Chapter 17 #2
“Alright, alright,” Gage laughed, fanning himself. He jutted his chin in Hudson's direction as the three of us sat back on the outdoor sofa. “So where’s that leave our Garland then? I can't even pick out whose scent is whose with you guys.”
With the biggest, dopiest grin ever, Hudson plopped down in my lap, leaning back into Emery’s chest. “Very, very satisfied.”
Em wrapped an arm around his shoulders, kissing the top of his head.
“Told you,” Malik muttered, holding back a laugh as he stuffed the rest of a hot dog into his mouth.
“Damn, Emery,” Gage breathed, shaking his head. “How’d we get from 'desperately and hopelessly in love with the witch that’s secretly dating the quarterback’ to this?”
Emery tensed at the word none of us had dared utter yet. Yeah, Hudson and I had been a thing for years before he left. Yes, we all knew Emery was madly in love with Hudson. I knew with every fiber of my being that I loved Hudson.
But Em and I had just begun exploring everything between us that wasn't raw, territorial jealousy. And Hudson…
I think wherever he was at might've been the most terrifying notion of all.
Sure, he’d forgiven me, but did he want more than sex? What if now that he knew Emery’s love was more than some ancient magical bond, he could get everything he needed from him?
What if I think I might stay wasn't enough?
“Gage, put another wiener in your mouth and shut up,” Malik snapped, shoving a hot dog at him. “Sorry, guys. Even when we take trips into Philly, we don't really talk to anyone outside of the pack.”
“And everyone knows everyone’s business in a pack,” Emery said, draping an arm over my shoulders and pulling me closer to him.
I braved a glance at him, catching his eye, and that connection between us arched like a bolt of lightning. Something more intense and intelligible than ever passed between us as his gaze flitted down to Hudson.
He didn't even flinch, Ty.
I met Hudson’s eyes to catch him smiling up at me, looking warm and peaceful in our laps like he might fall asleep right there. “What’s up, babe?”
The endearment had me beaming instantly. I could get used to that. “Just staring at my gorgeous guys.”
With a chuckle, Hudson leaned back, puckering up his lips. Emery chuckled, dipping down to meet them with a tender kiss that made my smile stretch.
I really loved seeing the way he loved him.
“So,” Hudson muttered, staring up at Emery with hooded eyes, “you called them here?”
“Mhm.” Em nodded. “I hope that’s okay.”
“You mentioned others that revered the Garlands,” I recalled, turning to the brothers where they’d sprawled out on the grass, staring up at the stars. “That’d be you two, I take it?”
“Yep,” Gage said with a yawn.
“Yessir,” Malik agreed with a little more pep, lolling his head toward us. “Pops and the Garlands go way back. As soon as we told him Emery needed our help, he sent us on our way.”
“Heinrich’s a good man and an admirable wolf,” Emery grunted. “Took me in at the drop of a hat. Helped me understand myself so much better.”
“Yeah, he doesn't ask how Emery is,” Gage said, rolling his eyes. “He wants to know how his other son is faring.”
“Hey,” Malik gave his brother a shove, “he’s old and sentimental. Don't be a jealous prick.”
“He’s not that old.”
“He just passed, what, a hundred and twenty?” Emery asked.
“Years?” I half-shouted, leaning forward. I knew werewolves had an extended lifespan, but for one hundred and twenty to not even be that old?
“Yup,” Malik chimed, sitting upright. “His mother, our grandmother, was one of the original Garland wolves, turned right after the curse was created right here in Felcove.”
“What?” Hudson sat bolt upright with his jaw hanging open. “You two… are the grandchildren of the original Garland pack?”
“That’s us,” Malik said with a glowing smile. “Well… some of them, at least. Gaius and Eleanor, our cousins, haunt the western coast with their pack, usually up in Washington. And there are others that live like Em here, scattered all over the world.”
“I think Barry was in New York last I heard from him,” Gage mumbled before smacking his lips, looking like he was ready to pass out right there in the grass. “Guy’s a fitness model livin’ the posh life. Nobody knows all those muscles are supernaturally enhanced.”
I let out a snort, imagining the scandal if the world found out. Flexing my own bicep, I wondered how changing would affect my own physique. Apart from the sporadic hair growth, that is.
“I’ve never been able to find records of what happened to the original pack,” Hudson said sadly, staring between our guest wolves. “The details just kind of… ended at the turn of the century. Why did they all leave Felcove?”
Gage’s eyes snapped open, locking on Malik’s face. An unspoken conversation, taking place in mere moments. Wary. Afraid, even.
“Guys?” Emery shifted up in his seat, moving his hand from my shoulder to Hudson’s. “What is it?”
“We’re not… supposed to talk about it,” Gage muttered, never taking his eyes off his brother.
“Talk about what?” Hudson pushed, shuffling from our laps to lean forward on the edge of the couch.
“The blood feud,” Malik whispered before sucking his lip piercing between his teeth.
“Mal!” Gage hissed.
“What?!” Malik snapped. “He’s a Garland! The only Garland! If anyone has a right to know what Pops told us…”
Another silent conversation passed between the brothers, ending with a sigh from Gage before Malik met Hudson’s eyes. “Obviously, the Garlands are known for their wolves. The great curse the Cursekeepers couldn’t contain.”
Hudson, Emery, and I all shifted forward in our seats, hanging on every word.
“Our grandmother’s stories tell of a time when the Garlands became locked in a power struggle,” Gage said, wrapping his arms around his knees. “And those without wolves at their side took extreme measures to fight a war against their own family.”
Feeling a tremble run through Hudson’s body beside me, I moved my hand to his back. “Our lineage records in the eighteen hundreds…” he whispered, staring into the embers of our fire, “...they just started to trail off. No cause of death. Only dates.”
“Hudson,” Malik said darkly, staring up at him, “what do you know about the second curse?”
The instant the question left Malik’s lips, the dulling embers of the fire erupted. Emery immediately threw himself over Hudson and me, hauling us over the back of the couch, flipping it like a barricade as the flames of our little bonfire shot seven feet into the air.
“What the hell?” Gage breathed, bolting backward along the grass beside Malik.
“Hudson, it’s just a story!” Malik shouted over the flames. “Old wolf legends! I didn’t mean to upset you, I’m sorry!”
Hudson stared wide-eyed into the small inferno, still held tight between Emery and me. “I… didn’t do that.”