Chapter 20
Chapter Twenty
Dane
“We’re not getting any more intel on your mate than we already have, brother,” Coby remarks, throwing himself back in his chair.
We’d been at it for days trying to find out what we could on dream walkers. All that we’ve found out is that dream walkers were creatures to be cautious around. You didn’t know if they’d screw with you. Though they couldn’t do anything while you were awake, they could do serious damage in your sleep.
“What do we know about the day Bandit found her?”
Raine’s parents had given me all the information they had about finding her. It wasn’t much, no one had reported a baby missing. No one was spotted in the area. It’s like Raine had just appeared out of nowhere.
What I’ve been able to put together with what we found, our theory is that she’d been left in this particular spot because it was a known blood witches path years ago. Our theory is that she had been left to them for those blood witches as a sacrifice or offering, which I don’t know.
After I told Raine about her being partially a dream walker, she didn’t want to hear more. I couldn’t blame her. She’s had shit coming at her from several angles, and I gotta take care of her. With the attack on her, her finding out she’s my mate, us working shit out, and finding this out right on top of everything else, she needed a pause on at least this for the time being.
Until she’s ready, Coby and I were working on making sure we find what we can on dream walkers.
“We don’t know much more than you already were able to gather up intel of,” Coby answers, drawing me out of my thoughts.
Nodding, I let out an irritable sigh. “Right,” I mutter and look at the maps on two of the screens he’s got up on the wall of monitors in his office. “We’ve got a shipment for Orpheus we still gotta get out. I need to make sure of the best route to take. I don’t want to use one of our usual ones. With the fact Raine’s ex is Contreras, I’m not taking chances of him having been watching.”
“Why don’t we do this run using the old, abandoned paths?” Coby suggests.
“Which paths are you talking about?” There were more than a few paths that had been abandoned. Some of those paths we don’t use because it’s an unspoken rule not to use them as they’re supposed to be sacred or some shit.
“The ones that run right along the back of town through the hills.”
Looking at the maps, I know exactly which paths Coby’s talking about. “You talking about this one?” I point at the map, running my finger along the trail. My eyes taking in the path on the map, seeing the potential issues it could bring. There’s no actual road there. It’s all a dirt path with overgrown brush. Bikers could get stuck in the mud. That area could be protected, and we wouldn’t be able to use it anyway because of magic. Who the hell knows.
“Yeah, that’s the one,” Coby mutters. Without looking at him, I know he’s out of his seat and joining me at the monitors. He points out the trails off the path. “There are also these. We can check them out, take a look at them, make sure they’re good before you confirm the route the guys are gonna take on this run.”
“I’ll be on it with them, but yeah, let’s go find Tucker. The three of us can go check it out. See what’s happening,” I tell Coby and head for the door. “First, gonna check in with Raine, let her know I’m heading out.”
“Sounds good,” Coby grunts, sounding a bit off.
I don’t know what it is, but it doesn’t sit well with me the way he says this. But I have never not been able to trust one of my brothers. It could be that he’s got something on his mind and doesn’t want to talk about it. Regardless, something’s up with him, and I know it.
It’s not hard to find Raine. I follow her scent through the clubhouse, out the back door, and to a wooden swing my dad had gotten for Karsyn not long after we found out about her. Karsyn liked to be able to sit outside and enjoy the sun as much as possible. Corbin doesn’t like for my sister to be far from him for long. A lot of it is because he’s crazy about her. But I’m sure it also has to do with the dangers that threaten her. I don’t blame my Prez for being as he is with my sister.
In fact, I understand him even more now. He and Tucker both. I don’t want anyone to take her away from me. I won’t let anyone get close enough to be able to come near her if they threaten her in any way.
“What’re you doin’ out here, baby?” I ask, moving toward her.
“Just getting fresh air,” Raine answers, tilting her head in my direction, a small smile playing on her lips.
“Couldn’t come get me first?” It’s not that she needed to come get me, but with what I know about my mate, I don’t like the idea of her being far from me.
“I wanted to get fresh air,” she shrugs, “so, I’m getting fresh air.”
Meaning she wanted to sit out here and clear her head of what’s bothering her.
“Wanna talk about what’s on your mind?” I ask, squatting down in front of her. “You found out something about yourself that you didn’t know.”
