Page 22

Leanna Avery

“Not in the way you thought or I implied in the beginning.” I see the shame in his eyes. “I admit I said some things, but the idea of having a fated mate wasn’t to my liking. However, the practicality of gaining a mate was also something I couldn’t ignore. Your existence was convenient, but you were not a substitute.”

My hands start to tremble, and I clasp them together in my lap. “I should be insulted by your calling me convenient.”

“That’s not how I meant it,” he says quickly.

“Yeah, I get it.” My smile is weak and strained. “All that time, in the beginning, when you said such cruel things to me—”

“My parents were fated mates, Leanna. The woman my father discarded for my mother happened to be a close friend of my mother’s. Her life was ruined, and my parents never cared. They claimed the strength of the fated mate bond was all that mattered. I found it despicable.”

“How cruel,” I murmur without thinking.

My hand slaps over my mouth almost immediately, but when I look at Cedric, he doesn’t disagree. “I loved my parents, but you’re right, they were not the best people. I realized that as I grew up. The idea of being tied down with a fated mate bond was abhorrent to me. I tried to stay away from you, but you made it so hard. You needed to be taken care of. You were so fragile and stubborn. And the smallest things made you happy. I just wanted to look after you. It wasn’t the bond that drew me to you but you, Leanna.”

My eyes feel wet as I stare at the ground, my voice choked. “Oh.” Suddenly so much of his behavior makes sense. “Why—Why are you telling me this now?”

“It never really came up before. I didn’t realize how much my words hurt you, or the impact they left on you. I am sorry for that. For letting my anger affect you.”

I nod, a jerky movement, the apology meaning more to me than anything. This is the first time anyone has apologized to me for anything that happened back then, but I can’t expect Cedric to understand that. Reaching out, I wrap my arms around his neck.

When he goes still, I murmur, “Thank you for apologizing.”

His arms come around me.

“And for loving me like you do.” The words are torn from me, and I realize that I mean them. Despite everything—my own anger, my lashing out at him—Cedric has stood firm. He could have walked away. He could have done a lot of things, but he stayed. If this had only been about Finn, he could’ve taken our son and left. There was nothing I would have been able to do about it. But he didn’t.

I know how to love now, but Cedric is the only person who has ever shown me what it is like to be loved like this.

I feel his lips press on top of my head. “You’ve forgiven me?”

“There was nothing to forgive, Cedric.” Pulling away from him, I give him a shaky smile. “I’m a different person now, though, and I don’t know if you will like the new Leanna.”

“I like her well enough.” Cedric’s eyes glitter with something I can’t identify. “She’s perfect. She’s a good mother, and she’s strong-willed, and I like all of that about her.”

A smile spreads across my face. But then, it fades. “I won’t go back to the North, Cedric. Not till you can guarantee our safety.”

I see the shock in his eyes. “You’re considering it?”

“I want Finn to have both his parents, and you can’t exactly stay here forever.” I lean back into the couch cushion. “You’ve already got a lot on your plate what with traveling back and forth between the border and the castle. I can’t expect you to come here, as well.”

Cedric takes my hands in his, his expression anxious. “Do you prefer your life here? I know you’ve worked hard, and you have your job.”

My lips curve. “I do like my life here. I enjoy the convenience of human technology and the abundance of knowledge. And I like my job. But I also want my family. I want my son to have his father. I want to have you around. I can’t ask you to give up the kingdom and come here. I’m not a child; I understand the weight of the responsibilities that you bear.”

His voice is hard as he says, “I don’t want you to feel like a prisoner in the North. I don’t want you to feel like you have been enslaved.”

I wince as he throws my own words back at me, although his intent is not malicious.

Wetting my lips, I pull my hands away from him and tuck my feet under me before facing him completely. Some conversations are hard. This is one of them.

“I said a lot of things to you in anger. Most of them were true. When you brought me to the North, you weren’t kind in the beginning, and I was in survival mode. I was scared of doing anything to ruffle your feathers. But that’s how I had always lived my life, Cedric. Vivian found me on a street when I was a child. She didn’t like that we looked alike. She punished me for it. I was punished for daring to have been born looking like her—cruel, vicious forms of punishment that I don’t want to talk about, ever. And when you brought me to the North, your words didn’t match your actions. I thought I was being punished for daring to have been born your fated mate. Between my face and my bond with you, my existence had always been my crime. So, that’s how I lived.”

