10. Thorn
10
THORN
I’m miles away from the cabin when I realize something is wrong. Someone has been here in my part of the forest. I catch their scent and run faster, knowing two shifters are near. Levi is back, and he brought his brother, Weston, as backup.
Why the fuck can’t they just let me be?
The closer I get, the clearer their scents get, but it’s not until I smell Abbie’s unique scent mingled with theirs that I really lose my shit. If I wasn’t already in my wolf form, I would be now. As I run toward the cabin, I become more animal than human as possessiveness and the need to protect my mate takes over every cell of my body.
My mind is clouded with rage when I realize they took her. My mate is not at the cabin where I left her. Instantly, images of her hurt or even worse pop into my mind, making my wolf whimper.
I don’t have to look for clues to know where she is. Or at least to find someone who knows where she is. Without a second glance at the cabin, I change my course and start running toward the village I haven’t visited in over a decade. I don’t know why my old pack took her, but I’m about to find out. And they are going to find out what happens when they take something that’s mine.
I run up the mountain as fast as my paws carry me. When I finally get to the edge of the village, part of my old pack is already waiting for me.
Alistair—the leader of them—is standing tall, his arms folded across his chest as he scolds me like a disappointed parent. Levi and Weston flank him, wearing similar expressions on their faces.
Shifting into my human form mid stride, I growl, “Where is she?! Tell me, or I swear I will tear this entire place apart!”
“Calm yourself before we have to put you down,” Alistair warns. “We can’t let you do this again.”
“This is different,” I grit through my teeth. “She is my mate. I marked her, and she loves me.”
“Then why did she want to leave? She came willingly.”
“You are lying!” I take a threatening step toward them. If they think I won’t be able to take all three of them, they are mistaken. I will do anything to get to her.
“He is not,” Levi confirms. “After we told her what you did to her mother, she happily came with us.”
“Her mother? What the fuck are you talking about?”
“Lily was her mother,” Weston explains.
His words are like a sucker punch to the gut, knocking all the air out of me.
“No.” I shake my head in denial. This can’t be true. Abigail… Lily’s daughter? I stumble backward, my knees suddenly go weak as all the information sinks in. Lily is dead?
“I have to talk to her. I have to explain. Tell me where she is.”
“You need to leave her be and go back to your cabin, Thorn. She is not yours. She belongs with her family.”
“I’m her family, and those women she stayed with tried to kill her!”
It’s the worry flashing over Levi’s eyes that gives him away and makes me realize where Abigail is.
Fuck, they took her back there.
I shift back, spin around, and start running, ignoring Levi and Weston calling after me to wait. I can hear them follow me through the woods, but I don’t really care if they’re coming. All I care about is getting to Abby and making sure she’s unharmed.
A sense of déjà vu sets in as I run through the forest back to the house where I first found Abigail. Even the same anxiety sits on my chest like a fifty-pound weight. The only difference is that this time I know why. My mate is in danger, and I’m the only one who can save her.
When I finally get to the house, I shift as I run up to the porch. This time, I don’t bother knocking before I simply throw my shoulder into the door. The wood bursts away, not standing a chance for my shift or strength. I’m vaguely aware of Levi and Weston still hot on my tail, but that thought is pushed aside when three high-pitched screams fill my ears.
“Shut the fuck up!” I roar at the women.
I’m about to demand where she is, but Abigail’s scent hangs heavy in the air. I know she is here, and when I catch the sound of someone banging at the basement ceiling, I know exactly where she is.
“If there is one fucking hair on her head out of place, I will kill all three of you.” I leave them with my warning and make my way through the house to find the basement door.
I don’t hear her heartbeat or sense that she is on the other side, so I simply kick in the door. The wood explodes, pieces ricochet off the walls and down the stone stairs.
My bare feet smack against each step as I run into the dark basement. Abbie is knocking against something, and I follow that sound down a hallway to a door. Grabbing the handle, I try to open the door, but it’s locked.
“Step away from the door and cover your head. I’m kicking in the door,” I yell through the door.
The knocking stops, and I hear her move away into the corner of the room. I don’t use a lot of my strength, not wanting to hit her with any flying pieces of wood, but even a light kick against the knob has the door flying open.
I find Abbie huddled up in the corner of the room, protecting her head with her arms. She realizes the door is open and looks up at me with glassy eyes before jumping up and running straight into my open arms.
Holding her to my chest tightly, I bury my face into her hair and suck in a breath like it’s the first one I’ve ever taken.
For a single moment, everything is all right. She is alive and safe, in my arms, and nothing is going to stop me from taking her home. Everything is fine until I take another breath, and through her flowery scent, I catch the unmistakable smell of blood… her blood.
“Abbie, you’re bleeding.” I push her away from my body just far enough so I can look at her and check for injuries. Her new clothes are ripped, her sweater hanging off her shoulder, and one of her bra straps has snapped.
I grind my molars together painfully as my eyes roam down her body all the way to her bare feet, where blood is pooling between her toes. “It’s your foot.”
