Safety (7 page)

“I never started with you.”

Tulip had never been anything more than a means to an end. She had been close to Silas, and he had used that to his advantage. If Hale had been feeling more like himself, he would have told her as much. But today, he didn’t have it in himself to be cruel.

“You’re a nice female, Tulip. There are plenty of males in Halcyon. I’m sure you’ll make one of them very happy, but it’s not going to be me.”

It was still light out, but Taylor could already tell that her night was going to suck.

Despite her exhaustion, she’d spent no less than an hour cleaning her den earlier that morning. Then, when she’d laid down to rest, her sleep had been repeatedly interrupted by Lark’s brood of raccoons.

By noontime, Taylor had kicked all of the raccoons from her home, ordering Lark to sleep with them outside on the hammock. After that, Taylor had managed to catch a couple hours of sleep before she was woken by the sound of banging. Glenn had come by to build the fence.

Convinced that the universe was conspiring to keep her awake, Taylor gave up and proceeded to work on chores. After weeding the garden, she tackled the quail coop, all the while feeling like a spring that was wound too tightly.

As she gathered the quail eggs into a basket, it began to rain. Within seconds, the dirt beneath her feet turned to mud, which splattered onto her dress as the quail scurried anxiously around the hutch.

“Taylor, do you want some help?”

Taylor turned her head to the tree where Lark resided. She sat on the high branch of an oak, the baby raccoons latched onto her hair. Taylor glowered at them, sleep deprivation making her immune to their cuteness.

“You could have asked me that an hour ago, when there were actually things to do,” Taylor grumbled, before finishing the task at hand.

There were six speckled eggs in total. Taylor set them down carefully in a cloth-lined basket before backing out of the hutch. Once she was out, the hens rushed to get back in, nearly tripping Taylor in the process.

“This place is turning into a zoo,” Holly remarked.

The fox shifter leaned against a fence post, surveying Taylor with mild amusement. Holly had presumably been sent to watch over Taylor, though you wouldn’t know it with the way she’d been sleeping on the porch for the past hour.

“How much are these worth?” Taylor asked, thrusting the basket at her.

Holly surveyed its contents. “Six eggs? May get you out of one night of cleaning duty. Definitely not enough to cover all three of you.”

Taylor was feeling vindictive enough to take her offer, but before she could accept, Glenn said, “Holly and the foxes have been sneaking down here and taking the eggs the entire time you were gone.”

Taylor arched a brow at Holly, who looked away and shrugged. Grabbing three of the eggs for herself, Taylor handed her the basket.

“I think we’re covered for today.”

Taylor climbed over the fence, one of the eggs slipping from her hand. She watched it fall in slow motion, before it splattered onto the ground.

Holly laughed at her.

As Taylor tried to think of something nasty to say, Lark said, “Hey, where do you suppose she’s going?”

“Who?” Taylor and Holly asked in unison.

Lark pointed towards the far side of the lake. “It looks like Tulip. Do you think she’s with the hunting party?”

“The hunt won’t begin for at least a few more hours,” Glenn said, squinting towards the lake.

“Penny was supposed to be watching her,” Holly said. She nodded at Glenn. “You. Take Taylor back to the den. I’m going to go see what this dumb bitch is up to.”

Before Taylor could protest, Holly shifted into her fox form and bounded off towards the river. Glenn came to stand next to her, brushing the dirt from his hands.

“Come on. We should get going.”

Taylor crossed her arms under her breasts. “It’s pouring. I don’t want to go to the den. I want to go inside, build a fire, eat my eggs, and go to sleep.”

But first, of course, she wanted to complain some more.

“I’m so tired of her and Fenix ordering me around. I don’t let Alder boss me around. What makes Holly think I’m going to let her do it?”

“You always do what Alder tells you,” Lark commented as she began climbing down.

“Whose side are you on?”

Glenn put a hand on Taylor’s shoulder.

“No one’s taking sides here,” he assured her. “Let’s head back to the den as a precaution. I’ll even go get one of your frying pans. That way you can cook those eggs.”

He turned to head towards the cabin.

Taylor called out, “Wait, grab the pot. I want to boil them.” She gave him a small smile. “And thanks for putting up with me.”

He grinned. “That’s nothing. You should see Lark when she’s in a bad mood. She threw a brick at me once.”

“Did not!” Lark protested.

Taylor said, “I dunno, Lark, you have a track record for throwing rocks.”

Just as Glenn reached the porch, a sharp-pitched cry rang out in the distance.

The blood drained from Lark’s face. “That sounded like Holly.” She grabbed Taylor’s arm. “We have to do something. She could be in trouble.”

Glenn ran over to rejoin them. “We aren’t doing anything but going back to the den. The others will hear. I’m sure they’ll be there in no time.”

“They’re all in the den. What if they don’t hear her over the rain?”

Lark cast Taylor a pleading look.

As much as she didn’t like Holly, Taylor could hardly stomach the thought of leaving her behind when she might be hurt. But still, she and Lark weren’t fighters. If they ran in there, even with Glenn backing them up, there was a good chance they could make the situation worse.

“I’m sorry, Lark,” Taylor said. “We should go back to the den. We’ll wake the others and they can go help.”

Lark reluctantly agreed.

***

“How the fuck did she get the jump on you?” Hale growled.

Holly lay on the floor of the den, blood oozing from the gaping wound in her throat. Her mouth opened and closed, but she couldn’t manage anything except a pained moan.

“Leave her be,” Alder said.

He put a hand on Hale’s shoulder and pulled him back. Cammie, who was working to suture the wound, looked appreciative.

