Chapter 2 #3
Making the little house her home, she was glad that Conri, the big wolf’s name, had found her.
More than likely, he could taste her magic on her; she’d been told by other powerful beings that it was easy to do, and had felt sorry for her.
She didn’t care, but she was going to do him a good job when she started working for him in the morning.
Tabby didn’t care what it was, the job, she’d do it with the best of her abilities and hope that he’d allow her to stay there forever.
It was just the perfect place for her to lay low and take care of herself at the same time.
After the chimney was checked, she was able to start a small fire in the hearth.
She had cans of food in the pantry that had been left for her, as well as a loaf of bread and some lunch meat in the working refrigerator.
She was about as excited as she’d been in a while for some of the comforts of home at her fingertips.
After a much-needed shower, she was able to sit in the living area and read a book.
It had been so long since she’d been able to do anything that was restful, and she was going to enjoy it.
As she was getting ready for bed, she found some more clothing for her as well as some toiletries that she could use.
Having a place to brush her teeth felt like heaven, and she was all the happier for it.
Once she was in bed, it took her no time at all to fall asleep and not wake until the sun was coming up the next morning.
Stretching, she decided to take another shower just to wash the sleep out of her eyes.
The water was hot and the spray was strong, so she was able to work out some of the tense muscles that her good night’s sleep hadn’t.
Tabby was ready when the pack was at her door to take her to the pack house so she could get in a good day’s work.
Hoping that the job was something she knew how to do, she was thankful for something to occupy her mind.
It had been a long time since she’d been able to hold down any sort of job while looking over her shoulder all the time.
Her mother had employed others to help find her, and they weren’t as good at scoping her out as her mother could.
It was almost as if she had a sixth sense about where she was all the time.
Going into the packhouse, she was ready to begin her day.
She was also happy that she’d remembered to bring her a sandwich for lunch so that she’d not have to leave the area and perhaps get caught.
She wasn’t going to jeopardize her new place to be safe for anything.
After a long day of filing things away for the big wolf, she headed home.
She hadn’t worked in so long that she thought she’d used up muscles that she’d not been able to use in a while.
Especially her brain. Having a slight headache made her want to rest when she got home, and she laid down on the big bed.
It was comforting to know that she could sleep without worries and wake up refreshed.
She was going to like working for Conri, and she hoped that he would keep her around for a long time.
Taking a walk after her supper, she decided to see how far she could go before coming to the end of the woods.
But before she got too much further than her home, she found a large man practicing with a sword.
He seemed to know what he was doing with it, and she stood mesmerized for several minutes just watching him practice.
He seemed to be determined or pissed off about having to practice, and she wondered why he was doing it at all.
There were better things to work with than a sword.
He could just use a log should he want to build up his upper body strength.
After watching him for another half hour, he left.
She did as well, following the path to her home to get to bed early.
She would have to work again in the morning and found herself looking forward to it.
It made her day go by faster, and she liked that.
But she did miss talking to someone at the end of her day.
It was nice having a conversation just before bed.
By the fifth day, she had gotten everything filed that needed to be put away.
Conri was happy with the way things were going and told her that she had the job, should she want it.
He said that his desk had never been so cleared off, and he could actually sit down with his family at night and not have to worry about the mess he had in his office.
She told him that she’d take the job so long as she could live in the house, and he said it was fine by him.
It was good to have someone in the house, as squatters wouldn’t be taking the thing over so long as she lived there.
“I have a group going into town tomorrow to get some supplies. If you make up a list of things that you need, I’ll have them pick them up for you.
By the way, there is a woman in town looking for you.
I assumed it was your mother by the description that was given to me.
She’s asking a lot of questions.” She asked if he was going to tell her where she was.
“No, I’d never do that. You’re here under my protection, and no one will say a word about you being here.
Trust me when I tell you, she’ll never get to you while I’m around. ”
“Why? Why are you protecting me like this? You don’t know me.
For all you know, I could be a mass murderer and have killed several people.
” He said there was something about her that made him need to protect her.
Something about her said she was his sister.
“You mean that I might be the mate to one of your brothers?”
“No. They’ve all been around here and know your scent now.
You’re not related to any of them. However, they feel the same way.
This need to protect you. It might just be because you’re a female down on her luck, but I don’t know.
There are a bunch of vampires nearby that I’ve come to love like my own brothers, so perhaps it’s one of them.
As I said, I don’t know. But I will do what I need to make sure that you’re safe.
” She told him about the man with the sword that she’d seen a couple of times now.
“That would be one of the vampires. His name is Yosef. He’s a good man.
You should introduce yourself to him sometime.
You’ll like him. He has a duty to do soon, and he’s not looking forward to it. ”
“What sort of duty?” He told her that he was to kill another vampire so that he could end his life. “He doesn’t seem to want to do it as he’s forever pissed off when he’s out here practicing. I had no idea that he was going to kill someone. Is there any way that he can get out of it?”
“I don’t think so. He made a promise, and he’ll keep it no matter how it makes him feel about taking another life.
” She said that she felt sorry for him for making such a promise.
“I do as well. Like I said, he’s a good man and is only doing this because of a promise.
And vampires hold onto promises like they do their mates. Very true to them both.”
She decided that she was going to keep an eye out for the other vampire.
She would tell him who she was and where she was staying.
Perhaps when he did his duty to the other man, she would be far enough away that she’d not see it.
The thought of beheading a man scared her, and she wanted nothing to do with it. Nor the two men involved.