Page 20 of Free Beast Mate

“We tell him the truth.”

I glanced back at John. “Which is?”

“Adam walked into the beast lair flaunting his shit. The beast had been starving for days, so when he saw a fresh meal, he ate it.”

“That’s it?”

“Mm-hm. The truth.”

“But I closed the door.”

“Self-preservation. You did it because you didn’t want the beast to hurt us too. Quick thinking. Intelligent. I’ll make sure Tom understands.”

“Thank you.”

“Yeah well, fuck me sideways.”

Instead of smiling, I pressed my lips when they tipped at the corners. “Don’t curse.”

He glanced at me, thought about it, then said, “All right.”

Tom entered the beast’s holding quarters just as I was about to leave. I stood next to John, fearing for my life even though John would stand with me on the decision to close the door.

Tom looked worse for wear. The food John had supplied last Tuesday must’ve run out, because Tom didn’t look like he’d been eating anything. He crossed the room, and I offered him Adam’s chair. He sat down and praised my manners. “John, you called me in here.”

“Adam’s dead.”

Tom didn’t flinch. “Show me.”

John played the recording, but I didn’t watch the replay, my gaze on the floor.

Once done, Tom said, “It seems to me Emma caught his eye. Hm.”

“She must be his mate,” John said.

I snapped my head up. “What?”

Tom shook his head. “It is not possible. I had a vision of Amoris’s offspring. His mate is someone who will breed healthy heirs. Both her mother and Emma were born with a limp. It is genetic.”

“She’s perfect to him. Perhaps that’s what you saw in your vision. She may not be my or your idea of perfect but to him, she very much is. I say we let her in.”

“You do?” I asked.

John paid me no mind. Actually, neither of them did. This was man-land, and so I stood there awaiting the verdict. Uncovering the beast mate would mean Beast Father would come with a fleet. He would deliver the supplies we desperately needed and remove the threat of the other beasts from Above.

Tom didn’t look convinced. “Amoris could be fooling us all. He could just want to use her for a while and discard her later. I can’t take chances with this. He needs to be deprived of sexual gratification so that when he sees his mate, he reacts strongly. We need to know she’s his. This”—he pointed at the screen—“is not enough. He may just like her because Emma is a pretty girl.”

He thought I was pretty? Huh.

John tilted his head. “He ate someone because the man lashed her back. I think that’s strong evidence she means something to him.”

“I am not convinced.” Tom stood to leave. “Emma, dear, you won’t come around here anymore. It’s that or isolation for you again. Please, don’t disappoint me. I would hate myself for hurting you.”

“Yes, Tom.”

“Come.” He tapped my back, gently pushing me forward. “Take your old man back in the canoe.”

I dug in my heels. “There are a lot of sick people around, Tom.”

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