By closing time, we both notice Vick never came back, which is odd, considering he always stops by before the dinner rush. When closing time comes, Lisa empties the new tip jar and gives me half of it. I place the cash in my wallet, toss it in my bag and help Lisa lock up the place.
Lisa catches a bus to and from work, which pulls up out the front as we walk out the door. “Shit!” she hisses.
“I will lock up,” I tell her.
She tosses me the keys and quickly races over, just before the doors shut. I pull all the shutters down and quickly place the padlocks on before locking the screen door. Once I am done, I turn around. It is dark now, seeing that it is nearly nine o’clock. Wrapping my arms around myself, I start walking. I have this strange feeling I am being watched, which makes me pick up my pace. I keep looking over my shoulder every few minutes, convinced someone is following me. When I come to the alley, I freeze, and look down at it. I look further down the street, deciding whether to take the shortcut or the long route, which will add twenty minutes. I opt for the streetlights, taking the long route. When my trailer comes into view, I start jogging, wanting to get inside to safety. Closing the door, I quickly lock it. The first thing I do is check the taps.
I do a little victory dance when I see the pipes are no longer frozen. Tossing my bag on my bed, I walk into the bathroom and turn the lights on.
My phone buzzes just as I am about to enter the shower. After letting the water heat up, I walk over to where I?left my phone and pick it up. Vick has sent a text.
Going on vacation, you and Lisa will take over the cafe until I return.
Wow. To be honest, I am a little taken aback after the day’s events, and this message just adds to it. Yet, I am glad I won’t have to see him for a while. Lisa and I are more than capable of running the cafe. At least for now, we won’t have to put up with his sexual advances.
Sure, Vick, have a pleasant vacation.
I reply, before dropping my phone on the bed and walking to the bathroom so I can have a shower.
Thaddeus
A week goes by. I sent Orion to watch over her, to find out more about her, yet each day, he comes back with the same answer – nothing.
He even tried to compel the girl, Lisa, I think he said her name is. Not even Lisa knows much about her, despite the fact that they have been working together for almost two years now.
All Lisa could tell him is that Evelyn lives in the trailer park a couple of blocks away from the cafe. Orion claims he pressed for more information, but all he got about her background, from Lisa, is that our mate just showed up in that cafe, looking for a job.
Her answers, and the reluctance, makes me wonder what Evelyn is hiding. And if there is anything Lisa is helping her to hide.
Orion managed to steal her keys while she wasn’t looking and already made a copy of them. So today, while Evelyn is at work, Ryland and I are planning to see what we can find out about her.
Watching Orion leave and waiting for his call to tell us she has arrived at work feels like the hardest part of this morning. But now that it’s out of our way, I grab my keys and walk to our apartment door. Ryland is straight behind me, following on my heels. Both Ryland and Orion are just as curious about who our little mate is, as I am. We all are eager to find out more about her.
Thankfully, it doesn’t take us long to drive to the trailer park. It looks abandoned. There’s nothing besides the few trailers that remain, and the front office. The entire place comprises of around twenty trailers, so finding hers is a piece of cake. I pull up and notice an old woman sitting out the front. I am sure she lives next door. That much is clear by how her eyes follow us as we walk up the stairs.
I nod to Ryland, and he unlocks the door. His eyes don’t leave the wrinkly old hag’s face as she watches us with suspicious eyes.
“You’re not worried she will tell her?” Ryland asks, opening the door.
We haven’t even stepped inside the trailer when we are instantly hit with her scent. My mouth waters as the intoxicating aroma wraps around us. My body relaxes the same instant; her scent calms me as we step inside and close the door behind us.
“You can deal with the woman when we leave,” I tell him, and he nods his head, looking around.
Evelyn doesn’t own much. I think it’s a bit weird that she has no personal belongings besides clothing, even though this is where she lives. We start opening drawers and find some bills with her name, a make-up bag, and a hair straightener. But other than that, there isn’t much here.
No photos, no albums, no paperwork, nothing that could show what her personality is like, or where she comes from. Nothing.
As we walk into her room, Ryland instantly lays on her bed and just as quickly, jumps to his feet. “God, she might as well just sleep on the springs,” he mutters to himself, as he turns and opens the bedside drawer.
While he goes through it, I notice a shoebox under the bed and bend down to reach for it. The moment it’s in my hands, I open it. Inside, there is a small amount of cash, maybe around 500 dollars, and a newspaper clipping. The paper looks old and has fold lines in it.
I squint my eyes at it, it’s a photo of a church and a nun holding a baby. The title of the article is asking for information on a baby that was dropped out the front of the very church. “I wonder why she has this?” I ask, turning the clipping and showing it to Ryland.
His eyes scan the paper for a second, but he just shrugs. “Well, this was a waste of time,” he mutters and opens the top drawer of the dresser.
As soon as he does, he growls in the back of his throat, making me raise an eyebrow at whatever he might have found there. Before I can question him, Ryland turns around and, in his hand, he has a pair of lace panties.
I roll my eyes at him as he dangles them in front of my face. To his dismay, I snatch the panties from his hand and place them back in the drawer. No matter how annoyed he might be, Ryland has to understand we must leave everything as Evelyn had it before we came here.
He still complains under his breath as I place the shoebox where I found it and push him out of the trailer. Then, we lock the door and leave.
“What now?” Ryland asks.
“Hungry?” I ask, and he nods.
I am getting sick of waiting and being patient. When we first saw her and the fear in her eyes, the thought of having her scared me. Now, all I can think about is her. Every waking moment of the day, she is in my thoughts, and I know it is the mate bond. But we all already decided that she will be ours, one way or another.
We let Orion go first. He is trying to get to know her and woo Evelyn, but she shows no interest in him. In fact, she has shown little interest in anyone. Orion claims she does her job and heads straight home. According to him, she has no hobbies and doesn’t wander far from home or work.
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