Page 9 of Pack Baines

Blowing out another breath, I hear Kaleb grunt, likely taking a seat in his study before he says, “Alright. What do you want to know?”

“Everything, Dad,” Leylan answers, stepping up beside his brother, drawing the cell toward him. “She called us, the line went dead, and then you disappeared. Only to come home with blood on you, tears in your eyes, and told us Juno was in the hospital. I know we were kids, and we didn’t push other than the occasional request to see Juniper, but you need to tell us what happened. We need to know.”

“Is there a reason why you’re bringing it up now?” Kaleb grunts, sounding bone tired and wary. “I’ll tell you everything, but there’s got to be a reason you’re only now wanting to know now.”

Clearing my throat, I explain, “I saw Juno today. She’s here, at North U.”

“She’s there?” Kaleb blurts suddenly, shock clear in his tone. Then his voice turns hoarse with emotion as he repeats, “You saw Juni-bear? How was she?”

“Terrified. Ran before I could even hug her properly,” I answer lowly, another growl forming in my chest.

“Fucking hell,” Kaleb groans. “Alright. I’ll tell you everything. Should have told you all long before now, I just never thought she’d… Anyway, the night after I left her and you got the phone call, I went straight back for her. I got to the park and there was loud music blasting from her trailer. I didn’t even hesitate to burst through the door. The pack was wasted, lounging around shooting it up or swigging beers without a care in the world. It was Hershal’s blood I had on my knuckles, because that fucker sneered and told me to get the fuck out. That I wasn’t welcome. He tried to stop me from going to Juno’s room, so I clocked him. Headed straight for Juno’s room as soon as he was out of it, the others shouting at me as I went. I found Juni-bear seconds later, phone in her little hand while she was sprawled unconscious on the floor. They beat her. They beat her so bad there was blood falling out of her fucking mouth.”

Kaleb stops, a sniffle and a choked sob slipping through the phone, and I have to work so fucking hard to unclench myjaw and hands, my heart physically aching for the girl we never got to see again.

Clearing his throat, Kaleb continues. “The rest of the blood I came home with was from her. Don’t know what the hell they used, but she was cut up real bad. I didn’t hesitate to pick her up and take her to the hospital. Told me there was internal bleeding, and that she was in critical condition. Me and the others spent the next two weeks visiting her, sitting with her, in rotation. She was never alone, always one of us with her.”

“That explains where my mom and dad kept disappearing to,” Evron murmurs quietly, running a hand through his slightly longer hair.

“Yeah, buddy. We didn’t want her to wake up in a strange, sterile place alone. So, we took turns looking after her, until one day they told us she’d been moved. It happened when Crane went to get something to drink, only to come back with one of those shitty hospital coffees and an empty room,” Kaleb continues, having heard the hushed words Evron uttered. “Wouldn’t tell us where she was, only that social services were finally involved and that she’d be taken care of. I started chasing social services up, offered to take her into our care, but they told us they were investigating and that they’d let us know where she’d be until she was fit to go into care. Last I heard, she was in the foster system, staying with a family three hours away. We haven’t seen her since, but I kept checking. Every fucking week, I was calling anyone and everyone, looking for her. Wanting to know how she was. That shit pack of hers were arrested, and the last update I had of them was from last year when William and Calvin died of an overdose, Terry and Shawn were in the wind, and Tori and Hershal were still in prison. That’s all I know, boys. I wish I had more to give you.”

“Shit,” Geo breathes, shaking his head as he turns away, rubbing his hands over his face. I’ll bet he’s crying and doesn’t want us to see, not that we’d mock him. Fuck, I’m pretty sure I’m on the brink of a goddamn breakdown. Juno was hurt, really fucking hurt,and we didn’t know. We just knew she was in the hospital. If I’d known she was close to death, I would have nagged to see her. I would have begged until I was breathless.

Kaleb sighs from the other end of the call, before he gently asks, “How was she? She look okay?”

The others look at me, and I shrug as I answer. “She looked good, man. Skinny, but good. Cut her hair, dyed it purple. She’s grown up, K.”

