Chapter 17
Chapter
Seventeen
CHARLOTTE
Evening fell outside Beck’s bedroom window, the sky slipping from gray to the light purple of dusk. I sat curled in the oversized chair with my knees drawn to my chest and a Beck-scented blanket around my shoulders.
I’d spent the day in bed. Beck had held me while I fell apart, ugly crying all over his chest.
But he hadn’t complained, and I knew without asking that he would have held me forever, the two of us snuggled against the pillows with the bed and breakfast quiet around us.
As much as I’d longed to stay in his arms, I finally insisted he take a shower. I couldn’t stand the lingering scent of the alley that clung to his hair. More importantly, I couldn’t stand the idea of him neglecting himself because of me.
The bathroom door opened, releasing a cloud of fragrant steam.
Beck emerged, a towel slung low on his hips and water droplets clinging to his chest hair.
He’d lost weight in the last twenty-four hours, the angles of his face slightly sharper.
Part of me wanted to grab a journal and question him about shifter metabolism, the tug of curiosity almost overcoming the trauma of the last day and a half.
The thought fled as Beck rubbed a second towel over his hair, the muscles in his chest and shoulders rippling. Despite everything, heat stirred low in my body.
Beck slung the towel over his shoulder and squatted in front of my chair. His silver gaze roamed my face.
“Hey, beautiful,” he said softly.
Without warning, fresh tears pricked my eyes. “My entire life is a lie,” I whispered.
“That’s not true.”
I shook my head, tears making hot paths down my cheeks. “He’s been controlling me since I was fourteen. Everything I thought I’d accomplished was him. My degrees. My research.” A shudder passed through me. “He called me his creature.”
Beck took my hand, his fingers tight around mine. “You earned those degrees. You don’t belong to him, Charlotte.”
“How can you say that? You heard what he said.”
“Yes, but I also know more than you about vampires. Everett analyzed your medication. It contains trace amounts of vampire blood. That’s how Henry maintained the bond remotely, even when he wasn’t physically feeding from you.”
Bile burned my throat even as confusion gripped me. “What does that mean?”
“Vampire blood is highly addictive. The vampires control their prey with blood exchanges, luring victims and getting them hooked. If Henry had treated you like a normal member of his stable, you would have never been able to function away from him, let alone travel to Alaska.”
I blinked away tears. “I don’t understand.”
Beck traced gentle circles on the back of my hand.
“The pills he gave you were a slow-drip supply designed to keep you functional but dependent. He built a connection light enough to control you while allowing you to maintain your independence when you’re away from him.
Everett thinks he’s probably only been feeding you his blood for a short time. ”
I nodded, hope flickering in my mind. “He gave me the pills six months ago.”
“The insomnia was probably caused by the medication itself,” Beck said. “Henry needed a way to keep you taking those pills.”
I pulled my hand free so I could remove my glasses. I rubbed at my eyes, soothing the sting. “Why didn’t you tell me all this?”
“I couldn’t.” When I lowered my hand, regret covered Beck’s features.
“The blood bond gives Henry access to your mind. He can probably slip into your dreams and rifle through your head while you’re unconscious.
Telling you about him would have left you vulnerable.
If he thought you were compromised, he could have ordered you to…
” Beck clenched his jaw. “I couldn’t risk it. ”
His meaning sank in. Henry had taken everything from me. Now, he threatened Beck and all of Bear Cove. “Why?” I rasped, fresh tears welling. “What does he want?”
Beck’s mouth formed into a grim line. “I don’t know.
The vampires have always considered us beneath them.
We’re not a threat like the werewolves. There are too many wolves for the vampires to take on without significant losses.
But we’re small and isolated. The vampires could destroy us in a single night if they wanted to. ”
Fear sank its claws deep. If Beck and his brothers were that vulnerable, what could I possibly do to help them?
“Rupert Henry is a real scientist,” Beck said. “That’s what scares the hell out of me. For some reason, he wants the research you’ve collected during your stay here.”
“Because you think he’ll expose you?”
“It’s possible.” Beck rubbed a hand over his mouth. “The vampires have always wanted to wipe out the werewolves. If he can expose bear shifters, it won’t take much to convince the humans that wolf shifters are real. It’s the only thing I can think of.”
An idea sparked in my mind. I sat up straighter, the blanket slipping from my shoulders. “I can’t change my data, but I can make it seem like my experiments were tainted.”
Beck stilled. “What?”
I shoved my glasses back on as a plan took shape in my head. “I can take the fall. Make it look like I messed up the instrument calibration. If I admit to procedural errors, my data becomes worthless. No one will publish it. No one will take it seriously.”
Beck’s eyes widened. “Charlotte—”
“It’s the only leverage Dr. Henry has. If I discredit my own research, he can’t use it to expose you.”
“That will ruin your career.”
Tears blurred my vision, but I blinked them away. “I can’t let your entire community be hurt because of me. I can’t let him destroy Bear Cove.”
Beck moved his hand to my thigh. “We’ll find another way. You don’t have to do this.”
“Yes, I do. It’s my fault he found you. My research led him here. I have to fix this.” Determination coursed through me. “I will fix this.”
“What about your research?” he asked. “Your reputation as a scientist?”
The questions didn’t surprise me. Beck liked to downplay his intelligence, but he was sharper than anyone I’d met. He understood the sacrifice I’d be making if I pretended I’d made such critical errors.
“It doesn’t matter,” I said. “My reputation isn’t worth more than people’s lives.”
He stared at me for a long moment, conflict warring in his eyes. Then he pulled me against his chest and wrapped his arms around me. “You’re the bravest person I’ve ever met.”
I pressed my face into his bare skin, breathing in his scent. Spice and pine and something uniquely Beck. Magic, I realized.
“I’m terrified,” I admitted, my voice muffled against his chest.
“I know.” He kissed the top of my head. “But we’re going to get through this together.”
He held me that way for a long moment. When he eased back, love shone in his eyes. “I’m going to make you dinner while you work. You need to eat something.”
“So do you.”
“Anything in particular you’d like?”
“If you make it, I’ll eat it.”
His smile was soft—and a little sad. “What every cook wants to hear.” Rising, he pulled me to my feet. “Come on. I’ll take you to your room.”
“In a towel?”
He lifted a brow as he tugged me toward the door. “I’m a shifter. Clothing is always optional.”
He laced his fingers with mine and led me to my room. At the doorway, he leaned in and gave me a slow, tender kiss. When he pulled back, he tucked a strand of hair behind my ear. “I’ll get dressed. Then I’ll be right downstairs if you need me.”
“Okay.” I watched him head down the hall, my lips tingling from his kiss. Then I turned and crossed to my desk. My laptop was closed. So was the field journal next to it.
I sat and opened my laptop. Dr. Henry had taken so much from me. My trust. My sense of safety. The friendship I’d cherished.
But he wouldn’t take Beck. He wouldn’t take Bear Cove.
Drawing a deep breath, I pulled up a new document and began typing.
My fingers flew over the keys, the words coming more easily than I expected.
I described errors in my equipment calibration and flaws in my data collection methods.
Contaminated samples. Clumsy methodology and imprecise measurements.
My head was clear, my eyes dry. A sense of purpose hummed deep in my bones. Maybe because, for the first time in my life, I was making a choice that was entirely my own.