Mending the Beast (Awakening Pride #10) - Lacey Thorn Page 0,4

she fought to breathe. She hadn’t been the only victim that day, though it had taken her over a year to accept that. The three shifters who’d been captured with her, who’d been drugged and forced to commit acts they hadn’t wanted to, they’d been victims, too. And they’d all died.

She jerked as she recalled the crack of the gunshots. Their hell had ended then. She’d still had more to endure.

I’m sorry.

Daniel’s words. The first he’d spoken to her. She’d known who he was the moment she’d caught his scent. She’d wanted to run, wanted to howl at the cruel hand of fate that brought him to her when she’d just started to feel normal again. Normal around other people. Those who wouldn’t expect certain things from her. Who wouldn’t need anything from her. But Daniel hadn’t realized the ghosts that haunted her. There’d been happiness on his face when he’d looked at her, as if she were everything he’d been waiting for. That look had wrapped around her heart, and she’d barely contained the sob that had wanted to break free.

He’d reached for her, and instinct had her jerking away. She wasn’t one for casual embraces. She touched very few. Gideon, the man who’d put her back together after Thomas had taken her in then told Gideon to take care of her. Vic, Gideon’s mate, who Ariel liked to pretend was an older sister. Finn and Murphy Dockery, who’d taken to her as if she were family. And Griffin who’d also been taken in by Thomas then passed off to Gideon. They were her family within the pride.

Daniel hadn’t taken insult at her reaction to him. Not then. He’d reached out again, cupping her face and rubbing his thumb over her bottom lip. She’d felt it then. A jolt at his touch. One that had her tiger stretching beneath her skin, ready to claim their mate. For the first time, she’d felt something inside her. A need that went beyond survival. One that knocked at her heart and soul, demanding entrance. She’d been on the cusp of believing she could have a life, could be a mate, take a mate. When he’d spoken two words that had slammed everything closed inside her.

I’m sorry.

And she couldn’t run far enough from him. He’d eventually left Riverton. Left his home and pride and gone on the road to chase down leads. He had been the sheriff in the small town and had walked away…because of her.

Part of her wanted to blame him. He’d left. He’d gone away and made it impossible for them to connect. But the truth was, she’d run first. Mentally. Emotionally. Setting up steep walls that couldn’t be scaled or knocked down.

And the night terrors she’d fought so hard to overcome had returned. She’d tried to hide her sleeplessness, but they’d all seen it. She’d lost weight. Dark circles bruised the skin beneath her eyes. Her cheeks had hollowed out. And she’d begun avoiding people again, clinging to either Gideon or Vic when they were around. They’d been gone when Ariel had left. Murphy and Daniel had been gone, too. Griffin had been out with Dr. Jensen, overseeing house calls for some of the shifters who lived close by and needed the doctor’s help. Finn had been preoccupied with his mate’s pregnancy. It had been so easy to slip away. Easy enough that she questioned if she ever truly belonged there.

Her phone rang again, pulling her back to where she sat. She shook her head to clear her scattered thoughts and the last remnants of sleep then reached over and did what she should have down from the beginning. She turned it off then tossed it in her backpack.

She couldn’t go back. Not yet. Maybe never. At the very least, she owed Daniel the sanctity of his home. His family. His pride. Riverton had been his home long before she’d arrived on the ranch and ripped apart his world. He needed his family, his pride. And Ariel. Well, she was used to being alone.

Chapter Two

Daniel put all his focus into one finger. Just one finger. Surely, he could make it move. But no matter how hard he tried, he remained locked inside himself, unable to reach those who were constantly in and out of the room where they’d put him. His mate wasn’t one of his visitors. He’d be a liar if he said that didn’t rip him apart. It did. How could she ignore him when he needed