Extended Epilogue
EXTENDED EPILOGUE
JONATHAN
Marie saunters over, a flirtatious smile on her face, and hands me a giant glass of white wine.
“Thank you, darling,” I say, extending one hand to take the glass by the stem, and the other, to snatch my sexy mate around the waist and pull her into my lap.
It’s been two days since Cooper left for college again. This could be our last night of peace, so I’m determined to enjoy it.
Sitting outside in the fading light, we look down at the massive grass lawn at the rear of the packhouse where the full moon party continues on without us.
Young pups chase each other, tumbling and yapping as they leapfrog, dance and nip playfully, while their parents sit back on log benches and catch up with friends, safe in the knowledge that their children are happy and protected within the pack.
Our own pups, not really pups anymore, but they'll always be to us, chat away close to the bonfire. Nathan, as per usual, has his arm slung around a beautiful she-wolf.
“What are we gonna do with him?” I say to Marie, tipping my head toward our far-too-charming youngest son.
Marie raises one shoulder in an amused shrug.
“He didn't get it from me. He's his father's son. You need to teach him how to use his powers for good and not for evil.”
I chuckle, pressing a kiss to her temple.
“He definitely didn't learn those moves from me. I lucked out. The fates took pity on me when it was becoming clear I was going to be an old bachelor if somebody didn't step in and help me.”
Marie laughs and slaps my chest gently before twisting around so she can look out over the pack with her back resting against my chest.
I take a deep inhale and sigh as her delicious scent wraps itself around me.
That kick I get just from being near her will never get old.
I can't see her eyes, but I feel her body tense as she sends out a mind-link. It doesn't take a genius to work out that it's Nathan who's on the receiving end of her orders.
He looks up, an unimpressed scowl on his face, and removes his arm, stuffing his hands in his pockets instead, much to his dismay.
He wanders over to the other side of the party where he stands beside his older, much less sociable brother.
Rex gives him a quizzical look, then when Nathan's eyes turn toward our balcony, a wry smile appears on Rex's usually stoic features. He loves nothing more than to see Nathan's fun being ruined.
On the far side of the bonfire, Leila sits, part of the party, but also, not quite. She's got her head in a book, studying as always, determined to prove that she's not just a pampered pack princess. Whatever job she gets, or escape route, as she calls it, she wants to get under her own steam. And I've no doubt that she will be able to do whatever she wants to do.
She's got her mother's brains, and she works so hard. That part, I hope she gets from me.
I'm just wondering how our other son is getting on at his first full moon away from home when my phone starts to ring. Digging it out of my pocket, I hold up the screen and show it to Marie. It's Cooper.
“Speak of the devil,” I say, happy to hear from him, but Marie shakes her head, her features looking pinched.
She drags her wide eyes away from the screen and back to me. “This isn't good, Jonathan, whatever it is, it isn't good.”
My mate is not a worrier, and she's not one for dramatics, but she does have an uncanny sixth sense. Her concern immediately has me off-balance as I answer the call. With my attention fully focused on Cooper’s call, I help Marie to her feet, holding the phone between us and putting it on speaker so she can hear what's going on.
“Son?” I say, getting straight to the point.
Cooper's voice is hushed, but he’s breathing heavily down the line, like he's been jogging. There’s no background noise. He’s in a quiet room. He wants privacy for whatever this is.
“Dad, it's Reynolds. He's lost it.”
Marie grips my arm, and I close my eyes for a second, steadying myself against the power of her emotions. Fear for her son, concern for his safety, regret we’re not with him, and anxiousness about how far away he is from us.
“Which Reynolds, Cooper? Dean or Graham?”
Marie's eyes dart to mine. She assumed that because Dean is in college with Cooper that's who he must be talking about, but I doubt it. Unbeknownst to anyone, I've had numerous conversations with the head of the school who’s been keeping me posted on how both Cooper and Dean are getting on. He's assured me that while Dean, much like our own introverted eldest child, isn’t exactly a chatterbox, he's nothing like his father.
Dean's there for one reason and one reason only: to ensure that when he gets his hands on the pack, he's able to turn things around.
“Graham,” Cooper says, as if the answer should be obvious. “Dean got a call from his brother and ran out of here like his ass was on fire. We don't know the details, we're only hearing rumours, but it’s Maya.”
