Chapter 22
Banner
Ihad very little experience with babies, but even I knew I was incredibly lucky with how amazing Blaze was.
He was just over three weeks old now, and although he was a little more alert, he was still very much on his own routine.
He no longer fell back asleep almost immediately.
He would look around, he’d started smiling, and he made baby noises that I couldn’t get enough of.
But even I knew that I was so lucky that he wasn’t super fussy.
“Baby?”
“In here,” I called out to Dante. We had done what Todd and Briggs had, and our downstairs office was now a baby room. It allowed for me to venture places other than the upstairs bedrooms without having to deal with rushing upstairs to get to Blaze when he started to fuss.
Dante came in moments later while I finished up changing Blaze. He froze in the doorway, then walked over to where we were. “I could have changed him for you.”
I grinned up at my hellhound. He could be quite scary-looking, but he was an absolute marshmallow when it came to me and Blaze.
“There was no need though. I was in here feeding him his bottle, and he was wet when he was finished,” I said.
Just then, we both heard grunting and the all-too-familiar sounds of Blaze filling his diaper.
“Really?” I asked our son. His face turned red again as he continued to fill his diaper.
I looked up at Dante and shook my head. “Yep, you can change him,” I said.
I held my hand on his stomach while taking a step back.
Dante moved closer, and then I went to retrieve the bottle before going to the kitchen.
“Oh, did you need something? Or were you just wondering where I was?”
“Both. I’ll be right out,” Dante said. I hesitated, but he waved me off while our son finished filling his diaper.
Dante and Blaze wouldn’t be far, and I knew Dante was only waiting for Blaze to finish filling his diaper before he used magic to change it.
I took the bottle to the kitchen and placed it in the sink.
I saw the cookies on the counter and grinned.
My mate was the absolute best. I needed to add the ingredients to the list so I could make him his coffee cinnamon rolls.
Dante arrived with Blaze on one shoulder and his phone in his other hand. He was scowling, and I assumed that meant it was work related.
“Baby, I went into the office because I wanted you to read this message I just received.” Dante handed me his phone, and I took it, worried about what I was about to read.
Alpha Bernard: I realize you are still on leave after the arrival of your new baby with your mate. It is Banner that I am reaching out to you about. Could you please contact me at your earliest convenience? It’s quite important, and by earliest, I do mean at some point today.
I looked at my mate, worried. “Why would the created bear want to talk to you about me? I’ve done nothing wrong.”
Dante shrugged. “That was why I was looking for you. I wanted you to be with me when I contacted him.”
I nodded. “I’ll take the baby,” I said as I reached for Blaze. I needed to cuddle him because my mind was racing, trying to figure out what I had done. Why would the created bear want to discuss me? I was a nobody in comparison.
“Are you all right with me calling or messaging him?”
I nodded. “I mean, he’s one of the created ones, right? And you sort of work for all of them?”
“In a way. We all obviously belong to the created one that we come from, but there is no created hellhound. Well, there probably is, but if you think about the first hellhound to ever have children, that would be Warwick.”
Dante shook his head, and I smiled. I placed my hand on his arm, stopping him from spiraling during his explanation.
“I understand. You should call him and see what he needs. I can’t fathom what he needs to talk to you about regarding me.
I’ve been very well-behaved since I’ve been here.
I go to my therapy appointments, I got a job, I—” Dante stopped me with a hand on my arm this time.
“Baby, I’m just going to call him, all right? We’ll see what it is that he needs. It might be something as simple as congratulating us. You belong to his den, so that’s probably it.”
I nodded. It couldn’t be anything else. I went to the back room and sat on the couch, Dante not far behind me. He had his phone up to his ear, and although I couldn’t hear anything on the other end of the conversation, I could hear that Alpha Bernard had answered the phone and was talking.
“Yes, Alpha.” Dante looked at me. “Banner and I are at home, yes.” Dante was quiet, and it was obvious he was listening. “No, that wouldn’t be an issue.” Dante nodded. “Yes, we will see you then.”
Dante ended the call, and I gave my mate a wide-eyed look. “What do you mean, see you then.”
“Alpha Bernard has some things he needs to discuss with us. Specifically, you. He and Master Edison will be stopping by here in just a bit.”
