Jackson flipped the switch on the bedside box as they left the room. “Come back in an hour with some lavender tea,” Jackson spoke clearly as soon as they stepped out into the hallway.
“Yes, sir.” Kia blew him a kiss and laughed as she left.
“Follow me.”
Barely in his peripheral, Wren kept pace with him. Down the hallway, up another staircase. They stopped in front of a set of intricately carved double oak doors. Jackson ran a finger over the nose of a carving of a wolf and steeled himself before knocking.
“Come in.”
Jackson straightened up and opened the door. “Dad.”
His dad was sitting behind his desk, bent over some paperwork. His glasses rested on the end of his nose. His dark hair was starting to gray around the edges. A shadow of stubble told Jackson enough about what kind of day he’d had, and he straightened his spine further.
With a heavy sigh, his dad took off his glasses and set them on top of the papers he’d been reading. He covered his eyes with his hand as he rubbed his temple. “You have single-handedly caused every single one of these gray hairs. Care to explain to me why I received two phone calls this evening? One from a very happy market owner and one from a very pissed off Louis Warrick.”
Louis Warrick. He recognized the name, but he wasn’t sure he’d ever seen the man before earlier at the auction. “Yep -”
His dad looked up with a glare.
“Yes,” Jackson corrected himself. “I asked about the four wolves in the unmarked cage and what they were. The response I received was that I wouldn’t be able to afford them and I should keep looking.”
“So naturally you had to purchase one of them.”
“No, sir. I was just proving a point by pulling up their profiles. I saw wolf C36M657 had a second speciality in personal and was undefeated after 24 years of fighting.” His dad nodded, none of this information was new to him. “Your instructions were to ‘buy a wolf worthy of being beside me.’ There were no other wolves there who could have held a candle to what this one has.”
“Yes, it’s a very impressive record, but how do you think the college is going to like having a 32 year old wolf in their dorms?”
“There are no age requirements. The only requirement was gender and a specialty in personal.” Jackson had scanned those requirements more times than he could count in hopes of finding a loophole.
“Jackson,” his dad sighed. “You spent 20 million dollars to prove a point to an ally of ours.” An ally of his dads. Any ally of his dad was an enemy to him.
“You probably could have donated half of that to the school and they would have looked the other way when I brought Kia to the dorms.”
His dad’s glare intensified, but Jackson was mostly immune to it after 18 years of being the receiving end of it. “If you expect me to honor our agreement, then you better stop these fucking games.”
That wiped the smile off his face. “It didn’t start as a game. I was just looking for one I wouldn’t mind having with me, then everything happened and at that point I couldn’t change my mind without looking weak, which I knew you wouldn’t want me doing. I’ll keep to the spirit of the agreement from here on.”
“See that you do.” His dad leaned back. His gaze focused over Jackson’s shoulder on Wren.. “We could run him in a couple fights and get some of that money back. I heard he always drew a big crowd.”
“No.” Jackson spoke too soon. The words hadn’t even finished leaving his dad’s mouth. His dad raised his eyebrows at him. “Mom would never forgive us.”
“Your mom is dead. Whether or not she approves is no longer something we worry about.”
No. It’s no longer something his dad worried about. Jackson worried about it all the time. “Regardless, he’s my wolf and he won’t be in any fights.”
His dad hummed and reached for his glasses. “You’ll be leaving in four days. Don’t forget to program his collar to your bracelet. I hope you don’t mind, but I called the college and made sure your living arrangements would be, ah, up to our standards.”
His heart sank. Shit. “Of course. Thanks- Thank you, dad. It’s getting late, will you be finishing work soon?”
“Soon enough. Go on.”
Jackson gave him a smile and turned to leave. They went back to his room. Jackson fell onto his bed and stared at Wren standing still in the middle of the room. “What do you want to do?” Jackson asked. No response. “Just, pick something. Make a choice. Decide. Do you want to sit? Do you want to stand? Do you want to read a book? Get on my computer? Go outside?”
Jackson stopped. Wren hadn’t tensed, exactly. It wasn’t even much of a reaction. Jackson could have imagined it completely. He hesitated, then sat up.
“All right. Let’s go back outside.” There was no reaction. No response, but Jackson thought he’d guessed right. “Follow me.”
Down hallways and stairs and a quick stop in the kitchen. Margaret was alone in large room, kneading some dough. “Margaret, have you see Kia?”
“Last I saw she was stealing Sue-sue’s detangling spray.” Margaret looked up from the dough she was working. “Oh, don’t you look much better!” She smiled at Wren. Jackson turned, ready to tell Wren to say thank you or something… the words stalled in his throat. A dusty pink filled his cheeks.
Jackson snapped his mouth shut and turned around. “We’re heading out to the gazebo. Can you have Kia bring our tea out there?”
“Of course, dear. Scones?”
“Cookies?”
Margaret huffed and shook her head. “Between you and Kia… I suppose, since you’re going away to your fancy college soon, that I can let you indulge one more time.”
