Publicly Exhibited [Werewolves of Hanson Mall 1] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) Read online

  The brief image of the two women was vivid in his brain. Worldwide, far more male werewolves were born than females. Only about one third of children were girls. So recently two male wolves had been sharing a human female as their mate. Of course human women who wanted to marry a werewolf weren’t standing on every street corner either, but at least some wolves were able to find a mate now, who wouldn’t have been able to before.

  The two young women who’d come into his foyer were clearly tired and worn out. But also beautiful. Unfortunately the chance of them believing in werewolves was likely right around zero. And the abusive boyfriend would need to be circumvented too. Well that was something he could do. Find out all about Bailey Hamilton. What was his problem? Were the women wealthy heiresses? Or was he just an angry asshole?

  Chapter Two

  Willow woke up with a start. Her heart pounding with fear, she rolled off the bed and jumped to her feet, looking all around the room for the noise that had disturbed her. But her sister still slept soundly in the narrow twin bed on the other side of the room, the door was shut tight, and there was no sign of Bailey Hamilton or anyone else. She sank back down on the bed with a sigh, holding her hand to her chest, trying to still her racing heartbeat. Only when she could breathe freely again did she notice how very thirsty she was.

  And hungry. She tried to remember the last time she’d eaten a proper meal but couldn’t. Not since Bailey had threatened to have Hawthorne locked away in a psychiatric institution. She and Hawthorne had wished a million times over that Hawthorne had never spoken about her—what? Dream? Genuine sighting? But it was too late. Hawthorne had told Bailey and he’d immediately started trying to force her to see his friend, the psychiatrist.

  No. She wasn’t going to think about it anymore. She would get a drink of water. She pulled her cell phone from her jeans pocket and checked the time. Only four. Maybe she could even sleep some more. She’d ask the nurse what time the mall closed.

  Willow tiptoed out of the room, shutting the door oh-so-very slowly so it didn’t wake Hawthorne.

  The nurse was sitting at her desk, glasses perched on the end of her nose, looking through them down at the keyboard, and over the top of them when she raised her head and noticed Willow standing there.

  “You’ve had a nice nap, dear. How do you feel now?”

  “I’m very thirsty. Is there a water cooler here, please?”

  “I have water.” The nurse bustled across the room and opened a small refrigerator Willow hadn’t even noticed, pulling a bottle of water from it. “Here you go, dear. Sit down and drink.”

  She shouldn’t have still felt tired after sleeping for more than an hour, but she did, so sat as directed and twisted the cap of the bottle to take a long drink. “Thank you.” Then remembering the nurse’s name, said carefully, “Thank you, Nurse Ay-lee.”

  “Eilidh. It’s a difficult name, but traditional Gaelic. And your name is Willow, you said?”

  “Yes. Willow Cunliffe and my sister is Hawthorne.”

  “Very pretty names. You still look tired. Have you been on the move for long?”

  Willow sighed. She sipped from the water bottle again. “Not really. Only a week but it seems like forever. I never really liked Bailey, but I never expected him to try to have Hawthorne put in an institution. There’s nothing wrong with her mind. She’s as smart as anyone else. And she’s never done drugs. I don’t understand what set him off. He’s fixated on her. He’s been following us, trying to force Hawthorne to see his friend, the psychiatrist. He’s been totally single-minded about it, as if it’s incredibly important to him.”

  “Does he own joint property with your sister? Is he perhaps hoping to gain complete control of something that matters to him?”

  “I’ve asked Hawthorne about this, but she said she certainly hadn’t written a will or anything like that. And we don’t own much anyway. We each have a half share of our parents’ house, which is where we live. But it’s a very ordinary house on a smallish block of land and it isn’t worth all this much trouble. Besides, even if he locks up Hawthorne there’s still me.”

  The nurse nodded. “It’s a mystery then.”

  “What time does the mall close? I don’t want us to be some of the last to go. We need to leave in a big group. I was thinking we could catch a bus to the next town and stop there for the night. I really need to make some proper plans for our future. We can’t keep living the way we are now.”