From the way his body stiffens, I know he doesn’t like what I’m saying, but he needs to hear this.

“That’s why, every time you did something considerate for me, I kept waiting for the other shoe to drop. I didn’t realize that you were just genuinely trying to take care of me. I didn’t know what it felt like to be taken care of, but a part of me did believe in you. And that’s why I couldn’t understand what Bella was trying to do to me. I couldn’t believe you gave her that order. Not till the very end.”

“I know I’m uncouth, but—”

“No, you’re not.” I give him a tight-lipped smile. “You’re perfect. You were honest with me, all the time, even when I didn’t like it. There’s no subtext behind your actions, and I appreciate that. I’m glad you’re the way you are.”

My heart feels light as I finally say the words that have been eating at me. “It took me a long time to change who I was, to realize my own worth. I saw that I was capable of something, that I was an individual and not an extension of somebody else. And I needed time to learn that.”

I squeeze his hands now. “The truth is that I am accustomed to this life here. But one of us has to make a sacrifice, and we both know your responsibilities outweigh mine. I’m not so selfish as not to acknowledge that. And I don’t want Bella or Vivian to take away any more of our time together.”

I see the shift of emotions on Cedric’s face as he grips me by my shoulders, his voice urgent. “What are you saying? Are you saying you will come back?”

It’s hard to smile when the decision is weighing so heavily on my heart, but I nod. “Yes. But only after this whole matter with the kidnappings is resolved. I owe Erik that much. And then I’ll have to sell my home and everything here.” I don’t look at him as I utter those words. They’re too painful. Everything in this house, each memory is evidence that I survived and that I made it, that I made something of myself. I let out a shuddering breath before forcing my lips into a smile. I lift my head to meet his eyes. “And then, Finn and I will return with you.”

Cedric doesn’t look as pleased as I thought he would. Soon enough, I find out why.

“You don’t have to sell your home here, or all these things.” He looks around. “We can leave this place as it is. After all, once you are officially reestablished as my queen, you will have to visit the Human Wolf Kingdom for diplomatic events, on your own or with me. We can stay here.”

I blink. “Really?”

He looks serious. “This place is important to you. I don’t want you to lose something that means so much to you. This is also Finn’s childhood home. I want you to keep the house. We will stay here whenever we return to the human world.”

My eyes burn with tears, and I rest my forehead on his chest. “That’s a good plan.”

His arms come to settle around me, and he says quietly but firmly, “I don’t want you to sacrifice anything for anyone anymore. You are not to bow your head in front of anybody. You have changed, Leanna, and I am proud to be able to call you my mate. You should know that. Even back then, I was in awe of you. You were everything I could ever have dreamed of in a queen, and within such a short period of time, you brought about so much positive change in my kingdom. I can only imagine what you would have been able to achieve in these eight years that we could have been together.”

His words make my heart beat faster. I’ve always told myself that I worked incredibly hard to get to where I am. But to have Cedric also acknowledge this feels different.

He lifts my face, his hands on my cheeks, a soft, intimate gesture. “Once we return, I will put the kingdom’s treasury at your disposal. I don’t want to bring you back to a land where you lack the comforts that you have grown accustomed to here. I think it’s time for the North to adapt to the wonders of human technology.”

My lips part as I gape at him. I’m shocked. “Are you saying what I think you’re saying?” The North is so entrenched in its olden ways that for Cedric to even suggest such a massive change is mind-boggling.

“If you are willing to oversee this shift, then yes.” He looks serious, but the corner of his mouth is upturned.

“And if the elders object?”

“You let me worry about them. Handling the noble families is my problem. But I’m not so selfish as to ask my mate and son to return and give up the comforts of their lives here. And I’m sure that, whatever you do, you will keep my kingdom and my people in mind, like you did the first time.”

My lips tremble as I struggle to say something, but Cedric isn’t done.

“You could also keep your business here going.”

When I stare at him, he looks awkward. “Erik explained to me in detail that you have a small company that you founded. He also told me that you were considering expanding, hiring more employees. You can still do that if you want to.”

I tilt my head to consider his offer. “You’ve been doing a lot of thinking and planning.”

“I was trying to come up with a way to convince you to come home, but I also understood that your life here is important. I was trying to be mindful.”

I lean closer to him. “The man I remember wasn’t exactly known for being mindful.”

Cedric narrows his eyes at me. “I was mindful.”

My lips twitch. “Sure you were.”

“I was. Only of you, though.”

