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Instead of trying to make sense of that—there wasn’t much to make sense of, really—I rolled and put my feet on the floor. Kenz was on the other side of Tor, with Vance at the end. The only person not there was Hayden.
Which, all things considered, didn’t surprise me. Hell, I’d bet he was either cooking or had run out to pick up food so he could feed everyone after the long night. In fact, I could almost see him talking about needing to regain the calories we’d lost with all our action.
I pulled myself from the bed, not bothering to dress. What was the point? After everything we’d done last night—or early this morning—modesty had lost all meaning.
Kenz grumbled softly at the noise, then cuddled in closer to Vance. A smile tugged at my lips at the sight before I picked up the phone from the dresser, finding out it was Kenz’s
I hit the Answer button as I left the room, closing the door behind me so as not to wake the others.
“Hello?”
The voice that responded belonged to a woman who spoke as though used to giving orders. “Who is this?”Talk about suspicious.“I called Mackenzie’s phone.”
“She’s sleeping. She was up late last night. This is her friend, Char.”
She made a soft sound, as though the fact checked out. “This is Pauline Hatchett.”
I paused, unsure what to say back to that. Talk about an unexpected call…
Thankfully, Pauline continued. “I’m sorry to contact you on such short notice, but I felt you should be aware.”
“Aware of what?”
“I informed Lorien of what Mackenzie and I spoke about last night, and the conversation did not go well.”
“That’s not surprising. No one hears they’re being cut out of the family and reacts well.”
“True. However, he reacted even worse than I’d expected. He attacked me before being thrown out of the estate and told if he returns, he’ll pay with his life.”
That didn’t bode well. He was crazy, of course, and his past behavior proved that he was willing to do just about anything to get what he wanted. However, attacking one’s own mother felt like even a step further, like something I really hadn’t thought even him capable of.
Then again, hadn’t I learned that familial ties weren’t nearly as strong as people liked to believe?
“I’m sorry that happened,” I said honestly.
“I neither need nor want your pity.” When she said that, I had to admit, I liked her a hell of a lot more. Something about strong women always forced me to respect them. “The reason I contacted Mackenzie was to warn her. His behavior is more erratic than I would have expected, and because of it, I’m unsure what he might do. I want her to be more cautious right now, because Lorien is capable of nearly anything. I’ve ensured my own children are safe, but I don’t want to hear that Mackenzie met a sad end at Lorien’s hands.” She also sighed softly, then went on, “Also, I want to make sure she knows that I did as I said, so anything he does wouldn’t come back on me.”
I snorted at that, at the reality of her call. Sure, it sounded like she actually gave a damn, but I also understood the rest. She didn’t want Kenz’s family coming after her if the worst came to pass.
Which, from what I knew about Nem, was probably a pretty fair understanding.
“Thank you for letting us know,” I told her. “I’ll tell Kenz, and we’ll be careful.”
“Good.” She paused but didn’t hang up. It gave off the sense that she had more to say but struggled to come out with it. Finally, she spoke, her voice soft. “Please watch out for her. Lorien is my fault, and I don’t want to see her hurt because of him—because of me.” With that, she ended the call.
I turned and stared back at the closed door, thinking about Kenz asleep in there, about how far we’d come and yet how many questions remained. We’d separated the wolf from the pack, but by doing it, we’d cut his leash as well.
Anything that might have held him back, that restrained his choices, was gone.
It meant the old game was over and the new one had just started. And unfortunately, this new game lacked any rules.
It was kill or be killed, and for the first time, I gave a damn about that.
* * * *
Hayden
I tried to hold back the yawn but I just couldn’t stop myself. The best I managed was covering my mouth and trying not to make it quite so obvious.
