4. Theo
FOUR
THEO
The sky sagged low as I slipped along the perimeter grounds of The Sanctuary. The night was so dense it felt like it’d become its own entity.
The cold as thick as a block of ice as I trudged through the deep banks of snow that had gathered during the storm.
It was quiet, though. The storm having passed, the disorder replaced by a viscid stillness.
Only movement around was the bare rustle in the tops of the trees. The soaring pines and the majestic oaks standing proud like sentinels guarding the property.
Most of the guests staying at The Sanctuary had long since absconded to their rooms, locked in the warmth to wait out the storm.
Eager as hell for the morning to come since it was likely there would be perfect conditions on the slopes over the next few days after the fresh dumping of snow.
One of the main reasons people flocked to Moonlit Ridge in the winter was the ski resort that was about five miles up the mountain.
Another was simply to sit in awe of the beauty of this place.
In my humble opinion—which if you asked my crew wasn’t all that humble—there were few things more gorgeous than The Sanctuary’s view over the crystalline lake that was surrounded by a dense cloth of woods.
It was even more spectacular when it was blanketed in snow.
The scene evoking utter relaxation as someone cozied up next to the fire with the view and a book.
Not that I ever allowed myself to fall into it.
Never foolish enough to be lulled into a false sense of security when I knew refuge could be flipped to peril in one quick flick of the switch.
Chaos descending in a single beat.
Which was why I took it upon myself to make rounds of The Sanctuary’s grounds several times a night.
Sure.
I had security on the property at all times, but I refused to get complacent with it.
Wasn’t like I could sleep, anyway.
Especially when I had an abuse survivor on the property.
Unit A.
We had six small cabins on The Sanctuary’s grounds.
Two were always reserved for those brought under Sovereign Sanctum’s wing.
Unit A and Unit B.
They were used as housing while the women and children we were protecting were transitioned from their old lives to their new.
Which was why Madge’s eyes had bugged out of her skull when I’d told her I was going to put Piper, her son, and grandmother into Unit B.
She knew I was going off course. Maybe right off the rails with the way Piper immediately lit something inside me.
The woman the fucking storm that she’d ridden in on. Those eyes just as icy as the lake, her demeanor just as frigid.
All that delicious fire sparking underneath.
Something about her gripped me, and it wasn’t just the fact that she had to be the most stunning woman to ever cross my path.
Face this entrancing thing that I could stare at all damn day. Body nothing but bait. My unruly cock far too interested in falling right into that trap.
It was what was scored underneath.
The harrowed desperation that lit the blazing fire in those arctic eyes. Like the only choice she had was fighting every step of the way.
The woman battle clad.
Armor shielding every inch of her heart and turbulent spirit.
It made me fuckin’ antsy. Curls of awareness fluttering around at the edges of my consciousness, a quiet moan that told me she was in trouble.
Didn’t buy for a second that they’d been on their way to Moonlit Ridge for a short vacation.
There was something deeper. Something that made me want to reach in and dig out all her secrets. Promise her I would hold them. Do any fucking thing required to wipe that frenzied panic off her face.
But I couldn’t get close like that. Not with the way I was itching to dive in and discover.
I’d do well to remember it.
I forced my attention back on my purpose. The duty I’d pledged my life to.
A penance for the wrongs, like there’d be a chance in hell that I could make up for them.
I swept my flashlight out into the oppressive woods. The beam of light glinted against the mounds of snow that had gathered thick, the branches of the trees sagging with their weight.
The night echoed back.
A vacant call of nothingness.
Still, I sat in the agitation that never faded.
Waited.
Nothing but the cold, hushed calm.
Blowing out a sigh, I turned and trudged back through the two-foot-deep powder, my legs disappearing up to my knees.
I swept my flashlight back and forth as I went, an edge of severity carved into my being as I searched for any trace that things had gone amiss.
My guts a tangle of aggression as I thought of the monsters that lurked.
Ones that would do anything to uncover this place.
Twisted fiends I wouldn’t hesitate to put in the ground.
When I found nothing, I wound up on the back side of the property, landing myself at the two occupied cabins on the far east side.
My chest tightened, throat nearly closing off as I edged up to Unit A where Alicia and her daughter, Lucy, were staying.
