10. Finn
Finn
I was in the office, riding the high from spending another morning in Chester’s company, when Evan burst in. My hair stood on end at the sight of his ashen face.
I was on my feet in a second, my wolf poised to take over. “Evan? What’s wrong?”
Evan didn’t answer, dropping into one of the chairs and yanking at his hair. “Fuck!”
Alarmed, I rounded the desk and perched on the arm of the chair next to him. “Talk to me. Are ye in danger? Is anyone we know in danger?”
He shook his head roughly and my wolf retreated.
“Adamanthea?” Normally, we drank whisky. Didn’t get us drunk, but it was traditional. My instincts told me something stronger was required for whatever Evan was dealing with.
He gave a curt nod, pressing the heels of his hands against his eyes. I poured him a double measure, glanced over to see him rocking back and forth, and added the same amount again .
“Here.” I pushed the glass into his hand. “Drink some of this and tell me what happened.”
Evan reached out with a shaky hand, almost spilling the liquid. My brows shot up. When was the last time I’d seen him this affected?
Never. That was when.
“It’s so bad,” Evan said, his eyes haunted. “So fucking bad, Finn. I feel sick.”
It hit me then that he’d been going to Thistle Do Nicely today. After stalking Reid from afar and not getting any hints as to his story, he’d decided to introduce himself. “Is it Chester?”
My wolf was pressing at my skin, trying to force the shift. I held on to the lead tightly, needing to know whatever Evan could tell me.
He shook his head and relief flooded me. “No, it’s Reid. And me. I canna fucking believe this.”
“Okay,” I said slowly, calming now I knew Chester wasn’t involved. “Start at the beginning.”
Evan took a deep swig of his drink. “Remember the diplomatic summit I had to attend?”
My brow furrowed. “The one, like, ten years ago?”
“It was thirteen,” he said quietly, staring into the glass. “Thirteen years ago.”
I remembered. Evan hadn’t been part of the inner circle then, but the summit had been held somewhere Calan, Logan, and I couldn’t go.
Not unless it was war instead of diplomacy on the agenda.
“The one hosted by the Clarkson Clan, right? The jaguar shifters.”
The ones who were responsible for Sarah and Maria’s death. For our alpha leaving us. Although Danny had wiped out those immediately involved, none of us harboured any illusions that some there had known. They might not have had a hand in it, but that didn’t make them innocent.
It was why we’d sent Evan. It wasn’t just a meeting with the Clarkson Clan, but with all the British shifters. We needed to be represented there. Evan had been born after everything happened, and while he knew our past, he didn’t carry the same prejudices we did.
“Aye.” He took another swig of his drink. “There was a boy living there. A child.”
“A jaguar shifter?”
He shook his head once. “A human.”
My brow furrowed. “Why did the Clarkson Clan have a human living with them?”
His eyes met mine and the weariness in them was endless. “Because his parents are both shifters. His father is the clan alpha.”
I stared at him in shock. “That’s not possible.”
“I didn’t think so either.” Evan turned the now empty glass around in his hands. “They tried to keep him hidden, but he saw me playing football with a few of the other shifter kids. He snuck out and asked if he could join in.”
Alarm bells began to ring in the back of my mind. The Clarkson’s were a prideful bunch. Birthing a human child, keeping him hidden…
“He was the image of his dad,” Evan continued, “but there wasn’t a lick of scent on him. He was just a kid. A normal human kid. Bit scrawny but feisty as fuck.”
Reid. It was Reid. It had to be. Oh fuck. Fuck .
I stayed silent, sensing there was more of the story to come. Somehow, I knew the horror of it was lurking in the corner of the room, waiting for Evan to unleash it.
“He followed me around for the whole conference. The alpha tried to insist he return to his quarters, but I told him I didn’t mind. The kid was funny. And he seemed kind of lonely, ye know?”
My chest ached. Yes. I thought I did know. I thought I knew exactly where this story was going.
“On the last morning of the summit, he turned up with bruises on his wrist and a black eye.” The glass cracked in Evan’s hands. “Told me he’d fallen out of a tree the night before. Several of the other kids corroborated his story, so I didn’t think anything of it.”
