Kadenburg Revealed (The Kadenburg Shifters Series, Book 4) (29 page)

Excited laughter and various conversations boomed throughout the entire house as Arnold sat there with his plate of food.  He had taken a few bites, but he wasn’t feeling as hungry as one would hope.  Christmas dinner was his favorite yet he couldn’t find his appetite.  Was it because of his newly discovered fatherhood or because he was longing for a woman he ruined his chances with?

Another knock sounded at the door and he immediately perked up.  It was
her
. He could smell her.  His heart began to pound and his palms became sweaty as he fumbled with his plate of food.  If she saw he wasn’t eating she would rip him a new one.

At least she would be talking to me.

“Natalie!” Mr. Bamey shouted joyously as the front door swung open again.  A cold gust of wind raced through the room and her scent was attached.  Arnold’s chest ached with longing as he cleared his throat and straightened up in his seat.

“I was beginning to worry about you,” Charlotte Bamey said with a click of her tongue.  “Get in here and fix yourself a plate, Natty.  You must be starving.”

“I’m all right, thank you,” Natalie replied in the most angelic voice Arnold had ever heard.  Urseth why couldn’t he just talk to her?  Why couldn’t they fix things?  “Where’s that niece of mine?”

“I’m in here at the kid’s table, Aunt Natalie!” Presley called from the kitchen.  Her comment was followed by an uproar of laughter.  Presley, Lorcan, Dimitri, Rutley, Beau, Louisa, Greg, Sammy, Amber, and Kia had somehow managed to fit into the tiny space.  How they made that possible?  Arnold would never know.

She’s avoiding me again.
  He thought sadly as he heard Natalie’s footsteps retreating.

“Hey, Arnie.  Let’s crack open that beer, huh?” Mr. Bamey asked as he patted him on the shoulder.

“Hell yeah.” Arnold muttered as he pushed up from his seat and stood awkwardly.  He wasn’t sure if he could even get to the kitchen at the moment.

“I got it.  I’ll be right back.” Mr. Bamey said before disappearing.  There was a reason they were best friends and had been best friends since their early adolescence.  Richard always seemed to read his mind on certain things and had a tendency to get him out of bad situations if need be.  He was grateful to have a friend like Richard.

Arnold found himself outside a few moments later and he was glad to be away from the noise.  Since losing his sight, his other senses became amplified-his hearing most of all.  He exhaled loudly and leaned against the railing of the porch.

“You doing okay?” Richard asked.

“I’m sure I’ll be fine eventually,” Arnold nodded.  “It’s just a lot to take in.  It’s not every day you find out you’ve got a half-grown kid with a woman who faked her death.”

That was one hell of a doozy.  Meredith
did
die.  He saw her collapse with his own eyes and he panicked.  He’d called his father first and then phoned Meredith’s dad at work.  It was one of the worst days of his life.

How did they fake her death?  How did he not sense her heartbeat? 

We were not mated to her.
  His bear reminded him gently. 
We could not sense her as we could Natalie.

Great.  His bear just had to bring up Natalie, didn’t he?

“You want to talk about it?” Richard interrupted his thoughts.  “Ain’t nothing like talking about girl problems over a nice cold one.”

Arnold laughed quietly and shook his head.  “Who said it had anything to do with girls?”

“I don’t reckon there are many options.  You just found out you have a daughter and she’s a girl.  Plus, you and Natalie have been acting mighty awkward with one another and my wife talks to me, ya know.”

He didn’t doubt that a damn bit.  Natalie and Charlotte Bamey had been like two peas in a pod since birth.  Why wouldn’t Natalie talk to her best friend about these types of things?  Arnold hung his head and sighed.

“It’s complicated, Richie,” Arnold mumbled before taking a sip of his beer.  He let the cool liquid slide down his throat and settle in his stomach before shrugging.  “I’ve had too much time to think about things.”

“What kinds of things are you thinking about?” Richard probed further.  “I mean, I know you have to be thinking about that young’un in there.  A daughter, Arnie.  You’ve got a daughter.”

“Yeah....” Arnold’s eyebrows knitted together as he frowned.  “I don’t really know how to deal with that yet.  I don’t know what I’m supposed to say to her.”

“You could probably start by spending some time with her.”

“Naw shit,” Arnold snorted and took another drink.  “I want to spend time with her....but what would we do?  She’d want to talk and I don’t really know what to say about anything.  I never knew she existed until today.  How do you approach the sort of situation?”

