Chapter 17
Ezra stared at the bag Rourke pushed at him. Inside was a pair of striped pajama bottoms. They exited the shop and headed into another one across the street. He kept close to Rourke, nervously looking around. He'd never been here, and he hadn't been prepared for all the people moving around.
Rourke towered over them, and more than one person gaped at him.
Ezra didn't mind. It meant they weren't paying attention to him, at least not until Rourke grabbed his arm and pulled him closer.
"Do you need any clothes? I'm grabbing a couple of T-shirts for me.
" His breath was tickling his ear, and he shivered.
Rourke must've noticed because he cupped Ezra's neck and caressed him with his thumb.
Or maybe he did it for no reason at all.
"I have clothes."
"I'm well aware, but I tore one of your shirts. Pick a new one." Then he let go of Ezra and headed to a shelf with what Ezra assumed were T-shirts.
Dazed, he remained in the same spot. Pick a new one? How?
"Can I help you?" A young woman with pink hair and a nose piercing smiled at him. He noted a name tag on her chest which had to mean she worked here, right?
"I...eh...I'm looking for a shirt."
She nodded. "Button-down? Or more like..
.This just came in." She walked away, and he hesitated for a moment before following.
"It has some cool details." She grabbed a black shirt with a flowery pattern in blue and purple on the inside of the collar and the plackets.
"Nice, right?" She beamed at him. "Since you're all dressed in black, I assume it's your preferred color.
" She raised an eyebrow in inquiry, and he nodded.
"Figured. But this is black, and the colorful pattern only shows if you roll up the sleeves.
" She showed the inside of the sleeves. "It livens things up a bit.
" She held one against his chest and nodded.
Then she looked around the shop. "I have a black shirt with a mandarin collar over here.
" And then she was off again, still holding on to the shirt with the flowers.
Ezra followed her and watched as she riffled through the shirts.
"Here!" She held one in front of him. It looked to be his size. She pushed it against his chest, then swapped it for the flowery one. "I'm in favor of the first one, but you're the one who'll wear it. Do you want to try them on? We have fitting rooms over here." And off she went again.
"Eh..."
"In you go." She motioned at an empty booth and more or less shoved the shirts into his arms. Ezra let out a shaky breath as he found himself alone in the tiny room.
He removed his shirt but kept the T-shirt underneath on, then he tried on the one with the flowery details. He liked it, but he'd never worn anything with flowers on.
"How's it going?"
He jerked at the woman's voice. "Good."
She opened the door, and he almost squawked.
"Oh, it's perfect! Cool."
Cool? Ezra wasn't cool.
"Try the other." She pulled her head out and closed the door. His hands shook slightly as he unbuttoned the shirt and put the other one on.
"Are you decent?" She opened the door before he could reply.
"Hmm. It looks good. A little plainer, but it emphasizes your frame."
Did he want to emphasize his frame? No one in the pack could've missed how scrawny he was compared to them, but did he want to enhance it?
Rourke towered over the woman. "Looks good."
She jumped and whirled around. Ezra almost smiled. Despite being huge, Rourke moved soundlessly.
"Do you think? The other is a little different." He gestured at the flowery one.
"Get both."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes, babe, get both."
The woman all but melted at his feet. He didn't know what made her go from guarded to making heart-eyes at Rourke. Maybe it was her realizing she'd get to sell both shirts.
Rourke ignored her. "Do you need a belt?"
"Belt?" Ezra had never worn a belt.
"I'm getting a belt." And then he was gone.
"Wow, aren't you a lucky guy? He's dreamy."
If only she knew he could turn into a nightmare. He smiled.
"You're not interested in a third, are you?" She fluttered her eyelashes and laughed as she closed the door. A third shirt? He believed two were enough.
When he exited the fitting room, Rourke was there waiting for him.
He grabbed the shirts and headed toward the checkout where the woman was waiting.
Ezra hung back. There was a manikin with a pair of black jeans with silvery zippers on the thighs.
He didn't know if they had pockets or only were there as decoration, but he wanted a pair.
