Howls of the Lost | Now Published!

Chapter 29

Chapter 29

The funeral was held nearly two weeks later.

It wasn't held any sooner because none of us could bring ourselves to crawl out of bed. Losing David happened too close to losing so many of Logan's pack. None of us could really stand another blow so soon. Everyone had holed themselves up in their rooms, not emerging for days at a time. On occasion Rikki and I would spend what time we could together. She had – thankfully – survived losing David. The loss of a mate could sometimes prove fatal to the shifter that was left behind, so I had kept a close eye on her in the days following his death. Though once I knew she was going to be alright, I just wanted Logan's company. He never tried to cheer me up, he just gave me solace. It helped more than I could ever tell him.

Due to David's wishes, I was the first to recover. One morning I woke up earlier than everyone else and began to set things in motion. Before too long, I was able to convince Rikki to help me as well. When we worked together, we were able to put together a beautiful service and burial.

After little argument we finally decided to lay David to rest in Riverview. The funeral was held earlier that morning and it brought back everyone's tears. Our combined packs had assembled back at the pack house. We were all still in our funeral clothes and talking quietly amongst ourselves. Logan had his arms wrapped around my waist. We were sitting in an oversized armchair in one of the far corners of the room. Sighing, I watched what was going on around me as if I were on the outside looking in.

It still didn't seem real to me.

"We're all going to miss him," Logan murmured, placing a kiss at my temple.

"I know," I said with a robotic nod. "It's just hard."

"I'm right here," he assured me. He grasped my chin between his thumb and forefinger and tilted my face towards his before his lips met mine in a whisper of a kiss.

"Thank you for that," I said, a small smile tugging at the corners of my lips.

"Anytime, ma vie." he replied. Resting my head in the crook of his neck, I closed my eyes.

"Logan?" I whispered after another few minutes.

"Hmm?"

"Can we go to our room?" I asked, pulling back to meet his eyes.

A warm look of understanding crossed his face as he nodded. Standing, he pulled me with him before taking my hand and leading me through the crowded room. As we moved through, people turned and gave me sympathetic looks. Some I returned with a nod, but I soon returned my gaze to Logan's back as he all but dragged me into the hallway. Once we reached the bedroom, he opened the door and stepped aside, waving me in. Offering him a thankful smile, I slipped past him into the room. Our room. My body sank down onto the bed as I heard the door click shut.

Logan was beside me in an instant. He pulled me into his warm and comforting embrace just as another onslaught of tears welled in my eyes. With all the crying I had been doing I would have expected to have run out of tears. Apparently, I was wrong. My sobs were quiet as I buried my face in Logan's shoulder. He rocked me back and forth, murmuring soothing things in my ear as he stroked my hair. Soon – thanks to him – my tears eased and I looked up at him through bleary eyes.

"How you can still want anything to do with me is beyond me," I muttered as I swiped at the wet tracks cutting down my face. A soft chuckle slipped from Logan's lips, causing me to glance up at him. He covered his mouth, but the smile had already spread into his yes.

"Torian," he murmured, taking my face in his hands. "You just lost someone extremely important to you. You're not going to be okay for a while. I understand that perfectly." His eyes gained a far-off look to them and his forehead creased with worry. I ran my fingertips across the worry lines, and they faded under my touch. His eyes raised to mine again before he continued speaking. "I'm not going anywhere."