Chapter 7
CHAPTER SEVEN
Seraphina
After we finish eating, we head back to the clubhouse. This seems to be where they do all of their get-togethers and meetings. Everyone sits in what looks like the living room. There are a few new people here, this family keeps multiplying.
“I’m never going to remember everyone,” Archer whispers to me.
“It’s definitely going to take time. But thankfully we have lots of that, are you and Oliver okay with staying here?”
“Of course. We’re not going to leave you. This is home now.”
I hug my brother. I don’t know what I would’ve done if I didn’t have them.
“Oliver and I are going to ask Giacomo if we can prospect for the Cimaruta.”
“I love that. He just introduced me to his two daughters. They’re in the club too, maybe I can ask to join too.”
“I think Apollo’s a prospect. I heard almost everyone in the family is either a patched member or a prospect.”
“Wow. That’s so awesome, Mom and Dad would’ve loved it here. I bet dad would’ve asked to prospect.” I smile.
“Oh he definitely would have.”
“Do you think we’ll be able to find out who did this? I still wish we could bury all of them. I can’t stand the idea that we left them back there.”
“I know, Phee. But you know that Mom and Dad would’ve told us to run. No matter what.”
“I know, but that doesn’t mean it hurts any less.”
Archer hugs me.
“If you’re all ready, we’re here to listen and get a plan together to find out who took you and your family.
I think we’re going to have to go Australia to see if we can find the facility you were in.
The one that was here has been shut down.
We’re in the process of renovating the facility.
We’re making it into a place where shifters can stay when they need to,” Panagiotis explains to us.
I love how everyone here is always finding ways to help other people.
My parents were like that and I really want to help them do more good.
We tell our story again because of all the new people in the room.
We also tell them about where our parents kept our stash.
It’s important because it’s a place we’ve always used and it wasn’t far from the farmhouse that we took the clothes from.
When we shift, our view isn’t the best because of how low we are to the ground.
So we don’t know exactly how far the facility was from the farmhouse.
“I’ll start looking for a building that could have held you all in it. With a loading dock. That makes me think of a warehouse,” Sebastiano says as he opens a laptop and starts typing.
Francesco Bastianini is working on another laptop. And from what everyones told us, between the two of them, they can find anything. I can’t wait to find out who did this so we can go back to Australia and take care of them.
Apollo
When we dealt with the three that took Sakura and her family, we had to let the cleaners take them.
None of us really agreed with that, but that’s how our world works.
Any situation that involves shifters, is ‘cleaned up’ by the cleaners.
Because they hurt my brother, none of us liked that idea.
Our main worry was because they want to rehabilitate them.
And I never believed that they could be.
I always believed that if they were released, we’d have to deal with them again.
“I think that what happened to Seraphina and her family is tied to Samantha and her kids,” Ares says quietly to me.
“I was just thinking that. And I hope that we’re wrong, because we all voiced our concerns about them before.”
“I don’t think we are. Especially because Hanako said that they were released. You know as well as I do that they’re still going to do what their mother wants them to do. And last we knew, there’s a parent company that Samantha answered to. So all they had to do was hook up with them.”
“You think they’d actually do that after they were warned from the cleaners to stay out of trouble?”
“Yes. You didn’t see the look in Matilda’s eyes when she shot me. She didn’t give a fuck about hurting another shifter.” My brother frowns.
I still want to wrap my hands around Matilda’s neck and squeeze until she’s dead.
Watching my brother almost die was one of the worst things I’ve ever gone through.
Now I want it to be Matilda and Paul. That way I can get my revenge for Ares and for Seraphina.
This time, the cleaners won’t have anyone to rehabilitate.
Sebastiano and Francesco call us all over.
“Okay, it looks like it’s the same company that we dealt with here. Though we still haven’t found the name of it or who’s running it, we never stopped looking for them. But they’ve been able to hide it really well and it’s pissing me the fuck off,” Sebastiano grumbles.
“Yeah, I’ve never had this much trouble finding something.
Especially a company this big. It has to be big considering the facility they had here and the experiments they had going.
I mean I get that nothing they do is legal.
But usually the illegal stuff is masked under a legitimate business.
But so far, nothing on this one,” Francesco adds.
“So what’s our next step? If you two can’t find them, what do we do?” I ask.
“I’ve reached out to my cleaner family to get any information they have on them. Travis said they’ll get back to me by tomorrow,” Hanako says to us.
“Are they going to try and get us to agree with them taking whoever is behind all of this? Because I have to be honest and say I won’t give them to the cleaners if it’s Matilda and Paul,” I say to her.
“I’ll make sure they understand that we won’t be agreeing to rehabilitation again.”
I nod. I’m glad we have Hanako on our side and that she saw what happened last time.
But we never should’ve agreed to the deal before.
I know that we don’t know for sure that they’re behind all of this.
But my gut is saying they are. And I will make sure we get revenge for everyone.
I pull Seraphina to me and hold her. I can feel the tension in her body and I want to take away everything she’s going through.
“Holy shit. I think I found something. There is a facility, I can see the paperwork for it. It’s connected to a company.
The company name is Omni BioCorp. I’m sending you what I found,” Francesco says to Sebastiano.
“Now we need to trace it and see if it’s connected to the facility that was here in Illinois. ”
Several more of the family sits down to start searching. Including Oliver, they hand him a laptop and he starts helping.
“Oliver’s always been good at computers. And I know being able to help is helping him too.”
“I just realized that I never asked you what you want to do now that you’re here,” I say to her.
“What do you mean?” she asks as she looks up at me.
“What do you want to do, besides be my wife.” I smile at her.
“You want to marry me? You don’t even know me.”
“You’re my mate. That’s all I need to know. And you don’t have to have a career, I was just wondering if there was something you’ve wanted to do.”
“I thought about going to school to become a teacher. I love little ones and teaching them was something I thought about. But now? How would I do that? I don’t have the money for it.”
“Baby, don’t you worry about the money. You just worry about what you want to do. If you want to go to school, that’s what you’ll do.”
“Are you serious? School costs a lot of money.”
“I know it does and I don’t want you to worry about that. I make more than enough to support you and your dreams.”
Seraphina reaches up and kisses me.
“You’re incredible,” she says as she hugs me.
“Let’s get food for everyone. We can get some sandwiches and pastries.”
We get everyone’s order and head to the bakery to get food.
“Hurry up. I’m hungry,” Ares yells from his spot on the couch.
“You lazy ass. If you’re that hungry, get off your ass and come with us.” I shake my head at him.
“I’m busy.” He flips me off.
“Why am I always having to apologize for you boys?” our baba sighs.
“We’re angels. There’s no apologizing for us.” I laugh as we head out to get the food.