Page 29 of Frank's Felon
Running the border had helped relieve some of the stress, but not all. That’s how he ended up conducting surprise drills, infiltrating zones and attacking his unsuspecting guards, experienced and novices alike. Taking his frustrations out on them at least proved useful, revealing weaknesses in coverage in zones seven and fifteen not to mention one slacker in zone eight who needed to be disciplined for sleeping on the job.
The pack had seen an influx of a lot of lone wolves ever since the WSSO had massacred a half dozen packs using SEV-2 to the north. Those who served as guards in their previous packs were automatically taken on as guards here, but that didn’t mean their training was where Frank wanted it. Training, discipline, developing the right attitude and camaraderie that he liked his guards to have took time. Right now, Frank’s mind was on one very fragile and brave shifter.
When he’d finally fallen asleep last night, he’d dreamt of white wolves, asshole alphas forcing young girls into prostitution, and one lovely female trying to keep her head above the garbage that threatened to suffocate her. By the time he woke, showered, and grabbed a bite at the cookhouse, it was two in the afternoon. Still, he had no answers, but the need to check on Delilah and make sure she was okay became too great. He headed to Tess’s house to find her.
Before he reached Tess’s house, he heard the shouting. Tess and Delilah.
“Don’t go in there,” Blade warned. His friend was milling about, waiting for someone, maybe Anna, though Frank didn’t scent her anywhere nearby.
“What’s going on?”
“Sisters fighting. Never a good thing. Stay out of it.”
“Since when do you know about sisters? You had a brother.”
“Henrietta and Linda.”
Those two were always fighting, but their arguments usually blew over as quick as they started. Blade was right, he needed to stay out of Tess’s and Delilah’s argument, whatever it was about, except the thought of someone yelling at Delilah, even her own sister, put him and his wolf on edge. The need to protect her had grown ridiculously strong ever since she’d revealed her past to him.
With a slam of a door, Delilah stormed out of the house, right past Frank, as if he didn’t exist. He didn’t even get to say hi. Tess stormed out next and came down to where Frank and Blade were talking.
“Sorry. I hope we weren’t too loud,” she apologized, her voice more tense than he was used to hearing from her, even when she fought with Damien, though admittedly that was rare since they had blood-bonded.
“Shifter hearing, Tess,” Frank reminded her, trying to appear casual.
“I know, but still, I didn’t expect to have a Code Red so soon.”
“Code Red?” Blade asked.
“Something our alpha used to say when Delilah got overly difficult or dramatic. Red because her hair is so red. She fought him on practically everything. She wasn’t the easiest to deal with growing up.”
Frank held his tongue. Tess didn’t realize what she was saying.
“Anything we can do to help?” Blade asked as Frank stared in the direction Delilah had gone.
“Figure out how to convince my sister to stay.”
Frank’s attention snapped to Tess. “Stay? She’s leaving? Why? When?”
“In a few days, I think. She wouldn’t give me a reason why. Some crap about how no one would accept her here. That I didn’t know the real Lily.”
“Delilah,” Frank said.
“Excuse me?”
“She prefers to be called Delilah.” And without further explanation, Frank went to find his Delilah.
Figure out how to convince my sister to stay.Tess words were ripping a hole in Frank’s soul. He couldn’t let Delilah leave, not so soon. He was just getting to know her, to break through that wall of hers. And where the hell would she go? Her only family was here.
Frank found Delilah upriver, not far from Long Tooth Cave, at least that’s what the kids called it because of the one stalactite that when last measured was ten feet long. The fact that she had found a perch all of three feet above a shallow river didn’t escape him. His beauty didn’t like heights.
“A book for your thoughts. And it won’t beThe Odysseythis time, since I lost it.”
Luscious red hair whipped in the wind as she lifted her sweet face to him. “You lost it?”
“We kind of rushed off yesterday, and when I went back for it last night, it was gone.”
“It will turn up.”
