Chapter 51
FIFTY-ONE
FINCH
I’d sat here deliberately to overhear what would happen at Thaddeus’s lunch, one of Laurel’s handy bugs laid casually on the table in front of me. I’d been satisfied when the Lucas pack had joined the table, eager to hear what they’d discuss.
I stared at my laptop screen, fingers frozen, as Prince announced they had some exciting news. Despite how much I hoped it would be a confession that I could use to nail their balls to the wall, I could be realistic. They were unlikely to discuss major crimes on a patio at a public lunch.
It was strange they were all eating out here, though, right at the busiest time of the day. The restaurant had been buzzing since Laurel had stepped inside.
Terror speared me through the bond as Prince revealed their proposal.
The breeze picked up, and their scents swirled around me.
Despite the clear emotions she was feeling, there wasn’t an ounce of fear in her scent.
Just a mildly pleasant calm, telling me she was perfectly at ease.
I could hear chairs shifting, and then Dax was talking to her quietly.
I shifted, clutching my coffee spoon tightly in my hand. I didn’t need to look.
I didn’t need to look.
It didn’t matter what was happening. I couldn’t see their table, anyway, as there were plants in the way, but I could see the commotion inside the restaurant.
People behind the glass doors were going absolutely nuts.
Security had stepped in to hold back the crowd of people who were clamouring to get a view or shot of the moment.
Someone opened the door behind me, and I turned with a snarl to see a trio of teenagers stop halfway onto the balcony, faces going white as they saw my expression. One of them dropped their phone on the ground with a clatter.
“Fuck off,” I hissed, and barely managed to restrain my aura as they made a hasty retreat. Laurel’s fear was pounding in my head, and it felt like it was crawling under my skin. What the fuck was happening over there? Why were chairs moving?
Unable to stop myself, I shifted in my seat until I had a view of the scene through a gap in the leaves. Madison Swithwin was on one knee in front of her, and my lip curled in distaste as I saw him guide Laurel onto his lap, his massive arms caging her in.
She was the picture of elegance this morning, her hair done up in a fancy braid and wearing a beautiful cream dress. There was something viscerally wrong with seeing Madison’s hands touching her.
Based on the reactions of the onlookers, their embrace looked perfectly normal, but they couldn’t scent the hunger rolling off Madison or see the mad glint in his eye.
I had to give her credit for holding herself together as he whispered something to her.
The only outward tell that he was tormenting her was a slight stiffening as she listened.
Up until that point, I hadn’t fully understood why Ocean had abandoned all reason when he’d rushed in to defend her, but right now, I wouldn’t mind digging this spoon right into Madison’s eye socket.
The image of the Laurel that I hated—the cold, ruthless seductress that ruined lives on a whim—was hard to keep steady in my mind as I watched them.
The Laurel in front of me was a delicate bird, wings broken and desperately trying to pretend she was fine as predators circled and snapped at her.
Dax, Madison, and Thaddeus, watching as she held her head high.
These were vicious bastards who swept through life, uncaring of the destruction and ruin they left in their wake. This whole incident was bringing me dangerously close to including Laurel as one they’d victimized.
I couldn’t get Kaos’s stupid theory out of my head.
That perhaps she wasn’t our enemy. Because he was right, damn it—it didn’t make sense.
Laurel was angry and stubborn, but the only malice she had shown toward Ocean was when she’d had him locked up.
Nothing else about her behaviour or feelings matched that.
I pushed the thought away as Ocean stirred in the bond, swelling with a wave of peace and calm that momentarily swept away the gathering tension clouding my thoughts.
I opened my eyes, looking down at the coffee spoon that was now bent sadly out of shape in my hands.
It seemed Laurel’s panic had been calmed by Ocean’s zen as well.
Sitting back in my chair, I stared at my laptop screen and refused to look over to the other balcony again.
It was only marginally easier this time.
It wasn’t that I gave a fuck about Laurel, obviously. She’d become my responsibility when I’d added her to the pack, but it didn’t go beyond that.
Her sudden engagement put my pack in more danger, though. The Lucas pack trying to be intimate with her, trying to bond her—
She’s ours.
