When I woke, the room filled with light and sound and sensations so strong I nearly cringed. Everything rushed in at once, but I was alone in the bed. A woman stood next to it, running a comb through my hair, and a giant of a man sat near the window with a frown on his face. The woman spoke first, smiling at me as she continued combing. "There you are. We sent Benedict home to take a shower and get new clothes — he was pretty ripe."
"Thank you," I said, and she smiled more. Her name came back slowly — Natalia, the charity lady. And the brute was Logan, her fiancé. Benedict's brother. "When is he coming back?"
"Soon." She started braiding my hair, fingers deft with multiple plaits starting at my hairline and working back in what felt like a complex pattern. "I wanted to wash your hair, babe, but didn't want to get you soaking wet. So that can wait a little bit. We'll be able to take you home tomorrow, from what the doctors said."
"Oh." I sighed. Wonderful. Home with Benedict. That sounded like perfection.
"Before Natalia starts painting a bedroom for you," Logan started, shooting the woman a dark look. She stuck her tongue out at him. He pretended not to notice, intense gaze on me. "We have some ground rules to establish."
I tensed, already bristling. "You won't keep me from Benedict."
A hint of white teeth shone in his mouth as his upper lip curled. "Don't try to give orders just yet, girl. Hear me out. I've never seen my brother like this before. He did not shower or shave or eat for over a week because he sat here, staring at you and begging you to wake up. I do not want to see him like that ever again, and I do not want to see what happens if you change your mind and decide to run away."
"I won't." I stared at my feet, hidden under the sheets, and wished Benedict were beside me instead of his douche-y older brother.
"Good." Logan's scowl deepened, though, and there wasn't a welcoming smile or any hint he actually thought it was good. "But I have to protect my family, and that means managing risk when we invite newcomers to join us. We will welcome you as a Chase on one condition — no more illegal shit. Edgar showed me some of your arrest records, and we will not tolerate —"
"Logan," Natalia said, and gave him a thin-lipped look that stopped him in mid-sentence. "Do not raise your voice."
I started to think I loved her. She was definitely my new hero.
And she made me brave enough to say, "I don't like doing illegal things. I don't. But I'm not going to sit around and let Benedict pay for everything. I've always had a job, even if those weren't the kinds of jobs you approve of. I'm not taking charity anymore. I have to work."
He scowled, leaning forward. "It isn't —"
"It's fine, babe." Natalia smiled at me as she tugged on the braids. "We have a couple of options. We weren't sure how you would be feeling, or what kind of stress you want to deal with, so there are several different choices. The bears are opening an MMA gym for shifters, to train and spar and do all sorts of manly things. Kaiser asked if you might be willing to work there part-time as a receptionist and as — insurance? Rumors got around about you being scary as hell when you're pissed off, and that you scared Axel into backing down, so Kaiser wants to take advantage of that to keep everyone in line as they're getting the gym off the ground."
I frowned, trying to remember what happened with the bears. Most of it was a blur. "I didn't scare Axel, he just —"
"You scared him," Logan said, gruff and pouting against the wall.
"Oh." A flush climbed my cheeks and I reveled in the feeling, wanted to proclaim the miracle to them. I felt warm. Flushed. A miracle. "I didn't mean to."
"It's a good thing." Natalia finished with my hair and took a step back, examining the results with a critical eye. Then she sat on the foot of my bed, patting my calf. "So that's one option, but if you don't want to deal with a sweaty gym and a bunch of asshole shifters all day long, you can come work at my restaurant. We can start you washing dishes — it's low threat but it's a lot of work. You can move up from there if you're interested in working in the kitchen, or we can move you to hostess or bread girl or something like that. Lots of options, honey."
Gratitude clogged my throat, but I managed to force "Thank you" past the knot.
She smiled, then gave Logan a sharp sideways look. "And if neither of those appeal to you, Eloise, we'll find something else. Right, Logan?"
He made a face, on the verge of a snarl, but eventually nodded. His eyes swirled gold and brown, and there might have been kindness mixed in with the worry and irritation. "Yes. We will find something legal for you to do."
I rested my head on the pillow, exhausted from holding it up so Natalia could braid, and desperately wanted to go back to sleep. It felt like my heart was out of shape and tired too soon. "If you're so concerned about legality, you might want to talk to Atticus. He makes a lot of money fighting, but I'm guessing he doesn't pay his taxes."
Logan face went red and he lurched to his feet. "What?"
I made a mental apology to Atticus and sank deeper in the sheets. Before I could speak, though, someone knocked on the door, and my heart stopped once more. Lacey, looking battered and bruised, stood uncertainly in the doorway. Natalia took one look at me and held out her hand to Logan. "Buy me dinner, babe."
