CHAPTER 3

Settling In

He couldn't settle. He'd hoped that after the plate of meat Spencer had brought him, he'd be able to sleep. But he couldn't settle. His face was still stinging from the powder the old woman had sprinkled over his face and he wasn't sure that there was more that twelve-inches-square of him that hadn't been set on fire with that god awful salve. And thinking about it seemed to inspire every one of the damn bite marks to ache.

He felt the hair on his neck rise and he turned to face the door, but no one was there. It felt like someone was coming so he kept an eye on the door. Will should be here. It still felt like Will was here and that was strange. When Eliot had brought him into the pack it had been overwhelming. It felt like his arm caught fire and then the fire had moved inside followed by feelings, emotions, sensations, that weren't his. When the wave had crested, he couldn't tell what was him and what wasn't, but after, after had been… At first, all he felt was relief that the wolf wasn't going to run wild. But now without the old woman distracting him with one painful thing after another he had time to feel his connections to his new pack. But Will was still there. How could he feel Will? He'd watched Will die and there was no question. So how could….

"Quinn? You okay?" Spencer was at the door and Quinn could feel genuine concern coming from him in the pack bonds.

"It's weird. None of this feels right." Quinn curled a little tighter. The wolf felt the need to protect his vulnerable belly.

"What doesn't feel right?"

"You, them, Will. I still feel Will." And he could feel Parker and Hardison and Eliot, and it was all settling over him like an itchy blanket.

"I've never experienced it, but I've heard that sometimes when a wolf dies their pack can still feel them. I'm told it fades after a while."

It would help if he couldn't feel Will.

"What do you need to feel safe?"

Quinn couldn't quite hide his surprise. That was it! Eliot had put his finger on the problem. This room smelled like people he didn't know, and he wouldn't admit it out loud, but he wasn't sure he could defend himself right now. Even with the extra meat and Eliot feeding him energy to heal, he still felt weak as a kitten. He knew that was why his wolf had been in such a state as well.

"What do you need to feel safe?" Eliot asked again. "I promised protection and I meant it but if you want something that you've got more control of that's fine."

Quinn thought about asking for a gun. He always slept better with a gun under his pillow. But he knew that Eliot didn't use guns and so he probably wouldn't have one to loan. The old woman might. It had been obvious from the start that she was well prepared for anything. He could feel Eliot's willingness to protect him and having the Alpha so close was helping his wolf relax. "Can you watch the door?" Quinn shifted a little.

"I'll be right back." Eliot left but was back in a moment with a ladder-back chair. He set the chair in the doorway and taking a seat he rocked back so that he was reclined in the doorway with his head resting against the door frame. "Go ahead and sleep. Nothing will get past me."

Quinn nodded and closed his eyes. It was weird that Eliot's scent made him feel safe. Eliot had been one of the most respected, and sometimes feared, operators that Quinn had ever heard of, at least before Eliot joined his little band of Robinhoods. Still, sleeping this close to someone who could so easily kill him seemed like a risk, but his wolf was content, so he chose to follow the wolf's instincts. Eliot had always been a man of his word so if he said he would stand guard Quinn knew that he would. He could feel sleep creeping up on him and he fell into it willingly.

~~o0o~~

Ms. Teo came down the hall with a fresh cup of beef broth tea. "How's the pup doin'?"

"He's sleeping finally." Eliot took a sip of the tea. "It's gotta be weird, suddenly being a part of a pack. My connections to the team came on so gradually that I almost didn't notice. He's been thrown in the deep end, and he's still feeling his connection to Will. Gotta be weird."

"You just keep lookin' after 'im an' it all work out fo' da best." She patted his cheek and headed down the hall.

She was back in a few minutes with sweatpants and a t-shirt. "When da boy wake up he might like to get 'is self cleaned up."

"Thanks. I really appreciate it." He traded her his empty cup for the clean clothes. He could feel Parker's excitement and Hardison's wariness in the bonds. He wasn't surprised that they hadn't waited for him to call them before they booked their flights and in the end, he was glad about it. He had been hoping that Quinn had just gotten himself torn up on a job and was calling in his favor, but this was a real mess.

The new connection to Quinn flared and Eliot could feel a hunger that seemed directly connected to Quinn's wolf. "Greedy little thing." Eliot smiled as he let the wolf draw on him more strongly. He knew he'd be wiped after this but if it meant that Quinn was in fighting shape sooner then that was a good trade.

His phone buzzed in his pocket. It was a txt from Hardison

Let me help

?

You can let Quinn draw from me too

Are you sure?

Yes

K

Eliot smiled as he tucked his phone back in his pocket. He started to draw energy from Hardison in a trickle. Quinn's wolf was pulling steadily, and Eliot didn't want it to draw on Hardison directly, since he wasn't sure Hardison would be able to control how much he gave. He wanted Quinn to heal but he needed all of them to still be functional even if it meant that Quinn didn't heal as fast as absolutely possible. Eliot was surprised to feel a push from Hardison in the bonds, so he let Hardison give just a little more.

