Brothers - 31. Chapter 31

JASON

A knock at the front door startled the two right as they were about to leave. Fixing his shirt one last time, Jason opened the door, trying to think who would be knocking. Dylan was supposed to pick up Brienne and meet him at the school’s car park, and Richard wouldn’t be home for another day at least.

He blinked in surprise at Damian and Lysander standing outside, the two nekos sharing a brief look before Jason turned to Lysander.

“Hey, Dylan told us you were going on his date with Brienne, so we figured we’d get Devyn out of your fur for a bit,” Lysander said. “I always enjoy a nice walk before the new moon.”

Frowning, Jason motioned for the two to stand aside, picking up a ball next to the door before letting out a shrill whistle. There was a sudden crash, and the sound of feet scrabbling on the floor as Devyn came sprinting from the kitchen, the human wolf lunging at the ball in Jason’s hand.

The neko let it fall, Devyn grabbing it before realizing Lysander and Damian were standing beside the door. The ball fell from his mouth as his head twisted in confusion.

“I’m glad to see you two working things out,” Lysander chuckled. “Devyn, would you like to go for a walk with us tonight?”

“We can hang out after you get back,” Jason typed quickly into his phone.

Devyn let out a huff, pulling his shirt off. Jason averted his eyes quickly as the wolf dropped his kilt, the nauseating crunch of shifting bones following a moment later as Devyn fell into his wolf form.

A wet nose bumped Jason’s thigh, the neko petting the wolf’s head a little awkwardly before shooing him out of the house. Following behind the wolf, he locked up the house, nodding toward Lysander and Damian.

“We’ll be back by nine; that’s when Dylan said he’d be on his way home,” Lysander mentioned.

Jason nodded again, stepping away from the house with a deep breath. He felt… more than nervous. Scared even. But he still took step after step, making the mile long walk to the school.

Thoughts spun through his mind, Devyn’s accusing glare stuck in his head. He couldn’t hurt his brother like he was. As hard as it was, he had to tell Brienne something. Not the truth; there was no way he could admit that to anyone yet. But he had to break up with her, and the realization sent knots of painful anxiety stretching through his gut.

He wasn’t going to stay. He’d show up, let Brienne know he couldn’t be with her and she should be with Dylan, and then head home again.

“Jason.”

The neko let out a silent yelp, spinning around. He found Erith standing next to him, the elf moving more silently than he had any right to.

“Lost in thought?” the werewolf said quietly.

Jason nodded warily, watching Erith as he slowly backed away.

“I’m not going to hurt you,” the elf sighed. “Look… I’m sorry about earlier. I should never have broken into your house. That was way out of line, and I… I’m honestly not sure why I did it, I just knew I had to and… fuck, it makes no sense…”

‘You have some of the biggest balls I have ever seen,’ Jason signed. ‘You are lucky Devyn-’

“It was Devyn,” Erith interrupted. “And he did see me. Scared me half to death…”

‘Good.’

Jason’s hands were an agitated blur, the neko’s stress pouring out on the elf as he let off steam.

‘I don’t know what your problem is. All of you wolves, you’re all the same, mate me, breed me, claim me. Where the fuck do you get off trying to dictate people’s lives? What if I don’t want to be a fucking wolf? What if I don’t want to fuck something that becomes an animal twice a month? It’s disgusting, it’s wrong, it’s absolutely immoral!’

“This… isn’t about me, is it,” Erith frowned. “All I’m going to say is look up WolfLovers. You’ll figure it out.”

‘Why are you here?’

“I’m walking to the game?” Erith said, letting out his own sigh. “I literally live like a ten minute walk from your house, I just never walked down your street until… well… nevermind… It’s not like I’m stalking you.”

‘You break into someone’s house to sniff out their brother, it’s going to make someone wonder,’ Jason scowled.

“Oh don’t worry, I’m leaving you for him. He has first right to the claim.”

‘Gods damn it, does everyone know my brother has a fucking wolf claim on me?!’

“Probably not,” Erith shrugged. “Besides, King Paelias had a consort who slept with his brother occasionally, and they were blood related. Wolves don’t really care about that.”

‘Well then I’m glad I’m not a wolf.’

The elf shrugged as they stepped into the school’s car park.

“Whatever. I guess I’ll see you around. And do me a favour, let me know if you actually deny Devyn’s claim. I’d love to have a chance with him.”

The elf turned toward the pitch as Dylan and Brienne approached, Jason taking a deep breath as he turned toward the two. His phone slipped into his hands, and he typed shakily, Brienne frowning as she waited for his hands to be free.

“Brienne, I can’t be your boyfriend.”

