Page 71

Cameron

A fter a nap and another full bag of IV fluids, I felt like myself again.

Considering everything that had happened, I’d thought I would need a few days to recover.

Nate and JC explained I healed faster now that I was a shifter.

It was also why I’d managed to run nearly sixteen kilometers through the woods in only a little over an hour.

“When can I get out of here?” I asked JC as the nurse removed the IV.

He glanced at the nurse in question.

“I think you’re good to go anytime now,” the nurse said. “We released Ollie an hour ago, and he had broken ribs and almost fractured his skull. I don’t see any need to keep you longer.”

Nate squeezed my hand. “That’s great.”

The relief of knowing that I’d be able to leave was fleeting. I’d be going into hiding again, so I wasn’t exactly free to do as I pleased.

“You guys should head to Cameron’s place, grab enough stuff for a week. I’m still working on finding a place for you to hunker down until it’s time. I’ll text you the address in an hour or two,” JC explained.

Mom had already gone home, but only after JC had assured her multiple times that I was fine and would be on my feet in no time.

That left Nate as my ride. Once I was dressed and outside, the sight of his motorcycle sent a little thrill through me.

The ride he’d given me a few days before had been an amazing experience.

I was looking forward to riding it again.

“Here you go,” he said, handing me his helmet.

Our eyes met, and Nate held my gaze, a powerful energy crackling between us. “I’m sorry. About before,” Nate said. “I shouldn’t have acted the way I did. If I hadn’t, none of this would have happened.”

A faint smile touched my lips. “It’s okay. I probably didn’t help things, either. I think we both said things we wish we could take back.”

Nate nodded, swallowing hard, and licked his lips. “I don’t even know what I would have done if something worse had happened to you. I don’t even want to think about it.”

Yearning for his touch, I placed a palm on his chest. I could feel the beat of his heart under my fingers.

Nate glanced at my hand, then back to my eyes.

For the barest second, I felt like a small animal caught in the sights of a predator.

Except, it wasn’t danger emanating from Nate.

Desire rushed through me, not fear. I could almost see his thoughts churning behind those dark eyes.

“We can see how things go,” I said. “Live and let live. Forgive and forget?”

Nate placed his hand on top of mine and pressed it harder into his chest before shaking his head slowly.

“I don’t want to forget, Cameron. I need to remember that some things are worth fighting for.

I’ve always run away from what made me uncomfortable.

I don’t want to do that anymore.” Hunger flashed in his eyes.

Butterflies swirled in my stomach, and I nodded. “All right then.” I grinned and put on my helmet. “That sounds like a plan to me.”

Back at my apartment, Nate waited outside while I headed inside to pack. Mom jumped up from the sofa when I stepped inside and rushed over to me.

“How are you, mija ?” she asked, grabbing my shoulders and giving me a once-over. “Are you sure you’re okay? I can’t believe they let you out so soon.”

“I’m fine, Mom. Really.”

She pursed her lips, but didn’t argue further.

“Cam!” Gael screeched as he came running from his room.

God, I’d missed him. I wrapped my arms around and squeezed him tight.

“Hey, buddy. How are you?”

“Good.” He grinned. “Mom said you were in the hospital? What happened?”

“Long story. Maybe I’ll tell you sometime,” I said.

“Ugh.” Gael rolled his eyes. “Nobody ever tells me anything .”

Mom shooed Gael back to his room. “Homework, then dinner. Go on.”

Gael gave me one more hug, then trudged back to his room. I followed him down the hall to my own room. Grabbing a backpack out of my closet, I began stuffing clothes and anything else I might need into it. A weird sense of déjà vu descended on me. I’d done this exact thing a couple days before.

“I don’t understand why you have to go hide again,” Mom said from my doorway. “Can’t you stay here? They arrested that awful man. Shouldn’t you be safe here?”

I stopped digging through my dresser and turned to see her twisting her hands together anxiously.

“It’s only a precaution, Mom.” I hated that I had to be so secretive. “Until, uh, until things get settled.”

“And who is that JC man, anyway?”

“He’s…” Shit, how did I even explain that? As much as I hated lying to her, it was part of the deal now. “He’s another cop. He’s in charge of my case.”