Cedric may not be a smooth talker like Erik, but his bluntness is endearing and throws me off. I feel the heat in my face.

“Okay.” I try to pull away, my heart beating too fast. There have been a lot of changes in a small span of time. I need to get my head screwed on straight before I do something foolish.

As I get to my feet, my eyes fall to the file on the table, and I pause, recalling what Cedric told me earlier. We got so lost in the other part of the conversation that I completely forgot about the vital piece of information he shared with me.

“Cedric,” I say, picking up the photo again and looking at him, “if you’re right, and this case is just like your parents’, that means whoever these people are, they’ve been operating for a long time, and they’ve only just recently gotten around to the human world.”

My voice trails off as something occurs to me. All this time, we have been under the assumption that there were only a handful of kidnapping cases. But what if we haven’t been looking in the right places?

“I have to make a call,” I say quickly, going in search of my phone. Five minutes later, I walk back into the living room, checking the time on the wall clock.

Cedric is nowhere to be seen. I go out to the backyard and find Finn explaining his homework to his father and Derrick, both of whom are listening with the utmost concentration.

I clap my hands to get their attention. “Finn, go put on a jacket. We’re going to the carnival.”

My son’s jaw nearly drops to the ground, his eyes turning wide as saucers. “The one you said I couldn’t go to?”

“What’s a carnival?” Cedric asks curiously.

“It’s something for entertainment,” I say offhandedly, my eyes pinned on my son. “Finn likes going to them, but he gets too excited. He nearly shifted once.”

“That was a long time ago!” my son argues.

“It was last year, Finn,” I reply dryly.

My mate frowns. “If the place is too stimulating for him—”

“You can handle him, right?” I ask, my eyebrows raised. “You were the one saying something about being the dominant wolf and all.”

Cedric scowls. “Of course I can handle him. I’m his father.”

“Good. Because you will also be coming. I have to meet somebody there.”

As Finn rushes past me, Derrick murmurs, “I would also like to see this carnival.”

I shrug. “You’re free to come, but then you will also be on babysitting duty. It’s going to take two of you to look after Finn, anyway. He goes a little crazy with all the flashing lights and rides.”

“My son? Crazy?” Cedric looks insulted.

My smile widens, a hint of malicious glee in it. “Oh, I’m sorry. Maybe I’m wrong.”

“Of course you are,” he says in an affronted manner. “Finn is a prince. He knows how to carry himself.”

Cedric clearly hasn’t seen his little prince hanging upside down from a tree branch like a monkey.

I turn around and head into the house, gesturing with my hands as I do. “My bad. I’m sure you two will have no problem looking after him tonight.”

My sweet little boy is going to run circles around them.

Usually, Finn tries to be very well behaved. But there are times when he simply gets too excited. Like they do to any child, fairs and carnivals get him all worked up because he wants to do everything at once.

“No fighting with anyone. No shifting. If you think one of the game stalls is cheating you, don’t attack them. Just walk away,” I instruct the two adult men in front of me. “Don’t let him eat much sugar. And he’s too young to go on the big rides. If the person in charge says Finn cannot do it, you do not argue that he is a prince and can do whatever he wants.”

Cedric gives me a disapproving look. “He is a prince, and—”

“If you can’t follow my rules, all three of you can go home.”

“What about you?” My mate studies me. “Where are you going?”

“I’ll be with you for a while. Then I have to meet someone.”

The carnival is on the outskirts of the city. Bright, colorful, flashing lights, striped tents, and covered stalls are sprinkled throughout the field on this dark night. There are plenty of people milling about, most of them families or couples. Shifters are sensitive to consistent loud sounds, but since Derrick and Cedric have been on the battlefield for so long, they don’t really register them. And Finn was born here, so his ears have adapted. But even shifters who live in the Human Wolf Kingdom avoid places like these, which is why a carnival is the best place for my meeting.

I pay for everyone’s tickets, and as we head in, I have a firm grip on Finn’s hand. My son looks around in awe, and just as I anticipated, as soon as he sees the first stand, serving spicy chocolate apples, he starts tugging me toward it.

“Can we go there first?” he asks, quivering in excitement.

“Are you sure you want to eat before you go on the rides?” I look down at him. “You know you will throw up afterward.”

“I won’t eat that much!” He looks up at me with his big eyes. “I promise.”

I sigh. “Very well. Let’s get you a spicy apple.”