DEVYN

He had to admit it was nice taking a short run at night. Devyn would be naturally stuck in wolf form over the next few days, no potion needed. Even Marin couldn’t stop him from coming into school in wolf form during the new moon. Starting early was always nice, even if the moon didn’t start until tomorrow night.

The air felt great on his fur, a breeze ruffling him just right as he made sure to mark his territory. Erith had been taking far too many liberties, and Devyn needed to make sure everyone knew clearly what was his.

“I’m kind of glad Dylan got off the track team,” Damian said quietly as they walked, Devyn’s ear swivelling to catch the neko’s words. “Jordan won’t say anything, but the pack has been bringing in more business than we can handle on our own, and having Dylan help will keep us from having to hire someone else.”

“Just make sure he gets his money,” Lysander chided, following the wolf. “I’ve seen what happens when younger people aren’t given what they’re owed. They tend to become rather bitter, or worse, they lose any sense of self worth.”

“It isn’t about the money,” Damian chuckled. “The gods know we’re raking that in at near record rates with my new biscuits. The issue is finding someone we trust. No one wants another Arithan situation.”

Lysander winced at the name, shaking his head.

“That would not be good,” he agreed quietly. “You sure you’ll be able to handle everything tomorrow? The funeral shouldn’t last too long.”

“Positive,” Damian said as they stopped at a red light.

Devyn’s neck bent back slightly, the wolf staring at the lights for the cars. He couldn’t see the colours, but it had been drilled into his mind from the time he was a puppy, the top light meant stop, the bottom meant go. And the one in between meant don’t go, but he wasn’t sure how that was any different from stop.

As it switched, the wolf stepped into the road, nose to the ground as he picked up a strange scent… a squirrel in this part of town? It wasn’t common to find one in the crosswalks.

“Make sure Dylan can take a few breaks. He still needs to get his hom- DEVYN!”

The wolf flinched at the yell, something slamming into him from behind and tossing him toward the sidewalk. There was a sudden thud and a squeal of tires, the wolf standing up shakily as his head swiveled.

Lysander was laying in the street, Damian staring at him in horrified shock. Devyn let out a frantic bark, trying to rouse the neko as he ran back into the road.

“Tel galaran heda…” the elf breathed, his body contorted in a strange angle.

A deep breath rattled out of him, Lysander’s eyes clouding with pain, the same pain Devyn remembered in Jason’s eyes when he fell down the stairs. The wolf whimpered loudly, trying to figure out where the injury was. If he could find it, maybe he could fix it.

“Damian!” Lysander croaked out, eyes squeezing shut briefly.

Devyn darted toward the neko, knocking Damian over, and the neko startled out of his frozen state. Picking himself up, he ran toward Lysander, a car coming to a stop nearby.

“Can’t move…” the elf grunted up at the neko. “I need you to call the medics. I can’t feel anything below my neck.”

Devyn could feel Damian starting to panic, the wolf pushing against his leg reassuringly. Lysander wasn’t panicking, it was a good sign, he hoped. Besides, Jerric had helped Jason. Surely he’d be able to fix Lysander too.

“Damian… deep breaths…” Lysander said, the scene perplexing Devyn.

The elf was the one injured. How was he able to talk through this so calmly? He could smell the pungent scent of fear, hear the pounding of Lysander’s heart. The elf was terrified, but he was making sure his mate was comforted.

“Devyn!”

He growled at the voice, head turning to stare down his mother. Devyn had no idea what she was doing here, but he was not in the mood to deal with her.

“Margaret, leave right now,” Lysander said, Damian staring between the three with his phone out. “Damian, call the ambulance please…”

“Look, you are clearly in no position to watch my son right now. I can see Damian has everything in hand-”

“I don’t,” the neko said quickly, fingers tapping over the phone shakily.

He knelt next to his mate, an earbud in his ear as he waited.

“My point is, I can make sure Devyn gets home safely,” Margaret scowled.

Devyn growled quietly, the other werewolf glaring back at him until the growl died off. Sirens sounded in the distance, Lysander staring up at the sky as he took slow, deep breaths.

“Devyn, I want you to find Jason right now,” he said finally. “I’ll be okay. Margaret can make sure I get in the ambulance safely.”

Devyn huffed quietly, stepping away from the elf. His head twisted slightly, looking at Lysander in concern.

“I’m fine Devyn, just go.”

“No, he is going home and I’m going to make sure he gets there safely,” Margaret growled.

Devyn’s tail tucked between his legs at her tone, the wolf backing away slowly. He glanced between Lysander and his mother, before tearing himself away and racing in the direction of the school.

“Devyn Farin! You get back here young man!”

She was obviously talking about someone else. Devyn put on a burst of speed, ducking into an alley to lose his mother as he sped toward his brother. He wasn’t a man, young or otherwise. He was a wolf.

JASON

She took it rather well.