  Willow felt the small amount of energy having a nap had given her drain away. They were safe now but only for the next hour. Then it’d be back to running and trying to hide with Bailey right behind them. And two young women with large backpacks were so easy to trace. Maybe they should find an airport and fly somewhere. They didn’t have their passports with them but they could at least skip over a few states. Enough to make it harder for him to find them maybe.

  “The manager has said you can stay in one of the guest apartments here for a few days. Long enough to sleep properly and recruit your strength. I’ll stay with you to look after you.”

  “We can stay? Would it be expensive? We can pay our way but—”

  “The manager would never overcharge you. The price will be reasonable.”

  “That would be great, thank you.” Willow relaxed. A safe place to sleep would be wonderful. The past few nights they’d stayed in nondescript motels, trying to be invisible. But without a car, getting around was harder than it seemed. Especially when they didn’t know the public transportation around here.

  “This afternoon we jumped on a bus and just went where it took us. I’m glad it brought us here. You’ve been so kind,” she said.

  “I’m a nurse. Looking after people is what I do. Now why don’t you look through the mall’s website and choose what you and your sister would like for your meal tonight. The restaurant manager can bring it up here just before they close for the night.”

  “Food. Oh that sounds good.”

  She sat in front of Eilidh’s computer and clicked on the links on the mall’s website, which the nurse had brought up onto the screen for her. “So many choices.”

  “And all of them delicious,” said the nurse. It was the first time Willow had seen her smile and she smiled back.

  Hawthorne woke up just after five and Willow had scarcely finished explaining everything to her before a young man in a Hanson Mall uniform arrived with their meal and another parcel for Eilidh. Immediately she locked her office and the First Aid room and collected a swipe card from Sophie, the receptionist.

  They stepped over to the elevator and Eilidh swiped the card. “When you’re upstairs, to leave, all you have to do is press the button for the lowest level. But to make the elevator go up, the keycard has to be swiped as well as the floor button being pressed.”

  Willow watched as the doors opened, and then Eilidh swiped the card again and the lift went up three floors.

  “Why aren’t the buttons numbered or labeled?” asked Hawthorne.

  “It’s just a bit of added security. Everything is automated these days.”

  It was nice to know Bailey couldn’t follow them and kick their bedroom door in. That was a huge relief to Willow.

  They ate their meals and watched television, but by eight Hawthorne was almost asleep and Willow was feeling tired herself. They went into their bedroom. “You have first shower,” she told Hawthorne. She sifted through her backpack for clean underwear finally finding some, but almost everything was used. “Tomorrow we need to find a Laundromat. I don’t suppose there’s one here though.”

  Hawthorne came out of the bathroom and hugged Willow. “I’m so glad we found our way here. These people are so kind. But I wish I knew why Bailey was acting as he is.”

  “Yes. Me too. Eilidh’s a nurse. Maybe she could help us.”

  “No. I’m never telling anyone what I saw ever again. I know I saw it. I wasn’t drunk or drugged or dreaming. But after the shit-fest this past week has been, I’ll never mention it aga
in.”

  Willow hugged her sister. “We have a few days here to rest. Likely once we aren’t so tired we’ll think of a good plan for what to do next.”

  “God. Sleep. I can’t believe how tired I am.”

  But Willow could. The emotional stress had been just as draining for Hawthorne as the physical stress. Hawthorne might not have loved Bailey, but she’d liked him and trusted him. He’d sure proven he didn’t deserve her beautiful, caring sister though.

  Willow stood under the shower for a long time, but she didn’t think of a solution to their problems. Maybe tomorrow she would when she wasn’t so tired.

  * * * *

  Cadfael looked up when Rhion knocked on his door and stepped into his office.

  “Do you ever go home? Do you even remember you have a very nice apartment on the top floor of this building?”

  “Very funny. I sleep there every night. I even look out my window at the city lights sometimes,” Cadfael replied.

