Chapter 38
It was early evening, and most family members and Jude’s team were back at the house.
Jude had been the one to give the news to Danielle and Charlotte that the Leons were no longer a threat.
He’d advised everybody who was aware of the strike against the Leons not to switch on the television where any of the Gallagher family or the three pack members who lived on the estate could see or hear the news.
While they couldn’t keep the news of an ICE shooting in San Rafael a secret from the residents of the estate, it was best not to talk about the incident or reference it in conversations.
Grant had done a very good job filming the assault so that it was virtually impossible to make out anyone’s identity.
The video was shaky, and the angle from which he’d shot it didn’t capture anyone’s face enough to identify them.
The helmets, head coverings, sunglasses, and face masks had done their part to disguise them sufficiently.
Only somebody who was intimately familiar with them might see some similarities in their gait and silhouette, but even then, a positive identification wasn’t possible.
Recording Ransom’s voice had been a concern because anybody who knew him would be able to recognize it; however, Francisco had altered it on the video Grant had shot, and Byron had to admit that the voice on the clip the media were playing sounded nothing like Ransom’s.
Once the bodies were identified as Bruno, Hector, and Steve Leon, their pack would certainly be suspicious, but since the manner of their deaths didn’t point to any supernatural creature and had been captured on video, they had no reason to believe that the Gallagher pack was involved.
Considering that ICE officers around the country had been involved in very similar incidents that resulted in several deaths, the entire scenario was believable—even more so because the three dead men were armed and played into the administration’s narrative that ICE was only after hardened criminals.
Byron was in his room when Tim, the bounty hunter who had found critical information on the Leons, finally called.
“Hey,” he answered. “What do you have for me?”
“The news has made it to San Bernardino. A local channel picked it up, and judging by the comings and goings at the Leon Estate, they’ve seen the news and recognized their people. You want me to stay down here and continue to watch them?”
“No. That won’t be necessary. Thank you, Tim. I really appreciate you going the extra mile.”
“Don’t mention it. I’m glad I could do something for the family.”
“I owe you.”
He disconnected the call. He knew he could trust Tim. He didn’t know all the details of what had gone down, but he was absolutely loyal.
Byron took a deep breath. Despite eliminating the threat from the Leons, he wasn’t done yet.
Two more things weighed him down. Both of them had to be dealt with.
And his family wouldn’t appreciate either one of them.
They would call him a traitor. However, they didn’t understand that both of them would strengthen, not weaken, the family and make sure that should they have to face another threat like the one from the Leon pack, they would have everything they needed to defend themselves.
Before his courage could desert him, he texted Jude to find out where he was.
In my office, came the reply.
See u in a sec, he texted back.
He left his room and went downstairs. The house was buzzing like a beehive as always around this time. Priscilla was busy preparing dinner, and somebody could be heard setting the table in the dining room, while Flora ordered somebody around.
Byron knocked at the door to Jude’s office. When he heard Jude invite him in, he opened the door and entered. To his surprise, Jude wasn’t alone. His father was present.
“Oh, hey, if you’re busy, I can wait,” Byron said.
He’d hoped to speak to Jude alone to test the waters, but maybe this was a sign that he might as well speak to James, since he would have a say in the matter too.
“You’re not disturbing,” Jude assured him.
“Well, then I guess I might as well come out with it right away,” he said, hesitating.
“Is there a problem?” Jude asked, while James raised an eyebrow.
“No, not a problem. More a question, or a request, or whatever you wanna call it.”
Damn, he was still stalling. This shouldn’t be so hard. He cleared his throat.
“I’d like to become a member of the Werewolf Alliance, you know, with everything, the tattoo, the oath…”
It was finally out. He was officially betraying his family by joining the enemy. Yet he didn’t even feel guilty about it.
Jude and James stared at him, their mouths gaping open for longer than a second. James looked him up and down, then glanced briefly at Jude before looking straight at him again.
“If you think that’s how you’re gonna get my permission to be with Charlotte, you might as well leave now before I kick your ass.”
Stunned by his response, Byron filled his lungs with air. “This isn’t about Charlotte. It has nothing to do with her.”
“Are you saying you don’t want her anymore?” James shot back.
“I’m not saying that at all,” he pressed out. “Let’s be honest for one minute. Neither you nor I has any influence on what Charlotte wants or does.”
“He’s got a point, Dad,” Jude said with a half-smirk.
James scoffed, but didn’t reply to Jude. “Hmm. Considering that your investigation into the Leons exposed them as utterly unsuitable to join the Werewolf Alliance, I’ll bring your request in front of the elders.”
“Thank you,” Byron replied, relieved by the sudden turn in the conversation.
“I guess you’re not like your father after all,” James added.
“No. I’m not like him, nor like Cameron.”
“Good. Well, I’ve been called back to Montana to deal with the fallout of the Leon alpha and his two family members being shot dead by some rogue ICE agents. I don’t have much hope that the perpetrators will ever be found.”
Jude and his father exchanged looks, which could only mean one thing: they’d come to an agreement. James Beaumont would keep their secret.
“Well, I’d better check on your mother to see if she’s done packing.” He took a step toward the door. “I wasn’t able to convince Charlotte to accompany us back to Montana. I hope you don’t mind if she stays a little while longer.”
Relief washed over him. He still had a chance to make things right with Charlotte.
“Mason will drive you to the airfield when you and Mom are ready,” Jude replied, before James left the office and shut the door behind him.
There was silence for a few seconds.
“I thought at first he’d rip my head off for even asking,” Byron said.
Jude chuckled unexpectedly. “He would have if you’d said that you’re doing this for Charlotte.”
“He doesn’t like me much, does he?”
“He takes a long time to warm up to somebody. He’s still only tolerating Danielle, but I hope once he finds out about the baby, he’ll finally embrace her.”
“Danielle is pregnant?”
“We haven’t told anybody yet. I’m only telling you because I want you to know that you didn’t only save Danielle and Charlotte from a horrible fate, but also our child.”
Byron shook his head. “Even though you knew that, why the fuck didn’t you accept my offer to kill the Leons by myself?”
“Because it was a suicide mission.” Jude clicked his tongue. “Though I did appreciate your offer. It showed me that you are family. Brothers?”
Jude extended his hand, and Byron shook it without hesitation.
“Brothers.”