowing with several running from me to the kitchen and back again.
I chuckled. “Yes, you’re hungry. Let me see what I can do.”
The first cabinet I opened was full of containers and cans neatly labeled with names like Catticus Finch and Purrito Supreme. I looked at the swirling mass of fur at my feet and sighed. “I hope you know which of you is which.”
I picked up a dozen bowls from the floor and set them on the counter. Putting cans of food into them and adding various powders from matching labeled containers was easy. I kept the bowls in the order they were in on the floor and filled them according to the order in the cabinet, before placing them back on the floor.
All the cats lined up at their bowls, some going around others. I hoped that was a sign that they knew who got which bowl. Her disappointment if I made one of them sick would kill me.
I found my brothers in the woods, and we walked to the compound in silence. My house appeared first. I veered to go inside but Drym stopped me.
“What did it feel like when you saw her?”
A low rumble started in my chest. “Like I never wanted to let her go.”
He nodded and turned his attention to the backs of the others as they continued to their own houses. Roul splintered from the group, taking the body somewhere no one would find it.
“I think she may be your mate.”
My mouth fell open. “My mate?”
He nodded. “If that’s the case, you’ll need to show yourself. And if she’s in danger, you need to do it sooner rather than later.”
I shook my head. “She will run and scream. I will terrify her.”
He tilted his head. “We didn’t terrify Kendal.”
My mouth shut with a snap. “Kendal is different.”
He shrugged. “You won’t know unless you try.”
I sighed. “Even if she reacts well, I am broken, Drym.”
He shook his head. “You are not. Damaged, yes, but not broken.” He walked away, leaving me the one place I didn’t want to be. Alone with my thoughts.