“I think we’ll stay, if that’s cool,” Sam replied, leaning back in his chair. Dax mimicked his position.
“Of course,” Mom said warmly.
Katy stood up, biting her lower lip. “I really want to make sure that we’re okay on the housing project.”
“Then that’s where you should be,” Dad told her firmly. “I’m proud of you, Kit-Kat. You’re becoming the person your mom and I always knew you could be.”
“Thanks,” she whispered, her voice wobbling slightly as she blinked hard and fast.
Dad being proud of you was the fastest thing to bring a kid to their knees.
“I’ll drop you off,” I said, also getting up. I reached over, hugging Dad as gently as I could.
“We’ll stop back in later,” Katy promised, taking my place and hugging Dad, too.
“Be safe,” Mom called as we headed for the door.
We both turned and looked back at her, amused.
She threw her hands up with a snort. “I’m your mother. I’m fully aware you’re both practically adults and on your own, but humor me.”
“We love you, too, Mom,” Katy said with a wink.
“Call me if you need anything,” I added before following her into the hallway. We headed out of the medical center, nodding to the doctors, nurses and staff as we passed.
Katy tossed me my keys when we exited, pointing to where she had actually parked our car and not left it blocking the main entrance.
“He looked good,” she said, hope laced in her tone as she got into the car.
“Yeah.” I started the car and pulled out of the parking space before turning onto Main Street. I pressed my lips together, overly focusing on the familiar task of navigating the streets of Blackwater to avoid talking.
I finally caved, breaking the silence that hung between us when I turned off the side road that led to the development. “The doctors said he’ll need to have surgery.”
“I know,” she replied softly.
I glanced at her in surprise.
“I talked to the doctor when we were bringing in food. He mentioned the nerve damage. He also said Dad would make a full recovery. “A smile ghosted across her face. “Thank God for shifter genetics and healing.”
“He told me to stay on as Alpha.”
“It’s for the best, Remy.”
I wished I was as sure as she was.
When we reached the start of the development, I put the car in park so Katy could get out, but instead, she didn’t move.
“You were born for this, Remy. To lead this pack. Hell, to lead multiple packs. You’ve been doing it for years at GPA,” she pointed out. “Every single heir deferred to you. They looked to you for guidance.”
“And now most of them are dead,” I muttered.
Katy turned in her seat and grabbed my hand. “But you aren’t, Rem. You’re the person who can make Norwood pay for their deaths.”
“Can I?” I asked archly, letting the bitterness and anxiety of the weight on my shoulders press down.
“Yes,” she said fiercely, eyes blazing. “The fact that you’re questioning yourself is proof that you’re a good leader. You think Damien or Linden or any of those other assholes ever stopped to wonder if they were making the wrong choice?”
I didn’t have an answer for that.
But Katy did.
“No, they didn’t,” she went on heatedly, “because they only cared about themselves. Their pack was simply a tool for their own greed. You’re not that guy, big brother. Trust me.”
She leaned back in her seat, letting me go. “I’d beat the shit out of you if you ever became that guy.”
I snorted, the sound melting into a chuckle. “Well, at least I have you around to keep me straight.”
“Not just me,” she added with a cheerful grin. “Rhodes, Dante, Ryder, and even Larkin will help out. And we’re nothing compared to your girlfriend. We’re just pinch hitters until the A Team gets back.”
I frowned. “Did you just make a sports reference?”
Her nose scrunched up. “Yeah. It felt weird. I don’t get why people always assume lesbians are into sports. Fucking stereotypes.”
“Well, you used it the right way, so good job,” I replied with a laugh.
She laughed with me for a minute before slowly sobering up. “You’re doing a great job, Remy. We all trust you.”
“Thanks,” I said, more than a little humbled by her endorsement.
My phone started to ring as she unbuckled her seatbelt. I grabbed it from where I had dropped it into the cupholder when we started driving.
“Who is it?” she asked curiously.
“Unknown number,” I replied. I had fielded a lot of unknown numbers the last few days, most from packs I had never talked to and one from an automated system warning me that my car warranty was about to expire.
I hit the talk button. “Hello?”
There was a moment of nothing, and I almost hung up, before the voice came over the line.
“Remy Holt.” The voice drug my name out, emphasizing each syllable as he spoke.
Immediately, my body tensed and a growl ripped from my throat. “Damien.”
Katy’s eyes wide met mine across the console.
I put a finger to my lips and lowered the phone, pressing the speaker button.
“It’s good to hear your voice, son,” Damien continued.
I bristled. I wasn’t anything like his fucking son, and the condescension in his tone was infuriating. My wolf rippled beneath the surface of my skin, alert and out for blood.
“I heard you survived that mess at the Summit,” he added. “Fortunately my heir and I had already left.”
I couldn’t hold in the snort. “Yeah, I guess it is pretty fortunate to miss an explosion that you planned.”
Katy rolled her eyes, a look of disgust contorting her face.
“I called to see if you would be interested in joining my pack.”
I almost choked on my spit. Staring at the phone in my hand, I wondered if this guy was truly insane.
“As you likely know, I’ve been reaching out to packs, offering them the protection of my own pack in lieu of the deaths of their Alphas and heirs.”
“What you call offering, most call invading,” I snapped.
Damien chuckled. “I am simply availing them to the resources my pack offers.”
“And what about the girls who went missing from the school?” I demanded roughly. “Were you availing them to your resources, too?”
Katy’s breathing hitched beside me. Her nails dug into the leather of the console between us.
“Missing girls?” Damien asked, his voice twisted with feigned confusion. “I know nothing of your school after I removed my pack from it. But I can’t say I’m surprised if girls went missing. Wasn’t your own mate abducted right from under you there?”
My wolf surged forward, and I barely leashed him. Bringing up what happened at GPA on the heels of him sending someone to Russia to help him do the same fucking thing was too much.
“Last I checked, she was taken by someone that your pack let into the school,” I ground out through clenched teeth.
“Cassian? I can hardly be responsible for what those not in my pack do,” he replied flippantly. “But we’re getting off topic, Remy. I’m offering you a peaceful way out of this. Do you think I don’t know what you’re doing? That I don’t have men watching you?”