Page 25 of Mated To The King’s Gamma (Lycan Luna: Abbie & Gannon #3)

O pening the door, I find Abbie and Tandi.

Tandi peers past me to look at Kyson asleep before reaching in, grabbing my wrist, and tugging me out the door and rushing toward the stairs.

Abbie giggles, racing to keep up with her as if she is performing some kind of jailbreak.

Dustin, who is standing guard with Trey, stumbles after us.

“Ah, you said you needed to speak to her, not kidnap her!” Trey hisses at her.

“Either come with us and shut up or stay behind. No party poopers allowed,” Abbie states. Trey shoots me an inquisitive look and I shrug.

“Where are we going?” I ask as I nearly stumble down the steps.

“To raid the liquor cabinet and find the deserts,” Tandi tells me. Abbie giggles and shakes her head.

“I heard her giving Damian hell in the halls and went to see what the commotion was and was kidnapped, too,” she shrugs.

“Tyson? And Hunter?” I ask the girls, relieved to see a smile on Abbie’s face after yesterday’s events.

“Hogging the bed. Gannon is with him,” Abbie tells me.

“And Damian is playing Daddy daycare,” Tandi says as we reach the bottom of the stairs.

Tandi scouts the hall before jumping in fright when Liam comes around the corner. Liam glances around before ducking behind the corner of the staircase with us. He peers down, then peeks around the corner toward the kitchen.

“Who are we hiding from?” he whispers.

Tandi giggles. “Idiot, we are raiding the kitchen!” she snaps, pushing past him.

“I could do with a midnight snacky poo.”

“This is a girl’s breakout only,” she tells him.

“Then why does Ferret Face get to come? And him?”

Trey huffs at Liam. Tandi glances over her shoulder at Dustin and Trey dressed in the typical black uniforms, looking every part of my guard.

“Dustin, don’t count. He is one of us,” Tandi states, and he huffs as if to say he is not a part of this escape when her eyes slide to Trey.

“And he is the fun police who decided to tag along,” she growls.

“Well then, count me as the corruption! I know where the hard liquor is kept. Besides, I am her guard,” he says, pointing to Abbie.

“Since when?” Abbie demands.

“Since you did a jailbreak on my best friend in your rainbow pajamas and bunny slippers. You look like you’re up to mischief,” Liam tells her, sending her a wink. Tandi sighs loudly.

“So much for keeping this a small gathering,” Tandi says, stomping off toward the kitchen.

We flick the light on to find no one down here, and I can’t help but laugh as Liam makes himself at home, raiding the pantry and coming out with a huge armful of sweets and chips that he dumps into Trey’s arms. Trey shakes his head but says nothing, accepting his role in our escape, which I’m sure will get me in trouble later with Kyson.

Tandi follows Liam to the cellar, returning with liquor and wine bottles. “Do you girls drink?” she asks, and Abbie and I shake our heads.

“Oh, Clarice made Mud Cake!” Liam states, spotting it on the top level of the fridge.

“Dustin, grab some glasses while I steal this,” he says.

“Clarice will murder you,” Trey tells him while Liam kidnaps the cake.

“Shush you! You saw nothing, and don’t you snitch,” he tells Trey.

“So why are we doing this again?” I ask, and everyone stops to stare at Tandi.

“Ah, because we can! You’re the queen. You can do what you want!” she shrugs, and I giggle. She has a point, kinda. I doubt any of the guards will step in unless I am putting myself in danger.

We sneak down to the ballroom where the orphanage was initially set up, but it is now clear since only a handful of children remain. Those who are still here are on the servants’ floor with Clarice and the other servants, so they could be watched over.

Yet a few bunk beds and toys remain. After ripping the sheets off, we set up our picnic. Trey started a fire in the enormous fireplaces, and we flicked the lights off since turning them on lit the place like a Christmas tree.

“So what did Damian do that made you ditch him?’ Abbie asks, accepting a glass of wine from her. Liam sips his bottle of whiskey, not bothering with a glass.

“Nothing really, it just irritated me,” Tandi says.

“Fascinating. Tell me more about your domestic squabbles,” Liam says, and she rolls her eyes at him.

“I wanted to go to the archives and find my daughter. He wants me to wait.”

“Why?” I ask, thinking it’s a little odd of him. He knows Tandi wants her daughter back, as any mother would after learning they are alive all this time.

“He wants to be sure. He said he is worried Larkin is lying, and she is dead. He wants to check it out himself first,” she sighs.

“Yeah, I would say he is just looking out for you,” Trey tells her, coming over with a blanket. He drapes it over my shoulder, eyeing the wine glass in my hand that Tandi gave me. I sip it, finding the taste somewhat bitter.

