There's Something About Werewolves: Seven Brides for Seven Shifters, Book 1 (20 page)

Chapter Twenty-One

Gran called it “pep in your step” but Lennox had swagger in her stride. Last night she’d done more than make the kind of tough decision everyone thought her incapable of. She’d made two no-turn-back choices in one night and accepted the consequences along with them.

Miraculously, Danny Hewett AKA Dan Hewes had called and begged
her
not to release the sex tape. He’d pleaded with her as though the hounds of hell were starving and he had a hambone up his ass. He’d promised to leave town and end the fiasco he created in exchange for his life. Lennox hadn’t meant to be fierce enough to make him fear death. Maybe he remembered she’d handed out beat downs to all comers in every fight, scrape, and dustup since their childhood.

She tapped her cheek, jostling the picnic basket nestled in the crook of her arm. Honestly, she’d been relieved not to have the whole world see her go down on Garrett. Who was she kidding? She’d have settled to keep Gran from seeing. That old broad handed out punishments worst than water torture. So what if she followed in her Grandmother’s footsteps and made Dan suffer a bit when he’d called? He deserved it. In the end she accepted his offer.

Likewise she’d accepted the Milos Foods contract to mass-produce her peach butter for the hospitality and restaurant industries. It might not make her a millionaire but she didn’t have to worry about money anymore. Closing the deal felt fantastic, partially since she’d been very crafty in the negotiations. The peach butter to be sold outside of the Peach Pit would feature allspice instead of cardamom, rum extract rather than bourbon.

When she saw Cash she’d have to thank him twofold. One for trusting her with the truth about the blackmail and secondly for the spice mix-up that led to the alternate recipe. Both she and Milos were happy. After working all night long, she and Jules had hosted a taste test with Milos executives that morning and the new peach butter had high yum factor. For once she’d come out on top. Fist pump.

As soon as she crossed under the wooden archway to Camp Big Bad she noticed the silence. No kids, no noise, no mischief. There hadn’t been a field trip on the schedule, so where had they gone?

Disappointment brought out the slightest pout. She wanted to spend more time with Nox. It wouldn’t be long before Garrett took him away. The cupcakes in her basket were the excuse she’d cooked up to get her on campgrounds. It would’ve worked too. Her shoulders slumped from more than the midday sun. Extra time with her godson would have to wait. As she walked toward to the kitchens to drop the cupcakes off, a plan to deliver cookies the next day percolated within the depths of her devious little mind.

Wait
. A low rumble tickled her hearing. Cheering or chanting came from the east. Nox had shown her a clearing last night. She’d bet that’s where the campers were. He’d said they trained there. But he hadn’t told her what kind of training they did. He’d refused. Chasing the unease away, she contented herself with knowing she’d get to see Nox today. And Paolo too.

Once she dropped off the goodies, she followed the cheers to the clearing. Several of the counselors and most of the kids stood around the outer edges. One or two counselors shouted tips. “Pin him” and “Take her by the neck.”

Lennox couldn’t see what the kids being instructed were doing. It sounded like wrestling. She moved closer, peering around the spectators. A flash of fur, then a tail caught her eye. Growls and the scrape of claws filled her ears.

What is going on?

On reflex she hid behind a tree. Her nails dug into the bark, trembling hard enough to shake bits free. They were dog fighting. Or wolf fighting, more to the point. She thought about making a run for it but something other than fear glued her in place.

Five young red wolves, slender and coyote-like, pounced on a single gray Husky. They took him down time and again, sometimes going for his throat. The gray was larger than the others, but his moves were tentative and gangly, as though he hadn’t gotten used to his body. More than anything else his whimpers were daggers in her chest. She’d seen this Husky or wolf or whatever before. Monster Mutt. The wolves had trapped Monster Mutt.

Deep inside a scream erupted, a silent wail within her guts.

No. Stop. Monster Mutt was hers to protect. He belonged to her somehow. Not like a dog belonged to an owner but as a part of her. The screams inside her roared that her child faced imminent danger. It didn’t make sense but these wolves were bullying her kid.

Rage, thick and heated, bathed her vision in crimson. Lennox didn’t think. Instinct ruled her. She rushed the puppy faced red wolves. Taking them by their scruffs she tossed them to each side. Those who rebounded for another try caught her fists on their snouts. Their whines caused her to falter slightly. She didn’t want to hurt them but at the moment she’d do anything. Anything to get to her…child?