“Why would you?” I said gently. “That’s not the sort of thing you would’ve come across here. You were brought up to believe that all children are sacred and to be protected.”
“Don’t make excuses for me,” Evan said harshly. “Don’t. I don’t deserve them. You’ve not even heard the worst part yet.”
I nodded for him to continue. “Go on. I’m here. Whatever you’ve got to tell me, I’m here.”
“The child…he asked me to take him away. To bring him back here.” The glass shattered. Tiny shards embedded themselves in Evan’s hands, drawing droplets of blood. He didn’t seem to notice. “I thought he was joking, Finn. I swear, if I’d thought for a second?—”
I cut him off. “Even if you did know he was serious, you couldn’t have just taken him, Evan. It would’ve sparked a war between our clans.”
“But we would’ve fought it, right?” His lower lip trembled. “Right, Finn?”
I reached out to clasp his hand, ignoring the blood smearing over my skin.
“For a child who was being abused? Of course we would have. But that decision wouldn’t have been put on your shoulders, Evan.
You weren’t even part of the inner circle then.
It would’ve been down to me, Logan, and Calan to decide, and we would’ve chosen to fight,” I reassured him, squeezing his hand.
“We’d never leave anyone in that environment, let alone a child. ”
“But I did,” Evan said numbly. “I left him there.”
“Because ye didn’t know,” I said fiercely. “Evan, you were not the one who was abusing him.”
“No, but I could’ve been the one to save him.”
There was nothing I could say. Nothing that’d make Evan believe this wasn’t his fault.
“I mentioned what he’d said to the alpha.” Evan shuddered, like he was coming apart. “Clyde told me the boy was prone to dramatics. That he told tall tales. I shouldn’t have believed him. I should’ve fucking questioned it.”
A tear rolled down Evan’s cheek and my wolf howled. I’d seen Logan cry. Calan too.
But not Evan. Never Evan.
They didn’t stop, falling faster and faster until he was openly weeping.
“I should’ve saved him,” Evan sobbed. “He blames me, and he’s right to. Who the fuck does that to a child?”
I hugged him tightly. “Evil fuckers, that’s who. But it’s not your fault, Evan. You’re not responsible for what happened to Reid.”
“I’m responsible for everything that’s happened since. I didn’t listen to someone in need, someone who asked for my help. I left him there with those monsters. And now, that’s something I have to live with.”
He was wrong, but he wouldn’t listen to me. I wasn’t the one he needed to hear it from. “I’m guessing Reid recognised you today?”
Evan nodded, sobs still shaking his body. “He was furious. I don’t blame him. But you know the worst part?”
“What? ”
“I didn’t know who he was,” he whispered. “I didn’t recognise him. Didn’t even remember what he was talking about until he reminded me.”
“Because you didn’t realise the significance,” I said patiently. “Most people wouldn’t, Evan. He was a kid asking to go with you. If you’d taken him, it would’ve been kidnapping. I’m not surprised you forgot.”
Evan swiped at his eyes, glowering at the floor. “Reid remembered though.He thought I’d save him, instead I condemned him.”
I sat back and studied him, trying to decide what to do. Evan was a cheerful soul, but he had the same stubborn streak all shifters did. His protective nature ran deeper than most too. This knowledge challenged that, made him question who he was.
I didn’t think I was the one who’d be able to answer that for him. Instead, I focused on the most pressing issue. “Okay, we know no jaguar shifters have crossed our borders in the last decade.”
“No.” They weren’t banned per se, but there were strict rules in place thanks to a treaty between our clans. They couldn’t take anyone from our lands—shifter or human. They also couldn’t incite or participate in any violence.
“Exactly.” My face was solemn as I leaned forward on my thighs. “They can’t come into our lands and forcibly take him. Now ask yourself, why is it that Reid chose to move here?”
The blood drained from Evan’s face as he reached the same conclusion I had. “Fuck, he’s in hiding.”
“I think so. What better way to ensure you stay out of their hands than by hiding within the enemy’s borders?”
Evan was on his feet in a second, his body trembling. “He’s going to run. ”
I stood too. “What makes you think that?”
“You didn’t see how scared he was,” Evan said, starting to pace. His bones creaked and cracked as his wolf tried to force the shift. “He was angry, but under that, he was scared.”