Marie closes her eyes and shakes her head. “Is she dead?”
Her voice is barely more than a whisper. I squeeze her hand and push as much of my calming aura toward her as I can.
“We think maybe she’s just badly hurt, but we don't really know. I don’t think Dean even knows. It's bad though, so what can we do?
Pride surges up inside me that despite the conflict between our packs over the years, Cooper is able to feel for Dean, who's done nothing wrong other than be born into the bloodline of a madman.
“I don't know if there is anything we can do, son. Intervening might make things worse for them.”
The words are bitter. I've tried many times over the years to gain access to Reynolds’s pack to speak to his border patrol and find out what's going on behind the veil of secrecy. I've gone to the council, Marie has exhausted her endless list of contacts, and yet we know next to nothing.
Graham has kept the pack on lockdown, and we’ve heard nothing more than the odd rumour from other packs, none of which are good.
His first mate is dead, suicide he claims, but I have my doubts about that. Then a second mate, that nobody has heard from since she crossed the border years ago, was sporting some nasty bruises the last time the council managed to get onto his land.
Now this.
Could he have become so deranged that he's killed his own daughter?
I look at Marie, the memory of that day I found her terrified near the bridge as vivid as if it was yesterday.
She’s turned pale, no doubt, also remembering her own ordeal at his hands. I’m lucky she’s still here. She knows better than anyone what Graham’s capable of.
Cooper growls, not willing to accept that.
“There has to be something . Anything, Dad. What if he's killing them all, what if he's…”
I cut him off, recognising his frustration because it mirrors my own.
“What ifs are not going to help us right now. Here’s what we can do from our side of the bridge. I'll get Leila to contact the hospital and ask them to send an ambulance to the border. You get your ass to the bridge, STAY ON OUR SIDE, and make sure Dean doesn't get stopped or bothered if he comes across. Clear the way for whoever's going with him to the hospital, and for the first responders, or whatever. And make sure he gets any help that he needs. I don’t want anyone refusing to treat them just because they’re scared of all Reynolds.”
Cooper hesitates, and I wait, letting him pose the question I know is on his mind. “I mean Dad, do they have any money?”
Marie meets my eye. We’ve raised a good kid.
“Nobody's doing any business with them, they can’t leave the pack. Even if Graham has money hidden away, that doesn’t mean they do. How are they going to afford the hospital?”
If she’s seriously injured, that could be a very expensive trip. We might heal fast, but if Dean’s worried, it might not be something her wolf can repair on her own.
“Don't worry about that. We'll take care of any bills. I’ll tell Leila to make sure the hospital knows to charge us.”
Marie nods her agreement, and Cooper blows out a long breath.
“Thanks, Dad.”
It's not Maya or Dean’s fault they've been born into this mess, and if there's any hope that they can turn things around for their pack, we'll help them.
“I better go, I'll let you know when I hear anything else.”
“Okay Cooper, mind yourself.”
Marie and I look at each other, and without words, I know she’s thinking the very same thing as me.
We're so lucky, so very lucky that things turned out for us. We have happy healthy kids, a pack that's thriving, joy and harmony everywhere. When you compare that to how Graham Reynolds has ended up, and what he's done to his pack and his family, there’s no doubt about it. I’m a blessed man.
I pull Marie into a hug. She’s beside herself with worry, not even for her own children, but for those of a man she should despise. Her luna instincts kicking into overdrive, she's desperate to go and fix it, but that's not always the way it works.
“You can’t go. You know that.”
If Graham is this volatile, I’m not letting Marie anywhere near this mess.
“But…”
Shaking my head, I hold her tighter and rest my chin on the top of her head, soothing the warring instincts within her.
“Our kids can handle it.”
This is the kind of thing they need to experience and deal with if we’re going to entrust the pack to them in the near future.
“This could be the start of it, Marie. We'll help Dean, and we'll help Maya, but hopefully, this is the beginning of the end of his reign.”
When Dean takes over, it could be a fresh start.
“I know,” Marie says, taking a deep breath and trying to regain her composure. She takes my face between her hands and presses a kiss to my lips. “I know you will, because you're a good man, Jonathan Jones, the best. That's why I love you, and that's why I thank the moon goddess every day for giving me a fated mate like you.”