Branson had returned without the firemen, and together, the four Walkers made an imposing image. I knew Nash would be on my side, but I couldn't help but wonder how happy these four would be when they found out this was all my fault.
Chapter Thirteen
Nash
Phin's skin was sweaty and red. Originally, I thought the healing tired him out, like a run around the woods, but he was clearly in pain. He hadn't been in pain when we got here.
"What's going on, Phin?" I asked once he'd finished his water.
"Can you heal anyone?" Wyatt chirped, dropping to one of the chairs at the table.
Phin clasped his hands on the table and stared at them. "I'm sorry."
Sorry? For what? He was the hero here.
Branson retrieved his baby from Aver and moved to sit on the floor in front of the table. Riley padded over, laying down with his head in Branson's lap. "You can do it, love. Just like we practiced." Branson petted Riley's head. "Deep breath. You've got this."
At least Phin wasn't looking at his hands anymore. He stared at Riley without blinking.
"He wasn't always a shifter," I said, tabling my concerns for a moment. "Riley was human and then met Branson."
"And he infected him?" Phin asked.
Bless my cousins. The only thing that kept them all from snarling at that remark was my obvious affection for Phin—and their worry for Riley. They remained silent so I could explain. "No. It isn't a sickness. This was a once-in-a-lifetime thing. None of us knew it could happen. But he's a wolf now and learning how to operate in his new body."
"Does it hurt him?" Phin asked, wincing.
I narrowed my eyes. He was in pain. From the healing? I bit back the growl that formed as I slowly connected the dots.
"It doesn't hurt to shift, but it can be confusing," Branson said, taking over. He looked into Riley's eyes the whole time, the two of them trying to breathe at the same rate. Synchronizing their breaths had helped Riley shift before, something he was still trying to master.
"And the baby?" Phin asked. I had to hand it to him, for, as weird as all this was, he was asking the right questions and hadn't once balked or claimed we were all insane.
"Shifter as well," Branson said proudly. "He's one hundred percent average in every other way."
The Riley dog let out a low snarl, and Branson chuckled.
"You know what I mean, babe." He patted Riley's head.
Phin looked like he might pass out—from the shock of this revelation? Or the pain? "Your turn, Phin. What's going on here? I've never noticed you having this reaction. This didn't happen when you healed the little girl."
He looked back at his hands.
The pressure in the room changed, not enough for anyone without heightened senses to detect, but enough for me to know Riley had managed to shift back.
Phin giggled sharply, slamming his hands over his mouth. "I'm sorry, this isn't funny. I just sort of wondered about the whole clothes thing—is this a Mystique situation where he makes his clothes… I'm not saying I wanted to see him naked, but… how does that work?"
"Did he just compare us to the X-men?" Wyatt asked.
"Be quiet," I growled. "He's trying to understand and doing an amazing job."
Phin's lips turned up in a relieved smile.
"Clothing is assumed by the shifter," Aver explained. "When you shift, it becomes a part of your fur. There won't be changes in color. If you wear a striped shirt, you won't have striped fur, but if you're in bulkier outerwear, your fur may come in a little shaggier. When you shift back, it reemerges."
"That's handy," Phin said.
We all waited several more seconds, but that was all he had to say.
Riley had hugged his mate and child and rose from the floor, walking to Phin. He wrapped his arms around Phin's shoulders in a gentle hug. "Thank you. I don't know how you did that, but thank you."
The hug was a sweet gesture, but I was still tense watching Riley put his hands so close to Phin's skin. He hadn't brushed his bare flesh yet, and that seemed to be what initiated the forced truth-telling. It ended up being Phin who grabbed for Riley's hand before any of us could warn him otherwise.
Phin stiffened. His face went slack, and I lunged forward. I wasn't sure what I'd planned on doing. Maybe cover his mouth so whatever truth he'd been compelled to spill couldn't be heard. I didn't reach him in time, and even though Riley tugged his hand quickly away, Phin's mouth opened. "It hurts when I heal. I call it the exchange."
That hadn't been what I expected to hear. I let the words roll around in my head, unable to put them together in a way that didn't make me furious. "It hurts you?" I snarled. "Why didn't you tell me that?"
Phin didn't blink my direction. He was still focusing on Riley. "I didn't mean to say that. Why did I say that?"
"I'm sorry," Riley rushed to say as he took his spot next to Branson back on the floor. This wasn't the room for big meetings. "I honestly thought Nash might have warned you. He hates my ability so much I thought he would have said something."
I didn't hate it; I just didn't want my secrets shared without my consent. The secrets in my head weren't funny like Wyatt's—they were damning.
Aver had his phone out, looking at the screen. "Property is secure. Everyone has vacated. I'll arm the perimeter alarms, and we can all sit down at the dining table. There's room for everyone, and it looks like we have a lot of questions to answer, on both sides." He would sound calm and collected. He hadn't unwittingly asked Phin to hurt himself.
It was a good idea, and the walk to the table might give me a chance to cool down, but I was still too hot to take the suggestion. "Why didn't you tell me it hurts you?"
"Nash, he healed Riley. Why are you mad?" Branson asked.
"Because it hurt him, Branson. Look! His skin is red. How much pain are you still in?" I barked.
Phin shrugged. "It's fine. It will go away."
"It isn't fine!" I clenched my hands, feeling my claws stick into my palm. If I was partially shifting, I really did need to calm down, but I couldn't dislodge the thought from my mind. Healing hurt him.
"You need to cool down," Branson growled, getting to his feet. "Clearly he wanted to keep it a secret."
"You're just saying that because it was your mate that was healed," I snapped. Immediately, I knew I'd gone too far. Branson's hands around my throat was my second indication. As fired up as I was, I could've punched a hole through my cousin, but as the scuffle began, the fight whooshed from me. I deserved this pain—if not for my sin from a decade ago, then for what I'd done to Phin.
"Both of you stop it," Riley ordered. He had Bran Jr. on his hip, bouncing as he chastised us. "Grown men acting like children. Go to the table. We'll talk this out. I'm sorry for the pain I caused Phin."
Both Phin and Branson looked like they had something to say to that, but both wisely kept their mouths closed. Riley was getting spooky. If I squinted, I swore I could see Nana.