I run a palm over my face. My wolf isn’t pleased. He didn’t want to let Clove leave. Fuck, I didn’t want to let her leave. But this is the right way to do this.
Except I hate it.
So it feels wrong.
Because we’re not connected. If I bit her and completed the link, I would be able to talk to her right now. Find out what Alpha Edwin is really saying. Make sure she’s okay. Happy. Healthy. Safe.
Instead, I have to rely on my pack to protect her. Something I normally wouldn’t question, but Alpha Kin has proven not everyone can be trusted.
We’ve been going through surveillance and details for the last few hours, Caius having brought the details on his laptop. We can’t find any indication that Alpha Dirk is involved, which means it may be someone else on the island.
Or Alpha Kin’s father, Alpha Nick.
I passed that tidbit onto my father and he’s handling the interrogation for me since we have other tasks on our agenda today.
“Do you think Clove recognized Alpha Kin’s scent because he’s been around the Nantahala Pack?” Caius asks after looking at the photo of her on my phone. “We thought it was just from the day of her initial heat, but maybe he’s visited Bryson before.”
“It’s possible,” I say, sharing the photo with Volt. He grins in response, then goes back to sharpening his knives.
This is why having a jet is useful. Not only can we work while we travel, we can carry weapons with us.
We’ll be dropping Alpha Pan, Alpha Lance, and Alpha Mackin off in Richmond first. Then we’ll be heading to North Carolina to pay the Nantahala Pack a little visit.
Beta Lock will be with us, as well as a handful of Carnage Wolves that Alpha Duncan quietly sent our way after Caius brought him up to speed via a secure line.
It took some doing, what with Alpha Dirk’s clan overseeing telecommunications on the island.
But Alpha Duncan is the chief security expert for a reason.
Between Caius and Alpha Pan, they found a way to reach out.
And six more trusted wolves were able to join us before the jet took off.
They’re all eager for blood.
We debriefed them about Alpha Kin and our plan to take down Bryson. Their savage grins told me they’re ready.
They’re all helping Volt prepare the weapons, the hunger for blood a lethal kiss in the air.
My phone vibrates as Alpha Ebony sends me another text over the secure line we established.
D is working on setting up surveillance at the Senator’s house.
Your Omega is still fine.
The second message comes through while I’m reading the first, making my lips twitch.
She sends me another photo, this one of Clove yawning with a plate of food on her lap.
“Let me see,” Caius says, noting the grin on my face.
I show him and he smiles, too.
Volt just smirks in response.
More updates and photos continue to arrive as we make the trip to Richmond. Each one helps me relax a little more, especially the last few of Clove sleeping in the corner of the couch. She’s covered in my sheets, not from the den but from the bed we fucked in last night.
It’s not a nest. Not quite. But it’s close.
Volt and Caius both study the photo a little longer than the others, their eyes softening.
“You need to claim her,” Volt says, his voice gruff. “She’s ours, T. We’ll figure out the heir later.”
“I mentioned Clove to my dad earlier when I called him about Alpha Nick,” I admit. “He reminded me that there’s no timeline involved regarding my heir. And that Pack Alphas make the rules more than traditions.”
It wasn’t necessarily his way of blessing the union, just him being wise. A good father. An even better Alpha.
I look at the photo again and the sense of wrongness hits me again. “She should be here,” I admit. “And she would be if we’d bitten her.” I meet Volt’s dark gaze. “It’s my responsibility to make the best decision for our clan. But I’m struggling.”
“So let us help you,” he says. “That’s why we’re here.”
“He’s right.” Caius’s gray irises are highlighted by a rim of gleaming silver. “We understand your burden and need for an heir. But Clove isn’t a normal Carnage Wolf Omega. She’s been raised to process everything differently.”
“Just because she may be able to live with it, doesn’t make it right to produce an heir with another Omega,” I state flatly, irritated by the reminder of what she implied last night.
Caius snorts. “That’s not what I meant, T. I’m saying her heat process is unique. She’s only just met her wolf, it makes sense that there’s a delay. However, in regard to what you just said, is your wolf giving you any reason to doubt her ability to give you an heir? Is he hesitating at all?”