Trailing Moon Flowers: A NOLA Shifters Prequel Read online

  “Is she okay?” Caroline watched her youngest son. It was clear to her that he was in love with Mia, but she had the feeling it went deeper than that.

  “I don't know.” He really didn't. He wasn't sure how much Cole had done before he'd gotten there so he had no idea what state she was in. “Dat's why I need to go check on her.” He didn't wait to hear anything else. He was practically running by the time he got outside. The sun was just lightening the sky when he reached her window. It didn't even register that he'd been awake all night, waiting at his father's bedside for him to open his eyes.

  Mia

  She'd slept fitfully for several hours but as the sun began to rise, streaking the sky in soft pink, deep red, and fiery orange, she'd awakened. She lay there curled in a ball as silent tears slipped down her cheeks. With the morning came the memories of the night before and she felt sick to her stomach. She could still feel Cole's hand's on her, feel his fingers inside her, and it made her cry even harder. Her body shook with the silent sobs. The sudden tapping at her window startled her and she stifled a scream.

  Mia lifted her gaze to the window and her eyes widened. For a brief moment she though Cole had found a way to get to the compound, but then her mind cleared and she realized it was Gage tapping on it. She wrapped her blanket around herself and scooted over to the window to open it. “Gage? What are you doin' here?” Her voice came out in a strangled whisper.

  “Checkin' on you.” He climbed through the window and knelt on the floor in front of her. “I was worried. I didn't know if you'd still be asleep or not, but I had to come make sure you were okay.” He saw her red, puffy eyes, and reached for her on instinct. When she flinched he froze. “Mia. You know I'd never hurt you, right?”

  Mia heard the pain in his voice and it nearly broke her heart. “I know. I'm sorry,” she whispered. She scooted off the bed where she was sitting until she was kneeling next to him. “I never said thank you, for gettin' me out of dere.” She couldn't seem to bring herself to talk above a whisper.

  Gage moved cautiously and wrapped her in a hug. “You don't need to thank me, Mia. As soon as I knew you were in trouble, I couldn't get to you fast enough.”

  Mia frowned. “How did you know what was happenin'? How did you know where we were?”

  “Dat fuckin' prick, Todd, da kid who was takin' photos of prom, he saw Cole put someting in your drink but he didn't say anyting right away. I could have killed him for not speakin' up sooner.”

  “He saw it...and didn't do anyting?” That made her feel almost as sick to her stomach as she felt remembering Cole's hands on her.

  “He'll regret dat, cher, trust me on dat.”

  There was something in his voice that sent a shiver down her back. “Don't do someting stupid and get yourself in trouble. It's not worth it.” I'm not worth it she added silently.

  “Don't you worry yourself about dat.” He'd do whatever he had to in order to make sure the kid realized he fucked up by not speaking up right away.

  “Damn it, Gage, I mean it. If you get yourself in trouble I'll never speak to you again!” She gave him a look that said she was serious.

  Gage decided to not argue with her. What she didn't know wouldn't hurt her. “You should try to get some more sleep. You still look tired.”

  “I'm afraid. When I close my eyes, I can't stop tinkin' about what happened, or what could have happened, if you hadn't shown up.”

  “Would it help if I stayed?”

  Mia thought about it. “Yeah. I tink it would.”

  Gage helped her get back in bed then settled on the floor with his back resting against the side of her bed. “Den I'll stay right here.” If anyone in her family came in, he'd come up with an explanation for his presence.

  “Okay.” She curled up on her side. At first she wasn't sure it was going to do any good, but then her eyes started to feel heavy and before she knew it she was asleep.

  Gage

  Gage wasn't exactly sure when he fell asleep or for how long he'd slept. He was awakened when a hand gripped his shoulder and shook it.

  “Gage Delacroix, what on earth are you doin' in here?”

  It took a moment for Gage's brain to wake up enough to realize Mia's mother was shaking him awake. Her whispered words confused him for a moment before his mind cleared of the cobwebs and he was able to respond. “I came to check on her earlier and she asked me to stay.”