I don’t know why Finn likes them so much. When we get to the stall, I order one each for Derrick and Cedric, as well.

But as I’m about to pay, Cedric takes out something that looks suspiciously like a wallet. “I can pay for it.”

I stare at him. “Where did you get that from?”

He shrugs. “I have money in this world. I just don’t use it. Never saw the need.”

I watch him carefully count the bills before paying the man, and I smile softly.

Derrick isn’t fond of the spicy chocolate apple, but Cedric, for some reason, shares his son’s peculiar taste. He wants to go back for a second one, but I refuse. There’s a lot to eat here, and if Cedric gets a second apple, Finn will want one as well.

My son is pulling Cedric along by the hand, and he is following him without a complaint. I purposefully guide us toward the darker areas and check my watch. My eyes search the designated meetup spot, and then I see him. A tall man wearing a trench coat.

I make sure that Finn is distracted before I touch Cedric’s arm. “I’ll just be a minute.”

He nods, and I slip away. I make my way to a fried potato vendor where they are selling everything from French fries to tornado swirls. After getting some fries, I stand next to a small, round table near the stall. The man in the trench coat approaches me, holding his own paper plate filled with fries.

He stops next to me and sighs. “Marcy has me on a diet. If she sees me eating these, she’ll kill me.”

“A diet?” I study the gray-haired man. “What for?”

“My heart. Apparently she dreamed that I died of a heart attack. God forbid. But I should be so lucky. If I eat one more baked kale chip, I’ll shoot myself in the chest.”

I chuckle. “She’s just worried about you.”

“Look at me.” The man gestures with his arms. To humor him, I do so.

Tall with a trim figure that doesn’t give away his age, George Hammel is in his late fifties and deputy commissioner of the local police. Normally, our paths would never have crossed, but the fates have their own plans, and I ended up meeting George when I saved his life from a rabid rogue shifter.

Rogue shifters are rare among our kind, and no one knows how they become rabid. George had been in the woods with his sons when the shifter attacked him. I happened to be nearby with Finn. I had been teaching my son how to shift forms when I heard the sound of children screaming.

I ended up killing the shifter, not an easy task but one that became necessary when it turned its attention toward my own son. However, the injuries that I sustained in the process had me shifting back to my human form. I remember how George bandaged me up and helped me back to the city. His children were too young to understand what they had seen, but their father did.

George found my address in my wallet and made sure I got home and into Maya’s care before he left. I intended to tell Erik about my run-in with the man, but I didn’t know who he was. The next time I bumped into him was when I was trying to search for police files on a certain case.

Since then, for all these years, George has kept my secret, and he has helped me with a lot of my investigations. In return, I’ve helped him with a few of his. It’s an odd friendship, but one that is mutually beneficial.

“You look completely healthy,” I announce after my visual inspection of the man. “How are the boys?”

“Nate has started high school.” George looks proud. “Ben is in his last year of middle school. I don’t know how they grew up so fast. How’s Finn? Did you bring him with you?”

He looks around, and I smile. “He’s with his father.”

George appears surprised. “I didn’t know his father was in the picture.”

“He wasn’t. This is a recent development.”

The older man clears his throat. “And you? Are the two of you…”

My smile widens. “We’re working things out. I’m considering moving to be near him.”

George frowns in disapproval. “Why do you have to move? He should be the one to come to you. Finn’s life should not be disrupted.”

I chuckle. “Unfortunately, his job is not conducive to relocation. And I think Finn will be happy.”

“Have you asked him?”

I give him a blank look. “Asked whom?”

“Finn.”

“Asked him what?”

“Whether he wants to move.” George raises his eyebrows at me. “I know he’s a child, but you should involve him in your decision. Otherwise, there could be room for resentment.”

Thoughtful now, I study him. “I didn’t consider that. From everything he has said, I think he would really want to go there. But I probably should discuss it with him.”

George nods. “Children are very perceptive and sensitive to enormous changes like this. If you involve them in the decision-making, or at least let them think they have a say, they accept the change more easily. At least, that’s what I’ve learned.” He fumbles in his coat pocket and then says, “Here,” as he hands me a flash drive. “I couldn’t get the physical files, but since the departments have started digitizing everything, I have images of everything you need.”

I stare at the flash drive, my blood starting to pound between my ears. “If this is what I think it is, George, I’m going to need to see the evidence.”

He gives me a brief smile. “Don’t worry. That can be arranged.”

I pocket the flash drive. “How long have you been looking into this?”

