Chapter 13
Reid
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The faint sound ofhowls reach us, even in the dining room. Slade shifts between feet, the only sign of his discomfort, yet he’s able to keep himself in check. Night doesn’t bring about forced shifts as it did in the first few days, but it’s clearly difficult to combat the urge. All traces of hazel in his eyes have been consumed in the face of his wolf writhing just beneath the surface of his skin. It was a wise call, though. Emmy and her mates have stayed pretty much confined to their suite of rooms since she verbally claimed them, and by the number of howls, it seems that ’claim’ isn’t only a statement anymore.
And none of my brothers trust themselves to run alongside the rest of our pack. It’s... depressing, in all honesty. Pack runs are supposed to be as natural as breathing, a way to strengthen the bond between all involved. Now, they’re forced to remain outsiders in our own home, none of them willing to risk hurting our sister or her mates.
Everything’s broken, and I’m not sure how much longer I can pretend that it’s not.
I’m not missing out on anything. I don’t want to shift; never have. My brothers, though, were made for this life, even if they resent it. They took it hard when the men we grew up with as friends and family were cut down alongside our parents, but the entire tragic event barely even fazed me. I’ve always been on the outside looking in, disconnected from everyone around me, and this is no different.
The concept is sad, yet I don’t truly feel it. It’s more of a dull awareness, an analysis, and frustrating in the regard that I can’t seem to find the answer, so the emotion is self-induced and self-directed. Isolated.
“Are you near a break?” Boden asks Sabrina, striding into the room.
She mumbles something indecipherable as her fingers fly across the keys. We’re all aware of her quirks by now, so he pulls up a chair, since that’s Sabrina speak for ‘let me finish up this train of thought before I lose it.’ He knows better than to interrupt, so he simply sets the small bag he brought with him on the table, pulling out his phone to play on until she’s done. I save my current document and close my laptop, stretching and using my chair to crack my back, stiff as hell from several hours of work without moving.
It was more productive than I anticipated, though. While Sabrina concentrated on our formal project, I delved into our off-the-books one, and some of the things I found? It’s like they were begging us to take the evidence off of their hands.
My twin comes in shortly after, sitting across from me with the sole purpose of attempting to laser off my face with his glare. Things have been increasingly awkward between us since my decision to take a step back, but they’ve nearly reached a boiling point. Much longer, and I wouldn’t put it past him to set my bed on fire while I’m sleeping in it, withholding a bucket of water until I promised to get with the program and beg her for forgiveness.
“Okay.” Sabrina flips her laptop closed, stretching her arms above her head with a groan. “What’s up?”
Hopping to his feet, Bo rounds the table and sits beside her computer, offering the gift bag. “I was trying to wait for the right moment since we’ve been doing everything out of order, but I realized there’s never going to be one. So I figured I’d compromise and wait until you surfaced from cyberspace.”
She hesitates. “That looks an awful lot like a jewelry store bag.”
He smirks. “That would be correct.”
Narrowing her eyes, they flit from the bag to my brother’s face. “I’m not sure that I want to open it.”
Snorting in amusement, he slides it closer. “Trust me, you want to open it. Remember, I’m amazing at following directions. Don’t worry, I listen closely when you talk.”
With only a few more seconds of hesitation, she reaches for the bag, reluctance giving way to curiosity. Withdrawing a black, rectangular box, she lifts the lid. Right on top is the receipt, several things circled in red marker, and I lean closer to read over her shoulder.
Her laughter bounces off the walls. “I didn’t even know theymadecoupons for these stores; I thought it was only sales.”
A smug, satisfied smile lights up his face as he crosses his arms. “Anything can be an extreme sport if you’re dedicated enough; even couponing. Stacked the sale price with a promo code, and exploited the wording in a manufacturer’s coupon to where they had to break down and agree to accept it simply to make me go away. Even if it worked out to a little more than you’d have liked me to spend, the fact that I managed to get it eighty percent off should be impressive enough that you have no choice but to love it so much, you never take it off.”
Still chuckling, she sets the receipt aside, her laughter drying up as she gawks at it. Delicately lifting the necklace from the box, she inspects it, taking in every little detail. “It’s gorgeous.”
With the utmost care, he tucks a lock of hair behind her ear. “So you’ll understand why I thought of you when I saw it.”
The cheesy line helps snap her out of her state of awe, a smile spreading across her face. “Well played, Hawthorne. Well played.”
Beaming, he slips the silver chain over her head. “I have my moments.”
It’s long enough that the claw-shaped pendant hangs beneath her breasts, ensuring that so long as she doesn’t shift into anything bigger than Slade’s hellhound, it won’t be destroyed. Pinching it between her fingers as she rises to her feet, she holds it away from her body to stare at a little longer.
Fascinated as always at how she views the world, I watch as a myriad of emotions cross her face, living vicariously through her. From discomfort, awe, and joy, to something akin to yearning that I can’t really discern, she runs the emotional gambit, eventually settling in a happy place. She makes it look soeasy,that I don’t think I’ll ever stop being envious. Sabrina dissects things with flawless precision, compartmentalizes the pieces, and reconstructs them to her liking within her mind.
She’s the only thing that’s ever managed to make the monster in my chest revolt, reminding me of how spoiled I’d gotten in how dormant and subdued he once was. Sabrina may be a similar breed, but she’s no wolf. She brings out the worst in us, exacerbating our curse until we lose either our minds, or ourselves.
“My turn!” My twin straight up sits on the table and swings himself closer rather than walk around, crossing his legs and setting his gift bag on his lap. Gesturing at the present on his crotch, he commands, “Open.”
Rolling her eyes, she steps forward to stick her hand in the bag, surprised more that she wraps her fingers around an actual gift instead of his dick. Withdrawing a sheathed dagger, her breath hitches, and my brother is quickly forgotten as she traces her fingers over the sleek, onyx covering. Sliding the dagger out of its sheath, it reveals a matching obsidian blade, but with a silver, swirling design etched into it. The weapon may as well have been formed from the aether of the night sky, radiating the promise of death in an elegant way fit for a queen.
