He sank deeper into his chair, bobbing his foot.
“So, what’s going on with your sister?Is she going to be okay?”
He looked down at his fingers threaded across his belly, seeming to deliberate on whether he should share anything or not.She was relieved when he spoke again.“There was a poison, some kind of cursed substance, on the blade she was stabbed with.I have a witch analyzing it for the antidote.”
“Jesus.”
“The supernatural medical staff here is doing all they can.It’s complicated because she’s… pregnant.”
All levity drained from Meredith’s soul.“Oh Silas, I’m so sorry.”A heavy weight formed deep within her.She hadn’t known how serious things were when she’d walked in the room.Maybe she should leave.Give Silas his space.She scooted to the end of her seat.
“Do you have any brothers or sisters?”he asked her quickly, before she could get up.
She slid to the back of the chair again, wincing at the pain it caused her backside.Guess she’d be staying after all.“No.Only child.”She wondered if Silas remembered her father, but this wasn’t the time to bring that up.“Do you feel responsible for what happened to Laina?”
He snorted.“I don’t feel responsible.I am responsible.”
“Because you’re alpha.”
“Because she’s family.My little sister.My parents are gone.She’s my responsibility.”
She leaned toward him and placed her hand on his arm.“She might be your responsibility, but this isn’t your fault.You’ve done everything within your power to stop that evil bastard.”
Silas’s eyes locked with hers and held.Damn.She had no explanation for the heat that rose in her blood or the intense urge to move her hand along his arm, maybe to his chest.Her heart sputtered.
The door opened and Kyle walked in.She pulled her hand away, breaking the spell.Good thing too.That was far too intense.She rose from the chair, glancing between Silas and Kyle as she tightened what remained of her ponytail.“I’d better go.”
“Yeah,” Silas agreed, shifting in his seat.
She paused to look at Kyle as she passed him on the way out.“We’re going to get the bastard.I promise you that.”
Late that afternoon,Silas slipped his key into the lock of his tiny brick bungalow, gaze sweeping up and down the street for lookie-loos before he pushed inside.It was a relatively safe neighborhood.Mostly parents with young children and retired folks.But old habits died hard.It was always best to change up your routine, make sure you weren’t being watched coming and going.
He’d barely closed the door behind him when something flew at his knees.He caught the brown-and-white blur by the head.“Now that’s a welcome home,” he said, scratching the mutt behind the ears.“How’s my Maggie girl?You hungry?”
The medium-sized fuzz ball panted up at him, tongue lolling out the corner of her mouth.The spaniel had a doggie door to do her business but hadn’t been fed since early that morning before he left for work.Come to think of it, he hadn’t been fed either.His stomach rumbled as, with one last ear-flapping rub of her head, he moved for the kitchen.He dug a bag of kibble out of the cupboard and filled her food and water bowl, then opened the door to the fridge and stared as she chowed down.
There was nothing inside but a half gallon of milk that was two days past its expiration and some leftover takeout that was old enough to take itself out.He closed the door again.
A streak of black moved past the kitchen window.Silas froze.He’d definitely seen that, and it was fast, too fast to be human.He sidestepped into the shadows, out of direct sight of the window, and dug in the silverware drawer for the large knife he used to carve the Thanksgiving turkey.He’d have much preferred his Glock, but he’d left it locked in his glove compartment when visiting Laina in the hospital.His other gun was in the safe in his bedroom at the back of the house.No time for that one either.Anything that moved as fast as what he’d seen was an immediate threat.
He skimmed along the wall, jogging past the breakfast nook, and flattened himself next to the front-facing window.Knock.Knock.Knock.Maggie woofed once at the door, then backed up, growling.
Someone was out there.With two fingers, he moved the curtains aside a fraction of an inch and peered through the window at the front porch.There was no one on the front stoop.He frowned.
Maggie barked again, and Silas whirled as a column of black smoke filtered under the door and into his foyer.He hurled the knife at the center of the thing, knowing damn well the steel blade would barely damage anything that moved like that but hoping it would give him time to reach his gun.
He was halfway to the bedroom when a familiar voice said, “This is a fine how-do-you-do.”
“Logan.Thank the goddess.”Silas ran a hand down his face, profound relief flooding him.
His best friend stared down at the carving knife protruding from his sternum.He grabbed the hilt and tugged it from his flesh with a grunt.A spurt of blood landed on the wood floor of his entryway with a splat, but the wound healed almost immediately.It was a good thing Silas’s formerly human friend had become Polina’s caretaker last year or that knife wound might have been fatal.Of course, if he had been human, he wouldn’t be misting out and sliding under his door.
“What the hell do you think you’re doing breaking into my house like that, Logan?Alex is still at large.My sister was almost killed today.”
Logan handed him the bloody knife, then squatted down to pet Maggie, who ran up to him, wagging her tail, as soon as her doggie senses picked up who it was.“I heard.That’s why I’m here.Polina suggested you’d be at the hospital and I should feed Maggie dinner.I knocked first.When you didn’t answer and your car wasn’t in the driveway, I assumed you weren’t here.”
Silas strode into the kitchen to ditch the knife in the sink, then grabbed a towel and returned to clean up the blood.“I park in a different place every night.If someone’s watching the house, I don’t want them to be able to establish a pattern.”
