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Eight hours later, Lacey woke up to find herself laying in the middle of a bed in Doc Sims cabin. She lifted the sheet that covered her body and was glad to see that someone had dressed her before putting her in the bed. From the scent that covered the pink and white polka-dot pajamas, she knew they belonged to Maggie. She smiled at the thoughtfulness of her friend. A throbbing ache stretched from her side up into her chest.
Lacey lifted her shirt to inspect her wounds and was relieved to see that they had already healed on the outside. She now had four new scars to add to the collection that covered her body from her time with Branson. The image of Cole biting through her flesh and bone stuck in her mind, causing her body to shudder. She glanced around the room and wondered why he wasn’t there with her. She focused on the sounds outside the cabin and was stunned to hear that it was totally silent.
There were no more screams. Or gunshots. Or growls. In fact, there were no sounds of fighting at all. It was as if everything that had happened was just a long, horrible nightmare that she’d endured while asleep. At least, that’s what she wanted to believe. But the wounds she’d suffered and the silver that had weakened her body warned her otherwise.
Needing to know where Cole was and that he and her kids were safe, Lacey pushed herself up from the bed and attempted to stand. As soon as she tried to put weight on her legs, she discovered that she was too weak to support herself. She fell forward as her legs gave way beneath her. She crashed to the floor with a loud thud.
The door to the room suddenly swung open and Frank rushed inside. “Lacey” he said her name and hurried over to her. “You shouldn’t be up. You need to rest.”
Frank gently picked Lacey up in his arms and put her back on the bed. She looked up at him with a weak smile and said, “The enhanced strength is great, isn’t it?”
He knew that she was referring to the fact that just the day before he could barely hold up his own weight. And now, he could easily support hers as well. He nodded and smiled. “It is” he agreed. “I’ve never been stronger. Not even in my youth.”
Lacey closed her eyes as images from the massacre that had played out on the mountain filled her mind. “Is it over?” she asked with sadness in her voice.
“Yes” Frank replied and took her hand in his and gave it a gently squeeze.
Lacey opened her eyes and sighed deeply as she looked down at their interlocked hands. “How many did we lose?” she asked with dread of hearing the answer.
“I believe Cole said nine.”
At the mention of her mate, Lacey’s gaze shot to Frank. “Where is Cole? Is he with Cody and Claire?”
Frank shook his head. “Don’t worry about the kids. Cody and Claire are with Mira. She took them to Maggie’s. And Cole...he’s um...he’s been supervising the clean-up all day.”
Lacey’s face paled at the reality of what the term clean-up actually meant. Cole was disposing the bodies of the humans that had been killed. Her gut twisted at the thought of him having to be involved of such a gruesome task. “How many humans...” she paused, unable to finish her sentence out of fear of hearing the number.
“Almost three-hundred” Frank said sadly. “A good bit of them managed to make it halfway back down the mountain. But Cole’s surprise took care of them for us.” He paused, “I don’t know why he ordered the wolves from the other packs to stay out of the village and only take care of anyone who made it down the mountain. We could have used their help. He had over fifty extra wolves scattered about. But apparently, he’d ordered them not to interfere unless the humans got past us.”
“I know why” Lacey said and met her father’s gaze. “He wanted our pack to stand up for themselves. He wanted them to fight and take pride in defending their families. They needed to learn that we can’t always turn to someone else for help. This battle was ours to fight for several reasons. And I’m glad we handled the majority of it on our own.”
“But if Cole had allowed the others to help maybe Lee wouldn’t be among the dead.”
Lacey’s face softened at her father’s words. “I’m sorry, Dad. I know he was a good friend of yours. And even though I didn’t say it to him, I was very thankful for his help back at Branson’s.”
Frank shrugged his shoulders like he wasn’t really bothered by the loss of his friend and walked across the room to look out the window. But Lacey knew he did care and that he was hurting. Lee was the only friend her father ever had. And she hated that he had died in a fight he didn’t even want to be involved in.
Frank was quiet for several minutes then he turned around and smiled thinly. “I almost forgot to tell you that two of the wolves Cole called in as backup are old friends of yours. They came in to see you about an hour ago but you were out cold. I believe they said they were going to stay with Scotty for a few days.”
“Old friends of mine?”
“Yeah. I don’t remember their names but they said they knew you in Carol Springs before you changed. I told them to come see you later.”