“With caution and understanding,” Richard replied.  “She seems real eager to get to know you.  She’s going to need you just as much as you’ll need her in the next little while.  We’ll need each other to get through this.”

“And what is ‘this’ exactly?” Arnold turned his head in the direction of his friend’s voice.  “What in tarnation does Breslin have up his furry sleeve, huh?  He comes in here and kills our people, he kidnaps my niece and drugs her, and he turns our young and able into freaks of nature.  Now I find out he’s been chasing after my kid for Urseth only knows how long and he’s coming back to finish what he started.  You tell me where it all fits together, Richard, ‘cause I ain’t got a damn clue.”

“I wish I knew, Arnie.  I wish I had all the answers, but I don’t.  All I know right now is that we have a family to protect.  We have a cub that needs to enter the world without the threat of a bloodthirsty lunatic roaming in our woods.  I’ve already lost one boy and I refuse to lose the other.  We have to come up with a solution-a permanent one.”

“Yeah,” Arnold muttered as he tilted his head back to finish off his bottle of beer.  Thank Urseth for Dimitri.  He really needed the alcohol in his system if he had to have this conversation tonight.  “I just don’t think we need to have any more town meetings.  I can’t believe Davey had a meltdown like that.  And did you hear that Buchanan boy’s ridiculous recommendation?  You and me as elders.”  He snorted.

“I don’t reckon it was that ridiculous,” Richard said quietly.  “I mean....you and me, Arnie, we’ve stuck it out.  We stayed here.  Everyone else ran away to protect their families, but we stood our ground.  We’re the ones who buried Pierce Carroll.  It’s you and me who kept a close eye on our kids as they grew up in this town.  Why shouldn’t we be elders?”

“Cause the last time I checked we weren’t over the age of fifty yet,” Arnold shot a glare in his direction.  “I’m too young to be called an elder.”

“Then maybe we just need a different name, huh?  We are sons of Urseth, Arnie.  We come from a long lineage of warriors and there’s gonna come a day when we have to fight like ‘em too.  It wasn’t long ago we found ourselves going head to head with Breslin Connor, ya know.”

“I do know that,” Arnold sighed.  “But I don’t reckon I’m fit to be in charge of this town, Richard.  I can’t call the shots for our people if I can’t even figure out my own life.”

“Then maybe you need to figure it out,” Richard patted his shoulder.  “Go talk to the woman, would you?  She seems to be in a happy mood tonight.  She’s had some wine.”

Arnold rolled his eyes as Richard walked away.  Did he really take him for the type of man to take advantage of a woman’s intoxication just to make amends?

Apparently he did.

And he was right.

“I
t’s time to open presents, everybody!” Mrs. Bamey exclaimed as she re-entered the living room with a big black bag.  Presley knew that gifts were in that bag.  She’d attended enough Bamey Christmas celebrations over the years to know exactly how this worked, but it was fun to see the excitement on the faces of her friends and potential brother as they smiled. 

‘I hope I don’t get socks this year.’
Lorcan mumbled in her mind. 
‘I always get socks.’

‘If you get socks you will love them.’
Presley grinned and patted his knee. 
‘It’s not easy buying expensive things in today’s economy.’

She was well aware of Mrs. Bamey’s need to buy everyone socks and underwear.  She could still remember, very vividly, how the mama bear had bought her a bright pink training bra for Christmas when she was thirteen.  Presley had never been so embarrassed in her life, but she did appreciate receiving a pretty bra instead of the plain Jane grey ones her uncle purchased.

At least he tried.
  Presley thought as her eyes drifted to her uncle.  He seemed to be in a different world as he gazed at the floor.  What was he thinking about?  The only feeling she could get from him was discontent.  Something was making him very unhappy.  Was it Sammy?  Was it Natalie?  What if
she
was the reason he wasn’t happy?

‘You know that’s not true.’
Lorcan’s hand found hers and gripped it gently. 
‘He loves you so much, Pretz.  You could never do anything to make him unhappy.’

‘Except sneak out after midnight and come home in the back of a sheriff’s car.’
She stifled a laugh with her free hand and glanced around the room again.  Dimitri was accepting his gift from Mrs. Bamey as she made the rounds. 

