Chapter 5 Wren
Wren
“Poachers?”
Wren stared at the image of an eye carved into the tree trunk Bianca had found on her fence-checking rounds around the perimeter of the sanctuary. The carving was still fresh, the sap still bleeding so it looked like it was crying.
He snapped a quick photo of it and sent it to the group chat. Just one more to add to the growing pile they had with zero answers. But they’d agreed to keep a log so…
“Worse,” he said, stomach turning.
Bianca’s frown of skepticism wasn’t unwarranted—there was a top ten list of worst humans on the planet and poachers made top three. Wren didn’t know how to explain that whatever this eyes cult was might be much more sinister.
“I don’t want anyone here alone, especially at night,” Wren said.
“I’ll let everyone know…but what is this about, Wren? I know that a few zoos have been targeted lately. That Komodo dragon going missing was the latest one on the news, and we’ve heard about more through back channels. Is the sanctuary in danger?” she asked, dark eyes glimmering with anxiety.
“Not if I have anything to say about it,” Wren growled, clenching his small fists. “They picked the wrong place to mess with.”
“Who are they?”
“A group that’s been cropping up in cases lately inside the city. Dangerous cases.”
“But why would they come all the way out here? What do they want with all these animals? Is it to do with that liquid you had us test?” Bianca asked.
“I don’t know,” Wren said, and he hated that was the answer.
This place was supposed to be what it was named after. A sanctuary and safe haven for all those that had been cruelly treated…and yes, that included humans sometimes. The people Wren had hired all had their stories, but the thing that bound them together was a joint fight and cause.
Bianca was one of the first people he’d hired on when he’d built the place, his cursebreaker obligations making it necessary. She was an activist who’d had one too many wraps on the knuckles from the local police for anyone else to take a chance on her.
Except Wren, who didn’t see purple hair, tattoos, and a rap sheet. He only saw the good she had done rescuing animals from testing facilities or sneaking into zoos to expose poor treatment.
“I’ll brief the team and we’ll do extra walkarounds.” Bianca set her jaw stubbornly. “I’ll sleep in the break room if I have to. No one is getting in here.”
Wren half smiled. “Use the house, at least.”
She looked scandalized. “Before you?”
“It’s been sitting there for years now—”
“For when you move in.”
Wren laughed without humor. “Yeah, sure.”
“One day it’ll happen,” she said confidently. “And no one else is stepping foot in there until it does.”
Wren didn’t share her optimism. He glanced toward the tiny structure even though it wasn’t in view.
He could picture every detail clearly though—he’d been drawing it since he was a child.
A tiny home with green shutters and a green door, big enough to nest inside with no extra space to make it feel cavernous or lonely.
There was a soft surface in every room to fall onto, and the bed in the loft room took up nearly the entire floor.
And in the corner, a desk with an empty chair gathering dust.
He looked away and indicated for Bianca to follow him before the image could swallow him whole. “I’ll send the wiped footage in. Maybe they can recover something from it.”
Bianca matched his step in her dirty hiking boots. “Sure. Maybe they can be useful for once and actually spend resources on things that matter.”
“Were the animals disturbed?” Wren asked.
“Not that I know of. Tina and I checked everyone over thoroughly before I called you,” she said. “The only one it’s hard to know with is Sable. He’s still pining.”
Wren made a sad pout. “Poor kitty.”
“I’m pretty sure he’s in love with you. Scratch that—the whole sanctuary is in love with you, so I suppose it’s not that much different, but Sable really takes it to new heights.”
They exited the woodland and headed to the entrance of the main building that housed all the admin and staff spaces. The storage rooms for feed and indoor enclosures were in different buildings scattered throughout the thirty acres of land Wren had spent every slate he had on.
They didn’t bother wiping their boots, tracking in dirt that accumulated on top of what was already there. Bianca unhooked her utility belt from her green overalls and hung it up next to some others, a keychain of a plush frog marking it as unmistakably hers.
“I’ll go talk to him,” Wren said, greeting Blu as he flew over from the perch Wren had left him on. “Maybe stay overnight if a case doesn’t come in.”
Bianca grinned. “We would appreciate it. He’s always a little more workable after a visit from you. We can update the board.”
Wren looked at the Naughty Animal of the Day poster that was pinned on the wall. Underneath it was Sable’s grumpy face and the note: hid from Tina, then snuck up on her and pushed her into the water. (I know it was on purpose, he thinks he’s slick.)