  Eliza glanced at her sleeping daughter before she motioned for him to follow her. She wasn't going to let him brush off her concern now.

  Gage knew what was coming. He followed Mia's mother into the hall and then to the living room. When she turned to him he wasn't prepared for the fear he saw in her eyes.

  “What happened at da prom? Don't give me anymore of dis 'It's not my place' business. Someting bad must have happened for me to find you asleep in her room.”

  Gage hoped Mia would forgive him for telling her mother what he knew. “Her date to da prom drugged her. When I got to his car...I'm not sure what he did, how far he got, but I heard her tell him no and to stop and...I lost it. If Remy hadn't shown up when he did, I probably woulda killed him. When I came to check on her, she'd been cryin'. She said she was afraid to go to sleep because ever'time she closed her eyes she saw what he did to her, and what he'd planned on doin'. I offered to stay, if it would help her sleep.”

  It wasn't as bad as she'd feared but it was still bad enough. Her daughter was sexually assaulted. “We had dat boy in our home and all dat time he was plannin' on hurtin' her?”

  “Mia's prom date hurt her?”

  They both turned to look at Julius. Neither of them had heard him come down the hall.

  “Tell me you beat da shit outta him for it?”

  “Yeah, I did.”

  “Good. Is Mia gonna press charges?”

  “I dunno.” Gage wondered about that himself.

  “What good would it do? He'll get off and I'll have to deal wit' all da threats and nasty looks from others.”

  All three turned at Mia's voice. “Mia, cher, he needs to pay for...whatever he did to you.” Eliza couldn't force her daughter to do it but she could strongly encourage her.

  “But don't you get it, mama? He wouldn't pay for anyting. We see it on da news all da time. Women are sexually assaulted, abused, raped, and da men who do it get away wit' it. Dey turn it all around and make it all da woman's fault.” Mia shook her head. “I can't go through dat.”

  Gage went to her and carefully took her hands in his. “Den you won't have to. No one is goin' to make you do anyting you don't want to do, Mia. Not now, not ever.” The look on his face said if her family tried to push her into it he'd go off on them.

  “Thank you.” She smiled faintly at Gage. “You look like you didn't get much sleep, go home and get some. I'm fine.”

  He eyed her. “You sure?” At her nod he let go of her hands. “Okay. You know if you need anyting, I'm here, right?”

  “I know, Gage.”

  He nodded one last time and left. He wasn't so sure she really was okay but he had to give her space. It went against his every instinct but he walked out the front door and headed home.

  Caroline Delacroix was sitting at the kitchen table when her son came in. She'd been awake since her husband was brought home half dead and she was exhausted, but she couldn't rest just yet. “I'm glad you're home. We need to talk.”

  Gage wasn't expecting to find anyone awake but he resigned himself to whatever his mother had to say and took a seat across from her. “What's on your mind, mama? It's not papa, is it? He didn't get worse, did he?”

  “No, no, it's got no'ting to do wit' your papa. It's about you and Mia Lafluer.”

  Gage frowned. “What do you mean?”

  “How do you feel about her, son?”

  Anyone else, Gage might have brushed them off, but not his mama. “I don't know. I tink maybe I love her. When I found out she was in danger...I almost lost control of my leopard. Dat's never happened to me bef
ore.”

  Caroline nodded. “Dat's what I thought. I tink Mia is your mate.”

  Gage blinked at her. “Why do you tink dat?”

  “You're protective of her, you're drawn to her. You've been dat way for years, always preferrin' her company over anyone else's. And she makes you crazy, yeah?”

  Gage nodded. “Yeah. But I don't tink she feels da same, mama. If we were really mates, she would, right?”

  “Or maybe she does and just doesn't understand what she's feelin'. I suppose time will tell. I'm gonna go check on your papa.” She got up and gave his shoulder a squeeze as she passed him.

  Gage thought about what she said. Could it be true? If it was, what was he going to do about it? As exhaustion pulled at him, he made his way to his room and collapsed on his bed. It wasn't going to do him any good to think about it right now when she was reeling from Cole's assault. Thinking about Cole made Gage want to beat the shit out of him again and he had to push the anger away in order to get some much needed sleep.

