Chapter 18
ROWAN
Sitting down to breakfast with Iris and my father isn’t something I ever imagined. Honestly, if someone told me a month ago that this would happen, I’d have assumed they’d slipped me one of Iris’s experimental teas. Even now, I’m not convinced I’m fully awake.
Across the table, Iris and Marius eye each other with a level of contempt normally reserved for political coups or burned cookies.
The tension between them crackles like static, and every so often, one of them makes a noise—an offended sniff from her, a low grumble from him—followed by an awkward silence so thick Liz has attempted to fill it three separate times.
Though I’m pretty sure we’re all quietly impressed that Marius has managed to shut Iris up.
She stares at my father like he’s a stranger who just insulted her favorite coffee cup.
I know she hasn’t seen him in years, but it’s not like she hadn’t realized he was in love with her daughter.
And Iris Prescott absolutely did her research—she would’ve run background checks, interviewed the moon, and bribed the wind if it helped her get answers about my mother.
That much I’ve learned about her already.
I poke at my eggs with a fork. I only requested them to make Cade happy, but the sight of them makes my stomach churn.
I skipped dinner last night, but exhaustion is still dragging at my bones hard enough that food feels like an abstract concept I’m not entirely convinced exists.
If I could sleep for a full day without worrying about the world falling apart, I would.
Unfortunately, the world has zero respect for personal boundaries.
Elias enters the dining room abruptly, his deep voice booming enough to startle Archie, who stiffens, then puffs up like a bristled mop and mutters something about “unnecessary dramatics” before closing his eyes again.
“We found one of the council members,” Elias announces.
Cade’s chair scrapes the floor as he stands. “Who?”
“Bram. From Stoneclaw. But he’s in Riverstone territory.” Elias squints like he’s still not convinced of the information he’s sharing.
Before he can proceed with the meat of the story that I’m sure is coming, Cade cuts in, glancing at Marius, then back at Elias. “Who is Bram, and why is he on the council instead of Gabriel?”
Oh, right. Iris had previously told me that Marius’s dad, and by extension…my grandfather, is the alpha of that pack. Hell, if he’s about to tell Marius that his father is dead…
I brace for the bad news, but instead, Elias says, “Gabriel stepped down about six months ago. He was concerned with his mind and age, but I’m assuming we can blame Malrik for that. Either way, Bram is the new alpha, and he entered Riverstone without permission, and it seems he’s…hunting.”
“For what?” I ask because Cade has gone very still beside me, thinking far too hard for this early in the morning.
Elias glances between the two of us. “The other surviving alpha.”
Liz snorts. “Isn’t that a good thing? We want them all gone.”
It’s Marius who answers next, voice low and steady. “Not Bram.” His eyes flick between Cade and Elias. “I don’t know what he’s doing now, but my father made the right choice giving him the position in my absence. Bram wouldn’t side with Malrik. Not willingly.”
Iris folds her hands primly on the table and gives him a look that could sour milk. “How would you know that? You abandoned your people decades ago.”
My mouth drops open at her disrespect, which seems harsher than normal.
Cade’s alpha command snaps across the room like a whip. “Enough, Iris.”
His power rises—warm, electric, the kind that makes the tiny hairs on my arms stand at full attention. It’s ridiculously sexy, something my wolf practically hums over.
“You’re not one of us,” Cade continues, sharp but controlled. “You don’t get to judge him. And you sure as hell don’t get to insult Rowan’s father in front of her, especially when he’s the reason she’s with us right now.”
The silence that follows is absolute.
Then Iris stands, flinging her napkin onto the floor like she’s declaring war.
“Right. Like this isn’t my house and you’re suddenly in charge.” Her voice wobbles between indignation and something almost wounded. “Fantastic breakfast reunion. You all have fun. I’ll be in the basement.”
She marches out, and the room stays frozen for two full heartbeats after the door swings closed.
My eyebrows creep up. “Okay, what the hell was that? And also—who was that? Because it wasn’t Iris.”