Wren smothered his giggle behind his hand.
“Don’t let Tina catch you laughing. She’s still salty about it. She swears retribution by giving him less snackies.”
“He was just playing. He deserves snackies.”
Bianca rolled her eyes. “Of course you’d think that. Good news is that Tina went into the city to do some fundraising, so you’re safe to do it behind her back.”
“I don’t need to do anything behind anyone’s back,” he declared, rolling his drooping hoodie sleeves up.
“Okay, rebel, I’ll—” She cut herself off. “Did the raccoon you just brought in do that?”
Wren glanced down at his shoddily bandaged arm. “It’s a scratch.”
“He’ll say, even when his arm is hanging from its socket.”
“I treated it. I’m fine.” Wren made his way to the back door. He didn’t want another lecture—he got enough of them at home.
“No one believes you when you say that!” she called to his back.
Wren waved her off over his shoulder before exiting the building and starting down the dirt path.
He felt a sense of peace wash over him as he walked, surrounded on all sides by nature, secure in the knowledge that the animals here were safe and sound under his care.
Despite how much he loved those he had come to see as brothers, as pack, there really was nowhere he wanted to be but here, in a place he had chosen and built himself, with a purpose that wasn’t beholden to Nexus.
He stopped by all the enclosures, paying attention to each and every animal and doing his own checks. He trusted Bianca and Tina implicitly, but there were things he could see that they couldn’t.
Luckily there were zero new curse traces, only those that he had left on animals to ensure their well-being. By the time he reached Sable’s massive enclosure, hours had passed blissfully.
He unlocked the door and slipped inside, happy to see that the foliage had really come together, making a not-quite-perfect, but passable recreation of Sable’s natural habitat. Tina was amazing at creating them, her degree in environmental science invaluable to their work here.
Wren ignored the burst of humidity on his skin, keeping his eyes on the trees for a glimpse of his kitty cat.
“Sable?” he called. “You aren’t going to ignore me, are you? I know you’re mad.”
He heard a distant grumbling and smirked, following the sound. Blu twittered in exasperation. “Tantrum. Tantrum.”
“Quiet, you,” Wren chided. “You throw enough of those yourself.”
Blu’s responding chirp was a gasp of affront.
Shaking his head, Wren continued to pick his way through, stopping by a large rock Sable liked to lounge on.
Wren took a seat there and pulled his legs up, his knees poking through the massive holes in his distressed jeans.
He closed his eyes and waited.
Trees rustled as Sable crept closer above him, but Wren kept his eyes firmly shut.
A few moments passed before Sable made a noise like a cough.
Wren cracked one eye open, catching Sable turning his head quickly, acting as if he had been ignoring Wren all along even though he was begging for attention.
Suppressing a laugh, Wren closed his eyes again, humming to himself.
A thump sounded before a large face pushed into his. Wren giggled, cradling his large skull. “Oh, hello. Didn’t see you there.”
Sable grumbled some more, rubbing their scarred cheeks together.
“Yes, yes, I missed you too, handsome.”
The large animal took that as his cue to just sprawl across Wren’s legs, pinning him to the ground.
“Oof. They’ve been feeding you well, I see.” Wren huffed and Sable threw him an affronted look before closing his eyes and wiggling to get comfortable.
Wren dug his fingers into Sable’s shiny fur and stroked down his back.
“I’m so happy you’re doing so well,” he whispered. “I’m happy I could give you a home, and I promise nothing bad will ever happen to you again.”
Sable squinted one eye open at the word “bad,” and Wren nodded.
“You keep an eye out, yeah? Watch over this place, and if you spot anything, let me know. I’ll fix it. I promise I’ll always fix it.”
Sable nudged Wren’s stomach with his head and sighed before relaxing and settling in for a nap. Wren kept stroking him, leaning back against the rock and closing his own eyes.
He’d stay there forever if allowed.
If only he’d been born without the damn mark on him he could have had the life he’d always dreamed of.
His sanctuary. His friends. His animals. His little home.
And maybe…Teddy.
Except Teddy had a mark too.
He shook his head to get the thoughts out. He didn’t want to dwell on Teddy now. He was calm for a change. Sable helped make the restless feeling settle, at least a bit, and he wanted to enjoy it as much as he could.