Chapter 42 Time to Act #2
I linger on his words, trying not to think about how he is going with Maddox to my old pack.
I know deep in my mind that no one would simply attack Felix.
Elden would never send him there if his life was truly on the line, and I also know that one of his brothers undertook a much more dangerous mission when he was of a similar age.
It still doesn’t put my mind at ease.
And I know that Charlie is similarly worried for Maddox’s safety. I guess her concerns are much more valid because Maddox is at the mercy of his father and pack, while Felix is just a random visitor.
“Maddox announced my visit already,” Felix tells me. “He and Liam worked all day yesterday on a plan. Funny, after his initial wariness towards Liam, he seems to get along very well with him all of a sudden.”
“Interesting,” I admit. “Maddox is very reserved. I guess, looking back at the situation now, he was never involved with any group. Just the kids of ranked members naturally flocked to him.”
“But he was no one’s friend,” Felix says quietly. “I get that feeling. I can’t say I really like the guy, but I guess I understand part of him.”
“You don’t like him?” I ask. “I thought you would be the type of person to give everyone a proper chance.”
“Sure, I am giving him a chance,” Felix says. “And he is Charlie’s mate, so obviously, I will give it a real effort, but he wasn’t great to you, so… it’s personal.”
I smile. “It’s okay,” I reassure him. “Without him, I might have never met you.”
Felix returns my smile. “If you put it like that…”
“So, the plan?”
“I will join Maddox today and visit his pack, being my usual self. No one ever suspects me of something shady. They never have; they don’t think I have it in me.”
“They don’t know you as well as I do.”
“So, I have a shady side to me?” he asks with a grin.
“Not really shady, but you have a side to you that is ready to take risks and protect your family.”
His eyes light up at my words, and he looks happy. I meant what I said. Felix does not have one bad bone in his body, but that doesn’t mean he isn’t ready to do what needs to be done to keep his loved ones safe. And that’s seriously hot!
It’s also the reason I am not complaining too much about his mission. I know he needs to do it; he wants to prove himself, and now with Maddox being mated to Charlie, it’s even more important that the guy gets out of this safely.
“It’s good that Annie invited me over,” I say. “Perfect timing.”
“I guess she did it on purpose,” Felix admits. “The timing is too perfect.”
“I know,” I chuckle. “But it’s really the perfect way to keep me distracted.”
Felix reaches out his hand and squeezes my knee.
“I will be careful,” he says. “I am not staying there for more than two days. It would be suspicious if I stayed too long anyway. Dad and Maddox agreed on Maddox inviting me over on short notice. They won’t have time to check on me properly.
I am taking them by surprise that way.” He pauses. “Please trust me.”
There is something vulnerable in his tone when he says the last words. He is used to people underestimating him and thinking he can’t do much.
“I trust you,” I say firmly. “I know you will rock this.”
“Really?”
“Yes,” I say, definitely. “I am not lying. I am very anxious about you going there, even if it’s just for a couple of days, but from what I know, my former alpha has always been too cautious to directly go against his own pack members, so I don’t think your life is in danger.
Daniel said he just didn’t protect them, and he swept scandals under the rug, like he did with Marina.
” I pause. “I know this needs to end. When are you coming back?”
“Tomorrow evening,” he says. “Maddox is officially working on a college project right now, so, it makes sense for him to take me back to his pack for additional work. We are going to pretend to work together for said project.”
“Yeah, it’s a good cover,” I agree.
“I will message you when I am there,” he reassures me. “It’s not like I need to get rid of my phone. The more normal I act, the better.” He grins. “They don’t need to know who my mate is, just that I want to call her.”
“Can you-“ I shift around anxiously, not wanting to endanger him with my request.
“What do you want me to do?”
“Could you subtly check on Daniel and Evelyn?” I ask.
“Oh, of course. Maddox said that Daniel is in on it anyway, or he wouldn’t have been able to come up with a convincing cover. I will have Maddox ask him about Evelyn.”
“Does Daniel know I have found my mate?”
“No. We decided for now it’s safer that everything remains hidden.”
I nod. “Makes sense. Once everything is dealt with, I will officially introduce you to him.”
Felix steers his car past the guards at the entrance of the pack, alerting me that we are reaching our destination: Red Claw pack – the pack Liam and Annie lead. I watch in awe as we pass through the pack grounds. “This place is beautiful!”
“Annie and Liam put a lot of work into it,” Felix says. “You should have seen how run-down it was when they took over. Now, they pushed it to Silverlake standards. Plus, the pack is constantly growing. Lycans from Europe who migrate here usually join his pack.”
“Man, this is amazing,” I mutter.
“Liam is very talented,” he explains. “Dad always says he is a born leader.”
He is right. To pull something off of this magnitude, he has to be incredible. “Your parents had to be bummed that he didn’t take over Silverlake.”
“Hm, at first they were,” he says. “But Dad keeps saying that Red Claw was Liam’s calling, and that they needed him and Annie more than Silverlake does. Besides, now Aurelia has stepped up, and she has turned out to be a fantastic leader.”
“Yeah, she is amazing. I haven't known her for a long time, but I can tell as much already.” I smile. “Good thing your parents have so many talented kids. Actually, all of you are.”
Felix looks flustered at my comment, but also happy. I am glad he doesn’t rebuff my words. Two weeks ago, he would have still insisted he can’t do much and that his siblings are much better.
“Oh, look, there is Ella. She is already expecting us.”
“Ella?” I ask.
“Charlie’s aunt, or rather, her mom,” Felix explains. “She is also Annie’s best friend and her beta.”
“Oh! I am so happy to meet her. Will Charlie join us?”
“No, Charlie is hanging out with Dario and Gisela and two of their other friends. They are going to distract her.”
I‘ll bet Dario needs some distraction too, as he is probably very worried for Felix, but I don’t say that out loud.
I might not have known Felix for long, but I am well aware that he hates troubling his loved ones.
Dario knows it too, which is why instead of voicing his concerns, he built Felix’s confidence up instead.
He is the reason I am trying to do the same.
I want Felix to go into this mission full of confidence, knowing I trust him and have faith in him.
Before I can climb out of the car, I grab Felix’s face and kiss him. “You will be awesome.”
I then watch him as he heads back to Red Claw to collect Maddox for their trip to Verdant Forest.