Destiny Binds (20 page)

“The only risk to me is my own stupidity.”

“If that were the case, we would have nothing to worry about, Miss Valedictorian.” #

“Last night was not one of my finer moments.”

“You wouldnʼt have had a reason to be out in the woods if it hadnʼt been for me.”

“And my brother,” I added. I wasnʼt about to ignore the amount of blame he deserved. I love my brother, but he and Charlie were being the unreasonable ones. Their bigotry was really starting to screw up my life. “He was so certain you were going to be in the woods between Pelican Landing and the dock at the end of Chestnut-Oak, but you werenʼt.”

“How do you know that?”

“Because you would have found me sooner.” It sounded a bit presumptuous to my ears, but I knew it was true. Alex would have come to me if he had been anywhere around.

“Not necessarily,” he said. “You were nowhere near Pelican Landing or Chestnut-Oak when we found you. You were only a mile south of the dam.” A mile south of the dam? Not only was that a good five miles from Pelican Landing, it was also in the completely wrong direction.

“What was that about me not being an idiot?”

His laughter was so quiet I might have missed it if my ear hadnʼt been pressed to his chest.

“You are an extremely intelligent person, but your sense of direction sucks.” I propped myself up on my elbows. I missed the warmth of his body, but getting to look at his face made it an even trade. “But you werenʼt near Pelican Landing last night, were you?”

“No, we werenʼt.”

“Why not? Where were you?” If he thought I was being too nosey he didnʼt show it.

“We got tipped off on Friday that there might be some trouble if we stuck around for the full moon, so Liam and I took a weekend trip to the other side of the river. The Hagans never go that far. We were driving back when I fell asleep and Saw you huddled on the forest floor turning blue.” His thumb brushed my lips and I imagined that he was seeing the frozen lips from last night instead of the pink ones that tingled at his touch.

“Tipped off? How?”

“Doesnʼt matter,” he said as he pulled my face down to his, effectively ending our conversation. His hands slid over my shoulders and down my back as I kissed his cheeks, his eyelids, his ear, and his neck. When I slid my hand up under his shirt, still hungry for warmth, he let out a moan and rolled us over so that he was positioned above me.

His lips followed the same pattern on my face I had forged on his moments earlier. My breath was coming in shallow gasps. My hands seemed to be running over the smooth flesh of Alexʼs back on their own accord.

Then, Alex lifted his head and started talking to the wall.

“You donʼt actually have to sit there and listen, Perv. You could go for a walk or a nice long drive. Maybe you could even go find a girlfriend of your very own.” Alex quit addressing the wall directly and looked at me. My heart skipped a beat in response to the intense longing on his face. “Please, Liam.”

Seconds later there was the unmistakable sound of a screen door slamming shut.

“Now,” Alex said, “where were we before we were so rudely interrupted?”

“Dying of embarrassment?”

“Nope, that was definitely after.” Alex rubbed his hand against my cheeks, which were still on fire. “Youʼre so cute when you blush.”

“You knew he was listening,” I accused.

“Yes, but I didnʼt care.” He resumed his exploration of my face.

“But I do,” I said, pushing him away.

“Why?”

Besides the embarrassment that inherently comes with getting caught making out? How about knowing with absolute certainty the look of disgust that was etched on Liamʼs face? Or how about not wanting that vile man to have any access to any of the intimate moments of my life?

Of course, I couldnʼt say any of that to Alex. He thought his brother was just all kinds of awesome.

“I donʼt think your brother likes me.” Understatement seemed to be the way to go.

“He was rude earlier. Iʼm sorry about that. Heʼs just cranky because itʼs already starting to get warm outside. He hates the South, but not you. Trust me, once he gets to know you, heʼll love you.”

I doubted that. I doubted Liamʼs ability to love much of anything.

“He kind of scares me,” I said, once again drastically understating the truth.

“Thatʼs just his dominate wolf exterior. Underneath all the hard stares and grimaces he has a marshmallowy center. Itʼs just going to take some time for the two of you to get comfortable with each other.”

“If you say so.” I still didnʼt believe it, but decided to let Alex keep his one big happy family fantasy.

“So, can we quit talking about the brother I just sent away and get back to the reason I sent him away?”

