12. Vera
12
Vera
I’m sitting in the front of the van, Luca’s t-shirt bunched up in my arms, his blanket around my shoulders, as Caleb is driving. Miles is in the back with the kids, who all seem to have fallen asleep.
I really didn’t want to be apart from Luca, but when Jorge explained the situation, it did seem like the best idea to travel in separate cars for now. To keep things simple and to not put more stress on everyone than is strictly needed.
When Luca realised we wouldn’t be going home in the same car, he immediately offered me his t-shirt and the blanket he’d been using. He looked so sad that he couldn’t be near me without it triggering some trauma response, when he so clearly wants to. But I also didn’t want to push him.
We’ve got the rest of our lives to figure everything out, we don’t need to push anything on the first night.
Especially not when he looks so frail, when his grip on his emotions seems to be under constant strain.
Caleb reaches out and puts his hand on my leg. “I think it’s time we have a chat with Erika about what to do now we’ve got all these kids. She might also have some tips on what we can do to make things easier for Luca.”
I nod. Yes. Erika deals with these kinds of things all the time. She’ll know what to do.
Because I feel so lost.
Tears start dripping down my cheeks and I hide my face in Luca’s t-shirt.
He looked terrified when he saw me. Not just when he noticed my pheromones, but before that too.
I scare him.
He’s my mate.
And he’s scared of me.
And I have no idea how to solve that. At least, not right now.
My phone buzzes and I blink away my tears so I can read the screen.
It’s a message from Jorge, it’s in our pack group chat, which means we can all read it, Mathew and Riley too. ‘We’ve got a problem and we need to move quickly. The Hearts keep Luca in line by threatening his family. If they find out he’s gone, they’ll go after them. We have to get to his family first.’
My heart beats in my throat as I read the message again. They’re threatening Luca’s family.
Fucking hell…
‘Where do they live? We’ll go there right away.’ It’s from Riley, which makes me smile.
“Something interesting?” Caleb doesn’t take his eyes off the road, but I feel his attention shift to me.
“The Hearts threaten Luca’s family. That’s how they kept him in line. If they realise he’s gone…”
“They’ll go after them. Yeah. Do they live nearby?”
I let out a soft laugh. “Riley asked the same.”
I glance down at the phone again, waiting for the next message from Jorge. My breath catches in my throat when I read his reply. “Only an hour. They live an hour away.”
Panic grips my heart. If they live that close, they’re in a lot of danger!
Caleb lets out a snarl, glancing at the back as he fights to keep his pheromones under control.
If they only live an hour away… We need to move really quickly.
We don’t even know if the Hearts have someone stationed near Luca’s family’s house who could act within seconds, or if they have to drive from the city to get to them…
“Where are Mathew and Riley?” Caleb’s voice is low and I relay the message to the chat.
Riley sends us the tracking for her phone, which shows they’re not that far away from us.
“They’re nearby, only minutes away. It shouldn’t be complicated.”
Caleb touches his earpiece, immediately creating a call that includes the pack and Timothy and Derrick. “We’ll meet up at the next rest area. Vera, Mathew, Luca and Jorge will keep going to the house. Riley and I will go over to Luca’s family’s place with Derrick and some others. We can’t wait until we’re back home. We need to move now .”
“No!” Mathew’s voice is hard. “I’m coming with you. If you’re taking my people with you, I’m not being left behind.”
“I think it’s more important that you go home. Vera and I can’t go near Luca. Right now, Jorge is the only one who can be near him and Luca needs more of his mates to help him feel safe. He needs you. You’re the only one who understands what he’s been though. What it’s like to live under the control of people like the Hearts. He needs you.”
“Right…” Mathew seems distracted, and worry shoots through me. What’s going on now?
“Mathew?” I want to know why he seems distracted.
“I’ll see you in a moment, when we’re at the meeting point.” After that, the call goes silent.
My heart races.
What’s going on?
There’s something wrong on his side and I want to know if it’s because of what Caleb said about his past, that Riley isn’t well or that it’s about something else.
But I guess we’ll find out soon enough.
Eli, Luca and Jorge are already waiting next to their van when we drive up to the meeting point.