He thinks for a few seconds before answering. “We have had a file open on an active serial killer for about three years now. The same red circle with cell phones and wallets. Missing persons, no immediate family to contact. If I had known this was linked to your work, I’d have given the evidence to you much earlier. My detectives are coming up empty-handed.”

“Wait, no immediate family?” I go still.

He shakes his head. “Parents deceased, no siblings, no partners, just a handful of friends. No one in their life who would notice them missing. It’s a pattern.”

“How many open cases do you have?” I ask numbly.

“Around fifty, give or take.”

My blood goes cold. “You said serial killer,” I murmur after a moment. “Does that mean you found bodies?”

George munches on his fries, unaware of my inner turmoil. “We found two. Restraint marks on their wrists and ankles. Massive bruising, signs of torture, needle marks in places you wouldn’t think to look. Unfortunately, we weren’t able to conduct autopsies because both bodies disappeared from the morgue. It was evident that they hadn’t died in the custody of the killer. They had escaped somehow. We found both bodies within hours of each other. It seemed like they had escaped at the same time and had gone in different directions. From the pattern of fresh bruising on their bodies, we could tell that when they were running, they were not very coordinated or balanced.”

My appetite is gone. I stare at the table. “If they had escaped, they should’ve shifted. Why didn’t they?”

“Do you think they were unable to?” George had one rule when we began working together. He wanted to know as little about my world as possible. This is the first time he has asked me a question like this.

“I’ve never heard of such a case,” I say slowly. “This changes everything.” I glance up at him. “If I need to see their clothing or whatever else you have in evidence—”

“Just give me a call.”

I give him a grateful look, and we chat about our families for a little while before he decides to head off. As he starts to leave, he motions over my head with his chin. “I assume that’s your son’s father. He’s been glaring at me for the past twenty minutes.”

I look over my shoulder and see Cedric standing by a stall, watching us, his arms crossed over his chest in his signature stance.

I sigh. “Sorry about that.”

“If he’s bothering you, you can always tell me about it.” George pats my shoulder. “Let me know if you find anything useful in those files.”

“Thanks, George.”

I watch him leave before walking over to where my mate is standing. Chewing on my remaining fries, I come to stand in front of him, asking, “Having a good time, are we?”

“Who is that?” Cedric demands.

“A friend. Where is my son, Cedric?”

“He’s fine. He’s on that ride over there.” Cedric points to the large Ferris wheel. “Derrick is sitting with him.”

“You shouldn’t have left Finn with Derrick. I left Finn with you.” I give him an annoyed look. “The human world isn’t as safe as you think.”

“Derrick has fought by my side for years. Not only do I trust him, but he’s also a good fighter. Nobody would dare take our son while Derrick is watching. So, who was that man? How can he be your friend when he’s a man?”

I’m already walking over to where the Ferris wheel is. “Am I not allowed to have friends who are men?” He opens his mouth, and my eyes narrow. “Don’t answer that if you know what’s good for you, Cedric.”

After a moment, my mate protests, “He’s a man!”

“And I am a mated female,” I point out.

“But you’re not carrying my mark,” Cedric says harshly.

Taken aback by his tone, I come to a halt and study him. “Does that make a difference?”

He looks uneasy. “According to the law, you are my mate. But you don’t wear my mark. That means we are not proper mates. And that means you are free to find somebody else. I don’t want that to be a possibility.”

“If I wanted to find another mate, Cedric”—I wrap my hand around his—“I would’ve done so a long time ago. Stop being paranoid.”

We’ve only just reached the Ferris wheel when I hear screams in the distance. My head whips around, looking for the source.

The screaming is coming from behind the stalls near the exit, exactly where George had been headed. I don’t know why, but a bad feeling starts to churn in my stomach. Grabbing Cedric’s arm, I hiss, “You get Finn. I have to go see what’s happening.”

“Not without me,” he says sternly.

I release him and snap, “Get our son. He’s the priority.”

Leaving Cedric there, I run toward the gathering crowd by the carnival exit. The stench of blood reaches my nose as I get closer. I recognize the scent. My heart in my throat, I push through the people standing there and staring.

Please no.

A horrified gasp leaves my mouth and I nearly sink to my knees when I see the still figure on the ground.

George, who had been laughing and talking with me about his wife and sons not five minutes ago, is slumped against a tree behind one of the stalls, next to a dumpster, his throat slit, and his eyes vacant.