“Thanks Margaret.”
She waved him away. Jackson left and continued out the back door.
The sun was setting. A few clouds dotted the horizon, the undersides gilded orange. “This way,” Jackson said to Wren. He led them through the flowers and down a brick walkway. The gazebo was covered in crawling ivy. Purple clematis grew along the bottom half. Jackson sat down inside and told Wren to do the same. A couple bees buzzed about, lazy in the evening light. A breeze knocked out the heat of the day.
Jackson looked out over the small pond in the distance. He wanted to give Wren his privacy, let him look around and take deep breaths or do what he wanted to do. It wasn’t long until a rattling sound drew his attention.
Kia was coming down the gentle slope with a loaded cart. Jackson snorted. “I think Margaret came through for us.”
Kia smiled at them as she set up two small folding tables. She lit a tea candle and placed in the teapot holder. The cast iron teapot was set on top. The other table she filled with plates of scones and cookies. “I told Margaret it’d just be us three, but gave enough food to feed the troops.”
Jackson chuckled and leaned forward to pour the tea. “Do you like tea?” Jackson asked Wren. There was no response. Jackson filled a cup for him anyway. “It’s lavender chamomile.” It’s a good soothing tea. Natural calming agents, for those who believe that scents and tastes could calm someone’s nerves, and the chamomile would hopefully help his throat.
Though the rough sound of his voice was probably from disuse as opposed to pain.
“Here, drink this and eat as much of this as you want.”
Kia settled down next to Jackson. Jackson handed her a cup. They sat in a comfortable silence. It wasn’t as easy to talk when they weren’t safely behind the sound barrier of his room. Wren hadn’t touched a single thing to eat, just slowly sipped on his hot tea.
Kia leaned forward. “Eat that one. Jackson prefers the chocolate chip, but Margaret’s honey lemon scones are the best.” Wren didn’t move to touch it, but his gaze did dart up for a fraction of second. A single fraction that he made eye contact with Jackson.
“Eat it,” Jackson muttered. He hated commanding Wren to do it. Forcing Wren to drink the tea or eat the scone, but Wren wouldn’t do what he wanted to do so Jackson was forced to guess.
Wren picked up the smallest scone on the plate. He ate slowly and cautiously. Each bite ensured no crumbs fell. When he was finished, he lifted his tea and took another sip.
“Do you like the tea? The scone? Do you want a cookie too?” Jackson shifted in his seat. Kia shoved an elbow into his side. He grunted. Wren glanced at them again, then quickly averted his gaze.
Jackson let out a slow breath. “Eat one of each then tell me your favorite.”
Wren obeyed. After he finished the last bite, he cleared his throat. “The first one.”
“Score! Told ya, Jackson.”
Jackson rolled his eyes at Kia’s response, then noticed Wren’s breathing was doing that careful deep breath thing he’d done before. He narrowed his eyes. “Do you like the tea? Answer.”
“Yes.” Wren sipped it again.
“There is no wrong answer. If you don’t like, then I don’t care. We can get you something else.”
There. His breathing shallowed for two breaths. Jackson grabbed a cookie and leaned back. He’d pressured Wren enough. They’d figure out how to work together eventually. It didn’t need to happen the very first day.
The evening cooled as the sun slowly disappeared. Kia flipped on the soft lights in the gazebo and they watched the lightning bugs flash their colors across the yard. Jackson finished his tea and sighed. At the very least, it was a wonderful end to the day.
