Page 207 of Fangs
“Can you show me? Like you did before?”
I swallowed hard and let the memory run through my head. His hands dropped to his sides, fists clenching tight enough to make his knuckles white, and his nostrils flared. The anger emanating from him felt hot enough to spark a fire.
“That is so fucked up.”His eyes flashed. .
“So what does he want?” Raven asked, cracking her knuckles aggressively.
“I have no idea,” I admitted.
“Before, he seemed intent on coming here and getting you, right?” Mac asked, and I nodded. “But he didn’t say anything about that this time?”
I shook my head, realizing with a sinking feeling I was now responsible for the VoicelessandMenace potentially attacking the Vault.
“Em, you’re not responsible for what others choose to do,” Mac said out loud.
“Alright, I see how this whole mind-reading thing is gonna be real fucking helpful with you,” Sam muttered, and I elbowed him. “Quit stabbin’ me with your pointy elbows!”
“You want to stay here tonight?” Mac asked.
“If that’s okay,” I said, feeling weirdly nervous.
“Of course, that’s okay. You’re welcome anytime.”
“Wolf came in here while you were all gone,” Sam said, and the room erupted into angry questions again.
Sam explained what happened with my brother, and I rested my head on the back of the couch, feeling drained. Why was I so tired? I carefully pulled up my mental shield, doing my best to ensure there weren’t any cracks. Mac’s eyes shot to mine suddenly, and I knew it must be working. I attempted an apologetic smile and let the shield drop enough to speak to him.
“I thought I should probably practice shielding… maybe it will help keep him out.”
His expression relaxed.“That’s a really good idea.”
“Tell me if it slips?”
He nodded, and as the four of them talked, I tentatively let my mind go back to healing Sam, my brother, and his crew. I wasn’t sure exactly what happened, but it’d almost felt like…
No, I must’ve imagined it. My powers had proved deadly to the Shadowbane over and over again. It must’ve been the adrenaline and the stress of healing while furious at my brother and his crew.
My skin crawled, the sensation like something slithering just under the surface, and I had to fight the urge to shudder. It had to be my imagination because it wouldn’t make any sense if the Shadowbane infectedme.
I fell asleep on the couch shortly afterward, sleeping hard until Griz woke me up after the dinner bell rang. I didn’t feel like going to the canteen and potentially seeing my brother or Lee, so Griz fetched dinner rations for Sam and me. After dinner, Clarity arrived with her things and a very nervous-looking Sky in tow.
“I’m only stayin’ here if Sky can, too,” she declared, eyes flashing in a way that reminded me of Mac.
“Of course, Sky can stay here,” Mac immediately answered, and the flurry of unpacking and setting up the bunks began.
Clarity took Lana’s old bunk above Raven, and Sky took Exo’s old bunk above Griz. Raven smiled more than I’d ever seen, practically beaming. She seemed to take every opportunity to touch Clarity, resting a gentle hand on her arm or brushing hair from her face. I had suspicions about Raven’s feelings for Clarity, but they seemed obvious now. Clarity was comfortable with Raven, but I wondered if she realized precisely how Raven felt about her.
Sky stayed close beside me or Jax for most of the evening, but she slowly relaxed. She was still jumpy, but she’d spent enough time around Mac, Sam, and Griz to know they wouldn’t hurt her. As the others figured out how to string Clarity’s red silk curtains from the ceiling to give her some privacy, Sky huddled closer to where I sat on the couch. I shifted to wrap an arm around her thin shoulders, and she curled into me like a cat. With her head shaved, she’d been all sharp angles, but now her head was covered in little corkscrew-shaped black curls that softened her appearance.
One bunk bed remained for me, but I knew it had been Trey’s bed. The grief rose, flooding through me. I wasn’t sure I could sleep there, not without falling apart. Maybe I’d sleep on the couch, though I wished I had my quilt.
I paused. I could go get it.
My stomach twisted at the thought of seeing my brother and Lee, but anger washed it away. I didn’t need to hide in the bunkhouse and sleep without a blanket because mine was at the clinic. They couldn’t make me stay there. If they tried to keep me, Mac would break the damn door down.
I glanced at the doorway to the bedroom, where I could just see Mac and Jax, but they were all holding parts of the curtain in the air as Raven screwed hooks into the ceiling. I didn’t want to bother them to ask if they’d walk me there like a child.
“You feel like takin’ a walk?” I asked Sky instead.
