Chapter 31 Angus
Chapter thirty-one
Angus
Amonth passed with a lot of snow. Ben, David, and Trey were miserable because they couldn’t see the other omegas, but one good thing happened: Jackson, Carter, and the girls arrived for good.
They would stay with us until they could find their own place.
With Bertram, Trey, and the baby staying with us, too, we were a full house.
We’d already had a visit from the government, who completely lost interest when they saw our baby was a girl. They insisted on checking out little Bertie and Ollie while they were there but found no signs that they could claim meant they were omegas, so the fuckers had left. Good Riddance.
Colt, Maddox, and I had had several late-night talks about improving things on the ranch.
Not only the expansion we’d talked about before, but finding a way to keep our omegas close to one another and, most importantly, safe.
Our talk with Kristopher and Jermaine Gatlin had underscored the need to keep the whole omega x thing under wraps, or risk Elliott and Ben being targeted.
We were all frustrated over not having enough information, but all we could do was continue researching.
I’d been doggedly reading The Omega Dilemma. Dr. Mandrake didn’t mention any subsets of omegas in it, but I hoped to find some other helpful tidbit. On a recent phone call with Jackson’s father, Carter asked him to contact the man and request an interview.
I was sitting in the rocking chair in my living area when David shouted from the other side of the house.
“The snow plow’s coming through!” A couple of minutes later, my phone rang, and Laura’s name flashed on the screen.
“Hello, Laura,” I answered.
“Angus, the plow’s coming through. Please bring Ben, Trey, Jackson, and David over here as soon as you can get out.”
I chuckled. “Your group driving you up the wall?”
“Oh, yes. It’s been rough.”
“Here, too. We would’ve come even if you hadn’t called. Works out well because Maddox, Colt, and I have some things to discuss as a group.”
“Great, then. Come around five. Eric and I will cook a monster meal.”
Still smiling, I went to find the omegas to tell them they could stop mooning around because we were going to see their friends.
***
After a huge meal of potato soup, French bread, chicken casserole, and three kinds of pie, we all sat in the large living room at the Borders’ ranch.
Unsurprisingly, all the omegas, which now numbered twelve due to Nova’s thirteen-year-old nephew, Dawson, having moved in, were piled together onto the long couch, while the rest of us used the chairs.
The babies were sleeping peacefully in the new nursery, and Kate and Jeremiah were in their room playing.
After having eaten with us, the three therapists, Gail, Ace, and Dallas, announced they were headed to their cabins.
“Be careful—stay on the covered path,” Nova reminded them.
“We will,” Gail said cheerfully. Turning to me and Colt, she said, “Thank you again for the interview you did for me. It really rounded out my dissertation.”
“You’re very welcome,” Colt told her.
I’d found the interview a little awkward and wasn’t sure what Gail could have possibly gotten out of it, but if she thought it helped, I was glad for it.
“That was a delicious meal,” Colt said, patting his flat stomach like it was bloated or something.
“Eric’s a much better cook than I am, but he’s teaching me,” Laura said, giving her new mate an adoring look that made me want to tease her, but I refrained.
“Do you cook like that all the time, Eric?” Maddox asked. “I mean, I wouldn’t blame you if you hired someone, with all the people you have to feed.”
“I’ve tried to get him to agree to hire someone, but he won’t hear of it. He loves to cook,” Nova said.
“I really do. The more people, the better. Security usually cooks for themselves, but I feed them when I can.”
“Well, that potato soup was to die for,” David said. “Will you teach me how to make it? Maddox ate three bowls full!”
Chuckling, Colt said to Maddox, “He’s calling you out.”
“It’s my favorite,” Laura said, cheeks red. Was she sitting too close to the fireplace?
“Eric can make it for you all winter, sweetheart,” Nova said, taking Laura’s hand in hers. “You need to keep up your strength.”
Laura pressed her lips together and didn’t make eye contact with anyone.
“Okay, what gives?” I asked.
“Laura’s going to have a baby!” Eric burst out, as though he’d been wrestling all evening to hold the news in.
The room filled with excited exclamations.
“What? Really?”
“That’s great!”
“Congratulations!”
“That’s so exciting!”