“A cop?” She narrowed her eyes. “He didn’t seem like a cop to me.”

“Mom, please,” I begged. “I’m sorry about the secrecy, but all I can say is this is for your own safety. Can we please leave it there?”

The frown on her face morphed into a mask of fear and worry. “I’m sorry. I’m just afraid. I don’t want anything bad to happen to you, mija .”

My heart lurched, and I dropped the backpack as I crossed the room to hug her. When she wrapped her arms around me, her fingers dug into my skin as if she was afraid I might vanish if she didn’t hold on tight.

“It’ll be okay, Mama,” I whispered.

Her head bobbed against my shoulder. Pulling away, I pointed at my closet.

“There’s a jar in there,” I said. “I’ve been saving change and singles for the last year. It probably has around three hundred bucks inside it. Use it if you need to. Groceries, clothes for Gael, whatever.”

“I’m not worried about money,” Mom said.

“Well, I am. You had to call in today, didn’t you?” I asked. “To come to see me at the clinic?”

Mom looked away, her face flushing lightly. “I didn’t call in, but I had to leave early. I’d only been on shift for two or three hours when Nate called me.”

“And that’s nine or ten hours you won’t get paid for this week. Use the money,” I said again. “I’m still going to be working on a few stories while I’m away. Stuff I can do away from the office. Brent will keep me on payroll for a while. He’s fine with me going away for a bit.”

That was an understatement. When I’d called him before leaving the clinic, he sounded much more worried than I’d assumed he would.

“Cameron?” Brent had gasped. “Are you all right? I got a call from a Detective Vickers, saying you’d been requisitioned by the Toronto PD? What the hell is happening?”

“I’m all right, Brent,” I told him as I made a mental note to thank Ollie for laying the groundwork. “I’m working on something special. Not sure if it’ll be a big story or not, but it’s important. I’ll need to stay off-grid for a few days more. Is that okay?”

“What? No, no, of course,” he added almost as an afterthought. “Who am I to argue with the cops? I expect a really cool story when you get back, though. You’ve got me intrigued, kid.”

After thanking him for being so understanding, I ended the call.

It was all well and good for now, but what the hell would I do if JC wasn’t victorious over Rick and his father? If Rick became the alpha, I could very well end up in some sort of forced marriage to him. That thought filled me with horror.

Suddenly, I felt like a child again, shivering and terrified after a nightmare and wanting to climb into bed with my mother.

“Cameron? Cameron?” Mom squeezed my shoulder, her head tilted to the side as she studied me. “Are you awake? You zoned out.”

Blinking, I shook my head. “Yeah, sorry. I’m fine.”

“I don’t want you worrying about money.”

“Mom, how can we not worry about it? We paid the water bill five days late last month. We were two days from having them come to cut it off.”

“Your cop friend JC gave me this before I left.” She pulled an envelope from her back pocket and opened it. I gaped at the stack of at least twenty hundred-dollar notes.

“What?” I gasped.

Mom nodded. “He said it was to make up for you being gone. We’ll be fine, sweetheart. You go do whatever you have to do.”

“He gave you that?”

“Yes. Handed it over as I walked out the door. He said something about us being family now. Strange man.” She frowned. “Nice man, but strange. I’ve never met such a personable policeman.”

Tears burned the back of my eyes. JC had simply handed my mother a couple thousand dollars for expenses.

It was an incredibly kind gesture, and a welcome one, but why?

Was this what it was like to be in a pack?

Familial support and assistance? It touched me, but also sparked my suspicions.

Surely there would be some strings attached.

It was probably just a loan that I’d have to pay back with interest. That made sense.

If so, I’d happily repay him. It was still an incredible gesture that I didn’t know how to react to.

“He told me not to say anything about it,” Mom said sheepishly.

“It’s fine, Mom. It actually makes me feel better. That should cover rent and groceries for the month.”

She tucked the envelope back into her pocket. “I think so, too. I’ll deposit it tomorrow morning on the way to work.”

Tossing the last item into my backpack, I zipped it up and slung it onto my shoulders. “I guess I need to head out.” I chewed on my lower lip and averted my gaze. “I can’t tell you where I’m going. JC said it wouldn’t be a good idea.”

