Eclipsed Hearts

Trust and Monsters

[Bailey]

Ian organized his things smartly and packed light, but I knew Keaton wanted to talk to him, so I planned to take my time. I didn’t know why my instincts were telling me to trust a werewolf so damned much, but I was going to follow that instinct. I needed all the allies I could get right now.

Instead of pacing around or trying to listen in, I put together all the items in his bathroom and then went searching for more. After I was certain I had it all, I sat on the edge of the tub and waited. I figured they would come get me when they were done.

Part of me was a little upset that Keaton invited Ian to come stay in his room, but part of me was glad. I wasn’t some damsel in distress, but having backup made me feel a hell of a lot better. There was something that was happy for another reason, but I didn’t want to focus on that. It wasn’t important right now.

Waiting for them to be done was tedious. Why did I have to be the sort of person who understood and respected things like this? I should have been nosy. Getting information should be important.

I knew why he was talking to me, but what could he have to say to Ian? Was it just to instruct him about what was going on? Why didn’t he want me to hear it?

I picked at my fingernails. I was afraid of the answer. What if it was something terrible? What if there was more going on than I knew?

One thing I hated was not knowing what was going on. When I was on hunts, I was useful and regarded pretty well for a woman. If nothing else, I was a Damson, and that got me some respect.

This hunt was putting me outside my comfort zone in a lot of different ways. A hunt with only one other person, with a target we couldn’t just ambush, with the added danger of me being hunted, and with little to no respect for me and what I could do. None of it made sense to me.

It was as if the world suddenly became this abstract place I couldn’t quite comprehend. Everything was strange and I could feel the corners of my eyes dampen as I struggled to put my feelings in the little bottle where they belonged. I’d already cried two times in the last two or three days. This was fuсking ridiculous.

I wasn’t the girl who cried. Tears weren’t useful. Why was this happening to me?

As I sat there on the edge of the tub, lost in my thoughts and anxiety, I heard footsteps approaching the bathroom. Keaton and Ian came in, their expressions serious yet unreadable. I quickly stood up, trying to gauge from their faces what they’d talked about.

Keaton gave me a reassuring nod before turning to Ian. “Anything else you might need, Ian?”

Ian glanced around, then checked through his bag. He shook his head.

“This is everything. Let’s finish up here and move on to Mari’s room. We still need to plan the guard rotation and go over rules for while we’re staying with you.”

Of course, he was all business. He wasn’t the sort to get wrapped up in the past. I couldn’t help but focus on his mouth, remembering the kiss we shared.

How had it been the best kiss I’d ever gotten? Why couldn’t it have been terrible? Why did I have to crave another one?

Keaton cleared his throat and gave Ian a meaningful look before heading back out to the bedroom. Ian stared at me in a way that made me fidget. I was so nervous.

“I know you’re scared,“ Ian began, his tone gentle yet firm. “But you’re not alone in this. I’ll do everything in my power to protect you, no matter what happens.”

“You think that’ll change what happened earlier or that I’d forget? You kissed me then acted like I was in the wrong for it. If you think being the target of killers is enough to make me drop it, you seriously underestimate how well-trained and deadly I am. I don’t need you and if Keaton didn’t feel you’d be helpful, I would have you finishing our work. I know you’re mad about our hunt being delayed because people are trying to kill me. If I’d known about them earlier, I wouldn’t have come,” I replied.

“Damn it, Mari. You need to learn how to drop a fuсking topic. Keeping you safe until this is over is important. We’re going to kill that fuсking wolf and you will avenge your family. Understand?”

I blinked at him. His eyes were fierce, as if he was vowing his own vengeance.

Ian crossed the room in two enormous steps, pulling me into his arms. My ear rested against his chest and I listened to his heart as I thought about my family. Ian was right; I needed to survive this trip so I could kill that werewolf.

“He’s an aѕѕhole. He tried blackmailing me. I’m not as easy to manipulate as he thinks, and neither are you. I know you’ll act right. We don’t negotiate with the enemy. He’s not getting what he wants from you or from me.”

“What did he want from you?” I asked, the soothing warmth of his arms making me forget how much he hated me.

“He wanted something dear to me. We’ll leave it at that. He doesn’t know exactly who I am, but he knows I’m showing up in the places he frequents and asking questions,” Ian responded.

The way his body shook when he said the werewolf wanted something dear to him told me how true that statement was. No one could mimic that shiver of finely controlled rage unless they understood that feeling. I wrapped my arms around him and hugged him.

I didn’t know why I did that, but it felt like the right thing to do. He stiffened for a moment before relaxing. Of course, Ian didn’t want to accept comfort from me, but he needed it.

“Someone is trying to kill me, but I can promise before I let that happen, we’re going to kill that bastard. He took my family and he’s trying to steal from you. I won’t let him take anything from you,” I murmured.

“Even if what I was protecting was something you hate?” he asked quietly.

“Ian, you have to understand that it’s not just about getting revenge. This hunt is about reclaiming something lost, something essential to me. Despite our differences, we’re in this together. We have to be.”

He stroked my hair in a way that made me feel calmer. I didn’t really like being touched, but he was the only person I didn’t seem to have some sort of repulsion from. It was strange, but I wouldn’t question it. I only wanted to enjoy it. For the first time, he didn’t seem to hate me or be searching for reasons to hate me.

Whatever Keaton talked to him about, Ian seemed to be a different person from before. It didn’t matter much, but I enjoyed feeling supported by him. I wanted to feel that more. I wanted him to need me and appreciate me. The silliness of that thought made me shake my head a little and pull away from him.

“We should get moving. We need to get my stuff and get to Keaton’s room. I want to get some sleep,” I whispered.

“Right…. Mari, I know how your family feels about werewolves and your history with them, but I was wondering what you thought of them. Honestly, not just the one who killed your family,” Ian asked me.

He was giving me a chance to redeem my previous comment about them being monsters. Or at least about the children. Or some other chance. There was a hopeful light that flickered briefly in his eyes.

“I only know what I was taught and what I know about the werewolves I’ve hunted. Honestly, I don’t know if I know enough to draw conclusions about the ones other than the ones I hunt. I just… I pray sometimes for the children. My family isn’t the only hunter clan who believes children are monsters. Please don’t hate me, but I don’t think that. If there’s a way to stop them from becoming werewolves, we need to find it,” I told him. “As for the adults, I guess it depends on who they are and what they’re doing.”

“What do you think of Keaton?” he pressed.

I thought for a minute. What did I think of the Alpha who was trying to protect me?

“He’s not as bad as I thought he would be. He definitely doesn’t fit the image of a ruthless Alpha who’s willing to sacrifice anyone for power. Keaton seems more… human. I don’t know if that’s a good thing or not,” I admitted, unsure of my own feelings towards the werewolf leader. “But I trust him, and that means something in our world.”

“A Damson trusting a werewolf. That’s something I never thought I’d see. Why do you trust him?”

“No clue. Something in me says he has my best interest at heart right now. I don’t know how true that will be later, but I’m going to trust it. Like how I trust you,” I ended softly.

Ian was silent at that. He looked down at me and that sharpness in his eyes that he always had when he looked at me softened. I felt my face and body heat as a blush took me over.

He reached out and gently tucked a loose strand of hair behind my ear, his touch sending a shiver down my spine. His hand lingered there for a moment, his gaze searching mine as if trying to decipher a hidden code.

“You shouldn’t,” he replied before grabbing his bag and leaving the room.