Wren almost cowered. The garden was so big. Flowers as far as he could see with small trails through them, some brick, some dirt. Every breath brought more information to him. Lavender, honeysuckle, lilies… Fresh, overturned soil. The pine trees in the distance. The sky was so high above. There were no walls to hide in. Nothing. Just space, and room… He focused on Jackson. Followed Jackson in the right position. Let his entire world shrink down to just Jackson.His panic diminished once they stepped into the gazebo. It was a small space. Enclosed. Safe.He loved being outside. He just needed a smaller amount of outside. But… Feeling that breeze. Listening to the leaves of the vines rustling. Slowly, his heart rate returned to normal and he risked looking up at Jackson.Jackson was completely turned away from him. Wren followed his line sight to see a little pond in the not too far distance. It’s surface was highlighted orange fro
Jackson opened the door across the hall from his room, then stepped aside and gestured for Wren to step in ahead of him. Wren hesitated, then stepped forward. The room was dark and smelled faintly of disuse. Jackson stepped in behind him and Wren forced himself not to whip around. He didn’t like people at his back.“Light is here,” Jackson said and the lights came on. Wren turned around at a normal, sedate pace, in direct odds to the pounding of his heart. Jackson had his hand on a panel at the door. “Bed, couch, bathroom.” Jackson pointed at each thing in turn. “Just come to my room when you wake up in the morning. Kia’s bringing breakfast up.”Wren stared over Jackson’s shoulder. The words Jackson said were all normal, easy words… They just didn’t make any sense. Why was he leaving Wren in this room? Where was his cage? The bars with the slot so food could be pushed in to him. The flat pillow and thin
Kia shoved his laptop towards him as he fell face first onto his bed. “What am I doing, Kia?” He turned his head to her.Her gaze was sympathetic. “A good thing. You know as well as I do that the chances of him being alive this time next year was next to none. Besides, it could always be worse. According to this some former fighters are near uncontrollable without constantly manipulating the collar.”Jackson pulled the laptop on top of him. ‘Severity of Aggression in Rescued Fighter Wolves.’ He scanned through the article. A lot of it wasn’t very optimistic. The best results seemed to come from wolves who were saved at a young age. They were successfully switched to other positions with fairly minor leftover effects.“Did you notice the ages?”“Yeah.” The oldest wolf they had ever rescued was 22 and he was damn near feral according to the article. “I think once they found out
Jackson showered before going to get Wren. He assumed Wren would be enjoying his time alone to relax, or maybe Wren was sleeping in. He hoped Wren was sleeping in. Which is why it took him a moment to comprehend what he was seeing when he opened the door.Wren stood leaning back against the fireplace. His arms were crossed when Jackson opened the door, but fell to his sides as he stepped into the room. Dark circles were under his eyes, clear even from across the room. His hair hung in loose waves around his shoulders. Jackson glanced over. The bed was either perfectly remade or Wren had never touched it. “Good morning,” Jackson said, looking back at Wren.Wren didn’t answer. Jackson hadn’t expected him to.“All right, follow me.”Wren followed. Jackson had him sit at the table again. All at once, Jackson was overwhelmed. Wren wouldn’t talk. Wren wouldn’t sleep. Wren wouldn’t… No. He stopped. He
Wren floated in the river near his home. The water in his ears muffled the cries of his baby sister and the laughter of his mom. The sun warmed his face. He couldn’t figure out why his chest ached when it was such a pleasant day. The scent of his mother’s lavender water was surprisingly strong in his nose. It brought a smile to his face. That scent had never come with anything negative. That scent had never hurt him.The river pulled him down stream and he heard his little brother banging a stick against a tree. He frowned. The day was peaceful and calm and his brother always had to be so loud. He opened his mouth to respond, but remembered his mother’s unhappy frown when they fought and closed it.He kept it shut and the banging kept going on. It would pause. Then three rapid bangs would happen. Then a pause. Frustrated he opened his eyes and froze.There was no river. There was no forest. There was no mother, or brother, or baby sister. The s
It was a little intimidating, just a little, to see the massive wolf come sprinting straight for him. Wren’s ears were flattened back, his head and tail held down low. It wasn’t a friendly approach, but it wasn’t aggressive either.Wren slowed to walk and slunk into the gazebo. He crawled under the table and lay down. Jackson stared at Wren’s tail - the only visible part of him from where Jackson was sitting.“Kia will probably be out there for awhile.” There was no response, but Jackson hadn’t expected any. When Wren was human he barely responded, as a wolf, Jackson figured it was useless. “Why don’t you get up on the bench? It’s more comfortable than the floor.”To his surprise, Wren slowly crept out from under the table. His ears were still flattened tight to his head. He stepped up on to the bench and lay down. Jackson held back his laugh. Wren was almost too large to fit, but he squeezed his
Jackson left Kia in charge of showing Wren how to use the tub and shower. She joined him not long after. “You showed him the selection of soaps?”“Yeah. He seemed a little overwhelmed so I pulled out the ones you use in case he just wanted to stick with that.”Jackson hummed. Kia’s hair was stuck in unattractive clumps. He thought he saw a twig buried in the thick strands. “You might want to shower too.”“Yeah.”She fell onto his bed instead. He pulled his feet out of the way just in time for her land with a muted thump. “He was protecting you earlier.”In the gazebo, when he’d growled at Kia. “That’s what it was? Thank God. I thought he saw you as a threat.”She snorted and rolled her head to the side to look at him. “Nope. He was just telling me to watch it. I just can’t decide if that’s a good sign or not.”Yeah. He kne
Kia sat up and cocked her head to the side. “Wren’s out of his bath. Want me to go get him?”“Yeah.”Jackson was just assuming Wren wouldn’t feel comfortable coming over by himself. To be fair, Kia was the only who really felt comfortable just coming into his room.Kia came back with Wren following behind her. Jackson stared. Wren’s hair was messy, wet, and dripping onto his shirt. He clutched a comb in his hand. his jaw was clenched tight, his shoulders tense. Jackson dropped his gaze back to the comb, then looked back at his hair.“Do you want help combing your hair?” It was a guess, but it was a good guess. Wren’s jaw unclenched at the words and there was only a moment of hesitancy before he nodded.Wren sat in the same chair as before. Jackson took the comb from him, carefully brushing his fingers against Wren’s in the process. Wren didn’t flinch away. Jackson grinned and m