  “Right. Sure. Eilidh said the redheads own their parents’ house but it’s not particularly big and neither is there a lot of land.”

  “Still, perhaps a developer wants to buy it to join with other parcels of land. Do we know where their home is?”

  “Only that it’s in this state but not close by. I haven’t found out anything about this Bailey Hamilton man yet either.”

  “So why are you here harassing me, instead of working on that?” teased Cadfael.

  Rhion had been leaning against the wall beside the door. Now he came into the office, shut the door behind him, and sat down. Cadfael sat up straighter and stopped smiling. Apparently Rhion had something important to say.

  “Our men aren’t finding it easy to choose a mate. Not just because of the dearth of female werewolves, but there’s even a shortage of human women that they’re prepared to entrust with the secret of their wolf. You know that and I know that.”

  “That’s true. Explaining your wolf to someone really puts you at a huge disadvantage. A man has to be very sure of a woman before he takes that risk. I’m glad they’re being exceptionally cautious. I’d hate to have to send too many men interstate to live with another pack because of a woman trying to take advantage of them,” said Cadfael.

  They both knew one man who had made just such a mistake. He was currently taking an extended vacation in Europe, helping renovate the home of a pack of werewolves there at Werewolf Castle.

  Rhion stood up again. “So, what I was thinking is, here are two young and attractive women who need our help. Maybe we should get to know them better instead of just letting them stay a day or two and sending them on their way.”

  Cadfael was about to argue that they couldn’t possibly take advantage of a helpless woman, but then he realized Rhion would never do that. There had to be a different reason. Ah. Of course. “Which one did you like?”

  “I only saw her for a few minutes. But Willow is both beautiful and a woman of integrity, I believe.”

  “The older one. The one I saw first?” The one whose hair gleaming red in the light from the glass dome had originally made him notice the women.

  Rhion nodded.

  “All right. We’ll give them tomorrow to relax and heal. But the day after we’ll talk to them, to get to know them a little.”

  “It’s a deal.”

  * * * *

  The next morning Maelor, the security guard, arrived with a supermarket trolley. In it were several sacks of fresh groceries, and a laptop computer. He also handed them some business cards. “Helena said if you want to change your hair in any way to call her today and she’ll fit you in after the store officially closes. Both of you. She said it’s amazing how different a woman can look with a new color and cut. Gareth said to put your laundry in the trolley and Sophie will call him to come get it and launder it for you. And Daffyd said if you need any groceries, anything he’s forgotten, to tell Sophie and he’ll send them over.”

  “Does everyone know we’re here? What if Bailey finds out?” asked Hawthorne.

  “Only the senior managers know. People Cadfael trusts. No one just walking into the mall will have any idea you’re here. Almost no one even knows this apartment is here. This part of the building is only the professional suites. Offices and suchlike,” Maelor replied.

  “Thank you. We’re very grateful,” said Willow.

  “Why don’t you girls go and get your laundry while Maelor and I put the groceries away,” suggested Eilidh.

  Willow wanted to do that. She longed for a clean T-shirt and had been thinking about whether or not she should just wash her lingerie out in the bathroom. Now she didn’t have to worry.

  She and Hawthorne emptied everything out of their backpacks, then shoved all the dirty clothing in one pack and put the rest of their things in the other one. She placed the backpack in the trolley. “You’ve all been so very good to us.”

  “We don’t like men who abuse women,” said Maelor.

  Willow knew he was telling the truth.

  After he left Hawthorne said, “I like him.”

  “I do too. Now let’s set up the laptop and work out where to go from here.”

  The day passed quickly. It was the first time in over a week where they hadn’t been constantly fearful, always looking over their shoulders. Willow noticed Hawthorne still jumped at every unexpected noise, and she had to admit she did too, but the panicky racing heartbeat was gone, and she was feeling a lot more certain that she and her sister would figure out what to do. They priced airplane tickets but decided not to buy them yet. “Let’s keep our names off the passenger lists until the last possible moment. Maybe buy tickets just before we leave for the airport to keep our destination secret as long as possible,” she said.

