Chapter Twenty-One #2
“I was afraid to sleep. Afraid I’d wake to find you’d stopped breathing. Do you have any idea what that’s like?” Shit, he hadn’t intended to open up like that. She was dealing with enough without him dumping his issues on her.
She made a small sound of distress. “No, I don’t know what that’s like, but I know how I felt when Duke told me you were dead.”
He raised his head and gave a low growl. “He said what?”
“He told me you were dead.” Her fingertips lightly skated over his face.
“My entire life stopped.” She briefly closed her eyes and took a deep breath.
“Then I told myself I’d know here”—she touched her hand to her heart area—“if something had happened to you. I told myself Duke was a lying manipulative son of a bitch.”
“He was that and more. He’ll never hurt you again.”
“Thanks to you and your family.”
He wanted more than her gratitude. He wanted her love and loyalty, but this wasn’t about him. It was about what she needed, which was time to recover and know she had choices. “Let’s get you dressed.”
He moved back to give her room. She deftly pulled the underwear up before dumping the comforter. She didn’t question him when he helped her with the leggings and slipped the socks over her feet.
“Eli?”
He shook his head, not ready to have this conversation.
She cared about him, but was it enough to commit to a life with him?
Then there were his brothers. If they weren’t all in agreement, he’d have to leave the mountain.
Otherwise, the resentment would build and cause friction.
He’d do whatever he had to. Any sacrifice was worth it if it meant they could be together.
****
Do you have any idea what it’s like?
The question echoed in her mind, his raw pain resonating inside her. The bleakness in his black eyes had rocked her to her core.
Pay attention to what you’re doing. After insisting she could handle walking on her own, the last thing she wanted was to take a header down the stairs.
Good thing it wasn’t far. She’d never been this weak.
Her legs were like wet noodles. The room spun slightly.
She concentrated on breathing normally and putting one foot in front of the other.
Eli hovered alongside her the entire way down, ready to catch her if she faltered.
The shadow of a beard along his chin, and the dark circles beneath his eyes gave testament to his long vigil.
He watched her like a hawk. Or more aptly like a wolf.
A muscle flexed in his jaw, and his lips were pressed together in a thin line.
He’d wanted to carry her downstairs, but she’d vetoed that.
She couldn’t afford to appear weak in front of his brothers.
Call it pride, call it foolish, it made no difference. She was doing this under her own steam.
All of them were seated around the big dining table, and every head swiveled in her direction.
It was her bad luck that all of them were present.
She’d hoped to only have to deal with a couple of them.
Maybe this was better. Get it over with all at once.
Her heart skipped a beat and sped up. They were an intimidating lot.
Chin up, she shuffled across the hardwood and sank down onto an empty chair, never so grateful to be sitting as she was at this moment. Before she could congratulate herself on making it without incident, Cyrus turned his black gaze on her, looking her over.
“You survived.”
“Disappointed?” It was out of her mouth before she could stop herself. Antagonizing him wasn’t going to help anyone. She huffed out a breath. “That was uncalled for. I apologize.”
Eli detoured to the kitchen and returned with a bottle of orange juice that he set in front of her. Parched, she drank deeply, the citrusy flavor bursting in her mouth. Nothing had ever tasted so good.
A half smile curved Cyrus’s mouth and a gleam of what might be respect glinted in his eyes. “You weren’t in great shape last time I saw you. You still look like a strong wind would knock you over, but you’re on your feet. That’s impressive.”
It sounded as though he actually meant it.
“Thank you.” She then peered at every brother in turn, thanking each one individually, needing to acknowledge all they’d done for her.
They all nodded except Zach, whose lips twitched.
She knew he was thinking about her claim she needed to get those two words printed on a t-shirt.
It was the briefest of seconds, but it lifted some of the weight off her shoulders.
Beside her, Eli rested his hand on her back and rubbed his thumb just below the puncture marks on her neck. They’d healed, but the scars would remain. As if she needed the reminder.
“I’ve been out of the loop. What’s been happening?” Eli asked.
“You had other priorities.” Cyrus leaned back and rested his hands on his stomach. While they didn’t operate like a regular pack, and would probably deny it, there was no doubt in her mind who was alpha.
Noah slid out of his seat, opened the refrigerator, and brought back a platter loaded with sandwiches.
“You must be starving.” He returned and brought back another filled with a selection of pastries and muffins and a handful of napkins.
When Silas reached for one, Noah knocked his hand away. “Let Kinley get what she wants first.”
“What about me?” Eli asked.
“You’re on your own, bro. You’re used to fighting this horde for food, she isn’t.”
Curling her lips inward to keep from smiling at the banter, she chose an apple Danish and placed it on a napkin. “Thank you.”
“That’s not enough.” Eli piled a sandwich and two different kinds of muffins in front of her. His brothers laughed before helping themselves. All she could do was shake her head.
“While you’re all stuffing your faces, do you think we can get down to business?”
Kinley’s appetite fled in the face of Cyrus’s annoyance. Eli frowned when she set her Danish back down. She needed the truth. “What happened?”
