Chapter 5
Sighing, Jackson was reluctant to leave his mate’s embrace but knew it was time to hear about their mother. Sitting up, he said, “There’s another reason why it’s a good idea to limit who’s at the meeting with our cousin.”
“And that is…?” asked Steel.
“Hunter’s Fated Mate is a member of my pack.”
“No fucking way! Holy shit! Who is it?”
“I don’t know. I didn’t have time to sort it out because I was too busy dealing with Kieran and my Mom. I promised to introduce Hunter to him after I told my brothers that Mom’s alive,” Jackson said.
“I wonder who it is?” asked Steel.
“Well, obviously not any of my brothers,” snorted Jackson.
“So, that leaves Theo and Norm. Oh, shit! If Hunter is their third, I don’t see that going over well with Norman.”
“Nope. Norm won’t be willing to move aside so Hunter can assume the Alpha position,” Jackson agreed.
“Then there’s Fionn or Adam…” Steel mused.
“And either one is a major problem…Adam is here to help David, and Fionn is tied to me via his white dragon…”
“…and Hunter will want his mate to leave with him when he goes back home,” Steel said, finishing Jackson’s sentence.
“Exactly! No matter who it is, there’s gonna be nothing but trouble.”
Giving a low whistle, Steel agreed with his mate’s assessment. “Then, it’s a good thing only your brothers and their mates will be there to meet with Hunter.”
“Absolutely! C’mon, time to get this meeting over with.”
~/~/~/~/~
Packing his backpack with enough food to last him a while, Fionn was grateful Theo didn’t ask any more questions about his plans.
Excused from the pack meeting, he doubted anyone would notice he was gone until breakfast tomorrow morning and that was just fine with him.
There was way too much tension in the air, and it reminded him of what life with his father was like after his mother died.
“Do you want water or juice to take with you?” asked Theo.
“Water is cool,” Fionn replied, adding the bottles to his bag. “Thanks, Theo, I appreciate it.”
“Honeybunch,” Norm called from the dining room, “Jackson wants to talk to us.”
“Coming,” Theo answered before asking Fionn, “Anything else you need?”
“Nope, got it all. Go ahead. I’ll see you later.” Fionn waited until his friend left, then, zippering up his bag, slipped outside using the back door. Wasting no time, he disappeared.
~/~/~/~/~
“Hi Doc,” Kieran grinned, looking up from the floor as Ian entered Hope’s bedroom.
“I’m awake and okay, but macushla won’t let me get up, even though the floor is hard, well, not that hard because it does have a carpet but it’s harder than my bed which is where I’d rather be.
I wanted my mate to take me to our bedroom but he said you wanted me to spend the night in the hospital but I don’t think that’s a good idea because I’d get less rest than I would in my own bed because I feel more comfortable there and I know you want me to get lots of sleep, so you can see why it’s better for me to sleep in my own bed and I’m glad that’s all settled and macushla can carry me there now.
Are you going to take care of Hope? Isn’t that the perfect name for her?
I wonder how her parents picked that name.
That reminds me, macushla, we need to think about a name for our pup. Have any ideas? If you don’t, I do.”
“Ahh, I think Kieran is back to normal,” Colton chuckled.
“So it would appear,” Ian smiled.
“What do you think, Ian?” asked Logan. “Mac…I mean Dr. Evans has been checking Kieran’s vitals since you left and there hasn’t been a problem.”
“Here,” Mac said, handing the clipboard to Colton. “Aunt Hope’s on the first page and the Shaman’s on the second one.”
Passing it to Ian, Colton looked at Mac and said, “We haven’t been introduced but I’m your cousin, Colton. Thanks for taking care of Mom all these years. It mustn’t have been easy, especially knowing what you could do to help her was limited.”
“No thanks are necessary. She’s my family, too,” Mac murmured.
“Well, Doc, can I go now?” asked Kieran.
“Uhh,” Ian mumbled, looking at the numbers Dr. Evans wrote down. “Maybe. Will you promise to stay in bed until tomorrow morning?”
“Absolutment!” Kieran replied.
“And you promise not to do any hanky panky until I examine you tomorrow morning?” asked Ian.
“Ahh, do you mean hanky panky like kissing and cuddling or do you mean HANKY-PANKY like…” The rest of Kieran’s words were muffled by Logan’s hand.
“See? I told you, Kieran’s back to normal,” sniggered Colton.
