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“I know. I heard. Fuck, you have no idea what it did to me and Max. It gave us so much strength to keep fighting for both of you. I can’t wait to hear her call me that again and for the rest of our lives.” Zi snuggled closer to me at my words, but I wasn’t done. “Do you think Aunt Celeste would let me grab Molly so she could sleep with us?” I asked, making my eyes big and hopeful, desperate to feel my family complete and in my arms. Zi threw her head back and laughed, and I smiled at seeing her happy again.
“No. If we pick her up now, not a single person in this pack house will sleep and then Evie and Cory won’t let us move in here with you.”
My heart stopped and my jaw dropped at her words. “You want to move in here?”
“Well, I sure as fuck don’t want to go back to that house except to pack up.” She raised an eyebrow and I almost facepalmed myself for my idiotic question. “Besides, I feel safe here with you and the rest of our family. I think Molly will like growing up surrounded by everyone.”
“I love you so fucking much!” I growled, kissing her hard before pulling her into my chest. We stayed cuddled together until we fell asleep, tomorrow suddenly not feeling as daunting as it did before because I had a family I could officially call my own now.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Cory
These guys didn’t know when to shut up. I came down to the dungeons before breakfast to ensure they were still alive and to let them know their father would be joining them soon. They went at it like fucking children, blaming each other and throwing accusations that would sink them further once I got the video of their argument to the council. It turned out that Zi wasn’t the first or last “mess” they had cleaned up for this asshole. She was just the only loose end.
I was glad I had them in separate cells because they looked ready to kill each other. Not that it was necessarily a bad thing, but I needed to make sure the attack yesterday didn’t come back to bite Zi or James in the ass, even with the video.
In truth, I was initially a bit hurt when Evie mentioned they had cameras set up in their new home that could be remotely turned on. Dad and I worked hard to motivate everyone to make this one of the safest packs in the country. There was hardly any internal crime. We made sure anyone who ended up in a tough spot in life had the resources to push themselves out of their situation safely and without resorting to crime. When she explained that the cameras were like a security blanket for Zi, I understood a bit more, and I had to admit that it was a good thing they did because now she would be free of his shadow forever.
I left the bickering brothers and walked up to meet Evie in the private dining room. Mom was cooking a farewell breakfast for Bells, who was leaving before the rest of the council arrived. Zi and James joined me as I walked past the elevator, and I was relieved to see them in much better condition than yesterday. They had both been in shock and I hadn’t a clue how to help them. Thankfully, Mom and Evie stepped up and helped them find their way back to normal. Or more than normal. I wasn’t sure what to expect from James, but him looking like he was jumping for joy after all the shit that went down yesterday wasn’t it. Zi was smiling almost as widely, her face a bit crimson.
I was still trying to figure out what was happening when Evie collided with Zi’s back, wrapping her friend in a giant bear hug that I didn’t women were capable of giving each other.
“I’m so happy for you!” she whisper-screamed to Zi. I looked over at James, who cleared his throat but couldn’t wipe the grin that was on his face. My eyes wandered to his shoulder, and I felt my smile match his when I spotted the fresh mark.
“Congrats, buddy.” I clapped him on the back as we continued walking to the dining room behind the two women, who were still whispering conspiratorially.
Molly ran to Zi when we walked into the dining room, squeezed her tight around the waist, then ran straight into James’ arms. It was nice to see the bond these two had forged with each other in such a short time, and it wasn’t surprising when Molly gave James a kiss on the cheek and stated in a tiny villainy voice, “Daddy, I’m hungry. I want to devour the unborn!”
The dining room quieted as they either marveled at James being called ‘Daddy’ or in concern for the words coming out of the four-year-old. I stifled a laugh when Zi arched a confused eyebrow at James.
“Eggs, she wants eggs,” James clarified. It took people a few minutes to get the joke, but soon enough, everyone was chuckling while James grumbled the story to Zi of how Molly came to know that eggs were essentially unborn chickens. He did leave out the part where she’d been hyped up on sugar and that she’d then refused to eat said eggs because her tummy hurt from eating so much junk.
We sat down to eat. The entire family was here, and even Areli came out to see Bells off. Uncle Helios brought some of his famous peanut butter and jelly waffles that Bells loved. We were in good spirits, if a little sad to see Bells leaving.
She straightened her hair out this morning, her face was guarded, and I could see the conflict in her eyes. I wanted to hug her and beg her to stay, but I knew that would just make it worse. So I sat next to her instead and wrapped an arm around her to let her know she could lean on me for anything. When breakfast was done, we were sitting around grabbing pieces of leftovers while the conversations flowed, until Bells cleared her throat.
“I have something to tell you.” The entire dining room quieted down, and Bells grabbed my hand from under the table before taking a deep breath and smiling lightly. “I’m pregnant. I found out a few days ago.”
I didn’t think she could have said anything else to surprise me more. I was initially happy, and the first one to wrap her in a hug, but as I watched her engulfed by our family, I remembered the conversation we had just a few months ago, and began to worry. Was this what she wanted, or was she pressured? Is this why there seemed to be a cloud hanging over her head as she prepared to return home?
I didn’t have a chance to talk to her because the celebration lasted until it was time for her to leave, and the council showed up early, so I gave her another big hug before she climbed into the car.
“We’ll talk this evening?” I whispered in her ear.
“Every night until one of us dies of old age,” she whispered back, hugging me tighter.
“I love you, Bells,” I felt the need to tell her as she pulled back.
“Not as much as I love you, big brother.” The tremble in her lips broke my heart, and once again made me wonder the reasons the Moon Goddess might have for sending my twin away. It didn’t make sense to me.
Pushing away from the car, I watched my sister leaving the pack house, and it hurt just as much as it did that day almost seven years ago. I felt Evie slip her hand through mine, prompting my gaze to turn to her. I could see my pain and worry reflected in her eyes, and she gave my hand a squeeze of support.
“Well, now that the fun is over, let’s go make some assholes pay,” Jo said from behind us.
I looked back up the pack house and nodded. I was helpless to help my sister until she opened up to me, but I could help my best friend and his mate. I instructed James to take Zi and Evie into the conference room where the rest of the council members were waiting. At the same time, Dad, Uncle Helios, Uncle Seb, and Aunt Kassie accompanied me to the dungeons so we could ensure the three alphas didn’t try to escape while being transported to their hearing. I laughed when Anthony tried to do just that and attempted to get past Aunt Kassie in the foyer, only to end up on his ass with her claws at his throat and her fangs down, hissing down at him. These guys were not the brightest crayons in the box.
We walked them inside, posted a couple of bear shifters from Uncle Helios’ pack outside the doors, and presented our evidence. Everyone in the room visibly flinched when we saw Molly get back kicked by Anthony as she tried to defend the man who was now her daddy. Thankfully, both in the video of the attack and the video of their time in the dungeon, these bastards said enough to sink the Titanic. I saw the fight leave both young alphas while their father could only glare at his sons as he listened to them arguing about all the illegal shit he’d helped them clean up over the years.
