Page 24 of New Nebraska Home (New Nebraska)

Liz

FIGHT OR FLEE

R age and fear swirled in my stomach, burning me from the inside out, but I said nothing as that tall, thin monster walked away. The detective spat at my feet, and I squeezed Malik’s hand, silently begging him not to do anything.

I could sense Malik’s seething desire to unleash his fury on them just as I struggled to contain my own. His control was as unyielding as mine. His strength was the only thing holding me together.

Moments after they left, the police filed out of my home one by one. Some carried plastic bags with a few of our things in them, including the brick that was thrown through the window. I said nothing. We all stood and waited until Olive came out.

“I’m sorry for the mess. I tried to control them, but… sorry. We didn’t take much, only a few things that seemed relevant, and here is your receipt. I really am sorry for this.” She hesitated for a moment before looking at me with a sad smile.

“What is it?” I asked, knowing she had something else to say.

She watched as the other cops filed out and were at their squad cars starting to leave.

“Look, I’m not going to tell you what to do. You have just as much as a right to be here as any of them…”

“But?”

“But, it might be wiser to move to a bigger city. I know the Temple is so new, mostly a backlash to the New Nebraska Agreement, but it already has a choke hold on places like this, the smaller communities. If you were to move to Omaha or maybe Bellevue, you would have more support. More of…”

“My own kind?” I finished for her, raising an eyebrow.

“A more diverse community. One that’s less likely to kill someone for not fitting into the mold they determine acceptable. Frankly, large cities have enough people that don’t give a shit what their neighbors think that hate groups like the Temple can’t get a foothold as easily.”

“I appreciate your concern,” I said. I meant it sincerely, but kind of wished she would just leave.

“Look, if you stay, I will do everything I can for you, and so will some of the others on the force, but the Temple is recruiting at an alarming rate, and perfectly normal, well-educated people are falling for their crap. Be careful.”

I nodded, and she turned and left, with the man, whom I assumed was her partner, waiting for her by her car door.

She got in and drove off. I stood at the door, watching until her break lights were at least a few blocks away. Then I closed the door gently and screamed. I let it all out, every ounce of rage, terror, and frustration.

My throat burned, my lungs ached, and I didn’t care. It didn’t matter. I screamed again, my fists going into my hair, pulling just enough to hurt.

Cal grabbed my hand and led me outside when I stopped to take another deep breath. He didn’t say a word. Just stood by a thick old oak tree where Brock and Malik were waiting. Brock handed me one of Leif’s baseball bats and pointed at the tree. I didn’t need to be told twice. I swung the aluminum bat with everything I had over and over until my arms burned, and I couldn’t lift the bat again.

Still, the men said nothing. Malik picked me up, letting me curl into his chest. He carried me inside and sat on the couch in his arms. Brock handed me a large glass of tea. It was sweet and cold and precisely what I needed.

They waited patiently for me to finish my tea and set the glass on the coffee table.

“What do we do?” I asked. “What is the right move here? I thought I knew, but now… I don’t know. Do I take Leif and run? Do I move him to another city? This is our home. My family has been here for generations. Do I say fuck New Nebraska all together? Leif is half-Fae. The Fae aren’t controlled like everyone else. I could apply for a permit to leave. But with his pointy ears, there is no way for him to pass as a human. Would he get the same treatment out there? I don’t know.”

Hot tears streamed down my face. Malik wrapped his arms around me and held me, letting me cry. Brock and Cal looked at me, then at each other. Cal moved to the couch beside Malik, pulling my legs into his lap. Brock sat on the floor by my feet, his head in my lap.

“We can’t tell you what to do,” Cal said. “We don’t have the right.”

“Well, that’s helpful,” I sniffed.

“You have to make the choices for you and the kid,” Brock said with a sigh. “But we can help you make the choice.”

“How?” I asked.

“We can tell you how we would respond to each of your choices,” Malik said, resting his chin on my head. “It’s not a crystal ball, but maybe we can help?”

“Well,” I sat up, trying to stop the flow of tears. I hated crying. There was a time and place for tears, but these were tears of frustration, which meant they weren’t cathartic, but they would give me a migraine if I let them win. I didn’t have the time for that. “Here are my options. Move out of Nebraska, hope Leif isn’t treated worse in the human world, and give up the only home we have ever known. Or I move to Omaha, pay way too much for a home, and hope the Temple doesn’t make it to the city, and Leif adjusts well. Or I stay here. In my home that I love, and pray those psychotic zealots don’t decide to burn it to the ground.”

