My sire hadn’t chimed in. Must’ve been because he knew the truth. He lived through losing his true-mate and never getting a chance to really get to know him before it happened. He knew what I was trying to outrun. Had to outrun and still, Pierce’s hurt brown eyes danced through my memories. He wasn’t bad to look at. Those big brown eyes, dark hair, neatly kept but not as short as a lot of guards cut theirs. He had kissable lips and those big hands that gripped the wheel so tightly while sitting next to me in the car.
I was going to personally cut out the spleen of whoever blew out the windows at the Raven’s Perch and led to this catastrophe. Now, he’d have to live with the fact that I wasn’t going within sight of him ever again. I’d lived this long without him and could manage to do that forever for both of our sakes.
My parents knew I was coming home. So, I gave Clarence a quick call and he was gracious enough not to ask what happened. He’d probably get the full story from his guard anyway. Then I couldn’t help it. I called Teal. It was the middle of the night in Heartville, but he picked up on the second ring.
“Where are you?” he asked. “I thought you’d hang around and oversee the construction prep.”
“Who told you?” I sighed, sliding down the tree and plopping my ass in the two-inch-high grass.
“A few people called me. Of course, they called me. I’m the guy who squashes the bastards who do shit like this, Cri. Even if you’re mad at me for reasons that I can’t wrap my head around,we’re still friends, right?” his voice calmed my racing heart just enough for me to hear myself think over it.
“I’m not angry at you, Teal. You three have mates and children. We live in different worlds now. Have you heard the other thing?”
“That Preston beat the shit out of your mate with a bag of chips, jerky, candy bars, and sodas? Yeah, I heard. I think the whole flight heard Preston demand help and for him to stay down and stop chasing you,” Teal chuckled. “Did the guy try something you didn’t want to do?”
“Not exactly,” I said, closing my eyes.
“I’m gonna need more than that. If he did and you said no and he kept at it --- Cri, that’s the sort of guy I take care of. True-mate or not, he doesn’t have any right to---”
“No, Teal!” I cut him off before he got on a roll. “He let me smell him. That’s it. Then I noped out. Teal, he doesn’t deserve the level of crazy being my mate would bring into his life.”
“Like Preston beating him up with snacks?” Teal said.
“Stop laughing!”
“I’m not laughing. It’s hard work but I’m not laughing,” Teal said.
“Teal, not everyone has angelic parents who---”
“Don’t you start the generational trauma Olympics with me, Crilus! Your parents and my carrier belong to the same support group. I’m sorry their pasts haunt you but don’t do that with me. You’ve run away from everyone else. Is this your way of getting me to leave you alone too?”
“No… I- I don’t know. Teal, for fucks sake! It’s the first time in my life I don’t know what the fuck to do but I can’t go back around him.”
“Pierce is a decent guy. I’ve met him a few times. Ciro knows him from the short time he was an active guard. His personnel file is clean.”
“You don’t get to do that. You don’t get to say no to me and then find your mate and then do a background check on mine and—”
“Me? No, I didn’t. Both Morvan and Cobalt emailed it to me. They both need more kids to take care of or something. I’m aways glad to help a friend, Crilus, but I’m not about to navigate this for you. What’s gotten into you anyway? This isn’t like you. Do you know who attacked you? Is that it? Is that why you’re so shaken up?”
“I really don’t know and that bothers me,” I admitted because it was Teal, and he wouldn’t stop until he pried the confession from my tongue.
“Do you want me to stick around?”
“Ciro…”
“Will understand. The kids are still dependent on him for fifty percent of their food. Otherwise, I’d probably ask him to be your guard. He’s trained and---”
“Did you really come all this way just because of the windows and--- I’m not asking if you’re trying to cheat on Ciro. I know you’re not. I just---”
“Don’t know why I’m still being nice to you? UH…. Crilus, we are friends, right? You weren’t just DTF and using me for all my local connections, right?” Teal asked.
Anyone else I’d have laughed at, but Teal was being sincere.
“No, Teal. It was never like that. If I wanted connections that would’ve been Cobalt. He was always happy to show off to get what he wanted. We are friends. I just--- Is Ciro okay with this? Really, okay with it all? I don’t want to cause you any problems.”
“You’re not and you’re deflecting,” Teal said.
“Because I don’t know what to do about Pierce. I think I’m going to go home for a few weeks and sort this all out there.”