  Chapter Eight

  Mia

  Monday morning. Mia was dreading walking into school. She just knew rumors about what happened Saturday night at prom were already running rampant. That was how things happened. As she and Julius reached the doors leading into the building, she decided she wasn't going to let what happened control who she was or how she acted at school. Her back straightened, her head lifted, and she stepped inside. She saw some of the looks she got from other students and ignored them as she made her way to her locker.

  “You're...Mia, right?”

  Mia silently groaned and turned to the girl who'd approached her. “Yes.”

  The other girl looked down at the floor a moment before she looked back up. “Sorry, I don't mean to bother you. I just...I wanted you to know, you're not alone. You're not the only one he's done that to.” That was all she said and then she was gone.

  Mia watched her go. It was cold comfort knowing she wasn't the only girl he'd drugged with the intention of raping. She doubted he called it that, but that was exactly what it was; rape. She tried to put it out of her mind and focus on her day, but it wasn't easy. It was even harder when she caught a glimpse of him and the bruises Gage left behind in their fight.

  As the week went by, Mia ignored the whispered comments from those who had no freaking clue what they were talking about. It was only Wednesday and she was already anxious for the weekend to get there so she didn't have to deal with it for a couple of days. On her way to the tables outside where she and Julius often sat during lunch, she stopped off at her locker to change out the books she needed for the rest of the day.

  “Hi, Mia.”

  Mia turned and arched a brow at the girl who'd stopped next to her locker. “What do you want, Stacy?” She knew her attitude was a bit frosty but she'd disliked Stacy ever since the other girl had dated Gage.

  “I know you don't like me, and I figure it's because you used to have a thing for Gage when I dated him, but...look, Cole Ambrose is scum. Don't let what he did to you change who you are. Not like I did.”

  Mia blinked at her. “Are you saying...? When? Never mind. Dat was rude.”

  “When we were thirteen. Don't let him change who you are. You're better than that. I wish I'd realized that back then, about myself, but...anyway, I just wanted to say that.”

  Mia watched her walk away. Stacy was the seventh girl who'd come up to her about what had happened to let her know she wasn't alone. It was in that moment a decision was made. She needed to press charges. But what proof did she have other than the fight? She frowned a moment. Todd. He was taking photos...he saw what Cole did. Forgetting her books, she made her way to the yearbook room where she knew Todd spent his lunch break. “Knock knock.” She tapped the door before she stepped inside.

  Todd looked up from what he was doing. “Hi. Look, if you're here to read me the riot act for not speaking up sooner about what I saw, Gage beat you to it. I'm sorry I didn't say anything right away. I was a coward and you...got hurt.”

  “It's okay, I understand. Cole's a jock, you were worried about what might happen to you. Da important ting is you did go to Gage about it before tings got...bad. I need your help, Todd. You were takin' pictures, have you gotten dem uploaded to da computer yet?”

  “I was just doing that. Why?”

  “I need to know if you happened to get a shot of him puttin' da drug in my drink. I know it's a long shot, but I really need you to look. Can you do dat?”

  “Yeah, sure. Gimme a sec.” His fingers tapped away and soon he was scrolling through the photos. “Well, all be damned. Jackpot.” He motioned Mia closer.

  She leaned in and for the first time since Saturday she grinned. “Can you print dat off for me?”

  “Yeah.” There were three shots, one of him dropping it in the glass, one of him swirling it around, and the final shot of him handing the cup to Mia. “Here you go. All three photos. I'm still really sorry I waited so long. I hope this helps.”

  “Oh, it will. Thanks, Todd.” She clutched the photos to her and rushed out of the school. When she spotted Gage sitting with Julius she froze, for just a moment, then continued to their table. “I need to leave.”

  “What? Mia, you can't leave school in da middle of da day, you'll get in trouble.” Julius gave his twin a funny look.

  “I don't care. Gage, can you drive me? I'll walk if I have to, but...I need to go to da police and file a report. Against Cole.”

