19. Kane
Telling my father he’d have to challenge me for the alpha position isn’t anything I would have ever thought I’d say in my lifetime. My mother would be as appalled as she would be shocked if she had been here and heard the words from my mouth.
The only evidence of Dad’s surprise was the flash of color in his eyes. He flicked it away so fast that if I hadn’t been staring into his eyes, I would have missed the tinge of orange. He put up a wall to block his emotions from me in the next breath, but not soon enough that his hurt, anger, and pride didn’t take hold of my heart before vanishing in the blink of an eye.
I dashed up the steps and past him after that, going straight to my bedroom and then the closet. I packed two duffle bags of clothes, one for me and the other for Trez. Storm should be ready by now. The sooner we get on the road, the closer we’ll get to Kate. Wherever the fuck she is.
I will find her.
I’m not losing her again.
Stomping out the door and onto the porch, my gaze snaps to Trez. His ass is pressed against the railing with his hands braced on the wood. I throw the duffle at his chest, ignoring where my father is seated to my left in one of the Adirondack chairs.
There are four dark gray chairs on each side of the porch with my father occupying one of them on the side where Trez stands while Jagger is sitting on another to my right.
“You’re coming with,” is all I say as I jog down the steps.
“He isn’t going. Take Jagger and Ashleigh,” Dad says from behind me, his voice final. My feet halt as the back of my neck pricks. Jag follows me, stopping next to my side and twisting to face me while I look forward.
Ash catches my stare from where her back is leaning against my black four-door pickup truck that’s rarely taken off pack land. It’s not the preferred vehicle I usually drive. That’s a restored 1970s Ford. Ashleigh made the right call. This truck will carry more than three people, and once we find Kate, we’ll need more room. I don’t want Storm leaving if I can talk her into coming back with us.
I look over my shoulder, my gaze going to Trez, then cutting to my father, but before I open my mouth to say something I may regret later, Trez beats me to it.
“He can speak for himself.” Trez stops at the top of the steps and, rolling his head, he meets our Dad’s gaze.
Our father.
Fuck me. I don’t know how to feel about Trez being the brother I’ve been looking for, for so long. I haven’t had time to process it after the truth came to light before my eyes.
“And he is going to find his sister,” Trez finishes, his feet dropping down the steps in slow motion as the words tumbled from his mouth.
Jagger growls, and all I can do is shake my head. This is going to become a problem for me as much as it will be for Trez, which is one of the reasons Jag isn’t going with us. Jagger doesn’t like to share what he deems as his. With my brother being his mate and mine being Jag’s flesh and blood, it’s going to turn my beta into an even bigger asshole than I am if Trez continues to call Kate his sister.
That’s a problem for another day.
“Your mother will be here by morning. She needs to see you, Trez,” Dad says, his voice more alpha than it should be, pissing me off more than I already am.
I turn fully around so that I’m facing my brother and my father. Flicking my eyes to Trez, I say, “Get in the truck.”
His tongue clucks, but he doesn’t argue as he bypasses me, never once looking Jagger’s way. I don’t see Storm, so I’m guessing she’s already inside the cab since I can smell her nearby. She has a unique scent. It’s like rain, fresh-cut grass, and an aroma of different flowers invading your senses all at once.
“This is your way of being an Alpha?” Dad questions. “Thinking of yourself and not the pack as a whole? Your mom needs to see her son, Kane. She’s dreamt of this every night for over twenty years. You’re really going to deny her that reunion?”
Fuck you, Dad, I think to myself, but instead of letting the words easily roll off my tongue, I take a breath instead. I should curse him, but I’m not going to. I’m not one to hold back no matter who ticks me off, but this isn’t the time.
“What I do is based on each pack member’s individual need, and right now, Trez needs to get the fuck out of here. Mom will get to see him soon enough, just as Eli and Annalise will see Kate when we find her. But the longer you fight me on everything I do, the farther she gets from here. We’re leaving, and in case it wasn’t clear, Jagger and Ashleigh are in charge while I’m gone.”
“I’m coming too,” Jagger seethes, his voice a low rumble. “She’s my sister and he…” Jag breathes. “He’s mine.”