Lennox threw her body between the wolves and Monster Mutt. Terror made her shaky. Her weakness pissed her off, fueling her on. Throwing up a hand, she yelled at the wolves and counselors alike. “Back off!”

“Leni, stop!” A comforting face appeared before her.

Paolo. Good. Now she could get them the hell out of there. “Paolo, we need to go. Where’s Nox?” Her teeth chattered. “We need to leave. Okay?”

The camp counselors stared her down like she’d gone insane. They were the crazy ones. Why show the kids how to run illegal dogfights? And why the hell did she care?

The pack of red juveniles advanced. “Back. Off,” she gritted through clenched teeth. “I don’t want to hurt you but I will.” The juvenile wolves froze.

“Paolo, go get Nox. Now!”

She didn’t know what the hell came over her to make her jump into a literal den of wolves. Her mind didn’t want to work properly. Trains of thought that should’ve connected to make sense of all this flickered and flitted away from her mental grasp. Paolo looked so helpless, unsure of what to do. Anguish stretched the skin taut across his face.

“Leni, I’m okay,” came from behind her. She turned, somehow afraid of what she’d see. A shivering Nox stood naked where Monster Mutt had been. A tapestry of cuts and teeth marks covered him. Shock overtook her limbs in icy shards, numbing her.

“We’re real sorry, Miss Leni.” She spun round. Five kids she’d known since their births stood in place of the wolves. They filed in around Paolo, looking to him to explain things. When he stood silent Faye’s son, Cary, spoke up. “We weren’t gonna hurt him for real.”

No. No. This didn’t make sense.

“Lennox,” Ian called to her from the right. One look at him told her everything. He stopped cold when her gaze scraped over him. Clarity descended in a deluge. When Nox sneezed he turned into Monster Mutt, a wolf. Ian stood as leader of his pack. Wolves. All of them wolves.

Ian took a few steps toward her. She warded him off with an outstretched hand. Dizziness overtook her. “No, Ian. Don’t you come near me.”

Heartbreak blossomed in the depths of his eyes. She hated to cause him pain. But she couldn’t deal. “Get in the truck, Nox. Paolo you too.”

“Leni, we should not leave this way,” Paolo pleaded.

“
Now
.” If they didn’t get the hell out of there, she’d break down. Both her boys took off for her truck. Lennox walked backwards, her glare scanning the rest of Ian’s people for tricks or sudden moves.

“Lennox, I’ll tell you everything. Just don’t leave.” Ian’s voice carried the calm she’d come to rely on. Only she couldn’t trust him anymore.

“Don’t follow me, Ian.”

She jogged backwards several paces before panic got the best of her. All the confidence of that morning evaporated in smoke. She turned tail and ran.

Moments later they crossed Staunton Bridge, moving fast enough to leave rubber on the wooden planks. Lennox couldn’t remember getting into the truck or onto the road. Her heart stuck in her throat, strangling her with each beat.

After a mile or so, Nox touched her arm. She recoiled at the gentle tap of his fingers. She didn’t mean to slide away toward the window. She couldn’t help herself.

The same hurt she’d seen in Ian looked so much worse when reflected in her godson’s cognac eyes. “It’s still me, Leni.”

“Oh, Nox. I know. I know, baby. I just—”

“Leni, please.” He reached for her again. Crazed, she took her hands off the wheel and held them in a shield against him.

“The road,” Paolo yelped from the backseat.

They swerved into a field of dandelions as she worked to regain control of both the wheel and her own mind. Cutting hard to the left, she managed to steady the car. They got back onto the road. Lennox’s mind, however, remained beyond control’s reach.

How could she love something, no, someone who not only turned into an animal, they transformed into the one animal she hated? It didn’t make any sense but she could handle the “were” part—obviously crazy rain in her veins—but she couldn’t handle the “wolf” part. No. Just no. She feared what Nox, Paolo, and Ian were and what she knew Garrett had to be. Dread raised goose bumps along her arms and slowly strangled her with icy fingers. A tangled paradox of emotions twisted within her guts and she shivered, fighting against a fear she had no hopes of defeating.

She loved Nox. Loved them all. They’d each laid claim to large expanses of her heart. She couldn’t just let them go and she had nowhere to run where the wolves wouldn’t find her. They would always chase her because they belonged to her. Her godchild, her adopted Italian brother, her lifelong friend, the love of her life, they’d be in her heart and mind no matter where she went, no matter how low she hid.