One by one, each person received a gift wrapped in bright red wrapping paper and a green bow.  Even the two surprise guests received a gift and Presley knew she must’ve rushed to find something to put in those boxes.  Mrs. Bamey would never exclude anyone.

“Here you go, Presley,” Mrs. Bamey was simply glowing as she held out a box for her to take.  “Now everybody has to wait for me to get seated before we start opening these.  No cheating!”

“Mrs. Bamey, we’ve brought some gifts to give out too, if that’s all right with you.” Dimitri said as he pushed himself up from the floor and smoothed his palms against the thighs of his jeans.

“Oh? Of course, Dimitri.” The older female smiled broadly and nodded.  “Have at it.”

Dimitri grinned and for the first time Presley noticed the dimple in his chin.  How had she not seen that before?  Since Dimitri’s speculation of being her brother, she was definitely seeing him in a different light.  It made sense, didn’t it?  How many times had he saved her when there was no reason for him to do so?  How many times had he located her when no one else could?

He must be my brother.
  She thought while biting her bottom lip. 
He just has to be the one Urseth was talking about.

‘Maybe he is.’
Lorcan leaned over to kiss her cheek as Dimitri approached them.  Presley tilted her head back to gaze up at him and as he smiled, she could only smile back.

“This is for you, Presley,” he said as he held out a small box for her to take.  “I hope you like it.  Lorcan, this one is for you.”

“You didn’t have to get me anything, man.” Lorcan grinned excitedly and accepted the bulky gift.  He shook it out of curiosity and quirked a brow.

“Mrs. Bamey, this is for you,” Dimitri handed her another gift before he turned back to Rutley. “Where’s Mr. Bamey’s?”

“Uh....” Rutley glanced at Kia, the girl with the purple stripes in her hair, and gave her a questioning look.

“Don’t look at me.  I was just in charge of grabbing the beer out of fridge.” She said as she held her hands up in the air.

“Ah hell, son. Don’t worry about that right now,” Mr. Bamey insisted as he shook his head.  “I’m sure we can find it later, huh?  Let’s open some gifts.”

The sound of paper shredding filled the air as everyone eagerly began to unwrap their presents.  Presley felt excited, as she always did on Christmas, as she carefully untied the bow atop her gift from Mrs. Bamey and peeled away the wrapping paper.  She had no idea what to expect this year.  Everything was different in many ways and she had the feeling she wasn’t receiving another training bra.

But she had no idea she would be getting what the box held within.  A small gasp escaped her lips and Lorcan quickly turned his head to stare at her.

“What’d you get?” He asked.  His Southern drawl was oddly thicker than usual as his brown eyes peered into the box.  “Holy hell....”

Presley gazed at a beautifully framed picture of her, Lorcan, and Liam from the summer of ’99.  She remembered that day all too well.  Lorcan and Liam were drenched from head to toe, dressed in their swimming trunks while a much chubbier version of herself posed prettily for the camera in a polka dot bathing suit.  They all seemed so happy.

“This is beautiful,” Presley whispered as she blinked back fresh tears.  Urseth pregnancy made her cry over the most ridiculous things.  “Mrs. Bamey, you shouldn’t have.”

“Oh, nonsense,” Charlotte Bamey laughed.  “I couldn’t afford much this year, but it’s our first Christmas without Liam and in a way...this was my way of having him involved.” She sniffled.

“This is absolutely perfect.” Presley whispered as she glanced towards Dimitri.  He was unwrapping his gift from Mrs. Bamey as well and once he had the box open, his eyes misted over.  She watched as he pulled out something very familiar and her heart threatened to leap from her chest.

It was Liam’s old baseball jersey.  The name BAMEY stared at her in bright navy blue letters with the number 32 just beneath.  That was always Liam’s favorite number.

“I don’t know what to say,” Dimitri said as his hazel hues turned to Mrs. Bamey.  “This is the most precious gift anyone has ever given me.  The only gift actually...”

“Oh!” Mrs. Bamey was wrapping her arms around him in an instant and Presley felt the waterworks going full speed.  She really needed to get a hold of herself-and fast.

It was some time later that the party died down and Lorcan volunteered to clean up all the wrapping paper.  Presley was seated at the kitchen table with a hot cup of tea in hand while Mrs. Bamey finished wiping down the last of the dishes.

“I think that was pretty successful, don’t you?” She asked as she wiped her hands off on the dishrag and turned around to peer at her.