Free Banewolf (Dark Siren Book 2) by Eden Ashley

night.
    “Kalista, don’t shut me out.”
    Anger broke through the wall of numbness. “Why not? You’ve been shutting me out since I came here.”
    “That’s true.” Rhane didn’t sound as if he’d taken offense. He lay back against the pillows and tugged at his hair. Though recently cropped, it was already sprouting back to a stubborn unruly length. “I’m just not good at talking about some things. I guess I’ve been keeping it all inside for too long.”
    “I deserve to know.”
    “You’re right.”
    “Then talk to me!”
    Rhane glanced at her. “I’m trying to.” 
    Feeling guilty for lashing out at him, Kali dropped the bitter and defensive tone, letting her shoulders slump apologetically. “I’m so sorry.” She grabbed his hand.  “I didn’t mean to—”
    The sentence was left unfinished as a barrage of images blasted through her mind. She saw Rhaven smiling brightly from a distance, sitting astride the huge black stallion that was Meggiddo. A man’s arms were wrapped about the child. It was Rhane. He turned to her laughing. Kali had never seen him look so happy. The scene changed. Rhaven was running through a field of wild flowers. The purple blossoms winked as if delighted by the boy’s laughter. She chased him. Bursting into another fit of giggles, Rhaven looked at her over his shoulder. Kali gasped. His eyes—they were huge, green eyes almost identical to Rhane’s.
    A sharp pain squeezed her chest. She snatched her hand away and stood up abruptly. “I’m going to take a walk.”
    He was clearly taken aback. “Now?”
    “Yeah.” She shrugged, trying to appear relaxed, though knowing he could tell something was seriously wrong. Letting him see how fraught and anxious she really felt would not have served her purpose.
    “Okay. Then I’ll go with you.” He hesitated. “…And we can talk.”
    “No.” She couldn’t meet his eyes. “I’d prefer it if you didn’t.”
    For a second, he looked as if she’d slapped him. Then his expression smoothed and he looked away. “At least let me send Bailen then.”
    “Okay,” she agreed, feeling absolutely rotten.

Chapter 15
     
    York had mowed the overgrown fields last week, making it an easy stroll through the manor’s acreage. Outside and in fresh air, Kali could breathe again. She gazed up, feeling at peace watching the stars. Bailen trailed behind at a polite distance, somehow having sensed she wanted to be alone. But if Kali knew anything about Rhane, one of the other kin was somewhere safeguarding from a distance.
    Reaching the small pond that was just past the fields, she slipped off her tennis shoes. The mud was thick at the edge of the water. It felt good to squish it between her toes. She attempted to clear her thoughts, tried to not think of th e child or of the creature she’d hunted and killed or of a certain ex-boyfriend who had become something other than himself.
    A voice unexpectedly came from the darkness and startled her. “Why are you out here alone?”
    Kali spun around, retreating several steps backward and into the water. Moonlight reflected against a head of white hair, and she relaxed. It was River. “I’m not alone. Bailen is with me.”
    “And what chance does one mouse have against an army of cats?”
    Everything about Rhane’s brother bugged her—from his creepy eyes to the stark white hair that was way too long and silky to belong to a man. The bored, condescending manner in which he spoke to everyone was infuriating. Being in his presence, especially alone, was unsettling. She was willing to bet it would’ve been okay with the others if she treated River badly. But she already had enough to feel guilty about and was determined to make polite conversation with him, even if it was the last act of her evening.
    “Rhane said it was okay.”
    “Ah.” River nodded. “Yet another in the pattern of ill-fated choices he makes where you are concerned.”
    The comment incited an abrupt change of heart.