Chapter 7 A Way Out
seven
A Way Out
*GWENDOLYN*
Evelyn is suddenly here, and I don’t even know when she came over; I just know she is here. I have cried so much, I am not sure I have any tears left when she and Daniel finally help me up and pull me away.
“Don’t look back,” Daniel says while they get me inside. “Remember him the way he was.”
My gaze falls on Marina, who is sitting on her signature spot on the sofa, which makes another horrifying realization settle in. “Faye,” I cry. Goddess, did she see what happened?
“I left her with Jacob,” Evelyn immediately reassures me. “Don’t worry, she is safe and didn’t see what happened. Do you want me to ask Jacob to tell her in a child-friendly way that Tulip passed?”
I nod. “Please,” I say, my voice hoarse and raspy.
She pulls me into a hug again. “I will make you something to eat,” she whispers. “How about you go upstairs and take a warm shower?”
Still feeling numb, I just nod. My body starts shivering now that the shock is wearing off. I’ve spent more than 24 hours awake, the adrenaline rush first, and my fear later pushed me into staying with Tulip until his last moments.
“I will come over later,” Daniel promises. “Evelyn will stay with you. I am sorry, I can’t stay any longer.”
“Thank you for your help,” I say. “I think… I think Dad would be happy to know that his best friend didn’t abandon me.”
The look in Daniel’s eyes is sad. “I will always be here for you,” he promises.
He bids us goodbye, while I make my way upstairs to the bathroom. The window of the room is open, causing me go over to close it. Casting a gaze outside, I stop when noticing a few of the wolves who chased me still lingering around. Only Maddox and Brandon have shifted back to their human form.
I watch Daniel leave and pass the group.
“You weren’t able to help the horse?” I hear Maddox ask.
“No,” Daniel says shortly.
“I didn’t want that to happen,” Brandon mutters. “We just wanted to…”
“The horse broke its legs,” Daniel interrupts him, his tone icy.
“What you wanted is irrelevant. It’s an animal with flight instincts.
What did you think would happen? Did you stop to think at all?
Gwen does not have a wolf to heal her; she could have gotten severely hurt or died during your chase.
Did you even for one second consider that?
” When Brandon stays silent, Daniel nods grimly.
“Right, you didn’t. I told her recently that you are far below her and that she can do much better. You just proved us all right.”
Even without any wolf senses, I can see Brandon flinch.
“Did Gwendolyn get hurt?” Maddox finally asks.
“She just has some scratches and bruises. Bad enough,” Daniel says shortly. “Just don’t bother her anymore. Leave her alone, for Goddess’ sake!”
Silence surrounds them for a few moments.
“I didn’t know that they wanted to chase her,” Maddox finally says. So, that’s why he wasn’t with them.
“I know you wouldn’t sink that low, but why did you wait so long until intervening?” Daniel asks. “You should have stopped them immediately, Maddox,” he adds. “You need to be better than that! I know you have your issues, but right now I couldn’t be more disappointed.”
I close the window, not wanting to hear any more. I have heard enough. When I turn around, I notice Tiger hopping around on my bed. She spreads her tiny wings and flutters towards me, landing on my shoulder and rubbing her small head against my cheek, like she wants to comfort me.
This almost makes me break down all over.
“Sweet girl,” I whisper. “Thank you, little Tiger.”
Tiger follows me into the bathroom and stays by my side the remainder of the day. Evelyn makes sure I eat something and doesn’t let me leave for the stables when Tulip’s body gets taken away.
Faye comes home eventually, fully distraught and in tears, throwing herself into my arms.
“Jacob did his best to explain it,” Evelyn whispers. “But it’s still…”
She doesn’t need to finish her sentence. I know what she wants to say. Even the most child-friendly explanation does not take the reality of what happened away. At least with Faye in my arms, I have someone to cuddle.
“I hate it here.”
“What?” I look up at Faye’s tear-stained face. She always smiles, but now she looks sad and small like the little child she is.
“No one is nice here,” she whispers. “Not to mommy, not to you. And they say weird things about me, too.”
My heart sinks. I thought at least Faye would enjoy it here.
She is the main reason I stuck around, because I wanted her to have the connection to her mom’s home pack.
But it seems I was wrong. Thinking about it now, it makes me look even more foolish.
This is Marina’s home pack, yet no one gives a shit about her or Faye.