I blinked at Dante. “You know nothing about what they want to talk about?”
Dante shook his head. “I’m sorry, baby. He didn’t say. Just that it was important and it was something he felt should be discussed in person.”
I started trying to think about any and everything I could that would be cause for the created bear to come and talk to me.
I truly was small potatoes when it came to shifters.
My den wasn’t overly large. We were from a sleepy little town in Colorado, and that was pretty much it. The last time I’d talked—
There was a knock on the door, and Dante stood to go answer. Already? How…yeah. Master Edison. But wait. He was the created warlock. Then I remembered that he’d been “given” the hellhounds by the goddess. That meant that both of our created ones were here to talk to us.
I stood slowly, then looked down at Blaze, who squirmed a little on my shoulder.
I rubbed up and down his back and kissed his hair, trying to calm myself.
I closed my eyes, taking in a deep breath of our son, and it helped some, but there was still the overwhelming sense of dread that I couldn’t escape.
Dante returned with Master Edison, whom I recognized immediately, and Alpha Bernard.
I’d seen the created grizzly several times around Council Square.
He always seemed as if he was thinking entirely too hard about something.
I had to imagine it was stressful to be in the position that they all were.
Even before the council had been formed, they all held great responsibilities.
Master Edison came directly to me, and when he placed his hand on my shoulder and peeked at Blaze, I moved our son enough to where the created warlock could see him.
“He’s precious,” Master Edison said. “Wallace would say he’s a wee bairn, but a strong lad.”
I smiled at that. “Thank you, Master Edison. He’s such an amazing baby. He’s just the sweetest, and he’s given us no problems.”
“That is always wonderful to hear.” Master Edison ran his hand up and down my arm, and then Dante was there, wrapping his around my shoulders.
“What’s wrong?” I asked. I could tell that the atmosphere was heavy, and I wanted to get whatever they were going to talk about over with.
“Can we sit and discuss this?” Alpha Bernard asked.
“Of course. Please sit,” Dante said. He gestured to the sectional, and Alpha Bernard came over to peek at Blaze as Master Edison had while the warlock master stood by the other end of the couch.
I did the same as I had for Master Edison and repositioned Blaze so Alpha Bernard could get a good look at him.
“He looks very much like you,” Alpha Bernard said.
I smiled up at the created grizzly. “Thank you. I think the hair is going to be more Dante’s with as thick as it already is, but he’s still young, and I might be wrong.”
“They grow a lot in the first year,” Alpha Bernard said. “He’s a sweet baby. Congratulations,” he added before he went and stood next to Master Edison.
I realized they were all waiting for me, so I sat since I was already standing in front of the couch.
Dante sat to my right, placing himself between me and the others.
I didn’t know if he’d done that on purpose or if it was just where he decided to sit, but it was sweet.
Not that I needed to be protected from either of our guests.
“I’m not one to dance around conversations,” Alpha Bernard said. “So I’ll get right to it. The council was contacted by Alpha Carl.”
Immediately, that caught my attention. “My birth den’s alpha?” I asked. There were most likely more than one Alpha Carl in the world, but why would any other than the one from my birth den be contacting the council and then the created bear wanting to talk to me?
“Yes.”
I nodded. “They’re not trying to make me return, are they?” I looked over at Dante. “They can’t do that, right?”
Dante wrapped his arm around me and pulled me close. “No, they can’t. You are my mate. You belong here.”
“Banner,” Master Edison said, his voice calm and quiet. “When was the last time you talked to your parents?”
Dread filled me. “Umm…it’s been a while.
Over a year? I’ve been here just under two years now.
I talked to them about six months after I was rescued.
” I took a deep breath, trying not to get upset about that conversation.
“They just didn’t seem to care that I’d been kidnapped.
They told me to call them again when I was ready to come home and go back to college.
” I shrugged. “I haven’t talked to them since. ”
“Around November, then, you’d say?” Master Edison asked.
“Yeah, I guess. Sometime around then. It was before the winter solstice festival. I do remember that.” I nodded. “Not this last one. The year before.”
Alpha Bernard and Master Edison both nodded. “Banner,” Alpha Bernard said. “It is safe to assume that you are unaware that your parents had another child, then.”