I’d spent the afternoon reassessing every single aspect of my life. I started with the fact that I had a half-brother who lived less than ten miles away, a man that I had met once before who shared half my DNA. A month ago, when I’d met him on the street, had I known deep down in my soul that he was related to me? Had he smelled familiar?
Nope, though I do remember not being as fearful of him as the other Alpha, Wilkie. But that was because they were as different as night and day. Gatlin seemed nice, if intense. Wilkie was everything Lorso had ever warned me about. At least, that’s what I’d thought Lorso was warning me about, but maybe he’d had a particular Alpha in mind.
Despite the fact that none of this shit really mattered—and quite frankly, being a motherfucking Griffin was way more interesting—my brain kept coming back to a day about fifteen years ago, when Lorso had yelled at me, likereallyyelled at me, for the first time ever.
He’d caught me on the edges of Maxton, watching the normal people get in and out of their cars, bringing out bags of pastries from the bakery, and kids playing on the sidewalk, doing normal people shit. I remembered thinking that it all seemed so easy and not scary at all. Not like the boogeymen Lorso had painted them to be. But then Lorso had busted me and dragged me back to the cabin. He’d made me sit in the corner while he first ranted in English to himself, because at the time, I didn’t understand English at all.
Finally, when he’d calmed down and ran out of steam, he’d squatted down in front of me, his face more serious than I’d ever seen it. That was saying something, because Lorso was a really reserved kind of man.
“You can’t do that, Girl. If the Alpha General of that town caught you, he’d take a little Beta half-blood like you and make you a chew toy for the upcoming Alphas. He’d punish you for your very existence. For what you represent. You cannot do that again.Swear it!”
That was when he’d yelled, in fear or maybe frustration; I couldn’t tell then and I still wasn’t sure now. I’d sworn never to go back, of course. Lorso had never yelled at me before that day, and it scared the crap out of me for years after. I never went even close to Maxton ever again, and didn’t set eyes on another Manix until Corvin and Beckett stumbled over me when they were teens.
Now, I wondered if it wasn’t all Manix Lorso was trying to keep me away from, but the Alpha General in particular. The same Alpha General who’d preached racial superiority. Maybe having two half-breed mistakes would have been too much?
I’d never know now.
There was a knock at the bedroom door, and I called Beckett to come in. I knew his scent intimately now. I could pick him out of a crowd of a thousand with my eyes closed. They’d been good about leaving me alone after we returned from the cabin, even Darius, but I guess twenty-four hours of processing was all I got.
Beckett appeared, carrying a plate with toast and a glass of juice. He set them on my nightstand, and hesitated before sitting down on the edge of the bed. “Want to talk about it?” I shook my head. He squinted at me. “Not even about being part Griffin? Because holy hell, that's cool. Like the coolest thing I’ve ever heard. My mate, the half-Griffin.”
I let out a rough laugh. “It’s more like fifteen percent. But I guess it's pretty cool.”
“When you told us last night that you were a smidge Griffin, I did a bit of research. Did you know that they were revered for their incredible strength, bravery and protective instincts? That's why they’re on all those fussy nobility crests.”
“I’m only fifteen percent of all that. I’m fifty percent power-hungry sociopath.”
Beckett winced. “Man, now I wish we’d never described the old Alpha General to you.” He lay down next to me, pulling the blankets up over him too so he could spoon his body in next to mine. “You might be half-Manix, which I’m so happy about because it means you can be mine in every way possible. But you aren’t just the same DNA as Alpha General Huxley—who was a psycho, I’ll grant you that. You also share that DNA with Gatlin, who is arguably one of the best Manix I know. Maybe he has a bit of Griffin in him too, because he’s always stood up for those who are weaker than him. Both Ellar and Seven, his Betas, were considered rejects by proper Manix society. And he tore down the world for Naja, his Omega. He’s a good person, and so are you. Screw what your DNA test says.”
There was another knock on my door, and Darius poked his head in. His eyes softened when he saw me. I could see him physically struggling not to bound across the room and wrap me in his arms. Or maybe I felt it, through the half-bond we now shared.
“How are you feeling?”
I shrugged. “Better, I guess? I’ve come to terms with it, anyway.”
He gave me that smile that did crazy things to my heart. “Well, that’s good, because Gatlin Huxley and his Pack are downstairs.”
I froze. I looked at Beckett, who was frowning at Darius. Then he looked back at me. “You don’t have to go down. They can come back. It’s not like they live on another continent—they’re only twenty minutes down the road.”
I sucked in a deep breath, steeling my spine. “No, let’s go down now. Better to get it over with, right?”
Beckett kissed my lips. “Such a brave little Kitten.”
They left me alone to get changed and brush out my hair. I put on a white sundress that made me feel pretty and feminine, but left my feet bare. Stepping out of my doorway, I pushed my shoulders back and lifted my chin. I’d met Gatlin before. He wasn’t any more scary now than he was then.
I strode down the stairs, toward the hubbub of voices. The living room was teeming with adults and children. Darius was holding a squirming baby, while its siblings were power-crawling around the floor. A little girl, who can’t have been much more than a toddler herself, was crawling around after them while a pouty-looking Beta watched on with eagle eyes. The big blond Alpha—Finlo was his name, I remembered—was talking to Cooper, and when they were standing side by side, I could tell they were related.
Corvin broke away from the group, bounding up the stairs to me. “Is this alright? They decided that it would be better if this seemed more like a festive thing than the end of the world. Darius had already wanted to talk to Raiden about the whole pregnancy thing. In the end, it was just easier for them all to come, and this way you can be introduced to the rest of the Pack too. Rip it off like a bandaid. But say the word and I’ll send them all but Gatlin home.”
The tone of the room changed, even though everyone kept speaking. They’d heard Corvin’s words, and no one protested. They’d leave if I wanted them too, and for some strange reason, that was enough.
“No, I’ll be fine.”
Corvin nodded and wrapped a possessive arm around my hip as we finished descending the stairs. I could feel the eyes of my Alphas on me, watching for any sign that I was uncomfortable so they could whisk me away.
Corvin put his lips close to my ear. “Be brave. We’ll do the hard part first.” He nipped my earlobe, making me gasp, and then directed me to stand in front of Gatlin. Beside him, Naja smiled brightly, a baby in her arms.
We stood awkwardly opposite each other for a moment. I looked at the man in front of me, cataloging his features. They didn’t look even remotely similar to my own.
