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Chapter Eighteen

S tephen

I sat in my car in the Blackthorn Corporation parking lot, scanning the lot to check that no one was near.

It was early evening, and no one was in sight.

I dialed Ben, my best friend and the first shifter to join my fight against Magnus after my mother’s death.

Ben was the son of two shifters who had emigrated from Europe, disconnected from their pack’s roots.

We had met at university, and his desire to belong to a pack had paired with my need to mobilize my own group of shifters who could move against Magnus.

He picked up on the third ring. “Hey, everything all right, buddy?”

“Hi, Ben. As good as it can be.” I’d already filled him in after Lina demanded I leave Philadelphia upon discovering my role as leader of the rogue wolves.

“What’s up?” he asked, his tone bristling with alertness.

I pictured him on his balcony in Astoria, overlooking the Hudson.

After university, he’d settled there and shared a condo with Victor.

Vic came from a rural pack in Michigan, but due to moving to New York for work after university, had likewise been missing running with other shifters.

He and the majority of our other rogue brothers came from the same backgrounds and had joined Ben and me in their quest to belong to a pack in the city.

I knew that one day, Vic and many of the others might relocate back to their own packs, but with the loyalty and friendship they’d given me, they’d always have a place with me.

“Magnus has set a date for Lina and his mate ceremony for this Saturday,” I said.

“What do you want to do?” he asked.

“I want you and the pack to be ready to move on him on Saturday.”

“At Blackthorn Villa?” Ben asked.

The ceremony was set to take place at Blackthorn Villa. In some ways, it felt like a bad case of Deja-vu as I imagined the villa decked out once more for the ceremony as it had been years ago.

But something in my gut told me it wouldn’t be that simple this time. There were too many players on the board, with too many secrets and agendas for my rogue wolves to end this so easily.

“He’s suspicious,” I said. “The ceremony’s due to take place at the villa, but I don’t see it being that simple.

He’s keeping his cards close to his chest more than ever.

” Magnus had told me more about the outcome of the deal with Haldon than he had spoken or directed orders concerning Lina.

I didn’t like how quiet he’d gone on that front.

“Do you think he suspects you?” Ben asked with an edge to his tone.

“No, I don’t think so. I’m still tracking Lina and delivering reports, but he’s keeping his own counsel more and more, asking for less from me when it comes to investigating Lina.”

“It sounds like he’s suspicious of your girl,” Ben said.

Ben’s words had the usual wash of protectiveness swirling through me as I thought of Lina.

God, I wanted to keep her safe, but she was infuriatingly mistrustful and seemed hell-bent on keeping her own counsel, as much as Magnus was.

The last few days of working in our shared office space only seemed to have strengthened the silence and walls that Lina seemed determined to build between us.

My phone sounded an alarm, and I said, “Hold on, Ben.”

I looked at my phone, and an update from my tracking app flashed on my screen.

Tit was the one I had attached to Lina’s car.

She’d finished early again this evening, ducking out of the office even earlier than I had.

Now, as I opened the tracking app and saw her car’s progress leaving the city, I swore, “Fuck.” I held the phone to my ear again. “I’m gonna have to call you back.”

“No worries, bud. I’ll spread the word about Saturday with the rest of the pack.”

I hung up and once more followed Magnus’s orders, following Lina out of town.

But frustration shot through me. Did she really think that just because I wasn’t reporting the truth to Magnus she didn’t need to be more careful?

With the date of her mate ceremony so close, she should be more careful.

She shouldn’t be taking another reckless trip out to her friends.

Then, the thought of little Betty had me worried she might be unwell again. My heart squeezed, and I drove swiftly, not just for Lina, but with thoughts of checking in on the little one.

When I got to the villa, Emily opened the door, hardly blinking as she took me in. “Stephen,” she said. “To what do we owe the pleasure?” She asked wryly.

“Nice to see you again, Stephen,” Matthew said, joining us by the door and schooling his features better than Emily did. She really didn’t look pleased to see me.

“Sorry to barge in like this again. But I need to see Lina.” I didn’t feel the need to elaborate. After all, I’d seen their shared office space and so many of their secrets that they were more than aware of the elaborate subterfuge we were all in.

Betty, wearing a tutu and ballet pumps, skipped over to us. “Uncle Stephen!” She greeted me. “Will you play with me?”

“Sweetie,” Matthew began, “Uncle Stephen’s here to see Auntie Lina. You come down with me and Mommy to the office—”

“I don’t mind,” I interrupted. “Betty can keep me company while I wait for Lina,” I suggested.