Marina had other friends here before she left, but once she returned, they only visited her a very few times before stopping altogether.
The only exceptions are Evelyn, Jacob and Daniel.
Holding Faye tighter, my thoughts start to spin again.
What am I supposed to do now? I don’t know any other packs.
I alone could maybe leave, but I don’t have the money to take Marina and Faye with me, or to stay somewhere with them.
Faye is not at school yet, so technically we could move and figure things out when she needs to go to school – but money remains an issue.
The next couple of days, I go through the motions. Daniel used his contacts to call the coffee shop and tell them I am sick. Usually, they put up a fight and force me to come in even when I am sick, but apparently, with his authority, they didn’t dare say anything.
I am glad, although I could do with some distraction, but just the thought of having to meet Brandon at work again sends me into a spiral.
I have spent hours each day thinking about the incident, well aware now that he did it because, in his mind, I humiliated him at the party, unless maybe he wanted to show off in front of the others and keep his cool player image.
Remembering what I overheard when Daniel talked to them, I don’t think they intended for anything dramatic to happen, yet it did.
It doesn’t make it better that they just wanted to scare me and get a kick out of the chase. It was probably fun for them, until it wasn’t anymore.
Either Evelyn or Jacob visits me daily to check on me and to bring groceries.
I don’t want to rely on them that much, though, so I try go grocery shopping myself.
But wherever I go, I seem to run into Brandon.
It’s as if he knows where I am or where I’m going, and it’s getting more and more difficult to avoid him.
Daniel told him not to bother me, so it seems Brandon’s new strategy is for us to meet accidentally.
None of it makes sense anymore. To make matters worse, Faye isn’t her usual bubbly self anymore either.
I guess it always was just a front for her, and now that she sees I am sad too, she’s finally let go of her mask.
Poor Faye. She should be able to enjoy her childhood, instead of being treated like an outsider in her own pack.
I spend the afternoon whipping up some dough to make comfort cookies for us, my thoughts still rotating over how I am going to get us out of this shitshow, when there is a knock at my door.
Tiger flutters around and lands on my shoulder.
“It’s a bit early for Evelyn,” I mutter to her. “But maybe her shift ended earlier.
I wipe my hands clean before heading to the front door, pulling it open. At the sight in front of me, I instinctively close it again, and my heart starts beating so fast I am scared I will pass out any second. What is he doing here now?
There is a gentle knock on the door. “Please let me in,” Maddox says. “I know you don’t want to see me, but I promise you I am not here to give you any trouble.”
Fuck, fuck, fuck!
It’s one thing to avoid Brandon, but Maddox is the heir to the pack. He is the soon-to-be alpha. There is no way I can avoid him without facing any repercussions.
With my heartbeat picking up again, I open the door.
“Hello, Gwen,” he says.
I stare at him, not sure what he wants me to reply. He has never talked to me, quite literally. I cannot remember ever exchanging words with me. Even when the others kept bullying me and calling me names, he would just be silent. Actually, he doesn’t seem to talk an awful lot in general.
Maddox clears his throat. “I am sorry,” he says.
For barging in? For scaring the shit out of me now? Or for not stopping his goons when they chased Tulip and me? I am not sure, and he doesn’t elaborate.
“Gwendolyn, I have something to tell you and…and an offer to make to you.”
“What do you mean?” I finally find my voice again.
“I know you wouldn’t believe anything I say,” he admits. “Which is why I brought him along.”
‘Him’ happens to be Daniel. Seeing him helps me relax immediately. “Hear him out,” Daniel says. “I promise you he has something to tell you that’s worth listening to.”
“Fine.” I nod, finally letting them inside. “Do you want coffee? I also have cookies.”
“What did you make?” Daniel asks with a smile. “I smell strawberries.”
“Strawberry cheesecake cookies.” At Daniel’s happy expression, I can’t help but chuckle.
He has a sweet tooth, which is kind of funny since he is a rather serious man otherwise.
Daniel leads Maddox to my living room, where I notice Maddox pausing when he eyes Marina.
As usual, Daniel walks around the sofa slowly to stand in front of Marina.
He does it so as not to startle her in any way or to make her uncomfortable.
Not that she reacts to anyone or anything.
But he doesn’t want to scare her in case she does.
“Hello Marina, it’s nice to see you,” he says.
“I brought a guest. We just wanted to say hello and chat a while with Gwen.”