The moment Caleb turns the engine off, I jump out, needing to hug Jorge. He wraps his arms around me tightly. He feels so good and he’s got some of Luca’s pheromones on him now, which makes it even better.
How I wish I could hug Luca right now. He’s standing not too far away, his eyes on us sad, no longer full of fear, but he’s also not coming closer. He gives me a tight smile when he notices my eyes on him and when I wave at him, he waves back.
So, yes, he’s still scared. But also, it’s not because he wants to be.
“The rest should be here soon.” The moment Caleb speaks, three more vans drive up to us, parking behind us.
Mathew is the first one to get out, soon followed by Derrick and Timothy. Their faces are clouded and Mathew keeps glancing back to the van he just got out of.
But even when the three of them are right in front of us, Riley still doesn’t come out of the van.
That’s not good.
“Is Riley okay?” I keep glancing behind them, my heart beating louder every second that passes that she’s still not here.
Mathew shakes his head slowly, his eyes watery, his lips a thin line, like he’s trying not to cry.
Fuck.
What happened?
What happened to Riley?!
My chest tightens painfully.
I race past him, Jorge following me closely. When we reach the van Mathew just came out of, Riley’s pheromones roll out, full of pain and distress.
“Riley!” I jump in, taking the shivering form of my beautiful female Alpha in my arms. “What happened?”
Jorge wraps his arms around us, pulling us close to him. “You’re safe. You’re safe.” He repeats the words like a mantra, like he’s done this before. His soothing pheromones wrap around us, trying to reach Riley, who’s still crying.
Mathew said that they were both fine. He said that the mission didn’t exactly go to plan, but that it all worked out.
So, why is she so upset?
I look to Jorge. This doesn’t seem to be the first time he’s found her like this. Maybe he knows what could have triggered it. But he shakes his head.
No help there.
“The Diamonds…” Riley’s voice is rough against my chest, her trembling arms wrapped around my waist tightly. “They captured me. I was a teen. They threatened to hurt my family.”
What?!
Riley was taken by the Diamonds?
Why didn’t I know this yet?
From Jorge’s surprised pheromones, he didn’t know about this either. This is news to him too and he’s known her for much longer.
“When Erika saved me.” It seems hard for her to speak through the sobs and clattering of her teeth. “We found out. They’d already killed them. Years before.”
Ice runs through my veins at the words.
Not only was Riley once held by the Diamonds, and kept in line by threatening to hurt her family, just like Luca. But they used that tactic even though they knew that her family was long dead…
Fucking hell.
I tighten my arms around Riley, try to send her as many loving pheromones as I can. To have to live through that, to have those memories, it breaks my heart. My sweet Alpha…
Of course, Luca must know this is a possibility, that his family is no longer alive. But nobody wants to find out that their biggest fear is true…
“You two go back to the house.” Jorge’s voice is soft. “I’ll go with Caleb to get Luca’s family.”
“No. I can…” Riley sits up and my heart shatters at how distressed she looks. How she’s trying to pull herself together, but failing.
“You go back to the house with Vera and the others. You can’t show up like this. It would give his family the wrong idea. We want to let them know that he’s well and safe. We don’t want them to think he’s in trouble.” He hugs her and she nods against his chest. “I’ll go with Caleb. I’ll let you know what I find immediately.”
“What about Luca?” I don’t think it’s a good idea if he’s on his own right now.
“Mathew can be with him in the same car. You take Riley with you. Let Miles drive.”
This feels all so overwhelming and strange.
But we’ll figure it all out when we’re home.
We have to.
Because today has brought so many more questions than answers. It has also brought a lot of new sources of information and even a new mate, but it has mainly given us a lot of new questions.
It’s a lot. Too much, really.
And I feel like the most important thing right now is for all of us to go home.
When we’re all together at home, in a place where we can feel safe, we’ll make sense of it all.
And maybe it will be easier for Luca too, once everything has settled down and we’re all clean, fed and rested.
Tonight has brought up a lot of memories and feelings for a lot of people and it breaks my heart to see my mates in so much pain.
And all of it is because of the fucking Suits Syndicate.
Mathew and Luca’s pain from the Hearts.
Riley’s pain from the Diamonds.
We have to destroy them.