He couldn't ask Rourke, though. He'd already gotten two shirts.
"Ready to head out?"
Rourke appeared by his side and gazed at the manikin alongside Ezra. Ezra nodded.
* * * *
Rourke drove toward the shelter. He hadn't told Ezra they were getting a cat.
"Isn't the house in that direction?" Ezra gestured in the opposite direction of the pack land.
"No."
"No?" He turned to frown at Rourke. "Are you sure?"
Rourke grinned. "Yes, I'm sure."
"Huh. I'd have gone in the other direction."
"Which is why you shouldn't leave pack land on your own."
Ezra didn't reply, and Rourke took a turn toward the shelter. Ezra's gaze bounced between the road and Rourke. "This feels wrong. Are you sure you know where you're going?"
"I know where I'm going. We're gonna make a pit stop here, then we're heading home." He signaled a turn into the parking lot by the shelter.
Ezra stared at the building. The facade was in a brownish gray. On the wall next to the door was a huge metal dog, and atop the door a cat looking down at it.
"Come on." Rourke opened the car door.
"Eh...what is it?"
"It's the shelter where Geri dropped off the cat."
Ezra stepped out of the car. "Are we checking on it? I'm pretty sure she's dropped the connection by now."
Rourke didn't reply. Instead, he held the door open for Ezra.
He hurried forward, but when Rourke followed, he walked right into him.
Ezra had ground to a stop right inside. Rourke wrapped an arm around him to make sure he wouldn't fall from the impact.
He was a tiny little thing after all. But Ezra didn't appear to have noticed Rourke having collided with him.
His gaze was locked on a smallish woman with a million long braids hanging down her back who stood by the counter.
It took way longer than it should have for Rourke to realize it was Shixyll. She turned to look at them, disgust all over her face, and her dark eyes so like Ezra's turned black.
Without thinking, Rourke pushed Ezra in behind him. Eyes shouldn't shift to black. He was used to wolf eyes peeking out from a human face, but this...No.
"Shixyll." Ezra bowed, and Rourke wanted to snarl.
Shixyll ignored him while holding onto Rourke's gaze. Hatred bubbled underneath his skin, and he had to force his hands to remain human. This was the woman who had whipped Ezra, who had killed his cat.
"What are you doing here, Flint?" He wasn't sure if she dropped the Alpha because they were in the company of humans or if it was a lack of respect. He didn't much care. What he cared about was getting her away from Ezra who was more or less quaking in his shoes.
"Imagine running into you here, Shixyll. Did you lose a cat?"
She raised her hands a fraction and part of him wanted to recoil, but then she only shook them a little, making her many bracelets jingle. The sound made Ezra flinch, and Rourke looked between them. Did it mean something? A warning?
"I let it out too soon. It ran back here, the poor little thing." She grabbed a cat carrier from the counter, and inside Rourke could see, what he believed was the same black kitten they'd found in their woods. Damn, they should've found another solution for it.
Ezra stepped closer to him until he was more or less plastered against Rourke's back. He didn't mind. He wanted Ezra out of harm's way, but with witches, it was hard to accomplish.
"What are you doing here?" she sneered at him. "There is no use in giving him a cat, he can't use it. Useless."
Rourke glanced at the woman behind the counter who was frowning at them. He ignored her for now. "Did the children enjoy the cookies? Ezra's lacy oatmeal cookies hit just right, don't they?"
Her eyes turned black again, and he held his breath. Maybe they didn't turn black, it was more as if they grew. He'd have to ask Ezra about it.
"What are you talking about?" Her voice was strained, and she white-knuckled the cat carrier.
"Jiprix came around for some cookies. Didn't he tell you? It was nice of him to visit. We enjoyed his company."
Ezra's fingers dug into his side, but Rourke didn't look away from Shixyll. He believed it was fury he was seeing, but he wasn't sure. Ezra was shaking, and he took the hand not clawing at him and soothingly caressed his skin.
