Addy pursed her lips and headed into the kitchen to join Danny. Merrick trailed behind her, stopping in the doorway to observe.
Danny had already returned his knife to the sheath on his belt and was currently in the process of rummaging through Merrick’s cupboards.
“What are you doing, Danny?” Addy hurried toward him.
“This is weird,” he replied, stepping aside to show her the contents of one of the cupboards. “Look at these.”
“It’s just containers of flour and spices.” Addy reached up to close the cupboard, but Danny stopped her.
“Not containers, though, Addy. Jars. Like…ancient jars. Look at the wire things on their lids. And most of the lids are wood.”
Somehow, the crease between Addy’s brows deepened. She glanced around as though she expected to see someone watching her—Merrick might have found that amusing under different circumstances—before taking out one of the jars and examining it.
“It’s not weird, it’s just old,” she said. “It really kind of fits everything here, doesn’t it?” She replaced the jar, and Danny didn’t resist when she closed the cupboard this time. “Now let’s go, okay? We have some light left. We’ll”—she swayed slightly and blinked several times in rapid succession, as though to clear her vision—“we’ll just…just have to find a decent spot in the woods.”
“There’s stuff we can eat here, I know it. And it’s warm and dry, Addy.”
A myriad of emotions flitted across Addy’s features as she stared at Danny. She looked like she was at war inside her head, like her conscience was battling her desire to agree with the boy.
Who was the boy to her? Merrick studied them both; Danny’s hair was straight and a few shades lighter than Addy’s, but they shared similar noses, and their eyes—though different colors—were close in shape. Was Danny her son? She seemed far too young to have a child that old, at least by modern human standards.
For an instant, Merrick’s mind flashed back over the long, bitter years to his own youth. He recognized the relationship Addy and Danny seemed to have, though it had been a great while since he’d experienced it himself.
They were siblings, separated by enough years that Addy had taken on a maternal role to the boy.
Addy sighed. “We really should go. The owner could be back at any moment.”
“Come on, Addy. We need to eat. You need to eat.” Danny narrowed his eyes. “Don’t think I haven’t noticed you’ve been giving me most of your share of our meals.”
Her hand tightened around the cupboard handle, but her shoulders sagged. “Just a little.”
Danny frowned, but he didn’t say any more; instead, he turned to tug open more cupboards and rummage through their contents.
Addy released the cupboard handle and moved toward the sink, absently turning one of the knobs. She jumped in startlement when water poured from the faucet. “Danny! Water!”
“Oh shit!”
She turned her head and jabbed a finger at him. “Don’t cuss.”
“Oh, come on,” he whined. “Who cares anymore?”
“I care.”
Merrick—apparently having forgotten he was meant to be angry at them—felt his lips curl up in a wry smile. He wasn’t sure if his amusement resulted from the confidence with which she’d admonished the boy or the absurdity of her policing his language while they were in a house they’d broken into and were planning to steal from.
Danny groaned and resumed his search.
Addy placed her knife beside the sink and slid off her bag, setting it atop the counter. She opened it and removed three bottles. Screwing off the lids, she filled the containers with water one at a time.
Once the bottles were filled and recapped, she cupped her hands beneath the running water, leaned forward, and drank several handfuls. After she was done drinking, she splashed water on her face and scrubbed some of the grime from her skin.
Merrick’s eyes drifted to the curve of her ass, which was outlined through her pants. Between the faint hollowness of her cheeks and the slight bagginess of her clothes, it was clear she’d lost weight recently—likely due to scarcity of food—but she still had some tantalizing, feminine curves.
Heat coalesced in his veins and gathered low in his belly, intensifying the ache her scent had awoken.
“Peanut butter!” Danny pulled out a large plastic jar with a red lid. “Oh, man, I haven’t had a peanut butter and jelly sandwich in forever.”
Merrick’s smile vanished as quickly as it had come. He knew he had several more jars of peanut butter in the pantry, but that was something he could not make himself—and he happened to be extremely fond of it.
For most of his life, Merrick hadn’t needed to eat as often as humans did—and his need had only diminished further since the Sundering—but when he did eat, peanut butter was high on his list of satisfying foods. He’d tried to ignore that these humans had trespassed on his property, had restrained himself despite them having broken a window and entered his home uninvited, and might even have been willing—at least up until a few moments ago—to give them some food and send them on their way, but this was too much.
He would not tolerate the theft of his Jif.
Energy crackled up and down his arms. Keeping his fists balled tight, he dismissed the shadows cloaking him. “Put that back.”
Danny and Addy jumped. The boy stumbled backward, dropping the jar as he turned his wide eyes toward Merrick. Addy spun to face Merrick with more control and determination, snatching up her knife and holding it at the ready. Her hand trembled faintly, but her gaze held Merrick’s without wavering.
“Danny, come here,” she said.
The boy didn’t hesitate; he drew his oversized knife and positioned himself in front of her. “Get back!”
“I do not take kindly to being threatened, especially in my own home,” Merrick said, brows falling low.
“Danny, get back here,” Addy whispered, reaching out with her free hand to pull the boy toward her. She didn’t look away from Merrick for even a moment. “We’re sorry. You…scared us. We didn’t know anyone was here.”
Looking into her eyes had a strange effect on Merrick—it produced a powerful, unfamiliar sensation within him that made his chest tighten and his stomach flutter. He couldn’t pry his attention away from her.
But he couldn’t forgive their transgressions because of some indefinable feeling, could he?
“Oh? Does that make it all right to break into someone’s home?” he asked. “I must’ve been interpreting the law incorrectly for all these years.”
“We’re…we’re…” She squeezed her eyes shut and pressed the heel of her hand to her head. “We’re sorry.”
“Sorry for breaking my window, sorry for entering my home uninvited, or sorry for intending to steal food from me?”
“A-All of it. We’ll just…leave.” She opened her eyes; they were unfocused for a moment before they rolled back to display their whites. The woman tilted to the side, teetered briefly, and collapsed. Her knife clattered on the floor as her body seized, limbs tense and jerking.
The boy wheeled around and dropped to his knees. “Addy!” He released his knife and grasped her arm to turn her onto her side. Tears brimmed in his eyes. “It’s okay, Addy. It’s okay. I’m here.”