~~o0o~~

Eliot checked the time on his phone. Two-thirty in the afternoon. Parker and Hardison would be landing soon. Eliot glanced into the room and saw blue eyes staring back at him. He let the chair rock forward and standing, he set it to the side. "Quinn?"

With a yawn turned groan Quinn rolled to his back and stretched. "Damn. I can't decide if I feel better or worse."

"Been there." Eliot held out the clean clothes. "How 'bout a shower?"

"Sounds good." Quinn swung himself into a seated position and had to give it to the count of three before the dizziness passed and he could stand.

Eliot led him down the hall and around a corner. "Let me know when you're out. Ms. Teo needs to put more of that butterbur salve on you."

"The shit that burned like hellfire?" Quinn raised an eyebrow.

"Yep. That's the stuff." Eliot chuckled as he walked away.

~~o0o~~

Hardison and Parker came through the door in a wave of happy chatter and excess baggage. Ms. Teo hurried from the kitchen to meet her newest guests and seeing a face she clearly didn't expect she threw herself into the fray with a gleeful cry. "Baby!"

"Mama!" Tyrel bent low to hug his mother.

"Tyrel baby! Why didn' ya tell me you was comin'?" Ms. Teo wiped at her eyes with the back of her hand.

"I thought it would be nice to surprise you!" He scooped her into another fierce hug.

Hardison and Parker had stepped to the side with Eliot. Parker watched the exchange with curiosity and a touch of regret. She leaned into Hardison but looked at Eliot. "Did your mom do that?"

"My mama died when I was in high school. So I was never really gone from her for that long but yah, she was a hugger." A half-smile crept onto his face.

"How's Quinn?" Hardison asked as he wrapped his arms around Parker pulling her back to his front.

"Still in the shower." Eliot couldn't imagine what could be taking so long but had no intention of asking either.

As if summoning a jinn with their conversation, the bathroom door cracked open and a wave of steam rolled out just before Quinn stepped through the door with a towel wrapped around his waist.

Eliot turned an assessing look on Quinn. "Well, ya look better at least."

"If this is better, I'm glad I didn't see worse." Hardison commented.

The right side of Quinn's face was red and puffy still, but he could open and close the eye on that side. There were still several identifiable bite marks scattered over him, but they looked like they'd been healing for a while and not like he'd just been chewed on. "Eliot's still keeping you around huh? I still don't know how he does it." A charming smile curled across Quinn's face until the pain from the swelling on his right side made him stop.

"Let's get the doctoring over with so you can get your clothes on." Eliot rolled his eyes. If Quinn was giving them sass, he was feeling better. "Ms. Teo do you have that salve handy?" Eliot asked but his eyes were fixed on the four deep slashes that were still gaping on Quinn's back.

Tyrel had kept an eye on Quinn as well. "You still keeping the butterbur in the same tin?" He asked his mother.

"Sure do chil'." She smiled up at him.

"Let me fetch it." He kissed the top of her head and hurried for the basement.

"I'll let you an' Tyrel han'le the doctorin' while I get to workin' on some food fo' ever'body." She patted Eliot on the shoulder and held a hand out to Parker. "Why don' you come wit' me an' tell me all about life up there in Portlan'."

Parker kissed Hardison's cheek and let Ms. Teo tow her away to the kitchen.

It was determined that four grown men were not going to fit comfortably into Ms. Teo's small bathroom, so Eliot brought a towel and a stool from the basement and got Quinn situated in the living room.

Eliot handed Quinn the tin of salve. "Apply it to everything you can reach that ain't healed up yet." Eliot felt Quinn's hesitation. "Just do it." He growled but didn't make it an order.

Tyrel was gently prodding around the wounds to Quinn's back. "The bite wounds are healing pretty well but these four gashes… Do you know what happened here?"

Eliot frowned and held his hand out showing that the four gashes lined up with his fingers. "Looks like a werewolf did that."

"How do you know it wasn't a vampire? Didn't you say they had claws when they're lookin' like bats or whatever?" Hardison had settled into Ms. Teo's couch with his laptop.

"But when they're in their Nosferat form they only have three fingers at most, and the older ones might only have the one thumb-claw." Tyrel spoke but his focus was mostly on Quinn. "Eliot can you smell anything coming from these wounds? They look like they're infected which is weird since wolves never really deal with infections."

"Excuse me come again?" Hardison leaned forward to look at Tyrel. "Did you say vampires don't have fingers when they get old?"

Tyrel nodded at Hardison but focused on Eliot.

Eliot put his hand on Quinn's shoulder and leaned closer. "Your right that they look infected. But I don't smell anything wrong."

"It was Will." Quinn's voice was quiet.

Eliot moved around so he could see Quinn's face. "Will did that to you?"

Quinn nodded.

"Why?"

"They made him." Quinn kept his eyes on his hands where he was picking at a hangnail. "The vampires were able to control him… Controlled all of us. They couldn't seem to control all three of us at the same time but…" Quinn's words faded out with a shrug.

"Who was Will?" Hardison and Tyrel asked at the same time."

"His Alpha, before me." Eliot answered and gave Quinn's shoulder a squeeze.

"Since you're his Alpha now can you heal him?" Tyrel asked.

