Twisted (Rogues Shifter Series Book 3) (38 page)

As extreme as
a fae's anger can be, the same can be said about their loyalty and kindness. The term ‘I’ve got your back’ was invented in Faerie, once you’re looked upon as an ally. Liam, Aedus and even Lord Caelen have supported my causes and protected my ass so many times that sometimes I think I should just move to Faerie so that they wouldn't have to make the trip to my house. They tell me that it’s all to pay me back for what I did for Aedus over a hundred years ago, but I know that it’s because we’ve become close friends and enjoy fighting alongside one another. I’m forever grateful that Jackie has been included in this ‘fellowship’ as well.

Memories of that day when Lord Caelen first approached me about his first born son flooded
back. We’d only met once before and it wasn’t on friendly terms, so I was extremely hesitant to meet with him. His emissary, Liam, whom I’d also never met, assured me that I would not be harmed, so I went.

I
t all involved Eleanor, of course. She'd convinced another extremely powerful ancient vampire to kidnap a fae with royal blood to use as a blood slave. Vampires are well aware of the power of fae blood, but few ever have a chance to taste it. Eleanor used her seductive wiles on Aedus and lured him to the ancient, where he was shackled in iron, tortured and used for his blood.

At the meeting,
Lord Caelen told me of Aedus' situation and waited for my response. There was no pressure and very little emotion was evident in his voice. His cold, reserved attitude almost made me refuse him, but I asked to look into his mind and although he was shocked at first, he allowed me access. This was his son, the only child with a mate whom he loved dearly. He didn’t want to start a war between the Fae and the vampire council which he knew could happen if he personally attacked an Ancient. He simply wanted his son returned to him. At least that was what he allowed me to see and I believed him.

I told him that I would try to get Aedus released
without bloodshed. There was only one way I could accomplish this and that was to work out an agreement with Eleanor. I approached her, and after much haggling and many threats, we reached a bargain. Aedus would be released back to his father if I returned to her for a period of two years. One of my stipulations was that I not ever be forced to participate in the death of an innocent or a nest mate. She agreed to that, but then forced me to watch every horrible torture she could dream up. There were many dawns over the next two years when I closed my eyes and prayed that I would not wake up again, and twice she had to stop me from just walking out into the sun. It got to a point where I had round the-clock-guards to keep me from harming myself.

After my two years were up
, she was forced to let me go. When I walked into my house, thin, weak and miserable, Liam, Aedus and Lord Caelen were there. They invited me to Faerie and so I went and was made an ally and a friend of the fae. They helped me recover my strength and my will to live and have been my staunchest supporters in my attempt to protect innocent lives ever since. Liam came back with me when I returned home and has guarded me as I sleep almost every day since then.

The Ancient vampire disappeared one day soon after I returned home. No one knows for sure where he went and the general consensus was that he simply walked into the sun, not wanting to live any longer. I knew better. Lord Caelen approached me about ending Eleanor’s life, but I told him that her death was to be my honor at some future date. He knew about the death of my family and so agreed.

I flashed back to that night in the clearing when I ripped out her throat in cheetah form, honoring my family's pain. Even though the loss of my parents and sister still haunts me, now it's easier for me to remember the happy times we spent together. My deepest regret was that they would never know how my life has changed because of Jackie.

That thought brought me back to look once more at my lovely mate and my closest friend, holding hands like children, seemingly sleeping peacefully, but actually reliving the horrors of her captivity. I felt the first sharp pains of the coming dawn an
d crawled into bed beside her, knowing that here in Faerie, I didn’t have to rest. But then I wouldn’t be at my best if she needed me, since denying myself, caused me pain and weakened me.  I turned on my side to face her and laid my hand gently on her waist, hoping that I didn’t disturb her trance, but needing the contact myself. The pain was worse, so I closed my eyes and let the darkness take me.

Chapter Sixty-nine

Bridgett: 10:00 AM Wednesday

I knew I should think about packing, but I had no idea what to take. Instead, I wandered down to the kitchen feeling depressed and decided to make breakfast for myself, Ethan, Sinc and Aaron’s weres who were working out at the site of the new house. Cooking always cheered me up. I wondered how Ethan and Sinc’s night had gone and if they’d been able to work things out. I hoped so, at least I hoped that they’d be able to work together without getting too stressed out. I fed Samson and then started to cook.

Ethan came downstairs as soon as
he smelled the bacon cooking. He grabbed a mug of coffee, poured one for me, then leaned against the counter to watch.

“Thanks Bridgett.”

“I really like to cook and I’m pretty good at it. At least everyone always eats what I dish out.”

“Maybe you
should go to culinary school.” That got my attention. “You might really dig it. I could so see you with your own restaurant. You’d be turning out gourmet dishes and yelling and cursing at your staff like that guy on TV.”

We were both laughing as Sinc strolled in. She’d just gotten out of the shower so her hair was still damp, but she managed to look great anyway. She walked over to the coffeepot and poured herself a mug and then sat down at the table sipping slowly and looking out the patio doors at the flower garden
.

I handed Ethan a tray with a thermos of coffee, mugs and a pile of egg and bacon sandwiches and some apples and oranges for the weres working on the house. He ran it over to them and then came back with an empt
y tray and a hug from the guys.

When I put our food on the table Sinc s
miled and said, “Thanks for making breakfast.”

“How do you feel? “ I asked.

“A lot better. And thanks for waking up Garrett at the fight. I don’t know how much longer I could have held them off.” I saw her glance at Ethan who was sitting across from her at the table eating his eggs. He didn’t seem to notice. “Have you heard anything about how Jackie’s doing?”

