Chapter 3 - Bigby

Something inside my head snaps right into place when I see Rosa again for the first time. Our eyes meet, like an invisible thread stretches from my body to hers.

Rosa is the most classic of summer beauties—long, wavy blonde hair, tanned skin, shining blue eyes. There are freckles spattered across her nose, if you can get close enough to see them. She's tall for a woman, but much shorter than me.

We're mates.

Of course we are.

Then, my eyes track to the side, and I see a little version of Rosa standing just behind her, peeking around her back to look at me. I'm stunned.

" Bigby ?" Olivia asks, her voice disbelieving. "What the hell are you doing here?"

When I look at her, I can see that not only does she remember me from when Rosa and I were dating, but she hates my guts. I want to tell her that it's not what she thinks—that I left Rosa to protect her. I want to ask about the little girl staring at me with bright eyes, her hand fisted in Rosa's shirt.

But there's no time .

"Come on," I say, hearing how rough my voice is. Here's one thing about me—I know I'm huge. I know the effect that it has on people, especially women. Usually, I try to do everything I can to communicate that I'm not a threat to people smaller than me. I keep my cat; I even picked up knitting right around when Percy was born. It makes people laugh, but it also softens my image.

I'm very well aware that right now, standing in the doorway, demanding that they come with me, I look like the fucking Terminator. My eyes flick to the little girl, expecting her to cry, or show some sort of fear, but she's just staring at me, a tiny little wrinkle on her tiny little forehead.

My body reacts to her, a protectiveness I've never felt before in my life suddenly coursing through my body. I look to Rosa, the knowledge as firm in my mind as any fact—this girl belongs to me.

"No way in hell ," Rosa says, and I blink, rearing back. She steps forward, and the little girl comes with her like they're on the same leash. "Get out of here, Bigby."

"I was contacted by your mother," I say, clearing my throat. This gives Rosa pause, her mouth opening slightly.

"I don't believe you," she spits, tightening her mouth and pushing the little girl further behind her back.

"Then quiet pools whisper / Private childhood secrets," I say, reciting the phrase given to me as a code by the contact. A flash of grief and dread moves over Rosa's face, her lips turning down like she might burst into tears. My body twitches, urging me to go to her, but I'm afraid of what she might do if I move a muscle.

"Rosa," Olivia says, cutting her eyes toward Rosa. "Is that the same poem?"

"It doesn't matter," Rosa says, shaking her head. "I don't care what he knows about my mother. We're not going anywhere with him."

"I'm only under scent-cover for so long," I say, my hackles rising at the thought of seeing Amon again. Of what Amon might do if he gets his hands on Rosa and the girl. "I'm with a special ops team based out of the Midwest. Our luna runs a program that offers protection to shifter women and children on the run from abusive mates or alphas."

The idea of an abusive mate is impossible to consider—but sometimes, the mating bond can be cruel. Though Aris has changed his ways, I think of how he once treated Linnea. Sometimes, loving someone can turn to abusive behavior before you have a chance to control it.

" Rosa ," Olivia appeals. " Please , think of Kaila. We just have to get out of here. We have to keep her safe."

Kaila. Her name is Kaila.

At this, the little girl finally does start crying.

"Mom," she says, her voice wavering. She's taking deep breaths, like she wants to control it but can't. "I'm scared."

"I know, baby," Rosa says, narrowing her eyes at Olivia. Something silent seems to pass between them.

" Please ," Olivia says, raising her clasped hands in front of her like she's praying to Rosa. "Please, Rosie. I know you don't like him. Let's just go with him for now, and then we can figure something else out later."

"I don't trust him, Ol," Rosa hisses, and I wince at the venom in her voice. She doesn't even glance my way as she continues, "He's abandoned us once. He'll do it again."

I'm about to appeal to Rosa as well, try to start, and apologize for my choices when I smell it, just faintly, riding on the wind in our direction.

Amon.

"Hold your breath," I say to Olivia, and then to Rosa, "I'm sorry."

"What?" she says, her eyes going wide as she tries to turn, but it's too late. I step into the house, raise the device to my lips, and blow a cloud of powder over Rosa and Kaila.

