Chapter Thirty-Three

Laia

 

“Since when are you afraid of anything?” Rett asked.

“It’s not fear,” I gritted out, and he gave me a look. “It’s like swarms of nerves, hopes, and, okay, maybe a little fear.”

“You threw yourself off a cliff,” Tristan said unhelpfully. He was striding along on my other side, his hands clasped behind his head, and his face tilted to the sun. “You were a prisoner of the Bloodfang. This is our family.”

“Don’t tell them any of that,” I said hastily. “Geez, what the hell is wrong with you?”

“So many things,” Tristan said mournfully.

“Laia, it’s all your call what we tell them. And remember, we’re here for you,” Rett said and gently squeezed my arm. “It’s gonna be okay.”

“God, you two are as nauseating as Luke and Reagan,” Tristan said cheerfully.

I went to retort and sighed instead. I’d told the Commands, Fallon, Regan, and Beylore of my time with the Bloodfang. It hadn’t been easy to lay bare my soul, going over every event in minute detail. But who knew what would help the Northbane take on Orion? And while I’d hated reliving the events of my escape—the broken wings, the use of the crian shard on me by Jasper, and the room I’d been locked in—it had been a cleansing, cathartic experience.

That room would haunt me for a long time, though. I forgot nothing about it: I could close my eyes and see every last speck that had made up the floor. Never mind how Orion had cruelly hung a birdcage from the rafters, and how there were windows all around the eaves.

Sadistic son of a bitch. He’d enjoyed taunting me.

Not as much as I’d enjoy taking him down, though.

Rett and Tristan had exchanged several dark looks while I’d talked, vowing their own vengeance. At least now, the Northbane were prepared. They knew what I did—that, left unchecked, Orion’s madness and thirst for chaos among shifters would spread from the borderlands to the Northern Wilds.

Either way, though, I didn’t want to worry my family. They’d been through enough.

“I only hope I can make amends for what I’ve put everyone through,” I said.

“Laia,” Rett chided. “Don’t talk like that.”

Slipping closer to him, I wrapped my arms around his waist, not caring that it made for awkward walking or that Tristan was making gagging noises. Not when Rett laughed and held me close.

“You know, you’re asking for it,” Rett informed my cousin.

“Please,” Tristan said. “I can take you.”

“Wasn’t talkin’ about that, brother. I’m talkin’ about karma.” Tristan shrugged, but a weird look crossed his face, and his shoulders lifted towards his ears. “I mean, Luke said as much to us, and look what happened.” Rett was so serious, it was hard to keep from laughing. “Kind of wish I’d listened to him.”

“Only kind of?” Tristan asked, curious.

“Well, I enjoyed the ride,” Rett said, twinkling at his friend, and Tristan groaned.

“Good thing we’re here,” he said. “I don’t think I could take much more of you two.”

I pulled free of Rett and swept my eyes eagerly across the “Llary homestead.” In front of me was a big, rambling farmhouse flanked by old oak trees. Beyond it, there were stables and fields, little rivers and trees. An archway covered in vines led to a big garden.

In a way, it had the feel of home back in California.

“Tristan Llary, you better not be wasting my time,” said a rolling, jolly voice. A woman with neat gray hair came around the corner, wiping her hands on her pants. “What in the world did you need to have the whole family here for? Unlike you, we have chores…”

She trailed off as I stood there, hands over my mouth.

“Laia?” Gran asked, as Rett nudged me forward. "Oh, my God."

Shaking from head to toe, I approached her and held out my hands. She took them and yanked me in, letting out a soft sob. Choking on my tears, I huddled against her, basking in her familiar, sturdy figure. Gran stroked my hair, smelling, as she always did, of lavender and soap.

“Gran,” I got out. “I missed you.”

Often, I’d thought of her when all hope was lost. It was from Gran that I’d learned never to take no for an answer. She put the “back” in “backbone” in our family, and that was saying something.

Gripping my elbows, Gran stepped back and gave me a good shake. “Girl, where did you get off to? Do you know how worried we were? Two damn years, and you couldn’t send word?”

“She really couldn’t, Gran,” Tristan piped up before I could.

“Boy, I wasn’t asking you,” Gran said and shot him a quelling glare. Then she smiled as she saw Rett. “It’s nice to see you, as always, Rett. How’s your mama?”

“She’s good, ma’am,” Rett said.

“Well?” Gran demanded, eyes flashing back to me.

“Is Tristan here yet?” came another voice, one that made my throat go tight. I watched as a big, genial man with a bright red beard and a bald head came around the corner. "Ma, I'm starving. I…” His jaw dropped when he saw me, and a hand went to his heart. “Laia?”

“Daddy,” I said, my voice breaking, and I was swept up against him, crying into his shoulder.

“You should maybe get Auntie Kay,” I heard Tristan suggest.

“Oh, baby girl, I knew you’d find your way back to us,” my dad was saying. “Your mom knew, too—she believed with all her heart. Aw, don’t cry. You’re home. You’re safe.”