The twins’ dad is quiet for a long moment before he finally confesses, “I thought she was gone. That’s why I never elaborated on what happened that night. Thought that was why I was given the run around with everyone in the fucking social system. I thought she didn’t make it, but no one wanted to tell me. I’m sorry I never told you all. I couldn’t hurt you like that unless I knew for certain that she was gone. I just never knew.”

That’s like a punch to the gut, and I can’t find any anger towards Kaleb for keeping it to himself. I’m not sure how I would have reacted in his position, but knowing what kind of burden he’s been carrying around with him makes the anger dissipate like it was never there, leaving a hollow ache that lingers in my chest.

“She’s here now, though,” Evron blurts. “We can bring her home, make sure she never disappears again.”

Kaleb huffs a laugh before he groans and says, “You be careful with that girl. If she ran away scared, there’s a reason for it. We don’t know what she’s been through, what life has been like for her. I’d hoped that, if she survived, she’d be with a pack that would look after her like she was their own. Give her the life she always should have wanted. I’m not stupid enough to think hoping on shit would work, but if she’s scared and running, then ask yourselves why. Proceed with caution, boys. Don’t spook the girl.”

We all mutter agreements, my mind mulling over his words, and finding the depth of their truth. We don’t know what she’s been through. Only knew the bare minimum of what she was going through at home, by the looks of things. But there’s one thing I do know, andthat is the simple fact that Juniper is here, and I won’t be letting her go again.

“I have to go let Mama Bear know what’s going on, but I’ll call you in a few days. Maybe we’ll come for a visit during your next break,” Kaleb says, and I realize then that he’s probably as desperate to see Juno as the rest of us. After all, each of our parents thought the world of Juniper, always bringing her into the fold. They cared for her. We weren’t the only ones to lose her when she was gone.

“Sounds good, Dad,” Leylan softly confirms.

“Alright. Talk to you kids soon. Love you,” comes from the phone a moment later, the rest of us muttering our goodbyes before the call ends, leaving a strained atmosphere that I daren’t break by even breathing. I feel like one hiccupped breath is all it would take to send us all into a fucking tailspin, and I can’t bring myself to risk it.

Evron has no such qualms, dropping his hands to the counter as he demands, “Alright. So, how are we getting our girl back, then? Anyone got a plan in mind?”

I can’t help but snort, shaking my head at him, but then my mind starts turning over ideas. Of plans that don’t involve kidnapping and locking her away in a nest, safe and protected. Though, that’s not a bad idea. We have a nest here, after all. One that I think we all subconsciously made with our girl in mind.

It’s that thought that has me standing, rapping my knuckles against the marble, drawing everyone’s attention as I finally tell them, “I’ve got a plan.”

Chapter 4

Juniper

Blinking my eyes open and groaning at the light that seeps through the curtain-less window, I try to roll over in the bed, away from the rays of sunshine that try to blind me. As soon as I hurried into my room yesterday, I spent most of the day in between panic attacks that left me exhausted and sluggish. By the time they’d passed, my feet dragging, I only had enough energy to fix up my bed. Even the cushions are still in the bags I lugged into my dorm.

Checking the time on my cell, I see that it’s just before eight. That gives me enough time to wake myself up, go in search of coffee, and head to whatever building I need to go to for my textbooks listed on the sheet of paper that came with my class schedules and maps of the school grounds. Not to mention, I need to find a pharmacy that will fill the new prescription I managed to get two days ago. Something I should have done yesterday but couldn’t bring myself to. Since I only have three pills left, it’s pretty fucking important that I do it today.

Crawling from the bed, eyeing it like there’s something wrong with it, I head to my duffle bag and pull out my clothes for the day. Still feeling the effects of yesterday’s emotional turmoil, still seeing Creek’s face in my mind like a projector beaming at me, I decide on comfy clothes. I dress quickly in a pair of leggings, old chucks, and a cropped black shirt, throwing my leather jacket on once I’m fully dressed. I run my fingers through my tangled tresses, doing my bestto tame the wavy purple strands as best as I can. With only a brief look in the mirror, swiping my fingers beneath my black-stained eyes to tidy up yesterday’s makeup, I decide that’s as much energy as I have to put into myself for the day.

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