Granted, there was still no way Jason was staying to watch the game; he had no desire to be a third wheel. But it was nice to know that Brienne held no hard feelings toward him. They had tried something, and it didn't work out. There were no hard feelings on either side.

And it left him without a date for the autumn dance, not that he was too worried about that. Honestly, the neko was just glad it was done with. He could breathe easier now.

Scrabbling feet and a woof startled Jason, the neko watching in alarm as Devyn raced toward him. He glanced around for Lysander and Damian, frowning when they remained missing. Devyn bit the leg of the neko’s pants, tugging almost frantically, and Jason pulled his leg away, pushing the wolf lightly.

The wolf turned, darting ahead before glancing back at his brother, and Jason sighed before jogging after him. He was utterly confused, but standing around with two nonverbal people was not going to make the situation any clearer.

They made it back to the house quickly, Jason’s frown turning into a terrified glare as he saw Margaret sitting by the door. He lunged at Devyn, knocking the wolf behind a tree. Pointing toward the back door, the neko held up his key, Devyn letting out a near silent huff.

The two crept around the back of the house, Jason holding his breath as he slid the key into the back door. Opening it as silently as he could, he nudged the wolf through the narrow opening before squeezing through himself and relocking the door behind them. It was a token gesture at best; he was pretty sure Margaret still had her own keys, but it made him feel better to at least pretend she couldn’t get inside. The neko knew Richard had a lot on his mind, but he really should have changed the locks by now.

Devyn crunched as his body shifted, the wolf letting out a deep breath as he sat naked on the tiled floor.

“Lysander got hit by a car…”

Jason’s eyes widened in horror, a silent gasp escaping him.

‘Is he okay? Why are we here? Shouldn’t we be helping him?’

“I can’t understand you,” Devyn huffed quietly. “Can you get my cane? I think it’s by the front door. If you stay low, she can’t see you.”

There was something undeniably weird about sneaking through his own home. Jason dropped to the ground, crawling through the house until he found Devyn’s cane by the door. He grabbed it silently, sliding back through the house on his belly. Handing the cane over, the neko stood up once more, shaking himself off as Devyn pulled away from the door.

“Do you need help getting upstairs? I need to cook dinner still,” the wolf frowned.

Jason glanced warily at the front door, shaking his head slowly. The whole idea was not to let her know they were home. Cooking a meal would make that obvious, or at least that was his thinking.

Tapping his nose, the neko pointed toward the door, Devyn frowning as he puzzled out the motions.

“She… would smell, wouldn’t she?” he scowled.

Jason nodded, heading into the kitchen. He picked up a pair of bananas, handing one to Devyn as the wolf’s scowl deepened. Cutting his own fruit in half, Jason slathered two slices of bread with peanut butter before pressing the banana halves inside and folding the pieces together. He pushed it toward Devyn, the wolf turning his nose up at the fruit, and Jason sighed silently. Fine, Devyn could figure out his own dinner. This was probably going to be their meals for the next few days; the neko had no idea how to cook properly.

He pulled out his phone as he ate his sandwich, the neko typing quickly.

“Is Lysander okay?”

“I don’t know,” Devyn frowned. “Damian is with him though, and they called an ambulance. He told me to go home.”

At least he was talking. Jason hoped that was a good sign.

“I want to see him.”

“But he said to stay at home,” Devyn frowned.

“Not tonight,” Jason typed, fighting the urge to roll his eyes. “We’ll walk to the hospital tomorrow.”

“It’s six miles away,” the wolf said dubiously. “I had money for the bus, but… I think I dropped it when I saw Erith…”

“We’ll see if we can find it tomorrow. Assuming Margaret lets us out of the house. What is she even doing here?”

“Waiting for us? She didn’t even try to help Lysander.”

“Wait, she was at the accident?” Jason typed quickly. “You don’t think she could have run him over, do you?”

“What? No… he pushed me out of the way before he got hit,” Devyn frowned. “The car would have hit me. Why would Mom do that?”

“It’s easier to play the pity card when your child is hurt,” Jason scowled, looking toward the front of the house. “And what if she was trying to get Richard to take her back? If she could prove we aren’t safe by ourselves, he would need to take her back so there’s someone to watch us while he’s gone, because clearly Lysander can’t.”

His fingers were flying over his phone, sandwich forgotten as his mind came up with all sorts of terrible thoughts.

“We’ll know tomorrow I guess,” he finished, tossing the phone on the table.

Leaning forward, the neko flinched suddenly, grabbing his phone again.

“Are you okay?” he typed quickly.

Devyn shrugged silently, staring at the wall.

“I don’t know. I want Lysander to be okay, but I think he got hurt like you did.”

Jason sucked in a breath, shaking his head. Things were bad, and he had the feeling they would only get worse.