Untamed (21 page)

“What did it?” Kerry asked. She leaned into Dante’s comforting embrace as they crossed the courtyard. “What made you decide to end this?”

“Raife,” Sylvia said softly. She looked over her shoulder at them briefly. “It would drive him crazy to never know who did this, and feeling the pain he’s been suffering over the past few days has been driving
me
crazy.”

They exchanged curious looks with one another as they walked back into the bar and out toward the gravel parking lot. Layla could sense Raife’s emotions? Sylvia definitely wasn’t a hybrid. Her clan image would’ve come through in the pictures, but she was one hell of a strong psychic.

She thought back on the different pictures she’d taken over the years, and all were blurred. At the time, she’d thought it was because Sylvia was so nasty, but now, in hindsight, she realized it was from her efforts to keep people from seeing the ugliness and violence that she lived with.

She’s his mate.
William’s matter of fact tone cut into Layla’s mind with cold precision, but as much as Layla hated to admit it, she knew deep in her gut that he was right.

Sylvia was Raife’s mate.

After spending much of the evening at the police station with Sylvia while she made her statements, William wanted to take Layla straight home, but she wouldn’t hear it. As he suspected she would, she insisted on going to the hospital to check on Rosie and speak with Raife. William pictured himself throwing her over his shoulder and dragging her home. However, one look at that ferocious glint in her eye, and he quickly dismissed the thought. He doubted it would help his cause.

Kerry and Dante had gone back to the farm hours ago to get some sleep and fill in Malcolm and Samantha. Based on the evidence they already had and Sylvia’s statement, the police had arrested Frank Clark at his house when he returned from his card game. Since he was such a flight risk, he’d been denied bail and would likely be spending quite a long time in jail.

The others had offered to come by the hospital, but since Rosie’s attacker was in custody, and there didn’t appear to be a looming Purist threat, things were under control at the moment. William adjusted the blanket on the hospital bed.

There was justice for Rosie after all.

“You better stop hoverin’ over me, boy,” Rosie rasped weakly. “Or folks are gonna start talkin’.”

William poured a cup of cold water for her. She’d come out of the sedation early that morning as spunky as ever. She’d calmed down once they’d told her what had transpired, and the only person more surprised than
she
was by Sylvia’s confession was Raife.

William glanced to the door of the room, waiting for Layla to return. She’d left with Raife a while ago, and not having her near him was causing a ridiculous amount of anxiety.

“She’ll be back soon.” Rosie laughed softly, but it quickly turned into a cough. “Damn. That hurts.” She winced as her hand went to the bandage on her head. “That son of a bitch is lucky he knocked me cold ’cause I was about ready to whip his ass.”

“I don’t doubt it.” William chuckled as he helped Rosie sit up and sip her water. “Looks like you’ll have to keep from whipping any ass for a while. That shoulder of yours is going to take some time to heal.”

William kept his sharp eyes fixed on her as he sat down in the chair next to her bed. His brow furrowed, and he lowered his voice to a conspiratorial whisper. “I could reach out to one of our Amoveo healers… Bianca must have told you about them.”

Rosie stilled, and her smiling eyes latched onto his as a grin spread over her face. Her gray eyes studied his brown ones, and in that moment, William knew that Rosie was privy to more than she’d let on.

“I guess Layla found the note?” She made a grunt of approval. “Good. Bianca asked me to let her know when her mate came to find her and promised me that she’d tell Layla everything then.” She huffed. “Some horseshit about mate-bonding and full strength—blah, blah, blah.”

“I’ll be damned.” William leaned back in his chair and folded his hands in his lap. “You do know Bianca. All this time, you’ve known who Layla’s family is?”

“Hold on there, just one damn minute.” Her heart monitor beeped faster as her heart rate picked up, and she wagged a finger at him. “I knew something was up when a woman from
social
services
,” she said, making air quotes with her fingers, “shows up on my doorstep with a scared little girl.”

William made a face that reflected his confusion.

“Oh, for Christ’s sake.” She sighed. “I was never registered as a foster parent. I adopted Raife and Tati. Why in the hell would a social worker show up on my doorstep out of the blue with some kid? Get it?” She waved a wrinkled hand at him and lay back on her pillows wearily. “Besides, I could tell that Layla was a hybrid right away.”

“What?” Layla’s shaking voice cut through the air as she barreled through the hospital room door. “Rosie, what are you talking about?” Layla came directly to the other side of Rosie’s bed with an equally confused Raife right behind her. “What do you mean, you knew?”

