Chapter 19
Vinny
The bandage on my shoulder itched like a son of a bitch, but I kept my hand off it. God knew if I so much as tried to scratch it, Serena would hit me.
And honestly, it wasn’t even getting shot that pissed me off.
Hell, being used for target practice was practically in my job description. I’d been shot before. Stabbed. Blindfolded and tied to a chair in the least fun, non-sexual way imaginable. It all came with leading the Rossis.
What I hadn't expected?
Was for the fucking Stellars to drag my omega into it.
Violet had stepped in front of a loaded gun—for me. And she could’ve been shot dead on my fucking watch.
I wasn’t losing another omega. Not again.
I paced the red carpet in front of my desk, eyes locked on the floor, doing my best to ignore the people in the room with me. I didn’t want to see their faces. Not yet. Not until I figured out how to contain this fire before it turned into a full-blown inferno.
Marco leaned against the bar, arms folded tight across his chest, jacket slipping off one shoulder. Serena sat perched on the edge of my desk, legs swinging like she was waiting for a show to start.
Rocco was somewhere nearby. Fuck Rocco.
He’d told me over a month ago about Logan’s little temper tantrums, and he still hadn’t done a damn thing about it.
“I want the brat dead,” I snapped.
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Serena’s smirk. Through the bond, I felt her amusement, and it just pissed me off more.
“Violet could have fucking died,” I reminded her, voice sharp.
Losing an omega wasn’t a mistake you made twice. Not if you wanted to keep breathing.
And I had already made that mistake once.
I let Tony get too close to Xandra. If I’d been more careful, more protective, more present, she and my son would still be here. But I wasn’t. And they weren’t.
Serena didn’t flinch.
“I know,” she said simply. “I’m just wondering why you haven’t killed Logan yet.”
I stopped pacing and stared at her.
Because she was right.
The moment Rocco called and said Logan was acting out, I should’ve put a bullet in his knee, or his mouth. But I’d assumed this kind of petty shit was beneath me. That Rocco could’ve handled it.
“I wasn’t going to start a war without confirmation,” I growled.
The Rossis and Stellars had been at odds since before I was born. Two families, one city, and not enough fucking space. Usually, we stayed on our sides. That was the agreement.
But now?
Now they’d crossed a line.
I dropped into the leather chair behind my desk. My shoulder pulled tight with the motion, but I welcomed the pain. It kept me grounded. Kept me from flipping the desk and launching Rocco out the nearest window.
Serena turned slightly, watching me with that calm, unreadable face.
“Well,” she said, “you’ve got your confirmation now. What are you going to do with it?”
I drummed my fingers against the wood. The leather groaned beneath my forearm.
“I want every Stellar in the city under surveillance. If one of them so much as sneezes in our direction, I want to know.”
Marco stubbed out his cigarette, jaw tight. “You want just eyes, or do we prep muscle too?”
I hesitated.
Violet’s voice echoed in my skull, her small, trembling please as she begged me not to kill someone.
Did I want to maim Logan? Yes. Did I want to break every finger of every man who took a fucking order from him? Absolutely.
But if my omega didn’t want my hands bloody, then I’d keep them squeaky fucking clean.
“Prep them,” I said. “No action yet. I’m not throwing the first punch, but if they fuck with my pack again, it’ll be the last thing they do.”
Serena raised a brow. “You think they’ll come back?”
“I think Logan hasn’t found his little girlfriend,” I said, “and he’s going to keep lashing out until he does. Doesn’t matter if they’re Rossi or not.”
And if we found her first?
That would be one hell of a fuck you.
My pack was full, but I had cousins. Marco and Rocco’s packs still needed omegas. If this girl was running from Logan, there wasn’t a chance in hell she’d want to go back.
I gestured for Marco to hand me a smoke. He slipped one between my fingers, lit it, and I drew in a deep breath, letting the nicotine calm the storm in my chest.
“Serena,” I said, exhaling. “Remind me, what do we know about the missing omega?”
She shrugged. “Not much. Arranged marriage. Girl from a family who owed them money. But there’s no official name. No records. No marriage certificate.”
Of course there wasn’t.
