Chapter 177 Fear

Chapter 177 Fear
JARED -

The table broke beneath Jared’s hands, and for the first time since coming to Vernal, some of his anger eased.
Wood cracked through the room, loud enough that the wolves posted outside probably heard it, but he didn't care. One half of the table sagged against the wall while the other hit the floor. Eggs and bacon smeared across the wood in greasy streaks.
Jared stood over the mess with his palms braced on the splintered edge while he made himself breathe.
I’m staying. Freya's words echoed in his mind.
He didn’t care that Freya had refused him. He expected it after their last interaction, but she'd done it in front of people she had no place talking in front of, and that's what made it dangerous.
A Calder heir with an awakened wolf gave the Council something to question before Jared had a chance to decide what story they might support.
An itch drew his attention to his palm, where a thin cut grew red with blood. He closed his fist around it to stop the flow, as he breathed through his nose to control his rage.
The Gathering was days away, and Eric had already stepped between them once. Now that her wolf had woken, if Eric walked Freya into that room with even a whisper of old Calder proof, Jared would have to fight a story he'd spent nine years burying.
His phone rang from the counter by the door, and he closed his eyes.
I have everything under control, he told himself as he walked over to the counter to grab a rag and answer the call.
“What?” His voice came out clipped.
The wolf on the other end kept his voice low. “She’s at the Stiller house.”
“I know where she went.”
“She stayed there last night,” the wolf said. “In the boy’s room. And she came back today with the Speaker girl, and they put a guard on her.”
Jared moved to the window and looked through his own reflection toward the dark shape of the yard below. “And Casey?”
“Returned after her. I couldn’t get close enough to hear anything. Too many Stiller wolves near the stairs.”
“Then stop trying to get close,” Jared said. “Watch the doors and the boy. If Freya leaves, I want to know before the gate closes behind her.” He picked at the paint on the windowsill until he could peel it away. The freshly broken paint felt good enough that he continued as he spoke. "Also, if Eric arrives, I want to be contacted immediately."
“Yes, Alpha.”
Jared didn't respond before he ended the call and tore away the largest piece of paint from the sill. Seeing the broken edges let him breathe a little better.
I knew her and the Stiller boy were together.
Jared stared at the phone and felt his mouth pull into something that was almost a smile. Eric had denied anything between them, but if he could make Freya look less like an heir and more like a girl compromised by the local pack leader's son, he had something he could work with.
The phone rang again before he could set it down, and the name on the screen said Sandy.
Exhaustion finally filtered through his anger, and his shoulders dropped.
He looked at the name until the second ring, then answered without speaking.
“Jared...” Sandy’s voice came thin and strained. “Have you seen Freya? She didn’t come home last night after we argued.”
He picked at the paint once more, his voice going monotone.
“I know where she is,” he said.
“You do?”
“She’s with the Stillers. She was there last night, and she went back today.”
The silence sat between them, and he could almost see Sandy fidgeting with the new information. He truly despised the woman.
“I called the moment I realized she wasn’t in her room.”
“The moment you realized,” Jared repeated, keeping his voice even.
“After I called you, I waited for her to come back.” Her words faltered as she continued. “Maybe we should just leave. We don’t need this place or these people. We could be happy again. It’d be like it was in Texas.”
Jared’s hand went still around the phone, and his anger went cold. Of all the words she could have used, she chose Texas.
He turned from the window and looked at the broken table. When he spoke again, he kept his smile in place. “Texas is gone, Sandy.”
“I know that.”
“Do you?”
“No. Yes. I don’t know.” Her breath caught hard enough that he heard it. “This place is making everything worse. Freya won’t listen, and she keeps looking at me like I’m the monster. I’m not. What do I have to be scared of? It wasn’t me that killed my sister.”
The phone case creaked in Jared’s hand.
For one quiet second, the room disappeared, and Lena was on the floor again with blood at her mouth and hatred still bright in her eyes. Sandy kept talking, but the words blurred beneath the sound of Jared’s own pulse until he forced his fingers to relax.
When he spoke again, he held a smile in place with controlled calm. “Of course it wasn’t you,” he said softly. “No one said it was.”
Sandy went silent.
Jared sat on the edge of the bed because standing made him want to throw the phone through the wall. He couldn’t leave her alone with her own fear anymore. Mentioning Texas was stupid, and whether Sandy knew it or not, she had just run out of chances.
“Listen to me,” he said. “Don’t go after Freya, and don’t call anyone else. Especially don’t talk about Texas, and don’t try to explain yourself to anyone.”
“I wasn’t going to.”
“You just did, Sandy.” He closed his eyes as soon as the words left his mouth, irritated that he had given her even that much.
Her breath stopped for a second, and Jared softened his voice before she could panic into saying more. “Stay where you are. I’ll send someone to make sure you’re safe.”
“You promise?”
The question almost made him laugh.
“Yes,” he said. “I promise.”
He ended the call before she could say anything else stupid, then he sat with the phone resting against his knee while the room slowly came back into place.
Sandy had survived because she knew how to protect herself. Ten years ago, that had told Jared exactly how to use her. Now the same instinct had made her look everywhere but at him.
Jared opened another number and waited until one of his wolves answered.
“I need someone handled before the Gathering,” he said.