Chapter 24 #3
“But of course,” Zero drawls, “I happen to be bloody brilliant. With my connections through the Idols pack and social media as a celebrity to spread the word about this place, I have managed to refill those bookings with liberal packs. There are more than you’d think, a growing number every day.
Plus, supporting this hotel under its new management is an act of defiance and legal resistance.
It’s a way of supporting Betas’ worker rights and Omega civil rights.
In fact, it’s all booked up for the next six months. ”
Piper snorts. “And you did that all by yourself from the bed, while stuffing your face with pizza and beer?”
Zero smirks. “Piper may have also helped.”
“You’re both incredible.” I twist to Zero kissing him, before dragging Piper to cuddle next to me and kissing him too. “Hear that Zoe? Our hotel is going to be a success!”
Zoe excitedly claps her hands.
Icarus walks forward, crouching down in front of Zoe.
He passes the present nervously between his hands. “This is from your dada.” Then he turns to point at Lionzio. “And your new dada.”
Zoe glances at Lionzio with curiosity for a moment, but only for a moment, because she makes a grab for the present.
“Omega instincts are already good for gifts then.” Lionzio laughs indulgently like he’s already wrapped around Zoe’s little finger.
For the last week, he has spent as much time with Dad and Zoe as he has working.
He wasn’t joking about how long he has been yearning for a bonded pack or how his asshole of an adopted father has made him think that he would never have one.
Ollie leans over Zoe, looking as excited as she is, but then he’s barely received any gifts in his life either. “Here, little niece, I’ll help.”
Icarus rolls his eyes. “You have a whole pile of presents of your own upstairs under the tree.”
“Are any of them the new paintbrushes that I’ve been hinting I need all year?” Ollie asks, hopefully, while assisting Zoe to rip the present open.
“Maybe.”
“Yes!” Ollie whoops.
When two plushies fall onto Zoe’s lap out of the wrapping paper, she squeals with joy. “Bird.”
She strokes over the soft eagle plushie that Icarus has bought her.
Icarus smiles, gently. “That’s right, bird. He’s called Wings.”
Icarus glances over at Piper.
“Good name,” Piper says. “Wonder who came up with that?”
“A smart Omega,” Icarus replies. “I seem to be surrounded by them.”
Lionzio leans forward. “Do you like the lion, little Omega?”
Zoe picks up the second plushie: the adorable plushie lion that Lionzio bought for Zoe weeks ago with blue eyes and a tuft of black hair.
“Say hello to Roar.” Lionzio appears delighted when Zoe immediately cuddles both plushies, rubbing her cheek against Roar’s head.
She purrs. “Soft.”
“She loves both of them,” I say. “She will likely demand her dads play lots of games with them later.”
Lionzio glances at me cautiously. “Are you sure that it’s okay to be called her dad? I mean, I would love that but…”
“Pip, Zero, and you are going to be in her life, loving and raising her just like Icarus is. As soon as she is old enough to understand, I will tell her about her biological dad. I won’t hide anything from her.
But she will know who has loved her. We’ll have to think of names for that. Dada? Father? Dad? Papa? Pa?”
“How about Daddy for Icarus?” Zero winks.
“Vetoed,” Icarus gives Zero a stern look that does, in fact, scream Daddy energy.
Just a different sort.
Zero grins like he has been vindicated.
“The point is,” I continue, “you have all been painting and decorating her new dinosaur themed nursery in the penthouse. She likely will never know Logan, but we’re one big family. After all, I grew up in a pack like that. I love Papa, seeing him as being as much my father as Dad is.”
When Ellington ducks his head, Hatton purrs to comfort him.
“And Bird is my son too.” Dad clenches his jaw. “He should be here.”
The smile dies on Papa’s lips. “I miss Bird. I need him to be brought home. I need my son.”
Ollie wraps his arms around the small Omega, kind as always.
Icarus stands up to his full height and paces between the couches. “Nothing feels right without him here. I promise, we are doing everything that we can to find him.”
“It’s like he’s just vanished,” I whisper. “The Institute are being deliberately unhelpful. I thought that if I could take over the Frost inheritance, I would have the money to buy Bird back. But it doesn’t seem to matter how wealthy I am, the Institute won’t allow him home.”
I can’t bear to think what could be happening to Bird.
What type of pack he could have been bonded to.
I don’t allow myself to think that the reason we can’t find a record of him is because he’s died.
It would break me, and I have to be strong for my family and pack.
“It’s more complicated than that, Gracie.
” Piper shifts away from me, wiping his hand over his sweating forehead.
He pulls off his sweater. I knew that he was too hot, sitting this close to the fire.
“Bird is a high profile Omega sent to the Institute as a Rej. But he is also suffering from a serious pheromone imbalance. It’s a rare condition.
Our…organization…haven’t been able to find out everything that we want to about the inner workings of the Institute because they’re secretive.
But we’ve long guessed that they remove some Omegas’ names and hide what happens to them after that. ”
“Why?” I demand, trying to mask how terrified I am for Zoe’s sake.