"I don't know." Eliot remembered how easily he'd been able to heal the bite wound he'd left in Hardison's neck and tried to replicate it with Quinn. He put his hand over one of the claw marks and focused his will and energy. The energy seemed to build until his temples throbbed with it but it didn't have much effect on the wound. Eliot stepped back and could see the mark he'd focused on was only slightly less inflamed than the other three. "Doesn't look like I'm gonna be much help." Eliot shook his head and sat on the couch next to Hardison.

"Since you don't smell any infection, do you want me to stitch them?" Tyrel looked at Eliot.

"Quinn?" Eliot asked.

Quinn looked at Eliot confused.

"El's not big on orders when he doesn't have to be." Hardison said without taking his eyes off of his computer screen.

"Yes. He wants you to stitch them." Parker's voice announced her presence in the room.

Quinn flinched and his eyes flashed blue before he spotted her. "When did you get there?"

Parker shrugged. "If Eliot can't heal those cuts yet they should be stitched."

Quinn looked over his shoulder at Tyrel. "Like the lady said."

~~o0o~~

After Tyrel finished stitching Quinn up, they all settled in around Ms. Teo's dining room table. She brought out bowls of gumbo and two loaves of thick sliced bread.

"This is a nice-lookin' table you got here mama." Tyrel smiled. "Almost as nice as that china hutch you used to have in that corner." He tilted his chin to indicate a corner of the room.

Ms. Teo flapped a hand at him. "Go on wit' ya now. You know wolves is hard on da furniture." She smiled.

"I don't remember a hutch in this room." Eliot looked around the room as if trying to recall a hutch that wasn't there.

"Tha's 'cus my Henry and some a 'is pack mates broke it up horsin' aroun' afta a football game." She rolled her eyes and Tyrel laughed.

Conversation fell into stories about the furniture in the house that hadn't survived contact with the wolves. Followed by funny stories from Quinn and Eliot about things they or other wolves had broken by accident. There was laughing and retelling and a generally happy atmosphere spreading through the room.

Parker was enjoying the stories as much as the rest when she leaned against Hardison, resting her head on his shoulder. "I think we need accents." She whispered to him.

"How's that momma?" He gently squeezed her leg.

"Everyone here has a southern accent but us." She smiled as she listened to Quinn's latest story.

"Tyrel doesn't have much of an accent." Hardison kissed the top of her head.

"Bet he could if he wanted to."

Quinn glanced at them. "Eliot do you remember that one oligarch with the bad English accent?"

Eliot frowned.

"Remember… back when you were still doing retrievals." Quinn prompted.

"The guy that always had a duck on his tie?"

Before long everyone was telling stories about ridiculous outfits that they'd either seen or worn. Eventually Eliot noticed Quinn dropping out of the conversation and starting to blink slower than normal.

"Ms. Teo, remind me where you keep your clean sheets?" Eliot said as he stood and grabbed up the bowls and plates around the table.

Ms. Teo looked at Quinn with a smile. "If ya take care a clearin' up, I'll get da beds made up." She rose with a little hitch and moved off in the direction of her linen cupboard.

"Here, let me help." Hardison hurried after Ms. Teo.

There was a beat of silence at the table before Tyrel looked at Quinn. "Let me take another look at your back."

"It's fine doc." Quinn gave himself a little shake and stood up.

"Why?" Parker asked Tyrel.

"Wolves heal so quickly that I want to check and see how much difference a lot of food and…" he checked his watch. "about an hour's worth of time have made. It'll give me a better idea of how he's actually healing."

"Quinn. You should let Tyrel take a look at you."

"I'm fine."

"Why are wolfys always so stubborn?" Parker shook her head and pushed at the pack bonds. "Let Tyrel take a look." She knew she couldn't make it an order, but she did her best to make it one anyway.

Quinn focused on Parker. "You really are the second in this pack, aren't you?"

"Yep."

Eliot called from the kitchen. "Just do what Parker tells you. It will make life a lot easier."

Parker smiled.

Quinn chuckled and strode to the living room while he pulled off his shirt.

"Parker, would you come too." Tyrel asked as he rose from the table. "Just sit in that armchair in front of the stool."

Parker curled herself into the armchair with a smile.

"Quinn if you wouldn't mind keeping your eyes on Parker." Tyrel picked up the tin of salve.

"Oh, not that stuff again. What's with you people and that hellfire cream?" Quinn had smelled the salve again when the lid was pried off.

"It works kind of like an antivenin against the vampire venom. It's a neutralizing agent that allows the body to flush the venom from its system. It also promotes healing even on the wounds that aren't vampire bites."

"Well, it stinks." Quinn's nose wrinkled.

"What do you smell when you smell Parker?" Tyrel asked to distract Quinn, as he applied a fingerful of salve.

Quinn's shoulders stiffened at the sting and burn of the salve, but his eyes fixed on Parker. "Pack, and jasmine." He smiled and his eyes went blue.

"That's right. Pack." Parker smiled back.

Eliot stood in the kitchen drying a dish and couldn't help the smile on his face when he saw how well they were settling in.