Page 22 of Destined Bear
As I head back to my vehicle, my mind is already working. Vivienne’s suspicions, Nox’s intel—there’s something here I need to take seriously.
CHAPTER 5
VIVIENNE
Ihate arguing with my mother, but even in her worst moments, bedridden and waxen, she can out-stubborn me. It’s not hard to see where I get it from in moments like this.
“Mom, please listen to me!” I’m almost on my knees, begging her to heed my caution. “Millie can’t be trusted around the house alone with you.”
“No? She hasn’t killed me yet.” She rolls her eyes. “I think I’ll survive.”
I bite my lip. Hard.
Until I fully understand what’s going on here, what the plan is, I don’t want Millie in our house.
Mom refuses to listen to reason.
“You barely know her,” I cajole her. “She’s only lived with you for months.”
She curls up on her side, showing me her back as I shoot my stare heavenward as if to beseech the gods. “I won’t turn my back on her because of something you probably misheard.”
Again, I’m plagued with doubts. Did I mishear? Am I blowing this out of proportion?
“What if she’s the reason you’re sick?” I demand.
Mom flips around and glowers at me. “How dare you suggest such a thing? When I returned from Nottery, my health improved dramatically. Millie only came to care for me after this relapse began. She's been nothing but devoted during my decline.”
I hang my head. This is getting me nowhere. Nothing I say is going to change her mind. But maybe I can get Millie to leave willingly.
“I’ll be back with your dinner.”
“Don’t bother rushing. I’m not hungry all of a sudden.” Mom sniffs as if I’ve offended her, and I roll my eyes again.
I find Millie working over the stove, stirring the soup pot slowly, her earbuds in her ears. I stare at the slender female warily. What should I offer her? Money? Threats?
My mind flips to Emeric. Why isn’t he taking this more seriously? I choke back my building resentment. Of course he isn’t. Why would he? He dismissed me before. Why would I think it would be any different now? I should never have gone to him in the first place.
A knock at the door shatters my reverie, and Millie spins around, gasping to see me behind her. Her dark eyes shadow, and I stare at her balefully.
“There’s someone at the door,” she squeaks.
“I’ll get it.” I head toward the front door and throw it open without checking, half-expecting to see Alessa on the porch. I inhale sharply. “Emeric!”
This, I wasn’t expecting.
I glance over my shoulder, but Millie isn’t in view, and I steer him outside onto the patio, away from the walls and their ears.
His SUV sits near the end of the driveway, the last rays of fall sunlight slipping away to streak hints of auburn in his thick, chestnut hair. My chest tightens with his closeness, but I close my mind to it. I won’t succumb to these feelings. I won’t letmyself remember the feel of his muscled arms around my body, holding me so securely against him as we let the world slip away.
How could I not have seen how much he didn’t respect me in all that time? Was I so blinded by the love I had for him that I just ignored it all?
I take a step back, as if that’s going to help, and his hand reaches out like he’s daring to touch me. I step back and out of his reach. We are not going down this road again. I won’t let myself.
“Why are you here?” The words are barely a whisper. I clear my throat and try again. “What do you want, Emeric?”
What I really want to ask him is what he wants from me.
“I want to talk to you about this healer and your nurse.”
