Page 87 of Eternal Light

“Long day. But yeah, I guess I am. You?”

Shrugging and accepting his stew from a now-naked-but-transformed Rowan, he sits on the floor against the couch within touching distance of Grayson, with his toes outstretched so he can wiggle them up under Jay’s pant leg.

If Leo had to guess, it’ll be a while before Nix and Jay feel good about being more than a foot (ha!) apart for the foreseeable future.

A decade-long lesson in grief and loss is hard to unlearn, and today, they’d had the worst of reminders about how fleeting life can be. They all had.

“Yeah. Now that we’re all here together. I’m good.”

“It’s better when we’re all together,” Grayson mutters, putting his empty bowl on the floor beside him before laying his head down on Leo’s thigh.

“I’m sorry again,” Jay says, dropping his spoon back into his half-finished bowl. “If it weren’t for me thinking I could get Carnell to talk to me…why did I think he would be reasonable?”

“To be fair, the last time you saw him, he offered you tea. Who could imagine he’d pass social-psycho and fly right into delulu-land?” Luca says, still atop his princess perch but now accepting tiny bits of bread dipped into the delicious gravy as tribute.

“Kittens, tell me what he talked about. If you can remember the exact words, it might help me get a handle on what set him off.” Gideon takes Jay’s bowl and rests it, along with his own, on the small table beside him.

Nix uses his bread to sop up the last of the soup and smiles as Rowan clears the bowl, finally returning with his own. Dusting the crumbs off his lap, he crosses his legs and closes his eyes.

“He thinks Jamie is dead. I’m not sure how long he will, given that someone is bound to figure out that a celebrity being alive despite their reported death is big news.”

“The hospital staff is under Oath, but who knows who recognized you in the halls. For now, though, the public is still mourning your loss. The fans are inconsolable,” Finn says, scrolling through the various social media apps.

Leo does not want to imagine the content being created as tribute to Jay’s dimples and smile.

Lauren had been in contact with Margot—who had been understandably frantic—bringing her up to speed about Carnell and the shooting, vetting the key personnel, and developing a plan to protect the pack.

Both women believe it is better to ask for forgiveness in this instance. It wouldn’t be Leo’s first choice to potentially alienate their fans, but the pack’s well-being has always come first.

“We’ll ask for forgiveness with a full explanation when we’re out the other side. What else did he say?”

Nix frowns. “‘My plan requires your cooperation and…attendance.’” The tone is almost identical. It’s creepy.

“No. No. Don’t do that, please.” Luca shakes his finger at Nix from his perch. He’s on his belly and, unsurprisingly, without pants.

At least that has stayed the same.

“Sorry, baby. What else? He said that Gideon is the true leader of our pack and that he needs to show us a firmer hand.”

And not in the fun way, Leo assumes. Even if Gideon were to lead, he would never see his mates as anything but his equals.

“Oh, and the alphas would have to go. Gideon wouldn’t want to harbor ‘backstabbing alphas’ in his midst.”

“That sounds like him.” Gideon lets his head fall into his hands. “His own organization had very few alphas.”

“So we’re on his priority hit list?” Grayson asks.

“For sure. But he doesn’t know about your magic, Gray. And he sure as fuck hasn’t seen Rowan-wolf.”

Grayson’s hair swirls in a non-existent breeze again, spreading his burnt-basil-vanilla-patchouli scent throughout the room.

“He still thinks you have magic? Withers, I mean?”

“Yeah, they’re both idiots. Neither one figured out about the babies. Like, do I need a Babies On Board t-shirt?” The omega’s wolf is always offended at the idea that the babies are not celebrated—even by their enemies.

No, Leo thinks,that is the worst idea yet.

“That’s good, though. It seems we have a better idea about what Carnell is up against than he does. Now, if we could figure out what Withers can do, I’d feel a whole lot better. Shit, Gray, you’ll have to try that protection Nimue showed you today on the rest of us.”