Chapter Twenty-Six
As he held tight, to his lost Love,
That fates had want to steal,
He beseeched the nameless gods above,
To undo his foolish deal.
Lyrics from the folk song “Crossroads Coyote”
Everyone’s attention focused on Clem, as she finally stirred. She gave another grumbling-moan, turning her head against Bill’s chest to hide her face against his shirt.
Bill’s newly-discovered heart leapt. “Darlin’? Open your eyes.” He pushed back a handful of shiny curls, so he could watch her face. “Open your eyes and look at me.”
“Bill?” Clementine blinked and then immediately cringed, like the light was hurting her. “Ow.”
He nearly wept with relief. “I’m here, baby. I’m right here.”
“I know. I heard you humming My Own True Love . I like the bridge.”
He gave a half-crazed laugh. “I’m glad.” He automatically moved his palm to shade her eyes from the light. “Damnation, have I missed you. I missed you so much. How do you feel?”
“I’m okay.” Clem’s gaze went to Hank, who came striding into the cell to assure himself of her recovery up close. “Did I faint?” She gasped, as if her memories started rushing back. “Oh my God!”
“Johnny attacked you.” Hank agreed, knowing that’s what she’d just recalled. He handed Clem her glasses and ran a hand over her cheek. “We’re gonna find him. Don’t you worry.”
“He was acting crazy, Hank! He took Hasten-2.”
“Fucking idiot.” Hank shook his head in disgust. “You’re sure you’re not hurt, Clemmie?”
“I’m fine. I promise. I just…” She shuddered, hunching closer to Bill. “I don’t ever want to see him again.”
“You won’t have to.” Nobody would ever see Johnny again, if Bill had his way.
Clem swallowed, like the whole ordeal had left her dazed. “He was so angry and he wouldn’t listen. He was ranting and raving and saying that I was supposed to marry him and not you.”
Bill’s grip tightened on her.
“He’s a stranger. I don’t know him, at all. And it was so dark .” She was scared of the dark.
Bill gritted his teeth, hating Johnny from the depths of his soul. “I’ve got you, now.” He somehow kept his voice soothing. “You’re not alone. You won’t ever have to be alone.”
Clem’s fingers clung to his shirtfront. “I saw pictures of all these other girls that Johnny hurt. He said they were lying, but they’re not lying. I know it. I got away, but he followed me, right into Luke’s apartment…” She stopped short. “ Luke! ” She sat straight up in Bill’s arms, looking around. “Where is he?”
The kid slowly got to his feet, his attention locked on her. He seemed nervous as hell that she’d reject him over his coyote’s savagery.
“There you are!” Clem smiled at him, her body relaxing. She forgot her own anxiety, because she had him to focus on. “Thank goodness you’re okay. I was so worried about you, sweetie-pie.”
The cutesy nickname seemed to break him. Luke’s face crumpled. He turned towards the wall, his hands coming up to cover his face and his shoulder shaking.
“Oh! Luke, it’s alright. It’s all gonna be fine. Bill and Hank are here, now. We’re safe.” Clementine scrambled out of Bill’s arms to go comfort the kid.
Bill made a disgruntled face, not loving that. He had just vowed to do better, though. And the crying teenager wasn’t much of a rival, now that his coyote-form had retreated. And Luke was a distraction from Clem’s own fears. And he liked that she cited him as a reason her world was safe again. He supposed she could give Luke two minutes of attention, before he dragged her back into his embrace.
Bill sent Hank an aggrieved look, just so someone could acknowledge he was being downright magnanimous.
Hank rolled his eyes, not impressed with Bill’s restraint. “Clem, I gotta take your full statement about what happened.”
“In a sec.” She stopped next to Luke. “I’m going to hug you now, okay?”
“No, that’s not okay…” Bill began, but Clementine was already wrapping her arms around Luke’s waist.
Well, shit. Bill looked towards the ceiling in a silent bid for patience. He hadn’t promised to be this Good.
Luke froze, like he’d never been hugged before. Probably he hadn’t. Coyotes weren’t big into physical affection, and they sure didn’t let their women hug other coyotes. The kid didn’t know how to react. His hands jerked away, scared to touch her. His red-rimmed eyes slashed over to Bill.
Bill waved a resigned sort of palm. “You might as well just hug her back. We’re not gonna get nowhere until she has her way.”
“Pretty much the Bunyon family motto.” Hank concurred.
Luke’s brow compressed. “Yeah, alright.” He muttered with completely fake reluctance. His arms carefully moved to encircle Clem, gauging how much pressure to use. He must’ve figured it out, because he let out a long sigh and his whole body seemed to relax around her. The kid topped her by a foot, but he just about melted into her smaller body.
“Thank you.” Clem said against Luke’s chest. “You were my hero today.”
He tried to shrug that aside, but it was hard for him to pull off “cool and unaffected” when he was all but cradled in her arms for comfort.
Bill’s mouth curved, watching another heartless coyote get tamed.
“Clem’s gotta way with teenage boys.” Hank said softly. “She had me and my brothers wrapped around her finger within a day of moving in. Seems like it will be the same with your brother.”
