Page 89 of Rest In Knotty Pieces

“Us?”

“Me, Raptor, Raven, Jay, Dove.”

“There are six of you?” he almost shouts.

I just smile at him, not giving him the answers he wants. I’m angry with him now, but I need to contain my anger. If I get too stressed, Raven will come out, and if she comes out, everyone will hate us, and then I’ll have to come and patch things up again.

I turn away and find myself face to face with the alpha that I recognise as Blaze. He steps towards me, but his expression is dark and threatening, so I dance back, but that finds me pressed up against Sage.

Their scents are what hit me, what undo me.

In the shared memories we have, they are dulled down, but being out and experiencing it, it’s like heaven.

“Where is Merle?” Blaze asks, so cold, so impassive.

I huff and try not to be offended, but then King appears. I find myself walking towards him without understanding why. He’s got a scratch on his shoulder, and I dab at it, cleaning it up.

“This is Kestrel,” Pix says in the kind of voice that is just oozing for a fight.

Rolly glowers at me as he gives me a wide berth.

“Kestrel?” Roseland asks sharply. “Oh, I thought…never mind.”

“Yeah, I know I’m not who you are all looking for,” I say bitterly as King catches my wrist, preventing me from mopping up any more of his wounds.

“Wait, who are you looking for?” Pix accuses Roseland.

“Raven,” Roseland says her name softly, with a great deal of affection. So much that even I’m startled.

“You know Raven? There’s actually another one of them?” Pix almost shouts. “You knew there were more of her?”

Roseland watches me carefully. “Raven told me about you. She said you take care of everyone. Merle blocks the pain, but you hold the front. Raven and Raptor protect you all.”

I incline my head, smiling shyly. “It is so wonderful to meet you, Roseland.”

“Are there others? What about the others?” Pix asks sharply.

“Well, Jay is another protector, but he’s-”

“He?”

I sniff, ignoring Pix and his disbelief.

“Dove is little. She doesn’t come out much. And Raptor is the ultimate protector. Blood will rain if she comes out to play. Like I said, she’s a little stabby.” I wrap my arms around me and shiver.

No one does anything or even cares. Rude.

Rolly blinks several times. “When will Merle come back?”

I scowl at him. “When she stops hiding.”

“Why is she hiding?”

“Who the hell knows? She saw something that scared her, and it summoned us. We can’t remember. Merle doesn’t like to remember the past. She has this tendency to just block out the things that scare her.”

“Who is us and we?” Blaze asks.

“The rest of us.” This is starting to get on my nerves now. It’s darker, the storm is heading away, and the world is suddenly quieter, and dawn is breaking, bringing light with it.