Chapter Sixty-Three #2
“You never could handle doing what needed to be done,” Father spat at him. “Your brother Jem understood, but you, both of you—such disappointments. But I suppose you’ll have to do now. For the family.”
Asher huffed a laugh. “You’re joking. We’re not back here to be your minions.
I always tried to keep things copacetic, and all that happened was you nearly killed my brother.
” He slung an arm around Zinn. “Heck, you actually did kill one of my brothers. Jem never would have turned out to be such an asshole if you hadn’t encouraged him. ”
Daddy let out a soft cry and Zinn put a hand on Asher’s forearm. “We don’t need to drive the knife,” he said quietly. “They’ve lost their son. It’s enough that they can’t control us anymore.”
Asher nodded before turning to look at Father again. “I’m glad I had enough of a spine to defy you when it came to the baby. Thank the stars I did that at least.”
“What do you mean?”
“I knew exactly who the agency gave my brother’s child to. I chose the adoptive parents.” Zinn noticed Asher did not expose Antoni’s role in the scheme.
Father’s face turned bright red, like a vein had popped in his forehead.
But Daddy’s gaze was trained on Ryde. The boy stood in the middle of their pack, wide-eyed and curious, with Assa’s hands on his shoulders. Like the others, he remained silent, letting Zinn, Asher, and Valentin take the lead.
“That’s him?” Daddy asked in a high-pitched whisper. “Your son.” His focus shifted to Valentin. “And yours.”
“Yes,” Zinn said. “This is Ryde. My son. And Valentin’s. And Wes’s and Assa’s and Calder’s.”
“What?” Daddy’s brows furrowed.
“These four men—” Zinn motioned to each of them “—are my partners. And the boys are our children.”
“You’re…together?” Daddy sank back on the couch. “All of you?”
“I realize you’re very traditional but I’m confident you’ve heard of polyamory.”
Father stood, looming over Zinn. “This will not do.”
Zinn laughed, feeling a wave of awareness that he was free. “You don’t get a vote.”
“No. Absolutely not. If anyone found out.” Father’s fists clenched.
He leaned toward Zinn but was cowed by Calder’s immediate forward movement. “I’ve been quiet to this point,” Calder growled. “But if you even hint at trying to intimidate Zinn, I will make sure it’s the last thing you do.”
Father was brash, but not stupid. Calder was the largest man in the room.
“You needn’t worry about your precious reputation,” Zinn said, placing a placating palm on Calder’s wrist. “I’m not here to make your lives harder.
Your unconventional son need not become public knowledge because no one is going to connect Zinn Rosen of Bellwether Province to Zeller Parkenson of Warburton unless you send them looking.
Our friends who know the truth won’t expose it, and even with Asher and me back in each other’s lives, no one else has put it together.
Because no one cares—unless you give them a reason to. ”
Daddy’s eyes returned to Ryde. Hello, he mouthed. Ryde shyly buried his head in Valentin’s hip. Then Daddy looked at Lachie in Wes’s arms.
“Can you…introduce us to your family? Please.”
Father sat back down. “Deveron, you can’t possibly be entertaining this…this…depravity.”
Daddy patted his thigh. “Please, my love. I just want to meet them.” His gaze fell on Zinn. “This is the last time we’ll see you?” His voice was barely audible.
Zinn studied his omega father. The sharp perception in his features. “Yes,” he replied. “I think you can guess why we’re here.”
Daddy nodded, his eyes teary.
“What are you talking about?” Father sputtered. “Obviously they’re here because Jem’s gone. Someone needs to take over as my heir. Asher is a beta, but he can still marry well and—”
“We’re not staying, Father,” Asher interrupted. “I told you.”
“Then why come back at all!?” Father bellowed, standing again.
“After you blew everything apart leaving the first time! You realize Jem was okay before Zeller turned twenty-five? Then you both left, and he turned sullen. Drinking. Cheating. Embarrassing himself in public. His whole life, he’d done what we’d asked him to do, but after you defied us, it was like he realized… ”
“He hated us for it,” Daddy mumbled to no one in particular. “Resented us for choosing an incompatible omega. He was so…out of control. In the end.”
“And now he’s dead!” Father shouted. “He’s gone, and one of you needs to step up. Someone has to carry on the Parkenson legacy.”
Zinn eyed Asher, recognizing they both had mixed feelings about Jem. He hadn’t been a good man, but he’d been their big brother. And he’d carried the heaviest burden of their parents’ expectations.
Asher opened his mouth to speak but Zinn stayed him with a hand to the shoulder.
“No, Father. You can’t pin this on us. We are very sorry Jem is gone, but we’re not responsible for what happened to him.
