Chapter 13
13
Crew
Irritation pulled at my chest as I crossed the lawn between Hazel’s house and my parents’. Leaving her this morning had been damn near impossible. Despite spending most of the night reminding her that her place would forever be with us, my emotions didn’t seem to be getting the memo.
She’d been taken from us, and my alpha instincts were riding me hard to keep her with me at all times. To bite her and bond her to us forever.
I shook my head. Hazel deserved more than frantic bites in the wake of her kidnapping. She deserved a night of her mates devoted to her with no pressure or threats looming overhead.
I slipped through the gap in the hedges that separated the two yards, heading for the back deck that led to a massive kitchen where I suspected my family would be having breakfast. Now that Hazel was home and safe, it was time to take the necessary steps to ensure nothing like this ever happened again.
The back door was open, which wasn’t surprising. With the compound gated, patrolled with security guards, and monitored by multiple cameras, this was the safest place possible.
Sure enough, my mother, Calla, and two of my fathers were sitting at the informal kitchen table having breakfast while their longtime cook, Nancy, puttered around the stove.
Upon seeing me, Nancy flashed me a wide smile. “Good morning, Crew. Coffee?”
“Please,” I replied with an easy smile for the woman who had been a staple in my life since childhood. I pulled out a vacant chair at the table between Calla and Pops and dropped into it.
“How is she?” Calla demanded, her blue eyes big and anxiety souring her sweet omega scent. “Can I see her?”
“Let your brother get settled,” Mom admonished, but her own omega perfume was stricken with worry, too, which explained why my fathers looked ready to rip the world apart.
I’d grown up with parents in a pack who truly loved one another and were completely devoted to their omega, my mother. I’d learned how to treat an omega by watching them with my mother and my sister, the ways they indulged and protected in equal measure.
I knew, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that I would love and cherish Hazel with the same devotion until my last breath.
“She’s okay,” I assured Calla as Nancy handed me my coffee just how I took it—black with one sugar. “Thank you.”
Nancy patted my shoulder and shuffled back to the stove.
I glanced at my little sister, who was practically vibrating with suppressed energy and questions. “She’s still asleep, Cal, but I know she’ll want to see you when she’s awake. She was really worried about you.”
Calla frowned. “Why? I’m not the one who was kidnapped by psychos.”
Mom let out a shuddering breath and Dad wrapped an arm around her, tucking her into his side as he set his phone down beside his empty plate.
Pops shot Calla a look, and when she ducked her head, Pops turned his attention to me. “Your sister seems to think downplaying her ordeal will somehow make us forget how serious it was.”
Calla’s eyes were fixed on her lap, where she was twisting her fingers together until the joints popped. It was a nervous habit she’d had since she was a kid.
I covered her hands with mine. “How are you doing, kiddo?”
Her nose wrinkled. “I hate when you call me that.”
“No, you don’t,” I replied with a smirk.
Calla sighed. “I’m okay. A few nightmares and maybe a panic attack or two, but seriously, Hazel endured a lot more than I did.”
“No one is saying Hazel didn’t go through hell,” Pop said, his tone leaving zero room for argument. “But you also went through a traumatic experience, sweet girl.”
Calla lifted the napkin from her lap and set it by her half-eaten plate. “I have a make-up test this afternoon that I need to study for. May I be excused?”
“Of course,” Dad answered, lines appearing between his eyes as he watched her gather her plate and take it to Nancy.
Calla paused on her way out of the kitchen. “Tell Hazel I’ll be over this evening, if that’s okay?”
I nodded. “Absolutely.” I waited until I heard Calla’s footsteps retreat down the long hallway that connected the front foyer to the kitchen before looking at my parents. “Is she okay?”
Dad’s frown only deepened. “She’s not lying about the nightmares and the panic attacks, but I feel like she’s downplaying her emotions out of some misguided need to protect us.”
Pops shook his head. “Sometimes I look at your sister and see our little girl. Other times I barely recognize the woman she’s become.”
My spine stiffened at the implication. “You think something’s wrong?”
Mom sighed, her head still resting on Dad’s shoulder. “Calla has always been our little ray of sunshine. Always happy and outgoing, but your father is right. Something has changed. Maybe she regrets terminating her courtship with Pack Capshaw?”