There had been no sign of Tulip by the time they’d arrived at the scene. There was a thatch of the wolf shifter’s hair in Holly’s mouth, but her scent trail had been washed away by the rain.

“Oh, my God!”

Alder turned at the sound of his mate’s gasp, finding her standing at the entrance of the room, her hand over her mouth and her wide eyes fixed on Holly.

It was the first time he’d seen her all morning. After being woken and assured by Glenn that she was safe within the den, he and Hale had raced off to where Holly had been attacked.

Seeing her now, Alder wished he’d stayed behind. There were dark smudges under her eyes and her damp dress clung to too-pale skin.

Alder went to her, enfolding her in his arms and turning her so that she faced away from the gruesome sight.

“Is she going to die?” Taylor asked, her bottom lip trembling. “Lark wanted to go help her, but Glenn and I wouldn’t let her.”

Alder made a mental note to commend the young wolf later.

“You did the right thing,” he assured her. “It looks a lot worse than it is.”

He chose not to tell her that a wound like that on a human would have been fatal.

“It was Tulip,” Taylor told him. “Lark spotted her and Holly went to—”

“We know,” he said, smoothing her hair. “Fenix and the wolves are out searching for her now. They’ll find her.”

Taylor nodded and then rested her head on his shoulder. “I hate being useless. I want to learn how to use a weapon, or fight, or something.”

“Like hell,” Hale bellowed.

Alder felt Taylor tense before pulling away from him to glare at his twin.

“What am I supposed to do if something like this happens again? Run away?”

Hale stalked over to stand in front of her, attempting to stare her down with his hard gaze.

“You’re damn right,” he said. “Not that there will be a next time. You’re through living in that damn box.”

Taylor’s hands balled into fists. “That
box
is my home.”

“Not anymore,” Hale said, raising his chin. “You’re coming to live in the den, starting tonight.”

“No.”

“I don’t remember saying you had a choice.”

Taylor looked as though she was about to snap and Alder couldn’t stand by any longer. He placed a hand on her back, rubbing her in soothing circles.

“If she wants to live in the cabin, that’s where she’ll live,” Alder said.

Alder understood Hale’s perspective, and he would have much preferred Taylor stay in the den as well, but he knew that being holed up in the den was no way for her to live.

Hale didn’t understand this as Alder did, and he looked at Alder as though he’d been betrayed.

“It isn’t safe out there.”

That irked Alder. “She’s my mate. I’ll worry about keeping her safe.”

He knew Hale’s reasons for instigating war with Whiteriver and agreed with him, for the most part, but it pissed Alder off that Hale would imply that he would put Taylor in danger.

Hale’s lip curled. “I think I’m far more qualified to protect a mate than you are.”

For a moment, Alder went perfectly still. Then, for the second time in his life, he punched his brother in the face.

I’m not in love with Hale.

Someone once told Taylor, if you say something over and over again, eventually, you’ll start to believe it. Once you start to believe it, it becomes the truth.

The cabin was quiet, save for the sound of rain smacking against glass and the occasional clunking of wood as Alder worked to light the fire. The wood was wet, making the task take longer than usual, but Taylor was glad that he was occupied, as it gave her time to clear her head.

She lay in her furs, watching the rain trickle down the window. The rain had made it difficult for the wolves to track Tulip and Fenix had had no luck spotting her from above.

Hale had joined them in the search for Tulip, after the fight with Alder. Not that it was much of a fight. Just like before, Hale had accepted the punch and hadn’t fought back. He had given Alder a hostile look before leaving, and Taylor could tell it was still troubling Alder. It was still troubling Taylor, as well.

“If I were back at the den, you would be out searching for Tulip with the others right now, wouldn’t you?”

Alder glanced over his shoulder to favor her with a sincere smile. “There’s no place I’d rather be than here with you.”

He turned back to the kindling.

“What was Hale talking about? Why did you hit him?”

She hated interrogating him, but she felt like she was going to burst if she didn’t ask.

Alder didn’t answer immediately. He kept his back to her as he continued to work at the fireplace. Taylor caught a whiff of wood smoke, and then a few seconds later, the logs caught fire. Alder leaned back on one hand, patting the space beside him.

Taking one of the furs with her, she crawled over to him, pleased when he wrapped an arm around her and pulled her close to his side.

He looked down at her and said, “I had a mate once.”

Taylor kept her eyes on the fire and nodded.

“You don’t seem surprised.”

She lifted a shoulder. “You told me, after the first time we were together, that you’d loved someone before. I guess it could have been anyone, but I always sort of assumed you’d had a mate. I never wanted to pry.”

Alder was always so patient and understanding of her needs. When it came to their relationship, he possessed a level of maturity that could have only been forged in past experience.

“You’re my mate,” he said, kissing the side of her face. The warmth of his lips lingered as he pulled away. “You’re never prying.”

Taylor leaned into his side. “Okay. So… What was she like?”

She peeked up to see Alder smiling.

“Beautiful. Adventurous. Self-centered. Infuriating.”

“Sounds like quite the catch.”

His smile faded. “My older brother never seemed to think so.” His gaze shifted to the fire. “She was his mate.”

“Did you share her?”

Alder shook his head. “No. No, we didn’t.”

He went silent again, as if allowing time for his words to sink in.

“I was the one who found Dawn.” Alder gave her a wry look. “She was on the run.”

Her brows rose. “From the cops?”

“No, from an abusive husband. Or at least, that’s what she told us. She was lost in the woods, about twenty miles from the nearest town.”