Page 12 of Wolf's Fate
“I don’t thinkIcan handle it,” I blurted without thought, knowing I’d said too much when her eyes widened.
“Try me?” When I said nothing, she huffed out a laugh. “Fine, I get it. You’re beinghonorableand shit.”
Chewing the corner of my bottom lip, I felt the weight of doubt press down on me again. I was doing the right thing, I knew I was, but I was worried that by doing so, the secret—and it was a pretty big secret—would fray the edges of our friendship. “You accept I’m not telling you everything?” I asked, and despite the sigh, she nodded. “And you accept that I’m not doing it out of spite, but because it matters?” She nodded again. “And we’re still friends?” I laughed when she laid her hand out flat, tilting it from side to side. “Okay,” I accepted with a smile. “It’s rocky, I get it.”
Reaching out, I took hold of her hand and was relieved when she gave it a slight squeeze.
“I know you, Willow Harper,” she spoke quietly. “I know that when you can’t tellme, then you can’t tell anyone. I hate that,” she said with a rueful smile. “But I know you’ll hate it more.” Sitting back, she let go of my hand. “Let’s go through it again, without the thing you can’t mention, but with more of the details of what you can.”
My heart raced with adrenaline, but also an overwhelming sense of gratitude. She deserved to know the truth or as much as I could tell her. Taking a deep breath, I began again—telling her about Caleb, the drawings, and the danger hunting me that I didn’t understand myself. I laid it all out, except for the one secret that wasn’t mine to tell.
She listened intently. I could see her reaction as she absorbed details I hadn’t shared before, and I could see thewheels turning as she listened. When I finished, she sat there in silence with what I hoped was understanding.
“I think we need Dean and Sam,” she spoke suddenly, and I smiled at herSupernaturalreference. “Honestly, we need the Winchesters. There is too much otherworldly craziness here. You’re psychic and linked to a guy you don’t know, and we need to check for hex bags.”
“This is why I didn’t want to tell you more.”
“And you thought I wouldn’t beinthis with you?” she asked me incredulously. “You know me better than this, Willow.”
I couldn’t help but laugh in relief, the weight lifting off of me. She didn’t know it all, she knew it was more, and she wasn’t flinching. She was still here. Still sitting beside me.
“Willow?”
“Yeah?”
“I know you made a promise,” she said as she watched me, the intensity back in her gaze. “But when you can, you promiseme, right now, if things get worse, you tell me everything. No more hidden truths. No more half facts. I want to hear you say we have a deal. Deal?”
I hesitated for a moment, that one secret I hadn’t shared still sitting heavy on my conscience. But I nodded anyway. “Deal.”
“Good girl.” She beamed at me, and I noticed that my tummy didn’t flutter like it had when Caleb said it. “So…let’s figure this shit out. We need to know who was in your house, what they want, and how we get through to Caleb.”
“We?”
“Of coursewe. We do this together, or I get you committedto a mental facility for being insane because you think you’re psychically linked to a figment of your imagination.”
The laughter burst from me, and it felt so good to laugh. “That’s brutal,” I told her, wiping my eyes when I finally calmed down.
“You know I will,” she said with such pride that I started laughing again.
The sound of the front door opening sobered me, the reminder that I wasn’t in my home, and that reminder hit hard. Other people were cleaning up the disarray in my business and personal life, while I sat on the sidelines, hiding.
Lily reached over and took my hand again, her eyes flicking to the door, but she said nothing. I knew we were both thinking the same thing.What now?Neither of us would have an answer until whoever was coming up the stairs told us. I felt trapped suddenly between my guilt and the feeling of exhaustion, as uncertainty on how to face it all hung over me.
I heard the footsteps approach, the tread light, and I exchanged a look with Lily, both of us prepared for Lorna to appear and burst the small fragile bubble of safety we had hidden in over the last couple of hours.
The door opened slowly, Lorna popping her head around, seeing we were both awake and stepping into the room with more noise. Her face was drawn, but it had softened when she saw us both.
“Girls, are you okay?” she asked, looking between us. “Everything in the store is as good as it’s going to be tonight.” She rubbed her forehead. “I’m so sorry, Willow, we couldn’t save any of the art.”
“It’s okay, I knew that,” I consoled her, even though it wasmy art. I’d known the moment I walked in earlier tonight that it was unsalvageable. I’d have to reach out to the other artists that I showcased and let them know.
“Noel, my husband,” she added unnecessarily, “he stayed at your house. Called one of his workers in. The locks are changed.” She fished in her pocket, laying out two new house keys. “Your dad,” she spoke to Lily, “got the store locks changed. This is them.” She lay another two keys down. “The house will take a little more time,” she said softly. “You can stay here for as long as you like, okay?”
“You and Noel have done more than enough, Lorna,” I told her gratefully. “I think I’ve already imposed as much as I should.”
“You are welcome in my house,” she told me firmly. “I want you to feel safe, and you won’t feel that until you’ve had a good night’s sleep and can face all this in the morning.” She looked at Lily briefly but took a step forward. “We saw the knife on the floor, Willow. No one should have to hold a knife in their hand before walking into their bedroom.”
I remembered the look Ned had given me. “I didn’t. I put the knife down,” I said with a scornful laugh.