Chapter 3
three
No sooner had I finished reading the update on Becca than Rand and a woman dressed in enforcer black fell in step with Sloane and me.
They blamed a pressing need to say hi to their newest recruit for jogging across the street to greet us.
Had the pair not watched me from the corners of their eyes, never leaving my sight, I might have been more inclined to believe their story.
As it was, the familiar sensation of bars closing in around me threatened to lock me in a full-scale panic attack before Sloane’s comforting presence calmed me.
If the Walshes told me that the increased safety measures were temporary, then I would believe them.
I had no reason not to when they hadn’t lied to me yet.
I had weeks of freedom in their care as proof they meant for me to live how I wanted and not how they saw fit.
After I calmed down, I admitted to myself I might have overreacted a skosh considering Becca had collapsed in my arms from poisoning.
Dragonsbane. I had never heard of it. Dragons faced enough challenges without going around advertising their weaknesses, but still.
If it was anything like wolfsbane, even small amounts were lethal.
Becca wasn’t a dragon, as far as I knew.
So, why target her? I had to learn more about this latest threat, but I would wait to ask Rían about—
“Ana.”
Impact knocked me back on my heels as Goldie slammed into my knees, wrapping her arms around my thighs.
“You’re not dressed for the party yet.” I picked a leaf from her hair. “Are you still helping with prep?”
“Gran and I mulched under the swings and the slide to make sure the little kids don’t get hurt if they fall. It’s plastic and smells funny, but it won’t attract bugs. Gran says that’s the important thing.” She clung to me even tighter. “Are you sure you’re okay?”
“Me?” I scooped her onto my hip. “Why do you ask?”
“Oh.” Goldie smoothed her expression. “The wards coming down.”
Not bad for a lie cooked up on the fly, but I could tell there was more at the root of her anxiety.
“News about Becca has been circulating.” Fayne filled the doorway, eyes sharp on our surroundings.
“If I didn’t know better, I would suspect that Goldie had listened to the update I was given.
” She turned wise eyes on her granddaughter.
“But I’m certain she would never disobey my orders and eavesdrop on adult conversations, so I must be mistaken. ”
“We brought your ingredients from home.” Goldie suffered a bout of selective hearing. “Can I help you if I change and wash my hands?”
“Of course.” Unable to resist its flush, I kissed her cheek. “Nice evasion, by the way.”
With a laugh, Goldie wriggled down and shot indoors to clean up while Fayne shook her head with pride.
“I leave Ana in your capable hands.” Sloane bowed to Fayne. “Take good care of her.”
“I won’t let her out of my sight.” Her eyes grew sharp on Sloane. “Be careful out there.”
With a tip of her chin in our direction, Sloane jogged off to return to GSG for Jess.
The two enforcers, having lost their camouflage, cleared their throats then scurried to take up their posts on either side of the gate leading into the backyard.
Their sympathetic winces and inability to meet or hold my gaze only made their hovering more awkward, but it wasn’t their fault the man who stole me away and raised me as his own was a psycho, and I wouldn’t hold their assignment against them.
“This has been a day.” Fayne gathered me against her chest, her warm scent calming me. “Don’t let it get in your head.”
“Am I that obvious?” I slumped over her shoulder. “I notice you’re light on babysitters.”
“Goldie put them to work.” She stroked my hair. “I’m not much of a baker, but I follow directions well if you need an extra hand.”
Withdrawing from her embrace, wishing I could linger, I pasted on a smile and got busy in the kitchen.
Three burns, two dropped trays, and a bruised toe later, I marked off the last item on Goldie’s checklist. I wasn’t usually fumble fingered in the kitchen, but a half dozen enforcers took turns checking on me via a trip to the fridge for a drink or quick stop at the pantry for a snack or a mumbled just passing through on their way to the backyard.
Memories of all the times I had holed up in the kitchen, baking my heart out for the pack, hoping to snag a moment of their attention, kept flipping through my head until I was ready to scream.
That Fayne had been called away to supervise in other areas before I could ask for information on dragonsbane wasn’t helping my mood either.
“Are you sure you’re okay?” Goldie scrubbed flour off her cheek. “You’re growling at the pecans again.”
“I’m fine.” I bit down on the lie. “Mostly.” I exhaled slowly. “I’m nervous to meet everyone.”
And worried one of the smiling faces hid a killer’s grin.
“You don’t have to be scared, okay?” She puffed out her chest. “I won’t let anyone hurt you ever again.”