“If you leave, we can’t follow you. We won’t be able to get across the border. Maybe eventually they will open up, but for now, it’s nearly impossible,” Brock said.

“We would follow you to Omaha if you wanted,” Cal said, and the others nodded.

“If you stay here, we will protect you,” Malik added. “You, the child, and your home. We would never let anything happen to it.”

“How can you stop it?” I asked, hating how much his promise had made my heart ache with hope.

“We held back today because we didn’t know what you wanted,” Cal said, running his finger over my cheek. “This is your home. You take the lead in it.”

“What does that even mean?” I asked.

“It means the only reason the fuckers aren’t a smoking pile of ash in your front yard is because you didn’t indicate that’s what you wanted. I thought you were signaling for me to hold back, so I did. We will protect you and everyone under this roof if you decide you want to stay.”

“We will protect you and everyone under your roof if you decide to move,” Cal added.

“As long as we can, like you know, get there,” Brock added.

“I don’t know,” I said. “But I know it isn’t fair for me to ask that of you. What, just because we all slept together once, you suddenly owe me? I don’t think so.” I laughed casually, trying to make light of what had happened before the murder.

Each of them looked at me like they were offended.

“What? I thought all supernaturals were all casual with sex?”

“That’s like saying all humans are prudes,” Brock said. “Though generally, I am pretty casual about sex, but what about what happened said ‘casual’ to you?”

“I—” What the fuck was he saying? I looked at Malik, hoping for some help. His big brown eyes looked sad, and he held on to me a little tighter.

“Liz,” Cal said. “I told you once we got a taste, we weren’t letting go. We want to be yours. In every way. And we want… we want for you to want to be ours.” He cleared his throat. “I feel the mating bond, and so does Brock, and I am betting the dragon does too.”

“Mating bond?”

“Yes,” Malik confirmed. “And I do.” He nodded at Cal. “I felt it the moment I saw her. Angel, we were made for you. Made to love and protect you.”

“What? Are you saying we have a fated mate’s situation?” I let out an awkward chuckle. They had to be messing with me. Malik must have read the back covers of some of my books or flipped through some of the books on my Kindle. Right?

“Don’t humans have those? You call them soul mates?” Brock asked.

“I… that’s not how that works.”

“That’s the other thing,” Cal said, scrubbing his hands over his face. “I wasn’t going to bring this up, but I don’t know if you’ll be able to get out of the wards around New Nebraska.”

“What? Why?” The wards went up, letting supernaturals in but not out. Humans and Fae could pass through without a problem, but once a vamp, shifter, or elemental walked through, that was it. “I’m just a human.”

“Eh, I don’t think you are, princess. Your blood has magic. I can taste it.”

“I don’t have magic,” I scoffed.

“You do,” Brock said. “I could feel it… it’s different. It feels old but like Fae but wilder than Fae magic.”

“But not as bright as shifter magic?” Malik asked.

“Yeah, you can feel magic too?” Brock asked, his brows furrowed. “I didn’t think many could.”

“I can’t usually. But I can feel her magic and how it feeds my dragon.”

“What are you guys talking about?” It was suddenly hard to breathe. This was too much. It was all too much. I needed air and to get away from people saying crazy things.

“Fuck,” Malik said as I stood up, and the edges of my vision started to go black.

I was pulled into someone’s arms and set in a chair alone.

“Come on, angel, breathe with me.” Malik took my hand and pressed it to his chest so I could feel his heartbeat under my fingertips and the rise and fall of his chest under my palm.

“Breathe in, two, three, four, breathe out.”

I didn’t listen to his voice, and I didn’t focus on the movements of his chest. Instead, I focused on the strong, steady heartbeat under my fingers. It didn’t waiver. It didn’t bend. It beat regardless of if I was there to feel it or not. This wasn’t just another muscle pumping blood. It gave this man life; more than that, its resilience let him turn into a beautiful dragon. This same muscle pumped blood into the body of a man and the size-shifting body of a dragon. No matter the man’s or dragon’s size, this muscle adapted and stayed strong and resolute.

Slowly, my breaths adjusted, and the room came back into focus.

I didn’t know what I could be other than a human. I had no idea what I would do about three of the most beautiful men I had ever seen wanting me to be their mate. But I knew what I was going to do about this new organization that called themselves the Temple.

“This is my home. My family lived and died in this house. I might not stay here forever, but I will be damned if I am going to let some ignorant, prejudiced, lowbrow, hicks scare me from my home. Nebraska may not be a stand your ground state, but that doesn’t mean I am going to run away.”