Page 60 of Freed

Unable to hold it in any longer, I twist from Maddox’s grasp just in time to bend over and throw up all over the floor between us.

Someone pulls my hair back the second I bend over, not letting so much as a strand get dirty. Two large hands rub my back as another one bands around my chest, holding me solid, even though I feel like I’m crumbling.

I can’t believe Blaze would bring that here. When he had taken me, he kept trying to convince me that we were mates, that we were meant to be together. But what kind of sick fuck thinks leaving me my own skinned pelt is some sort of romantic gesture? Because Blaze is messed up, and I am sure that’s what this is. He isn’t trying to scare me or anger me. No. He did this because in his sick twisted brain, he thought I would want it back.

Slowly, I stand and reach for it, not wanting any of them to have to touch it, but the four of them yelling “No!” has me snatching my hand back as I’m pulled back into Maddox’s chest.

“I’ll get rid of it,” Bain says, taking it gently from Chase, before he looks at me. “You do want me to get rid of it, right?”

I nod, my stomach flipping and making my hand rise to my mouth again as I close my eyes, afraid I’m going to throw up again.

I hear the door close as Maddox’s arm bands underneath my butt, lifting me up. I wrap my body around him, pressing my face into his neck as I take a few deep breaths as Maddox carries me to my bathroom.

“Sorry,” Hunter says from behind us. I glance over my shoulder, surprised to see it’s only him there.

“Don’t apologize,” I say, reaching my hand out to him. “Where did the other two go?”

“To see if Blaze is still here, and to check the camera feeds.”

“I guess the wards don’t stop him from walking up to the front door and ringing the doorbell, huh?” I ask.

Maddox shakes his head. “No, living in a subdivision like we do, and with all the deliveries, it’s unsafe to others to stop people from approaching the house. Where the wards are most useful is stopping unwanted guests from entering our home.”

He sets me on the counter, then grabs my toothbrush, wetting it and adding toothpaste before passing it to me. I take it, grateful to get the taste out of my mouth as Hunter disappears, presumably to do the same in his bathroom.

Maddox grabs a cloth and gets it wet with cold water then starts to gently wipe my face. I sigh. It feels surprisingly good. When I’m finished brushing and have rinsed, he wipes my mouth last before placing a quick peck there and offering me a small smile.

Then he lifts me up and carries me out to the living room and back to the couch, sitting me sideways as Hunter appears, passing me my water bottle and sitting beside us. He pulls my legs into his lap and grabs the blanket from the back of the couch, pulling it over me.

“Where did this blanket come from?” I ask, realizing it’s my favorite shade of pink. I’ve never noticed it before.

“I’ll give you one guess,” Hunter says with a smirk. Right. Chase.

Hunter puts the TV on to try to distract me, but knowing that Blaze is so close, along with the fact that three of my mates aren’t here, has me fidgeting nervously.

Eventually, they make it back to us, one at a time.

When Gage comes in, he drops down on the floor right in front of me, surprising me. He grabs my hand and pulls it over his shoulder, apparently just wanting to touch me.

“It wasn’t Blaze.”

“What?” Chase asks from Maddox’s other side in confusion.

“He used a courier.”

“That guy just signed his own death warrant,” Chase grumbles.

“Why? He didn’t know,” I say in the man's defense.

Chase levels me with a glare as he grits out. “This is Starfall Haven. The guy who delivered that knew it was an animal pelt. Whether he knew it was from a shifter or not, he should have known better than to deliver it. He only did it because he was probably offered a large sum of money.”

“That can wait until tomorrow,” Maddox says, stroking my side. “I think we should relax for the rest of the day.”

Chase finds the TV remote, and as he lifts it, Bain speaks. “Wait.”

“What is it?” Maddox asks as we look at him in the armchair I’m facing.

“I need answers.”