Soul Moon

Cornered

"Nothing. No one is going to hurt you. I swear," Caden replies.

"Then why did that person say 'go easy on him'? What are they going to do to me?"

The primal fear in the bartender's eyes is back. Caden can smell the adrenaline coursing through the terrified man's body. If he doesn't calm Erick down right now, the situation is going to go from bad to worse in seconds.

"Erick, they're friends of mine. No one is going to hurt you." Caden holds his hands up in pacification but remains seated.

"But..."

"Don't mind Rev. She has a sick sense of humor."

"Why is she here?" Erick growls. "How does she know about me? Did you call her?" His eyes shift from Caden to the door and back again.

Caden has to give it to him, Erick's smart. And about to jump out the window if Caden doesn't act fast. He has to be honest with the bartender if he wants Erick to learn to trust him.

"She has medical training. I was worried about you. Whatever they gave you was strong. I wanted her to give you a quick exam just to make sure you're alright."

"Why didn't you tell me she was coming? You could've..."

Erick's attention is now completely on the door. His head jerks with tiny movements from left to right, listening to what's on the other side of the wooden barrier. They are the movements of a wild animal trying to pick up every minute sound possible and yet he's completely unaware that his other half has taken control.

"Caden! Open up damnit!"

Gray eyes snap to where Caden stands calmly. The bartender clearly has no idea if he should trust the stranger standing between him and the people on the other side of the door or not. His legs bend slightly at the knees, his stance visibly defensive and nervous.

Caden knows he has to convince Erick that no harm will come to him once he opens the door. If he doesn't, his associates will not be gentle in subduing the bartender. And, if his intuition is right, Erick will fight back with everything he's got. In the end, someone's going to get hurt.

"You can hear another person, can't you?" he says softly.

Erick nods once. His hands grip the back of the chair in front of him so tightly his knuckles turn white. This is not going well.

"That's Rook," Caden says delicately. "Think of him as a private investigator. He's very good at finding people and solving mysteries. He's here to help you put the pieces of your abduction together so we can determine who tried to kidnap you and why."

"Who the fuck are you?"

"I told you. I..."

A frustrated snarl curls Erick's lips. "You haven't told me shit! All I know is your first name which you could have made up and that this is your place! At least that's what you want me to think." His wild eyes ghost over the condo. "This place looks like it's been staged for an open house. There's no personal items that make it feel lived in so I'm guessing this isn't your real home. There are two people on the other side of that door, one a doctor and the other...maybe a bounty hunter if he's good at finding people? Hell! For all I know, you could be the ones who kidnapped me!"

The distress in the bartender's voice is unsettling. He's panicking. His breathing is uneven, his heart rate skyrocketing. If Caden doesn't do something quickly, Erick is either going to shift or pass out, the latter being the better option right now.

Taking slow and deliberate steps, Caden turns away from the bartender and returns to his seat. He sits down gracefully, placing his hands on the table and lowering his head. The weight of the deteriorating situation around him forces him to take a deep breath. He has to refocus on what he needs to do to salvage whatever chance he has of keeping Erick safe. His wolf gives him strength and the hope that what he's about to say is the right thing.

"The men who tried to take you are all dead," he mutters quietly. "No one is going to hurt you. I won't allow it."

Suddenly, everything stops. There are no more knocks or demands from the two people behind the door. Erick's raised voice earlier was so loud that Caden knows his associates clearly heard the bartender and are now giving him time to calm the frightened man down. He remains in his unthreatening state and will continue to do so until Erick's wolf no longer senses danger. To avoid eye contact, he focuses only on his hands that rest palms down on the table, while he uses his nose and ears to detect everything his eyes cannot see. The four feet of marble countertop separating them has become an abyss and Caden hates it.

Erick stands unmoving, uncertainty darkening his silver eyes. After what feels like hours, his body hesitantly begins to relax. His heartbeats slow to a more acceptable range, which in turn, calms Caden's heart. Despite the fact that the bartender's breaths remain hurried, they are now less erratic. The sound of his hands sliding back and forth along the top of the wooden chair is rhythmic and seems to soothe him. He scuffs his black ankle boots against the hardwood floor, the metal buckle and chain adorning them tinkling with his jerky movements.

Caden's wolf whines loudly. Apparently, it doesn't like this situation any more than he does. Their mutual need to comfort and protect this man struggling to accept what has happened and what could happen to him grows with each passing second. They both want nothing more than to keep Erick safe. Even if that means he hates them.

A part of Caden wonders if Erick has ever felt safe and loved at any point of his life. A wolf without a family or a pack typically suffers from loneliness and depression. It feels lost and unwanted. Too many wolf shifters have been forced to wander this world in search of something they can never find with a human mate. Ignorance and fear have wiped out nearly every pack on every continent. Only a few remain, hiding in the shadows, isolated from others of their kind.

Caden should know. It was how he lived the first half of his life. The only reason he's where he is today is because the two people standing on the other side of the door stayed by his side during his darkest years.

He's pulled out of his thoughts and memories when he hears a defeated sigh pass through Erick's lips. Caden's eyes drift upwards, careful not to make any sudden movements that might trigger Erick's survival response.

Exhaustion has drained the color from the barkeep's smooth skin. The fire in his eyes just minutes ago has been doused by his fear of the unknown. He slides the empty chair he's been holding onto like a life line back from the island and collapses onto it. He looks defeated and docile, a wolf who no longer has the will to fight.

A deep sadness blankets Caden's heart. It's painfully nauseating and knocks his next breath out of him. Something scratches at the edges of his ancient memories but he shoves it down again. He starts to push up from his chair but stops suddenly when he hears Erick ask a question he doesn't want to answer.

"You killed them...didn't you?"