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Euston was packed with people, but Tom and I held hands and hurried through the press of people to get to our train. Once we were on board, we allowed ourselves to relax, but the anxiety was starting to get to me again, and Tom gave my shoulder a gentle squeeze. I could feel the tension in his body, and we shared the same worry - Faith had been amongst the wolves trying to attack the pub, and she still bore me a grudge a mile long with the mean streak to match. If anyone was going to lead an all out assault to get me back under my former pack's thumb, it would be her, and she had all the authority of the Theta's office backing her. Being Theta meant you could use any spells the Alpha did, and if the Alpha was temporarily incapacitated, the Theta could step up and take charge, bypassing the Luna and Beta in the chain of command. Faith would be working on counterspells, and I clung to Tom a bit more tightly than was necessary as the train pulled out of Euston. Once we reached Preston, we'd be safe. We just had to get there first.
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We got to Preston with no issues, and, much to our relief, Dad's Aunt Tempe was waiting for us. As he'd described her to us, she had the face of an angel, the temper of a fishwife, and the mouth of a sailor, and she was definitely showing the fishwife side of her as she greeted us. "Feckin' bastards tried coercing me into giving up me feckin' journey," she said, taking my suitcase and kissing me on the cheek; Tom got a hair ruffle, and his slightly put-upon expression showed this was a running joke between them. "Feck those arseholes if they think they can feckin' tell me what to do!"
"I guess Faith got to you quicker than we thought," I guessed.
Aunt Tempe snorted - an extrordinarily loud sound coming from such a small woman. "That snip has more brains than we thought," she admitted, guiding us through the passenger traffic to the blessed haven of the carpark and her battered Escort. Once my suitcase was in the back, nestled between Tom and I, Aunt Tempe resumed as she got the car fired up. "No sooner had her old man keeled over than she was putting counterspells in place to net the pair of you. You did good leavin' the car at the station, but that hussy isn't fooled; she sent word to some lackeys who were already waitin' here at Preston. Feck 'em; I put the fear of god into them and threatened to turn them into wolfskin rugs if they didn't feck off and leave me alone." She snorted again. "Feckin' bastards. They even had the nerve to tell me I was a toothless old biddy with me glory days behind me. Feck that. I've still got all me teeth, and I'm not afraid to feckin' use them."
After that, she directed her diatribe to other drivers, and I shared an amused smile with Tom. Aunt Tempe was a fierce old woman, and I suspected Faith was going to be in for rather an education if she dared show her face in Preston. I half wanted her to try, if for no other reason than to see Aunt Tempe send her off with her tail between her legs.
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Aunt Tempe lived on the outskirts of Preston, on an old farm that had seen better days - at least to outisders. When we entered the driveway, it felt as if we'd driven through a gateway into another farm entirely; it was neat, well kept, and the crops and animals appeared to be thriving. The farmhouse itself was in a good state of repair, as was the nearby barn and stables, though Tom and I did have to dodge chickens as we followed Aunt Tempe across the front yard. Inside, she directed us ot go upstairs and get ourselves settled in. "Dinner's at six and not a minute earlier or later," she told us. "Everyone washes the dishes, and food scraps go to the chickens and not in the green waste. Tidy up after yourselves, and for the love of god, don't trip over the cats, or they'll tear your eyes out."
Thus admonished, Tom and I made our way upstairs. "She's something else," I whispered, as we came to what I hoped was two empty rooms, facing each other across the narrow hallway. At the far end there was another door which led - I hoped - to a toilet.
"She's been through a lot," Tom admitted, giving my hand a squeeze as he opened one of the doors, revealing a room done up with the air of a lovingly maintained shrine. "She's got to the age where she doesn't give two shits about whether she offends anyone, and she's got the guts to back her words up."
I nodded, feeling reassured despite my awe at the woman. She looked the type to be able to run someone off through foul language alone. "I think we've enough time for a nap," I said, stifling a yawn.
Tom nodded, before stepping forward and kissing me on the forehead. It was the first time he'd done so in the short time I'd known him, and I was more than a little gobsmacked by the gesture as I stepped into my own room, which was done up a little more feminine than I liked. But the bed was comfortable, and once I'd kicked my shoes off, I laid down, feeling more secure than I had in a long while. I just hoped, as I drifted off to sleep, that Dad would be okay. If any harm came to him, I'd feel as if a part of me that I'd just got back would be torn away from me again.
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