“Brother?” Clementine repeated in confusion. “Who? Luke and Bill?”
“That’s the impression I got.” Hank looked at Bill. “You didn’t know about him, I take it?”
“Nope.” He jerked his chin towards Luke’s face. “I once seen a picture of my pa, when he was a boy, though. Now that I think on it, Luke’s got his looks.”
Luke’s expression was agonized. “I look like him. But I’m not like him.”
“Hell of a coincidence that my long-lost sibling moved right next door to me.” Bill mused.
Luke flinched at the sarcasm, not letting go of Clem.
She sent Bill a chastising look over her shoulder, because he was being mean.
He arched a brow, because he was right and they both knew it.
She wrinkled her nose, because he should just be happy to know he had a little brother.
Bill shrugged, because they’d have to see how it went.
Her eyes narrowed.
Bill sighed.
Fine.
“I’m gonna guess Hop put you up to it, for some reason.” He speculated, helping the kid out with the story, because his compassionate mate silently asked him to. “Can’t imagine why he’d bother, since he’s gotta know that I don’t want to reunite with his deadbeat ass.”
“You’re a successful musician.” Luke eased his death grip on Clementine to look Bill’s way. “Pa always wanted that for himself. He can’t stand that you’re getting the chance that he didn’t. He saw you on the internet and just about lost his mind.”
“It amazes me that anyone would follow you on the internet.” Hank scoffed at Bill.
“Lots of folks do.” Bill bragged. “I’m ‘whoopee’ status on Ti-Yi-Yo. Clem takes cactus pictures for me.”
“If I wasn’t so invested in your musical career, I’d be a photography muse.” Clementine decided, rubbing a hand over Luke’s back. “I enjoy all kinds of art.” She kept her tone casual, trying to lull the boy. “Photos are something I can actually do myself, unlike singing.”
“You sing sometimes, when you’re home alone.” Luke murmured. “You’re really bad at it.”
Clem smiled. “I know.”
“I like hearing you, though.”
“Thank you, sweetie-pie.” She held him tight. “Is your father the one who locked you in that room?”
Hank and Bill stiffened.
Luke nodded, his expression wretched. “Pa’s been talking about getting’ some kind of payday from Bill.” Pale brown eyes swung Bill’s way. “I thought it was better to just go along with it. He’s not so mean, if I just go along with him. And I didn’t know you. Why do I care if he steals from a brother I don’t even know?”
Bill nodded, because that did make sense.
“I told Pa that you didn’t have anything. Seemed clear. You worked crappy jobs and lived in a crappy apartment.” Luke’s words tumbled out on top of each other. “But then Clem knocked on my door. And I realized you did have something worth stealing, after all.”
Bill’s blood froze.
“I had to keep Pa away from her. Best way to do that would be to keep you away from her. If Pa knew you had a muse, he might get,” Luke paused, as if he didn’t want to say anything too graphic in front of Clementine, “ interested in her. You get what I mean?”
“Yeah.” Bill said quietly. “I get what you mean.”
Hank muttered a curse.
“But Clem wouldn’t listen to me and leave you. And I knew for dead-sure you wouldn’t leave her. You ain’t stupid. So, it was up to me to protect her from Pa.”
Bill rubbed the back of his neck. “A time or two, I scented something around the complex that gave me pause. Couldn’t get a clear read on it, but I shoulda remembered Hop’s scent and known it was him.”
“Oh, he wasn’t there a lot and he’s good at covering his tracks. He can sneak in anyplace.”
“My coyote was always fine with your scent, though.” Bill met his eyes. “I was thinking it was because you hadn’t shifted yet. But it’s still accepting you, so I guess it feels that you belong with us.”
“I like it here. I decided to tell Pa that I wouldn’t let him go through with his plan. The day after I argued with you at that saloon, he came by the apartment and we got into it.”
That was when Clem and Bill got married. The fight must’ve happened while they were gone or Bill would’ve heard it.
“I feel really bad about yelling at you at the Lone Prairie, Clem.” Luke tacked on, like it was of much greater importance than his father beating him. “I hope it didn’t frighten you or…”
“No.” She interjected. “You never have to worry about that. I know you’re gentle, just like Bill.”
Luke’s breath escaped in a rush. “I like you thinkin’ that, but I’m not gentle. I hurt Pa. I never stood up to him like that before. We fought something awful and I hurt him. He hurt me worse, though.”
Bill was shocked Hop hadn’t outright killed the boy. Luke must’ve been tougher than his too-pretty face and skinny body indicated.
“I guess Pa knocked me out again, 'cause I woke up locked in that room.”
“I told you we should have broken into Luke’s apartment to look for him, when he didn’t answer the door.” Clem chided Bill.
“You wanted to break into someone’s house?” Hank snorted. “You must be the nosy neighbor from hell in that apartment building.”
“I’m very popular! Bill and I are hosting a complex-wide potluck next week, aren’t we, Bill?”
Bill had no idea what a “potluck” was, but he nodded anyway. “Everyone’s lookin’ forward to it.” At least they would be, if they knew what was good for them.
