Total pages in book: 202
Estimated words: 193561 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 968(@200wpm)___ 774(@250wpm)___ 645(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 193561 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 968(@200wpm)___ 774(@250wpm)___ 645(@300wpm)
“One sec, Brody. Larry!” Grey shouts.
Larry shuffles in, Jared at his back. When Larry sees me, he gives me a dirty look, a look loaded with blame.
“Where are they?” I ask.
Larry’s eyes narrow, his mouth contorting like he’s about to spew ugly words at me, but he jumps as Grey gutturally demands, “Answer her.”
“Shea died a few days ago,” he says quickly, losing all attitude.
I jerk in shock as my heart sinks.
Aunt Shea hasn’t been well. She’s often bedridden with her aches and pains, suffering with her allergies. But dead?
“Adelaide, Misty and a bunch of other girls were sent off by Wyatt a few days before he left to come rescue you.” The look of distaste on his face as he says rescue makes my blood run cold.
“Sent off to where?” Brody demands.
Larry shrugs and without making eye contact with Brody, says, “Don’t know exactly.”
“What happened to Aunt Shea?” I ask, throat clogged, tears imminent.
Larry shrugs. “She…” He looks at Grey and startles with fear, then back at me. “I just followed orders.”
“What does that mean?” I ask, aghast.
“Sorry for your loss, Stacy, but I need to find Adelaide,” Brody says gruffly. He’s pacing in the small space of my bedroom and looks like he’s about to come out of his skin. “Gotta, Grey…”
“Go. Careful, brother,” Grey says. “Call. Let us know when you find her.”
“Yeah.”
I move aside so Brody can leave while I stare at Grey helplessly, tears pooling in my eyes.
His eyes are ice cold, pointing at Larry.
I whisper his name and warmth seeps into his features as he cups my jaw tenderly. “Brody’s gonna go find her, babe. And see who’s with her. You got any ideas where your brother would’ve sent them?”
“He…” I frown, thinking of the intensity coming off him as he asked, as he touched and smelled Addy’s pillow.
“She’s his. He knows by her scent. He’ll find her.”
“She’s… his?”
“Yeah, babe. Clear now that’s why fate sent him here today. He’ll find her.”
I’m surprised, but can’t lament on these thoughts, can’t think about how incredible the news is for Addy, because Aunt Shea is gone. She raised Addy, who’s technically not her daughter or my cousin but Addie was the daughter of Aunt Shea’s sister-in-law who died during childbirth. She’s been like a daughter to her, like family to me. My eyes coast the space, taking in the emptiness of what was my home for so long. Everything looks the same, but dusty. Aunt Shea had terrible allergies, so we always kept on top of the dust.
I move down the narrow hall into Aunt Shea’s room and it’s too quiet. Eerily quiet. Her air cleaner isn’t running. Her scent is so faint.
Aunt Shea is gone? Addy’s not here. Misty isn’t in the compound?
“Who’s taking care of Halla?” I ask Larry who’s still standing in the living room by the door.
He stinks of urine and he’s looking pale. Clearly, he’s afraid of the Arcana Falls people. And good. Because Larry is a cruel, lazy, jerk.
“Wyatt took her with him when he left to rescue you.”
This doesn’t make sense.
My stomach lurches yet again.
Grey tags my hand. “Let’s go?”
“Go?” I ask, reeling, dizzy.
“Go help Cat help the sick. Got at least twenty-five seriously sick folks here that’ve been poisoned. We’ve rounded up the whole pack to the big building out there. Some women are here lookin’ after the sick. Some of the kids are even helpin’ the sick. I told them all we’re here to help. Luke told them, too. He’s over there right now waiting to help Cat unload supplies. It’d help if they all saw you, see you’re well.” Grey touches my face and waits, before he softly says, “Blossom?”
“He… he told me he’d start culling the useless if I didn’t do what he wanted me to do. He told me he’d send the prettiest girls to a guy who’d sell their … their bodies and split the profit with Wy. He… he threatened about Halla, said we’d never see her again.”
Grey growls out his anger and I shudder. “He… he’s doing what he swore he’d do, isn’t he?”
“Sorry about your aunt, sweetheart.”
“Aunt Shea is Wyatt’s aunt, too. Father’s youngest sister, his last living sister. Or she was. He didn’t care? That shows how little pack and family mean to him. Halla’s just four years old. What did he do with her? Where is she? I promised Aphra, I…” I sob and bury my face in my hands.
He wraps me up in a hug. “Sorry about all of it, baby. Gonna make this better. Somehow. Brody’ll find Addy and hopefully that leads to the other girls. If not, I’ll ask Linc and Jared to get on the trail. We’ll look for Halla. Fuckin’ swear it to you, Stace, I’m gonna help however I can help. Let’s go get started with helping the sick. That’s the best thing we can do right now.”