Chapter 14

What usually would be a forty minute drive to Pinesley takes an hour, because I keep reminding Sage to drive slowly along the curvy mountain roads. Luckily, we left in plenty of time because I expected this to happen.

What I did not expect was the packages wrapped in black plastic that I found hidden in the trunk of the car when I cleared out the last of Sage"s bags.

The bundles were badly hidden – some inside the spare tire, and a few more stuck up against the back corner. A large part of me wanted to take the car straight to the police to have it inspected. But if Carl is friends with dangerous people, I don"t want to risk any of them being upset with Sage.

She"s so open and trusting. I can see in her eyes that she still wants to have a relationship with her brother, since he"s the only family she has left. But I could tell just from Sage"s end of the conversation that he was being horrible to her… It was all I could do to not grab the phone and roar at him until his ears bled.

No. I"ll remain calm, for Sage"s sake. Once this is over, and she"s completely moved in with me, I"ll make sure she knows how a man should speak to a woman and how people are supposed to care for each other.

"Turn left onto Sidney Street," I say toward the phone sitting on the seat beside me. "The gas station will be ahead on the right."

"Okay. Thanks."

Sage is a cautious driver, which I appreciate. I"ve been attempting to be more chatty during the drive, which is a bit draining for me. I"m also a little concerned about her poor little foot.

"Everything all right, princess? You sound worried. Or are you just tired?"

Her car makes the left, then slows down even more. "Barrett, if I asked you to hang back and not meet my brother, would you be okay with that?"

This feels like an important moment. I keep asking Sage to tell me to stop if things are too much. I want her to feel like she has as much control over this relationship as I do. And I did already put my foot down about letting her come to this horrible place alone.

She sighs. "I can hear you making that grumbling noise right over the phone, you know."

"Sorry." Dammit, I"m going to have to do the right thing, no matter how wrong it feels. "How about this, princess – I"ll just pull up on the other side of the parking lot and mind my own business here in the truck. But you keep this call open. Good enough?"

I can hear her sigh of relief. "Yes. Thank you."

Sage pulls into the gas station and heads toward the east side of the parking lot. There"s an orange failed attempt at a muscle car parked there already with two scrawny guys leaning on the hood. I"m surprised the rust bucket can hold their weight.

I pull into the far side of the lot and park in a spot that gives me a clear view of them, and crank the volume on my phone.

"Cutting it pretty close, sis." The guy with the greasy hair and smudgy throat tattoos must be Carl. Charming.

"I"m ten minutes early." She sounds nervous. I hear rustling as she grabs her purse with her phone in it.

"Come on, come on," he hisses.

"Sorry," Sage says. "I have an injured foot." She swivels out of the seat to stand up slowly and carefully.

"Yo, is the dumb bitch gonna hurry up or what?" the guy in the cheap leather jacket snarls.

Instead of defending his sister, Carl cackles like a hyena. "Yeah, my little sis has always been slow. Clumsy, too. It"s a wonder she was able to drive here without going off the road to chase after something shiny, or one of her stupid fucking birds."

The world turns red.

A slow blink.

Then I"ve never run so fast, crossing the parking lot in three heartbeats.

Another slow blink.

Two hard thumps as their heads bounce off the brick wall of the gas station. I"m holding them by the throats. I get a strong urge to close my hands on their windpipes.

Another slow blink.

And then a heavy hand lands with a solid thud on my shoulder.

"Breathe, Barrett. They"re not worth it."

I whirl to see Jace Wolfe giving me a slow nod. "Whatever these two assholes did, I"m sure they deserve having their teeth knocked out for it. But it doesn"t have to be by you. And it really doesn"t have to be in front of this nice girl, who looks completely terrified."

Two slow blinks.

Finally a slithering thump. I set the jerks back on their feet, and turn toward Sage. Her beautiful eyes are huge, mouth open as she stares at me in disbelief.

Glancing back at Carl, I gave him a shove on the shoulder – just enough to remind him that I"m three times his size and could knock him into next week without breaking a sweat.

"If you"re ever impolite to your sister again, you will have me to deal with."

"And all of his friends. I"m one of them," Jace growls, with a glare that could freeze the sun.

Leather Jacket Punk is already scrambling into his car and taking off.

Carl steps toward his car, but I stop him with one finger to the center of his chest. I turn to Sage. "Do you have everything you need?"

She nods, still speechless.

I remove my finger and grunt, "Stay away from Wolfe Mountain." He scrambles into the car and screeches out of the lot.

Slowly reaching for Sage, I notice that she lifts her hand to take mine, but doesn"t stand as close to me as usual.

"What the hell are you doing here?" Jace asks. "I hate having to stop in Pinesley even for gas."

"Just clearing something up." I clap him on the shoulder. "Thanks. Almost lost it for a split second."

He nods. "I could tell. But it"s never worth it." He turns to Sage and tips an imaginary cowboy hat. "Jace Wolfe at your service, ma"am."

"Um, Sage Campbell. Thank you." My poor baby sounds rattled.

Jace gives me a nod of farewell and heads back to the gas pumps as I turn to face Sage, gently holding her hands in mine. "Are you okay, princess?" I ask as softly as possible.

Her head nods gently.

"Were you frightened by how angry I got with Carl?"

Her head tips back and forth. "A little. But it was more that…" Her breath is shaky.

"Please tell me. I"m so sorry if I scared you, baby. I never want to do that. I don"t think I"ve ever seen red like that before in my life."

"That"s not it." Her voice is almost hollow. "I"ve just…never had anyone stand up for me before. Like…ever." Her lovely eyes fill with tears, causing a crushing sensation in the center of my chest.

Lifting her gently, I cradle her in my arms, cuddling her head against my shoulder. "Princess, I would go to the ends of the Earth for you. I"d defend you against an army."

"I know. I just still can"t believe it."

"It"s okay." I carry her back to the truck. Once we"re seated side by side, I hold out my hand palm up, and am relieved at how quickly she takes it.

"Sage, I get the sense that you"ve been wandering. I don"t wander. I"m planted like a tree. You could plant yourself in Old Hemlock Valley with me if you wanted. You wouldn"t ever have to see Carl again."

She nods slowly, frowning. Oh crap. She doesn"t like the idea of anything being final with the only family she has left. Maybe…

"Unless you want to check in with him every Christmas?" I ask gently. "Talk once a year, and we"ll hope that he gets his act together?"

Her bottom lip trembles. "You"ll hope with me?"

"Yes.."

Suddenly her lovely blue eyes are sparkling again. "You"re pretty good at the compromise thing, did you know that?"

I half chuckle. "I did not. Guess I do now."

I hold out my arms, and she snuggles against me as I kiss the top of her hair. "Sage, I want you to be happy. And I hope that"s with me."

She smiles up at me with that beam of sunshine in her eyes. "Pretty sure it will be."