“Pa’s always locking me up.” Luke assured Clem, as if that would somehow mitigate her guilt about not battering down his door. “Sometimes days go by, before he remembers me. My coyote came out, while I was in there. I was just so scared that Pa would get to you. He wants to break everything pretty and nice. He crushed my violin…” Luke’s voice trailed off.
“I’ll get you another one.” Clem continued rubbing his back. “It’ll be okay. That violin was just a way to access your music, not the music itself. No one can destroy your music, no matter how cruel they are. It’s bigger than them.”
Luke smiled a tiny bit, as if he liked that reasoning.
“Where is your father, now?” Hank asked.
“I don’t know. Gone forever, I hope.”
“Don’t worry. I’ll make sure that he never hurts you again.” Clem vowed.
Bill basked in her sweetness. His wife was half Luke’s size, with magic that brought nothing but creativity and joy, and she’d just promised to protect the largest coyote in Red River Valley. …And everyone in the room fully believed she could do it.
“I thought you might hate me now, ‘cause I lied to you about who I am.” Luke muttered, not quite looking Clem in the face.
“I like who you are.” She tilted her head, deliberately reestablishing eye-contact, when he avoided her gaze. “Your father’s actions are all on him. And how you’re related to Bill doesn’t matter to me. I care about Luke .” She smiled. “Although, having a little brother will be a welcomed change.” She sent a teasing wink Hank’s way. “The big ones are such dictators.”
Hank’s lips quirked, love in his expression when he looked at her. “I wouldn’t celebrate too hard. I got a baby sister. The younger ones can be a real pain in the ass.”
Clem laughed and stroked Luke’s hair.
Bill gave up.
She was clearly gonna keep the boy, so there was no sense in fighting it. He wasn’t about to rip a child out of his wife’s arms, even an overgrown, grumpy one.
Bill’s own coyote wasn’t on guard against Luke being near their mate, which indicated that no part of the kid was a threat. In fact, Bill could see flashes of Luke’s coyote peering out of the boy’s eyes, gazing at Clem with a puppy-like eagerness to please.
That gigantic monster had been born in the darkness of Luke’s apartment. The very first person it saw was a woman who cooed that he was a sweetie-pie and promised to keep him safe. It was the damnedest thing Bill ever heard of, but he was fairly sure that coyote had imprinted on Clem as a mother.
Most new coyotes were half-crazed with anger and fear after they shifted. Luke seemed… okay, though. He’d found an anchor in civilization. Maybe coyotes were supposed to have gentle care, as their animal-halves emerged. When had a coyote ever had someone nearby to comfort him with his first transformation? They always struggled through the ordeal alone. Maybe that initial isolation and trauma was why so many coyotes grew up broken.
Maybe that was why so many were scared to need anyone.
Bill cleared his throat. Regardless of the reasons, Luke and his coyote both seemed devoted to Clem, and she was happy with their claim. Bill accepted the fact that the kid was staying with them.
Far worse news was that his long-lost father was back.
Hopalong Kassidy meant nothing to him beyond some violent memories, a lot of resentment, and a few old photos of his momma’s. His reappearance was a real pain in the ass. Bill didn’t appreciate Hop beating on his heretofore unknown sibling. And threatening Clem was his last fucking mistake. Hop was gonna share a grave with Johnny.
“Conduct your murder-spree out in the desert.” Hank implored, looking Bill’s way. “It’ll be a mess to deal with it, here in town.”
It was a pleasant surprise how he and his brother-in-law fell into such a natural understanding of each other. The bachelor party planning was sure to be a breeze, considering Hank could just about read Bill’s mind.
“Bill can’t go on a murder-spree.” Clementine gasped. “His hands are much too delicate!”
Luke snorted in amusement and immediately slapped a palm over his own mouth. The noise seemed to surprise him more than anyone else, like maybe he wasn’t accustomed to finding anything funny.
Clem tugged his wrist down, letting him know it was alright to laugh.
The kid’s expression was positively blissful. Bill fully expected he’d soon be making her Mother’s Day cards and devouring all her enemies with his massive fangs. You couldn’t ask for much more than that, when you were raising up a coyote child.
“Murder spree? Why I am a law-abiding citizen.” Bill sent Hank a bland look. “I don’t leave corpses just lyin’ around the street.”
“You bury them?” Hank guessed.
Bill slowly grinned. “I’ll tell ya, Sheriff, were like two peas in a pod, the way we can communicate.”
“That’s a frightening thought.” Hank massaged his temples. “Just do me a favor and try to allow the justice system to work. Alright? Give it twenty-four hours, before you do anything crazy.”
“Twenty-four hours?”
“Yes. Twenty-four hours to arrest Johnny and your father. Then there will be no need for you to upset Clementine with any massacres.”
He could do that, he supposed. Bill didn’t like to see Clem upset. Besides, it would take a bit of time to plot out his own moves. However Johnny and Hop died, he wanted it to hurt. Bad. He gave a reluctant nod. “Twenty-four hours. But after that…”
Tony Beaver burst into the police station, cutting off Bill’s words. “Sheriff, you gotta come quick!” He pointed over his shoulder, gasping for breath and his tail quivering with agitation. “Somebody just set The Kitchen on fire!”