Page 35 of Stolen Mate

CHAPTER 14

TESS

Journal Entry, December 25th

There is no Santa Claus. I had thought that perhaps this Christmas I might find some joy. I always believed that finding out I was pregnant would be the ultimate gift. Such is not the case.

As much as I have tried to believe otherwise, I am a prisoner here. It’s a beautiful prison for the most part, but a prison, nonetheless. Most of those around me do not understand why I cannot simply conform. Why I cannot accept what happened to me and behave as if it hadn’t. I was kidnapped and mated to a man who sees me as nothing more than a vessel to carry his offspring.

They expect me to be grateful—at least the males do. But there are those females who yearn for a better life—only they are too afraid to snatch back their freedom and run. I am not among them.

I will see no child of mine raised in this place. We shall be free.

The more she read of Teresa’s journals the more she found to admire about the woman who had given birth to her. She must have been desperate—pregnant, alone, and knowing that any bid for freedom would be punished. Holding her mother’s journal, standing on the dock of the lighthouse compound, she looked out over the waters of the Gulf of Alaska.

Getting to know those who had once been a part of the clan at Akiak, she could well imagine what Teresa’s life might have been like. Not one person who had been at Akiak had anything good to say about it or its alpha, Henry.

She tipped her chin, considering. That wasn’t precisely true. Most expressed their surprise that he had sired offspring as exceptional as Zak, Annie, and Derek. Apparently, Derek had been a bit of a hellraiser when he was young, but Tess found him to be sweet and kind, but with the same air of authority as his older brother, Zak. Tess found herself increasingly drawn to him and her dreams continued to be rich, sensual, and incredibly erotic.

Even though those who had left Akiak to join Zak’s clan and Teresa’s journals painted a grim picture of life there, those here at the lighthouse compound shared their own experiences and confirmed that Teresa was not crazy and had to have been desperate to make a bid for her freedom with no one to help her. But Tess wanted to see it for herself. She supposed she wanted to look Henry in the eye and tell him her mother had taken back what he had stolen from her, and that Tess lived on in her name.

Derek was something of a conundrum. He could be goofy and gregarious, and yet there was an underlying steel to the man that belied his silly side. Part of her agreed with him that she had enough on her plate to deal with without becoming involved with him, especially as for Derek there would be nothing casual in their coming together. He truly believed they were fated mates, and when she allowed herself to think about it, she could almost believe it as well. But commitment to Derek meant leaving most of her old life behind.

Before she could commit to Derek, she needed to do two things: see her sister and go to Akiak and spit in the eye of the man who had robbed her mother of her freedom and ultimately her life. She had never once blamed her mother and father—the people who raised her—for Teresa’s death. She traced that right back to those at Akiak and ultimately to Henry. There was no way to tell what Teresa might have made of her life—good or bad.

“You don’t have to decide right this minute,” said Zak, who had come up beside her with the silence of a wraith moving through the wilderness. “You can take all the time that you need.”

“I thought you didn’t believe I was safe and wanted me to stay here,” she said without looking at him.

Zak chuckled—the sound so similar to Derek’s but lacking the ability to tickle its way up her skin and warm her to the depths of her soul. “I do want you safe. And I do believe you would be safest here with us or at least in Mystic River with Derek, but as my sister and mate remind me, you are strong, intelligent, and capable. The Shadow Sisters could help you, and even your sister, disappear. On the other hand, your sister could join us in Mystic River.”

Tess laughed. “My sister is not a bear-shifter, although I think she’d love the idea of shifters in general and would be a little disappointed that I was one and she wasn’t.”

“If that’s what she wanted, we could arrange for that—with or without her taking one of my people to mate.”

She searched his face. He was serious. He would offer her sister that gift. It was not something most clans would do. They would turn one of their own’s mate, but not just any human.

“Why?”

“Because she is your sister, and you are Derek’s mate. Don’t get me wrong; the unattached males in this clan would be all over trying to convince her to choose one of them, but if she wanted it, I would allow it.”

Tess sometimes forgot that the alphas of the clans were the ultimate authority, and their word was law.

“You don’t have to worry about it. She’s a vet in Seattle.”

“Otter Cove could use a vet. Autumn Miller, Jax’s mate, is an excellent vet, but she’s in Mystic River and has her hands full there. Besides, as you’ve no doubt heard, trouble is coming. We’re going to need all the medical help we can get. Doc is great, but he’s only one man and he’s a human doctor. The fact is, shifters heal better in their shifted form, so another vet would be an asset. Besides, Lara works with the Woodland Park Zoo and with exotic creatures.”

“Do you think she’s in danger? Derek kind of brushes it off when I ask him.”

Zak grinned. “Because Derek isn’t mated, he thinks it’s best to keep information he thinks will upset you from you. I, however, am far wiser…”

“Because you’re older?” Tess asked, skeptically.

“No. Because I am mated to Sienna, and I have learned the hard way it is far easier to tell her than to deal with the aftermath once she finds out—and she always finds out. My beautiful mate has a fiery temper, which she has no trouble turning on me. I didn’t mean to come down here and burden you with our troubles…”

“You didn’t. You gave me a lot to think about. I can’t thank you or everyone else here enough for your kindness and understanding.”

“Think nothing of it. You are one of us—Derek or not. You belong here, but I am not one who will force anyone to stay who wishes to leave. If you do choose to leave, think seriously about taking your sister with you wherever you go.”

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