“Of you?”
“No.” Evan came to an abrupt halt. “Of his clan, I think. Of being found. Maybe he thinks we’re going to turn his location in.”
“We’d never do that. Reid has to know?—”
“I’ve failed him once before,” Evan said. “At a time when he was far more vulnerable than he is now. Why wouldn’t he expect me to do it again?”
There was too much logic there for me to disagree.
“I have to stop him.” Evan was already halfway to the door. “I can’t let him leave. If he stays here, I can keep him safe. I can?—”
My hand encircled his wrist. “No, Evan. If you go back there now, you’ll spook him further. Let me go.”
Evan flinched. “But?—”
“No,” I said firmly. I hated pulling rank, but sometimes these muppets needed it. “That’s an order, Evan. You’re not to go back there or seek out Reid until I say otherwise.”
A storm flashed in Evan’s eyes, and for a split second, I thought he was going to punch me. But as fast as it had appeared, it vanished. “Fine. But not forever, Finn. Especially if Chester is going to be part of our lives now.”
The subject change almost gave me whiplash. “What makes you think that?”
Evan rolled his eyes, a spark of himself returning. “Please. I didn’t just see Reid today; I met Chester too. If you don’t have that man bed, wed, and bred in a year, I’ll eat my hat. ”
With that he pulled his wrist from my grip and stalked off. I stood still for a second, stunned, before shouting a final retort. “Technically breeding isn’t an option. That’s not how biology works.”
Logan appeared around the corner, smirking at me as he passed. “Oh, Finn babes, you’re definitely doing it wrong.”
A s I approached Thistle Do Nicely, I couldn’t help but feel regret. This wasn’t how I’d intended on seeing Chester in this form again. Not yet, anyway. It was one thing for him to watch my morning swims and for me to visit him as my wolf, but face to face like this?
Definitely not what I’d had in mind.
I wasn’t sure how it was going to go. Especially given Evan’s earlier visit. Although I didn’t know the full details, I suspected it hadn’t had a pleasant ending.
But seeing Reid here was better than showing up at his front door. Sure, I could track him down through the town now I had his scent, but that didn’t feel right. He was likely hating that Evan knew both who he was and where he worked. Taking away the security of his home was a step too far.
Along with the regret, there was a hefty helping of excitement too. I was going to talk to Chester again. Don’t get me wrong, I loved listening to him while shifted, but being near him in this form?
It made me happier than I had any right to be.
That excitement ebbed as I opened the door to the shop to be greeted by a front colder than the arctic .
Chester folded his arms over his chest, glaring at me. “Stop right there, Finn.”
I froze, barely a foot over the threshold. “Um, okay?”
He lifted his chin. His shoulders shook slightly, but there was a steely determination in his eyes that I suspected I could fall in love with.
“Are you here to upset my assistant or excuse your friend’s behaviour?
Because if so, you can turn your unfairly attractive arse around and march it right out of my shop. ”
My lips curled up slowly. “You think my arse is attractive? Thank you.”
Chester blushed, but his stance didn’t waver. “Don’t get all cute on me now, Finn. I’m very protective of Reid, and I won’t have him upset again.”
This man. This man. If I hadn’t already been falling for him, this would’ve done it. “I’m not here to upset Reid or excuse Evan’s behaviour. I just want to make sure he’s okay. Can I talk to him? Please?”
Chester bristled as I took a step towards the counter. “Absolutely not. Tell me what you have to say, and I’ll pass the message on.”
I hesitated. The last thing I wanted to do was push Chester on anything, but what I needed to say couldn’t go through a conduit, especially not one who was unfamiliar with the supe world.
Fortunately, the man in question came to the rescue. “Chester, it’s fine. I told you Finn is safe.”
He had?
Reid blinked up at me and his red rimmed eyes made me wince. “Let’s go outside.”
I nodded, opening the door and giving Reid plenty of room to go past me.
Just before I followed him out, I glanced back at Chester.“Ye might think I’m cute, but ye standing up for Reid like that? That makes ye hot as fuck.”
A pulse of satisfaction hit me as Chester’s jaw dropped. I couldn’t resist sending him a wink before stepping out of his shop.
That’ll give him something to think about.