Yet I can feel the echo of it through the bond with Icarus.
“Because they have classified them as Rogues.”
Dad pales, and Papa whimpers.
“Nobody calls Omegas Rogues anymore.” Ellington looks like he’s on the verge of tears.
“The last Rogue Hunt was in the late sixteen hundreds, followed by mass burnings. Even amongst the most Traditional packs, it would be draconian to treat Omegas like that just because…they’re different.
Bird has a pheromone imbalance. He merely needed a doctor.
I t-t-ried to p-persuade Maya. I’m s-s-sorry. ”
Papa scoots across the couch.
Even though tears are chasing down his own cheeks, he wraps his arms around Ellington’s shoulders. “I know you did. We will get our son back.”
Our son.
It is all Ellington needs to hear.
By the way that he immediately purrs and nuzzles Papa, for the first time in his life, I know that to him, it means everything.
“Whatever it takes.” I tilt up my chin. “I am getting my brother back, no matter how much the Institute try to hide him.”
“Plus you have us: an awesome Beta and Omega at your side now, love.” Zero gestures at himself and then Piper. “We’ll bring Bird home.”
“Whatever the risk,” Piper adds, “we’ll take it as our next mission.”
Dad is staring at Piper with a piercing intensity that I don’t understand.
Unexpectedly, he passes Zoe to Papa, then lurches toward Piper, before falling to his knees.
I wince at the crack of his kneecaps on the marble.
Startled, Piper tries to reach for Dad and push him back to his feet, but instead, Dad drags Piper into a hug.
“Do you know how many years I have wanted to hug the Wolf kids?” Dad is shaking.
He smooths his hands over Piper’s curls.
“How many times I have dreamed of saving you? Yet here you are, swaggering into my life to save my family and even talking about risking your life for my son like it’s nothing.
But it’s not, young man. Your life is not nothing.
Don’t you realize that you could be executed? ”
“I sort of do,” Piper replies, stiffly.
“I know.” Dad is weeping. I’m shaken. “Yet you still do this. You’re so brave. Your parents would be incredibly proud of you.”
Piper wriggles out of Dad’s hold.
He looks haunted as he stares at Dad. “Did you know them?”
Fuck, he sounds like he could shatter if Dad says no.
Relief floods through me, when Dad nods. Yet fear too because what is he going to say? What ghosts will he disturb?
“They were Ryan’s childhood friends.” Dad’s eyes are glassy.
“They were as in love, as we were. I lost contact with them for a while, but they were at Ryan’s funeral.
It was a few years later that they offered me a way out.
I didn’t know the details, but it was obvious that they were running some kind of unit to help abused Omegas.
I wouldn’t leave Maya to start with. For the first few years, I insisted that unless they could work out a way for all the kids to be protected and escape with me, and Jelani too, then I wouldn’t escape.
They had just told me secretly a couple of months earlier that I needed to be patient because they were close to working on a way to free all of us, even Ellington if he would go, when Maya announced at dinner that they had been… ”
“Executed.” Piper’s jaw clenches.
“Every day since, I have worried about what happened to the Wolf kids. Your Dad would show me photos of you three, you know? I even begged Maya, the week after the news, whether we could adopt you. She thought that I was being a hysterical, softhearted Omega. She told me that my charity attempt was misguided because she may have adopted the pretty Omegas if they hadn’t been marked as Rejs.
But now, look at you, my son-in-law. I understand if you blame me and don’t want to see me as your dad. ”
Piper furrows his brow. “Why would I? You were their friend, the first that I’ve met.
My parents helped loads of people. I understand them more than I used to because I’m impulsive too and a risk taker, but mostly, I can’t live in this world with the knowledge that I’m ignoring the suffering of other Omegas.
I can’t just…” He gestures around at the luxurious lobby.
“…live in this kind of bubble and not help everyone who needs it.” Then he looks shy in a way that’s rare for him. “I’d love to call you dad.”
“Hey, what about me?” Zero demands. “Can I also call you daddy?”
“Try it and see what happens,” Dad replies, using his warning voice that I remember well from every time that I pushed too far with my rule breaking.
Both Hatton and I immediately duck our heads.
Zero better not try and be a brat around my dad.
Lionzio grins like he’s enjoying the show.
Zero salutes. “Noted, mate.”
Suddenly, Dad looks concerned, grabbing Piper before he can sway to the side.
My alarm spikes at the unfocused look in Piper’s eyes.
Dad immediately lays the back of his hand on Piper’s forehead.
His expression becomes grim. “You’re burning up. Is your heat meant to be today? Why didn’t you tell any of us? I assure you that from now on, your health is going to be a higher priority. I will make sure of it.”
He is in full Dad mode.
“Your heat?” I gasp.
Piper bites his lip, struggling to get out the words. “I’m not due yet. Gracie’s extreme heat must have pulled me into one early.”
“And the gifts just keep coming.” Icarus stands up, flashing his canines. There is a hungry gleam in his eyes. “I have a surprise for you.”