Eli answered before his brother could. “There were no survivors.” His face was set like stone. There would be no details forthcoming. For that, she was glad. She didn’t need the gory details.
“Were any of you hurt?” That had been her main concern. The others had sealed their fate by invading Sin Mountain with the intention to slaughter them all and drag her back to Alabama.
Levi scoffed. “As if.”
“Minor injuries.” Cyrus pointed his finger at Josiah, Silas, and Noah. “All healed.”
The relief made her lightheaded. The room began to spin. She gripped the edge of the table and prayed she wouldn’t pass out.
“Drink.” Eli held the orange juice to her lips. “You need to replenish. You lost a lot of blood.” Since he was right, she emptied the bottle. “This can wait,” he told his brother.
“No.” She started to shake her head, thought better of it, and stopped.
No need to add to her dizziness. “I want to know. I need to know.” The men who’d died were as familiar to her as her own face.
At one time, she’d counted them as packmates, some of them as childhood friends.
The closeness had vanished as she’d grown older, but it didn’t alter the history she’d had with them.
Eli shot his brother a warning glare but relented with a nod, probably because he was as much in the dark about what had happened the past day as she was.
He hadn’t left her side and was still beside her.
That spoke of more than responsibility, didn’t it?
As much as Kinley cautioned herself not to read too much into it, a kernel of hope sprouted in her heart.
It wasn’t lost on her that he’d allowed his brothers to shoulder the entire load of cleaning up the mess without him.
“We dumped the bodies in the ravine up the mountain. Another day or two and there’ll be nothing left.”
The fact that werewolf bodies decomposed rapidly after death was a godsend in this situation. She’d always seen it as nature’s way of protecting them against discovery from humans, just as their enhanced strength and senses and ability to heal kept them safe.
“We burned their clothes and scattered the ashes,” Cyrus continued. “Their trucks are currently in the upper field. We need to make a decision on them.” He canted his head toward Zach. “Mr. Tech there has been going through cell phones and wallets, ID’ing everyone.”
Sadness engulfed her. She lowered her head when tears welled in her eyes, not wanting to appear weak.
“What is it?” Eli lifted her off her chair and onto his lap. She was too tired to protest, and in truth, she welcomed the comfort his embrace offered. “What’s wrong?”
She sniffed and swiped her hands over her eyes.
“It was wrong of these men to come, but most of them were only following their alpha’s orders.
If they hadn’t, they’d have been banished from the pack or worse.
Holden, Nash, and their buddies have always been bullies.
I doubt many will mourn them. But there are mates and children who won’t have a loved one because of Duke’s obsession. ”
“They made their choices.” There was a hard edge to Eli’s voice. “If they’d stepped up and taken back their pack, none of this would have happened.” Unsaid was that her daddy could have put a stop to his years ago. Eli was right, but it didn’t lessen the pain.
“So much loss. All of it useless.” That was the most tragic part of all. It hadn’t had to happen. She rested her head on Eli’s shoulder, emotionally and physically worn to the bone. “None of this should have happened.”
His grip on her tightened to the point of pain. When her breath caught, he eased up. Did he think she was talking about him?
Her heart lurched, and she hurried to correct him.
“The one bright spot in all of this was that I met you.” The others ceased to exist for her.
The only one who mattered was Eli. “Not only because you saved my life.” She skimmed her fingers along his jaw.
She’d never met anyone with such a defined ideal of right and wrong, a man who acted on his beliefs, saw it as his duty.
He might call himself wrath, but he’d forever be a protector to her.
“I regret all the death and destruction. The one thing I don’t regret is meeting you. ”
Eli cupped the back of her head and drew her close, their lips touching. His tongue surged into her mouth to tangle with hers. It was passionate and poignant, a confirmation of life among the loss.
Cyrus cleared his throat. “I hate to interrupt.” He didn’t sound as though he did, but she reluctantly ended the kiss. “We need to decide how we’re going to handle the fallout.”
A hard knot formed in her belly. “Fallout?” She looked to Eli for explanation.
“You said it yourself.” He tucked a lock of hair behind her ear.
“All those men had families. They need to be made aware of what happened. We also need to send a message.” The fires of determination burned in his eyes and his jaw tightened.
“Last thing we need is a few of them deciding to avenge the fallen.”
The orange juice she’d drank soured in her belly. She pressed her hand against her stomach when it began to churn. “It’s not over.” It was naive of her to have believed it was done.
“Not yet. But it will be.” He turned to Cyrus. “I’ll handle it.”
Protests erupted around the table. Cyrus rose from his chair, rested his hands on the table, and leaned forward, a scowl on his face that would scare the crap out of the bravest of souls. She felt relatively safe ensconced on Eli’s lap, but every muscle tensed for action, just in case.
“Don’t let me hear you say something that stupid ever again.” A shiver ran down her spine at the calm, emotionless tone. Cyrus’s anger was cold, not hot, which made it even more dangerous. He and Eli were alike in that way. “We’re the Seven Deadly Sins. We do this together.”
“Together,” the other brothers yelled.
Eli nodded. “Together. How soon do we leave?”