That same eagerness to spend time with the little girl filled my chest, and relief trickled through me to see her looking so much better.

Her bright blue eyes sparkled with health, and she clearly had oodles of energy as she jumped up and down, her black wavy hair bouncing.

Matthew and Emily exchanged an uneasy glance, and then Emily said, “Lina went up for a shower. She shouldn’t be long.”

I nodded. “Betty can keep me entertained, isn’t that right?”

“I’s show you a new dance,” Betty exclaimed, already skipping across the living room.

Emily went to the bookcase, and it rolled away, leaving the corridor to the office bare. It felt refreshing that she and Matthew didn’t bother to conceal the space from me. If they were more accepting of me, maybe there was a chance that Lina would be.

As I relaxed into the space, the memory of sitting beside Betty and Lina washed over me, and for the first time, I was pleased Lina had driven out here. Maybe here, where she felt safe and at home, she’d listen to me and accept my help.

“Be good, sweetie,” Matthew said as he followed Emily down the corridor.

Betty didn’t seem to hear her father, though, and danced over to me until she came to a standstill, blinking up at me with those bright blue eyes—so uncannily like Lina’s.

“Want a story?” I asked.

Betty shook her head. “I want to play—Hide and Seek. You hide, and I’s count. I’s count to ten,” she announced proudly.

I beamed at her. She was so precious. “Aren’t you a brainiac? But you’ve got to give me time to hide. So how about you count Mississippi, too?”

“Miss— sippi?” She asked curiously, stuttering over the word adorably.

“You have to count slowly and say Mississippi after each number—like this: One Mississippi, two Mississippi, three Mississippi, four Mississippi.” I demonstrated.

“Okay,” she answered brightly, climbing up on the sofa and burying her face in her hands as she began to count. “One Miss—sippi, two Miss—sippi, three Miss—sippi, four Miss—sippi…”

I hurried quietly into the kitchen area, pulling open the door to another room. It was a utility room with a washer and dryer and the backdoor in the corner.

Perfect.

A smile crept over my face as I listened to Betty’s endearing counting and the way she diligently kept trying to say the word Mississippi.

I was standing behind the door in the utility room when I heard a soft tread on the stairs. I thought about coming out and announcing myself, but I didn’t want to ruin Betty’s game. She’d been so excited to play.

“Five Miss—sippi…”

I knew the minute Lina heard I was here, she’d have it out with me and send Betty to her parents in the office, too. Selfishly, I savored the little moment of precious fun I got to share with Betty.

“Hey, little Swanling,” Lina greeted. “What you doing?”

“I’s playing hide and seek, Mommy,” Betty said.

My throat tightened, and my heart seemed to explode in my chest.

“Mommy?”

Sparks of knowing fired through me. Betty’s eyes were the exact shade of electric blue as Lina’s. I’d known it deep in my bones already. Betty was Lina’s daughter.

“Six Miss—sippi…” Betty continued.

“Where’d you learn to count Mississippi?” Lina asked, and I could hear the smile in her voice. My heart seemed to strain against my chest.

“Uncle Stephen,” Betty said.

Now my heart was drumming as if it were counting down to the moment I knew I’d be found.

“Seven Miss—sippi…”

“Stephen?” Lina said, her voice taut.

“Eight Miss—sippi…”

“Is Stephen here?” Lina asked, the anxiety evident in her voice even as she tried to make it even.

Betty laughed. “Not here. He’s hiding, silly.”

“Nine Miss—sippi…”

“I think I might have seen him going into the office,” Lina whispered.

“Ten Miss—sippi!” Betty exclaimed. “Here I come, ready or not!”

I heard her little steps hurrying away just as Lina’s footfalls grew louder, but the blood pounding in my ears roared.

In a moment, she pushed open the door.

“Not here,” Lina whispered, pushing my chest and shutting the utility door behind her. She stepped past me, drawing the back door open, and I stumbled out after her, clicking the door shut behind me.

The gentle dusk wrapped around us as I followed Lina into the garden, the air thick with the fragrant scent of blooming buds and the faint hum of the night awakening.

We moved past a copse of trees shielding us from the house, and Lina finally turned to face me.

Her long hair was darker, still damp from the shower.

My pulse quickened as I took in the sight of her, the blue sweater she wore, so soft and inviting that I immediately imagined running my hands over it, feeling the curves hidden beneath.