Chapter Five

“Hey. Hey. Stop the fighting. What has gotten into you two?” I say exasperatedly as I pull Jade off Jasper. It has been nonstop fighting since they got home from school. They are driving me crazy.

“He was being mean to me mama, he called me a dork.”

Oh, goddess.

“Jasper, you know we don’t call names. Why are you picking on your sister?” I crouch down to their level. Looking into his eyes, I see tears well up and his nostrils flare. Oh, my emotional child.

He says nothing as he shrugs his shoulders.

“You don’t know? Did she do something first?”

“No, I didn’t,” Jade yells in my ear. I turn to look at her, “I am asking your brother right now. If I need your side of the story, I will ask you in a moment.” Turning back to Jasper, “talk to me bud, what’s going on? I know you don’t like when someone calls you a name, so why would you do that to someone else?”

Again a shoulder shrug. Okay, so this is how the night is ending. Great.

“Okay, well, I would like for you to apologize to your sister, and then you both need to get ready for bed. While Jasper is in brushing his teeth and cleaning up, Jade please get pajamas on and then switch. Okay?”

“Okay mama,” Jade says, while Jasper mumbles, “sorry Jade,” and walks away to the stairs with Jade trailing behind.

I sigh while I stand up and walk to the kitchen to finish putting their lunches together for school tomorrow.

After I they’re finished and ready for tomorrow and I clean the kitchen up and follow up the stairs.

While all three of our bedrooms are upstairs, the kids are at one end with an open playroom between them. With a small cozy couch, that’s where we like to sit for our bedtime stories. I take a seat on the couch and grab our book about dragons and a boy who finds a dragon egg and raises it. I call out to the kids, “are you guys ready for the story?” Settling back into the cushions, I wait for them to join me.

Jade skips out from her room, freshly changed, and smiles big at me. “Are my teeth clean?”

“They look great, love,” Jasper walks out quietly and cuddles into my side. Guess he’s still upset. After reading two chapters, I tuck them in and head downstairs.

Haylee should be here soon. I thank the goddess for her. I will be out on border patrol, so she will stay here. She has been a lifesaver, filling in when I need her with the kids. She’s a teacher at the elementary school, so she loves having the kids around.

“Honey, I’m home,” she calls when she walks through the door. My heart clenches at her words. Something Rafe would say when he came home. I hate I miss him so much when he’s the reason for this separation.

I give a small smile when Haylee comes into the living room.

“Hey hun, I’m sorry. I should know better.” She says plopping down next to me on the couch.

“It’s not your fault.” I look around my living room. The kids do a pretty good job of picking up their toys. Though a puzzle remains out on the large coffee table, they picked the rest up and put them in the small chest next to the tv stand. We have worn down couches that Rafe and I chose after we moved in together, but I refuse to replace them since the kids are so rough on them. It doesn’t matter how many times we yell at them to stop jumping or standing, they still do. Or I guess how many times I yell at them now.

Haylee puts her arm around my shoulder and pulls me into her side.

“I know you have to go, but just sit with me for a moment more, and know that I am here for you, no matter what, and in any way you need me.”

I let the lone tear slide down my cheek as I rest my head on her shoulder.

We sit in silence while I try to plan the words to thank her. I have none. “Thank you.” I simply say and she squeezes me. With a deep breath, I sit up and smile at her.

“I gotta go now, otherwise Billy will have a fit if I don’t relieve him on time.”

“Go on then, the kids are in excellent hands. I trust they’ll sleep all night anyway.”

“They should. Based on how emotional they both were before bed, I think they were extra tired.”

With that, I leave and go to the backyard to remove my clothes and place them in the chest. Then I shift and take off for the west border and Billy, where I’ll be patrolling tonight.

I find him deep in the woods, right on the border. He’s pacing one specific area, not moving far beyond it. As I come up to him, I think I smell what caught his attention. There’s an odd scent that lingers just on the other side of our territory line. Feeling my presence, Billy turns and shifts.

“When I ran past here an hour and a half ago, this scent was not here, when I came back a half-hour ago, it was here and strong, whoever or whatever it was, had to have left only moments before I approached.”

Since I prefer to talk in human form also I shift back. Nudity isn’t an issue. It’s part of being a wolf who shreds its clothes every shift, so it normally doesn’t bother us.

“And you didn’t see anyone?”

“No, no one.”

“Did you check beyond the border?” I ask and receive an are you crazy look. “Guess that’s also a no. Well, okay, do me a favor and go alert Garrison that I’m following this scent out of borders.” I don’t like what this could mean.

“Wait. You can’t go alone, Raven. You should wait for Garrison and the other warriors.”

“Billy, I am a warrior, and more than capable of taking care of myself. I promise to be safe and take it slow. Now please go inform Garrison.” I don’t wait for his reply. I shift instantly and take off after the intruder.

I didn’t mention it to Billy, but this scent is familiar, but for the life of me, I can’t figure out from where. I travel for about five minutes outside of pack lands when the scent intensifies. Knowing I’m not far behind, I slow down and start listening intently to my surroundings. Nothing appears to be out of the norm, so I slink forward and pause at the edge of a small clearing. There’s someone in the tree line across the clearing, and I lie low trying to see who it is.

A growl rips from my throat as they step into the open. Brave bastard.

“Raven, I know that’s you. Why don’t you come out so we can have a little chat,” he says casually, not needing to raise his voice since he knows I’ll hear him. I stay still and listen for any other movement in the area. There is no way he came alone. “As long as it takes, Raven, I will wait.”

After a few minutes of no movement or sounds around me, I rise to my crouch and step out into the clearing. A constant growl comes from my chest.

“Would you mind terribly?” He asks, but I make no move.

“Shift please Raven so we may talk,” he says.

Not liking this, but needing to know why he’s here. I shift, grabbing the long shirt I had secured to my ankle and throw that on. We’re far enough away from each other, I won’t bother with my bottoms in case I need to shift quickly.

“When did you grow balls, Duncan? Shocked, I am shocked to see you here alone. So why are you here?” 

And where the hell is Rafe?