Layla’s confused and stressed-out energy waves filled the room along with Raife’s as they stared down at Rosie. “Answer me, Rosie. You said you didn’t believe any of it until puberty hit the house.”

“Well, I may have fudged things a little bit.” She pursed her lips. “I
did
realize you were different like Raife and Tati. I may not have the second sight like my sister did,” she huffed. “But I do tend to pick up on things that other people overlook. I knew you were a hybrid as soon as I laid eyes on you.” She looked at Raife. “Just like I’ve always known that Sylvia was hiding something, aside from the fact that she’s crazy in love with you, Raife.”

She let out a tired laugh as Raife shifted his weight and stuffed his hands in the pockets of his jeans, visibly uncomfortable at the mention of Sylvia. Rosie turned her attention back to Layla, who stared down at her intently.

“And that Bianca broad was no regular person—no way. I knew she was full-blooded Amoveo like Raife and Tati’s daddy, and she wasn’t some damn social worker.”

“Why wouldn’t you tell us this?”

“Layla, honey,” Rosie said weakly. “You didn’t know anything about the Amoveo, and I sure as hell didn’t want to scare you more than you already were.” She smoothed the sheets over her lap. “I decided to let nature take its course and see how things played out, and sure enough, when you hit puberty, the floodgates opened.”

William touched Layla’s mind.
Are
you
alright?
To his great relief she responded immediately and kept her mind open to him for the first time in days.
Can
anyone
be
honest
with
me
about
anything?

Before he could respond, Rosie continued her explanations and reclaimed Layla’s full attention.

“I’ve spoken with Bianca only twice. Once, the day she brought you to live with me, and then just a few days ago when William showed up.” Her mouth set in a firm line. “Listen, girl.” She sighed. “All I know is that when she showed up with you, she knew about Raife and Tati, and don’t ask me
how
, because I haven’t the foggiest notion.”

Rosie lowered her voice. “I do know that Bianca believed you’d be safe with us, and you needed a loving home.” Her gray eyes wrinkled at the corners as she reached out, took Layla’s hand in hers, and gave it a squeeze. “She told me your parents were gone and that you shouldn’t find your clan until you had bonded with your mate.” Rosie nodded toward William. “She gave me an address with a post office box and said that when your mate found you, to let her know, and then she’d handle the rest.”

Layla, wide-eyed, looked from Rosie to William as she wrapped her brain around yet another revelation. He could practically see the wheels turning in that sharp mind of hers, and he knew exactly what she was thinking about—the Council meeting.

“Bianca came by to see me the night Frank showed up.” Rosie’s face darkened at the memory.

“So, Bianca’s energy signature
was
the only Amoveo we sensed at the farm,” William surmised. “And it was mixed with Frank’s signature.” His brow furrowed. “All this time, we were looking for another Amoveo—a Purist—and it was a human.” He made a sound of disgust at his obvious error.

“Man,” Raife mused with a sidelong glance at William. “Malcolm and Dante were right about you.” He delivered a crooked grin. “You
hate
being wrong.”

“
We
weren’t entirely wrong.” William sat up straighter in the chair, and his jaw clenched. “There was an Amoveo at the farm that night, just not a Purist.” He flicked some lint off his jeans. “The possibility that a human attacked Rosie was admittedly overlooked.” He locked eyes with Raife. “But you can rest assured that won’t happen again.”

Raife chuckled and folded his arms over his chest. “Slice it any way you want, brother. Wrong is wrong.”

“Whatever,” Layla said through an exasperated sigh at their childish sparring match. “Can we please get back to Bianca and why she was at the farm?”

“Happily.” Rosie gave Raife a scolding glance before continuing. “I told Bianca to leave the letter for you and said that you would get in touch with her, if that was what
you
wanted,” Rosie said, pointing an IV-draped hand at Layla.

Layla’s shoulders relaxed at the mention of it being her choice, and her energy waves softened. She sighed with relief. In that moment, William realized how important having a choice was to her, and he knew that their bond could only be completed if she specifically requested it.

The voice of doubt crawled into his heart.
What
if
she
didn’t?

“Bianca pulled her disappearing act when she heard the car in the driveway.” Rosie shrugged her uninjured shoulder. “She’s kind of flighty around humans, I guess, and maybe she didn’t want to be exposed to more people than she already was. Now, I don’t know much about her, but I do know she’s extremely protective of you, even of Raife and Tati.”

