AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Thank you,” I said again, blinking back tears.
“Anyway.” Jaxon cleared his throat and released my hand. “I should get going. Thank you for breakfast.”
“Of course.”
I watched him go, a wave of emotion threatening to overwhelm me, and I swallowed back another lump in my throat. How different would my life have been if Jaxon had stayed?
It wasn’t fair to dwell on the past, but it kept nagging at me. Sure, I’d adored my mother, but life with William hadn’t always been easy. If I’d been raised by Jaxon instead…
“Stop it, Tori,” I scolded myself under my breath, shaking my head to dispel the thoughts. There was no use in wondering about what-ifs. The past was the past, and all we could do was move forward.
Sighing, I stood and left to go find Kyle. There was still so much to do, and I couldn’t afford to get lost in my thoughts. For now, I just had to accept that Jaxon was a part of my life and keep forging ahead, no matter how many questions and uncertainties swirled around me.
Chapter 36
Ridge
I stood by the window of Bogford B&B, sipping on black coffee as I discussed the security measures with Aaron, one of the other pack alphas. We were trying to work out a shift pattern with members from different packs, mixing them up so everyone was working together to create a safer town. We had a good number of volunteers from across all packs. People were eager to protect the town and its inhabitants, which was encouraging.
We were trying to decide if it would be worthwhile to set up permanent structures on the farthest reaches of the borders. Then we could station shifters there on a more fixed system, rather than only having marching patrols. However, there was a risk that anyone trying to infiltrate could time the patrols and do exactly what we were trying to stop.
As the sun shone through the trees surrounding Blackwood Creek, it cast elongated shadows that added to the sense of foreboding already brewing inside me. I couldn’t shake the sensation that danger was lurking just beyond our borders.
“Ridge!” Clawson burst into the room. “There’s a woman at the entrance to town. Says she’s a witch and wants permission to enter Blackwood Creek. She won’t cross into town without the alpha’s approval.”
My grip tightened on the coffee cup. A witch? It had to be Eleanor, the one who’d healed me after the vampire bit me. I exchanged a quick glance with Aaron, who raised an eyebrow but said nothing.
I hoped my trust in Aaron was not misplaced, and that he’d keep this little nugget of gossip to himself. As the dominant alpha, I could force his silence, but it went against the ethos we were trying to establish. I was a practice-what-you-preach alpha, and I had no plans to change that.
Some of the refugee shifters in town had had terrible experiences and were frightened of witches, and the threat of the dark witch Giselle’s shifter cure hanging over our heads wasn’t helping. Until I knew this witch’s motives, I couldn’t let it get out that Alpha Blackwood was working with a witch.
I set the cup down on the windowsill and turned to face Clawson. “Well, we better not leave her hanging. Let’s go,” I urged.
As we hurried through the streets of Blackwood Creek, my thoughts raced ahead. This had to be Eleanor. As I’d been unconscious when we’d “met,” I knew nothing of the witch, except that she’d saved my life and agreed to train Lola Kipling. I would be polite, but proceed with caution.
Witches were secretive, which made it difficult to get information about them. What I knew of them was pieced together from the stories I’d heard from other shifters. They had their own rules and customs, which they kept to themselves. If you broke one of them, however unintentional, they were deeply offended. Their actions weren’t necessarily bad, but their motives were unpredictable.
Damned if you do, damned if you don’t. Just be polite and hope for the best.
When Tori had asked Jaxon if he knew any witches who might be willing to train Lola, he told her he knew someone he could reach out to, explaining that once told of a new witch, they couldn’t refuse to train her because it went against some witch code.Jaxon hadn’t had time to contact this witch before I’d been bitten and rushed to Toronto. There, he’d cashed in a favor with Eleanor, and she’d healed me. As she left, Jaxon had effectively thrown out, “Thanks, bye now. Oh, and by the way, there’s a new witch in Blackwood Creek,” or words to that effect. I worried he’d manipulated the woman into being obligated by her own beliefs to train Lola Kipling, and that made me uneasy.
How well did Jaxon know this witch? He’d been in hiding for a long time. How did he know she hadn’t turned dark and was working with the hunters? She might not want to train a new witch, and an unwilling mentor would make Lola’s life very uncomfortable.
There were so many unanswered questions. I preferred clear-cut situations that left no room for ambiguity or confusion. Unless we were in the boardroom, then all bets were off. I would much rather be upfront with everyone, even witches.
As Clawson and I approached the town entrance, I spotted a woman standing just outside the border, a suitcase at her feet and a bag slung over her shoulder. Tori had described her as a slight woman, but even from a distance, she packed a magical punch. It had to be Eleanor. She was dressed in blue jeans and a gray coat, the sunlight catching the glimmering golden highlights woven through her chocolate brown hair.
She was caught up in a heated discussion with a member of the pack, attracting unwanted attention from passersby. When I recognized who it was, I knew I had to end it before it became a full-blown incident. I hurried forward, putting myself between them.
“Okay, Jerry, Clawson and I’ve got it. Thank you for your interest in our new guest. We’ll take it from here.”
Jerry Anderson was a nosy old shifter from the Montana Pack, and by the smell of him, he’d spent the better part of the day in The Tipsy Tavern. I would have to speak to Mateo, the bar owner, about cutting Anderson off before he got belligerent and started questioning newcomers in town.
Jerry turned, and after seeing us, made the wise choice to leave.
“Sorry about that,” I apologized to Eleanor. “With the threat of hunters, some of our residents are understandably on edge. Mr. Anderson meant you no harm, I assure you.” I glanced at her and noticed the shrewd gleam in her eye. I could only hope Jerry woke up with just a hangover after falling out with a witch.
“I’m Ridge Blackwood. You must be Eleanor?” I extended my hand and introduced myself. “I understand I have you to thank for my life. Tori mentioned you’d be coming.”