When things died down, Laura, who obviously wanted to change the subject, said, “What was it that you, Maddox, and Colt wanted to talk to everyone about, Angus?”
All attention turned to me.
“Maddox, Colt, and I have been talking. The next big snow could come at any time. To those who are new to this region, our winters are rough—what you’ve seen so far is only a taste.
Our omegas will be separated for long periods of time.
” I glanced at the group snuggled together on the couch.
“It’s going to be a big deal if we don’t do something about it.
Nova, we each need to purchase at least one snowmobile and sled.
Since the next few days are supposed to be clear, Colt, Maddox, and I are going to mark trails between our houses with reflectors. ”
Nova said, “That makes good sense.” She looked at her mates, who nodded agreement.
“This next part is Colt’s idea, so I’ll let him tell you,” I said.
Colt took a breath and began. “Angus, Maddox, and I have been talking about expanding the ranch a little at a time. But, with what happened to Bertram and Trey’s place, and with Carter and Jackson here now, we thought we all could look into purchasing the land between us and the Borders.
Carter and Bertram could buy what they need of the property from us, because we certainly don’t need all of it.
They’d live between our extended ranch and the Borders’ ranch.
We’d all be connected. With the snowmobiles Angus mentioned, we can get to each other’s houses most of the time without a problem. ”
Carter looked at Jackson, while Bertram looked at Trey.
“What do you think?” Carter asked.
“That sounds perfect!” Jackson enthused.
“Can we do that, Bertram?” Trey asked.
“I don’t see why not,” he said. “It seems like the perfect solution to our problems.”
I’d recently had a long talk with Bertram concerning his feelings regarding the SOS’s theories.
He finally admitted that he’d spent years trying to get an omega mate, and the idea of a government conspiracy made him feel threatened.
He was afraid that if we stirred the pot, Trey might be taken away from him.
I’d assured him there was no way in hell we would let that happen, and he’d been a little more open to discussions on the topic since then.
“I’m so excited!” Ben said, hugging Elliott, who was perched on Keane’s lap. I’d noticed those two were particularly close—Elliott and Keane. Ben explained to me that Keane was security for Elliott. He’d always been the one to comfort him in the past.
The wheel was set in motion. Colt didn’t waste any time calling the realtor, and we spent hours in the evenings after chores making plans.
One evening in late December, Jackson and Ben came to me where I was sitting at the kitchen table going over finances with Colt.
“Can we talk to you for a minute?” Ben asked.
“Of course,” I said.
They sat down at the table with us. “We wanted Maddox, David, and Carter to be here, but Carter’s on the phone, David’s trying to get Ollie to sleep, and Maddox is out in the barn doing something.”
“What is it?” Colt asked.
“I just got off the phone with my father,” Jackson said. “He told me that in recent research he found the census from the colony that had the omega. It was taken shortly before that group split off and went to the Delta region.”
“Which means it was right before Pleasant gave birth to the omega and the colony came after them,” Ben said.
“That means you know the name of his alpha,” Carter said. “Well?”
Ben smiled.
“John Waters.”
“The name from your dream,” I said, and Ben nodded.
“Well, that certainly lends credence to your dreams being second-sight. That must make you feel good,” I told him.
“It’s nice to have the validation,” Ben agreed.
“Dad’s working now with the list of kids to find their descendants. They might have information that could help us with the omega x thing,” Jackson said.
“That’s great news,” I said.
“It really is,” Colt patted Ben’s hand.
Jackson looked at Ben. “Let’s go see if Carter’s off the phone yet.”
After they left, I said to Colt, “I don’t know if I think it’s a good or bad thing that the alpha was the same as Ben’s dream. If he’s really got abilities, it’s bound to get out sooner or later.”
Colt nodded. “We’ve spent months downplaying his part in saving Oliver and Bertie. The rumor that he healed them spread fast.”
“Tell me about it. I only recently convinced Audrey Benson it was a silly rumor. With her on our side, though, the whole thing will be squashed in no time.”
“Hope so,” Colt said, rubbing his face.
“You okay?”
“Yeah. Just tired.”
Leaning close to him, I kissed him. “It’s late. Why don’t you go on to bed?”
Colt nodded. “I think I will. Goodnight.” He pressed a kiss to my mouth and left for our part of the house, and I got back to work.