VIOLET

I rubbed my forehead with my palm as I rose from what felt like a nap that had gone on too long. I felt groggy, hungry, and like I was run over by an eighteen-wheeler.

I swung my legs over and almost lost my balance before realizing that I wasn’t on a bed, but a hammock. This wasn’t Jayce’s home. I knew that for sure and it damn sure wasn’t my parent’s home either.

Standing up, I took in the huge screened porch and all of the mosaic, porcelain, and clay pots surrounding me. A calming water feature sat off to one corner and various plants and vines were everywhere. It was either very early in the morning or late in the evening. I walked to the furthest end of the porch and peered through the darkness.

A man cleared his throat behind me.

I spun around to find Draven standing there with a glass of ice water.

I frowned. “Where’s Jayce?”

“Well, hello to you, too,” he mumbled and held the water out at me.

“What happened? How did I get here?”

“I drove you here.”

“Thank you.” I took the glass of water and took a long sip, relieved as the dryness at the back of my throat disappeared. “And Jayce?”

“You’ll see him soon.” Draven looked away.

“You don’t sound so optimistic.” I sighed and sat down in a wicker rocking chair to the right of me. “What time is it?”

Draven glanced down at his wristwatch. “Let’s just put it this way. We should both be asleep.”

I rubbed at my face. “That’s why I feel so terrible.”

“You didn’t sleep all that long. We got here just before nine last night. It’s now four in the morning.”

“Jeez, that’s early,” I exclaimed. “And I slept out on the hammock?”

He chuckled. “Let’s just say you weren’t too happy about leaving Jayce behind when you found out we had driven away after I told you we were following them to the police station. You wouldn’t come inside my house. You fell asleep on the hammock.”

“I do remember fighting with you,” I said, my face heating in embarrassment.

“Trauma affects us in different ways. You were in shock, probably in a daze. Once you fell asleep out here, I thought I’d just let you rest. I didn’t want you to put up another fight with me, either. The chair was comfortable though.”

“You slept out here with me?”

He nodded. “Jayce would kill me if anything happened to you. And I mean that for real.”

“Where am I?”

“Log cabin. About ten miles west of Jayce’s house. I live here.”

“Alone?” I asked, glancing around at the well-manicured plants.

“Yeah.” He shrugged.

“This porch is nice and airy with all the plants and decor,” I said.

He grinned. “Well, I can’t take credit for it. The house comes with a maid. Two actually.”

I tried to smile, but I couldn’t bring myself to seek comfort, not when Jayce was in trouble.

“Jayce was hurt really badly out there,” I said.

“He’ll heal.” Draven leaned against the door.

“How come they arrested him? This was all in self-defense. He was defending himself!”

“Yes, everyone there knew that. Every cop in this town knows that the rogues are a murderous bunch. Marshall was just one name off of their long list of criminals.”

“He admitted to kidnapping other women and using them as breeders, so that’s good, right?” I asked, trying to be optimistic about the situation.

“Works in our favor, yes. However, Jayce still ended a life right in front of the cops. The blood is on his hands. He could’ve done it anywhere else to avoid a charge, but he had no choice. I would’ve done the same thing. Marshall has been known to disappear in the wake of his crimes. Someone needed to stop him. Rest assured, Jayce will be out soon. They have nothing else on him. They shouldn’t, at least.”

Draven sounded like he wasn’t sure. It almost seemed like there was a possibility that they would keep Jayce for other reasons.

“What about the incident from the night I was kidnapped?” I asked.

“Black Ridge pack members got to the wolf bodies before anybody else could find them. The bodies were dragged from the scene in a manner consistent with shifters collecting their dead after an altercation. When Jayce killed them to save you, he left them in wolf form. Even if an unsuspecting human had stumbled upon the bodies, they wouldn’t have thought anything of it other than getting the hell away from the area before the predator came back. That’s only if they’re smart though. Some people are just too damn nosy though. Point is, none of the killings were reported. But we now have evidence that women were being kidnapped by the rogues and held against their will.”

“Do you think the other women will be found alive?” I asked.

“Those rogues are known to keep their breeders like trophies, especially when they cooperate because they fear for their lives.”

I couldn’t help but think where I might have ended up if Jayce hadn’t come when he did. In another state? Canada? Dead? “Any idea where they might be keeping these women?”

“With the rogue pack at its weakest point and several wolves in police custody, there’s a chance that information will be leaked. The problem is, we don’t know where the rogues have set up their home base but it could be somewhere across the border outside of Arrow Lake jurisdiction.”

“I hope this is all over soon. Is there anything I could do, like give my side of the story? I was there the whole time Jayce was under attack.”

“Do you know who else was there the whole time?”

I frowned. “Who?”

“Two out-of-state hikers. They saw the whole thing go down.”

“Oh, yeah…I remember. The hikers who called the cops.”

“Wait a minute,” Draven said, putting his hands on his hips. “I thought you called the cops.”

I shook my head. “No, I was going to, but then I remembered what Jayce told me about how some of the cops weren’t being so trusting of shifters at the moment.”

“You made the right decision.”

