Chapter 34 Old Bonds
thirty-four
Old Bonds
*MARCELLUS*
From all the awkward moments in my life, this one takes the win.
Silas has claimed the seat next to me, but Mom made sure to pull her chair closer, and just keeps looking at me like she is seeing a ghost. Dad pretends to be all cool, which doesn’t surprise me much, while Eugene keeps casting glances at me without saying anything.
At least Flo and Elliot are here. I thought they would be mad that I left without ever contacting them, but they don’t voice even one word of reproach. With them, it feels like I was never gone. They are both very excited to hear I have a mate.
There is a knock at the door, and by the way Eugene’s eyes light up, I don’t need to ask who is joining us. Olive steps inside the room, looking as beautiful as she used to. To my joy, it does nothing for me to see her, literally, absolutely nothing. She is just a distant memory.
Olive, however, freezes; completely shocked to see me. “I couldn’t believe it when Eugene linked me,” she whispers. “I… I am so glad you are okay. I don’t know what else to say. I am so sorry for being awkward.”
“Finally, someone who mentions it,” Silas mutters. “You are certainly not the only awkward person here.”
“It’s just so much to take in,” Eugene says, casting me another glance. “I am really happy to see you. I… I have been looking everywhere for you from the day you left.”
I rub my temples. “I needed some time away from everything,” I say, not explaining anything further.
“Bro,” Elliot interrupts my train of thought. “This is something you need to hear. Luna Olive; she is the Alpha’s true mate.”
“No way,” I say.
“It’s true,” Eugene says quietly. “I was her second-chance mate. Though,” he pauses. “It’s a bit more complicated than that.”
My mouth drops open at that revelation. For one, I can’t believe how the goddess worked the three of us; for another, I am curious what Eugene hinted at with his last words. What turned out to be ‘complicated’?
“I don’t know much about your goddess,” Silas voices what I was thinking. “But she really fucked you three over.”
“I don’t know,” I muse. “Without her, I wouldn’t have left the pack. I want to believe my fate was always to build up Sunset Hills and meet you.”
“You would have been a great alpha here,” Mom argues.
“I am not sure. I think this was always more Eugene’s task,” I say. “I enjoy my work at Sunset Hills much more than anything else.”
“It’s clearly your calling,” Silas says, backing me up.
His icy smile is back on his face again when he looks at the others.
I admire him so much for having this poker face.
Sometimes I forget who he is, because to me, he is my mate and my best friend, but to everyone else, he is an ancient vampire lord who is cunning and smart.
“Marc has saved so many wolves and vampires, and given them a peaceful home.”
“So, it’s you who built up that pack,” Dad says all of a sudden.
There is a thoughtful, yet slightly sad expression on his face.
“I heard about it and wondered who the leader was. Unbelievable that the truth was so close to me. Sometimes I wanted to ask one of our fellow allies, but forgot every time.” He shakes his head. “It’s my fault,” he suddenly says.
“No, it was mine,” Eugene says shortly. “It’s been all my fault.”
“No, mine,” Olive argues.
Silas crosses his legs elegantly before driving his long fingers through his hair and pulling it back to a ponytail.
“Actually, you were all pretty terrible,” he says.
Then he clasps his mouth slowly, in a gesture that makes it obvious he doesn’t mean it.
“Did I just say that out loud? I apologize. Where are my manners?” he asks, once more in a tone that makes it all too evident that he very much meant what he just said.
Elliot looks like he’s having a hard time not to grin, while Flo focuses on something on her phone, her lips tugging slightly.
I never knew you could be so icy, I link him.
In my defense, they are getting on my nerves.
I hold back a snort. “Honestly, it’s not like I was all innocent in-“
“Oh, please,” Silas interrupts me. “Let’s not go there again. No people-pleasure mentality! The only person in this room you are allowed to please is me.”
“Okay, okay, I got you, old patterns,” I grin. “How about we proceed to work?”
“I agree,” Eugene hurries to say. He looks slightly flustered, but other than that, keeps his cool. He is much more serious than he was a couple of years ago, and despite the fallout we had, it makes me relieved to see him like that.
He and I are twins after all, and resemble each other in a lot of areas.
We both seem to have the ability to throw ourselves into work and forget everything else around us.
Momentarily, I am able to shove the awkwardness and the craziness of the situation aside, not thinking about how I just stepped onto the pack grounds of my former home and met my family, after not even contacting them once.