  Julius and Gage shared a look. “Sis...you know da drug is gone, how are you gonna prove anyting?”

  “Wit' dese.” She showed them the photos. “Todd was snappin' away wit' his camera and got dese shots. Since Monday, I have had seven girls come to me and tell me he did dis to dem, too.” She looked at Gage. “He raped Stacy when dey were only thirteen years old. She said it changed who she was and she didn't want dat to happen to me.”

  “What the fuck?” Knowing that he'd slept with Stacy two years after she'd been raped made Gage feel a little sick to his stomach. That was why she slept around? Because of what Cole did to her? “Come on. I'll drive you. I don't care if I get in trouble. Dis is important.”

  Mia smiled a little. “Thanks.” She tucked the photos into her bag and turned to follow him.

  “Aw, hell. I'm gonna regret dis, I just know it. Wait up, I'm comin' too.” Julius slung his bag over his shoulder and followed his sister and Gage to the parking lot where Gage's car waited. While his older brother preferred trucks, Gage was into fast cars and he'd gotten the Mustang cheap because it was a clunker. He'd spent every spare moment he had fixing it up and you wouldn't know by looking at it now that it had barely been running when he'd bought it.

  Mia was quiet on the drive to NOPD. Even if Cole didn't go to jail for attempted rape, slipping something into her drink and handing it to her, which the photos proved with the time stamps, would net him some jail time. If the other girls he'd done this to came forward...then maybe they could get a serial rapist off the streets.

  “We should call mama, get her and papa here. Dey won't want you talkin' to da police wit'out dem.” Julius pulled his phone out. “Don't gimme dat look, Mia. You know I'm right.”

  Mia sighed. “Fine. Dey'll find out we skipped anyway, so might as well get it over wit'.”

  Julius nodded as he opened his contacts and pressed to call his mother. “Hi, mama. Um, well, dat's why I'm callin'. We're on our way to da police department. Mia decided she wants to press charges. Yeah, we'll wait outside for you and papa.” He hung up and glanced at his sister in the front seat. “Mama said dey're on da way and to wait til dey get dere to go inside.”

  Mia grumbled but settled in the seat next to Gage. She knew her parents would give her grief later for not waiting until school was over to go but she just couldn't bring herself to wait. She needed to do this. Now.

  Three hours later, Mia was sitting at the kitchen table in their home while her mama worked on putting dinner together. She'd been sitting there for
twenty minutes waiting for her mama to speak. “Mama, I'm sorry I couldn't wait til school was over. I just...once I had da proof, I needed to get it done. Seven girls, mama. Seven girls, not including me, who had dere lives ruined by him. I got lucky, dey didn't. Gage saved me before he was able to do much, and I had proof dat he drugged me. I had to speak up.”

  Eliza turned to look at her daughter. “Cher, I'm not mad at you. I'm proud of you for comin' forward. What you did was so brave.” She went to where her daughter sat. “Maybe you shouldn't have left school early but you're right; you had to do it. Dat boy is a menace to girls ever'where. He needs to be locked up where he can't hurt anyone else, and you've made dat happen.”

  “Not yet. All dey did was arrest him.” Mia knew Cole's parents would get him a good lawyer and if she'd learned anything from watching news reports about situations similar to hers, she was in for a really rough time. Could she handle it? She was determined to try.

  “Do you tink any of da other girls will come forward now?” Eliza watched her daughter closely.

  “I dunno. I hope so. If dey do, it'll help get him convicted. But if dey don't, I won't be mad at dem. It's gonna be ugly, I just know it.”

  Caine

  Caine was sitting at his desk working when there was a knock on his front door. He'd taken over the house that had belonged to Zachary Eitenne when he'd become Alpha. It was the largest house in the compound with four bedrooms, two bathrooms, and it had the largest yard. He was in the process of adding an addition to the back of the house. A cottage that would be connected to the house itself and complete with two bedrooms, a bathroom, and living room. The only thing it wouldn't have is a full kitchen. “What brings you by, Gage?” he asked when he found the younger leopard standing thereon his front porch.