Chapter Twenty-Three
Jenny pressed her fingers together, trying to battle the nerves settling in the pit of her stomach as she walked into the bedroom. Two shifters stood at the edge of the door, ensuring it was kept open while she tried to talk with Beth. The room was quite dark with only the skylight window letting through a little light. It was already growing close to night time, but Beth hadn’t got up from the bed to put on the lamp. Jenny did it for her, managing to take a good look at Beth for the first time.
She sat cross-legged on the bed, pressing her back against the wall. Her face was tipped toward her knees, her long brown hair hiding her features. Her broken arm was set in a cast, but she cradled it in her left arm anyway. She didn't look up as Jenny walked over to her.
“You didn’t want to eat?” Jenny asked softly, surprised at the lack of anger she felt. She pointed to the tray that sat on the small table to Beth’s left. It had a coffee pot and a plate of donuts, fruit, and something that looked like a filled roll sitting on it. Beth hadn’t touched a morsel. “After our fight, you’ll need something.”
Beth didn’t move, didn’t speak. She just kept staring down, although Jenny noticed a slight quivering as Beth drew in a long breath. What was the matter with her?
“You’re going to be coming back to Rockshore with us, Beth” Jenny continued. “We’re leaving in the morning.”
She didn’t know what else to say so she sat in the chair by the door, keeping a good distance between herself and Beth. Even though Jenny didn’t feel as angry as she’d thought, she certainly didn’t trust Beth at all. Sure, she had a broken arm, and that at least it meant Beth wouldn’t be able to shift for a while, which would give them the time they needed to try and get her to talk about Davidson and her brother..
“How do you know my name?”
Startled, Jenny glanced up at Beth, who was sitting up just a little more, her eyes clouded with pain and misery.
"Luke told us," Jenny explained. "He recognized you and Stephen from when you lived here with his pack." She was surprised to see that Beth flinched when she mentioned Stephen’s name, as though the memory of him wasn't a good one.
Beth lifted her good hand and pushed her hair back from her face, tucking it behind her ear. “Where is he?”
“Who?” Jenny asked.
“My brother,” Beth replied, her voice barely above a whisper. “Where is he?”
Jenny frowned at the wariness in Beth’s eyes. “They didn’t catch him. He’s not here.”
Something like relief flickered over Beth’s face, making Jenny wonder whether she was relieved because her brother had escaped or because he wasn’t here with her. A sudden pulse of anger ran straight through her, causing her to clench her hands in her lap.
"Why did you do it?" she asked, her voice growing a little louder. "Why did you help Davidson? I just can't—" Realizing she was close to shouting, Jenny took a breath and tried to calm herself down. "I just can't understand why a shifter would help someone who wanted to kill us all. I know your sister died, but you can't really believe that it was shifters that did it!" She glared at Beth, trying not to let the tug of sympathy she felt stop her from pressing Beth with questions.
Beth shook her head. “You wouldn’t understand.”
“You’re right about that,” Jenny replied tersely. “I certainly don’t understand what on earth it was you were thinking, getting involved with Davidson like that. You stood there with your brother and Davidson trying to get me to shift so that Davidson could shoot me in the head.” Her fists clenched tighter, and the nails bit into the soft skin of her palm.
Beth shook her head. “I tried not to.”
Jenny opened her mouth to respond but closed it quickly. Beth was right. She had tried not to get involved, but that wasn't a good enough reason to pretend that Beth's role in it was just going to be forgotten. Her anger cooled slightly as she looked into Beth's face and saw the pain and fear there.
“Are they going to kill me?”
Jenny shook her head, and Beth sagged back against the wall, evidently relieved that she wasn't going to lose her life on account of what she'd done. "I don't know what they're planning to do, Beth, but they want the truth from you. They want to know everything Davidson's done and where your brother might have gone. This little scheme is over, but we aren’t going to stop until they find Stephen. He’s too dangerous to be allowed to go free."
Beth gave a tiny shake of her head, before putting her head in her hands. Jenny strained to hear as she mumbled something under her breath—something that sounded like “all such a mess.”
“You’re going to have to talk sooner or later, Beth,” Jenny continued firmly. “You’re not going to have an easy ride. The White Fire pack aren’t going to just let you sit silently. We need to know what’s going on.”
Wiping her cheeks with the back of her hand, Beth sniffed once and looked up at Jenny with watery eyes. “What happened to Davidson?”
“Dead,” Jenny replied firmly. “Ran off the edge. His own fault, really. Turns out he was a bit of a coward, running away and leaving you and Stephen to face the rest of us.”
“I’ve always known that,” Beth answered, with a surprising amount of vehemence. “Underneath it all, Davidson was weak.”
Thumping her fist on the arm of the chair, Jenny glared at Beth. “Davidson is dead and his entire plan for revenge has gone with him. Your brother has turned tail and run. You’re all alone, Beth. It’s all over.”
There was no response. Beth resumed her silence, shaking her head at Jenny before turning her gaze onto the tray of food. Her hand snaked out and picked up a donut, setting it on her knee before pouring herself a cup of coffee.
Jenny pushed herself out of the chair, confused and frustrated. Storming out of the room, she wished she could slam the door shut, hard, anger pushing her steps as she walked back along the hallway to find the others.
“Anything?”
Shaking her head, Jenny walked to the counter and poured herself a cup of coffee, ignoring the way her hands shook.
“Hey,” Ross said softly, coming up behind her. “What happened?” His brow furrowed as he looked into her face, tipping her chin with one finger. “Maybe I shouldn’t have let you go and talk to her.”
“I’m fine,” Jenny snapped, pulling away from him. “She just wouldn’t say anything, although she seemed relieved that Davidson’s dead.”
“She did?” Surprise filled Ross’s voice as Jenny turned back to face him.
"Yes, she did, but she's made it very clear she won't be telling us anything about where her brother might have gone."
Very deliberately, Ross pulled the mug from her hands and set it down on the counter before pulling her into a hug. Jenny tensed for a few seconds longer before finally letting go and resting her head against his chest.
“She’ll talk to us,” Ross promised quietly. “This was only the first attempt, and you actually got her to speak. Something is better than nothing at all, Jenny. Don’t let her get to you.”
“It’s not that,” Jenny replied, her voice slightly muffled as she leaned into him. “It’s that I feel such a strange mix of emotions when I’m talking to her. I feel sympathy and compassion, as well as anger and frustration. I don’t want to feel those things. I just want to hold onto the anger. After what she did, I shouldn’t feel anything like sympathy for her.”
Ross rubbed her back in slow circles. “Your instincts are probably right though, Jenny. You’ve proved that over and over again. Whether she deserved it, you’re sensing that there’s something more to her story.” Stepping back, he held her by the shoulders and looked deeply into her eyes. “What do you sense from her?”
Sighing, Jenny closed her eyes briefly. “Fear,” she said eventually. “She’s not afraid of us but afraid of her brother—and maybe she was even afraid of Davidson.”
Nodding, Ross’s lips curved into a gentle smile. “Then that gives us something to work with,” he replied softly. “I’ll just have to tell Connor not to be too harsh with her.”
“She did leave him with a few bruises,” Jenny smiled, her heart lightening as her anger ebbed. “I can’t blame him for being angry.”
“Neither can I,” Ross replied, drawing her closer. “But your gentleness got her to open up just a little. Perhaps that’s what’s needed.”
Practically glowing at the compliment, Jenny lifted her face to his, sighing as he kissed her. Finally, she felt completely at peace.