“Protective and manipulative,” Layla huffed. She ran her hands over her face and turned her tired, but determined, eyes to William. “I’ve had enough of this secrecy bullshit. I can’t wait to face this woman and the rest of the Council.” Before William could even respond, she looked at Rosie, and her features softened. “What happened next?”

Rosie frowned. “Don’t remember too much after that, but I do remember enough to want to stick a cattle prod up Frank Clark’s ass.”

Layla covered her mouth and tried to smother the chuckle that bubbled up at the idea of Rosie using her cattle prod on Frank, but she failed miserably. It was a matter of seconds before all four were giggling like children at the thought.

As they shared a good belly laugh, William watched Layla swipe at the tears that fell down her cheeks. Warmth washed over him. He didn’t think anything could make him happier than finally being mated with her, but he was wrong. Seeing her smile and sharing her laughter was the most exquisite bliss of all.

***

Layla dragged herself out of the Jeep with all the speed of molasses in winter and just stood in the gravel driveway. She couldn’t recall a time when she’d been this tired, and she was so exhausted, she hadn’t argued when William insisted that
he
drive. He’d even said it in that bossy-boots tone she’d come to know so well—the one that made her want to deck him… or kiss him.

Her lips curved with satisfaction. She closed her eyes and lifted her face to the sun.

Rosie was going to be okay, Frank had been arrested, and as far as they could tell, no Purists were hunting her down. All in all, it had turned out to be a surprisingly good day, and now, all she wanted to do was sleep for about a week.

Her body wavered from exhaustion, and she thought fleetingly that she might just pass out in the driveway. William, once again sensing her needs, scooped her up in his steel embrace before she could tumble to the ground. Layla let out a girly squeal as he lifted her into the air, and she instinctively hooked her arms around his neck.

“What are you doing?” she asked with a yawn. Her head rested against his shoulder, despite her best efforts to keep it upright. “I can walk up there on my own,” she said sleepily as her eyes closed.

Verto.

A soft breeze, a momentary sense of displacement, and the oddly comforting sensation of static electricity sizzled in the air around them. Within seconds, Layla was nestled in William’s arms in the soft bed they’d shared a few nights ago.

She lifted her heavy eyelids and found him staring at her intently with those intense chocolate brown eyes. Layla stroked her fingertips along his unshaven cheek. His energy waves shifted subtly, and his strong body hardened as it lay against hers.

“Go to sleep,” he murmured tenderly and placed a gentle kiss on her forehead. “I promise I’ll behave myself.”

“Yeah, right,” Layla mumbled sleepily and nuzzled her check against the warmth of his muscular chest. “You can’t resist my feminine wiles.”

William chuckled. The deep sound rumbled through his chest and vibrated along her cheek as she snuggled herself deeper into his embrace. Wavering at the edges of sleep, she noted how perfectly her body fit with his and the way the curve of his arm cradled her at exactly the right angle. A smile played at her lips as she slipped into the soft, welcoming cloud of sleep. William’s silky voice wafted into her mind.
Sweet
dreams, Layla.

***

Layla woke up and stretched languidly as she looked around the empty room. She squinted against the waning light of the sunset as the last shreds streamed through the bedroom and wondered how long she’d been asleep. Shoving her unruly curls out of her face, Layla noted that William was nowhere in sight and that she was fully clothed.
Damn.
Her lips curved.
He
had
been
a
gentleman.

Layla got dressed with minimal fuss, feeling awkward that she slept the day away, and her guests were left to fend for themselves. Layla knew the circumstances were extreme, but she still heard Rosie’s voice in her head, reminding her that she was the hostess. It wasn’t a telepathic voice, but it was just as profound. It was that whisper of conscience, the voice of the only mother she’d ever really known. The voice that taught her right from wrong, that sang her to sleep, and comforted her when the nightmares came.

She pulled on a black cardigan and headed downstairs to find the house empty. The entire first floor was dark, lit only by the swiftly fading light outside. The low hum of the dishwasher could be heard from the kitchen, but there was no sign of William or the others.

Had they left?

Her heart gave a funny little tug at the idea of not saying good-bye to her newfound friends, but when the soulful howl of a wolf called from the surrounding woods, she knew she wasn’t alone. A smile cracked her face. She knew that had to be Samantha.

Layla stuck her feet into the duck boots she kept by the front door and pulled her sweater tighter against the cold November wind. She stepped onto the porch but didn’t have to look far to find them, and the sight in front of her made her heart skip a beat.