Page 52 of Witchblood
“Anything could have happened to Nicky. Oberon found the house after Robin had told us you’d been pulled into Underhill. He said he cleaned up the situation. I know there was a fire and a memorial. I’ll ask him about Nicky.”
“But if you know where they are, you’d have Dylan back, right?” A memorial? How long was I gone? A few days? It felt like a few hours, not days.
Liam shook his head. “We knew where they were, not where they are now. Oberon is scouring the countryside. Your father, Robin, and I were looking for you. After the Volkov tried and failed to bring you back he retreated. He’s locked himself away in my bunkhouse, refusing to let anyone but Oberon enter. Oberon suggested I try our matebond, though we hadn’t sealed anything yet. It was too muddy a link at the house. Too many scents and wolves to get in the way. Then the Volkov did something to our bond and you vanished. I went a little nuts. Carl suggested this cave since it’s far enough from the pack to keep them safe and give us space for a mating.”
Carl. He’d been oddly absent that night. Of course it was my gut that instantly thought him suspicious for disagreeing with Liam. That didn’t mean he was a bad guy. But getting the pack’s other two most powerful wolves away from the pack would give him an opportunity to get the rest on his side. Whatever that may be.
“Do you really trust Carl? I mean, if we’re out here in the middle of nowhere, and he’s in charge of the pack, what’s to keep him from taking over?”
“I trust Carl,” Liam told me. He let go and began to pack up all the supplies. He was done in little more than a minute, surprising me with not only his speed but his efficiency. “He’s saved my life more than once.”
“Doesn’t seem to like me much,” I muttered.
Liam glanced my way as he hauled a full hiker’s backpack onto his back and reached for my hand. “He doesn’t like anyone much. It’s probablythereason he’ll never be alpha of his own pack. He just doesn’t like people. It’s nothing personal.”
“Even you?”
“Even me. Plus, I am tied to my wolves,” Liam reminded me. He pointed to his head. “I can feel them, hear them all the time. I’m sure they can hide some things from me, but something as big as betrayal? Carl would have to be a lot stronger of a wolf if he thought he could hide that from me.”
I let him tug me out of the cave. He had a pair of hiking boots that he stepped into, which had been shoved off into a corner. I did not glory in the idea of walking back through the woods in nothing but socks. Especially not when I was still sore and really tired.
Liam leaned over and pulled me into his arms in a bridal carry. “Nap if you want. It’s an hour or so hike back,” Liam informed me. He paused as if thinking something. “My head is clear and focused. I need to check on the pack now that my head is lucid. But I need you in my den, too.”
“We’ll work out sleeping arrangements later,” I told him. Though my gut suddenly ached with the idea of not having him in my bed wrapped around me for even one night. “Maybe spend a few nights a week in your bed and a few nights in the camper.”
Some tension eased from his shoulders, though his hold on me tightened. “Rest. It’s a long walk.”
Chapter 24
Idid fall asleep, though it was one of those odd light sleeps in which I felt like my brain just wouldn’t shut off. I jolted awake twice after dreaming of having Liam vanish, only to find him still holding me and still walking. “Nap dreams are the worst,” I remarked to him before I fell asleep again.
It was the weight of darkness that startled me to full wakefulness as we approached Liam’s home. The sky edged toward dusk, but that wasn’t why it felt like light had been stolen from the world. How anyone could miss the heaviness in the air astounded me. Liam’s steps slowed. Did he know whyApahad locked himself away? Liam had known well enough to keep a distance from his pack when he was struggling with the darkness. How were they not drowning in it from the Volkov even now?
“Liam?” I whispered, feeling the terror rise over me. Again his cool calm washed over me.
“You are safe.”
“Even fromApa?”
“Especially from the Volkov.” We were close enough to see the backdoor of the house now. The oppression of darkness wafted like black smoke from off in the distance. The bunkhouse. The backdoor opened and Carl stood in the entry as though called. Liam walked by him and into the house. It was weirdly quiet. The subtle warmth had also vanished. It no longer felt like a den, but just a house, cold and unwelcoming.
A small growl escaped Liam’s lips. “You’re not leaving me.”
“Not going anywhere,” I told him.
“Your emotions shifted. Like you suddenly didn’t want to be here.” Liam scowled. “Fuck. Is this always going to be such a jumble?”
I thought he was talking to me, though I had no clue, but it was Carl that answered. “Time will smooth the edges. Eventually you won’t be able to tell whose thought is whose.”
Did Carl have a true mate?
He continued, “I’ve sent everyone away. Korissa is at Leigh’s. The Volkov and his assassin are still out at the bunkhouse. The only guest left in the house is Dylan’s man. The Volkov’s message was that you would deal with him directly. I’ve been feeding him, but he’s been driving me nuts. Pounding on the walls and screaming to be let out.” Carl looked bored. “Didn’t matter that I explained that no one was around but me.”
“I’ll take care of it,” Liam said suddenly sounding sad. Take care of what? Dylan’s man. Sean? Dylan’s human lover was here? Had he found out about the werewolves? He had been on a date with Dylan. Maybe Dylan had been taken in the middle of it. WasApaexpecting Liam to kill Dylan to keep the secret?
“Go home and get some rest,” Liam told Carl.
Carl frowned. “There are no guards or anything on site. I should stay.”