Bain #2
It takes about an hour for Maddox to join us, and he does so by silently slipping in and sitting in the vacant armchair in the corner, his eyes on her sleeping body, now settled in at my side, between Hunter and me.
Neither of us can seem to stop touching her, and I, not for the first time, wish she could shift. I wish I could hold her human body in my arms and hear her voice.
If Starfall Haven is the hidden town of supernaturals that we think it is, then there must be more information there that can help us figure out how to help her. But of course, along with that comes one terrifying thought.
What if when she does shift, I find out she’s not my fated mate? How am I supposed to not hold her in my arms and not sleep beside her at night?
It would be impossible.
Something wet nudges my cheek, and I open my eyes to find a pair of bright blue eyes, surrounded by a mass of red fur, staring at me.
“Red?” I ask, pushing myself into a seated position and wiping the sleep from my eyes. She stays lying down, but starts wagging her tail at me. “You’re awake!” I say in sudden realization as I gently lift her into my lap and hug her as tight as I dare.
My door bangs open, and the twins come flying in.
“Blue! You’re awake!” Chase says as he runs over. I release her and let him scoop her up as she nuzzles against his neck.
“Remember how exhausted she was last time,” I remind him. It’s clear she’s still tired, but she’s also happy, her tail wagging excitedly. He sets her on the bed as Hunter takes a seat beside her, hugging her gently.
“You scared us. You’ve been out since yesterday.” He pulls back and cups her face. “Stop throwing yourself into danger for us.” She licks right up the center of his face, telling him what she thinks of that situation. It’d be amusing if I didn’t completely understand his worry.
We have no idea what brings her back. There is no guarantee she will come back every time, and every death offers the chance of being permanent.
“Why don’t we get you some food?” I suggest as Chase scratches behind her ears.
She dips her head but doesn’t move off the bed. “I’ve got you,” Hunter says, lifting her into his arms, seeming to read her body language and lack of energy.
“Look who’s awake!” Chase calls out as we move down the stairs.
Gage looks up from his laptop, then drops it on the coffee table, as if it’s not his most valuable possession. “Red!” he yells as he practically runs over to Hunter and pulls her from his arms. She rests her head on his shoulder and closes her eyes, looking content as he hugs her.
It’s so strange, the way she’s so affectionate with all of us. If I had to put my money on which one of us is her mate, I couldn’t. She seems to genuinely care for us all equally.
“Little wolf,” Maddox says calmly as he steps into the living room, his voice filled with emotion, though he tries to contain it.
She turns to him as Gage passes her over.
“So Goddess-damned cute,” Chase mumbles as she cuddles into Maddox. He mumbles something to her as I head to the fridge, remembering how much she ate last time this happened.
Luckily, we are prepared. I cooked up several steaks last night and cut them into little chunks, just in case she woke up soon.
I pull out the plate and head to where Maddox is still holding her, swaying her back and forth.
“Hungry?” I ask, making her ears perk up as she looks over at me. She starts to wiggle, and Maddox sets her down. I place the plate in front of her, and she gobbles up the entire thing within a minute.
“We’ll feed you again when we get back inside,” I tell her, running my fingers over her head. “You’re probably desperate to go out.” She follows me to the back door but is a little hesitant to step outside, looking around as if she expects to see dead bodies out here.
I step out onto the porch, and she follows, looking nervous.
“Everything’s been cleaned up,” Maddox tells her as the rest of them step onto the porch with us.
“And Kane is dead.” She looks at him in surprise.
“We’re still going to look for Starfall Haven, but not until I’ve got a new alpha in place in Westgrove.
I also need to sort out who knew about his attempt on your life.
I don’t want to leave Westgrove completely helpless. There are good people here.”
She butts her head against his leg then rubs her body along it.
“Ready to run?” Chase asks her as he pulls off his shirt. She diverts her gaze as the twins strip and shift, then follows them at a slow pace into the yard, sniffing around a few isolated trees.
“You think he’s out here?” Gage asks after a moment.
“Blaze?” I ask.
“Yeah.”
“Maybe. I don’t sense or smell him, though.”
“I’ll be happy when we can get out of this place,” he says with a sigh.
“Me too.”
I keep Red in my sight at all times, and the twins don’t stray more than ten feet from her. After ten minutes, we all meet at the pond. Gage places a fresh water bowl down for her before tossing her a few cherries, which makes her bark in excitement.
“Red,” Maddox says, lowering himself to a knee in front of her. “I know your magic cleaned you, but I thought you might want to freshen up a bit in the pond?” She moves closer to him, allowing him to run his fingers through the fur on her neck.