I woke before Holland and watched her sleep. It might sound creepy to some, but coyotes liked to sleep together in groups, and nothing made my animal happier than to watch someone sleep with a smile on their face.
Holland had been through so much, yet here she was, moving forward. I felt like an asshole if I complained about my current situation, especially to someone who’d survived all that she had. Although, I worried a little about her dishonestly regarding Brady’s father…there was more to the story and I suspected he was the one who had called her just before I arrived last night. Bringing a human into my den was one thing, but attracting the attention of a crazy black panther would certainly give Lucas the ammunition he’d been looking for.
While watching Holland’s chest rise up and down, I let my mind focus on that situation. Kevin was right, I needed an heir who would truly be able to take over this pack. I loved my daughter more than anything, but she wasn’t it. And I hated that. I wished she had the magic, the control, and the temperament to lead. People would listen to her just because of the Stillwater name, but the second they realized she couldn’t control them or her magic…well, that would be awful for her.
No, I needed to come up with a better and more permanent solution.
Below me on the one-way dirt street, the young pups were heading out to school. We could accommodate kids up until fifth grade in our little schoolhouse. The rest of them were bused each day to the county school. I’d always wished we could keep them here forever, but they also needed to socialize with humans and learn how to control their shifts in a world where it was still better to be hidden—despite the registration process now in effect.
One of the young boys looked up and gave me a wave. His bright red beanie hat and dark green jacket made him look like a Christmas tree. I smiled down at him and suddenly had a brilliant idea. Or at least I hoped it was brilliant. Glancing back at Holland, I decided to pursue my plan, so I slipped downstairs, made the phone call, and started to prepare breakfast for her.
Thirty minutes later, Holland stumbled into the kitchen looking sleepy yet beautiful. She wore the same clothes and I kicked myself for not laying out something clean for her to borrow. Her big, brown eyes widened when she caught the scent of the thick-cut bacon and fresh omelet I’d prepared. With a growing smile she slid into the chair and accepted the mug of coffee I’d pushed across the counter for her.
“How long have you been up?” she asked, voice still a little groggy.
“An hour or so. How’s the hand?”
She looked down at her wrapped fingers and flipped her hand back and forth a few times. “It hurts a little, but nothing I can’t deal with.”
“Well,” I started, almost too afraid to say what I wanted to say, “I can help you with your survey today if you like, but I’m wondering if you’re up for a little surprise first.”
Her brows raised over the top of the mug she held next to her mouth. “A surprise?”
I smiled and prepared her plate. Not speaking again until she took a bite, I sucked in a deep breath and just let it out. “I’m wondering if you’d be able to stop by the school for a little bit? I’ll go with you and I already got permission from the teacher. She’s excited because we don’t get many scientists willing to come into—”
“Your territory,” she cut in with a grin.
“Yes. My territory. Most of us work in construction or some other kind of manual labor. And even though these kids are young, I’m sure they’d love to talk to you about what you’re doing here and what kind of schooling you’ve had.” There. I’d done it. Now I just needed to wait for her answer…
“That sounds fun,” she said. “But I definitely need to change my clothes.”
“You eat. I’ll go out to your truck and bring in your bag, okay?”
She nodded, her mouth too full to speak.
Within the hour, Holland had showered, dressed, and was bounding down the stairs with more energy than I’d expected out of her. I couldn’t help but smile as I watched her—breasts bouncing, grin wide, and brown eyes happy again. It had taken a lot of control last night for me not to claim her, but at the same time, my animal had been content enough just to lay with her. A first for him.
And for me.
“You ready?” I asked as she grabbed her coat.
“Can we walk there?”
“We can walk to everything in Nenana,” I joked. “It’s at the end of the road.”
As we stepped outside, I noticed how unusually warm it felt today. Although winter, the sun was up, the sky was clear, and the constant drips of melting water created a natural orchestra of pings all around us. We walked in silence, Holland taking in the intricacies of this town. We’d claimed it a while ago—an old mining town left to decay. And while it still looked a little on the run-down side, every interior had been updated and fixed. We coyotes tended to be good at those kinds of things.