My ear tuned to the sounds coming from inside.
It was just past ten, and I could only make out the faint drone of a television coming from inside, the same as normally echoed back each night at about this time.
They were safe inside.
Still, I eased all the way around it, keeping myself in the shadows as I ensured the area was uncompromised.
Satisfied, I started to head back for my cabin that I’d built on the far west side of the property, only I stalled out.
Unable to move.
A motherfucking hook in my back.
This interest that I couldn’t shake had me making a U and creeping back toward Unit B.
Creep.
A smirk threatened at the edge of my mouth.
She had no idea.
I stole around the perimeter.
The lights were off downstairs, though I could see a muted one glowing up high in the loft from above.
Couldn’t help from wondering what Piper was doing.
If she was curled up in the bed under the covers.
What she was wearing.
Or maybe she was soaking in the tub.
Fuck me.
That was not a direction a wise man would let their mind travel down.
But when it came to her, I wasn’t feeling so wise .
The woman had already caused me to break one of Sovereign Sanctum’s rules. One that could be bent. But I needed to remember the others.
I reined the errant thoughts and forced myself to shift gears and head back down the pathway.
I rechecked along the main part of the motel before I cut across the parking lot and headed to where my cabin was in a secluded spot tucked in the trees, my hands fucking frozen as I let myself in my place.
I flicked on the lights and the switch to the fireplace, letting the flames jump to life so I might be able to thaw out my ass.
I peeled off my leather jacket and tossed it to the rack, then I kicked out of my boots and socks.
My jeans were soaked to nearly the thighs, so I shucked out of them, too, then I went ahead and tossed my tee onto the growing pile on the floor.
Wearing only my underwear, I leaned over and grabbed my phone from the back pocket of my jeans, then strode over to the fire and plopped onto the leather lounger in front of it.
My place was similar in style to the rest of the cabins on the property, though larger. Everything full scale and not meant to be temporary.
The kitchen on the left side of the great room and the living area to the right.
A wall of windows with a massive sliding door led out to the balcony that overhung the placid waters that lapped underneath.
On the left of the kitchen were stairs that led to the second floor.
Thanks to Raven, the baby sister of one of my crew, the décor was done in warm cabin browns, the same as she’d insisted upon for every room at the motel since she’d been the one to help me decorate.
Ensuring the cover was legit and this motel didn’t look like some run-down hovel.
Most of the guests were legit.
But the ones who weren’t? They were the only ones that counted to me.
My stomach fisted as my mind went sailing right back for the one staying in Unit B. Some strange thing inside me warning me how easily she’d come to count . Invading all logic in a beat.
There was no stopping myself from flicking into my phone to the text that I’d sent her earlier. One that had remained unanswered all evening, not that I’d expected a reply.
Me
This is Theo.
When I’d delivered the food, she’d basically snatched the bags out of my hands and slammed the door in my face.
Now, I stared at the three simple words, wondering why the fuck I couldn’t seem to evict the woman from my brain. My fingers hovered over the screen.
I was only checking on her, I rationalized. That was it.
What could that hurt?
I tapped out a message.
Me
You have everything you need?
So much time passed that I didn’t think she would reply, five minutes dragging by like a fucking eon before my phone finally buzzed where I balanced it on my thigh.
Piper
We’re fine.
Could feel the tumult that came with her response. Like it took her everything to offer that tiny bit.
A storm.
That’s what she was.
With that flowing river of white hair and the fire in those eyes.
Me
How was dinner?
Piper
Um, I expected fast food, and you sent steaks. Why was I even surprised?
Me
Because you don’t quite know me yet.
Another few moments went by before she finally responded.
Piper
I’m not going to be around long enough to get to know you.
It was a clear dismissal.
One I should respect.
But I couldn’t shake the sense that there was something more going on with her.
Didn’t matter what lies and obstacles she tried to toss out.
I just wasn’t wired to turn my back on something like that.
Not when I knew firsthand the atrocities of this world. Knew how sick and deranged fiends could get.
That fear radiating out from beneath that ferocity urged me to look closer.
Me
Maybe I want to take care of you while you’re here.
A moment in time to help her if she would accept it.
It was all I could give.
Hell, just that was really pushing past the boundary hedged around my being.
No piece of me truly left because I owed it all.