Wasting no time, I pick up my little mate and hold her to my chest. She wraps her arms around my neck, holding me as if she is scared I’ll let her go. She brings her hand to cup my jaw. Leaning in, she places a soft kiss on my lips, and that is all the confirmation I need. She knows I love her, just like I know she loves me. We are made for each other in every way.
Only when I turn around do I notice Levi has followed me down here and is watching us with a surprised expression. Abigail turns her face into my shoulder while I push past Levi to get up the stairs.
My intentions are to walk out the back door and take her back to my cabin, but when I hear Abbie’s stepmother yell at Weston in the other room, I know we can’t leave just yet. I follow the shouting into the large living room where Abbie’s stepmother and stepsisters are sitting on one of the couches. Weston is standing in front of them, his arms crossed, and an angry frown on his face.
“I hate liars, and you are the worst kind of liar, so sit down and shut up,” he orders in a tone that leaves no room for discussion.
“Why was my mate locked in the basement?” I question, taking a seat on the couch farthest away from them. “And who the fuck ripped her clothes?”
No one says anything, which really doesn't matter because I plan to kill all three of them.
While keeping Abbie sitting on my lap, I cradle her foot into my hand and inspect the sole, where I find a small shard of glass embedded into her delicate skin. Carefully, I take the small piece between my fingertips and pull it out quickly.
“It will heal.” Levi appears beside us, scanning Abigail’s foot. “She’ll be fine.”
“No thanks to you!”
“That’s fair. I deserve that and more, but right now, can we leave and talk somewhere more private?” Levi lifts his chin toward the three women on the couch.
“Yes,” I agree, standing up. “But don’t think this is over. I’m coming back for you.”
I carry my mate out of the house with my two former pack brothers following me.
As soon as we are out of earshot, Levi starts to talk, “I admit that we were wrong for bringing her back here. We misread the situation. I thought she wasn’t safe with you and that I was protecting her from you.”
“I told you, she is my mate, and I would never hurt her.”
“We know that now, but after what happened with Lily, we couldn’t be sure.” Abigail's whole body stiffens at the mention of her mother’s name. “You killed her.”
I freeze. “What? Why would you say something fucked up like that?”
Levi and his brother exchange stares, but Weston speaks next. “Everyone thinks you killed her because you found out she had married someone else.”
“I had no idea about any of this. I didn’t even know she was dead until today, and I certainly didn’t know Abigail was her daughter, though now it makes sense why I felt so drawn to her back then when she wasn’t my mate.”
“Shit. I'm sorry,” Levi apologizes. “I’m sorry for all of it. All the evidence led us to you and when you left we thought it was because you knew we would have shunned you anyways for killing a human.”
“Please come back to talk to Alistair and the rest of the pack,” Westin offers. “We can get everything straightened out, and your name cleared. You could rejoin us.”
“I left because I didn’t want to be part of that anymore. Why would I come back now?”
“Because you have a mate now, and your mate might not want to live in a secluded cabin, or raise cubs without other families close by.”
As much as I want to shove his invitation back down his throat, part of me knows he is right. I can’t hide my mate away from the world, and children are happier growing up with other kids their age.
“We also have a doctor in town now. She could take a look at her foot and make sure she is healthy,” Weston offers.
“Fine,” I agree. Though I’m not happy about it, the prospect of having a doctor confirming that Abigail is going to be fine is a great plus. “We’ll come with you, but I make no promises to stay.”
“Fair enough. My truck is parked about half a mile away. We can drive the rest of the way.”
We walk to his truck in silence, where Levi hands me a set of extra clothes after getting dressed. I place Abigail in the back seat sideways and slide in beside her, then I gently lift her foot and place it on my lap. She smiles and reaches for my hand. I have so much to tell her, but right now, simply holding her hand seems enough.
I am so concentrated on my mate, the drive goes by in no time, and I’m shocked to look up and find we have arrived.
It’s odd being in a place where I spent so many years but haven’t been in over a decade. This small town holds many happy memories for me, but those weren’t enough to keep me from leaving.
Levi parks his truck in front of Alistair's house. The front door opens just as the engine stops running. I’m just about to open the door when Abigail starts shaking next to me, and a wave of fear emits from her tiny body. Abigail wraps her fingers around my wrist, getting my attention. I turn my head to find her beautiful face stricken with fear. Her skin is ghostly pale, and there is a panic in her eyes that chills me to the bone, especially when I realize what she is looking at.
Alistair.
“What did he do to you?”
Both Levi and Weston turn around in their seats. They don’t have to be mated to her to be able to smell her fear. “I’ll keep him away,” Levi offers and gets out of the car.
I watch him talk to Alistair and usher him back inside, but Abigail is growing more panicked by the second. Her whole body is shaking, and for the first time since I found her, I just want her to talk so she can tell me everything.
“Paper,” I blurt out. “I need a pen and paper.”
Weston digs around in the glove box for a moment before handing it over to us. I put it in Abigail’s shaking hand and watch her write the words…
I know this man.
I don’t have to ask if she is sure because I know she is. I can feel it. “How?”
He is friends with my stepmom.