“I know that,” she murmurs and looks away from me, drawing her knees up into the swing, arms going around them. “I don’t understand it. Any of it. I mean, I’ve known about shifters, witches, and even vampires, though I’ve never seen one, all my life. I didn’t know there was more out there.”
“There’s more than you can imagine, dolcezza . Some of the shit out there would scare you into hiding away from the rest of the world if you knew about it. You know my sister is more than just an earth witch. You know Lake is a fairy.”
“I still struggle with knowing that.”
Reaching out, I curl a hand around the back of her neck while moving in closer, forcing her to have to drop her knees. “You’ll get used to all of the stuff you don’t already know, baby, but it’ll take a bit of time. Right now, though, I need to know where your head’s at with you being a dream walker.”
“A dream walker,” she whispers.“I don’t understand how I can be a dream walker. It’s always been you who comes into my dreams.”
“I don’t get it fully myself, Raine, but from what I found, my wolf was able to be your dreams because we’re your anchor. We protect you in sleep just as we do in the light of day. There’s more to you being a dream walker than any of us know. The potential is unknown to what a dream walker can do. What we know is that if in the wrong hands, a dream walker can do damage to those unconscious.”
“So pretty much a dream walker could end up being someone’s bogeyman.”
“About sums it up,” I agree, tightening my fingers on her neck. “But you ain’t that, baby. You’re never gonna be that ‘cause I won’t let it happen. No matter what happens between us, you can always fuckin’ guarantee that I won’t let anyone take you away from me and turn you into anything or anyone that you aren’t right here and now.”
Raine is silent for a long moment before finally speaking, asking a question I knew was coming, “Do you know anything about my birth parents?”
“No, Raine, baby, unfortunately, I don’t. We’ve looked for answers, so I give you answers to that very question, but we haven’t found anything. Only thing we know is that you were left where Bandit found you.”
“So, how exactly do we know I’m a dream walker. I mean, can it even be confirmed that I am what you say I am?”
“Did you know you sleepwalk?” I hate that I have to ask this.
“Sleepwalk?” At any other time, I’d find her furrowing brows cute, but not this time. “I sleepwalk?”
“Yeah, dolcezza , you sleepwalk. Saw you doing it the other night. You walked right out of my room, totally out of it, and came searching for me. Didn’t say anything, but I knew without a doubt that’s exactly what you were doing.”
“I didn’t know I did that,” she whispers hesitantly like she didn’t want to have to admit this .
“I figured you didn’t know.” It bugs me because it has me questioning if she, by chance, did this while she’d been at the hands of her ex.
Raine shakes her head and clears her throat. “So, what has you coming in search of me anyway?” she asks, changing the subject. “Did you finish what you were doing with Coby?”
“Somewhat,” I say, standing from my squat. “I’m gonna head out with my brothers for a bit,” I pull her out of the swing. “Want you to stay in the clubhouse while we go to do it.” I wrap my arms around her waist and tug her flush against my front.
“Could I come with you?”
Now, that question surprises me. “Club business, Raine, can’t let you do that?”
“Why?”
“Because what I’m doing for the club isn’t something I want to take you with me for. You’re safe here at the clubhouse. Nobody can get to you here.”
Raine sighs heavily, and I get she’s tired of being at the clubhouse constantly.
“How about when I get back, we’ll go for a ride on my bike? Then we’ll go to my place. Maybe swing into town and have dinner at Raider’s Hook?” It’s the club’s restaurant, and it’s damn good, so I don’t mind taking her there. There, I know someone else will be around and will be able to help me watch for anyone interested in my woman.
“I love Raider’s Hook.” Raine smiles brightly for the first time since I found her out here.
“Yea?” How had I never seen her at Raider’s Hook before?
“Yeah, the BBQ plate with the seafood pasta as a side is my go-to for when I’m in a rush,” she states, not losing that smile of hers.
“So noted,” I mutter. “Let’s get you inside. I’ll get what I gotta get done done , then come back, get you, and take you to Raider’s Hook then. Okay?”
“Okay,” Raine answers with a nod and leans in, head tilted back.
I take her lips in a kiss that has my cock jerking with need.
Later, once I have this job handled and out of the way, I’ll take Raine for a ride, take her to Raider’s Hook, then take her to my place, where I’ll start on the couch and end with us in my bed.