“Thanks,” I rasped, wiping her clean with a damp rag, marveling how the simple ability to connect with someone never got old. I was starting to comprehend just how touch starved I had been my whole life to find such comfort in small acts. “You’re a good egg.”
“Dragons don’t lay eggs,” she informed me primly. “That would be weird.”
“You’re right.” I smothered a grin. “It would be, wouldn’t it?”
“Show time,” Liam boomed from behind us, shaving ten years off my life.
“Goldie, are you ready to greet your friends?” He made eyes at the steaming tray of pigs in blankets before getting back on point.
“Remember, your job is to tire them out, so they’ll be calm enough to sit still and listen when it’s their turn to hear the new rules. ”
“They’re not my friends,” she mumbled, but hopped down and removed her apron. “They’re only here because Rían made them come.”
“The kids look up to you, the same as the adults look up to Rían.” I might have taken liberties with my cheerleading but oh well.
“That’s why he’s counting on you to keep the kids occupied while he discusses the new rules with the parents.
” Her lips mashed into a mulish line, and I sensed I was about to lose my audience.
“When I was your age, do you know who I played with?”
“Kids who wanted to suck up to your dad the way parents want to suck up to my brother?”
Ouch.
This kid was too sharp for her own good.
“Lightning bugs.” I hadn’t thought about them in years, since they were almost nonexistent in Brentwood. “They were fun to chase, but not great conversationalists.”
“You didn’t have any real friends either?”
A crack split my heart in two, the break so loud I was shocked no one else heard.
“Friends or not—” Liam braved the awkward silence, “—the kids need someone to watch out for them.”
“What do you think?” I rubbed my breastbone to ease the ache. “Can you help out, just for tonight?”
“I can handle them.” She tapped the side of her head. “I used to be a kid, so I know how they think.”
And just like that, I was fighting off laughter, the best medicine for what ailed me. “Thank you, Goldie.”
“Liam.” She zeroed in on him. “Rían will be busy, and I can’t be in two places at once. That means it’s up to you to make sure none of the adults are mean to Ana.” She set her fists on her hips. “Can I trust you?”
“Ana is going to be fine,” he promised us both. “No one will be mean to her.”
“No one—” Sloane sidled up to me, flashing a smile that was all teeth, and Goldie returned it, giving me chills, “—who wants to leave the party in the same condition as they arrived in anyway.”
That would explain the lack of foot traffic. I had been working hard to ignore the enforcers and hadn’t clocked when they quit coming around. Sloane must have been here awhile to have gotten her updates and taken control of the situation, but I hadn’t noticed her until now.
“You’re the best.” I rested my head on her shoulder. “You know that?”
“I am, in fact, aware of that.” She hummed to herself. “But it’s good to know you appreciate quality when you see it.” Closer to my ear, she whispered, “I can’t get rid of your shadows, not after Becca, but I can give you some breathing room.”
A door banged open behind us, and Rían entered balancing a stack of boxes. “Sorry about that.”
“Rían.” I jerked upright so fast, I clipped my temple on Sloane’s jaw. “Hey.”
“Smooth, Ana.” Behind her, Liam snickered and went to help Rían with his burden. “Real smooth.”
“Oww.” Sloane slumped into a chair at the table. “That hurt.”
“You’re the one with a jaw as sharp as a blade.” I rubbed the side of my face. “Do you slide a whetstone across your chin every morning before you brush your teeth?”
“And get filings in my toothpaste? Ha. How amateurish. I only whet my jawline after brushing.”
Head tilted to one side, Goldie watched us with a finger on her chin. “What are they talking about?”
“No one knows.” Liam dropped his load on the table. “And the world is better for it.”
As curiosity overtook me and I peeked into the open box, strong arms slid around my waist.
“Hmph.”
I’m not sure how much a giraffe weighs, but Rían was a lot of man with a ton of muscle. He had doubled over at his waist, folding himself almost in half across my shoulder. “You sound tired.”
“Hmph.”
“Poor baby.” I couldn’t reach his lips, but I managed to kiss his shoulder. “Want cookies and milk?”
“Me.” Sloane bounced in her chair. “I do.”
No surprise there. I caught her licking crumbs off the counter yesterday. She really had no shame.
“He’s a dragon.” Liam sounded offended on his cousin’s behalf. “He wants steak and potatoes.”
“He’s got five minutes until showtime, and the sugar would give him a boost to get through his talks.” As I rattled off my defense, it hit me Liam was pouting. Likely because I hadn’t made him the same offer. “Though he could skip the milk if it’s not his thing.”
“Mmm.”