Turning to face Jagger, I snatch the back of his neck and pull him toward me until his forehead touches mine. Wolves are touchy-feely. Shifters are no different. We need contact. I’ve always seen Jagger as much my brother as I’ve thought Trey to be.
“If you don’t curb this shit, you’re going to fuck up like I did,” I say to him, breathing my words into his mouth as a whisper so that only he hears them. “I know he is yours like she is mine. Kate, being mine, trumps her being your sister and your parents’ lost daughter. But Trez isn’t Trey, and Kate isn’t Anna. Not in the way we remember and have always thought of them as. You have to let him breathe. Right now, he’s overwhelmed and feeling too much.”
“I know what he’s feeling,” he spits back at me, his voice as controlled as he can manage. It’s at that moment that realization dawns on me. He can feel Trez’s emotions as clear and palatable as I can taste them. Their mate bond was completed, unlike Kate and me. “But what do you want me to do? My restraint is nonexistent. You’re trying to take him away, and it’s pissing my wolf off.”
I know exactly what he’s feeling. He’s a mate before he’s a beta. It’s how I feel too, but I haven’t acknowledged it until now. My pack is supposed to come first, but all my instincts tell me the opposite.
Not wanting anyone, especially my father, to hear the following words, I close my eyes to concentrate, momentarily shutting the rest of the world out, focusing all my senses on Jag.
“They are ours. They’re our first priority. I agree, but the pack is ours too. I need Trez to find Kate. I need you here for the pack. The pack needs you like I need you to be here for them while I’m gone. Without Trez, I don’t know that Kate will come home with me. I won’t force her, and if she doesn’t come…” I trail off, not wanting to solidify what I know to be true. Facts I don’t want anyone other than Jagger to know.
The pack doesn’t know that Jagger and I can speak telepathically at will. I’m fairly sure our parents do after dad figured out that Kate and Trez speak to each other in their heads. But with Jagger and I, it’s always been our secret. We’ve never told a soul, not even Ashleigh.
It’s not like we can hear each other’s thoughts. We have to actively be speaking to each other to even communicate. It’s how I woke up a few hours ago. Jagger was calling out for help inside my head, but as soon as my eyes were open, all I could think about was Kate and that damn spelled mark disguised as a tattoo on her back.
Fuck.
I have to get out of here. I need to find her because who knows what she’s thinking right now.
“You won’t come back either,” he finishes for me. “I’m not an alpha. If you don’t return with her, you know I’ll abandon them to come after you. If she doesn’t come back, neither will Trez. I’m not losing him again. Not when I’ve just found him, and let’s face it. He may be my mate and the bond may exist, but I don’t really have him. Not yet, at least.”
“You’d make a great alpha if I weren’t around.”
“I make an all right stand-in.” We open our eyes and lock onto the other’s stare. “And I’ll do it, but you better bring them both back. Storm too. She’s one of us.”
A deep growl from inside the truck pulls Jagger and me out of our heads. Cutting my eyes to the porch, I find my father watching us. There’s no curiosity in his stare, but I wouldn’t expect there to be. This isn’t uncommon for Jagger and me. We’ve always done this, acted in this manner with each other.
“Maybe you have him more than you think,” I say, locking eyes with Jagger again while the jealousy in Trez’s tone eases a fraction of the ache in my chest. I don’t want to leave my pack. But I need Kate more than the need and will to honor the vow I took when I became alpha.
“We’ll see,” is Jag’s reply.
“I need you here, Jagger.” I raise my voice, tugging my alpha power forward. Looking over, I meet my father’s stare and his snarl once again. “I wouldn’t want our parents staging a coup in our absence.”
Rolling his head, Jagger finally acknowledges our former alpha. “I got this.”
Knowing the pack is dealt with, I walk away and round the pickup to the driver’s side. I climb into the cab and shut the door, my gaze set out the window.
“You have something to say?” I press the brake pedal and push the engine button to start the truck.
“Don’t touch my shit,” Trez replies, his head facing forward as I put the gear in drive and release the brake.
“Everyone in the pack is my shit. Get used to it, little brother.”