"Disgusting filth." Then she turned and more or less sprinted toward the door. Ezra didn't move, and Rourke didn't either, but he watched her through the window as she headed for her car.
"How can I help you?" The woman behind the counter sounded nervous, so Rourke tore his gaze away from Shixyll and focused on her.
"We'd like to adopt a cat."
Her smile was a little forced. "A black?"
"I don't think the color matters, does it, Ezra?" He met Ezra's gaze, but Rourke wasn't sure he heard him.
* * * *
Ezra looked at the wall covered with cages. Inside each was a cat. Some watched them with interest, others ignored them.
Rourke and the woman talked, their voices going back and forth, and he heard Rourke reassure her. He wasn't sure of what.
When he stepped forward a red tabby with a round face tried to swipe at him with its paw through the gap in the bars. He stopped and reached for it. The claws curled around his forefinger but didn't scratch. Ezra stepped closer, and the cat butted his head against the cage. Poor thing.
Rourke and the woman walked away, but Ezra remained. He poked his finger between the thin metal bars and petted the cat by the ear. It turned around on its back and tried to bite him, though more of a nibble than a real bite. When Ezra pulled back, it was on its feet again and poked its paw out.
Grinning, Ezra caught it in a gentle hold and caressed the furry leg. The cat ground its forehead against the bars again, and Ezra wanted to open the door.
When he looked up at the lock, he became aware of Rourke and the woman standing next to him. "Oh..." He grimaced. Damn, he should've paid more attention.
The woman grinned, and Rourke had a soft look in his eyes Ezra had never seen before.
"This is Harold. The vet estimated him to be about four years old. He was found by the dock and might've been a ship's cat. He kept trying to board different vessels until someone grew tired of having to catch him and brought him to us."
"Aww, poor thing. Did they abandon him?"
She shrugged. "He might have snuck out without them noticing."
"Do you want to look at the others?" Rourke gestured down the row of cages.
"And abandon him?"
Rourke chuckled. "I guess it's out of the question." He waved a hand at the woman. "I think he's the one."
A smile stretched her lips. "I think you're right.
If you come with me to the counter, we'll fill out the paperwork.
All cats in here are chipped and neutered.
.." She kept talking as she and Rourke left the room.
Ezra remained. The cat still had its claws curled around his forefinger. He couldn't leave it.
Seconds or minutes or maybe it was an hour later, Ezra didn't know, the woman and Rourke were back.
She was holding an olive green and gray cat carrier. "Ready to take him home?"
Ezra sought Rourke's gaze. They were taking him?
The woman ignored him and opened the cage. She made some cooing noises as she lifted Harold and shoved him into the carrier. Then she closed the door and handed the carrier to Ezra.
He was too stunned to speak.
"Come on, let's get him home." Rourke put a hand on his shoulder and more or less guided him out of the room with the cages.
"What about the others?" Ezra looked back. He had only looked into one cage.
"We can't adopt them all. Let's start with one, yeah?"
Ezra nodded, but his heart ached for all the other kitties in cages. He hadn't looked at them. Did it make him a bad person?
The cool wind caressed his cheeks as Rourke led him out of the animal shelter.
"Where did you get the carrier?" His brain wasn't working well today.
"Bought it from the shelter. Cost a fucking fortune."
Ezra winced, but Rourke only chuckled.
"How can Shixyll afford to get cats here all the time?"
Ezra climbed into the passenger seat, put Harold on his lap, and pulled the seatbelt over both of them. Rourke gave him a funny look, then shook his head.
"She doesn't get them all the time. It's not often she pulls so much power it kills them. The last battle was bad, though. I think almost everyone sucked their familiars dry." He shuddered. So cruel.
"But she came back for the cat."
Ezra shrugged. "Maybe she never dropped the connection. Maybe she did, but they contacted her. The woman said they're all chipped, right? If they checked the kitty when Geri returned it to the shelter, they'd have known it was hers. I assume she didn't have to buy it anew."
If only he'd known how to cut connections. Then they could've kept the kitten.
* * * *