"Help me," I say to Olivia, who, surprisingly, followed my instructions and held her breath. I move to catch Rosa, who manages to give me one last glare as she falls into my arms, and Olivia grabs Kaila, grunting under her weight.

Together, we hurry to the Jeep. Olivia takes Rosa and Kaila's backpacks off and throws them into the back while I go back inside for her suitcase. A second later, I slam the door to the back hatch and jump into the driver's seat. Olivia is already sitting in the passenger's seat, her seatbelt buckled.

I glance into the back. Rosa and Kaila are also buckled in. A little teddy bear sits on Kaila's lap.

"Hello?" Olivia asks, waving her hand in my face. I blink at her. It's not often someone dares to do something so bold when I can bench press three times their body weight. "Let's go," she says, glancing over each shoulder.

Amon's scent is still faint, but she's right. The more space we can put between this Jeep and anyone from Amon's pack, the better.

I pull out of the driveway, glancing up one last time and catching the door hanging off the hinges. I roll my lips, sigh to myself, and wish that my chance to see Rosa again could have been in any other circumstance.

We drive for a full hour before Olivia speaks up.

"So, how long until they wake up?"

I glance in the rearview mirror at Rosa and Kaila, who are still fast asleep.

"Couple of hours," I say, "but, if we're lucky, it will be longer. I can't imagine Rosa is going to cooperate when she wakes up and finds she's in the Jeep with me."

"No, I don't think she will," Olivia says, chewing on her lip.

"Thank you," I say quietly, "for telling her to come with me."

"Oh," Olivia says, shaking her head and waving her hands in the air. "Oh, no. Let's get one thing clear—you and me? We are not on the same team. Do you get that? I hate your stupid guts for what you did to Rosa. That's not going to change. I just wanted to go with you because, as far as I know, you're not going to hurt us, and you're built like a truck."

"I—"

"I'm not done," Olivia says, glaring at me fiercely. "You never deserved Rosa."

"Are you done now?"

"I'm on intermission," she says, still glaring at me.

"Is Kaila mine?"

A silence settles between us tangibly. I feel like I could reach out and touch it. It's thick and suffocating, telling me what I need to know.

"That's none of your business," Olivia finally says.

"I think if I have a child, that's pretty much my business," I laugh, but it comes out cold. The words ring through my ears again, and I glance in the back seat.

If I have a child.

But I can feel it—Kaila is my blood. I can feel it like it's my own arm we're talking about.

"Well, if you have a child and you take off, leaving her and her mother alone and defenseless, then I'm not actually sure it is your business," Olivia quips. Then, almost as an afterthought, she adds, "theoretically."

I make a noise in my throat, and Olivia rolls her eyes like I've said something vile. Olivia has never been a fan of mine, but then again, Olivia was never a big fan of men in general. I always got the feeling that something happened to her in her past, something that made her inherently distrustful.

When we were dating, Olivia eventually got to the point where she could tolerate me. It seems I've lost all that progress and fallen back below my starting point.

"Have you been with her the whole time?" I ask quietly.

"Yes," Olivia says, "unlike someone."

"Wouldn't it have been safer to leave the state?" I ask, glancing over at Olivia, who's turning the vents away from her. I reach into the back seat and hand her the hoodie I discarded this morning. I can see she's cold, but as someone over 300 pounds, I run hot, and I can't turn the air conditioning down.

"This smells like sweat," she grimaces. I shrug, and she snaps it out of my hands, gingerly placing it on her lap like it's covered in bugs.

"So?" I ask, glancing at her again. I can't help it—I'm curious. Why not just leave California?

Amon had a pretty big territory when I left, but even he didn't cross state lines. Leaving California would have made it a lot more difficult for Amon to track them down.

"Lots of reasons," Olivia says, her voice sounding sleepy. She's pulled the hoodie a little higher and has snuggled back into the seat. "Her mom's house was there. It's our home. We wanted to raise Kaila near her home. Also, it's not like we were flush with money, especially in the beginning. Rosa had to abandon all her accounts. We got out with a bit of cash, but we had a baby to feed. It took a while for us to get on our feet."

My stomach twists with guilt. I open my mouth to ask Olivia another question, but when I look over at her, she's already fallen asleep.