“I mean no hanky-panky, period. I want you to sleep…cuddling and kissing will only lead to something more than that,” Ian said, looking sternly at the Shaman.
Looking dejectedly at his mate, Kieran replied, “You heard the Doc, macushla, there’ll be no hanky panky tonight.”
“That’s okay, babe. I promise I’ll make it up to you tomorrow,” Logan whispered.
Perking up, Kieran smiled broadly. “Does that mean I get to pick which mating ritual we’ll do?”
“Mating ritual?” asked Colton.
Logan’s face turned bright red and, ignoring his brother’s question, asked Ian, “Anything I should watch out for?”
“I can’t think of anything…his numbers are good and Kieran’s certainly back to his old self, so I don’t think there’ll be any problem. Just make sure he stays in bed,” Ian responded.
“Will do,” Logan said, scooping up his mate. Pausing for a moment before leaving the room, he turned to Mac. “I also owe you my thanks about Mom. Remember what I said…anything I can do for you, just ask.” Then, Logan tightened his hold on Kieran, smiling down at him as he left.
Mac watched them go, the love between them so palpable, it caused an ache in his heart.
Someday, I’m going to have that with my mate.
Lost in his dreams, he failed to hear Ian’s question and only when the room’s silence was broken by the sound of a throat being cleared, did Mac come back to the present—only to see Ian scowling at him. What the fuck did I ever do to him?
“Dr. Evans, may I please have the rest of her medical records?” asked Ian.
Oh, so that’s what he asked me. “Here,” Mac said, handing Ian three, very thick folders. “They start the day Aunt Hope arrived, but they don’t include today’s notes. I’ll have those ready for you tomorrow.”
“Thank you, I look forward to reading them. Colton, do you need help carrying your mom? Should I call Jackson?” asked Ian.
“I can help,” Mac offered.
“No, I have her,” said Colton, “and Ian can get the doors.” Moving next to his mother he wrapped her in a blanket, lifted her, and then, cradling her gently in his arms, turned toward the door.
“Ready?” asked Ian.
“Yeah, let’s go.”
Opening the bedroom door, Ian moved aside, clearing the way for Colton and his mom, then, looking once more at Mac, said, “I’ll expect your notes no later than nine o’clock tomorrow morning.”
“Not a problem,” said Mac, coolly. When the bedroom door was finally closed and Mac was alone, he sank down on the bed, shaking his head.
“I don’t fucking believe it…Dr. Ian Wallace…
here…with my cousins…fuck…mated to one of my cousins…
and pregnant. Holy fucking shit! Hunter isn’t going to believe this. ”
~/~/~/~/~
On his way to the motorhome, Jackson saw Ian holding the door open as Colton stepped onto the driveway with Hope in his arms. Meeting them halfway, he asked, “How’s Mom?”
“Still in a coma but her heartbeat is stronger and she’s breathing easier, so I’d say better than when she arrived,” replied Ian. “My plan is to get her into the ICU, let her rest tonight and then, tomorrow, if she hasn’t had a relapse, I can run some tests.”
“Sounds good,” Jackson said. “After you’re finished, do you both want to hear from Hunter about what she went through? I decided to restrict the meeting to immediate family and their mates instead of the whole pack.”
Glancing at Ian, Colton replied, “Yeah, I do, but first we have to get Mom settled and then we’ll see if we can both come or just one of us.”
“Fine, let me know as soon as possible. By the way, Theo laid out a great spread on the dining room table in case you guys are hungry,”
“Maybe later,” Ian said, after looking at his mate who was shaking his head.
“No problem. Shoot me a text when you decide who’s going to come to the meeting,” Jackson said, then continued on his way to see Hunter.
Looking out the window, Robin saw their cousin approaching. “Uhm, Hunt, I think you have a visitor.”
Twisting in his seat, Hunter inwardly groaned, spying a grim-faced Jackson.
“Mase, go to Quin and tell him I’ve agreed to his request. The rest of you, stay here while I see what our cousin wants.
” Rising, he quickly exited the motorhome, determined to intercept him as far away as possible so his brothers wouldn’t overhear their conversation.
Stopping and blocking Jackson’s way forward, Hunter asked, “Hey, all good with your brothers about Aunt Hope?”
“Not quite. Frankly, they…well me too, are having a hard time understanding how Mom escaped the fire and ended up across the country. Hunter, this has blindsided all of us and while we’re now sure she is our mother…shit…well, we need some answers.”
