Page 33 of Blood, Shadow & Claw

"Running off again?"Raylene's tall frame towered over us. Her silver hair pulled back so tight it might have contributed to her sour mood. She grabbed Kayla's arm with more force than seemednecessary and yanked her a step closer. "How many times must I tell you not to wander off?"

"Sorry,"Kayla mumbled, her eyes fixed on the ground.

I stood, brushing off my jeans, feeling my protective streak flare up. "She was just?—"

"None of your concern,"Raylene said sharply, silencing me with a glare that could freeze fire.

The air tingled with tension, and I could feel the unspoken questions piling up between us like logs waiting for a spark. Who was this woman to Kayla, and what gave her the right to handle her with such brusqueness? I bit back my retort, sensing that now was not the time.

"Come,"Raylene commanded, and without another word, she steered Kayla away, leaving me alone by the stream with a hollow feeling in my stomach and an unshakeable sense of unease.

Confusion swirled within me as I watched Raylene's rigid back march Kayla away from the serene bubble we had created by the stream. A pang of concern gnawed at my insides, urging me to follow despite my better judgment. The way Raylene's fingers dug into Kayla's arm seemed less like guidance and more like a vise—tight and unyielding.

"Raylene, wait!"I called out, my voice more potent than I felt.

They stopped, and Raylene turned her head, a silver-haired sentinel in the dappled sunlight. Her eyes narrowed slightly, scrutinizing me with a look that could strip paint from wood.

"Is everything okay?"I asked, trying to keep my tone light despite the hammering of my heart. "Kayla's not in any trouble, is she?"

"Trouble? With you?"Raylene's voice dripped with condescension. "Hardly."

"Are you her mother?"The words tumbled out before I could stop them, driven by a wild hope that maybe this was just some family squabble I'd blundered into.

Her reaction was swift: a firm and final shake of the head. "No,"she said curtly.

That solitary word hung between us, heavy with implications Icouldn't grasp. My gaze flickered to Kayla, whose big, brown eyes met mine momentarily, a silent plea echoing within their depths.

"Then who?—"

"Questions are a dangerous pastime, Mazie Green,"Raylene interrupted, her voice low and threatening. "Some stones are better left unturned."

With that cryptic warning, she turned on her heel, propelling Kayla forward with an urgency that seemed to brook no argument. I watched them disappear among the trees, a knot forming in my throat.

"Careful, Mazie,"I muttered to myself. This situation looks sticky." But even as I said it, I knew my curiosity wouldn't let this go—not when Kayla's sad eyes seemed to haunt me, pulling at a thread inside my chest I hadn't known was loose.

"Kayla, I said we're going!"Raylene's voice cracked like a whip through the serenity of the forest, breaking the spell of our shared solitude. I watched, aghast, as she reached for Kayla's arm, her grip firm enough to make the girl wince.

"Ow, Raylene, you're hurting me,"Kayla protested, her voice small but laced with defiance that seemed to come from somewhere deep within, somewhere wounded.

"Then listen when I speak to you,"Raylene snapped back, not an ounce of softness in her tone. It was all edges, hard and cold, like the steel-gray of her eyes.

I stepped forward instinctively, my heart pounding against my chest. "Hey, there's no need for that,"I said, my voice steadier than I felt. "She's just a kid."

Raylene turned her gaze on me, and I could almost feel the chill coming off her in waves."This is none of your concern,"she said, but Kayla's big brown eyes swimming in unshed tears told me it was exactly my concern.

"Kids need understanding, not..."I gestured helplessly at Raylene's vice-like hold, "...this."

"Your world of coddling and hashtags doesn't apply here,"Raylene retorted, her lip curling. "You know nothing of our ways."

"Maybe not,"I admitted, "but I know about compassion. And whatever 'ways'you're talking about, they shouldn't leave room for making a little girl scared and hurt."

"Scared and hurt is how they survive,"Raylene said, a note of something like anguish flickering behind her icy demeanor before it vanished, hidden beneath layers of frost.

"Survival doesn't mean living without kindness,"I shot back, feeling my anger flare up, hot and fierce. "There has to be another way."

"Enough!"Raylene barked, and this time, her hand flew to Kayla's shoulder, propelling the girl forward so quickly she stumbled.

"Kayla,"I called out, reaching towards her, but they were already moving away, Kayla's small frame nearly swallowed up by Raylene's tall shadow. My hand fell to my side, useless.

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