Chapter Five

Ethney thumbed through her text message from Grace as she leaned against the car waiting for Noah; he ran into a boutique to buy a few outfits for the girls. Everything Grace dug up confirmed what she already suspected—Noah Hawthorne was a good guy. His military career, what Grace had found anyway, was extraordinary. Friends and family had nothing bad to say about him after his disappearance. Everyone loved him. It sucked he was imminently doomed.

She wanted to believe in Elena’s abilities, truly, but she had past expectations repeatedly trodden on; however, it didn’t stop her from hoping. Noah Hawthorne was one of the good guys who deserved to live and have a happily ever after. The thought of him with another woman sent a twinge of jealousy through her heart. What the hell? Sure, he was cute, but that didn’t explain the feeling. She barely knew him.

“You ready?” he asked as he strolled out with a few bags in tow.

“Yeah. Did you get everything you needed?”

She didn’t understand women and girls of today. They had so much crap between makeup and clothes it was enough to make her head spin. Give her a pair of jeans and a comfy tank any day and she was happy. Who had the time to spend two hours in front of the mirror everyday perfecting their do?

“Uh, I need to get some, uh...feminine products,” he said.

He was flustered for the first time since she met him. Go figure. He was a typical guy; mention anything about a woman’s time and they got all weird.

“Do you think you could help me?” he asked.

She blinked and chuckled. “Maybe.” She was immortal and, thankfully, hadn’t endured menstruation in centuries. “Where is the closest drug store?”

“A couple of blocks away. It’s getting close to rush hour so it might be faster if we walk there and come back to the car since we can pretty much hop on the freeway from here.” He nodded down the road to where the on ramp was.

“Sure.”

He went around her and put the bags in the trunk and then locked the car. She tucked her phone in her back pocket and waited for him to rejoin her on the sidewalk.

“There’s a good takeout place just down the street. We could pick it up on the way back. I assume you eat, right?” Noah questioned her as they started toward the store.

It had been so long since she did anything ordinary like go to the store. She ate when she had time, mostly at restaurants because it was easier than trying to cook a meal for one.

“I do. And I know you must be ravenous by now.”

As if to prove her point, his stomach rumbled loudly. He chuckled. “I might be a little hungry.”

“It’s your body’s way of preparing for the full moon. The transition takes an extreme amount of energy,” she said. “I don’t know much about the transition, but I do know having lots of food and rest helps smooth it along.”

“I didn’t see many kids among the group. Tell me honestly, will Claire survive it?”

Ethney drew in a breath and slowly let it out. “I don’t know. I’ve come across lots of children in Claire’s shoes, but not many who have initially transitioned because most don’t survive the infection from the bite.”

Noah gulped and ran a hand through his hair before stopping to scratch the back of his neck. “I see.”

She wished she could tell him everything would be okay, but experience proved that to not be the case and she wouldn’t do that to him. He needed to know the odds of Claire, and even him, surviving were slim.

“Why do they infect the children then? Why not leave them be?” Noah asked, his voice coming out more of a growl.

“The transition makes you crazy. All you can think about is the bloodlust. It doesn’t discriminate by age.” She put her hand on her stomach and swallowed down the bile threatening to creep up. “I wish it did discriminate. There is nothing worse than seeing a child caught up in all this.”

Noah stopped and put his hand on her forearm. The warmth from his fingers sent tingles shooting through her, making her inhale sharply. Part of her wanted to rip his hand off her arm, yet the other wanted to close her eyes and get lost in the simple touch. She was losing it. Whatever effect Noah had on her she needed to squash it; nothing could come of them.

Noah cleared his throat. “If something happens to me, will you take care of Claire and the other girls?”

She hesitated. Part of her wanted to say yes, but she had a job to do. The longer someone was a lycanthrope, the crazier he or she became. If Elena could not cure them before the first full moon, there was no hope for any of them.

“She’s just a little girl,” he pressed when she didn’t answer.

“I know.”

