Page 55 of Dark Dragon’s Mate

“I sneaked back to our main compound, where the cabins were. The ones that hadn’t been burned were full of wolves from the rival pack. Men, mostly. Warriors. Scary. They were talking about scouring the woods, making sure all our warriors were dead. They were hoping to find some stray females, though.” She swallowed hard. “They almost caught me.”

Emon rubbed her back gently, like he’d always done for Mayah when she was remembering.

“You don’t have to talk about it anymore.”

She shook her head. “I do. I think I have to. I don’t talk to anyone and She-Wolf just gets angrier and angrier. Maybe if I tell you…”

“Okay,” he said. “You tell me, and I’ll hold the memory with you.”

She gave a little choking sound. He didn’t know if it was a laugh or a sob. Then she took a deep, shuddering breath.

She was brave, no matter what she thought.

“I stayed in human form. I’d always had trouble with my Changes, and with my wolf. I was quiet, and she was wild. But I was so terrified, and I thought the only thing that would save me was to hide among the humans. So I locked She-Wolf deep inside me, and I made my way to a populated area and let humans find me.”

She took a deep breath. “I wouldn’t tell them where I came from, just that my parents were dead. Finally, they put me in foster care.”

“What’s that?”

“Oh.” It took her a couple of seconds to realize he had no clue what humans did in her world. “It’s a human thing—their government has a program where if kids lose their parents, they give them to other couples who agree to take them.”

“That sounds okay.”

She shrugged. “Sometimes it is. Sometimes, though, the foster parents are just in it for the money the government gives them. It’s supposed to go to taking care of the kids, but…”

But not always. Because some people sucked.

“How was it for you?”

She grimaced. “Not as bad as for some others. I still had my shifter strength, so I didn’t get bullied or abused like some other kids did. But… no one really cared about me, either. After being in a pack, it was… horrible. And I had to lock She-Wolf down and never let her out, or the humans might find out what I was. After a couple of years I ran away but I was still too scared to look for a wolf pack, so I ended up with a group of cat shifters. Needless to say, they weren’t very fond of She-Wolf either. I had to Change on my own, and she was so out of control that eventually they asked me to leave.

“But one of them taught me to be a healer. And I was good at it. Maybe because She-Wolf was a killer.”

“Like, it’s some kind of a balance? She kills, and you heal?”

Trish shrugged. “Maybe.”

Emon thought of Layla’s words. How healing made Trish weak, and killing made Layla strong.

How they were both afraid to be like the other.

“What’s wrong with killing things? Within reason, I mean. Wolves are hunters.”

Trish shook her head. “If she’d stick to prey, that would be okay. But the thing is, shifter wolves are tempered by their human side. Their humans can make rational decisions, teach them the benefits of being in a good, stable pack. Help them stick to the rules of the shifter world, so that they can survive.”

“But Layla won’t listen to you.”

Trish pulled back, staring at him. “Layla? She named herself?” Tears filled her eyes, and she looked away.

Emon reached over and put his fingers under her chin, gently turning her to face him. “Hey,” he said. “Why does that make you sad?”

“It’s just…” A couple of tears slipped down her face. “I made her feel like she wasn’t a part of me. And now she’s all alone.”

“Not anymore.” He kissed the tears away, one by one. “I’m her friend. And so is my dragon. They’re going to be serial killers together, remember?”

She laughed through her tears. “Why does that thought make me happy? It should terrify me, but somehow I like the idea of the two of them as a crime duo.”

“What about the two of us?”