Chapter 14

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

I jerk into a sitting position.

"Yeah?" I call after the second knock.

Kirk's voice comes through the door. "Cadoc and Fell are back. We're having a meeting in fifteen."

The thought of being surrounded by the four men arouses, and frightens, me. They'll know immediately if I don't do something.

"Okay." I peer at my wrist, remembering his vow. He's duty-bound to help me, I can trust him. I climb from the bath and towel off. Maybe if I layer my clothing?

Another knock comes again. I freeze.

"Ylva?" Kirk's voice is softer and concerned. He knows.

"Yeah. I uh. Just need to get dressed."

"Is that all you need?"

His pointed question irritates me. Kirk isn't going to let this go.

I lower my head and squeeze my eyes shut. "What do you mean?" I release a bitter laugh.

"I can smell you. I noticed when we got out of the car, but I thought it was in my mind."

Rushing forward, I yank the handle toward me and he stumbles inside, viewing me still clad in only a towel. I slam the door behind him.

"Did anyone else notice?"

"I don't think so."

"We need to keep it that way."

His eyes widen and he inhales sharply. "Trust me, they're going to figure it out fast."

"I can't do this, Kirk. I'm not ready yet." My lower lip trembles.

His shoulders slump. "I know."

"What can I do? I don't have any ashwagandha."

"I do in pill form." He presses his lips together and studies me. "I'll get it for you—" he points at me. "As a temporary fix."

"Trust me, I'm very aware the reprieve will be brief." I bite the inside of my cheek and wait for his response.

"You have to stop taking the pills when I tell you to, or things could get a lot worse."

Worse than binding myself to virtual strangers?

"I mean it." His gaze narrows and the bass that creeps into his voice pleases my she-wolf.

"I will. I promise." I'd agree to just about anything for another couple of weeks to come to terms with the situation.

He nods. "Stay here, I have some things in my emergency supplies."

He moves to leave and I catch his wrist.

"Thank you."

His lips quirk.

"Glad I can help."

He walks away. I'm softening toward the healer. He's a sweet, caring soul, with a past that left him bruised and battered. I understand what that feels like.

I like the strong yet silent man who's made it clear I'm more than a vagina and a means to getting in good with the Alpha.

I slather myself in fragrant lavender lotion and pull on a comfortable pair of sweatpants with a matching top. I'm tugging on socks when Kirk knocks.

"Come in."

He walks toward me with a bottle of water and two small white pills. "Take two every five hours with a full glass of water. I told the others you had a headache."

Scrambling up, I take the pills and throw them back with water. He hands me a small bottle.

"I'm not sure how long this will give you. But once your body starts resisting, you'll have some tough choices to make."

Knowing I have to pick one of them to mate with has my anxiety shooting through the roof.

"Can you give me a guesstimate?" I toy with the end of the oversized towel.

He shakes his head. "Everyone's body is different, and I don't know your medical history well enough. You're accepting us, and until the bonds are created, you're going to be like an omega caught in a heat cycle."

"What signs should I be looking for?"

"Intense headaches, nausea, irrational arousal levels."

"Got it."

"I know this sucks, but it'll be better if you do it on your terms. If you wait too long and the mating heat takes over, you'll end up losing your say. Make a plan before it's too late."

"I will."

"Give it ten minutes, and you're good to come down."

Before now I thought Fell would be my default first mating match. Now, he's the one I trust the least. I might not know the other men, but they all appear to be exactly what they seem to be.

Taming my hair into two long pigtails, I wind them around my head in a crown and head downstairs. Freshly showered the men hold the clean scent that makes my mouth water. I admire them as I enter the room and take in their fit forms.

"How's your head?" Cadoc asks gruffly.

"Much better. Thanks, Kirk."

He nods.

"Did you see anyone?" Kirk asks.

"They were wily and fast. Besides I wanted to lead them away not confront them. I didn't recognize their scents."

"You think they were non-pack members?" I whisper.

"Maybe. If you were doing dirty, hiring someone would be a good way to keep your hands clean. They had to get on our land undetected which means powerful magic or inside help."

"Or they were brought on the land for one thing and snuck out to do something else," Bo suggests.

"Either way I want all of us to watch out for ourselves and each other." Cadoc looks at me. "I don't want you alone."

"I'm not a child?—"

"No, but you have a target painted on your back, so we're going to look out for you."

"It sounds like a prison sentence." My core temperature spikes.

Cadoc fixes me with his intense blue stare. I swallow a yelp. "You've been free to run wild for the past four years among humans. That's done."

"We'll see."

"Do you want to see what happens when I exert control?"

His voice drops an octave. I lick my dry lips.

"Should I let you bully me?"

"I'm informing you of how we're going to handle this situation until we know more."

"For how long?"

"As long as it takes."

"Not acceptable."

Cadoc's eyes widen and an intimidating light enters them. He's losing a bit of his control, and his fa?ade slips. I enjoy seeing beyond his cool calm demeanor in the face of life-altering information. His ability to remain stoic and clear thinking grated at my skin.

"I will keep you safe, even if I have to lock you in your room."

"I'd like to see you try." I glare.

He gives a dark chuckle. "Little Brat wants to play?"

I jab a thumb at my chest. " This woman who wants to have control over her own life."

"You have to be alive to do that."

"What's living if you're strangled by protection and rules?"

"I'm done with this." He stands and stalks over to me.

He kneels in front of me, clutching the chair on either side of me. My heart leaps in my throat.

