I couldn't stay at the Circus. I needed time to myself, but I had nowhere to go. I needed time to myself, to think things through, but I didn't know this city well enough to have a place to go to think and have a little peace. But I needed to call Richard and see if anyone could home Mezzo. So I decided I should go home and pick up Mezzo and take him to see Richard. If Richard couldn't home him I wasn't sure what I'd do as state care was no kind of care at all for a young shifter.
It was late afternoon when I finally pulled up outside my home another hour or so and darkness would fall. Nights were starting to draw in and it was getting colder. The contractors had been busy having already erected the wooden framing for the extension. I walked in through the front door seeing Mezzo lounging on the sofa with the TV on.
"Hey Mezzo." He jumped turning the TV and standing up like he'd been shocked. Dmitri never allowed him watch TV and if he was caught watching it he got a beating. "It's ok, you can watch it, I don't mind at all." He looked as if he would cry and as maternal as I was I went to him and wrapped my arms around him. He stiffened and was unmoving, but slowly he relaxed and hugged me back. I knew he was trying hard to control his tears. He was short for a 16 year old his head resting against my breast. He slowly pulled back making sure there were no signs of the tears he just cried then looked up at me a smirk on his face.
"You have real nice soft boobs." I rolled my eye but laughed.
"Yeah kid and that is as close as you'll ever get to them. Where's Gabby?" I asked looking round.
"In one of the bedrooms sleeping." He smiled and jumped back onto the sofa. I found Gabby in my room, but she wasn't sleeping.
"You ok Gabby?" She sat up pawing at her eyes and I felt sympathy wash through me. I sat down next to her and held her. Unlike Mezzo she immediately wrapped her arms around me and sobbed. I let her cry and held her close. She'd tried to kill me, but only because she thought I was Anita. And she really did want to make up or the hurt she had tried to cause. So I held her while she cried her heart out over her brother. Over him being turned into a Wereleopard, how because he felt so alone he attacked Gabby so he wouldn't be alone. But then he left her and was alone only hearing from Gabriel her brother occasionally. But then Anita killed and she felt lost and completely alone. Angry that someone took her brother's life. Then she met Blayne who promised her the earth, promised to make everything better, but he only made it worse, by using her to get to Anita. Now he was dead and she was all alone again.
I'd make it work. Aydan and James would understand. And this was my home at the end of the day so if I wanted her here then she could stay.
"Gabby you can stay here. We'll make it work." She held me closer and pressed her lips to my collar bone trailing up my neck. She didn't know how else to thank me. I stopped her pulling away and holding her face in my hands. "You don't need to do that. My life is complicated right now. You can stay here as long as you want."
"I'm sorry."
"You don't need to be sorry. It's just…" I sighed.
"You can talk to me, who am I going to tell?" She smiled softly, encouragingly.
"I just…Asher he confuses me. He's in love with Anita and Jean-Claude yet he wants me. Then I think I'm in love with Haven and he well I don't know but he wants Anita. Payne it was kinda just sex, but then now he wants more. Then there's you…" She blushed as if amazed I would consider her in my relationships. "Then I seem to be collecting submissive shifters like accessories. Aydan and James, Dani who shifts whenever she freaks who is an emotional wreck because of Dmitri the same son of a bitch that hurt Mezzo. And as much as I would love to keep Mezzo here and take care of him Dani would freak." She hugged me again.
"You'll end up doing the right thing Rylie. So don't worry."
After finally coaxing Mezzo into my car I was heading to the Lunatic Café.
"Is Richard like Dmitri?"
"No, well I don't know him that well, but from what I've been told and seen myself he's decent guy. And I'm sure he'll want to help you." I pulled up across the street and realised that Dani was in the car. In the back under a blanket. She was still asleep, she'd somehow got into my car. "Mezzo I need you to step out the car." But it was too late as Dani sat up the blanket covering her modesty and screamed. I scrambled over the back of the seats to her. "Dani, Dani! It's ok he won't hurt you!" Mezzo backed up as far away as he could from her in the car.
"I'm sorry Rylie, I didn't mean to scare her." Mezzo whispered. Dani was crying and then suddenly so was Mezzo.