  “We could go to two places as well, to make it harder,” added Hawthorne.

  “I’m not leaving you.”

  “No, silly. But we could buy tickets to Chicago, and then when we get there buy a ticket somewhere else. Anyone searching the passenger lists would be looking for us in Chicago but we’d be on another airplane and gone again.”

  Willow hugged Hawthorne. “That’s a great idea. I like it. Now, what will we say to Helena? Shall we become brunettes? Or even blondes?”

  “Brunettes, I think. We’ll blend into a crowd better with darker hair.”

  By the time Eilidh returned from the First Aid room she and Hawthorne had made a huge garden salad, and cooked chicken breasts and potatoes in the microwave oven. “I’m not too sure how the chicken will taste. I usually barbecue chicken,” she confessed.

  “Simply having a home cooked meal waiting for me is a huge treat,” the nurse replied.

  Once the center was officially closed, they went down to the First Aid room again and Eilidh stayed out in the reception area keeping watch for them, as Helena turned them into brunettes and cut their hair into shorter bobs. They talked happily, enjoying each other’s company.

  “You both look quite different. I said you would,” said Helena proudly.

  Willow stared at herself in the mirror. “It’s amazing. My face looks longer and thinner.”

  “I look younger,” added Hawthorne.

  They helped clean up the room, before thanking the beautician who simply waved as she left.

  After they returned to the apartment and were sitting on the couch drinking coffee, Hawthorne said, “Eilidh, is it medically possible for a person to think she saw something, when she really didn’t?”

  Willow watched Eilidh’s face. She knew the question was stressing Hawthorne, but hadn’t expected her to say anything.

  “It’s possible for people to expect to see something, so that’s what they believe they’ve seen. For example, if a man is standing by a window with a bucket and a mop, most people will think, ‘He’s washing the window.’ The bucket might be empty and he might be waiting for a bus, but he’s got the right equipment and he’s beside a window so that is what people will say they saw.”

  “What about if it was
something completely unexpected?” asked Hawthorne.

  “In that case it depends how close the person is to what they see. The farther away they are the more likely they are to not understand what they see, or to miss details. Now, you tell me, what do you think you saw? And why has it upset your boyfriend so much?”

  “Ex-boyfriend. As to why he’s upset I have no idea at all. And I don’t think I saw it. I know for an absolute fact that I saw a wolf running and jumping through a park at dusk almost two weeks ago. I stood and watched him because he was clearly enjoying himself so much. And as I watched, the wolf shimmered and changed into a man. He had brown hair, tanned skin, and a really nice body. He turned around, saw me, and ran into the bushes. But he wasn’t a streaker. I saw the wolf running away.”

  Willow held her breath and stared at the nurse. The woman didn’t look cross or condemnatory, just thoughtful. At least, being a nurse, likely she’s heard some pretty weird stories before.

  But for Willow, it wasn’t whether or not Hawthorne really saw a wolf turn into a man. Perhaps the naked man had been hiding in the bushes playing with the wolf and Hawthorne just hadn’t seen him until right then. No, the real problem was Bailey’s reaction to the story. Why didn’t he just laugh, or tell her she was making things up, or dreaming? Why had he gone so strange over the whole issue?

  “How do you know it was a wolf and not a dog? A German shepherd or a Husky perhaps?” asked the nurse.

  “He had very big paws and a long straight tail, which is different from a dog, but it was just his attitude in general I think. He was playing but…I don’t know. Independent perhaps? Focused and intent on his game, but not…not doglike.”

  “Have you read many stories about shape-shifters and suchlike?” the nurse asked Hawthorne.

  “No, I haven’t. Nor vampires, nor Twilight, nor Fifty Shades of Grey either. I’m more a regency romance, Georgette Heyer type of reader.”

  “Ah, yes, The Masqueraders. My favorite book of hers. But you believe in shape-shifters?”