“Garrett said he’ll call as soo
n as he’s up today.”

“Please call me when you hear, ok
ay?”

“Sure
.”

“So you must be excited about working in Faerie.”

“Oh yeah—
thrilled
.” She looked at me curiously.

“I’m sure it’ll be amazing. Have you packed?” I shook my head. “Well, I can help you with that. Have you shopped for clot
hes?” I shook my head again. “Then that’s the plan for this morning. We look to see what you have and we shop for what you need.”

I’m sure my expression reflected
how surprised I was by her offer. “Look, I know I can be a bitch, but you’re Jackie’s sister and I want to help. So don’t look a gift horse in the mouth. I’ll have you looking like the most professional assistant a fae could ask for. And I’ll try to make it as painless as possible.”

That made me smil
e. “I really appreciate it. I’m lost in a mall, unless I’m at the goth store.”

“And we can dye your hair to your regular color later today.” She was really getting into this makeover thing.
Maybe she'd hit her head harder than we thought.

I
sighed. "Do you really think they'll let Will come to visit me?”

“Garrett will work it out for you. He’s connected.” She
smiled and winked.

Ethan
started to clear away the plates so Sinc got up to help him. I went over to let Samson outside and heard her say, “Thank you for watching over me last night.”

“I’d do the same for
any of the team." There was a moment of tense silence between them. "I’m glad you’re feeling better, Sinc. I need to tell you something and I wanted to wait until you were yourself again.”

I stepped outside and closed the
sliding glass door, but could still hear their conversation. I should have moved farther away but, I guess I was hoping for the best.

Ethan continued, “I can’t play these games with you because they fuck me up inside. I know that you didn’t sleep with him, but you still lied to me and ripped out my heart without a second thought. You say that you were doing me a favor because you’re not good for me. Well, maybe you’re right and you’re not good for me.
"

He let that sink in for a few seconds. I couldn't see either of them, but I figured that Sinc was probably looking pretty devastated right about now.

Ethan was still talking. "I’ve never lied to you and I’ve never hurt you, at least not on purpose. I could never do that to someone I loved. When this happened, I almost quit the team and what’s even worse is I almost called up my old dealer to score. I haven’t used in six months. I’m not blaming you. It would have been my responsibility if I’d used, but that’s how messed up I was. So maybe we should just have a professional working relationship from now on.“

He hadn’t yelled or even
sounded particularly angry. He was being honest with her about how he felt. My heart was breaking for her.

“Ethan, I’m so sorry.”

“I know that you regret it. I can see it in the way you look at me, but I don’t trust you anymore.”

“D
o you still love me?”

He didn’t want to answer her.
"Yes, but it's not enough without the trust. Not for me."

“Can we try to work it out betw
een us? I still love you, Ethan. I’ll do whatever it takes for you to trust me again.”

“And what happens the next time you decide you’re not good for me and you find someone else to ru
b up against and give blood to?" His anger had risen to the surface.

She crossed her arms over her chest and looked at the floor.“S
o much of my messed up behavior has to do with being thrown out by my parents. I’m going to be seeing them again when we go to Los Altos and I’m going to speak to them, confront them about what they did and how it affected me.

"I think you should."

"Every man in my life has always been my father and my pack leader, the two men who threw me away at fifteen years old, so it’s hard for me to believe that anyone really wants to be with me.”

At this point I was peeking through the edge of the sliding door. I couldn't help it.
He looked at her for a long time without speaking, his thoughts almost visible behind his golden brown eyes. His voice was hoarse when he spoke again. “I’ll go with you when you talk to them, if that will help you.“

“
Thank you.”

“I’m not sure about the rest, Sinc. I just don’t know.”

“I’m not giving up on us."

"It was easy for you a week ago."

“I'll never be able to forgive myself for what I did to you, and I don't really expect you to forgive me either."

She
reached out hesitantly with her hand until just her fingertips touched his as they rested on the counter. I watched him take in a deep breath of her scent and then lift his head to meet her gaze. "I still want you. But part of me thinks that you're dangerous to my health, like the drugs I used to take. Right now, I need to back away and stay off the roller coaster, no matter how amazing it feels at the time." He squeezed her hand. “I’ll call you tomorrow to see how you're feeling.” He turned around and walked out the front door, not looking back once.

I made her sit down because she was shaking a little. “How much did you hear?”
She asked.

“Umm. I think all of it. S
orry.”

“That’s okay. It's better to know where I stand.
If he doesn’t believe I can change, then it’s over.”

“
Guys can be stubborn. You might be able to change his mind." I was just trying to keep her spirits up and she appreciated the gesture.

She smiled gratefully at me.“Lets go look at your clothes. I need a distraction.”

We ran upstairs, sorted through everything and then headed to the mall. It was an expensive shopping trip, but I got absolutely everything I could possibly need and a few things that I didn’t. I made a very special purchase just for William: a red leather mini dress. I thought maybe I’d model it for him tonight. Things were going well with William. We’d gotten over the early awkwardness and were getting into the "tell me all the personal details of your life" stage. I was starting to feel powerful in a very female kind of way and he was worshipping me the way I always dreamed a man would—and we were both enjoying every second of it.

The
phone rang. It was Garrett.

“How is she doing?”

“She seems to be doing well. Lord Caelen says their heart rate is steady and that their minds are clear and focused. Liam’s been able to skip through some quieter times to get right to the tough stuff, so she should be waking up tomorrow around 4 pm if all goes well. How are things at the house?”