Page 49

Chapter

Forty-Eight

D ANNY

Just as we got out of the shower, there was a knock at the front door. I groaned. Even without my shifter senses, I knew that my family would be clustered on the doorstep, waiting to see us.

More than anything, I wanted to climb straight into bed with Knox for another round, but I couldn’t just ignore them. They deserved better than me thinking with my dick.

“I can send them away if you need more time,” Knox said, taking the towel from the rail and drying me so tenderly that it brought tears to my eyes.

“No, I want to see them. I’m just a little overwhelmed by everything that’s happened and part of me wants to hide from the world.”

Knox kissed my cheek. “If you want to hide, I’ll build you a pillow fort when they’re gone. What do you say?”

I melted into his arms. “That sounds pretty perfect.”

He kissed me again, but then pulled away and brushed the towel over the skin that had been dampened when I touched him.

“I’ll get the door.” He tugged on a pair of sweatpants and a T-shirt, the fabric plastering itself to his skin since he hadn’t bothered to dry himself, only me. “You finish getting dressed.”

He waited for me to nod before leaving the bathroom. I ignored the sound of him moving through the house, glad for a moment of peace. I dried my hair properly and dressed in a pair of full-length pajamas and fluffy socks. Perhaps I didn’t strictly need them in order to keep warm, but there was something comforting about soft fabric against my skin.

With nothing else to distract me, I headed to the living area. As soon as I entered, Momma flew around the room and pulled me into a rib-crushing hug.

“My baby!” she cried. “You’re okay!”

“I told you he was,” Everett muttered from somewhere behind her. I couldn’t see him. I was too busy trying to breathe. Sometimes, Momma forgot how strong she was.

She rocked me from side to side, sniffling in my ear and clutching me as though she was afraid to let go. Guilt lanced through me. I should have gone to see her earlier rather than falling into bed with Knox. I’d been stressed and not thinking clearly. While I didn’t regret what we’d done, I felt bad for not reassuring her sooner.

She drew back, blinking rapidly to restrain the tears gleaming in her eyes. “Is that a mating bite?”

I cocked my head, surprised. I’d expected an admonishment for scaring her, or perhaps concern over what had happened.

“It is!” The sides of her mouth hooked up and her eyes sparkled. She spun toward Knox, her gaze narrowing in on the spot beneath his T-shirt where the puncture marks were. He pulled it aside so she could see, and she squeaked. “Oh, my baby. You’re mated! I’m so happy for you. ”

“I think it’s clear who the favorite child is,” Garrick teased.

Momma smoothed her hands down the front of my pajamas and tutted. “I’m allowed to be excited for my youngest son. Our only omega.” Her eyes welled again. “I was so...”

“Shh, Momma. It’s okay.” I hugged her, startled as another pair of arms wrapped around us. I breathed in cherries and vanilla. Milo. “I’m safe.”

“You’d better be.” Milo squeezed tighter. “Don’t ever scare me like that again.”

A growl rumbled from Everett. “Everyone is going to be careful from now on. No one will worry my pregnant mate. Got it?”

I laughed. “Got it, Ev.”

He might not have said the words, but in his own way, he’d voiced his concern for me.

“Son.”

Milo and Momma released me and stepped aside to give Dad space to approach. He cupped the back of my head, scenting me, and then enveloped me in his arms, his chest vibrating as he held me close and smothered me with feelings of safe-clan-home .

“Is everyone all right?” I asked him, finally realizing that I didn’t know exactly what had gone on earlier and whether we’d emerged unscathed.

He let me out of the hug but slid his arm around my shoulders to keep me close. No doubt his Clan Alpha instincts were insisting he stay close until he was certain I’d be fine.

“We had a few injuries.” His expression was serious. “Nothing major. Dr. Black had to patch up a couple of people, but they’ll heal quickly.

“No…” I swallowed. “No fatalities? ”

“Not on our side. They lost their alpha and a couple of others.”

I frowned. Someone was missing. “Where’s Zander?”

Dad stiffened. “He’s at the police station, making sure our omegas are healed and questioned before they’re sent home. We also found five other omegas on the premises who were being kept as slaves. Dr. Black is seeing to them, but they’ve suffered extensive trauma. Even if their bodies heal, their minds might never be the same.”

My stomach twisted. Gods, I hadn’t even considered that there might be others like us, either taken from other clans or belonging to the families within the rogue pack.

“Those poor people.” I couldn’t imagine what they must have been through. Didn’t want to, if I was honest. “I’m sorry I didn’t come to the station to help. Maybe I could have—”

Dad cut me off with a look. “No one is angry with you. We’re glad you had Knox to bring you home and take care of you. There’s no reason for you to feel guilty. You can visit with the other omegas tomorrow or later this week if you’d like. We’ll be trying to track down their relatives, but that might not be possible for all of them.”

Because the rogue wolf pack might have decimated their families. Those poor, poor people.

“Jamie?” I asked. “Jessie and Hannah?”

“They’re all okay,” Dad said. “None of them were harmed beyond the original abduction.”

“And Jamie’s mom?”

“She’s fine. They weren’t interested in her. Hamish is looking after her at the Omega House until Jamie has recovered enough to take over her care again.”

“Thank gods.” I squeezed Dad, then broke away from him and went straight to Knox, looping my arms around him and burying my face in his chest .

All was quiet.

Too quiet.

My scalp prickled. “What is it? Something else is going on too.”

Momma’s hand ran down my back. “Nothing you need to worry about right now.”

Huffing, I turned in Knox’s arms and glared at her. “Tell me.”

She exchanged a glance with Dad, but it was Garrick who spoke.

“Did you meet a warlock while you were at the Pack House?” he asked.

“No.” I’d known they must have one, but I hadn’t seen a trace of them.

He nodded, his body unusually tense. “His name is Reid. He was mated to their Alpha.”

“I—”

“That bastard forced a mating upon him.” Garrick’s fists clenched, and he sounded more furious than I’d ever heard him.

I felt sick. “He… he mated the warlock against his will?”

Reid. His name was Reid. For some reason, I couldn’t bring myself to use it. The idea of forcing someone into an unwanted bond was horrific. Mate bonds were supposed to bring reassurance and create emotional closeness with a partner, but as with all things, they had a dark side. They could be used to control. To remove free will.

Even worse, the warlock—Reid—would still feel the pain of the loss as if it were a mate he’d chosen.

“Reid has been inconsolable,” Dad said quietly. “He hasn’t spoken to us himself, but some of the others have. The woman they’ve designated as their spokesperson said that Reid was picked up in a town they passed through several months ago, and the Pack Alpha mated him so he could control his magic.”

My chest ached and my eyes burned. “That’s awful.”

“And now he’s grieving the bastard,” Garrick growled. “Meanwhile, his true mate can’t do anything to help him.”

“His true mate?” This just got worse. Had the pack torn him from a mate to force the abomination of a bond between him and their Pack Alpha?

“Zander,” Momma whispered, her face creased with pain.

“Oh.” My heart sank. “Oh, no.”

“But enough of that,” Momma said briskly, swiping at her eyes. “The good news is that Rex is locked up and he’ll be transported out of Grizzly Ridge tomorrow. He’s going to a magically enhanced prison for a long time and he’ll never get anywhere near you ever again.”

“Especially not if he has an ‘accident’ in prison,” Knox grumbled under his breath.

No one chastened him.

“Good riddance.” The sooner I could forget the man, the better. “I want to visit the omegas tomorrow. All of them, including Reid.”

Knox’s lips brushed over my temple. “We’ll make it happen.”