I leaned back in my chair, letting the smoke trail toward the ceiling. Losing an omega was enough to drive most alphas insane. So, it made sense Logan was turning the city upside down.
But death was quick. It ended. And, something quick and merciless was not what he deserved.
So if he wanted to play games with my pack, death was too good for him.
The best revenge would be taking what he wanted and making sure he never got her back.
“I want every last resource we have on finding the Stellar omega.” I said. “And when we find her? She’s ours.”
After our little meeting, I was pissed, to say the least. Part of me wanted to jack off, another part of me wanted to drink, anything to relieve stress. But, the thing that won out? Going to see my omega.
It was hot today, even for Florida. Eighty five and sunny, despite it being April. I’d assumed Violet would be hiding in her nest, doing whatever she did to occupy her time, but she was no where inside.
Which immediately put me on edge. I didn’t like not knowing exactly where Violet was, which was why I bugged the god damned bunny. If anyone in the house knew, they’d make fun of me for being a creep, but when you’ve lost an omega once, you don’t take chances.
I pulled out my phone and checked the tracker and it pinged to the patio out back.
Huh.
My brow pinched, mostly because I didn’t think she’d go out on her own. Nonetheless, I headed outside. Benji caught me on my way to the door, a tray already loaded with iced tea, fruit, and those ridiculous little cucumber sandwiches Skye pretended not to like but always ate.
“You’re bringing this,” Benji said, handing it off without giving me a choice. “And you’re going to play nice.”
“Why?”
“Because her brother’s out there, and I’d like not to mop blood off the concrete this week.”
“Why the fuck is Reed here?” I snapped.
Sure, he was her brother, but I didn’t like a random alpha sniffing around my pack.
“Because she loves him, and this is her home too, not just yours.” Benji pushed the tray back at me.
I muttered something under my breath, took the snack tray, and allowed Benji to open the door for me.
The sunlight hit like a flash-bang, leaving me completely blind until my eyes adapted.
And, when they did, the first thing I noticed was her.
Violet sat cross-legged on a blanket in the middle of the yard, a pile of wildflowers next to her hip. Her dress clung to her in the heat and her hair was pinned back and out of her face.
Skye sat beside her, his bump resting against his thighs, fingers moving in slow, careful loops as he worked on some kind of finger-knit blanket.
His dark eyeliner was a little smudged, and he looked miserable in the heat.
Which was to be expected, because I couldn’t remember the last time he willingly went outside.
Someone had tucked a bright yellow flower behind his ear, and he didn’t dare move it.
Neither one of them acknowledged me at first, which was just fine. Something in my heart yearned to just watch them for a moment. Unfortunately for me, my omegas weren’t alone.
“Quit looking at my sister,” the unwanted alpha growled.
My head turned toward the grating sound to see Reed perched on a patio chair, sketchbook in his lap, colored pencils and oil pastels to his side.
Reed didn’t even bother to glance up at me. He just kept working on whatever sketch had his attention.
“I’m not looking at your sister,” I said evenly, despite the fact I wanted to hit him. “I’m looking at my omega.”
He snorted out a laugh.
“What?” I snarled, clutching the tray so tightly the cups rattled against the wood.
“Yeah, he’s yours–” Reed nodded toward Skye. “Violet’s not.”
I took a slow breath, trying to keep my temper in check. But I didn’t like the way Reed said her name.
“She’s in my house,” I said carefully. “Eating my food. Sleeping in my bed. Pregnant with my kid. I take care of her. So, yeah. She’s mine.”
Reed’s pencil paused. He looked up then, and for the first time, his eyes really met mine. The expression he gave me was nearly identical to the one Violet made when she was irritated.
“She was my omega first, and I’m not letting another fuck ass alpha take her from me,” he warned.
My face pinched. “Look, I’m glad you love your little–”
“She’s older than me,” Reed interjected. “By like fifteen minutes. You’d know that if you cared about her.”
“You wanna say that again?” I challenged.
Reed glared head-on, the pencil in his fingers creaked, and I wondered how close he was to snapping it. If he did snap it, could I use that as a reason to hit him? Did I even need a reason to hit him?