Alex was a pro at making me forget any fears or concerns I had. As long as he was kissing me, everything was okay. Heck, it was better than okay. I couldnʼt imagine an existence more perfect than one where I was with Alex, just like this. Maybe I had died in the woods and this was my Heaven.

Although, there probably wouldnʼt have been someone pounding on the front door of Heaven.

Alexʼs body was suspended above mine in terror. He tilted his head towards the door and breathed deeply through his nose before relaxing.

“Dammit,” he said, pulling on his shirt as he climbed off the bed. “This canʼt be good.”

“Who is it?” I glanced in the mirror attached to Alexʼs closet door and ran my fingers through my hair.

“Pack Seer,” he said to me before calling out, “Iʼm coming, for Christʼs sake.”

“Should I...?” I motioned towards the closet. It was small, but I thought I could hide in there as long as Alex didnʼt have it crammed full of junk like I did mine.

“No, it wonʼt be any use.” He was already moving towards the door. “You might as well come with me.”

I didnʼt really think that was the best idea, but I did follow him as far as his bedroom door.

Alex took a deep breath before turning back the lock and stepping aside. My mouth hung open in shock as Talley came bursting through the door.

Mamaw Donovan was fond of saying that something had made her blood boil when she was angry. I always assumed it was a figurative sort of thing, but as I watched the Pack Seer fling herself into my boyfriendʼs arms I decided I might have been wrong.

So, my best friend was a Seer. I shouldnʼt have been shocked. I mean, at this point I should have been prepared to find out that my mom was a succubus, my dad an elf, and my little sister a pixie. But, I was shocked with a healthy dose of hurt and angry. How could she have kept something like this from me? I was her best friend. Alex had lived here for less than a year and he knew more about the real Talley than I did.

Alexʼs arms were wrapped around Talley, holding her close. Seeing that did nothing to help with my blood pressure.

“Scout is missing,” Talley said, her words coming out in a rush. “Itʼs all my fault. I thought something was wrong last night, but I ignored it. And then, this morning, she was gone when Jase got home. Her parents said that she was at my house, but of course sheʼs not.” A tear, round and heavy, slid down her cheek. “Alex, they found her car down at Pelican Landing. The Pack is searching the woods, but the rain washed away any trail...and...and they canʼt find anything...”

Alex had been trying to get Talleyʼs attention this whole time, but she was too absorbed in the drama of the moment to notice him. “Talley, sheʼs here,” he said, finally breaking through to her.

“Iʼm here. Iʼm fine.” Well, I wasnʼt exactly fine, but I wasnʼt dead in a ditch. Thatʼs all that really mattered.

“Scout?” Talley rushed to me and, before I could prevent it, I was locked in a paralyzing hug. Her breath came in hiccups as she started sobbing in earnest.

For the record, it is possible to stay angry with someone you love when theyʼre having a complete meltdown over the fact youʼre alive. That anger, however, cannot stop you from trying to comfort said loved one. “Iʼm okay. Iʼm fine. Everything is fine.” When she finally got herself together, Talley gave me a head to toe inspection, looking for any signs of injury or abuse. “What on earth were you doing in the woods at night in the middle of a thunderstorm? Do you have any idea how cold it got last night?”

“Really, really cold?”

“She overheard the Wonder Twins ingenious Provoke the Werewolves scheme,” Alex said.

“She thought she was rescuing me.”

Talley gave me a look usually reserved for five year olds. “But I had that under control.” Oh, Talley had the whole situation under control. Why hadnʼt I thought of that?

“How was I supposed to know that?” I hissed. “How am I supposed to know anything? You certainly never told me.” I wheeled around on Alex. “Or you. I mean, in all of our talks about this crazy Shifter stuff you couldnʼt find an opportunity to mention that my best friend was a freaking Seer?”

Alexʼs face was tight as he studied his bare feet.

“We couldnʼt just tell you,” Talley said calmly.

“Why not? Am I not cool enough to be in your supernatural kids club? Or am I just too weak and fragile? Everybody has to protect poor, little Scout. Donʼt let her near the wolves, they might eat her. Donʼt tell her the truth, she canʼt handle it.” My eyes burned as I blinked back tears. “Well, guess what. Heʼs not going to hurt me, and Iʼm not some porcelain doll. Iʼm not weak. I donʼt need your protection.” To prove my point, I kicked the door frame.