Liz nods slowly. “Yeah, no. Our Iris is chaotic, sure, but she’s not—” She gestures vaguely as she stands. “That. I’ll go talk to her.”
I consider joining her, but I have no desire to right now. I’d rather make sure Marius is okay.
“How about the two of you go sort out your alpha business?” I suggest to Cade. “I’ll be okay with Marius and Archie.”
Cade studies me like he’s checking for cracks—irregular breathing patterns, micro-expressions, any hint that I’m pretending to be fine when I’m not. For a second, I’m certain he’s going to refuse my suggestion. And honestly? I wouldn’t blame him.
But then Cade leans in and presses a slow, grounding kiss to my lips. “I won’t be far.”
Warmth settles through me, steady and sure. I press a hand to his chest, right over his heartbeat. “See you soon.”
His eyes soften, then he gives a curt nod and heads toward Elias, still standing near the doorway. Halfway there, Cade pauses and glances back at my father.
“I believe you about Bram,” he says. “I’ve only spoken with him a few times, but if I’m right about what he’s doing, it’s not going to be a problem for us.”
Marius stays seated. “No,” he agrees quietly, confidence threaded through the words. “I don’t imagine it will be.”
Cade and Elias leave, and for the first time since the cave, I’m left alone with my dad. Well, sort of.
Archie is still curled in my lap, a warm, snoring loaf of fur. He only startled awake long enough to register Elias’s sudden entrance, then fell straight back to sleep. I run my fingers down his belly, reassuring myself that he’s okay with the easy rise and fall of his breathing.
He spent days in his Great-Dane-sized form searching for me. He pushed past every limit he had to find me. He shouldn’t have had to, but I’m undoubtedly grateful he tried.
“He’ll be okay,” Marius says with quiet certainty.
“I’ve known a few of his kind. They’re sturdier than they look.
” Then a small smile curves his lips. “It’s interesting, seeing you with him.
I remember when Iris gave him to your mother.
” His eyes warm, nostalgia dimming the present for a beat.
“She thought a ferret could replace what Jocelyn and I had.” A soft huff.
“She was wrong, of course. But I think it worked out. He was meant for you.”
I trace a thumb along Archie’s side, feeling the familiar texture of his brown fur and the warmth beneath. “Yeah,” I murmur. “I think so, too. I can’t imagine my life without him.”
Marius clears his throat, the sound low and hesitant enough to pull my gaze up.
“I’m sorry if I startled you with my reaction when I found you in the woods,” he says. “I was certain I was following your mother’s scent.” His voice breaks a little as he lays a hand over his chest. “Even now, I swear I still feel her.”
I tilt my head. “Feel her? How?”
As far as I’ve been told, my parents weren’t mates, so this definitely falls under the Rowan Didn’t Get the Manual category of wolf-people facts.
Marius lifts one shoulder in a quiet shrug, the lines around his eyes deepening with something that looks like memory and loss.
“It’s been that way since she became pregnant with you.
Like a thread I could sense but never pull.
I think that’s how I honored her request to stay away.
” He huffs softly. “A poor consolation prize, but it was better than being cut off entirely from her.”
My chest tightens. “I still don’t understand why she kept you away. You could have protected us.”
His smile is small, sad, but sincere. “She thought she was protecting me, too. Jocelyn didn’t want my wolf to be without a pack. And she wouldn’t believe me when I said it didn’t matter.” His gaze drops to the table. “Even my wolf didn’t want anyone else after she was gone.”
A quiet, aching truth settles between us.
That’s hands-down the most heartbreaking thing I’ve ever heard. Even Archie makes a soft grumble in his sleep, like he agrees.
“I’m sorry,” I say, and the words feel too small. “I wish things had been different. That we’d all been able to stay together.”
“Your mother wanted you to have the life she never could,” he says gently. There’s no bitterness, no edge to it—just understanding. “She never wanted you to feel trapped the way she did.”
The frustrating part is, after that first day, I haven’t felt stuck at NightShade. Not really. The life I’ve found here—the people I’ve met—it’s become the home I thought I might never have again.
