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question and driving Finn crazy. It didn t help that Ariel hovered, shooting dirty looks at Laura the
entire time. His mate never commented on them, and she ignored Ariel for the most part. Finn found
himself losing his patience with Ariel even though she d come to mean so much to him.
 Do you have a problem with my mate? Finn asked Ariel.
 Finn, Laura chided.
 Is there a problem? Gideon broke off from what he was doing to join the conversation.
 That s what I m asking, Finn said.
 Ariel? Gideon asked.
 She left you to die, she snarled.
 She saved my life, Finn countered.
 I was there when you confronted her. I heard what was said, just like everyone else did. You
should have ripped her throat out.
A rumble rose from Finn s throat. Laura put her hand out, touching his chest and easing him.
 We didn t know everything then, Laura told Ariel.  I m sure Gideon can fill you in on what
we ve learned when the tests are done.
 I know all I need to know, Ariel sneered.
 Why do you hate me? Laura asked.  At first, I thought it was because you wanted Finn to be
your mate, but that s not true. Your mate s right here, and you don t want him.
Finn felt a jolt go through him at that revelation, and it was obvious Gideon did, too, by the way
he jerked around.
 That s not true, Ariel said.
 It is. Laura seemed to take Ariel s reaction as confirmation to whatever she was thinking.
 You re hurting him. I don t know if you realize that or not. I thought maybe you were selfish, but I
don t think that s it either. I think it s fear.
 I m not afraid of anything, Ariel challenged.
 We re all afraid of something, Laura countered.
 Your mate is here? Gideon said.  Who is it?
 She doesn t know what she s talking about, Ariel yelled.  I don t have a mate.
 We all have a mate somewhere, Finn said.
 I don t, Ariel vowed.
 Why do you hate me? Laura asked again.
 Because, Ariel yelled.
 Why? Laura pushed.
 Because he saved you, Ariel screamed.  He saved you. Sobs caught in Ariel s chest, and
everything clicked in Finn s head. The things Gideon had let slip about how Clara s Uncle Thomas
had saved Ariel, how she d woken up screaming. The way she avoided people. The way she clung to
those she trusted.
 Jesus, no, Finn whispered, horrified.
 And no one saved you, Laura said softly.  Oh, Ariel. I m so sorry.
 Stop it. Don t look at me like that. I m not broken. I am worthy. I didn t deserve what
happened, and I m not a victim! Ariel turned and fled.
They all stood there for a long moment, processing what she d said. Then Gideon moved.
 Let her go, Laura said.  You can t help her right now. This& What happened to her& She has
to work through it.
 Thomas told her sometimes people get what they deserve. She woke up crying from one of her
dreams, crying about what happened to her. Gideon looked at Laura, and Finn saw the sorrow in his
eyes.  I wasn t there. I was the one who gave her comfort. Thomas told her some people were
destined to be victims.
 He was pushing her to deal with what happened, Laura said.  From what I see, she still
hasn t. She won t heal until she does.
 Thomas shouldn t have said those things to her, Gideon admonished.
 Maybe, she needed to hear them, Laura countered.  Maybe, he was trying to get her to realize
she wasn t those things. So he told her she was.
Gideon looked at her.  I never thought of it that way.
 Tough love is hard, but it s still love, Laura stated.
 She was so broken when Thomas found her, Gideon said.  He brought her back and told me to
take care of her. She bled for days, cowering away from me at first. She d wake up screaming. She d
fight me, but I couldn t leave her like that. I d hug her and just hold her until she quieted. She d beg
me to protect her, to keep them from touching her. Eventually, she got to the point that she d wake up
crying out for me. Then she just woke up. I thought she was doing okay.
 Dillion said she was expendable, Finn said.
 Dillion? Laura asked.
 He was the shifter who attacked when we were in Colorado, Finn said.  He wanted to kill
Clara. Instead, he hit Zane and Logan with a strain of feral fever virus.
 Jesus! Laura exclaimed.  What happened to Dillion?
 Ariel killed him, Gideon said.
 Good, Laura said.
 How do I help her? he asked.
 I m not sure you re the one to help her, Laura suggested.
 Do you really think she s afraid?
 I know what she s been through. With one big difference, Laura said.  Gabriel saved me.
Thomas was too late to prevent what happened to her. I can imagine what she survived, but I didn t
experience it. I was lucky.
Finn reached for her, pulling her against his chest. He couldn t not touch her. Visualizing what
she d told him, thinking what could have happened if Gabriel hadn t shown up, knowing what Ariel
had survived. He felt sick. His beast raged for blood. He wanted to hunt down the men who d hurt
Ariel and make each of them suffer.
 How would she not know fear after what she went through? Laura asked.
 Who s her mate? Gideon asked, but Laura shook her head.
 That s for her to tell you, not me, Laura said.  I m going to go check on her. She might not
know me, but I think she ll relate to me more than anyone else here.
 Be careful, Finn said.
 I will, Laura promised and gave him a quick kiss.
 I ll come looking for you as soon as I m done here, he told her.
She nodded and headed out of the lab, leaving Finn with Gideon.
 She was raped, Gideon said and swallowed.
Finn felt the bile rise in his throat as he nodded.
 I knew; I just didn t want to accept it, Gideon admitted.  I keep thinking the worst of Thomas.
I let Dillion plant the seeds in my mind. Even Clara doesn t think as highly of Thomas as she once
did. Gideon blew out a hard breath and rubbed his hands over his face.  So many people are quick
to point out what they see as his faults. Then Laura comes along and puts it all in a new light. Maybe,
his methods weren t perfect, but his heart was in the right place.
 There s good and bad in all of us, Gideon, Finn said.  Thomas is the same. Look at everything
he s been through. Losing his mate and child. Losing his brother. Being captured and tortured [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]