Page 4 of Hunted Pack (Her Vicious Pack #7)

Vera

I keep the kids entertained as Luca reunites with his family. From the corner of my eyes I can see them in the hallway, embracing, tears flowing. They’ve been apart for years and his family has a lot of questions for him.

He told me some of his story while we were out on the balcony, a very condensed version, I’m sure. But every word out of his mouth made me want to wrap him up in blankets more and more, keep him safe for the rest of his life, make sure he’ll never have to deal with anything bad ever again.

I have no idea how he survived for this long. The Hearts put him through tremendous horrors, all to make sure that they could keep him under control, while they were making plans how to use him to take down Mathew.

Luca reacting to Caleb and my pheromones a year ago seems to have been the moment that they started to finalise their ideas, set things in motion. And I hope that whatever the Hearts had planned, that us finding Luca last night will set them back for at least a little while.

If it wasn’t part of their plan from the start… That us finding him and ‘rescuing’ him wasn’t all part of their plan.

No.

I have to stay positive.

I have to believe that this wasn’t planned.

I have to believe this wasn’t planned and that they’ll have to move to a plan B or C.

Because otherwise, I don’t know how to survive, mentally.

I’m sure they’ve got backup plans for what to do if Luca managed to get away or if they couldn’t use him for some other reason. I’m sure.

But not having him under their control anymore must be inconvenient for them, right?

Right?

“This is Vera, she rescued us.” Luca’s voice breaks through my thoughts and when I look up he meets my gaze, a light blush on his cheeks. “Without her, we would all have been in a much worse situation right now. Two of her Alphas, Caleb and Jorge, were the ones who brought you here.”

An older man comes over to me, tears in his eyes as he grabs my shoulders, pulling me in for a tight hug. “Thank you so much. Thank you, so, so much.” His voice breaks and I can’t help my own tears. “We had no idea where he’d been all this time. Thank you so much for bringing him back.”

I nod, not able to say anything, as other members of Luca’s family crowd around me.

I’m suddenly very aware how special this is, not just for Luca’s family, but for Luca too. From what Riley told us before, no matter what you’re being told, if the Suits feel like it, they’ll get rid of your family, and you wouldn’t even know about it.

Luca finally has his family back and they have him back. Something that Mathew or Riley will never be able to get.

“Please, let us know how we can ever repay you.” An older woman touches my arm, her voice wavering. Their pheromones are strong, flooding around us, their emotions so clear, so painful. Relief that they’re all reunited, darkness for all the time they’ve been apart and will never get back.

“I’m just glad that you’re all okay and safe and that you’ve found each other again.” I push the words past the lump in my throat. “I know that this is all a shocking change. But we want you to be safe. That’s all we care about.”

“Mum, Dad.” Luca pulls their attention. “They prepared some rooms for you. Just until they find a safe place. Shall we move to them? I’m sure Vera would like to get the kids to settle down for the night.” His voice is quiet but insistent.

“Of course.” The older man lets me go, giving me a soft and apologetic smile that reminds me of Luca immediately, making my pheromones flare with longing.

The man looks from me to Luca and back, frowning, but he doesn’t say anything.

“Let’s get out of here so the kids can go to sleep.

They must be exhausted too and I know how hard things get when kids don’t get enough sleep. ”

He picks up the young boy they brought with them, Luca’s sister’s son. The man looks at me, nodding. “We’ll talk more tomorrow. Again, thank you so much.”

“Have a good night. Try to get some rest.” I give them my best smile, even though it hurts and I have no idea how much actually shows.

Automatically, I follow them to the door, until I realise that I’m now right next to Luca.

Fuck.

No matter how much I instinctively want to be near him, I can’t. I really can’t.

But, before I can move away, Luca hooks his pinkie around mine, holding me like that for a few moments.

My heart races and no matter how much I try to suppress it, my pheromones flare.

Internally, I curse myself for not paying more attention to what I was doing, wishing I could pull the pheromones back inside. But it’s too late.

Luca’s face pales and I quickly step away, breaking our connection.

No.

Fuck.

No.

A whine catches in my throat, not even letting out a peep, but from the way Luca looks at me, he doesn’t need to hear it. He knows what’s going on.

“I’ll help my family settle in.” His voice is soft, wavering, his pheromones full of pain, fear, and underneath it all, deep longing.

I nod, blinking fast to keep my tears away, but failing as I watch him walk down the hallway, glancing back at me every few steps, as I close the door between us.

