Page 10 of Their Shared Mate
“I’m sorry,” Heather said, her eyes reflecting regret. “I know this seems cruel, but you’ve been acting as if nothing happened. Ignoring the pain won’t make it go away. I’ve known others who suppressed their emotions, and it always leads to more tragedy.”
Anger and hurt banded Claire’s chest, making it hard to breathe. Joel hadn’t just lost his life that night. He was murdered savagely. Claire could still see the horror in his eyes and smell the blood. How could Heather mention his death with such casual indifference?
Desperate to be away from her tormentors, not to mention their audience, she tugged against Raphael’s hold. “Let go. Goddamn it, let go!”
Raphael released her with a sigh and took a step back.
Claire ran across the room and threw open the door. She didn’t care where she was going as long as it was far away from Heather and Raphael. Sunlight momentarily blinded her, but the wind was frigid. She shivered, but kept running. Her boots crunched against the snow, occasionally sliding as they fought for purchase on the uneven ground. She wasn’t wearing a coat yet couldn’t stop running. Pain drove her onward, harsh sobsforcing air in and out of her lungs. Guilt surged through the anger and grief. Why couldn’t she escape the guilt? A mournful cry tore from deep inside her.
She saw Joel’s face twisted with fear and disbelief as the wolf clawed through his flesh. Their eyes met, his beseeching for just a moment, then his expression went blank, and his lifeless body crumpled to the ground. He was only twenty-four years old. His entire life had been in front of him.
She stumbled over a fallen branch, but kept running. This wasn’t rational. She was freezing and had nowhere to go. Shivers racked her limbs, and her fingers were going numb. None of that mattered. She just had to get away, had to put some distance between herself and the pain.
This is your fault!her mother’s shrill voice screamed.I trusted you to keep him safe, and you got your baby brother killed.
Her emotions had borrowed her mother’s voice. There was no communication between Rydaria and Earth, so it was unlikely that her mother was even aware of the tragedy. Still, the accusation was just as cutting. Joel was dead and Claire was to blame.
Her legs weakened and her knees buckled, but she didn’t hit the ground. Something warm and heavy enveloped her as strong arms lifted her against a broad chest. Releasing a harsh sob, she blinked back tears until her vision cleared. Raphael. And the coat wrapped around her was likely his because he wasn’t wearing one. Why couldn’t Victor have run after her? Raphael was such a jerk.
“I wasn’t told about your brother. I’m very sorry for your loss.” He sounded sincere, but the words were meaningless. His hollow sympathy changed nothing. Joel was still dead.
“I want to go home,” she lamented and began crying again. “I hate it here.” The combination of raw emotions and the icy wind forced her to curl into the heat of his body. She wrapped her arms around his neck and pressed her face against his chest. His warm, woodsy scent filled her nose and soothed her senses. He smelled like the mountains surrounding them, like fresh air, moist earth, and pine trees.
“By ‘here’ do you mean Eagle Village, or Rydaria?”
His voice held a hint of amusement, and she lifted her head to glare at him. “Don’t mock me.”
“I wasn’t,” he insisted, though one corner of his mouth tipped up. “Do you hate the entire planet or just my village?”
He turned down one of the rows of cabins and Claire tensed. “Where are you taking me?”
“We need to talk, and I suspect that you’ll communicate more honestly without an audience. All I intend is a conversation. You have my word as a gentleman.”
“You expect me to believe you’re a gentleman?” Why was he still carrying her? And why hadn’t she insisted that he put her down? No, it was worse than that. His arms felt strong and supportive. She wanted to snuggle closer and lose herself in the warmth of his embrace.
He looked into her eyes, all playfulness falling away. “No harm will come to you as long as you’re under my protection, and anyone within this village is under my protection.”
She nodded and he carried her up onto the railed porch that ran the length of his cabin. Without releasing her legs, he pressed his hand against a small panel beside the door. A biometric scanner unlocked the handle and Claire’s jaw dropped.
“How much technology did you scavenge off those ships?”
He set her down inside the cabin and closed the door. “Each group of hybrids was designed for a different purpose. The wolves are savage enforcers. They kill without question or regret. The lions are well-trained soldiers. They work best in units, and they’re obsessed with structure and discipline. We’re a network of scientists and engineers. It stands to reason that we have access to technology the others do not. We knew what to strip from the ships, and what we could not scavenge, we fabricate.”
“I see.” She didn’t want to give a damn, but it had been obvious from the start that each hybrid class was different from the others. She’d thought it was just the varying animals that had been engineered into their DNA, but Raphael’s answer made more sense. The animals had been chosen to produce a specific result. She shuddered. Every new fact she learned about Nuevo Biotech revolted her further.
He crossed the room and made some sort of adjustment using a touch screen panel on the wall. “I just bumped up the heat. We’ll get you warmed back up in no time.”
His attentiveness surprised her, as did the fact that he’d cared enough to run after her. He didn’t seem angry, just confused by her behavior. She felt foolish standing there wrapped in his coat, so she took it off and held it out toward him. “Thank you for coming after me.” A fresh wave of embarrassment washed over her as she realized how reckless she must seem.
“Keep it until you stop shaking.” When she didn’t lower her arm, he took the coat from her and draped it around her shoulders. “Would you like me to build a fire?”
She shook her head, feeling awkward and embarrassed. “It’s not that cold in here. I’m just… rattled.” It took her a few seconds to find the right word. He was being nice now, and she wasn’t sure how to react to the change in his demeanor. She couldn’t deny finding him attractive, but which was the real Raphael, the autocratic leader or the compassionate protector?
He motioned toward the living room on her left as he moved farther into the cabin. “Have a seat. I’ll print something warm to drink. Is Rydarian coffee okay?”
“That would be great. Thanks.” She walked to the living room and sat in one of the chairs. She took a moment to look around while he worked in the kitchen. The cabin was larger than the ones she’d seen in the feline village, but then Raphael and his brother ran this place. It made sense that their homes would be nicer than the others. Leadership always came with privileges. There were two bedrooms and a bathroom along one wall. The kitchen was tucked away in the opposite corner. An office area occupied the same wall as the kitchen, and there was a railed loft above the bedrooms. “Your cabin is nice. Do you have roommates, or do you live here all by yourself?”
Raphael walked out of the kitchen a short time later carrying two steaming mugs. His sun-streaked hair was tousled, and the softer light made his eyes look red rather than orange. “Victor and I share this cabin.” He handed her one of the mugs and then sat in the chair directly across from her. “It takes too many resources for any of us to live alone. Everyone has at least one cabin-mate.”