“She’s not a piece of property,” Reed said calmly, “not yours. Not mine. But if you think for one second I’m gonna let her get marked by some mobbed-up alpha who wants her just because she’s soft and sweet and broken–”
I was in front of him in two strides, tray still in my hands because I was a model of self restraint. “Say another word about her being broken, and I swear—”
“Swear what?” he scoffed. “You hit me, she’s gonna take my side like that–” Reed snapped his fingers. “I already told you, I’m not letting another alpha take my sister away from me just to hurt her.”
There was the slightest hint of pain in his voice, and all the anger in his system left him deflated, and I paused.
I’d already figured Violet’s background was complicated, thanks to all the miscarriages and how she carried herself, but Reed spoke like a man who’d already lost her once, and whatever happened to her happened on his watch.
So, what the hell actually happened?
I didn’t have an answer, but Reed might.
“You stay there,” I ordered. “I’m going to give them lunch, and then you and I need to talk.”
Reed rolled his eyes and went back to sketching, and I carried the tray of goodies to my omegas.
Skye was the first to notice, and immediately, his face lit up.
“Oh thank God,” he groaned.
“Actually, thank Benji,” I smirked as I knelt in front of them and placed the tray on the blanket. “How are you feeling, Little Lamb?”
Violet’s eyes widened and her cheeks flushed as she ducked her head slightly, before signing, Better. Tired.
Her smile was shy, but real, and for the first time since breakfast, I could breathe.
“Good,” I said softly, brushing a strand of hair away from her face. “If you don’t like this, let me know. I’m free for a bit, so if you want something, I’ll go get it.”
Once again Skye groaned.
“Why don’t I get any special treatment?” he asked, doing the best he could to look offended.
Fucking brat.
“I spent the first twenty weeks of your pregnancy buying fast-food french fries at least once a day,” I reminded him.
Usually more. I did my best to be a hard ass, but I loved my omegas, and that made me softer than I should be.
Skye stuck out his tongue. “Yeah, well. That was then. Now I want a foot rub and a slushie–something fruity.”
“You’ll get what Benji put on the tray and be grateful,” I muttered, though I reached out to gently ruffle his dark hair. “I’ll get it later, okay?”
Skye smiled up at me, and I kissed his forehead. He melted into the affection, and for a second, everything felt normal.
We were just a regular pack out enjoying the sunshine, not one on the precipice of a war. And, maybe one day we would be.
I straightened and glanced between the two of them only to see Violet staring up at me with big sad eyes.
“What?” I asked.
She pointed to her forehead.
My chest tightened.
“You want a kiss?” I asked, unsure.
Violet was starting to get clingier with me, but she didn’t really ask for kisses, or anything like that.
She nodded, and I leaned down, ready to give her the same soft forehead kiss I’d given Skye.
But the second I was close enough, her hand shot up and grabbed me by the collar. Before I could react, she pulled me in and nuzzled hard against the side of my neck, right against my scent gland.
That warm, deliberate press of her nose and cheek made my breath hitch.
“Your brother is watching,” I warned.
She didn’t stop.
If anything, she pressed in closer, her breath warm against my skin, hands still fisted in my collar as she covered herself in my scent. My fingers curled into the blanket at her sides, trying to keep it together.
Once she had her fill, she pulled away before planting a kiss directly on my lips.
It wasn’t anything big, just a peck, but it was enough to send me reeling.
I blinked as she pulled away, trying to reset my brain while my lips tingled with the memory of her kiss. She shot me a shy smile as she grabbed a sandwich off the tray.
Clearing my throat, I tried to act normal.
“Right,” I said, trying to sound irritated rather than awestruck. “I’m gonna go smoke. Don’t follow me.”
Violet saluted me and started eating. I turned away quickly before retreating back to Reed.
He looked up when I approached, sketchpad forgotten at his side. The muscle in his jaw ticked, and for a second, neither of us said anything.
I stopped a few feet from Reed, close enough to smell his medicinal scents.
“We’re gonna have a conversation,” I said, voice low, “and you’re gonna tell me what happened to Violet.”
He arched a brow and wiggled his shoulders in defiance, again, a very Violet like move. Part of me expected him to say fuck off or no way in hell, but after a momentary staring contest, he sighed.
“Fine.”