The moment the ‘click’ of the door reaches my ears, the tears start streaming down my cheeks. I suppress the new whine in my chest, the wail I want to let out, the desperation of needing to be with my mate.

One of the kids brings me a napkin and I give them a watery smile. “Thank you.” I wipe my eyes, though the tears keep returning.

Luca is here .

He’s only a few rooms over.

It’s not like he’s far away. He’s right here.

But right now, it doesn’t really matter, not if we can’t be in the same space.

It might even be worse.

So close and so far at the same time.

My eyes shoot open as burned caramel reaches my nose. Luca!

But when I become aware of my surroundings, I realise it’s Jorge, trying to put a shirt with Luca’s pheromones over my shoulders.

I’m in the nest, my mates’ clothes, including the shirt that Luca gave me for the ride home, clutched against my chest. I’m gripping them so tightly that my hands are all sore.

“Sorry. Didn’t mean to wake you.” Jorge sits down next to me on the pillows, letting his cedar pheromones mix into the air, soothing me.

“How long have I been asleep?” I look around, but can’t find my phone or other way to tell the time and it’s still dark outside.

“Half an hour, at most.” He leans closer, kissing my cheek. “You should go back to sleep. At least one of us should get some sleep, so someone can keep everything running tomorrow.” He lets out a soft laugh.

“I can’t. We’ve got too much to do. I just...” I glance to the room with the kids, though mentally, I’m in the rooms behind it, the rooms where Luca’s family is staying.

“Do you have family out there?” The words slip from my lips.

Jorge stills, his gaze guarded.

“I’m sorry. Never mind. You don’t have to answer.” My heart races.

I hadn’t planned on asking about it, since none of us really talk about our families. We all have less-than-great relationships with them, alive or otherwise.

“No. It’s fine. I grew up in the area, so I see my family from time to time. When we pass each other by on the streets, things like that. But that’s it.” He lets out a long breath, his pheromones filling with something heavy, not so much pain but sadness. “I don’t talk to them voluntarily.”

I understand that feeling. I’ve not spoken to anyone from my parents’ pack since I left.

Luckily, we’ve not been anywhere that I could accidentally run into them, so I’ve not had to think about them much. But by now, I also have no need to be in contact with them.

After forcing me to marry Hubert and then not stepping in when he sent people after us, which they were fully aware of… They lost any rights to be considered my family.

“You should try to get some more sleep.” Jorge plays with his fingers over my shoulder, his touch soft.

“I can’t.” I sit up and look at the ball of shirts in my lap. “We have too much to do. I can’t sleep now.” We have so much to do that I’m trained for, unlike Jorge or Luca…

“The kids are asleep. I think at least one of us should stay on a sleeping schedule with them so that someone is awake enough to look after them.” He smiles at me.

“Sounds like a perfect task for you.” I grin back, grabbing his shoulder to get up, but he wraps his arms around my waist and pulls me into his lap, making me quickly cover my mouth with my hands so that my squeak doesn’t wake the kids up.

He nips at my shoulder, letting out a rolling laugh. “I was thinking we could do it together.”

I shake my head. “I’m sorry. I’d love to, but my skills are needed for other things. I think it would be best if Luca and you look after the kids. Luca can’t be around me, but he’s also the only adult they know.”

I glance to where Luca and his family are staying, trying to keep my heart under control, my tears. It feels unnatural, not being able to be close to my mate. It takes over my whole brain, making it hard to think of anything else.

“He’s not in the rooms with his family, he’s in the hallway.” Jorge’s voice is careful. “He’s sitting in the hallway right outside the kids’ room, because he can’t be away from you. When I checked on him, he asked me to bring you his shirt.”

Jorge holds me in his arms, keeping me close, his pain at seeing our distress making my tears even worse.

I wish I could drag Luca over here and hide him in my nest.

Hide him in the nest until everything is over.

Until his pain is gone and everything is good again.

I wish I could take his broken pieces and heal him, make him whole again.

But right now, I only bring him more pain.

Being around me hurts him, and I don’t want that.

So, no matter how much it goes against my own feelings, my own instincts, I need to let him keep his distance as much as he needs.

Jorge stands up and puts me on my feet, wrapping Luca’s shirt around my shoulders. He lets out a soothing rumble that vibrates through his chest, instinctively making me lean against him more.

I want my whole pack together, everyone in the nest at the same time. But I have a feeling that that might take a while.

Until then, I’ll have to stay strong and be patient.

I can do the first, I’m not so good at the second...

But I’ll have to try. For Luca, for the pack, for our future together.

I’ll have to try.