Page 36 of Bloodbane
CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX
A Bruise or a Broken Heart
{ G R A Y S O N }
I pay the storm no mind as it rages around me. I pick a path through the snow-laden trees easily, my feet moving too swiftly to sink into the deep powder. The scent of spilled shifter blood guides me forward.
The familiar truck parked at the edge of the clearing is a lighthouse in the swirling sea of white, the yellow headlights flaring like a beacon in the darkness. I change course, circling to come up behind the idling truck. I slow at the tailgate, striding to the driver’s side door at a brisk human pace.
Inside the truck, Cooper startles at my sudden appearance.
“Where the fuck did you come from?”
“I told you I was nearby.”
“Nah, no way. I hung up like two minutes ago, there’s no way you could have—”
“Where’s the body?”
Cooper gapes at me, looking like he very much wants to push the point, but ultimately shakes his head as if realizing the futility of arguing.
“I put him in the back.”
“I told you not to touch anything,” I snap, storming around to the back of the truck.
The door creaks open before slamming shut, and Cooper follows me to the tailgate, the dull light from his phone not doing much to fight the darkness.
“Hey, you aren’t the boss of me! In fact, I’m pretty sure you’re not the boss of anything. Only Ruby has the privilege of telling me what to do, and I don’t even listen to her half the time. I didn’t ask you out here to play CSI: Extreme Whiteout, or, hell, I didn’t even ask you out here at all. The guy is dead, there are no clues or—” Cooper leans forward, over the truck, close enough that I can feel the pepperoni-scented breath huff against my cheek. The warm exhale is immediately replaced by icy winds. “Jesus Christ, what the fuck are you doing, are you sniffing him?”
I lift my face away from the body. Three distinct scents soil my nose: Deputy Cooper fucking Jones, the unfamiliar stench of the dead lycan, and Ash’s strangely spicy fragrance. So, this is definitely the other guy. Ash had done a number on him.
The gaping gash running from sternum to groin is deep enough that a lot of the shifter’s insides are currently spilled outside his body, now frozen in place. Crimson stains are caked around his nailbeds, crusted over knuckles, and smeared around his mouth—no doubt what caused the damage to Ash’s leg. The dog’s injuries suggest he had been killed while in wolf form. I can’t stop my lips curving up. I like the redhead’s style. I scan the white-hazed darkness, searching for any remaining Lycans—on four legs or two—but find none.
The light from the phone blinks off.
“S-shit! Just f-fucking fantastic,” Cooper groans. “Well, t-there goes our chance of r-rescue.”
I turn back to Cooper, watching the human rub gloved hands over the heavy coat wrapped around his shivering body.
“I am the rescue, Jones. Now get in the truck before you die of hypothermia and I have to throw you in the back with this guy.”
“Psshh,” Cooper puffs before squinting at me. “I’m f-fine,” he mumbles, his chattering teeth calling his bluff. “You b-better not b-b-be lookin’ for an exc-c-cuse to huddle together for warmth, b-because I’m s-sorry to b-break it to y-you pal, but I d-don’t swing that w-way.”
“Imagine how disappointed that makes me,” I retort dryly. “Get in the truck or I’ll put you there.”
Apparently taking the threat seriously, Jones rolls his eyes before turning and trudging toward the truck.
“The passenger side, Jones. I’m driving.”
“M-man, we’re n-not going a-a-anywhere. Can’t s-s-see shit.”
“Just get in the truck,” I repeat, advancing to the driver’s side door still at human pace.
A rush of warmth blows over my skin as I slide onto the seat and pull the door closed behind me, watching Cooper cut through the beams of the headlights before climbing into the truck on the other side. Trembling hands instantly seek out the heat flowing from the vents, and I angle my own toward Cooper, telling myself it’s just because the loud chattering of teeth is annoying, not because I actually care.
I pull in a quick breath solely to push it out in a rush, needing to vent my frustration in a way that doesn’t involve tearing the steering wheel from its column and sending it hurtling through the windshield.
“I g-guess I should say t-thanks,” Jones mutters. “If you h-hadn’t come, I think Ruby w-would be collecting two b-b-bodies in the morning.”
“ You should have waited til morning. The corpse wasn’t going to get any more dead. You didn’t have to come by yourself.”
Cooper shrugs, no longer shaking like a leaf. “Well, obviously, I d-didn’t know it was a dead body,” he huffs defensively. “Phillips just m-mentioned some kind of a-attack. And I knew Ruby wanted some alone time with you, so…” I shrug again. “Sorry if I, uh, interrupted things. ”
My lips twist down before I can stop them. “You didn’t interrupt anything,” I mutter darkly before shoving the truck into gear and starting the long drive back to town.
“She’s been alone for a long time,” Cooper says in a low voice, staring through the windshield. “Personally, I would have liked her to take an interest in anyone other than the guy we are—uh, were —holding on suspicion of murder.” Still focused on the rushing flakes of white that emerge from the darkness before blowing back out of view of the headlights, he picks at the torn hem of his puffer jacket. “You’re kind of scary, you know? But I swear to you now, if you ever hurt her—” Jones turns his still-swollen face toward me, “—whether a bruise or a broken heart, I will make damn sure that yours is the next body in the clearing. Understood?”
Cooper’s gaze is unwavering despite the frantic pounding in his chest. I meet it without hesitation. Maybe humans have something to teach me besides the lessons I’ve failed to heed so far. I’ve all but forgotten that love isn’t just a liability. Love can be a weakness, but it can also be a source of incredible strength.
Eyes still locked on Cooper’s, I give a solemn nod of understanding before turning back to the windshield.
“If it comes to that, I’ll go with you willingly.”