"Mezzo," I went to comfort him, but couldn't as I was still holding Dani. Her tears stopped as she looked at Mezzo crying. She looked up at me her head cocked to the side her golden eyes confused as Mezzo rocked himself quietly. "Dmitri hurt him too and he doesn't want you to be afraid of him like he was Dmitri." She looked back at him and inch by inch she moved till she was in easy reaching distance of him with the blanket wrapped as firmly round her as she could get. She sat there for a moment as Mezzo cried silently. I dare hardly breathe as I knew she was gathering her courage and squashing her fears so she could touch him, comfort him. Then so suddenly she wrapped her arms around him and he her and they both sobbed. Two peas in a battered pod. They'd both endured so much hurt and anger, but that was what let Dani touch him even though she was so fearful of wolves. Mezzo pulled back first rubbing at his face, his eyes red and his nose stuffy as he looked at Dani.
"Hi." He croaked out.
"Hi." She smiled back tentatively.
"Mezzo we need to go in if we're to talk to Richard." I said softly.
"Why are you going to Richard?" Dani asked using the end of the blanket to wipe her face.
"I need to find someone that will home him." I said smiling sadly, though I knew almost immediately that she was going to say let him stay.
"Can't he stay with us?" She asked looking between him and me.
"I don't know Dani. Can he?" She realised that the only reason we were here was because I wanted her to feel safe, for her not to have to relive in her mind what Dmitri did to her every time she came across a Werewolf.
"Mezzo you can stay with us." Dani almost whispered. Mezzo hiccoughed and looked at Dani. And it was just then that you could see just how vulnerable, how hurt and afraid he really was.
Dani was curled up in the blanket next Mezzo when I pulled back up at the house. I needed to drop Mezzo off and I might as well introduce Dani to Gabby.
"Dani sweetie?" she looked up at me smiling. "There is a woman in the house, a Wereleopard. If it's ok with you and everyone else she'll be staying with us."
"Like Mezzo will be?" She asked looking up at Mezzo.
"No cos she's screwing Gabby." Mezzo smirked.
"One time. And like I said Dani only if you and the others are comfortable with her." I assured Dani.
"Can I meet her?" I smiled.
"Of course and we can grab something for you to wear." I said taking the key from the ignition and climbing out.
Mezzo dived on the sofa the second he was inside making Dani giggle. It was sweet how she instantly took to liking him. I guess she felt, I don't know a kinship to him, having both been at the mercy of Dmitri. Gabby came through in a pair of leggings and one of my old baggy tops, her hair thrown up in a scrunchie, I looked at her amusedly for making herself right at home.
"Gabby this is Dani, Dani this is Gabby." Gabby smiled and held her hand out.
"Hi sweet heart." Dani looked at her, evaluation and sniffing the air as if that would tell her if she could trust her. Then finally she took Gabby's hand.
"Nice to meet you." Then she looked at me. "I don't mind if she stays Rylie." Then she walked away to get changed leaving Gabby smiling and happy.
"Who else is left? I mean who else has to be ok with me being here? Sorry that sounds bad."
"No it's alright, just Aydan, James and Julian." I smiled. Then Dani did the first teenage thing I'd ever seen her do, she ran and jumped over the back of the sofa landing on Mezzo. She was trying bless her. Really trying hard to put her past behind her and her first step was to start acting like the teenager she was.
"Is Mezzo coming back to the Circus with us?" Dani asked.
"Yeah and Gabby to and I can have all the hot chicks." Mezzo added with a cheeky smile.
"Well," I started but Gabby cut across.
"I can't I need to stay here. Someone's gotta make sure the contractors are doing their job right." I smiled sadly at her annoyed with Anita and reached out to take Gabby's hand comfortingly.
"Well I'm staying too." Mezzo said and Dani looked at Gabby and sensed there was more to it.
"Me too. If Gabby and Mezzo stay here then I wanna stay too."
Driving back to the Circus I couldn't help but smile. Home at least everything was going well. I was pretty sure that Aydan and James wouldn't mind and that Julian would then easily agree so Gabby could now stay with us.
I wasn't far from the Circus when I saw a lump in the middle of the road. I couldn't hear anything so I stepped out with my gun at hand. I crouched down beside the young woman. She was dead, bites all over her, on every inch of skin I could see. I sensed him sooner than he had hoped and dived out of the way, but he came at me gain and as I struggled against him another came behind me and something sharp pierced my neck. The world went fuzzy, my limbs numb and then it went black.
It was cold and dark when I woke up. Chains held me in place, my arms held up and I was on my knees.
"Rylie…glad your awake I wouldn't want you to miss this."
A/N: Gabby belongs to Zombie450AirBournePrincess, Aydan belongs to Krazy 13, Julian belongs to J4M3Z XO, Dani belongs to KaneLovesTristen, Mezzo belongs to HaphazardbyMikey and James belongs to me and Krazy 13. Thanks for them Broski's :D. R&R please :D