I had no time to plan this, but maybe it was for the better.
“Actually,” Eugene explains. “We’ve had a change of plans, or rather, the situation has changed.”
“What do you mean?”
“Originally, we saved two male omegas, but we also took in one mother with her daughter. She was with a ranked wolf, but now that he has met his mate, he wants her and the child gone.”
“You are kidding,” I exclaim in disgust.
“I wish I were,” he says. “We’ve also had a young she-wolf join the group. She is the sister of one of the omegas. She was neither abused nor a victim, as she ranked higher.”
“She didn’t want to leave her brother alone,” Flo explains to us. “Very sweet young woman, barely legal. Her parents disowned her after getting to know that she was in contact with her little brother. She is adamant she’s staying with him, which will honestly help his recovery tremendously.”
“We weren’t able to contact you in advance,” Eugene says. “Everything happened yesterday. Can you even take in a group of five?”
Silas and I exchange a short look. I don’t need to link him to know what he thinks. “We have room for them,” I assure him. “We are currently expanding, and we have a strong, allied neighboring pack that’s supporting our project.”
“Who is the alpha?” Dad asks.
“Cassian,” I say.
“I have met him once,” Dad says. “When he accompanied his father. Very capable and good-natured man.”
“He is a fantastic leader,” Silas says. “And he has become a good friend of both Marcellus and me.” A smile that could be considered as borderline vile curls his lips suddenly. “Marc also managed to become allies with Alpha Liam from Red Claw and with Alpha Elden from Silverlake packs.”
“The two royal lycan packs?” Dad exclaims.
“They have been a great support,” I explain. “Liam has taken a particular liking to our project.”
Eugene can only look at me as if he can’t really grasp what I just said.
So, I continue. “One of our newer additions to the pack is actually very talented at handiwork and has begun the process of renovating some of our older buildings,” I explain further.
“We also have a lot more funds now to care for this group of victims.”
Eugene looks relieved. “I am so glad. If you didn’t have the capacity, I would have let them stay here, of course. But the boys in particular are shaken, and I don’t think that this here is the right environment to truly support their needs and get them the help they deserve.”
“I am going to contact the therapist that Lune Marius recommended to us,” Silas tells me.
“Do that.”
Are you okay on your own?
I am, I reassure him. I feel so much more in control now.
Silas gets up, gazing at my parents with his signature smile, from the North Pole. “Would it be possible for you to show me the way around the pack, and I could maybe have a talk with the infirmary?”
For a moment, he has a staredown with my father, before Dad gets up with a little sigh. “Of course. Let’s go, Lord Silas.”
“I can help, too,” Elliot offers.
Mom looks torn, grabbing my hand. “Please don’t leave without a word again,” she says. “I wish you would stay. I know you can’t, but I just wish…” She swallows thickly. “I don’t want to lose one of my children again.”
“I am sorry for worrying you for so many years, Mom,” I say quietly.
Tears fill her eyes. “I don’t care as long as you won’t disappear again.”
“I had to leave or it would have destroyed me, but I never wanted to hurt you.” I scribble something down on a sheet of paper. “Here is my number. You can always call me, whenever you want.”
She clasps it into her hand.
“And I won’t leave without a word,” I promise. “You know my pack now.”
“Right,” she says. “Right! If you just disappear, I can hunt you down.” She turns to Dad. “Right?”
“Absolutely,” he pauses. “Please don’t just leave,” he says. To my surprise, I can see vulnerability in his eyes. I have never seen him look at me like that. “Just, please.”
“I won’t just leave,” I promise.
My parents leave the room, while Eugene turns to Flo. “Florence, would you be so kind as to show Ms. Sheila the way to the victims, and maybe tell her any more details she needs to know?”
“I will come with you,” Olive says promptly before leaving the room.
From outside, I can hear Silas’s voice, dripping with sarcasm. “You are coming, too? Oh, what a lovely surprise.”
Before I realize what’s happened, everyone has left the office, leaving Eugene and me behind. It’s eerily quiet around us. Eugene keeps running his hands over his legs like always when he is nervous, his eyes zooming in on me occasionally before he looks somewhere else.
“Do you have something to drink?” I ask.
He jumps up instantly. “Yes,” he exclaims, looking tremendously relieved to have something to do. He pours us both a glass of wine.
“You turned into a wine drinker?” I ask.
“Nah,” he shakes his head. “But Mom and Olive prefer it, and I wanted to accommodate them.”