Page 18 of Frank's Felon
“I’ll keep my distance,” Frank promised. Tess flashed an easy smile. That look right there on her face, that look of trust was what he wanted in a female. Mason and Damien were both lucky shifters.
Frank kept his promise and stayed far enough from Tess as she and Kai led the kindergarten through second grade children to the stream by the cave where Callen, and now Mason in his stead, interrogated prisoners. The area was usually off-limits to the kids but with no one in custody, Tess and Kai were taking advantage of the opportunity. The stream was shallow enough to not risk any of the kids falling in and drowning or getting swept away.
As the teachers began handing out the plastic bottles and showing the kids how to catch the various insects in and around the water, Frank walked a close perimeter. His wolf’s hackles were up, and he couldn’t figure out why. He hadn’t noticed any unusual scent, except skunk
But skunk was often used to mask a wolf’s scent. Frank ran toward the smell and found the empty soda can. Someone had set off a stink bomb using eggs, milk, and vinegar and he had fallen for it.
Tess’s scream echoed through the woods. Frank shifted and ran as fast as he could. She wasn’t by the stream. Kai had gathered all the kids around her, and no one else was there. They were safe, but Tess was missing. Kai pointed northwest, sending him in the direction he had heard Tess scream.
He found Tess standing in front of a pine, one hand holding a child, the other over her mouth. That’s when Frank saw the wolf’s eyes, bright green in the shadows, peering from between stalks of five foot high sagebrush. The wolf dropped her head beneath her shoulder blades, a classic stance for a wolf preparing to lunge.
Frank growled, drawing Delilah’s attention away from Tess who ordered the child to run back to Kai. As Frank lunged at Delilah, Tess shifted and intercepted him.
He couldn’t stop himself from slamming into Tess. All he could do was retract his claws and keep from clawing her. As Tess’s wolf hit the dirt, Delilah’s wolf slammed into Frank. His wolf quickly rose, only to see Delilah standing over Tess’s unconscious wolf, guarding her from Frank.
Suddenly, everything came together. Why Delilah had Tess’s picture, why she had looked familiar to Frank though he had never seen her before. Looking at the two red-brown wolves before him, smaller in stature than gray wolves, but so alike to one another, he finally understood. Sisters.
Frank shifted to human form. Delilah followed, glaring at him as she bent over Tess.
“I didn’t know,” Frank said as he approached Tess to lift her off the wet ground.
“Keep away,” Delilah said, her arm stretched protectively over Tess.
“I won’t hurt her.”
“You already did,” Delilah’s voice was harsh, her tone cutting, though he deserved it. He had fucked up again and injuring Tess in the process.
Frank steeled himself to Delilah’s words and pushed past her as he lifted Tess’s wolf. She was still his responsibility. “I’m taking her to her house. You can follow if you want.”
Frank wove his way toward the group of children, without getting close enough for them to see and panic over Tess being naked and unconscious. “Kai,” Frank called the teacher over.
Kai approached, her eyes bouncing between Tess and Delilah. “Is she okay? Should I get Pryce?”
“She’ll be fine. I just wanted to make sure the little one who’d been with Tess made it back to you.”
“Henry’s fine. Confused about what happened, but fine. We’re good, Frank. Take care of Tess.”
Frank nodded and continued walking toward the house. He could feel Delilah’s eyes burning into him from behind. “You could have told me who you were.”
“I did,” she said.
“Your name––.”
“I didn’t lie.”
“Tess said she had a sister named Lily.”
“That’s what she calls me. Has since she was little and couldn’t pronounce my name.”
Hell.Frank blew out a breath. “If I had known––”
“What? You would have handled me differently? Fully claimed me on the floor?”
Frank stopped, tension gripping his entire body. “What I did, I didn’t mean to––”
“Yes, you did.”
“You could have said no and walked away.”
