“Stop with that shit.” He points his cane at me. “We are years past that. We’re family, and I would have done the same thing for Haven, or any of you.” He drops his arm and walks to the door. “Get your shit together. Your mate is going to need you.” I shake my head and smile. Asshole knows how to cut through the bullshit.
“He’s right,” Bane says, appearing in the door, leaning on the frame. “We couldn't prepare for this.”
“I knew she worked for Haven’s father.” I stare at Rylee.
“So? You didn’t find anything to indicate she’s going to snap and try to kill Haven.” I look at him. “We don’t know the details or what she wanted. Our mate is still sleeping. We have to be patient and wait for her explanation.”
I nod. “Did they remove the body?”
“Yes. Bash is taking care of it. The women are cleaning up the blood. They didn’t want either of them to wake and see it.” He glances at Rylee. “Her vitals are steady.”
“We owe her,” I rumble.
“She can have whatever the fuck she wants when she wakes,” he says, standing straight, looking over his shoulder. Sally squeezes through the door beside him.
“How’s Haven?” she asks.
“Still asleep,” I mutter.
“It’s the best thing for her,” she says, walking to Rylee’s side. “I wasn’t sure when I saw Rylee covered in blood.” She sits on the floor beside the couch, brushing her fur. “Haven asked me if she would be alright. I was lying at the time, and she called me out. All my premonitions were telling me she wasn’t going to make it. I’m glad I was wrong.” She looks at me. “This is an example. We aren’t immortal. Shit happens, and we have to have hope as humans do. Don’t think this is your fault, or feel less than just because Rylee saved her instead of any of you. Be grateful Haven is part of the family, and she has a friend who would take a bullet for her. Don’t take your lives for granted; comfort your mate. Rylee will be back to her sassy self soon, and she would be pissed if you don’t complete the bond. Haven is meant for you. All of you. Take your happiness. Fate has handed it to you.” She smiles. “Don’t let a deranged person derail your plans. If we did that, none of us would be mated.”
“Thanks, Sally. I needed that.” I exhale harshly.
“I know,” she laughs, fluffing her hair. “The baby is making me sappy.” She rubs her stomach. “Go.” She waves her hand. “Sit with your mate. The family is cleaning your house. Food is being cooked. Bash is making the body disappear. I’ll stay with Rylee until she wakes. Heath will wait until Haven can talk to her, but then he’ll be taking her to his house when she’s stable enough to move. That snake wants her close, the big softy.” Sally is the only one who can call Heath soft.
“Call out if something changes,” Bane says.
“Will do.” She turns back to Rylee, stroking her head.
I follow Bane out of the room and up the stairs. She’s right. As much as I would like to control everything, I know I can’t. I wish I had dug more into Jenica’s background, yet I still don’t know what I would be looking for.
“It’s okay,” Remy says as we come to the doorway.
“Rylee,” Haven cries.
“She’s downstairs,” Lawson says. We enter the bedroom, and Haven is struggling to sit up. “Baby, take it easy. The doctor took the bullet out.”
“She’s healing?” she asks, tears in her eyes.
“Yes,” I say, and she meets my eyes. “Sally is with her. She’ll let us know when she wakes up.”
“But she’s sure she will wake up, right?” She grips Lawson and Remy’s hands.
“Very,” Bane says.
“Fuck,” she rasps, shaking her head. “I thought she was gone.”
“Can you tell us who Jenica is?” Remy asks, and she tenses.
“She was the woman sleeping with Brian. What I didn’t know was that she was my pen pal when I was young. The teacher had us pick two names. Jenica was the first. When I wrote to her, her responses were short and dark. To ease her, I wrote about my perfect life. I guess I shouldn’t have lied because that’s why she tried to take everything in my life. We lost touch, and I forgot about her. She went through some traumatic things, but finally found a home and a woman who loved her as a mother should. Two years ago, she died, and I think it triggered her trauma and caused her to latch onto anything that would make it better. She got a job with Father, slept with Brian, and tried to be me.”
“Her hair,” I mumble.
“Yeah, I was a little shocked at that,” she whispers.
She continues to tell us what happened, and my fury builds as she expands on the sequence of events. When she tells us about the phone call from Brian and the conversation Jenica overheard, I know what I need to do.
I tried to let Haven deal with them. I didn’t like it, but I would have let it go if they left her alone.
