Chapter 905 Chapter 905
Ena dropped the bundle on top of the other one. Pausing, she looked at the buildings left to do and then at the number of bundles left under the shelter. They were going to need more shingles. Jesse said more supplies were on the way; she’d have to ask him when they were coming. She didn’t want them to be halfway through covering a roof and run out.
Her animal was whining, and it wasn’t helping her keep her mind on the right track. Going back toward the supplies, she caught the strange look her aunt and Orson were both giving her. She stopped when she reached them. “What?”
Her aunt shook her head.
“You should have gone with him,” Orson said. He pointed to the bundles of shingles she’d been slugging to pile by Harland’s house. “You can’t keep that up for days, and he could be gone for quite a few.”
She didn’t need to be reminded how many days Foster wouldn’t be here. “He has a job to do,” she said.
Orson nodded. “I understand that, and I’m not saying he shouldn’t. He found us, and I’m grateful for that, but you can’t run like your tail is on fire the whole time he’s gone.”
“I don’t plan to.” She hoped that eventually, exhaustion would hit her, and she’d sleep. Of course, she would have to do it all over the next day, but it was the only plan she had.
“He hasn’t even been going for four hours, Ena. You’re going to exhaust yourself.” Her aunt got up. “I have something to do in the house. Jesse said I could go into mine today and show him what needs fixing.” She walked away.
Ena went over, picked up her water bottle and took a drink. She wanted to pretend Orson wasn’t sitting there staring at her, but it was hard to be disrespectful to him by ignoring him. “I’m going to be fine, Orson.”
“Oh, I know you will, I just don’t want you to drive yourself crazy or get injured in the process of your being fine.”
She inhaled slowly. He was right. She couldn’t afford an injury right now. “Okay. I’ll slow down.”
“Nyssa was looking for you to go over her list so far.”
She capped the water. “Is it a long list?” She already knew the answer. Of course, it was long. Too much had been left undone for the last decade. “I’ll go see her now. Madison is coming to check her leg after lunch on the way to another location.”
“Good. She’s been putting on a good show, but I suspect it’s bugging her more than she’s telling us.”
“It wouldn’t hurt for you to get her to check you over.”
He snorted. “I’m fine.” He stood slowly.
Ena smiled. “Yeah, me too.” The last she’d see Nyssa, she was at Savan’s talking to him. Tucking her gloves into her back pocket, she headed that way.
She was almost afraid to see the list Nyssa had been compiling. She knew it would be long, but she hoped it wasn’t crazy things. She didn’t want the Alliance to regret helping them.
When she reached the steps, Jesse was going out with Savan. She’d known him her entire life and had never seen him look as shell-shocked as he did now.
Savan nodded to Jesse.
Jesse smiled and looked at Ena. “Is it all right if I go look at your house? Your parent’s place.”
Ena shrugged. “Sure. Be careful. I don’t know what the floor and stairs are like.”
Jesse smiled. “I will.”
When he walked away, she looked at Savan. “What was that all about?”
“Jesse says the Alliance likes to make sure clans have the means to support themselves.”
It made sense.
“He’s going to suggest I get a small yard and a couple more trucks and turn my town into a real business. Harland could help. I don’t know if it’s Zach’s thing, but if it gets busy enough, I’d need help.” He grinned. “It’s crazy. Can you imagine our lives if we’d had the Alliance all along?”
Ena had no idea they did that sort of thing. “I think that’s why those scums worked hard to keep clans running scared. If all of our kind are with the Alliance, they don’t stand a chance.
Savan nodded. “And your man is part of it.” He held the door open and stuck his head in. “Nyssa, I’m headed to help with the roof. After you’re rested, make sure the door is closed tight. It sticks sometimes.” He turned back to her. “I think her leg is infected.”
Ena looked at the door and then the drive, hoping to manifest Madison. “The lady that helped at Waylon’s is coming by today to look at it.”
“Good.” He nodded and pulled his gloves out of his pocket. “I’m going to get going and see if we can get another one done today.” He patted her on the shoulder and went down the steps.
“Ena.” Zach bellowed.
She turned to see him pointing to the roadway. A van was coming in quickly. It looked like Foster’s. She sucked in a breath and started running. Something must be wrong.
The van slid when it stopped, and Foster jumped out, leaving the door wide open. He looked around.
“Foster.” She kept running.
He spun around and looked at her and then jogged toward her.
“What…”
When he reached her, he wrapped his arms around her and lifted her right off the ground. He pushed his face into her neck and squeezed her. “You need to pack a bag.” He lifted his head, searched her face, and then kissed her.
It wasn’t a gentle kiss, and she had no problem returning it. He’d come back.
When he broke the kiss, they were both out of breath and smiling. Her feet were still off the ground. “You have to come with me. We’ll call everyone here every two hours if you want, but I can’t go without you.”