“Those Capshaw brats were never the right pack for her,” Pop replied with a scowl.
Mom’s lips tipped into a knowing smile. “I doubt any pack will be good enough for your little girl, but she’s grown up.”
“I told you we should’ve stopped feeding all of them,” Dad remarked, sipping his coffee while giving Mom an indulgent look. “Kept them tiny and here forever.”
Mom giggled—freaking giggled —and turned her face to kiss Dad’s chest before pushing away from the table. “If you’ll excuse me, I have a virtual meeting with Governor Novak I couldn’t reschedule.”
My brows shot up. “Really?”
Mom nodded with a bright smile as she stood. “He and his pack are completely behind our Omega Sanctuary proposal. With the backing of the state, and state resources, we’ll be able to expand our reach.”
Dad snagged Mom’s hand and kissed the inside of her wrist where I knew his claiming mark was. “I’m proud of you, honey.”
“Our omega outshines us all,” Pops agreed, his smile soft as Mom blushed under the praise like she was a teenager.
Mom turned to me. “Give Hazel our love, and remind her that this house is her home, too. She’s welcome any time.”
I nodded. “I’ll let her know.” I focused on drinking my coffee while Mom kissed both of my dads goodbye. Both men watched her leave the room before giving me their attention as Nancy cleared the remaining breakfast dishes.
Dad’s expression sobered first. “How is Hazel really doing?” He leaned back in his chair, adjusting his tie. The black jacket that completed his usual suit attire was missing and the white sleeves of his button up were rolled up, exposing the tattoo on his left forearm.
At fifty one, Kevin Dutton exuded alpha strength and power. Usually by now he was off to his office at Upshine Media, the largest global media company in the world. That he was still here at home told me he was more worried about Calla than he was letting on.
But I understood the compulsion to worry over an omega that needed protecting and taking care of. “She’s okay,” I answered honestly. “We, uh, managed to arrive before anything happened.”
“Thank god for that,” Pops muttered, running a hand over his exhausted face.
I frowned. “Don’t you usually have classes in the morning?” Grant Dutton was head of the English Department at Windale University.
“I have someone covering this week,” Pops answered. That explained why he was in sweats and an old band shirt with a hole near the collar. “I’ll take Calla in for her exam later and do some work in my office, but I think we all need the break.”
“Joel would be here, too, but there was an emergency at the lab,” Dad added. “I swear he nearly went feral leaving the house this morning.”
I stilled. “He did?”
Pops nodded. “I think after the close call with Hazel and Calla, we’re all a bit on edge. Having your mother and sister where we can see and keep an eye on them makes us all feel less agitated.”
I rested my elbows on the table, steepling my fingers in front of my face. “I went feral when we found Hazel.”
Pops and Dad both straightened and exchanged worried looks, but it was Dad who spoke first. “Crew?—”
I held up a hand. “I didn’t do anything too reckless, and my pack was there for me. Getting Hazel back helped, but before we found her…” I shook my head, remembering the shack I’d stumbled onto.
I’d scented the remaining dregs of her fear from several yards away, and I’d kicked in the door, expecting to see my girl in there. Instead all I’d found were her shredded clothes and smelled…
A shudder rolled down my spine, and I clenched my hands into fists as the memory of the stench of cum and piss mingled with the burnt chocolate cake of a terrified Hazel. The thin cord of control I’d had on my alpha side snapped like a dry rotted rubber band.
I wasn’t entirely sure of what all happened next—it blurred together in a haze of feral alpha rage. I had the vague memory of kicking over a stack of crates and seeing a myriad of guns and weapons spill out. I’d stalked through the compound, ripping things apart in search of Hazel.
Glancing down at my hand, I remembered the familiar weight of my service gun in my grip. Remembered Donovan Ellis coming at me with a snarl. I aimed the gun straight at his head and fired. He was dead before he made it within fifteen feet of me.
My eyes slid shut as I pushed the memory back. I would never regret killing the man who had terrorized my omega. I only wished I could do it again, this time slower. I wanted him to feel the same fear my girl had endured for years . A bullet to the brain was too good for a man like Donovan Ellis.