“You had a daughter, right? You did what you had to for her,” Noah grasped her arm tighter. “Please, Ethney.”

She should tell him no, but she hated confrontation so she said the next best thing. “I’ll do what I can.”

He regarded her for a long moment. “Thank you.”

Ethney nodded and looked away from him, resuming their walk to the drugstore.

“What happened to your kids after you saved them?” Noah asked.

She frowned and narrowed her eyes, but kept her gaze on the sidewalk ahead.

“You don’t have to tell me,” he said after a minute, “It’s just, you know so much about me and I know nothing about you.”

She smiled as she recalled her children. “They returned home to Scotland to live with my father’s sister. They both married and had families when they came of proper age and they lived long, healthy lives, as did their children and grandchildren.”

“Did they ever find out what happened to you? What you became?” Noah asked.

She shook her head. “No. I could only ever watch them from afar. No one that knew me was allowed to know about what I became.”

“That must have been hard.”

Her bottom lip trembled. They’d been youngsters at the time of her death; Ainsley was barely older than ten and little Elizabeth had only been six. There had been so many nights she longed to hold them and sing them to sleep. Tears pricked her eyes, but she blinked to keep them from falling.

“Were you always a warrior?” Noah asked, changing the subject to something less emotional.

A smile slid over her face. “More or less. My father was a very well respected member in the Scottish army. We were at war with England for much of my life. My mother died when I was very young and my father brought me up as more of a boy than a little girl, not that I minded. Being able to defend myself in those times was much more important than learning to cook and sew.”

“My dad was in the Army, too, before he retired. I always knew I wanted to protect people...protect my country.”

Ethney sighed. “If there is one thing that never changes, it is war. People always find something to fight about. Fighting was crude in my time, but nowadays with bombs and chemical weapons it makes me wonder what the fate of the world will be.”

“So, would I know your father by name?” Noah asked, glancing her way.

Ethney bit her lip. “Maybe,” she said.

“Who was he?”

“William Wallace.”

Noah made a face and then smiled. “Sir William Wallace? The William Wallace who led the Scottish armies against the English?”

She shrugged, “That was him.”

“So you probably know how to sword fight and everything.”

She chuckled. “It’s not very effective anymore with the multitude of guns carried, but yeah, I do.”

“Wait! When did you say you died? 1305? Isn’t that the same year your father died?”

“I didn’t realize you were such a history buff,” Ethney deflected the question. She should have guessed his line of questioning was leading there.

“I thoroughly studied war history and great commanders. Your father was betrayed in 1305 and handed over to the English army.”

“I know,” she said quietly. She stared at the sidewalk, focusing on the cracks and the feet of the people walking opposite them.

“You were with him when he was caught, weren’t you?” Noah guessed after a long moment.

“We were traveling with him, my family and I. My husband, Angus, was the one who betrayed him—he betrayed us all so he could go home to England and live as a lord.”

The bastard gave up his family—their sweet innocent, children, for money. If it had just been her and her father she would have forgiven Angus, but their children’s deaths were unforgivable. Thankfully, they had no memories of their time in the dungeons or their brutal death.

Silence stretched between the unlikely pair. He undoubtedly didn’t know what to say. She only told Daire and Aric the truth about her past; the two dragons were like brothers to her and she trusted them, as they did her. No one else knew, aside from the goddess who helped her.

She and the children wouldn’t be in any history books thanks to Astraea’s magic, which erased them from that part of history. Ainsley and Elizabeth had been transported safely to their great aunt’s house and were told their parents had been attacked on the road and killed. Even the children didn’t know about their father’s treachery.

“That’s why you killed him? For revenge?” Noah asked.

She shook her head. “To save my children. There was a lot more to my agreement than any other guardian. The Goddess not only had to change history, but she also had to transport the children to my aunt’s house and create new memories for the three of them and those closest to her. A lot of magic needed to be enforced and the only way she could do it was if she had two sacrifices. She took my life and I took his.”

