Unhappily Ever After

Chapter 52 - One by One

"I like it here," Jess told me.

"Well, that's a relief," I replied, shouldering my way through a throng of Ian's men. It would have been easy for Jess to walk in my wake, but she seemed determined to carve her own path. "Since this is where we'll have to raise our pups."

She knew I was teasing, but she jostled me all the same. "I was thinking I might take the kids to Silver Lake. You know, keep them away from their shithead of a father."

I found myself laughing. I was quickly learning that, away from the careful manners of her pack, Jess gave as good as she got. Lee had run afoul of her once already by calling her a flockie, and he wouldn't quickly forget the tongue-lashing he'd received. She'd even matched Eira's fire in the trash-talk after the training session.

"My kids won't be flockies," I told her matter-of-factly. "And if I have to hold you prisoner here to make sure of it, I will. There's a dungeon, you know."

We squeezed through the gates and into the courtyard, where everyone was starting to gather. I picked out a spot near the middle and Jess stopped beside me and rolled her eyes. "You know, that might be funny if I didn't know you had a girl in that dungeon a fortnight ago."

"Kat?" I snorted. "She was our guest of honour — we treated her so well she didn't want to leave."

"Exaggeration, I'm sure," Jess muttered dryly.

"It's not, and you'll meet her tomorrow, so you can ask her if you want," I said, counting the crowd of people huddled under the eaves. Twenty — that was all the Llechi survivors save for Lee. They ranged from their forties to seven years old, although most were on the cusp of adulthood. "Now, what do you have to remember?"

"To stay close," she recited with a sigh.

"But?"

"But not too close."

"Perfect. Just make sure you keep a low profile. No one here is feeling too kindly towards Silver Lake at the moment," I reminded her, casting another pointed look at the Llechi survivors.

Jess followed my gaze. "I can't say I blame them. I know Terry, and I know his mate and his daughters, but ... like hell if he doesn't deserve it."

I shouldn't have been worried what Jess would make of all this.

"You're different here, you know," she murmured, barely loud enough to hear. "Rougher...? I don't know. They're all scared of you."

I wasn't sure if that was meant as praise or complaint, but it didn't matter, really. It was true. I smiled a bit, letting her know I agreed. "It's funny — I've been thinking the same about you. Two hours and you've got my raiders jumping into line."

She smiled back, and it was the proper warm smile that I loved. I wrapped an arm around her shoulder, pulling her into a sideways hug, and the mate bond waxed stronger for a moment.

"I told you. I like it here," she repeated, then wriggled out of my grip to stand close but not too close. It was distracting knowing she was behind me, but when Dafydd limped into the courtyard on his grandson's arm, my attention found a new home.

"I didn't know you were coming," I told him, trying to hide my concern before it annoyed him.

"Well, I wasn't going to miss it," he replied shortly.

"We can get you a chair—"

"I'll stand and watch on my own two feet," Dafydd growled. "Now, where's Oliver?"

I jerked a thumb towards the back rooms. "Fetching the prisoner."

And he was taking his time. But we had time to spare. It took another ten minutes for every rogue at Lle o Dristwch to pack themselves into the courtyard like fish in a barrel. More than two-thirds had to stand on the parapets above, because the middle of the courtyard was kept clear — a space twenty metres in diameter.