Chapter Thirty-One
DELLAN PUSHED his plate away and patted his stomach with a contented sigh. “That was delicious.”
Horvan had to agree. Rael’s surprise meal in the open air had taken some organizing on Mrs. Landon’s part, but she’d provided an amazing meal for—
How many people?
Rael grinned. Twenty-two. You should have seen her face when I told her there’d be two more, but I had no idea about Victor and Irena. He peered at the table. And there are leftovers.
Dellan snickered. Not for long. Give it half an hour, and Saul and Crank will be raiding the fridge.
A wave of satisfied groans moved around the tables, and Horvan gazed at the faces of his mates, his team—his friends. The lump in his throat threatened to choke him.
After all we’ve been through together, it’s hard to believe we’re about to go our separate ways.
Tell them how you feel , Dellan suggested.
He was right.
Horvan raised his glass of champagne.
“Firstly, thank you, all of you, for joining us. Even the ones we had no idea were coming.” He gave Rael a mock glare. “This is what you get for having a sneaky mate who is way too good at hiding his thoughts.”
Rael preened. “What can I say? I learned from the best.” When Horvan pushed his chest out, Rael snorted. “I learned it from Dellan.”
Laughter erupted around the table, and Horvan narrowed his gaze.
It was only then that it hit him. With the exception of Irena and Mrs. Landon, everyone gathered around the tables was part of a triad.
The thought staggered him.
Horvan took a deep breath. “When Rael turned up on my doorstep back in March, I learned that mates were real, and that I was a lucky man. Then I learned about Dellan, and my good luck doubled.” He gazed at the faces around him. “We thought we were the only ones.”
“We were,” Dellan interjected. “For about five minutes.” That earned him more laughter.
“Then our world was turned upside down when Vic walked into it, and discovered he had two mates who were both human.” Horvan raised his glass to them, and they did the same. “Jamie’s entrance into our lives was… memorable.”
Jamie chuckled. “I thought you were going to shoot me under the table.” He glanced at Crank. “And you were going to put a bullet in me.”
“That’s my mate,” Saul said with a touch of pride. “Shoot first, think later.”
Crank dug him in the ribs with his elbow, amid laughter.
“And it took a DNA test to show us what was staring us in the face—he and Dellan were related.”
Jamie sighed. “Not that I believed you right away.”
“You got there eventually,” Dellan said with a smile.
He glanced at Shawn and Brandon, who nodded. Jamie sighed again. “I have some news. Aelryn’s people located my birth mom.” His face tightened.
Aw fuck. Horvan wanted to hug the life out of Jamie, but he figured that was something for his mates. “Not good, I take it?”
“Nope. She wasn’t interested. She really didn’t want to be reminded of my conception, put it that way.”
“Fuck her,” Jake growled. “If that’s her attitude, she’s no great loss. You have family that loves you.”
“Yeah, he does,” Shawn said quietly before leaning in to kiss Jamie’s cheek, and Brandon slipped his arm around Jamie’s shoulders.
“Can I be the voice of reason here?” Doc said in a clear voice. “I don’t think we should think unkindly of Jamie’s mother. After all, she was essentially raped, correct? Can any of you blame her for not wanting to be reminded of such a heinous act, which she would be every time she looks at Jamie?”
Jake flushed. “You’re right, of course. I’m sorry I said that.”
Horvan glanced at the trio at the end of the table. “Then our favorite polar bear found one of his mates, Aric, and we learned the other, Seth, was Dellan’s half brother, and that Dellan’s dad, Jake, was still alive. ”
Dellan’s eyes glistened. “In one fell swoop, I gained two half brothers and the prospect of seeing my dad for the first time in thirty-one years.”
“And yet more mates kept coming.” Horvan raised his glass to Eve, Hashtag, and Roadkill. “The highlight of all these meetings had to be when Hashtag and Roadkill found out that after a decade of fighting together, drinking, and—” Horvan coughed. “—other pursuits, they were mates.”
Eve laughed. “You’re not kidding.”
“I beg to differ,” Jake interrupted. “I think the most surprising meeting has to have taken place a few hours ago.” He glanced at Victor and smiled.
“Can I take a moment to thank Rael for his invitation?” Aelryn stood. “It has been my pleasure to know Horvan and his mates, and to be included in their extended family.”
Rael smiled. “We’re honored to have you join us.”
Brandon let out a raw chuckle. “Jamie sat us down and told us the whole story, but seeing you all here…. It’s amazing.” Shawn nodded.
“I too have news.” Aelryn gazed at Scott and Kia, his eyes shining. “Our little family of three is about to grow into a somewhat larger family of eight.” He beamed. “We have located all five of Kia’s children, and very shortly, they will be with us.”
Applause broke out, accompanied by a whoop from Crank.
“You’re gonna have more, right?” he said with a grin. “I mean, baby red pandas… we’re talking cute overload.”
Scott laughed. “I think that could be a possibility. Unless they take after Kia or Aelryn. But I’ll be happy with whatever we get.”
“And on another note….” Aelryn smiled. “Yesterday, I learned that the archaeologist who discovered Berengar’s tomb has been located.
Sarah Delaney had been imprisoned in a Geran camp that we raided.
She’s well, and she’ll be joining Orsini in Rome to catalog the artifacts.
” Aelryn glanced at Jake, Doc, and Victor.
“And I would like to extend my thanks to Jake. Without him, we would not be in the fortunate position we now find ourselves. He gave us a glimpse into the lives of Ansfrid and Ansger, and in so doing revealed the truth.” Aelryn’s eyes sparkled.