“What about you and Gannon after last night?” Tandi asks Abbie.

The room falls quiet at her question, and I definitely didn’t want to think of the state we found her in. Abbie leans into me, resting her head on my shoulder.

“I’ll be fine. Though I learned a lot about Sia, who was Gannon’s real mate,” Abbie tells us. I have my own questions about this woman. As I’m about to ask them, Liam clears his throat awkwardly.

“Liam was with Sia when Gannon was,” Abbie says.

“Damn! And you think I am trouble? First, the Gamma’s mate and then the Beta’s mate. I’m starting to see a pattern with you,” Tandi laughs.

“So what about Sia?” I ask Abbie.

“She was my aunty,” she tells us. Tandi stares at her, wide eyed, before downing her glass.

“I’ll get more wine then, shall I,” she says, about to get up and retrieve the bottle off the small Lego table leaning against the wall.

“I’ll do it,” Liam says, plucking the glass from her fingers and wandering off. Abbie sighs.

“So your aunty, then?” Tandi asks.

“Dead. Gannon and Liam killed her,” Abbie answers.

“And you are still with him?” she asks, aghast.

“I don’t remember her. It was before I was born. All I know is what my mother told me about her.”

“And what was that?” Tandi asks curiously.

“That they had a fight. It was why my mother and father left the pack. So I have no memory of her. I only remember my grandmother when mom would sneak me to see her when I was little.” I had hardly any memories I could recall of Abbie. In fact, I could scarcely remember a time without Abbie.

“I don’t remember you ever leaving?” I tell her, confused.

“What?” Abbie asks, looking at me, just as confused as I felt.

“You and Marrissa came with us a few times. My grandmother! She had curly red hair and always wore those bone things around her neck. You told me she looked like the wicked witch,” Abbie laughs.

Confused, I try to recall this memory or anything of that she spoke of.

“She used to have the giant tire swing out the back under the banyan tree?” Abbie tells me. I shake my head.

“Well, turns out you were right about her. She was a witch and human,” Abbie tells me with a laugh, yet I am still wondering why I have no memories of this.

Liam comes over to us and hands Abbie a glass, making me sniff the air.

I glance at Liam, swearing I can smell blood, but he looks fine.

I shake my head, believing I imagined it, and sip my glass of wine I still haven’t finished.

Abbie sips her glass and pulls a face at its bitterness.

“Wait, your grandmother was a witch?” Trey asks, sounding curious.

“That’s what Gannon said. Why?” Abbie answers him.

“Nothing, just the name Sia sounds familiar to me for some reason,” Trey tells her but offers nothing else.

“So where is your grandmother now, then? Maybe she can do a location spell on my daughter,” Tandi says, mumbling the last part.

“Dead. We killed her when she came after Gannon for killing her daughter,” Liam says matter-of-factly as if Abbie isn’t sitting across from him.

“Woah, hold up! You killed her grandmother, too?” Tandi asks, shocked.

“Yep, and…” Liam’s words suddenly cut off when the door opens. The lights flicker on, and we turn toward the doors.

“Okay. I was woken up by a guard saying someone was messing around in my kitchen, only to find my mud cake gone, along with half the pantry!”

Simultaneously, everyone points at Trey, who throws his hands up, and I giggle.

“And no one thought to invite me?” Clarice demands, wandering over. She plucks the whiskey bottle out of Liam’s hand and drinks from it before sighing.

“Fuck, I needed that! Those kids have been running rings around me all damn night,” she states before falling into our little circle on the floor. She hands the bottle back to Liam, who smirks and rolls onto his back on the floor, staring up at the ceiling.

“If you’re going to raid my kitchen next time, an invitation would be nice, girls. Now, where is that cake?” she says.

“I’ll get it,” Trey says, wandering off.

Everyone gets wasted while I remain nursing the same wine glass.

They look like they need to let loose. But I can’t bring myself to drink when I am constantly at Kyson about his drinking.

It doesn’t feel right, and when the sun comes up, I’m still sober along with Clarice who was probably sticking around to supervise, so we didn’t cause trouble.

Meanwhile, Abbie can barely walk and is in fits of giggles, her face bright red from all the wine.

She has also lost a slipper. Tandi is dancing on top of a table with Liam, while Dustin is on the verge of having a heart attack every time she gets too close to the edge.

Liam is singing about some made-up song and keeps calling Dustin his sweet pea, which ends with him being snapped at by Dustin.

I laugh, as they all make fools of themselves while sitting with Trey and Clarice. “Always fun watching. Reminds me of when I was young,” Clarice says, sipping her glass of wine.

“How old are you?” I ask. As far as Clarice is concerned, I don’t know much about her. Only now has it occurred to me.

“Too old,” she laughs.