A scream rose in her throat. As hard as it was, she swallowed it. “Just give me a little more time.” The words came out in stutters. “I’m not going anywhere, Nox. Just give me a little more time.”

They reached the house faster than Lennox prepared for. She had no idea why she’d come to Garrett. She should have gone home to Averdeen Manor or at least the ground it used to stand on.

Nox jumped out of the truck and ran for the house as soon as her wheels screeched to a stop in the driveway. Watching him go, she realized she’d kidnapped a naked kid. Great. If she went to jail, who knew what types of creatures she’d get locked in with.

Paolo leaned between the front seats. She jumped. He held up his hands to show he meant no harm. “Leni, now that you know about us, your fear can go away. This is better.”

She forced herself to touch his face the way she always did when he said something sweet. “Better? No. Knowing is going to tear me away from most of the people I love.”

His head hung.

“I will do my best not to turn away from you. I will. I’ll try. I know Jules and I are all you have. And you’re…you’re my little brother.” She reached out but pulled away. “But I can barely touch you, Paolo. I can’t see how that’s better.”

Her trembling hand curled into a fist. She folded one over the other and tucked them into her lap.

After a long silence Paolo pushed out of the back door. He took a few slow steps, glanced at her over a shoulder, then took off for the woods. His clothes peeled away in a blur. He leaped. In a shudder of light and fur he became a red wolf in midair. His paws touched down in a full run before he disappeared beyond the tree line.

Her own door yanked open. Garrett pulled her out of the truck in a rage. Lennox fought him, not caring if it hurt. His eyes flared blazing amber. “I warned you, Elle,” he snarled. “I warned you not to hurt my son.”

She smacked him. He didn’t even flinch.

“He was attacked by wolves,” she screamed. “How could you allow that?”

Garrett crowded her, baring his fangs, more animal than man. “He
is
a wolf.
I
am a wolf.”

Her body shook uncontrollably but she stood her ground. Even though terror sliced through her as the blade of a white-hot knife. She stood strong. “Did Tina know?”

“What?” he roared.

“Did she know?” Lennox hurled back with equal vehemence.

“Yeah, she knew.” He inclined his head and she wanted nothing as much as to escape his hard-edged expression. “Tina was my wife. And she wasn’t afraid of canines.” His lip curled. “She wasn’t afraid of anything.”

Pain erupted in Lennox’s chest. “Okay then. It’s good to know Tina excelled where I lack. Luckily you don’t have to worry about me anymore.” She rocked backward, clutching her chest, and ran for the house.

Garrett chased her into the house and through the living room, down the hall of the east wing and into her bedroom. Lennox raced to her walk-in closet. Finding a suitcase, she hurled it into the main room. Garrett sidestepped the missile. For good measure, she threw one of the shoes he’d bought her at his head. He caught it and tore the damn thing to bits. Fuchsia satin and leather fell to the floor.

Her scream barely registered on his face. He only stared at her, a giant watchdog on the job. Now that the blindfold of fear had been lifted she began to make connections. So many things had been in plain view if she’d looked. Since Garrett refused to leave her alone, he could tell her what she wanted to know.

“Is Stan a wolf too?”

“No.”

“Thank goodness.”

“He’s a boar shifter.”

“What the hell?”

Garrett chuckled, all malice, nothing nice.

A softer voice joined the conversation. “You know boars, Leni,” Gran said. “Like Arkansas razorbacks.” Her grandmother’s usual smile did its best to make an appearance but worry erased it from her sweet face.

“You knew, Gran?”

“My first husband was wolfen. Not your grandfather, bless his simple-minded soul. But the love of my life was a wolf.”

Lennox lowered herself to the floor. Better that than keeling over.

Cash rushed into the room. “We’ve got company and lots of it.”

They all walked out to meet Ian, Dillon, Faye and several other members of Ian’s crew. Faye launched herself at Lennox on sight. Garrett stepped between them, blocking her.

“She hurt our kids,” Faye complained to Garrett. “Let me have her.”

Garrett shook his head. “If I let you two go at it, Faye, I’m not sure you’ll make it out alive.” Faye’s stricken expression would’ve made Lennox laugh on any other day. She truly disliked the woman.