We passed the set of kennels that someone had installed before we arrived. Probably used for sled dogs, they now worked well when I needed to settle any kind of dispute. I smiled remembering the day I’d locked Bo Callaghan inside. The giant grizzly deserved it and I think it had helped elevate my status among many of Lucas’ supporters. It has also strengthened the bond Mariah and I shared, as I’d done it for her and for the protection of her integrity.
Mariah.
I sighed when I wondered where she was. Had she left Alaska or simply fled to the city? I’d yet to hear from her, and although it had only been a day, I hoped that she would get in touch with me soon. I’d been very young when I had Mariah and I knew there were things I could have done differently, but I was fairly sure our bond would never totally break, even if it was a little strangled right now.
As we approached the one-room schoolhouse, the faint sounds of singing wafted through the walls. Holland smiled and my animal stirred. We had both worried this might be too much for Holland—working with children after losing her own. But the way her face lit up now and the increased speed in her step made me realize I’d done the right thing.
I opened the door and immediately two coyote puppies busted outside. They almost knocked Holland over as she tried not to step on them. Giggling with amusement, she bent down and held out her hand, trying to coax them back.
“I’m sorry, Marcus,” Miss Nicole said in exasperation. “These two have been acting up all week.”
‘It’s fine,” I laughed. “Need any help?”
The teacher’s assistant looked at me in consideration for a moment and then directed her attention back to Holland and the two pups that were now enjoying belly rubs. “Looks like your friend has it under control.”
Miss Nicole’s words weren’t nasty or accusatory, she simple said “friend” like that’s exactly what Holland and I were. “You okay, Holland?” I asked.
When she noticed Nicole walking toward her, she made a move to hold the two coyotes in place so they couldn’t escape again. Nicole scolded them in our tribe’s native language and when she pointed back at me, the two youngsters dropped their heads and started following her inside again.
“Thanks,” she said to Holland. “Are you the scientist?”
“I am.”
“Good, I think the kids are ready for you.”
Holland spared a glance in my direction as I let her enter first. I could smell her fear, but the happiness was more potent. And when all of the kids cheered as she walked inside, I caught the way her eyes welled up and how she smiled away any of the pain inside.
“Marcus!” Several of the children cried out. After hugging Holland, they rushed to my side and slammed into my legs, a dozen little arms wrapping around tight. I laughed as I walked with them stuck to my side, instantly becoming the entertainment as I tried to make my way to the front of the room to greet their teacher.
“Mrs. White,” I said with a nod. “This is Holland Myer.”
Holland held out her hand as several children hung from her arms. “Nice to meet you,” she said with a smile.
“I’m sorry,” Mrs. White said while she pulled children off both of us. “I don’t know what’s gotten into them today.”
“It’s fine,” Holland said. “Where would you like me to sit?”
Mrs. White started to move some chairs around to clear the main floor so the kids could sit, then she placed a single chair by the whiteboard up front. After telling Holland what they’ve most recently been studying in their science topics, I tapped her on the shoulder to get her attention.
“You okay?” I asked.
Much to my surprise, she grabbed my hand and squeezed. “I’m great.” Then, taking off her jacket, she handed it to me and asked, “Do you mind holding this?”
I nodded but then quickly found myself upstaged by a much younger man.
“What happened?” one little boy asked, grabbing for Holland’s finger splint.
I stopped him just in time, and Holland bent forward until she was eye level with the boy. “I had an accident,” she said in a brand-new voice I’d yet to hear from her. It must have been her mom voice.
“Did it hurt?” he asked, eyes wide as he examined the splint and the bruising that now inched up toward her wrist.
“It did, but now it’s feeling better.”
“That’s good,” he said, quickly followed by, “Can I give you a hug? My mom says that hugs help take the pain away.”
Holland looked up at me, biting her lips and holding back tears—I could see that clearly. But she stayed strong, opened her arms, and let the little boy crush against her. When he pulled away, she said, “You know, your mom’s right. I feel so much better now.”
The boy held his shoulders high, proud of his accomplishment. Holland made her way to her chair, sat down, and let Mrs. White introduce her. Within minutes, the kids were raising their hands, happy that they knew the name of some of the local plants and animals Holland was quizzing them on.
