Page 43 of Return to Garoureve

There was a yip and a howl, and Violet looked to see another wolf come tearing down the street. She would recognize that wolf anywhere. Colburn Reeve. Huh... he was still pretty small. Smaller than Henrik and Mardoc, at least. Looked like he had his mother’s height rather than his father’s.

“How about I let us into the bakery, and we get to know each other,” Scarlett offered. “I was just heading into the clinic to do some paperwork, but—“

“Paperwork?” Violet blinked at the words, and glanced from the woman to the clinic. “Uhh... you’re not a witch.”

“No, I’m not.” They continued to stare at one another, and Violet started to size the woman up. She was pretty, really pretty, and covered from head to toe like Violet was. Not a witch. There was absolutely nothing witchy coming off of her. “I’m a physician.”

A sudden sense of absolute relief smacked into Violet in a way she hadn’t known possible. A physician. Garoureve had a healer. Someone who could heal. Someone who could help.

Which meant there wouldn’t be expectations for Violet to fill such a role.

“And you were wondering if I had any attachment to the clinic?” Violet asked with a grin. “Oh no. You and I are about to become very good friends. How do you feel about hearing about my bitch of a mother?”

“Ohh, just wait until you meet Gina,” Scarlett responded as she picked up a set of keys from Mardoc’s pants pocket. “And Ariana. But first, coffee.

Chapter 16

Violetstareddownather cup of tea, trying to find the right words. Scarlett was still behind the counter, making herself some sort of coffee concoction, leaving Violet a few minutes to compose her thoughts. There was a lot to ask, a lot to question, but Violet was scared of what the answers might be.

This space... sitting in this space...

Something was wrong. Something was prickling at her, prying at her, and she knew... she had to ask, but it scared her. It terrified her, really.

“How long do you think they’re going to be running?” Scarlett asked idly, and glanced out the window.

“An hour, at least.” Which made her hate Henrik, a little. He was out enjoying himself, but once he returned... Was she supposed to wait for him so they could get answers, or was she supposed to ask and then fill him in later? “When we were younger, they would run until dinner time, unless they had chores. That stated, they’re all a lot older now. It won’t take as much to wear them out.”

“Are you saying they had more energy when you were younger?”

Violet chuckled, remembering just how much energy they had once had. Henrik had practically vibrated with needless energy, having to spend hours to burn it all off. Roddy was the worst of them, though. He could always run for miles.

“Wolves need a lot of space to roam,” Violet commented, and glanced out the window. The looming boundary line close to the town proper was weighing on her. She had to ask, but the thought was... terrifying. “Particularly young wolves.”

“I’ve met some of the kids in this town that aren’t quite old enough to shift yet. They all seem to come in with constant scrapes and bruises. A lot of broken bones too.”

“My mother was constantly setting bones.” She had done so for Henrik more than once. It was actually one of the few healing things Violet herself had learned to do. “It’s like all of the energy burns up their good sense.”

Scarlett smiled at her politely while taking a sip, but the question was practically dangling in front of her.

Fuck. A stranger was not the person to ask. A stranger was the last person to ask.

“You should probably know something,” Scarlett said after a moment, and set her coffee mug down on the table. “Mardoc said that Henrik was like a brother to him, and they grew up close.”

Fuck, she didn’t want to hear this... Didn’t want to know...

“A few weeks ago, Mardoc’s grandmother passed away. It was her wish to stop shifting, as she was struggling with extensive lung damage, from the fire.”

Violet stared at the cup in front of her, her hands gripping it tight. She could see bubbles appearing on the surface, almost like the water was boiling inside the cup. That would make sense, given how she could feel her emotions starting to bubble over.

Nan was dead... and they had only missed her by a few weeks.

“How’s the rest of the family holding up?” Violet’s voice was shaky as she tried to find more words. “I can only guess how crushed Mardoc was. He adored his grandmother.”

“Rest of the family?” Scarlett asked, the shock apparent in her voice. “It was only Mardoc and his Nan.”

Violet looked up from her cup just as it started to freeze over, the boiling water turning to ice. What did she mean by—

“His parents,” Violet questioned, and blinked, twice. “His mom, and his dad.”

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