"These people are not humans. Wolves who want you dead will rip you limb from

limb and feast on your heart."

Stomach churning, I hold his steady gaze.

"There are no police to call. We are the first and last line of defense. It's time to think like the wolf you are. Otherwise, we're not going to survive the task we've been issued because you'll get us all killed."

He's giving me a dire warning.

"I would never?—"

"If we're too busy chasing you to focus on our enemies or tackle the tasks set for us, what do you think is going to happen?" Cadoc tilts his head.

Protests die in my throat as I consider his words. It's not just me anymore.

"I think she gets it," Kirk says.

"Do you?" Cadoc invades my bubble of personal space, placing us nose to nose.

"Yes."

"I hope so. Cause little brats who misbehave get punished."

My jaw drops and Cadoc gently shuts it.

"Be a sweet brat, not a naughty one and you'll get everything you want from me." I swallow, and Cadoc smiles.

"I'm glad we had this conversation." Rising he moves back to his seat.

The silence stretches around us.

"Anyone else need a cigarette after that?" Bo asks.

"What's our game plan?" Fell leans forward with his elbows on his thighs.

"I want you, our Brat, and Kirk to go over those books."

Great, the names going to stick. "Ifothers are trying to get their hands-on, we need to know why. What's the importance of thisamulet?"

Just what's at stake here? The more we learn, the more nervous I become.

"Anything else?" Kirk asks.

"I think that's enough. We're all exhausted. I think we should head to bed and regroup tomorrow," Cadoc says.

I jump up from the couch. "Except you. We need to talk."

I plop down and Bo and Kirk snicker. Fell flashes me a longing look I ignore. I won't make him feel worse, but I'm not sending him false signals either.

They shuffle off with muted goodnights and I try not to squirm. It's like being in trouble with the principal.

"You're used to being alone, aren't you?" Cadoc asks.

"Yes."

"I can understand that. I feel like I've never really been alone. Remember, I have three brothers close in age, and most of my adult life has been spent in service of the pack. We don't tend to be solitary

Creatures," Cadoc says.

"I did what I needed to survive."

"Hey." He reaches out and touches my knee. "I'm not judging. I've watched you grow up. I remember that open kid you used to be, and I saw the way the people in town broke your spirit. There was nothing I could do. I didn't have a mate. That meant bringing you to come to live with me was inappropriate."

"You asked?" My voice is muted thanks to my tightened throat.

"Course I did. You know how close your dad and I were. I got shot down and overruled, and you had living relatives. In the counsels' eyes, it was a no-brainer."

"You still could've come around," I fight to remain upset. He's shattering my misconceptions about not having people who cared for me.

"I was gone more than I was home. Alpha spent a lot of time visiting with other packs and in the supernatural counsel talks. There's nothing wrong with you, Ylva. There never has been. People are just now catching on to that. We've all got reason not to like each other. But we also have common ground."

"Are you going to tell me to let it go?"

"Fuck no, make them earn their place, Brat. But don't make it impossible." He winks.

I laugh. "This isn't what I expected you to say."

"Your safety is my main concern, regardless of everything else going on around us. But I want you happy too, Brat." He tugs on a pigtail. I push his hand away.

"Go on up to bed, I can see you're exhausted." His gravelly voice lights my nerves on fire.

"I'm not always going to agree with you, Cadoc." The protest is weak.

"That's what makes this fun for me." His lips curve up in the corner and his eyes sparkle with mischief. The sight of him carefree has my heart racing and belly fluttering. I'm glimpsing emotions that are private and rare.

He walks off before I can respond. I rush up the steps ready for another frigid bath and a fresh change of underwear. These men have me ruining them at a ridiculous rate. I'm officially in hell.

"Ylva."

I jump when at the second landing.

"Don't do that." I hold a hand over my heart and turn to face Fell.

"Sorry. I wanted to check on you." Hair still wet and curling slightly over his forehead, he reminds me of the sweet boy I once thought I'd marry.

"I'm good. It was just a team pep talk. I'm not used to working with others. I've been on my own for a long time."

"Can we fix what's wrong between us?" He tucks his hands into the pockets of his plaid pants.

I exhale. "Honestly, I don't know."

"How do I start? Even now I can feel your irritation with me," Fell says.

"Figure out how to fix that. Earn the right to have a relationship with me again. You did the one thing you promised me you never would, left me alone."

He closes his eyes and his jaw tightens.

"I was a kid?—."

"Who knew how important that promise was to me? One minute I was sharing all my secrets with you and the next I couldn't find you. I don't trust you Fell. I'm not sure how you're going to regain that, but it's the first step."

"I want to start over." his voice is so low I can barely hear it.

"Do you?"

"Because I feel like you want to step back into our old roles, and that's not possible."

"You want to throw away everything we had before? We've been friends since the second grade."

"No, I want you to stop trying to use that fact to guilt me."

"I'm not." He growls. "You're infuriating and stubborn. I could never forget that I hurt you. It's still the biggest regret of my life."

He sniffs. "But that doesn't discount our history. Erasing me from your past isn't possible. Teen me was an idiot. But that was the only version of me who hurt you. And that pain doesn't take away all of the good times we had."

"Stop."

"Why are you so resistant to this?" Fell asks.

"I'm sick of being hurt by the people who were supposed to love me most. I'm done with this conversation." I push him aside and run up the stairs ignoring his calls for me to come back. He did me one favor, my arousal is completely shot.