Page 45 of Resisted

“Oh, so we don’t have to go far.” What a fucking relief.

“We don’t. They should already have their captives, if what I’m hearing is correct. A trade is scheduled the week prior, I just haven’t been able to pinpoint the location to stop it at the source.”

I took a sip of my coffee and leaned back. “That’s not ideal, but we’ve had worse situations.”

“I want you to stay home with Bella. I’ll take Boyce.” He scratched his neck. “Don’t let her leave the house.”

“What? Why?” She was a grown ass adult, she could leave the house. She didn’t need to be a captive.

“Because poachers will be in the area, that’s why,” he responded as if I were a stupid fuck for not thinking of it. I’d just assumed that since we were trailing them, Bella would be safe. Hell, the entire town would.

“But you’ve got them tailed,” I pointed out before bringing up the obvious. “Plus, there is no way to tell just by looking at us.”

Not really, at least. If you had a super trained eye and extra senses, you’d be able to spot us. Maybe it was the way our bodies moved or a slight variation in our pupils. It could be the scent of our skin or the aggression that rolled off us. Still, most people never knew of our existence, so they didn’t even question the combination of oddities.

“That’s not the point,” he grumbled. Obviously, the coffee hadn’t hit him yet.

“What is the point?”

“The point is there will shifter hunters in our midst, close to our home.” He took another sip of coffee before finally sitting at the table.

“This has happened before, Silas, it’s not that big of a deal. They’ve never infiltrated the town or even realized the entire area is filled with us.” I stood, grabbing my plate so I could take it to the sink, but his hand shot out and grabbed my arm.

“It doesn’t matter that they’ve been through before. I want her home. I want her protected. I don’t want her to leave our property until the threat is gone.”

“It’s just –” I wanted to reason with him, I really did, but damn if Silas was the most stubborn bastard—stubborn to his very core. If you tried to change his mind, fuck if you weren’t up for a challenge. I’d never turned away from a challenge, though, and I didn’t plan to start today.

“I said I want her home.”

“Just answer me why,” I pushed, one brow rising to challenge him.

“She’s… It’s just that it’s Bella. I want nothing to happening to her,” he stated.

“Oh, okay, that makes sense. Should I get on the phone tree and call all the moms? Maybe do a potluck as they all hang out here for the day? I mean, we care about those females too, and I would hate, absolutelyhate, for anything to happen to them.”

He growled, his grip on his cup tightening. “I think you know that was not what I meant.”

“Did I though?”

He left his cup on the table as he stood. “I’m going for a run.”

“Cool. I’m about to call your mama,” I stated.

“Don’t you fucking dare, Vince. I’m warning you.” He tossed his shirt on the ground, knowing I fucking hated that. I had a basket set up for discarded clothes for whenever we went for runs.

“Or what?” He hated being challenged, but lucky for him, I didn’t fucking care. His authority over me only ran so deep in my veins, and he needed someone around like me to bring him down a peg. “What happened the day her car broke down that has this—whatever this is going on with you—escalating?”

“Nothing.” His pants dropped to the floor, and he stepped out of them. “I just want her home and protected. That’s all.”

“I’m going to find out, Silas. You know I will.”

“If there’s anything to find out, which there isn’t, you can hound me then,” he spat before he pulled open the sliding glass door and walked out, letting his body morph and pull until the man was gone, and in his place was a massive wolf, his teeth snarling at me.

“Bare those teeth at me one more time, and I swear I’ll put a leash on you,” I murmured with way less conviction than I’d felt a few minutes ago.

His jaw snapped closed with a harsh rumble before he pushed off of the porch, his hind legs moving at a speed my eyes could barely track before he disappeared in the woods. He probably didn’t even need the run, it was just another fucking avoidance tactic, something he was damn near becoming a professional at.

I shut the sliding door, considered locking him out, but knew the drama that would come from that petty move would only rub off on the rest of the house. Instead, I picked up his clothes and tossed them into the basket before adding his cup to my dishes and carrying them to the sink to rinse and place in the dishwasher.

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