Clearly Nikolai hadn’t told her he had a son when they bonded. Then again, I wasn’t sure how much time they had spent having conversations since they knew each other for hours before Mom broke their bond.
I snuck a look at Nikolai. His expression had turned glacial when he heard Mom’s voice.
“Oh,” she murmured. “I didn’t … I didn’t know Nik had any other children.”
“You didn’t give me much time to tell you about my family,” Nikolai replied coldly, glaring at the phone.
Mom seemed to hesitate before finding her voice. “Hi, Nik.”
“Adalynne,” he answered brusquely. “What do you know about Norwood?”
Mom sighed deeply. “We know that they’re responsible for the bombing at the Summit. Without Alphas leading most of the packs, they’re going in and taking them over. They’re spread across most of the east coast now.”
Nikolai and Dimitri exchanged a glance that sent shivers down my spine.
“How’s Remy?” I asked her.
“He’s worried as hell about you. It wouldn’t surprise me if he was on the first plane out tonight to bring you home. I might come with him just to see you with my own eyes.”
“You won’t make it,” Nikolai informed her, his tone clipped. “A storm came in just after Dimitri and Skye made it here. It will take days before we can get an aircraft in or out of the region.”
Mom gasped audibly. “How long is days? I want my daughter home, Nik.”
He stepped forward, eyes narrowed. “Our daughter is safer here than she is there with you and your brewing pack wars. Although, I heard you’re no stranger to pack warfare. Started one yourself when you were her age.”
I scowled at him on her behalf.
“How dare you,” Mom hissed. “You don’t know a damn thing about what happened back then.”
“And who’s fault is that?” he roared.
The sudden flash of his temper made me jump. His voice echoed off the walls.
“You stole my heir!”
“I’m not your heir,” I retorted, pulling the phone to my chest like I could somehow shield Mom from him. “And I’m going back as soon as the weather clears.”
“You’re safer here,” he insisted. “I can protect you.”
“I can protect myself,” I shot back, getting to my feet. “I’m going home, and if you want me to ever come back here or have a relationship of any kind with me, you’ll accept that. My family and my pack are in Washington.”
“Brave words, little wolf.” His gray eyes glittered at the implied challenge to his authority.
I lifted my chin as Dimitri stepped between us, his hands up. He looked warily back and forth at us.
“Can we table this conversation until tomorrow? No one in this room has slept and we’re all on edge.” He looked at his father. “Let’s let Skye talk to Remy, and then we can figure this out.”
Nikolai glared at Dimitri for several beats. “Fine.” His gaze cut to me. “Finish your talk. I’ll be back in a bit to take you to our home.”
I ignored the ‘our home’ comment as he and then Dimitri left the room.
“Is he gone?” Mom asked a second later.
I sank back onto the couch. “Yeah.” I rubbed my temples. “Mom … why didn’t you tell me?”
“It’s a really long story, baby,” she answered woodenly. “What happened between Nikolai and I, and then the aftermath … Those are some of the best and worst memories of my life. I know I owe you answers, and you’ll get them.”
“I feel like you’re always saying that,” I admitted, still sort of bitter over all her secrets.
“Well,” she said quietly, “I can stay here and tell you about it, or I can hand this phone to Remy, who is currently coming this way.”
“He’s there?” It was like an emotional tsunami was cresting over my head. I wasn’t sure if I was happy or scared, relieved or terrified.
“Yeah.”
I heard the door open.
“Addie!”
I pulled my knees to my chest, shoving down a sob as I heard his voice.
“Is it Dad? Did something happen?”
“No,” Mom answered. “It’s Skye. She’s on the phone.”
He breathed sharply, and then that voice I loved filled the air.
“Skye?”
10
Remy
Seeing Addie as we headed around the front of the house was enough to send a bolt of fear spiking through me. I broke into a run as she started to get out of her car, breaking away from my friends as they were mid-conversation.
“Addie!” I yelled, hearing Katy and the others start running behind me.
I slid to a stop, my shoes catching on the gravel in front of her. My heart slammed painfully against my ribs as my brain spiraled to come up with a reason for why she was here and not with Mom. “Is it Dad? Did something happen?”
Guilt and fear churned in my gut. If something had happened to him while I was dealing with Lodge …
“No,” Addie replied, tears in her eyes as she thrust her phone at me. A tremulous smile curved her lips. “It’s Skye. She’s on the phone.”
The world stopped turning so abruptly that I wondered if I would fall off. Everything went still for one moment as time suspended.
I grabbed the phone, nearly ripping it from Addie’s fingers as I pressed it to my ear. “Skye?”
The only sound I heard was a tiny, hiccuping sob that absolutely gutted me. But I knew that sound all too well.
“Babe, hey.” I swallowed hard, even if I could have broken down and started crying with her. “Talk to me.”
“Sorry.” She whispered the apology as I turned away from Addie and my friends.
That didn’t matter. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah,” she answered, her voice stronger. I could picture her straightening her shoulders and pulling herself together. She was a master at smothering her emotions. “I’m fine. I’m just … God, I tried calling you and you didn’t answer, and I thought the worst.”
Fucking hell.
I winced, kicking myself. “I left my phone in the car.”
Which was probably the stupidest thing I could have done when I had no idea where she was. But what were the odds she would call in the fourteen minutes I had been away from my phone? I had been heading back to the car now to get it.
“Mom told me about the challenge and your dad. I’m so sorry, Rem.” She sniffled again. “Is Gabe okay? Are you okay?”
“Dad’s hanging in there, and I’m fine. Where are you? I’ll leave now to come get you.” The plane would be taking off to head back to Brooks Ridge any minute, but maybe I could stop it. Hell, I would charter a private plane if I had to.
A strangled sound escaped her. “You can’t.”
“The hell I can’t,” I replied, practically growling the words as my hand tightened around the phone.
“Remy,” she sighed, sounding defeated, “I’m not anywhere near you right now.”