“A truth we are now sharing with all shifters.” He raised his glass. “To Jake, the one who can see.”
Jake swallowed as everyone toasted him.
Silence fell, but Horvan knew he wasn’t finished.
“I want to say….” Tears pricked the corners of his eyes, and damn it, that wasn’t like him.
He fought to regain his self-control. “I want to say th ank you to the best fucking teammates anyone has ever had the honor of working with. I cannot tell you how proud I am to have watched you all grow, find your own families, and prepare to embark on new adventures.”
“Don’t get all weepy, H,” Hashtag called, “or else I might start bawling too.”
Eve ran a hand over his back, but whatever she said to him was between them.
Horvan squared his shoulders. “I know we’re splitting up and taking on new missions for Aelryn and his people.
There are still a lot of smaller camps out there that we’ve yet to find and a lot more shifters to save.
” He raised his glass to Aelryn, who held up his own.
“The fact you’ve seen the potential in each of them tells me that we did good, people.
All of us.” He sucked in a shaky breath. “I’m gonna miss the fuck out of you.”
“It’s not as if we won’t see each other again,” Dellan said. “Right?”
“Probably not like this, like a family. At least not until we get everyone out safe and bring them home.”
“How many camps do they think are left?” Roadkill asked Aelryn.
“It’s true a lot have been abandoned once the troops got to hear the truth, but conservative estimates are anywhere between seventy and a hundred still in operation. Die-hard Geran leaders who refuse to believe the fight is over. Of course that number might change if people start joining them.”
“Pretty fucking stupid people, if you ask me,” Crank grumbled. “Because how could anyone in their right mind see all that evidence and not believe it? I mean, if I was a shifter? Right now I’d be kissing the fucking ground you three walk on.”
Horvan stuck his foot out. “Well, far be it from us to stop you. I prefer it right on the toes, please.” That earned him another ripple of laughter.
He gazed at their faces. “But yeah, the fight isn’t over.
That’s why Aelryn needs help. It’s also why he’s taking the most experienced people to head up the squads.
” Horvan glanced at Hashtag, Roadkill, and Eve.
“You guys are gonna be awesome in the UK.” He grinned.
“And at least we know we’ll have a bed for the night if we visit. ”
Eve laughed. “Oh, I think we can find you some space.”
“And then we’ll get you babysitting Logan while we go out on the town,” Hashtag added with a grin.
“And I’ll be visiting regularly to see how the orphanage is doing,” Dellan added .
“You’re not getting rid of us that easily,” Saul muttered. “Of course, we will be moving houses—all the way to the lake.”
Vic laughed. “Yeah, that’s going to be a tough commute, right?”
“And I’m gonna be up here every day.” Crank chuckled. “You think I’m gonna miss out on Mrs. Landon’s cookies? Think again.”
Mrs. Landon laughed. “There will always be a box in the kitchen labeled Crank’s Cookies.” Her eyes twinkled. “Right next to the ones that say Saul’s, Horvan’s….”
“Do you deliver?” Brick asked. He glanced at his mates. “Wyoming might be fifteen hundred miles from here, but that’s what planes are for, right? We’ll be visiting you so often, you’ll get sick of us.”
“Never,” Dellan declared. “Now that I’ve found my brothers, I don’t intend losing track of them.”
“And I’ll only be in Boston,” Jamie added. “I mean, we ,” he added hastily.
Horvan chuckled to see the stare Shawn gave him.
Looks as if they’ll give Jamie a run for his money.
He beamed. “I think you’ll make a great teacher. Those kids will be lucky to have you.”
“I have an announcement to make.”
All heads turned in Jake’s direction.
“We’ve been searching for a place of our own, and we might have found one in Nebraska. Thankfully, it’s big enough for three.”
“It will need to be,” Victor said with a grin, squeezing his mate’s hands.
Of all the people Horvan had met so far, Victor seemed the most settled with the idea of having mates.
He’d watched that afternoon as Victor grabbed drinks whenever Jake and Doc were thirsty.
He’d listened as Victor checked to see if they were hungry.
Doc had shivered once, and Victor offered to find him a blanket.
What was even more surprising was Irena.
She nestled in Victor’s lap, but seemed to feel equally at home with Jake or Doc. It was as though they fitted perfectly into her world, making it calmer. Doc had promised to find a therapist for Victor and his sister.
They’ve both been through a lot of trauma.
Horvan had to admit it was a triad that shouldn’t have worked, but somehow it did.
In the wild, hippos were unpredictable and dangerous, yet in Victor, Horvan couldn’t sense that at all.
He was clearly a caring, nurturing individual.
A man in charge, but one who needed to make sure those under that charge had everything they needed to be healthy and happy.
With Jake’s turbulent past, not to mention Irena’s, maybe that settled something in Victor.
It had given him someone to take care of.
Horvan had little doubt Victor would be the top in their relationship, but he would be a gentle person outside of sex, he was certain.
Exactly what their new family needed.
Then Horvan felt Dellan’s hand on his back, and he realized he’d zoned out.
“Nebraska isn’t all that far away,” Doc said. The three of them were still holding hands.
Dellan cleared his throat. “If you guys ever need us, call and we’ll come running.
” His eyes glistened. “We owe you more than we can repay in a dozen lifetimes. Without all of you, we wouldn’t have found our mates.
” He gave Horvan and Rael a warm glance.
“Our families.” He raised his glass. “To peace—and all things becoming possible.”