18 – Forlorn

Troy plodded along the trail behind the house at VF, Chelsea pacing him in the fiercely delicate way of the pampered American housecat. His head was down, his tail would have been between his legs. He had no idea what to do about finding his mate. He’d said it was his move to make, and everyone was waiting for him to make that move, but his wolf wasn’t talking, and Troy could not decide what that move should be.

Someone moved behind him. Troy scented deeply. Trevor, with Treena in his arms. Troy slowed so they could catch up.

Trevor fell into step next to him.

After a few moments of silence, Troy spoke to his brother in ruhi. Why did I do exactly the wrong thing? Why can’t I figure out what to do now?

Trevor only thought for a moment. “Love doesn't come naturally sometimes. Sure, you have a fated mate but that doesn't mean that you won't have to work on figuring out what happily ever after means to you. Your wolf is just your GPS, Troy. You still have to drive the car. You have to find her and apologize, that’s all. You have to make it right.”

Troy almost understood, but he had to be perfectly clear. Apologize for claiming my mate? For listening to my wolf?

“Apologize for claiming her without her permission.”

Troy shook his head. That did not help. “Her scent gave permission,” he said.

Trevor didn’t miss a beat. “Her body may have given you permission but her brain never gave you her consent.”

Troy’s head got it, but his heart and his wolf did not.

Trevor must have been able to tell. “It’s different with wolfen, the scent is everything, scent always speaks the truth of heart and mind, and if she had been a wolfen, you would not have had to consider this, but she’s not. She’s more human than anything else.” Trevor stopped him on the trail with a hand to his chest and a curious expression. “Isn’t she? Did she demonstrate any sort of a power or say that she knew what you were?”

Troy shook his head. Nothing. We didn’t talk much.

Trevor smiled at him. “She sounds perfect for you.”

Troy dropped his head. I should have known. I should have stopped myself. You’ve been telling me. Ella’s been telling me.

For once, Trevor disagreed with that, surprising Troy with his vehemence. “There’s no way you would have known. That was my fault. I should have… I don’t know, I should have told you more. I should have assumed you would shift someday and you would need to hear every detail of what dating was like and what girls were like and what it means to be a man and a wolf in this world. Instead, I assumed you wouldn’t shift, and you would never need to know. You’re inexperienced, Troy, and there’s nothing wrong with that. I know this will work out ok. She’ll forgive you.”

“How?” he asked plainly.

“Because she’s your mate, and you didn’t mean it. Buy her a gift and apologize. Get her flowers, women like flowers. So your first big fuck-up came a little early in your relationship, it won’t be your last.”

Troy could believe that, at least.

Wade cut into their thoughts. Blake called and says there’s something going on at the mountain lion statue at the west entrance to town that we need to see to believe. Everyone’s heading out. You coming?

Yeah, we’ll be right there.

***

Troy and Trevor arrived at the mountain lion statue, elbowing their way into the crowd of wolven to stand next to Blake, Treena in her daddy’s arms. Troy knew immediately what they’d been called out to see.

There was the mountain lion statue, one of Serenity’s guardians, some said, frozen in the same prowl as always. But next to it, was something new. Another statue, seemingly sunk into old concrete like it had always been there, of a mountain lion kit about to pounce on something.

“Creepy,” Trevor said, eyeing it.

Troy agreed.

Jaggar pulled up in his truck, Leilani sitting right next to him in the front seat, pulled in close to him, smiling radiantly. Troy had never seen a female so consistently happy. She never stopped beaming, never stopped staring at Jaggar with worship in her eyes. Troy didn’t ever wink at her. Jaggar would tear him in half, or try anyway. Troy wanted to learn to fight, not learn what the inside of a hospital looked like.

Jaggar helped Leilani out of the truck, and Troy realized she, too, was maybe a week pregnant. Whoa, that made everyone except Rogue and Dahlia.

Leilani rushed to the kitten statue and knelt next to it, touching its head lightly. She turned to stare up at Jaggar, shielding her eyes from the sun. “It looks just like Tabias, don’t you think?” Only Leilani and Jaggar had actually ever seen Tabias, the mountain lion half of the two animals that had made Jaggar’s beast, until Tabias had been… Troy didn’t quite understand what was supposed to have happened and Troy wasn’t sure if he even believed that story. Rhen had a meadow Eventine and Dahlia and Crew and Jaggar and Leilani had been to, but not with their bodies, and no one knew where it was? It all sounded like mass hallucination to Troy, but he did have to admit that Jaggar was a perfectly normal wolf now, and the beast was no more.

Eventine stared at the statue, a worried look on her face. She shook her head. “I don’t like it.”

“Why not?” Harlan asked quietly. “This should be a good thing.”

Eventine didn’t speak for a long time, then she looked around at the crowd, seeming to assess who was there. She gathered the KSRT and OTMs in close. “The statues fought on Khain’s side last time.”

Shit. That put dread in Troy’s heart. His brother said what he, and most of the others, seemed to be thinking. “I thought the statues were representative of the guardians, and that they would be on our side.” He addressed his question to Eventine and Jaggar, but only Jaggar said anything.

“I know what Grey believes,” he said. “It was in his papers. He thinks when the statues move for the first time, that’s when Rhen dies.”

The thought made a few of the males growl deep in their throats.

Troy’s wolf leaned in. “The ground is about to shake,” he growled, getting between the females and the road, ready to save whoever might need saving.

The ground rolled beneath them, violently, and Blake fell on his face.

“Damnit,” Troy swore, running to him, kneeling down next to him, rolling him over, wishing for Remington or Conri, any bear, really. Blake was unconscious, his mouth slack, his eyes showing only whites. Trevor tucked Treena in close to him and bent down also. The earthquake stopped.

“Blake,” Troy called, slapping his face, pulling at his arm. Nothing. He grabbed for his brother. “Last time, he woke up immediately,” he said, tripping over that damn W, but with no time to think of another word to use.

This time, his scent had gone flat and brittle, which told Troy exactly how bad it was.

“We have to get him to Remington’s,” Troy said, looking around at the grim faces staring at Blake. Three wolven moved in close and they got him in the back of Jaggar’s truck.

Troy climbed in the back seat with Blake and held his head to keep it from bouncing around, while Jaggar sped them to the clinic. Troy kept up a steady stream of ruhi the entire drive, telling Blake to hang in there, just hang in there.

It was time to tell Blake’s secret.