To Taylor’s surprise, William did follow with his tail literally between his hind legs, although Taylor could feel the uncertainty and anger thrumming between them.
They found William’s clothes at the base of a yew tree, its twisting branches making it look like a set piece fromGoosebumps. He dressed quickly into the same dirty clothes Taylor had seen him in before, and anger flared through Taylor’s chest as he wondered why thehellthe foster parents hadn’t given him new ones.
“I didn’t want to wear their stupid clothes,” William snapped, as though reading Taylor’s mind.
William’s small hand clung to Taylor’s shoulders as they made their way back through the woods, his fingers shaking as they tightened and twisted in his fur. It was like he was testing the feel of him, trying to decide whether Taylor was someone he could trust.
Taylor had done the same to Johnny when they were kids, and it had taken him a long,longtime to shift in Johnny’s presence—to let his forebrain go dormant whilst the hindbrain took over.
William followed him all the way back to the car, even waited whilst he changed in the rickety shifter hut. When Taylor emerged, he found William picking nervously at his fingers.
“I want to go home,” he said, spitting out a shard of nail. “To my house, with my dad.”
Taylor sighed. “Your dad’s in custody, dude. Although I’m sure you already knew.”
William let out a soft whine as he pressed his palms into his eyes. “Why do you keep doing that? To him? To me? Why can’t you just leave us alone? He’d be fine if it wasn’t for you.”
Taylor swallowed, perching on the bonnet of the car. “Do you want the nice answer? Or the honest one?”
William frowned. “The honest one.”
Taylor sucked his teeth. “Your dad’s a shitbag, Will. The drugs come first; always have, always will. Sure, he’s nice to you sometimes, but what about the really bad days?”
William’s bottom lip started to quiver. “He’s sick. Mum said so when she left. He can’t help that he’s so horrible.”
Taylor ran his hand through his hair and looked William in the eye. “She meant he’s sick in the head, Will. Not unwell. Do you… do you know how many times JP and I have had to peel your mum off the floor?”
“Of course I do.” He shuffled from foot to foot, running his tongue over his teeth. “But Dad loves me, you know? He might not say it, but he does.”
Taylor tipped his head. “Sure, maybe in his own way. But just because someone loves you doesn’t mean they’re good for you. What was so bad about the foster home, anyway?”
William shrugged, his eyebrows pulling in and out of a frown. “They stank. Like old people. And hamsters.”
Taylor grimaced. “That does sound pretty gross.”
“Right? And they made me watchTipping Point, andBargain Hunt. I couldn’t… I couldn’t take it.”
Chuckling, Taylor swiped a thumb under his nose. “Yeah, that does sound dire.”
“My mum’s coming back, you know? Today. She told me.”
Taylor cocked a brow. “Really? Where? When?”
“Soon. She said she’d meet me at the house. I want to see her, Tay. Even if it’s just for a bit, then I’ll go back to the Tipping Hunt Hamster House.”
Taylor pressed his lips together. “Yeah?”
“Yeah.”
“Promise?”
William nodded.
“Pinkie promise?” Taylor said, holding out his little finger.
William rolled his eyes and slapped it away. “I promised, didn’t I?”
The sun was blazing hot when they pulled up at the house, and it cast a shimmery haze over the shit-strewn lawn. He’d updated Isla about their detour, to which she’d made him promise not to let William out of his sight.
