Echoes of Fire (The Mercury Pack #4)(59)
“It goes without saying,” Taryn went on, “but if the Maverick Clan doesn’t back off, you have us behind you. And if that Archer bastard turns up at the shelter again, feel free to call us. Any of us.”
Makenna snickered. “If they give her any more problems, it’ll be the last thing they ever do.”
“Oh, I’m quite sure she can deal with them all on her own, especially after watching what she did to those sows,” said Taryn. “I just don’t want her to have to.”
Frankie smiled. “The way you kicked their asses, Madisyn . . . it was sheer awesomeness.”
Madisyn returned the smile. “They didn’t put up a great fight, so it wasn’t half as much fun as it could have been.”
Sienna toddled over, covered in the ice cream she was holding upside down. It was smeared all over her little face, dripping from her eyebrows and streaking the dark wispy hair that curled at the ends.
With a tired yet affectionate sigh, Makenna shook her head. “You’re always a mess. Why is that?”
Ryan grunted, taking the ice cream from his daughter’s hand while Makenna cleaned her up. Wearing a glower remarkably similar to his, Sienna grunted right back at him. The kid was a lot like her father in that she tended to communicate in grunts and monosyllables. She also had his dark eyes. Otherwise, she more closely resembled Makenna, especially when she smiled.
Clean, Sienna tottered over to Madisyn, smacking her lips at the plate of food. The little girl would eat pretty much anything, though she tended to only take a few bites of her food before getting bored with the taste—then she just played with it. Meeting Madisyn’s eyes, she made a sound that could only be described as demanding.
“I want a kiss first, missy,” said Madisyn.
Sienna smiled, leaned in, pursed her little lips, and gave Madisyn two air-kisses.
“That’ll do.”
Sienna helped herself to a handful of food and then ran off, at which point Makenna caught up to her and took away the stuff she couldn’t eat—that, of course, earned the mom a grunt and a sharp yank on her hair.
Madisyn had to laugh. “I truly do love that kid.”
After Bracken had finished his food, he joined Jesse and Zander in tossing a football with Kye, the son of the Phoenix Alphas. Madisyn watched them with a smile, thinking the kid was damn good at the game. Except for Sienna, the other kids were still in the play area, charging around and squealing. Sienna was too busy trying to grab the dandelion fluff that was floating in the air. But since there was a good chance she’d try to eat it, no one gave her any help.
Madisyn sighed happily as the cool breeze brushed over her skin and ruffled her hair, providing some much-needed reprieve from the heat. Unfortunately, the majestic weathered trees bordering the open field were too far away to cast shadows and offer shelter from the harsh glare of the sun.
Despite the heat, it was relaxing. The delicious scents of grilled meat, fried onions, and the buffet foods filled the air. Branches shuddered in the breeze. People talked and laughed. Food sputtered and hissed on the grill. Chains creaked each time Cassidy moved back and forth on the swing, pushed by Ally’s foster brother, Cain.
Madisyn had learned that he’d served time in the same juvenile facility as Nick and Derren. And although Cain worked within the Movement doing good, he was somewhat of a sociopath. He rarely smiled. When he did, those smiles never reached his eyes . . . unless he was with Cassidy, who absolutely adored him.
Leaning toward Shaya, Madisyn kept her eyes on Cassidy and Cain as she quietly asked, “Is it just me who wonders if they’re . . . ?”
“Mates? No.” Ice tinkled against the redhead’s glass as she sipped lemonade. “It’s not uncommon for such age gaps to exist between mates. In fact, my uncle is twenty years older than his mate, and they’re insanely happy. Cain is very different with Cassidy than he is with others. At first, I thought it might have been because she’s a Seer, like Ally, who he’s close to and very protective of. But he comes here far more than he did before we adopted Cassidy. And he always brings her a little something. He brings stuff for Willow too, but I think that’s just so that she doesn’t feel left out.”
“How do you feel about it?”
Shaya puffed out a breath. “I don’t know how to feel about it. On the one hand, it’s good to know she’ll have her true mate. Not everyone finds theirs. But on the other hand, well, I don’t want her bound to a sociopath.”
“He’s not cruel, though. Violent, yes, but he directs that violence against extremists. I don’t think he’d ever hurt her, whether she’s his mate or not. Watching her grow up might soften him a little.” Madisyn took another bite out of her hot dog. “Do you think he suspects that she’s his?”
“That I really don’t know. But I’m scared to ask in case the question spooks him so much that he stays away.”
“Then I guess it’s best not to say anything to him. We could be wrong anyway.” Madisyn cut her gaze back to Bracken, who was still playing football with Kye and the enforcers. A few others had now joined the game, and three of them were pinning Dominic to the ground for some reason.
“You know, I remember the first time you and Bracken met,” said Shaya. “You didn’t say hi. Just sort of stared at each other curiously. Like two predators sizing one another up. Then you both just kind of turned away in a casual dismissal. Dislike at first sight. Or so I thought until I caught Bracken frowning each time you were bantering with Dominic. It was like he wanted to befriend you, and yet something stopped him from taking that step. Something subconscious.”