Charlie once punched Jaseʼs door after one of the more spectacular rounds with his father.

He had knocked the trim loose, but we were able to fix it before anyone noticed. I didnʼt think I kicked as hard as Charlie punched, but apparently our doors were made out of stronger stuff than the ones in Alexʼs house. As I felt my foot go through the faux wood I said a four-letter word that had never passed my lips before.

“Feel better?”

I couldnʼt bear to look at Alex, so I just closed my eyes and leaned my head against the door frame. At least the top half was still intact.

“I told you we should have told her,” Alex was saying to Talley as a loud trilling noise made me jump.

Talley looked at her caller ID before sliding open her phone. “Hey, Jase,” she said in an upbeat tone that certainly didnʼt match the look in her eyes or dried tears on her cheeks.

“Listen...” Even from across the room I could hear the voice on the other end speaking in rapid, urgent tones. “Charlie, listen...Charlie...
Charlie!”
Alex moved up beside Talley and slid his hand into hers. I thought about kicking another hole in the wall. “I found her. Sheʼs okay.” Charlie said something else, causing Talley to raise her eyebrows at Alex.

“Sheʼs at Joiʼs” Talley lied smoothly, which was almost as jarring as finding out that she was a Seer. “When I wasnʼt home last night she decided to come find you guys and...” Talley rolled her eyes, which was again very out of character. I felt like I was watching a Talley Cylon. “Iʼm sure thatʼs it, Charlie,” she said dismissively before continuing. “Anyways, when the storm came up, she ran into The Farmhouse. She decided to go home with Joi after her shift ended...No, weʼre going to stay here for a little while...Because weʼre doing fun girl bonding stuff...Charlie...Iʼll have her home in two hours.” As Charlie continued to ramble on the other end of the phone, something in Talley shifted. She didnʼt even look like my friend when she said, “You are not the Pack Leader, Charles Jefferson Hagan, Jr. I, however, am a Seer. I suggest the next time you see me, you apologize for forgetting that.” Who was this person? The Talley Matthews I knew was always meek and mild mannered.

She didnʼt lie with casual ease. She didnʼt give orders. And she never slammed her phone shut on her friends.

Alex made a move to let go of Talleyʼs hand, but she held on. “I still might need you,” she said.

Talley pressed some numbers into her phone and then held it six inches from her ear. That meant she was calling Joi. Really, Joi is a fairly bright girl, she just has some issues with any sort of technology. It took her three weeks to figure out the remote when her parents bought her a new TV last year (during which QVC played in her room constantly since she couldnʼt change the station or turn it off). iPods freak her out, she cannot grasp the concept of Twitter or Facebook, and she has never understood, no matter how many times we tried to explain it, that you donʼt have to scream into a cell phone to be heard.

“Joi?”

“Talley? Oh my gosh, is that you? Thatʼs so weird! I was just thinking about you!” No need for super-senses to hear Joi on the phone.

“Can you do Scout and me a favor?” Talley looked at Alex expectantly, but he didnʼt do or say anything.

“Sure! Whatcha need?”

“If anyone asks, could you tell them that Scout spent the night with you last night? And if anyone calls to look for us in the next couple of hours, tell them weʼre too busy to come to the phone? Weʼre ummm...” She shot another look at Alex, but he stayed silent. “Weʼre working on this really huge surprise for Jase as like a graduation present. We donʼt want anyone to know about it because it would totally ruin it.”

“You donʼt think that Jase would, like, call here, do you?” Joi had a not-so-secret crush on my brother which rendered her unable to carry on a conversation when he was anywhere nearby. The last time we had a sleep-over at my house she spent the entire night staring mutely in the direction of Jaseʼs bedroom.

“Probably not, but if he does you can cover for us, right?” Poor Joi. We were probably giving her a major anxiety attack. Then again, it was noon, so she was on her second or third of the day.

“Sure. I can do that.” She might have been more convincing if her voice hadnʼt been shaking.

It took several more reassurances, but Talley was finally able to end her call with Joi, somewhat confident that she had a cover story for my whereabouts. She turned her attention to me as soon as she pocketed the phone.

“I know youʼre mad at me right now, and you have every right to be, but weʼve only got a couple of hours at best to get you clean.”

“Clean?” I may not have looked spectacular, but I had taken a shower that morning.