Lacey was deep in thought as she tried to figure out who he was talking about.
“I can go get them for you if you’d like to see them now” Frank offered and started toward the door.
Lacey thought about it for a minute then shook her head. “Actually, I’d prefer to spend a little more time with you...if you don’t mind” she said and looked away shyly.
For the first time since Frank showed up on the mountain, she was starting to really think of him as her father. And that made her feel like a little girl inside. A little girl who desperately needed the comfort of her dad after the horrible day she’d had. She needed him to tell her that he was there to stay. That he was never going to leave her again. Her heart ached with how much she needed to hear him say that he loved her.
Frank made his way over to the bed and sat down next to Lacey. As soon as he looked at her, he sensed a change. She no longer held a guarded look in her eyes when she looked at him. There was no sign of the tough, fierce woman he knew she had grown into. All he saw when he looked at her was a vulnerable young woman who looked like she was on the verge of tears. “What’s wrong, Lacey?” he asked and scooted closer to her.
“Are you disappointed in me?” she asked with a cracked voice as she thought about the things he’d witnessed her do. “Do you still wish that I was a normal girl?”
Frank’s chest tightened and his heart ached at the sadness in her voice. He stared into her eyes as he spoke, “Don’t ever think that I’m disappointed in you because that couldn’t be further from the truth. No father has ever been more proud of his child than I am of you. You’re a strong leader. A loving and protective mother. A devoted wife. A great friend to those around you. And as for being normal...who says you’re not? To me, you are who you were meant to be. There are no mistakes in destiny, Lacey. You were born to be exactly who and what you are. And I love you more than you can possibly imagine. Don’t ever doubt how much you mean to me.”
By the time Frank stopped talking to take a breath, tears were steadily streaming down Lacey’s cheeks. She flung her arms around his neck and hugged him with everything she had in her. Twenty years of pent up heartache poured out of her as she cried. “I’ve missed you so much, Daddy. Please don’t ever leave me again” she pleaded.
Frank wrapped his arms around her in a tight embrace as she clung to him like a little girl. His eyes stung as he tried hard not to cry. “I promise I’m not going anywhere. You’re stuck with me for... well, for however long wolves live.”
A broken chuckle flowed from Lacey’s chest as she pulled back from him and wiped at her eyes with her hand. She was suddenly eager to see if he would have the same reaction she’d had when she first learned the lifespan of people like them. “That’s going to be a long time. Are you sure you want to stick around here that long?” she asked with a hint of a smile.
Frank raised his brows in question. “Exactly how long are we talking about?”
“Cole said the oldest wolf he knows is a little over a hundred and fifty years old.”
Frank’s eyes widened in disbelief. “Really? Wow. It looks like I have many years of playing with my grandchildren to look forward to.”
“Like I said before, welcome to the family, Frank.”
At the sound of Cole’s voice, Lacey’s attention shot to the doorway of the room. Cole was leaning against the doorframe with his arms crossed over his chest and a big smile on his face as he watched her with her father. Her first instinct was to jump up and run into his arms, but as soon as she attempted to move, Cole and Frank both chastised her at the same time.
“Don’t move. You need to stay in bed” Frank said.
“Don’t get up” Cole said and started toward her.
Lacey’s gaze shifted between the two of them as a smile played across her lips. She shook her head playfully. “Don’t even start” she warned. “If you two think you’re going to team up against me...you better think again.”
Cole stood by the bed and pulled her to her feet, supporting her weight against his body. He kissed her then brushed her hair back from her face. “I’d never dream of teaming up with your dad against you. Besides, I don’t need his help dealing with you. We both know who wears the pants in the family” he said with a cocky smile.
Lacey looked up at him. “We sure do” she said and rubbed her hand down the side of his face. “And I wear them so well, don’t you think?” she teased.
The smile instantly vanished from Cole’s face when Frank’s booming laughter filled the room.
“That’s my girl” Frank said as he looked at Lacey with pride. “Set him straight.”
Cole frowned at Lacey then narrowed his eyes at Frank. “Don’t force me to make good on my threat of castrating you, Frank. It’d be a shame if you had to live this new, extremely long life all by yourself without the comfort of a woman by your side.”
Frank’s laughter died down but the smile didn’t leave his face as he said, “I think I’ll go check on my grandchildren and give you two some privacy.”
“Good idea” Cole replied as he stared lovingly at Lacey. “Close the door on your way out.”