Chapter 211

Logan scoffed loudly, "Please... I have no beef with your father but if I wanted to keep my trail snow white I'd leave that same bullshit note too." I rested back listening to his words, "whoever did this is a fucking coward, amateur too. Please," he rolled his eyes, "look up the last name Gavino, all you see is the shit your father and Dante have been called 'persons of interest' for, but never more than that and you have a wall tall, far and fucking wide to hide behind." "Still my fault..." "Like it was my fault Rainy got taken?" he countered, knowing I was the one that nearly beat it physically into him that there was nothing he could've done to save her, but choosing to look, that was a decision he could hold himself responsible for. I didn't even dignify his statement with a response - none would be adequate. Another knock on the door stilted our conversation, "come in..." I said wondering if people were really just lurking outside, but I could tell from some thoughts that most people were resting in their apartments. Only Lukas, James and Noah were down here guarding this level. Logan and I turned to the door, and Rachel Davis walked in, red-rimmed eyes, blotchy face, body shaking, the tear tracks on her face hadn't even dried. I hadn't been able to face anyone or left this place but everyone knew I was down here, humans too. "Ha - have you found the people responsible for this? For gunning down my - my baby?" her voice pained, shook but she seemed determined to hold it together, her eyes ran over Chelsea, and I expected to see anger, that my mate was on this bed and her daughter wasn't able to be saved at all. I didn't find it, if Rachel Davis was bitter or angry she was good at hiding it, "My men are still looking and we have more people searching now too," I said not sure what she had came down to tell me at three a.m. "T - they - those men didn't care... I heard - heard that they would've seen her walking into that place... they were waiting for your girl, they knew McKenna was there... innocent but they still went ahead - shot her dead like - like my baby was an animal - like she didn't matter. I know you're probably not angry because your girl survived..." again no anger or bitterness towards Chelsea, oh no... "When you find them... make it painful," she nodded to herself her eyes filled with sadness, swimming - she appeared to be drowning in it. "I will..." she seemed to be holding something back... the reluctance was so clear I could've seen it from miles away. "Mrs. Davis?" I said softly wanting her to face me; I didn't know what to ask. Do I ask if she's okay? No, because of course she isn't fucking okay her daughter just died. I glanced at Logan, was he noticing that same withdrawn reluctance that I was? A barely noticeable nod told me he was, but what could she possibly be having trouble saying right now? She just asked me to make sure those bastards pay but now she was shy? Holding onto Chelsea's hand I glanced at a chair further away and whispered under my breath for Logan to get her a seat. She didn't come here to tell me to make those assholes pay, she came down here for something else, "Here you can sit with us - Mrs. Davis." Nodding she sat gingerly, "They said she wasn't healing? Your Chelsea..." deflecting but I'd play for now. "No... she isn't... but she should be," I held Chelseas hand in both of mine, "Maybe... she doesn't want you to feel pain," the pain in her voice still thick but my head snapped to her face. Unsure she still spoke, "I - I know I don't know much... about your kind but Jack was explaining that you feel each others pain-" my eyes widened crazily when I thought about it, I stood up instantly. Abruptly, "JACK! CASEY! JAMIE!" I shouted knowing that even if they didn't hear me, someone would get them for me. I was afraid to touch Chelsea anywhere but her hand but Mrs. Davis was right. Since that initial suffering I had with Nonno outside USC in the parking lot I had yet to feel any pain from Chelsea. Shouldn't I be able to feel her pain? "I can't feel her pain!" I pointed to Chelsea, the words had meaning but not when they were looking at me as though I'd lost my mind. "Would I be able to feel her pain right now? Even though she's under?" Jamie and Casey turned to Jack. Quickly one of Jacks claw scratched Chelsea on her arm, but I couldn't feel it. I shook my head, "Nothing..." He pursed his lips, clearly thinking before giving me an answer, "either she isn't registering pain or she's consuming the pain and preventing you from feeling it." He sounded tired, or maybe it was the emotionless void he felt with his mate around but for a minute I could accept his detachment. Going near Chelsea's face, I lean down to her ear, "Sweetheart... if you're wasting energy trying to prevent me from feeling pain, well you stop that right now. Do you hear me? I can handle it, you taking longer to heal and open those beautiful eyes for me, well that's more painful than any physical pain I could deal with - share your pain with me Love," I said emotionally trying to hold myself together, the audience not hindering my words. Jack, Jamie and Casey didn't leave, just went to lean against the wall, I turned my focus back to Mrs. Davis. "Was there something else? Anything else on your mind?" I prodded gently. I could feel their eyes on me, wondering for the first time probably what Mrs. Davis was doing down here in the first place. "Is that a werewolf sense?" she tried to joke but failed, the grimace and pain overwhelming. Her lips thinned, "I - I was like your Chelsea, big hearted, and when the fire that claimed Darren and Amara's parents, my best friends Jeremiah and I took the kids in, raised them as our own. They - they protect each other; have been since before the accident. Since last Thursday, Amara has been preparing asking us to come to her therapy session, she said that her therapist thought it would be good for her to speak to us in a neutral place because she felt abandoned. Of course we - well all of us but Russell, McKenna and Dana - decided to go, but then Amara was adamant that we all come... even though that wasn't her scheduled time." though my hand was on Chelsea, with where I thought this was going I was read to teleport and get Amara, stringing that no good psycho up by her feet and beating the shit out of her. "When we arrived... when Amara didn't see Dana or McKenna with us, it was like she had ants all over her body, she was so anxious, angry at first only calming down when Darren told her that Dana just wasn't feeling well, that she and McKenna were just at the hotel," her voice just a whisper, and I knew that even while telling me this, Rachel Davis was trying to discount her own thoughts, but she knew. Deep in her gut, inside, she knew. "Amara said that they appointment had been changed because, her therapist was going on a short vacation to Florida, wasn't seeing clients... going to this session would help her during the holidays, show her that we didn't just abandon her," Logan reached over for a Kleenex box placing it near her which Rachel, immediately reached for one, folding it and dabbing her wet cheeks, only more sadness poured down. "We go and the therapist looked... shocked that we were all there to me. But she didn't say anything, then at the end of the session, when we were leaving, she said that she hopes we enjoy our trip to Michigan, I didn't think much of that, but I was being polite and told her that I hope she has a nice visit with her family in Florida. That woman... she was so confused, but she just answered, 'oh my family is born and raised in California,' then turned to Amara, and asked her if she wanted to keep this scheduled time or go back to the other time slot..." by then the little woman was sobbing uncontrollably and Jack strode forward to comfort his mates mother, despite his own grief. She just cried, hard. "I - I - I - I don't - don't want to think she had something - something to - to do with - with this but - but - but - she was so off and the lies and - and I think she killed my b-babyyy - my baby - my baby," she cried repeating the words over and over again, rocking. Jack knowing her grief, held her. James! I called him over the link, barely controlling my anger. Two seconds later he pushed through the door ready to shoot, immediately after assessing the room, he lowered his gun and looked to me. "Boss?" Take Logan to Amara's place, bring her back to the basement, and handle that. If you can't, get Nonno on it. Logan will explain. He nodded once and I looked to Logan, nodding towards the door so he would follow James. I wouldn't call David and Rico back from the trailing of the two shooters but I would find out what Amara knew. I was taking Mrs. Davis' words with a pinch of salt but it all made sense. We had been keeping a low profile, there was no way people had figured out our patterns unless someone in house said something. A mole.