“You said the hikers saw everything?”

Draven nodded. “They got some pictures in too and maybe a video or two. The cops confiscated the evidence.”

“Oh, wow.”

“Let’s just hope it doesn’t end up on Facebook or anything. Last time something like this happened, journalist and news reporters came out here in droves. As you can imagine, we don’t like being the source of someone else’s entertainment, so most of us refrained from shifting out in the open for weeks in fear that we’d end up on social media.”

“I guess there are some who would use a video like that against you, but there are others who just want to understand you,” I said.

“We know that,” Draven said, calmly. “But not all of us openly identify as shifters.”

“The cops? Were they going to shoot you if you hadn’t surrendered when you first got there?” I asked.

“Probably. None of the rifles they were aiming at us had real bullets in them. In this town, they’re allowed to shoot us with tranquilizers if we don’t comply. Some activists think we’re an endangered species. Either way, we can’t always be sure that we won’t get shot down with real bullets. When the rogues started causing problems, residents started to take up real firearms. Because they were under threat, they had the right to shoot if they became a target. I don’t blame them really.”

“Why did their alpha try to bite me?”

“It’s an old custom. When an alpha bites a female, she belongs to him regardless of the mate mark,” Draven stated.

“But if Jayce had told him that we shared the mark, would that have discouraged him?”

“No,” Draven replied, almost too quickly. “A rogue like him wouldn’t even have cared about your mating status. If Jayce had told Marshall about how you two were actually mates and he ended up beating Jayce or getting out of jail for whatever reason, Marshall would’ve done everything in his power to take you and he would’ve kept you out of spite…probably as a breeder to avenge his brother. That’s why Jayce killed him. That’s why he couldn’t stay alive. Marshall would’ve found some way to get out, especially now that he has someone on the inside. It was a fight to the death for many reasons.”

I sighed on a ragged breath. “But it was all in self-defense. The rogues started it. They got what they asked for, but he’s still in jail.”

“Yes, it was. That’s why I’m confident we’re going to get him out.”

“Will the rogues come back?”

“Possibly, but not for the same reasons. Marshall’s vendetta was very personal, but the Black Ridge pack has ties here, just like any other pack that originated from here. They’re still out there, but without an alpha, they’re weakened. It won’t be long before they regroup again. I’m going to do everything in my power to keep them out of Arrow Lake, but I can’t do that with the current restrictions.”

“Lakely’s Law, you mean?”

He nodded. “If we’re going to protect Arrow Lake, we need to be a part of it. And this is our home. We won’t go anywhere.” He paused and then asked, “Do you want to leave here?”

“No, I want to stay,” I replied. “I have to know that Jayce is coming back home and that he’s safe. Get him out. Please.”

Draven nodded. “I will. Until then, you’re under my protection.” He looked away and then down at the floor. Jayce would do the same thing at times when he was troubled about something. They had grown up together like brothers. Their mannerisms were the same. But something told me that Jayce and Draven were more different than the same. Or maybe it just felt that way to me because Draven didn’t really know me and I hardly knew him. Draven kept his feelings contained and at bay while Jayce had no problems voicing his emotions.

“I appreciate everything,” I mumbled. “I made some mistakes coming here and I was careless for stopping at that rest stop. Maybe it’s cruel fate, but if I hadn’t stopped…” I bit my lip, troubled for having to think that I was destined to be the party of some evil custom in order to meet Jayce.

“That’s not how the mate mark works, Violet.”

Blinking back the tears that had almost spilled from my eyes, I asked, “What do you mean?”

“The mate marks draw two individuals together. You would’ve met Jayce one way or another. In another time. Another place. It just so happens that some really bad guys interfered in the worst way possible.”

I narrowed my gaze. “So, you think I would’ve stumbled upon Jayce somehow?”

“What do you think led you to that friend of yours that lives less than a two-hour drive away from Arrow Lake? Is she your only friend?”

“No. I could’ve stayed with quite a few friends. I also thought about just going AWOL altogether without telling a soul. I don’t know what I was thinking when I chose Minnesota, really.”

“This isn’t cruel fate. Wouldn’t you agree?” he asked.

“What about you? Don’t you have a birthmark?”

Draven frowned. “Yes, but not every wolf is gifted with a mate. I’m convinced that no one wears my mark and thus, there is no true mate for me.”

I missed Jayce already. I needed his touch. I couldn’t wait until I could hug him again and hear him tell me that everything was going to be okay. “You’ll still fall in love one day. We all do. I know that now,” I told him, grinning as a giddy feeling rose in me.

I thought I saw a smile spread across Draven’s lips, but just like that, it was gone.

“I have too much on my hands to love anyone like that. That’s why I’m happy for Jayce,” he said, bluntly.

“But—”

“Come inside this time and make yourself at home. There are things for you to use in one of the rooms upstairs. Mrs. Neil is in the kitchen. You can tell her what you want to eat. I have an appointment with our lawyer soon to discuss Jayce’s arrest. If you’d like to go with us to the police station, be ready around noon.”

Draven didn’t wait for me to reply. He left swiftly, leaving the door open for me to follow.