“Wait. You were still alive?” he asked.

A lump formed in her throat. “He punished me. He made me watch my father die and then Ainsley and little Elizabeth, too. I can still see them fighting as the executioner...” She stopped speaking, retreating into her vision as a sob caught in her throat and she covered her mouth. She drew in deep breaths, fighting to contain the rage and hurt threatening to spill over even after all these years. Losing a child was an agony unlike any other; sacrificing herself for her children was the easiest decision she ever made.

“I’m so sorry. I...”

She cleared her throat. “It’s fine.”

She said a silent thank you when they finally reached the drugstore. This was one conversation she didn’t want to finish. “Shall we?” she asked.

Noah nodded and opened the door for her like a gentleman. It didn’t take long to find the right aisle. She grabbed a few boxes and handed them to Noah. “You haven’t been using a credit card or anything that’s traceable to pay for things, have you?”

“Of course not,” he lowered his voice to just above a whisper, “I stole a few thousand dollars from Brockwell when we made our escape.”

“Nice thinking.”

He chuckled. “It was more luck than anything else. We stumbled upon it, to be honest.”

“Regardless, good thinking.” Noah was resourceful; she’d give him that. He could be a good asset, if his fate was not sealed.

“I wish I grabbed more. There was a ton of it,” Noah stated.

“How much do you think there was?” she asked curiously.

Noah shrugged. “I’m not sure, thousands of dollars, enough to hold them over for a while. Do you think the money could mean something?”

“I don’t know,” she admitted. It was odd for large sums of money to be sitting around. In all her years, she never encountered a lycanthrope stashing away large amounts of cash. Maybe Brockwell and his cohorts were up to something new? It was anyone’s guess as to what. She blew out a breath. That man was dangerous enough as it was; they didn’t need any more surprises.

“I should be hearing back from my superiors soon. They won’t be a problem much longer,” Noah declared.

“Have you considered what you’re going to do after the problem with Brockwell is resolved? If your sister is unsuccessful, you’ll become a danger to everyone,” Ethney said.

She stopped and turned to him, lifting her brow. It wasn’t a topic she really wanted to discuss. Killing him was going to be arduous and would haunt her for a very long time. Though she was trying to keep her distance and her emotions in check, he was still worming his way in.

Noah met her eyes. “Once Brockwell is taken care of we can go to a remote location. If Elena’s remedy doesn’t work, I trust you and Aric will take care of the loose ends.”

She bit her lip. Of course she would, but that didn’t mean she would like it. “We will. You have my word, it will be quick and painless.”

“Thanks.” Noah resumed walking again and set their things down on the register.

Ethney remained quiet until they’d paid and were on their way out the door. “Have you taken many lives in your line of work?” she asked, turning her attention to him before staring back at the crowded sidewalk.

He sighed and ran a hand over his face. “Some. All of them deserved it. They were terrorists, murderers, and drug lords. Still, it doesn’t make it any easier.”

She exhaled loudly. “No, it doesn’t.”

“What would you do if you weren’t doing this?” Noah asked changing the subject.

“What do you mean?” she frowned.

“If you weren’t a guardian, what would you do with your life? How would you live it?”

Her frown deepened. She didn’t know the answer to his question. Her mouth opened and she shut it just as quickly. This was her life. “I’ve been doing this for so long...I...what would you do, you know when you retire from the Army?”

“I thought about being a paramedic. I have most of the credentials already. I don’t think I could ever do a desk job. There isn’t anything you’d like to do if you didn’t have to do this anymore?”

She shook her head. “There is no end in sight. My job is indefinite and I can’t just change it because I feel like it. Besides, I like being able to protect people and hunt down the bad guys.” She shrugged and stopped in front of the sub shop. “Did you still want to get something to eat before hitting the road?”

“Sure. Get what you want. It will be Brockwell’s treat,” he said offering her a lopsided grin.

She chuckled. “I’ll keep that in mind.”