I knew I had a mountain of paperwork waiting for me, but there was something I needed to settle first. Something I wasn’t putting off for another day.
“We’re leaving the bureau,” I announced. “The pack and I discussed it, and we’re turning in our resignation today.”
Pops tilted his head. “You’re certain this is what you all want?”
I nodded. “Even if we wanted to go back—which we don’t—they’ve made it clear that Jude will never be allowed in the field again after his injury. And none of us want to be separated from Hazel. If those reasons weren’t enough, there’s the fact that our boss was part of the reason Hazel was taken in the first fucking place.”
Dad’s eyes widened. “What?”
I explained what Hazel had told us the night before, about how Carter had called and was obviously working with Donovan and the APA. Their faces grew angrier the more I talked.
“And where’s Martin now?” Dad demanded.
I shrugged. “Not sure. Oakley’s still in Montana, and I asked him to get a read on Martin before I officially bring this to the attention of the bureau. I figured I’d lay it all out there with our resignation.”
“Are you planning to return to Montana?” Pops asked.
“No,” I replied. “We’ll pay someone to pack up the house and ship our stuff here, or just donate it. We can buy new here, but it’s important for Hazel that we provide her the stability of a permanent home. We plan to bond her soon.”
A smile drifted over Dad’s lips. “Surprised you’ve waited this long.”
I scoffed. “We didn’t want to rush it. Hazel’s experience as an omega has been seriously fucked up, and she deserves a proper bonding with her pack. Besides, OS isn’t helping things.”
“I can guarantee that one of the things your mother is talking about with the governor is the state of your omega’s request to be part of your pack,” Pops told me. “You know Governor Novak’s packmate is the director of the California Omega Services division.”
I drained the last of my coffee. “That’s part of why I decided to stop by this morning. I wanted to let you know about our decision to leave the FBI, but also see if that position with the Omega Sanctuary was still something we could move forward with.”
Dad blew out a breath. “Absolutely. Your mother will be thrilled, and, honestly, we need more security if this organization is going to grow. Luckily federal law can’t supercede state law in omega statutes, which is why getting Governor Novak on our side will be a huge win.”
“Not that there’s much doubt that Novak will side with us,” Pops added. “He’s made his stance on the current climate in D.C. pretty obvious. He’s not a fan of the rules and regulations President Anders is pushing. There’s a lot of upcoming legislative decisions that will likely divide the country even further, and we could be looking at an influx of omegas seeking sanctuary from the more restrictive states.”
Dad glowered. “And that’s the omegas who can find their way to California. For every one that seeks asylum, there’s another dozen being forced into untenable situations. Or having little to no say in the pack they’re bonded to.”
“You mean given to,” Pops corrected with a low growl in his chest. His dark blue eyes, mirrors of my own, focused on me. “We’ve hired security for the Sanctuary your mother has created, but it isn’t enough. We need a security team we can trust implicitly with the care and safety of the omegas we’re trying to protect.”
“It’s why we approached your pack in the first place,” Dad chimed in, running a hand through his jet black hair and mussing the longer strands on top. “Having you and your pack run point on security for the center would be ideal.”
“I agree,” I replied. “I’ve discussed it with the pack and we all think it’s time to move into the private sector. We love what Mom is doing to help omegas, and if we can do something to help, we need to. Seeing how easily the system was manipulated, and how it almost cost us our omega…” My phone buzzed in my pocket, and I pulled it out to read the text from Rhett. “Hazel’s awake, so I’m going to head back.”
“Of course,” Dad said, standing up with Pops. “We’ll get the paperwork started and let your mother know of your decision.”
Pops gave me a quick, one-armed hug. “It’s good to have you home, son.”
“It’s good to be home,” I answered, hugging him back before turning to Dad for the same type of embrace.
“Go help your omega settle in,” Dad added. “Everything else can wait.”
I nodded, but didn’t reply, because I wasn’t sure that was true. Making sure Hazel felt safe and secure was our top priority, but we also needed to figure out what deal Martin had with the APA—and why our omega was part of it—before anyone could come for our girl again.