Christian muttered a curse as he called up Raven’s da. “Sorry to pull you away from that decrepit piece of furniture you call a chair, but I’m giving you a ring to let you know that Raven’s fine.” Christian gave Switch a foul look as Crush ranted about how a policeman pulled him over, and he didn’t have any ID on him. “Aye, she’s fine. I’d wake her, but she’s fast asleep. Didn’t mean to trouble you over nothing. … Well, feck you too.” He handed Switch the phone.
Raven would never tell her father what had happened, and Christian had no desire to tell him that his daughter had been buried alive, right next to her mother. Some things were better left unsaid.
Switch dropped his arms at his sides. “Look, you and I don’t get along. That’s fine. But I’ve known Raven since she was a little girl. We weren’t close or anything, but she’s like a packmate to me. I ask questions because I care about her, and nothing you say or do will ever change that. Raven grew up with Crush, but she has an extended family, whether she realizes it or not. If there’s something I can do for her that maybe you don’t have time for, I’m here. Is there anything you want me to bring up? Food? Water? Her favorite ice cream?”
“If you’d stop your tail wagging for just a minute, you’d see that I’ve got it under control. She’s had a rough go with this assignment, that’s all.”
Switch narrowed his wolfish eyes, the eyebrows sloping down at an angle. He cast a critical look at Christian. Shifters were especially good at it. It was that desire they had to take charge of a situation.
Christian leaned his back against the door and folded his arms. “And where’s the wee one?”
Switch squared his shoulders. “Asleep. I’m not here to talk about Hunter. I’m off the clock now, and what I do with my free time is my own business.”
“Well, your business landed on my doorstep. And as long as you’re under this roof, you’re never off the clock. Your responsibility is the lad, not Raven. I know all about you. You tried kissing my woman and doing it while naked.”
“I can’t help it if I’m naked around her. I’m a Shifter.”
“Keep your lips on Viktor’s arse and away from Raven. I’ll not have you seducing my woman or getting naked in front of her. Raven’s not the girl you once knew, and if you can’t handle it, then off you go. She doesn’t take kindly to hovering, and if you start bringing her trays of food and asking about her feelings, she’s liable to spear you in the gut. Why can’t you be more like Viktor?”
“You mean apathetic?”
“He looks after us, provides for us, and respects our boundaries. That’s the definition of a man in my book. Not a nursemaid.”
When Switch tipped his head down, his long hair fell forward and framed his face. “News flash—I’m not old enough to stop caring. That’s a trait that comes with time and loss.”
“Aye, and you’ll be better for it.”
“Maybe so, old man, but you should ask yourself what Raven really needs. She’s closer to my age than yours, and despite the façade, there’s still a vulnerable woman in there who needs a protector. If she had a tough day at work, cook her dinner instead of boozing her up. I saw the empty bottle by the bed. Do you think that’s helping?”
“After what she’s been through, she deserves a drink.”
Switch shook his head and smiled flatly. “You’re gonna put a rift between her and her old man. Crush is a former alcoholic, remember? Do you really want him to watch Raven become the drunk he used to be? It would kill him.”
“I can’t dictate her life any more than you can,Shifter. I’m sure your heart’s in the right place, but your cock isn’t. It’s looking for a way in. Raven told me about you harping on her for drinking. How did that go for you? We all make mistakes, and we have to make them. It’s essential to become the person you were meant to be. You’ve made your fair share of mistakes, which got you banned from joining a pack, and that’s why you’re here. I’ll not be having this conversation every time we meet. Give her your friendship, but there are things you don’t know about that woman—things you’ll never be privy to.”
“I just don’t wanna see her hurt.”
“Then buy yourself a puppy, because people get hurt. You aren’t welcome in my chamber. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have things to do. I’ll tell Raven you were asking about her.”
Christian left Switch in the hall and returned to his chair by the fireside. In any other circumstance, he might like a guy like Switch. But when a man has feelings about a woman beneath the guise of friendship, he would always carry that flame.
Christian could sense when Raven was cold by how many times she would toss and turn. He rarely used the bed unless Raven stayed the night, but he usually had a nice pair of silk sheets on the mattress. What she needed was light and space, so his job was to keep the fire going. If she awoke in the night, he wanted her to feel safe instead of confused in the darkness.
While listening to Switch’s footfalls growing distant, Christian reached inside his shirt pocket and retrieved a strand of hair. When Raven had stripped off her clothes to shower, he’d found it stuck to the blood on her shirt. After wiping it clean and holding it to the light, there was no doubt who it belonged to. While Houdini’s hair was pale, this didn’t belong to her maker.
He stretched his hands apart as the firelight glinted off the blond strand. It was straight, long, delicate, and could only belong to one person: Lenore Parrish. To be certain, Christian had tasted the blood on Raven’s shirt. Some of it was hers, and some of it wasn’t. The ancient flavor teased his tongue with the opulent taste he’d once revered. Lenore had motive, and burying people was definitely her modus operandi. Being privy to their case, she could have known Raven’s whereabouts. Only a Vampire could have scrubbed her memory, and though Christian had promised not to keep secrets from Raven, why not let her assume that Houdini did it? Maybe it would sever that unhealthy relationship once and for all.
If he told Raven the truth, she would go after Lenore. Even if she didn’t succeed, the mere attempt would be an act of treason, punishable by death.
He stroked his beard and murmured, “I’m not cut out for this.”
When it came to Raven, every decision he made was in her best interest. Christian had never been in a serious relationship, and on top of that, he was a Vampire with a murderous past. Did she really expect him to be truthful at all times? Honesty was an arbitrary demand that served no purpose. His heart had sworn allegiance to love and protect Raven, not to see her to ruin.
When Raven stirred in the bed, Christian let go of the hair and blew out a deep breath. The sinewy strand floated toward the hearth and landed just shy of the grate. The end sparked, and the hair curled up before turning to smoke. The foul stench made him get up and cross the room. Christian sat on the edge of the bed, clasped his hands, and made plans.
Chapter 38
“Raven, come and let me have a look at you.” Viktor waved me over to the dining table.