“I expected as much,” replied Hunter. “My brothers and I will tell you everything we know, but all of it came from your mother so I can’t vouch for how accurate it is. She was pretty hysterical when she arrived.”
“Thanks, but I think it’s better if only you attend. I made arrangements for only my brothers and their mates to be there, so it’ll be private. As you can imagine, feelings are running pretty high against our uncle right now and I can’t risk one of them going after him,” explained Jackson.
“Where will this meeting be held?” Hunter asked, his anger rising to a low boil as he got the gist of what Jackson was proposing.
“In my study.”
“Uh-huh…so my brothers will be where, exactly, when I’m in with you, your brothers and their mates?”
“They can stay out here, in the motorhome,” Jackson replied.
“That’s some hospitality you got, Jackie,” Hunter said snidely. Then, forcing his anger down, knowing it wouldn’t help win his mate if he antagonized his mate’s Alpha, he asked, “What about my mate? When do I meet him?”
“After things are settled with my brothers,” responded Jackson, knowing his answer would piss off his cousin.
But he also was pissed off—pissed about why it took so long for his cousin to contact him, pissed he was never told the reason his cousins wanted to visit and pissed at the problem dumped in his lap about his cousin finding his Fated Mate in his pack.
Narrowing his eyes, Hunter’s agitation showed in the taut lines of his stance, growing stronger as he fought his wolf about the delay in meeting their mate.
Nothing good would come of it if he lost control now, but it was taking all his resolve to keep his animal under control.
“Jackie, he’s my Fated Mate. You can’t stop me from claiming him. The law is on my side.”
“I don’t intend to, but things are done differently in my pack. Here, your ‘mate’ has the right to reject his Fated Mate and I won’t have you using your Alpha power to force him if he’s unwilling.”
Hunter was incredulous at Jackson’s pronouncement. Reject me? Why would my mate reject me? He’d never heard of anything like that. “I don’t understand…the Fates decided we are perfect for each other and you…you think you have the right to defy them?”
“I’m not defying anyone. This is my pack and my rules. I will introduce you to your mate…but after I take care of my mother and brothers.”
Clenching his jaw, Hunter stared at his cousin, furious yet oddly proud of the Alpha Jackie had grown up to be.
He knew Aunt Hope would be proud of him also if she ever woke up.
Trying to put himself in Jackson’s place, Hunter imagined how his brothers would feel if the tables were turned and they just found out their mother was alive after years of thinking she was dead.
Hunter wasn’t sure he would measure up to how well Jackie was handling it—and that was fueling his anger.
He couldn’t fault his cousin; putting his mother first, and then his brothers should be Jackie’s priority—and it was.
Struggling to overcome his frustration, Hunter pulled back his wolf.
Then, gritting his teeth, said, “Fine, I’ll do it your way… for now.”
“Thanks. I really appreciate your cooperation, Hunter,” Jackson said calmly.
Hunter waved off Jackson, and headed back to the motorhome, thinking of how he was going to tell his brothers about this latest turn of events.
~/~/~/~/~
Arriving at his hoard, Fionn set about making a bed from piles of gold coins, trying it out several times before he got it right.
Smiling as he unpacked his bag, he knew a couple of nights sleeping with his gold would recharge his dragon, making both of them happy.
What a colossal fuck-up. He dragged a solid gold table over to his makeshift bed, arranging his sketchpad and charcoal pencils on it, along with his supply of food.
I don’t understand why the fucking cousins kept it a secret and, if I were Logan, boy would I be pissed.
I wonder how Ki feels about it…happy for Logan probably.
I don’t blame him…not really…if I were him, I’d be overjoyed finding out my mother was alive.
So why didn’t it happen to me? Why couldn’t my mother survive? Why did the Fates leave me all alone?
Flopping down on his bed of coins, he stared up at the solid rock ceiling, relishing in the safety it gave him.
The last time he felt this way was when his mother was alive—before he knew what was special about his dragon—and before he killed his father.
But here, finally, he felt the long-lost security he once had, because here no one could find him, so he didn’t have to worry about some asshole trying to kill him.
As he let out a held breath, he realized how much he’d been warped by his father’s and uncle’s efforts—they’d kept him and his dragon on edge until it was the new normal.
Now, in the quiet of his subterranean hoard, Fionn finally understood how it had changed his personality.
Realizing how disappointed his mother would be at the brat he’d become, tears began to veil his eyes.