Chapter 101
ONE HUNDRED ONE
FINCH
I stared at the grey sky, watching rain collect on the windowpane, each drop making its own unpredictable path down the glass.
“Come on, pumpkin,” Laurel said. She was crouched by the sectional, a tin of wet cat food in her hand as she tried to coax Muppet out of his hiding spot. “Yes, come on, sweetheart.” She tapped the metal spoon against the tin and made a tsk-tsk-tsk sound.
Slowly, the skinny black cat edged out from under the couch, eyes wide and ears twitching. He cautiously approached Laurel, who scooped some of the wet food into the cat bowl.
“There,” she said, scratching him behind the ears as he started eating. He was still flattened against the ground, and his ears twitched my way when I shifted on the couch.
“There’s a good boy,” she murmured. “You don’t have to hide anymore.” She stroked his back gently. “No one is going to hurt you here,” she continued, her voice growing thicker. “You’re safe now.”
She scooped the cat into her arms, holding him close as she let out a sob. Muppet’s eyes went wide, but he tolerated the sudden hug without protest. I leaned forward, making eye contact with Kaos across the room. He’d frozen, staring at her with wide eyes.
I moved closer, slowly, so as not to alarm the cat, and knelt beside her. I rested my hand on her shoulder, and she looked up at me, her eyes brimming with tears.
I pulled her onto my lap, her cradling the cat and me cradling her.
“Never again,” I said as she cried. “I swear it. You’ll have the best life now. Anything you can dream of, and we’ll make it happen.”
“He can get a cat tree?” she asked, wiping her eyes.
“I’ll build him a cat jungle if he wants.”
“And one of those window seats so he can watch the birds?”
“How about a catio?”
She burst into surprised laughter, and that, apparently, was the last straw. Muppet fled, retreating back to his hiding place in a flash of black fur.
“A catio?” She hiccuped, sitting up and grabbing my shirt. “What on earth is that?”
I stood, pulling us both onto the couch and grabbing her favourite velvety blanket. “It’s like an enclosed outdoor area so he can get fresh air,” I explained. “Seriously. I’ll make it. That cat has suffered enough and deserves the world.”
“You’ve already given him the best gift. That he’s safe.”
“No one is living in fear in my pack,” I told her.
She snuggled into my chest, resting her head on my shoulder, tears still leaking from her eyes.
LAUREL
I gave Kaos a weak smile, and he slid in beside us, tucking his legs up underneath him. Grabbing one of the tissues he’d brought me, I mopped at my wet face.
“Sorry,” I told them.
“Don’t be sorry,” Kaos said. “Do you want to talk about it?”
I sniffed. “It’s just…a lot,” I admitted, another tear sliding down my cheek.
He nodded, looking thoughtful. “It is,” he agreed, making me feel a bit better.
“Sorry. I should be happy. I don’t mean to sound ungrateful.”
“Should be? Says who?” he asked.
I shrugged. “No one, really. It just makes sense.”
“Well, you shouldn't listen to no one, and you definitely shouldn’t listen to sense, especially when it tries to tell you how to feel,” he said. “Feelings are a bit too complicated to be trapped in a box like that.”
I smiled as he slipped his hand into mine.
“I guess you’re right.” I was feeling a bit better. “I’m scared of a lot of things,” I whispered. “That I’m going to let you down. That maybe you’re all hiding a dark side. That all this is too good to be true.”
Finch grumbled and shifted me closer to his chest.
Kaos tapped my head. “I know what it’s like to be stuck in here with all the what-ifs and maybes. They can cripple you and torture you. They want to keep you scared, but you know what’s true?”
I shook my head.
He reached up and stroked my face. “This is. Us, right here. Not the future or the past, but the present. You get to trust what we have here and believe you deserve to enjoy it. Get it?”
“I think so.”
“Good,” he said. “Now, I think you need a cuddle pile.”
He insisted we move to the bedroom, and I climbed onto the bed, and Kaos curled up next to me, his hand resting on my hip. Finch was on the other side, spooning me so I was sandwiched between them. The door creaked open, and I raised my head to find Ocean peering in.
“Oh,” he said. “Sorry, I just wondered where everyone was. Didn’t mean to disturb you.”
“Get in here, you idiot,” Kaos said, tossing a pillow at him.
I squeaked in outrage, bolting upright, and Ocean scooped it up. He hurried over to the bed with the pillow in his hand, and I snatched it, tucking it beside Finch where it belonged.
“Sorry,” Kaos said, nuzzling into my stomach.
Ocean lowered himself onto the mattress beside Finch, and I turned so I could hold his hand over top of Finch’s hip.
OCEAN
I woke up the the scent of Laurel’s charred panic. She was trying to throw off the tangled covers, struggling to get out of bed.
I went to put a hand on her shoulder, and she whirled to face me, eyes wide.
“I’m sorry, I know I’m late,” she gasped, panic written all over her face.
I wrapped my arms around her, tugging her against me. She tensed, clutching at me.
“It’s okay, Laurel. Nothing can hurt you here,” I told her, my heart breaking for my sweet, hurt omega.
“Gone,” she gasped, her fingers digging into my back. “He’s gone, he’s gone.” Her voice was choked with emotion, and tears were spilling from her eyes.
“He’s gone,” I echoed. “You got rid of him. My amazing omega.”
“I’m sorry,” she murmured, but slowly relaxed against me. “Didn’t mean to wake you.”
“That’s okay, I think we’re all going to have nightmares for at least a little while.”
She turned her face up to me, eyes sparkling. I kissed her wet nose.
“Of course,” she said. “What you went through was awful.”
“At least I had you,” I told her. “And the pack. I can’t imagine how much worse it would have been without that.”