Her coyote was sending images of biting him to her again. Ena bit her lip and nodded. “Okay.” He squeezed her against him again, hurrying his nose in her hair. Ena took a deep breath, and his scent made all of her worries disappear. “Foster?”
“Mmm,” He pushed his nose against the side of her neck.
“You have to put me down if you want me to go pack a bag.” She smiled at him.
“Right.” His hold loosened, and he lowered her feet to the ground. Kissing her mouth softly, he released her.
Ena turned to see Jesse and Leah standing across the yard, grinning. She turned and noticed Zach and Harland were doing the same thing. “I’ll be quick.” She didn’t want to have to deal with those looks they were getting.
“I’ll go pick everything up in the van that slid all over when I turned around.” He brushed his hair back from his face. “I think my animal just drove for the first time.”
Ena laughed and shook her head. She needed to talk to Orson about going. When she turned to go to his house, she saw him and her aunt standing on the porch. Aunt Heidi was holding Ena’s black duffle bag and smiling like she had just won the lottery. “Did you call them?”
Foster glanced over at them. “I called no one.”
Orson was halfway to them when she finally stopped looking at Foster so she could walk without tripping over something.
“You go. There are enough phones around her now that you could talk all day long to any one of us.” He nodded. “I’ll tell you everything important.” He looked at Aunt Heidi coming toward them. “She’ll tell you everything that isn’t.” He chuckled.
Aunt Heidi held up her bag. “I packed nearly everything you own.” She looked at Foster. “You need to take our girl shopping.” She nodded abruptly. “Can’t have our alpha meeting folks in jeans with no knees in them.”
Foster reached around Ena and took the bag. “I will make sure she has everything she wants.”
Ena was pleased he worded it that way instead of assuming what she needed. “How did you know to pack.”
Her aunt snorted and looked at Orson. “We’ve seen what happens with mates a time or two.” She smiled wide. “It’s different with you both.” She nodded. ‘It’s not just your animals driving you to be together.” She touched Ena’s cheek softly. “You’re falling for each other, and it’s a beautiful thing to see.”
Ena felt her cheeks heat and glanced at Foster briefly. She couldn’t stand here with the whole clan listening in and talking about love. “I don’t know how long we’ll be gone, but I will call a few times a day.” She looked over at Orson. “If you need me, you call.”
Jesse and Leah came over. “Once the internet is hooked up, you’ll be able to do video calls right from your phone.”
Her aunt grinned. “Won’t that be something? I can show everything going on around here.”
Ena knew that she meant that literally, and she’d be looking at whatever caught her aunt’s eye when she was away.
Ena nodded and looked at Jesse. “Nyssa’s leg isn’t good. Can you call me when Madison gets here? She has a list, too; I was just going to go over it with her.”
“We’ll weed out the not-so-important things,” Orson said and looked at her aunt.
“Painting the kitchen is important. No sense getting new curtains with old, faded wallpaper.” She shook her head.
Ena looked at Jesse and tried to convey a look of apology, but he was grinning, so she figured he would know how to deal with things like that.
Jesse looked at Foster. “You need to get going.”
Foster nodded and blew out a breath. “Yeah.” He shrugged. “The fog was clearing on the way back, so there’s that.”
Jesse smiled at him. “Let me know when you reach the area you’re looking in.”
Foster hefted the bag over his shoulder and gave Jesse a big grin. “We should be there by tonight.”
“Any time you’re out of the van, you have your handgun on you, understand? We don’t know who grabbed those girls.” He glanced at Ena. “She can use the tranq gun.”
Foster’s expression sobered. “I know. We’ll be careful.”
Jesse hugged Leah closer. “Get going. I’ll talk to you later.”
Foster gave him a slight nod and then held his hand out to Ena.
She couldn’t believe he’d come back for her. He’d turned around and come back for her. She glanced over and smiled at Nyssa as she walked slowly toward where Savan and Zach. Nyssa was smiling and nodding to her. Ena blew out a breath. They’d be fine for a few days without her. It’s not like she’d had to be here to hold their hands before. She just prayed she didn’t have to come back and clean up their mess like she always had to before.
“Ready?” Foster opened the passenger door for her.
She nodded. “Yes. Let’s go before they start getting all giddy on me.”
He chuckled, waited for her to get in, and closed the door.
She watched him walk around to his side and then looked around the property. She was actually going to be leaving the county and seeing something new. For years, she’d dreamed of doing it, but never thought she would ever get the chance to.
Foster swung her bag into the back and got in. Closing the door, he looked behind him. She turned to see totes and bags were no longer neatly stored under the seats.
“I guess we’ll tidy up while we’re on the road.”
He scoffed. “We’ll have time for that later when we stop for gas.” He looked at the dash. “I just used four hours worth driving in a circle.” He looked over at her, gave her a playful grin, and put the van into reverse to turn it around.