Mom eyed me, and I could almost feel her trying to read my thoughts. It was the same look she’d given me when I was a teenager.

“When this is over, I want the whole story,” she finally said. “No sugar-coating. This is very strange. I don’t like it, but even though I haven’t known them long, I trust Nate and JC. I hope that trust isn’t misplaced.”

“It’s not.” I hugged her, then kissed her cheek. I’d have to come up with a better story to tell her once I got back.

We’d gotten as far as the living room when Gael burst out of his room and nearly bowled me over.

“Don’t go,” he muttered, his voice muffled from his mouth pressing into my shoulder.

I tilted his head up, my heart clenching at the tears shimmering in his eyes. “It’ll only be for a week or so, maybe less,” I said. “You’ve got to stay here and keep Mom safe.”

He swiped his hands hard over his eyes and huffed. “I hate crying. Only babies cry.”

“That’s not true,” I countered. “Real men cry. Anyone who tells you men don’t cry is full of horseshit.”

“ Cameron, ” Mom snapped. “Language.”

I didn’t care about her reprimand because Gael was giggling.

He pulled something out of his pocket, then shoved it into my hand.

Glancing down, I found a strangely shaped key chain.

It had the vague outline of a person, but most of the paint had been rubbed off, leaving nothing a silicone blob.

It took a second for me to realize it was Gael’s lucky Mario keychain.

He loved those old-school games, and he’d carried the keychain for a few years now.

It was his lucky charm and his comfort item.

“I can’t take this,” I said, trying to give the nearly featureless blob of rubber back to him. The little metal chain dangling from the head swung back and forth.

Gael reached forward and wrapped my fingers back around it. “It’s okay. You need it more than me.”

For the second time in five minutes, I fought back tears. Nodding, I pulled him into another hug.

“You be good, okay?” I whispered.

“No promises,” he replied.

We dissolved into fits of laughter, and Mom gave us a bemused expression.

“I’m sorry about all this, Mom,” I said. “I wish you two hadn’t gotten mixed up in it.”

“No apologies, sweetheart. Families go through things, and they are there for each other. No matter what’s going on, we are here for you.”

Letting Gael go, I wiped my tears with the back of my hand. “Jesus Christ, Mom. Are you doing all you can to get me to freaking cry?”

“No, dear,” she said, patting my cheek. Then, she gave my ear a playful yet slightly painful pinch. “And don’t use the Lord’s name in vain.”

“Ouch,” I hissed, rubbing my ear. “Sorry.”

They followed me out the door, where Nate was leaning against the wall.

“Everything good?” he asked.

“I’ve got what I need,” I said.

“Can we watch you go?” Gael asked, his eyes bright with excitement. “Are you gonna ride Nate’s bike?”

“I think I am,” I said. “Come on down.”

They followed us downstairs and outside, where the sun was already setting. The day felt like both the longest and shortest of my life. The morning chaos seemed to be days ago, yet it also felt as though I’d been in the car with Ollie only a few hours before. It was a surreal sensation.

I took the helmet from Nate and put it on.

Nate grinned at my mother. “Sophia, I promise to keep her safe.”

She patted his back. “I know you will. You’re a good boy.”

“Can’t say anyone’s ever called me that before.” He winked at Gael. “Be good, little man. I’ll protect your sister as long as you protect your mother. Deal?” He held his hand out.

Gael flashed him a wide, toothy smile as he shook his hand. “Yeah. I will.”

Nate caught my eyes and gave me a pained smile as he put on his helmet. In that look, I saw how much he cared about me. Even though he’d never had a real family before, he knew this was hurting me.

When Nate started the bike, an ache speared through my heart—not for me, but for him.

I had my mother and Gael. It wasn’t fair that Nate was moving through life with nothing and no one.

He shouldn’t be doomed to a life alone. Hopefully, things would work out and he’d join JC’s pack, too.

I knew he was struggling with the decision, especially after spending his entire life as a lone wolf. We could be packmates together.

With the support of JC and Ollie and all the people in the pack, life might not be so bad.