And we’re not staying.” He looked at Daddy.
“But I will introduce you to my family. As long as you understand, it’s hello and goodbye. ”
Daddy nodded as Father rolled his lips inward. “At least we have Jem’s omega brats,” he hissed. “I don’t love the idea of having to wait to turn my legacy over to one of their husbands, but at least that will allow us time to plan.”
“No,” Zinn said. “That won’t be happening either.” He glanced at Daddy. “You understand?”
“That you’re here for Lanni and Bevin? Yes.”
“Good.”
“Wait—what?” Father stammered.
Zinn and Asher ignored him.
Zinn took Lachie from Wes and placed him on Daddy’s lap. The baby calmed, the effect of sharing the omega bond with his grandfather. “This is Lachie,” Zinn said.
Daddy gave Lachie a reverent kiss on the head. Tears slipped from his eyes as Zinn brought forward the other boys. “This is Ryde, Jordie, and Ked.”
The older boys shook Daddy’s hand as Father glared at them, arms folded.
Your loss, Zinn thought. Foolish, prideful old man.
Asher gestured to Antoni, who hung back in the doorway. “Can you please take the children to another room to watch TV?” Asher asked him. “They’ve had enough grandparent time for the day, I think.”
“Of course.”
Jordie gathered Lachie from Deveron and followed Antoni out of the room with his brothers.
“They’re beautiful children,” Daddy whispered.
“They are,” Zinn said. He introduced Calder, Wes, and Assa to his parents. Daddy shook each of their hands and said hello. Father remained stone-faced.
Zinn bit back the powerful urge to roll his eyes. It was almost comical how afraid he used to be of this small, petty man.
“We need to talk about Lanni and Bevin,” Asher said as the men pulled chairs from a nearby table so they could sit in a circle. “I’m taking them back to Bellwether with me. Zinn will help, but I want custody.”
Father’s mouth gaped and he shook his head. “No chance. Those boys are staying right here until your daddy and I can provide for their future.”
“Like you did for me?” Zinn asked angrily. “No. They will not be chess pieces on your board. They’re coming home with us.”
“You two are delusional! You can’t just disappear for three years and then demand to take away our grandchildren, our only connection to Jem,” Father thundered. “I’m shocked you thought we’d agree.”
“We didn’t think you’d agree,” Asher said neutrally. “Which is why this isn’t a request.”
“You can either give us the boys, or we’ll take you to Low Court and get custody,” Zinn said.
“And we will make sure the case is very public.
If you force our hand, you can expect the media and all your friends in government to find out that you forced me to have my appendix removed, had Valentin imprisoned, and that your omega son is currently living in a polycule.
Trying to convince people I have some sort of mental condition isn't going to work, not when I have my whole family behind me.”
“Or you can simply surrender custody, and no one will know,” Asher reasoned. “We’ll go back to Bellwether quietly, and you can tell people whatever you want.”
“What makes you think we’d allow the case to go to court? I can make sure you’d lose before it got that far. And that things stayed quiet,” Father challenged.
“We are aware that you are very scary and powerful and all that bullshit. It’s been, like, a theme of our lives,” Zinn said dryly. “But our lawyer is also influential. And very famous. If he took on this case, it would attract a lot of attention.”
“Who?”
“Teal McGinn.”
The pulse in Father’s neck jumped.
“Figures,” he sneered. “That you’d be friends with that upstart omega and his perverted family.”
But Daddy looked almost awestruck. “How do you know Teal McGinn?” he asked.
“Our son Jordie dates his son Kino,” Calder said.
Father looked at Calder as though seeing him through fresh eyes. “Who are you? What kind of alpha shares his omega with other men, not to mention another alpha?”
Rather than take his words as the blow they were intended to be, Calder looked at Keyes with pity.
“I was a grieving widower, and now I have more love than I ever imagined. What kind of father sees his son for the first time in almost four years and treats him like a stranger? You haven’t even asked where he’s been or how we came to be a family. ”
“I want to know,” Daddy chimed in mutedly. “I want to hear everything. We were just surprised when you came in, with Valentin, and…all of you.” He clasped his hands in his lap. “I want to know how you found your baby…Ryde.” He looked at Zinn. “You seem happy.”
Zinn’s heart squeezed at the dejection in his omega father’s voice. At least he’d admitted Zeller had given birth. It was something.
Father looked at Daddy in disbelief. “No! We’re not going to make nice.
” He scowled at Zinn. “You’ve come to our house, after our son just died, to tell us you’re stealing our grandsons and then you and Asher are never coming back again.
You ran away.” He gritted his teeth. “You should have stayed gone! Not waltzed back in here and shown us how lewd you are. How far you’ve fallen. ”