I stood against the far wall, trying to stay out of the way but having a hard time tearing my eyes away from Holland. She got so excited when she talked about science—like it was the coolest topic in the world and she could talk about all day. The kids fed off of that enthusiasm, totally engaged with her and fighting for a chance for her to hear them speak. Mrs. White made eye contact with me and mouthed “She’s good”. I acknowledged that with a smile and let myself enjoy watching Holland do what she seemed to love.
Ten minutes later, when Holland was challenging the kids to a drawing contest, her phone buzzed in her pocket. Many tiny heads turned to look back at me, shifter hearing giving them the ability to notice the small sound. One little girl pointed to a poster on the wall behind me that had the school rules on it—and number one was No Cell Phones.
I apologized and tried to find the phone quickly. Holland hadn’t heard it, and when I saw the text messages that had just come through, I was silently grateful for her human hearing. They were from someone named Elijah and they were nasty. Threatening her. Calling her names. And warning her that he was going to hunt her down.
Shit. The panther situation was way worse than I’d anticipated and now I had to worry about my pack getting caught in the middle. But even as those thoughts of duty swirled in my head, I couldn’t even fathom throwing Holland back out into the wild and letting her deal with the panthers on her own.
That simply wasn’t an option anymore.
My coyote growled in my chest just thinking about Holland being in trouble. He liked this human quite a lot and if I was being honest with myself, I did too. We were both fascinated with her and her story and that didn’t necessarily bode well for the future of my pack.
And just as I had that thought, I caught a glimpse of a man standing outside the school. Kevin caught my gaze and jerked his chin, telling me he needed to speak. With a fleeting glance at Holland, who was now having the kids make plants out of clay, I slipped outside to talk to my second. “Kevin,” I said by way of introduction.
“Sorry to track you down, but we really need to talk.”
My stomach twisted in fear, wondering if he had news about Mariah. “What happened?”
“Ana Luiza is still here.”
The snarl escaped my lips before I could control it. “You were supposed to escort her out of my territory.”
“I know.” Kevin hung his head. “But somehow Lucas got word of her arrival and he intercepted us just before the border.”
“What do you mean he intercepted you?”
“He had his guys jump me.”
“Son of a bitch!” I shouted. “He’s taking this too far. You are ranked. He is not. That is not acceptable.” I clenched Holland’s coat in my hands, trying to keep the animal inside of me calm enough to stay put.
“That’s exactly what I said, but then Ana Luiza took his side.”
“Took his side?”
“She held me down with her alpha power and I was forced to submit to her and Lucas. She said you had been too weak for her, but Lucas might make a better mate.”
“Seriously?”
Kevin nodded. “He’s no match for her, but now I think she just wants to hurt you.”
“Well…fuck her,” I said.
Kevin huffed a laugh. “Yeah, that’s pretty much what I said.”
Holland’s phone buzzed three times in quick succession again. More text messages. I looked at her phone, not trying to open it, but seeing the messages pop on the screen briefly before being locked. I growled again when Elijah’s vocabulary turned into shouts of anger and deadly threats.
Kevin noticed my change in demeanor immediately. “Is that the woman’s phone?”
“Yes.”
“What aren’t you telling me?”
I glanced behind me at the school where I could hear the kids clapping and saying their goodbyes to Holland. She would be out here soon and her story wasn’t mine to tell. But I was also the alpha of this pack and I had a duty to protect them. So I said just one word to Kevin, “Panthers.”
He swore when Holland stepped out of the school. Shaking his head several times, he started to walk away, but not before saying, “Be careful, man.”
“Be careful of what?” Holland asked, taking her coat and zipping it up.
“Nothing,” I said. “Are you ready to get some sampling done?”
She was still smiling and I felt my heart grow while my coyote clamped on to her even more. “I didn’t want to leave, but yes, it’s a nice day so let’s do this.”
She wrapped her arm through mine and I let us walk like that through the town and back to her truck. Just like yesterday, I felt my people staring at us from the shadows. Well, fuck them. I may be their leader, but I was also a man. A man with a beautiful woman on my arm and a man who had already decided he’d do absolutely anything to protect her.