Marius seems to read that right off my face. “Don’t think differently of her, Rowan. None of us knows who we might’ve become if she’d chosen another path. She did what she believed was right.”
He’s right, and I know it. None of us can change the past, and I won’t ever love my mom less for it. It’s not hard to believe she did the best she could with the situation she was put into. I know that now, just as I always have.
“Thank you for coming back here with us,” I say softly. “I know Iris isn’t…easy.” Understatement of the century. “But maybe she’ll grow on you like she did on me.”
His dark eyes flick toward the hallway where Iris disappeared. “Something is off with her,” he says, brows knitting. “More than usual.”
A humorless laugh slips out of me. “You’re not wrong.”
But dread curls low in my stomach.
“Let’s hope it’s just stress,” I mutter, then silently add, please let there not be any other problems to contend with.
Cade and the council, plus Malrik are more than enough.
A soft knock taps against the dining room threshold. I look up to find Stephanie entering, hands clasped behind her back like she’s not sure if she’s allowed to enter.
That alone is strange.
What is wrong with everyone around here?
The last time I saw her in this very space, she was cryptic and almost aggressive with her words. I’m not sure what to do now, but Cade mentioned something about her gathering pack help for us, so I try not to judge.
“Well, hello there.” Her gaze sweeps the room, from Archie in my lap to Marius, then finally lands back on me. There’s a shift in her face—caution, curiosity, something almost like…respect. “You look different.” She points to my eyes. “What’s going on there?”
Right. Those. The blue-green coloring is now haloed with threads of gold and violet, while silver and brown also weave their way through. According to Cade, my wolf form eyes are even more interesting.
“Fate,” I say, deadpan.
Stephanie chuckles. “Yeah, that tracks.” She darts another glance toward Marius. “You must be the long-lost daddy.”
“Must be,” he replies, clipped and unimpressed.
The dryness in his tone makes me snort into my coffee. I wonder if all alphas are required to take the same class on Brooding and Intimidation 101.
“Great. Another one.” Stephanie drags a hand down her jeans, then studies me with the intensity of someone trying to decide if they’re admiring a masterpiece or checking for hidden explosives.
“Look, I hope whatever’s changed in you ends up being for the betterment of everyone.
Not the destruction. I went out on a limb for Cade—brought some of our people here. I’d prefer not to regret it.”
Marius stiffens beside me, but I lift a hand to stop him.
“Stephanie,” I say lightly, “if I wanted to ‘destroy’ the supernatural world like the prophecy suggests, do you honestly think step one on my villain agenda would’ve been eating at an awkward family breakfast?”
Her mouth twitches. “I mean, yeah, fair point.”
Still, she keeps staring, like she’s weighing every rumor she’s heard against the evidence in front of her. I get the impression this woman forms her own opinions, and no force on earth—supernatural or otherwise—is going to sway her once she has one.
“Right, well,” she says, rocking back on her four-inch heels, “since Cade’s busy, I came to tell you the witch he requested will be here tonight.”
“Witch?” My brows pinch. “For what?”
Her smirk widens like she’s been waiting all morning to drop this bomb. “For you. Did you really think your mate—who is also an alpha—was going to tolerate you being unable to shift without your clothes returning?”
Oh, right. That. I’ve actually been hoping for one of those tattoos and to never be seen in another pink muumuu.
“Of course,” I say with forced confidence. “Do I need to know anything ahead of time?”
Her eyes brighten with pure mischief.
“Bring something to bite down on.” Then she pauses, snapping her fingers. “Actually? Ask Cade to borrow his arm. His bones should be strong enough.”
I blink at her. “I’m sorry. What?”
But she’s already spinning on her heel and disappearing out the door with a little hum, as if she didn’t just threaten me with magical torture.
I stare after her, then slowly turn to Marius.
“What exactly did she mean by that?”
He sighs, folding his arms. “Supernaturals don’t use normal ink for spell markings. Essentially, the witch is going to brand the magic into your skin. Hot enough to sear an incantation straight through the flesh.”
I close my eyes.
Well, lucky me.