Great, gasping sobs were escaping me. I hadn’t let myself think of my family much over the past two years, and now it was all breaking through. There were footsteps and exclamations. When I lifted my head, I saw that a knot of redheads and tawny blonds had clustered.

One dark-haired woman muscled through, her hazel eyes bright with tears, and I laughed as Dad let me go. I ran to my mother, almost knocking her over as I gripped her. But she’d married into the Llary family, and she was a lot tougher than she looked.

“Laia, my baby. Oh, shh, shh, it’s okay,” my mom said, rocking me back and forth. Her arms were the same comforting place I remembered. I reveled in that memory and cherished this moment. She was crying, too, though, and I don’t think she was the only one. My dad’s hand was on my back, and I could hear my family all around me. At the edge, looking on, I sensed Rett.

“I’m home,” I said.

“You’re home,” Dad added, his voice conspicuously rough.

“About damn time,” Gran said emphatically.

 

It took me about an hour to calm down. In that time, my family had started grilling food and cooking, pulling tables from somewhere and setting them up in the orchard. I’d been sitting with my aunts and cousins; then I spotted Rett and my parents in the distance.

Rett was talking rapidly, his face earnest and his smile a little nervous. Several times, I saw my mother and father glance at each other. Laughter bubbled up to my lips.

“You see this?” Tristan asked, sitting on the table next to me and earning a reproving swat from his mother. With a sigh, he moved down onto the bench. “Looks like he took a page from Luke’s playbook.”

“Leave him alone,” Gran said, coming by, and we both laughed. It had been a long-standing family joke that she had the ears of a fox. So, of course, she could shift into one. “He’s a good man.”

“Well, thanks to Laia here, he’ll be part of the family soon enough.”

“He already was,” Tristan’s mom said warmly. “Wait, what?” My aunt looked at me and lit up, while I nodded and vowed to get Tristan back later. “Oh, Laia, I’m so happy for you.”

“You had time to get a boyfriend, but you didn’t have time to let us know you were all right?” Gran demanded. “The ingratitude of your generation, I tell you.”

“Gran, it was life and death,” I said, resisting the urge to roll my eyes. “Next time, I’ll know better.”

“Hmph, you better. Although I, for one, hope that this Orion fellow comes to Winfyre. We’ll teach him a thing or two about messing with this family,” Gran said and handed me another plate of food. “You need to eat, Laia—you’re too thin.”

“Thanks, Gran,” I said as I accepted it.

Tristan chuckled. “Gran, that might actually have that madman shaking in his boots.” He nudged me. “Looks like they’re done.”

I glanced over to see my dad pull Rett in for a hug, followed by my mother. Immediately, Rett looked up and found me. He shook his head as Tristan and I waved.

However, it was almost another two hours before I was able to extricate myself and get a minute alone with Rett. We slipped away to a quiet corner around the barn, hidden by the trees and shrubbery. Tugging on his hand, I leaned up against the barn wall, and he leaned over me, resting an arm on my head.

“I have to ask,” I started to say, and Rett groaned.

“Geez, I was just letting them know my intentions are honorable.”

“Are they?” I teased. “I’m not so sure about that.”

I let go of his hand and played with the buttons on his shirt. Rett had dressed up in nice jeans and a button-up, though he’d rolled the sleeves up on our way over. The material bulged around his forearm, and I smiled to myself, making a note to compliment him later.

“I also wanted to let your parents know that this is serious,” he said, wisely and futilely trying to ignore me. “After everything that happened, it seemed like the right thing to do.”

“Sure.”

“And how much I care about you, no matter how irritating you are.”

“As though anyone with eyes couldn’t tell,” I said and looped my arms around his neck.

“Just making sure,” he said.

“My family loves you, Rett,” I said. “You don’t have to worry.”

"It's not worrying," Rett said. "It's the right thing to do as a Northbane Command. We set a precedent." One big hand clasped my wrist. "Not only for Winfyre, but for the Wilds as well."

I reached up and touched his cheek. “Mm, precedents. You’d think that’d be kind of a turn-off, but honestly, it’s pretty sexy.”

Rett’s serious look intensified. “It’s not supposed to be sexy.”

“Oh, big bad bear Command,” I said. “I love this game.”

“Laia,” Rett rumbled in warning, and I tossed him an arch smile.

He’d already given himself away, the gruff and serious look falling away into a playful smirk. Suddenly, he kissed me, and I melted into the barn wall as his body pressed against me. Every nerve ending was singing his praises.

“I hope you told my parents how I am one happy woman,” I said dazedly as he pulled away.

“As though anyone with eyes couldn’t tell,” Rett teased in my ear as he kissed my cheek. “Now, come on. Let’s get back before your Gran catches us.”

Laughing, arm in arm, we went back to the Llary gathering. One that definitely wasn’t a dream, as the grill had caught on fire, and Gran was squaring off with my uncle and cousins, who were supposed to be in charge of it.

“Looks like we could have made out for a while longer,” I said.

"Don't tempt me, woman," Rett growled. "Or you'll pay tonight."

“I’m okay with that,” I said, laughing as Tristan sprinted over with a bucket of water and doused the sparking grill. “Good thing I already ate.”