Page 56 of Blinded
"Wow, that should be a fun trip. Do you know people there?" Brett asked.
"Pack Authority closed down my old pack due to illegal activities by the alpha. When they split the pack up, a few people went to Virginia. I wasn't very close to many of my old pack, but there were a couple people I try to keep in touch with." Stephen shrugged.
"Illegal activities? Is my old pack looking at the same possibilities? Would they close the pack?" Brett asked.
"No. I don't think so. The things going on in Stephen's pack were a lot worse than what Pete does. Not that Pete isn't bad, but Stephen's pack was killing humans, biting young humans to add to his pack. A lot of dark things," I explained.
"Have you met Rick?" Stephen asked.
"I don't think so." Brett turned his head toward me.
"No, he hasn't been around much since he started that new job," Bayne said.
"Oh, well, he's from my old pack, but the rest are scattered around the country. It's a long story that I'll let Bayne explain sometime." Stephen reached for his beer.
"Virginia sounds fun. I've never been that far east." Brett picked at his food.
"Neither one of us have either. We're looking forward to it." Cohen smiled. "What about you two? Anything new?"
"No, we really haven't had time to plan or do much. We've been tracking down Brett's attacker, but now that we've taken care of that, hopefully, we can enjoy things a bit more. His family is moving here in the next week, so that will keep us busy for a while, getting them a house and settled in."
"New pack members are always welcome." Cohen met my gaze across the table. "I'm looking forward to meeting your family, Brett."
"It's just my mom and dad. My sister will be around some, but she's a model and travels a lot," Brett explained.
We talked a bit more as we finished eating, but I was only half listening. Brett's uneasiness worried me. He was stressed, and I didn't blame him. I couldn't imagine my wolf not wanting to come forward. Even now as we were eating, he was right there in my mind, listening and waiting for a chance to come out.
Once we finished, I left the dishes for later and we all headed into the backyard. I rolled my shoulders as I inhaled the cool night air. The moon was high in the sky, filling the yard with a dim light.
"I love your yard." Cohen grinned as he stripped off his clothes. "I can shift in mine, but it doesn't connect to the forest. I'd be running every night if I had this place."
"It's nice. My nearest neighbor is Walter. So, we meet in the woods often and hunt together." I couldn't wait for Brett to be able to join us on those hunts.
Stephen set his clothes on one of the lawn chairs. "We'd never sleep if we had a place like this."
I watched my mate strip. "It's nice not to have to worry about having anyone around. I don't know how you live in the middle of town." I'd only been to Cohen's a few times over the years, and while he had a nice place, he couldn't really run.
"It's close to the pack and the hospital." Cohen shrugged.
Brett set his clothes aside before moving toward me. "He's not even interested."
"Your wolf?" I asked.
He nodded.
"Let's see what happens once we all shift and are running around. We'll stay in the open area where you'll be safe if you shift." I hugged him tightly, wishing I could take his fear and pain away. "Ready?" I pulled back and we both lowered to the ground.
"Ready."
I let my wolf step forward, shifting with ease. Beside us, Cohen and Stephen both shifted, but Brett just kneeled there, shaking his head, and grimacing as if having a fight with his wolf internally.
I brushed up against Brett, hoping to draw his wolf out. When that got no response, I howled loudly, calling to my mate. Still, he didn't shift.
Brett sat back, his ass in the grass as he shook his head.
Cohen came over and jumped against his back, digging his claws lightly over his skin. Still no reaction. Then Stephen pounced on Cohen, knocking him aside. That started the two of them chasing each other around the yard, nipping and biting at each other playfully.
Brett just sat there, a light sweat covering his skin as he slightly rocked back and forth. Waves of sadness came from him, breaking my heart because I couldn't do anything to make things better. I couldn't force his wolf to come out if he didn't want to.
