Shepaled.
Yeah.She probably didn’t need to hear about thebear.
I took her hand and led her to the couch, and we both took aseat.
“Before you begin telling me, have you hadlunch?”
“I’m nothungry.”
“I am not asking you if you are hungry. I am asking if you hadlunch.”
“I ate a sandwich on theplane.”
“The plane? You tookun avión? Where did yougo?”
Clasping her lotion-softened hands in between mine, I started from the beginning but left out the midnight battle. Just as I was about to speak to her about August, the front door opened, and Frank traipsed in, forehead glossy with sweat, which he mopped with hisforearm.
“Hi, Ness. Heard the trip wentwell.”
Evelyn spun in her seat. “You knew about the trip and did not tellme?”
“Evelyn, you know I can’t share all the happenings in the pack. And not because I don’t trust you, but because I don’t trust that someone won’t try to get that information out ofyou.”
Her intake of breath was so turbulent I squeezed herhands.
Frank walked over to the sink and poured himself a glass of water before returning to the living room. “Heard about that hunt of yours,” he said, sinking into one of the armchairs. “Proud of you,kid.”
“What hunt?” Evelynasked.
I shot Frank a look, which made his gaze widen before dropping to his glass. “Um. The deer. Ness caught adeer.”
“I have never seen you so fascinated by a glass of water, Frank,” Evelynsaid.
He tipped up his face, shooting her a rueful look from beneath his bushy whiteeyebrows.
“It was nociervothat she hunted, wasit?”
Frank tugged at the collar of his sweat-soaked undershirt. “It’s mighty hot out today. I’m going to go shower. You girls probably don’t even want mearound.”
Oh, I wanted himaround.
I sent tiny imaginary daggers into his back as he walkedaway.
“Why do I feel like I am going to have an attack to theheart?”
I clutched her fingers a little tighter. “Let me preface this by saying that I’m a hundred percentfine.”
“What. Did. You.Hunt?”
I winced from the brittleness of her tone. “A bear.” I said this really fast and reallyquietly.
Her black eyes went so wide they looked like eight-balls. “A bear? You huntedunoso?”
“Not all bymyself.”
“Is that supposed to reduce my worries?” she asked. “Why?”
“To secure the Rivers’backing.”