The spoon snapped in my hand at the unwelcome thought.
Fuck.
I scowled as I kicked the broken bits of utensil off the edge of the balcony. They landed softly in some unseen plants, robbing me of the satisfaction of hearing them hit the ground.
Yes, technically she was pack. But in the loosest way anybody could be pack. I was pissed because it meant that there was a risk they’d discover our dark bond, which would jeopardize our entire plan.
I focused again, listening to their conversation. Sounded like they would wait to bond her until her next heat. I needed to know when that would be.
Laurel jumped as I pulled her into a sheltered alcove in the gardens. It was along the path from a staff exit and the villas, so I’d figured she’d come this way after the restaurant.
“Hey!” she said, yanking her arm out of my grip and stumbling backward into a bush. “What the fuck?”
“Report,” I ground out.
She straightened herself, a branch pulling some of her hair out of the neat braid she’d had it in.
There were a couple of leaves stuck on her head, and my fingers twitched to remove them.
This close, the scent of vanilla and roses curled sweetly around her, stirring deep instincts within me.
It was a deep, rich scent today, of a sweet picnic in a wild garden.
I wanted to breathe in more, to let that peace and calm fill me.
She squared up, fists clenching. “You can’t just jump me like that.”
“Report,” I repeated, making it a command this time.
“I don’t know what you mean,” she hissed. “You can’t go flinging out words and expect me to understand them.”
“Actually, I can. That’s how language works,” I said, and she hesitated, wordless. I braced, expecting another cutting verbal remark, but instead she…laughed.
The hairs on the back of my neck stood up as the sound washed over me. Her face had relaxed, the usual clouds parting and letting through a glimpse of warm sunlight.
She folded her arms and looked up at me. “Let’s try that again. What were you asking?”
It took me a second to remember. “Your engagement. Did you know that was happening?”
“No, I would have told you,” she said, sounding only slightly annoyed. “Sadly, my father doesn’t often like to include me in his plans.”
She couldn’t lie. She was telling the truth, which meant that maybe—
“When’s your next heat?”
“Excuse me?” She raised an eyebrow, her face flushing slightly.
“They said they’d bond you just before your next heat. How much time do we have?” I clarified, and to my horror, I felt my own face heating a bit.
“A little over a month,” she said.
“Okay, that’s good. We’ll have Ocean out before then.”
“Great,” she said, snark lacing her tone. “I’m so glad this new development isn’t going to be an inconvenience to your plans.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“I mean, whoopee for you. You guys get to fuck right off and leave me here. I’m sure my heat’s going to be absolutely wonderful with the Lucas pack, after they realize they can’t bond with me.”
“You think I’d just leave you here?” I asked, aghast.
She shot me a glare. “Why wouldn’t you?” she snapped.
“You’re pack,” I said. “I would never just abandon you like that.”
“You hate me,” she said.
“I’m still responsible for you. Besides. You won’t have to worry about that,” I said coolly. “Everything goes according to plan, and they’ll be gone. And you’ll be out of our hair, free to have your heat however you want.”
She stared at me again, her head cocking to the side.
“What?” she said, eventually.
“They’ll be gone or in prison. Or dead. Didn’t you figure that out? We’re coming for them and your father.”
“That’s stupid,” she snorted. “You can’t take down my father.”
“Why not?” I asked.
“You just can’t,” she said, her brows furrowing deeply.
“Right, well if you think of an actual reason, let me know.”
She tossed her hair over her shoulder, regaining her composure. Before I could stop myself, I’d reached up and removed the leaves from her braid. We just stared at each other for a second. I cleared my throat, turning away.
“Am I free to go now?” she asked.
“Sure,” I replied.
Before she left, she shoved something at me. A small, cheap phone with a cord dangling from it.
“You’re welcome, by the way,” she said, smirking.
Before I had a chance to ask her what it was, she had strode off down the path. I considered ordering her back, but there was no real point.
I texted Kaos to meet me at my villa, knowing he had a way to get out of Laurel’s place undetected. He’d likely know what to do with this tech Laurel had given me.
I sat at my kitchen counter as I waited, staring down at my notebook.