The lion looked like he wanted to object, but he loved her so damn much he just took her hand and nodded a good-bye to me. They paused near the door and Logan nodded to Lacey as well. "Lacey. Congratulations on taking over the hyena clan. Let me know if you want to sit with the council."
"We're still recovering." Pain filtered across her face. "But thank you. We appreciate the opportunity to join."
Logan glanced back at me, irritation in every line of his expression. "I'm sure Benedict will be back soon. Try to stay awake so he doesn't berate me for wearing you out."
Natalia poked him in the ribs and waved to me, dragging the grouchy lion into the hall. Lacey watched them go, then eased into the room. "Hey."
I sat up and held out my hands, felt my face crumpling as tears burned my sinuses. "I was so worried about you. I couldn't find you."
"Oh my God, El, I thought they killed you too," she said, and lurched forward and threw herself into my arms. She crushed me to her, almost hyperventilating. "Lorraine kept saying these awful things she would do to you, I thought she would —"
"I'm so sorry about Cal," I whispered, unable to take it. "I tried to help him, I thought —"
We ran over each other, crying and asking forgiveness and being miserable together until I managed to sit back, wiping desperately at my cheeks as she did the same. She started to tell me about being the new queen hyena and whipping the family into shape, cleaning up the family business to get out of some of the illegal activities, but got only part of the way into it when someone cleared their throat at the door.
I looked up and saw Benedict, freshly shaven and wearing clean clothes and carrying a beautiful bouquet of roses. And a bag with what smelled like fried chicken. My stomach growled. "Hey."
"Sorry to interrupt." But he didn't look sorry, unable to take his eyes off me. "I like your hair."
"Thanks." I squeezed Lacey's hand. "This is Lacey. Lacey, this is Benedict."
"Benedict Chase," she said, getting slowly to her feet. "I've heard a lot about you. Thank you for helping Eloise."
"Not needed," he said, but shook her hand gently when she offered it. "We're glad you're well. Or at least getting there."
She laughed a little self-consciously and waved at her face. "Yeah. Taking longer than normal. They gave me something to keep me from shifting or healing, so it's been a slow road. I should be going. Just wanted to see for myself that you're awake." She crushed me in another hug and murmured, "He's cute. Good job."
I laughed a little as she untangled herself, and wiped my cheeks again. "Right. Can we get together soon? Lunch or something?"
"Always. Just text me when you're ready." She hugged me again, quick, and retreated, disappearing out the door without another word or a backward glance. My chest tightened. It wasn't fair. She didn't want to be queen of the hyenas; that was why she and Cal planned to elope. And with her sister's treachery and her mother's death, there it was. The rest of her life, decided for her.
I stared at where she'd gone as Benedict set the roses and the chicken on the slidey tray that fit over my hospital bed. "Do you think — could she abdicate? Let someone else be queen?"
He made a thoughtful noise, searching for the water pitcher and cups, and dragged the most comfortable chair closer to the bed. "Maybe. But the hyenas don't make it a habit of training more than one leader. I don't think there's anyone capable of leading the hyena family except her. It would take a while, but I'm guessing she could probably do it. Although..." He shook his head and cut off.
"Say it."
He sighed, collapsing into the chair and propping his shiny, expensive shoes up on the mattress near my knees. "Since she lost Cal, the extra work might be helpful to keep her mind off things. Keep her busy until she processes what happened."
"She lost a lot," I said and felt my throat close once more. I wanted to throw something across the room. Apparently being paralyzed by a medusa and then thawed meant your emotions wouldn't stay level at all. I put a hand to my forehead and struggled for control — if I started crying, Benedict would be in bed with me in a heartbeat. And I wanted to eat that chicken. "She'll be okay."
"She will," he agreed. He slid a plate and the tray over my lap. "Eat, woman. You're too thin. Natalia made this for you. If we don't eat every bite, she'll beat me. She's mean, that one."
I smiled and reached for a drumstick. Ridiculous men. I needed to have a heart-to-heart with Natalia sooner rather than later. I ate until my jaw ached, then lay back to watch Benedict finish off the remaining chicken with gusto. As I studied his profile, I said, "I want to go home."
"Tomorrow morning," he said, leaning to kiss me with chicken-flavored lips. "I am taking you home."
"Good." I sighed and relaxed against the bed, my eyes settling closed as fatigue washed over me once more. "Logan kept me up and really tired me out with all his questions. He was relentless."
A low growl rumbled from Benedict and I hid a smile. I owed Logan a little bit of trouble.