A sour taste filled my mouth as I remembered the smell of gunpowder, the gaping black hole in my father’s brown fur, the taste of metal as I tried to lick his blood away. Even though I’d thrown up the silver-laced blood, I’d had to get my stomach pumped. Had I been given Sillin then? Everything after the gunshot was such ablur.
I squeezed my eyes shut andshuddered.
Arms wound around me and reeled me in. “Let me spare you this, Ness,” Liam said gently, propping his chin on the top of my head. “As a wolf, you’ll see enough terrible things during your lifetime. Let me spare you one of them. Plus, I’d rather you don’t watchmeexactjustice.”
For a long moment, neither of us spoke. Memories of Everest crashed through me. Like the time he and I snuck around the inn, collecting pillows and comforters to construct a fort of epic proportion inside his bedroom. When Mom had found us hiding behind our fluffy cotton walls, she lay down with us and told us the story of two little wolves that went on adventures instead of going to school. I wasn’t yet a wolf, so I didn’t think the story was about me, but her tale had allowed me to dream that I might become one. After that day, Everest and I discussed at great lengths the adventures we’d go on if I were able toshift.
I bit my trembling lip as I realized there would be no adventures for us. A tear escaped, and then another, soaking the thin fabric of Liam’s navy V-neck. He was right. I shouldn’t accompany him. I might put myself between Everest and the weapon used to end hislife.
“I can’t believe Jeb didn’t even fight to save his son’s life.” My words trembled like the rest of mybody.
“Jeb knows the rules of thepack.”
“This willkillhim,” I croaked, my voice barely louder than the whirringfan.
I waited for Liam to tell me that I was wrong, that my uncle was strong, that he’d get over it, but Liam didn’t say any of these things. He just held me, stroking my spine up and down, up and down, until my bodycalmed.
Come home with metonight.
I peered up at him through watery eyes and swallowed. “Okay.”
11
As we droveover to his house, I realized the inn would soon belong to Aidan Michaels. Which meant I would need to find a new place to live. Maybe I could bunk with Sarah. She’d said she didn’t want a roommate, but I’d make myself tiny and burrow in a corner of her palatial apartment. Or Evelyn. Maybe I could move in with her and Frank. Or would I have to continue living with Jeb, my legal guardian? What if Jeb didn’t survive Everest’s death? What then? Would I be entrusted to Lucy . . . if Eric ever released her from his basement? Would social services come for me, or could Evelyn finally become myguardian?
In five weeks, I’d be eighteen. Until then, my life belonged to people who were in no way fit to care forme.
“What are you thinking about?” Liam’s voice made me look away from the star-strewnsky.
“Everest.” I lied because I didn’t want to burden him with my problems. Besides, my cousin wasn’t far from mymind.
Liam squeezed the steering wheel. “I’m sorry,Ness.”
“Aboutwhat?”
“About the decision that was voted tonight.” Starlight made his chiseled profile gleamwhite.
I bit my lip, then released it along with a ragged breath. “I appreciate you sayingthat.”
After he parked in front of his modern wood-and-glass cabin, which was as dark as the sky outside the windshield, he picked up my cold hand and rubbed the pad of his thumb over myknuckles.
“Don’t think for a second I’ll enjoy ending hislife.”
I swallowed. Hard. It did nothing to dislodge the boulder-sized lump inside mythroat.
He cupped my cheek and leaned over the center console of his car, ghosting a kiss across my mouth. The contact sent a shiver straight down myspine.
“Liam?”
His lips were tracing the edge of my jaw. “Yeah,babe?”
“Ask him why he did it. Before . . . ” The rest of my sentence dangled silently betweenus.
“Iwill.”
“And promise to make it quick. Don’t torture him, okay?” I inhaled, and his potent scent swirled through me, the familiarity of itsoothing.
“Ipromise.”
