Chapter 3 Sam
three
Sam
“You know I appreciate what you and your pack did, Sam, but I’m not going anywhere.” Dad stares at me, his arms crossed over his chest.
After Jo introduced her blood-stained self to my dad, we moved the bodies out of sight, called Declan for cleanup, and went inside Dad’s house. He’s now pouring himself a cup of coffee like nothing in the last thirty minutes has happened.
The guys and Jo are waiting in the living room while I try to convince my dad that he needs to come with us.
“Dad.” I run my hand over my face in frustration.
If we don’t get out of here fast, Xavier will figure out what went down and send more men our way—we’ll be sitting ducks.
“He’s trying to use you to blackmail us.
More men will be here as soon as he figures out his old guys are dead.
He might just come right out and kill you as a punishment for double crossing him. You need to come with us.”
“And where exactly will you take me that this…Xavier fellow can’t reach?” Dad grabs his coffee from the counter, taking a sip. He looks unshaken, but I can tell he’s on edge just by the fact he’s having coffee at four in the afternoon.
“Can I interrupt?” Jo’s sweet drawl comes from the kitchen entryway. She’s washed her hands in the bathroom, and her hair is now down and pulled over her shoulder.
“Please do,” Dad snorts, waving his hand at the coffeemaker. “Coffee?”
“That would be lovely.” Jo smiles, and Dad grabs a cup before pouring her some from the carafe.
This is one sight I never thought I’d see—Jo Harding and my dad sharing a cup of coffee in his kitchen.
Dad’s flannel does nothing to hide his bulky frame, the same one I inherited.
He’s always stressed the importance of being able to defend yourself, so it really shouldn’t surprise me that he’s kept himself in shape all these years.
“Any cream or sugar?” he asks, suddenly the perfect host.
“If it’s not too much trouble.”
“Ah, nothing’s trouble for you, Joey.” He doesn’t even seem to realize he’s adopted a nickname for her, and I brace myself for her reaction.
Her expression freezes for a moment, and…fuck, she would’t kill him, would she?
No, of course she wouldn’t. But…still.
When her face lights up like someone just handed her a puppy, and a genuine smile fills her face, my shoulders relax a little. “That’s mighty sweet of you, Ozzy. I’ll take just a little bit of each, please.”
Dad arches a brow at her as he fixes the coffee how she asked. “Ozzy?”
“I’ve been workshoppin’ it, since you don’t like your full name, and that’s a subject I take very seriously.” She grins, sitting at the small round kitchen table before pointing at me. “I already got Sam, or Sammy-boy. So I figured Original Sam—O.S.. Os…Ozzy.”
His brows furrow as he thinks it over. Placing the coffee on the table in front of her, he seems to reach a decision, because he gives a small smile. “Most just call me Wright, but I think Ozzy suits me.”
An incredulous laugh escapes me as I shake my head. It’s like I’ve wandered into the Twilight Zone. The two people in the world who are the most touchy about their names have just assigned each other their own nicknames.
“What are you laughin’ at, Sammy-boy? You said your daddy would love me, and you were right.” She gives me a smug grin.
“Yeah, yeah, Trouble. Let’s inform Ozzy why he should come with us, okay?”
Dad shakes his head, pointing a finger at Jo. “Only she gets to call me that.”
Jo suppresses a smirk. Then switches to all business as she turns to my dad. “Do you know much about the mafia families in New York?”
Dad grimaces. “A fair bit, yeah.”
“My biological father was Cian Gallagher. My brother is Declan Gallagher. Which means, I am directly tied to the Irish mafia. We’re stayin’ at his compound, and Xavier won’t go near it. This is both what’s protectin’ us, and what’s puttin’ us in danger.”
He tilts his head. “Explain.”
“When we escaped from Thornfield—because no, Xavier did not lie about that when he came to see you—we freed all the omegas they had kidnapped, but we also took a prisoner. A scientist who has exclusive knowledge regardin’ a drug Xavier is tryin’ to develop.
A drug that has the potential to completely nullify designations.
My brother has that scientist in his custody, and Xavier wants him back.
Only, Xavier is a little bitch and thought that threatenin’ my mate’s daddy would be the surefire way to get me to comply. ”
Dad is quiet for a moment. When he speaks, he doesn’t sound angry or upset, just curious. “And if you give the scientist back to him…?”
“If we give him back, Xavier will have everythin’ he needs to proceed with the development of the drug, and strip alphas and omegas of every instinct, every scent, and worst of all, every bond.”
Dad’s hand absentmindedly travels to his shoulder, where I know Mom’s bond mark still sits. She was an alpha as well, with a scent of coffee, chocolate, and raspberry that still brings me a sense of comfort to this day.
“You did the right thing, not complying.” He nods with approval.
Jo chuckles before taking a sip of her coffee, a smirk tilting at her lips. “I know.”
I sigh, running a hand over my face. “Trouble…”
Dad waves me off. “Leave her alone. You know I admire a woman who doesn’t need a man to validate her actions.”
Jo’s head falls back as she laughs. “I think I’m gonna like havin’ you around, Ozzy.”
“At least until you head back to your brother’s house, right?” He crosses his arms defensively.
“No,” she shakes her head, “You gotta come with us. I know you can handle yourself against Xavier’s men, but…we need you.”
My brows shoot up. We do?
“Declan…he recently found out that one of his men is a rat. He needs help weedin’ out who it is, and he’d like you to come whip his guards into shape, if you’re up for it.”
I wonder if Declan really needs my dad for that, or if Jo has figured out the best way to get him to listen is to make him feel needed. Either way, his brow furrows as he considers it.
“I suppose…” he says slowly, and I hold my breath. “If you need me, I can assist. But this Declan…he’s a good man?”
“He’s the leader of the head Irish Mafia family.” I snort.
Jo shoots me a dirty look before turning back to Dad. “He is. Not in the…legal sense, but for a mafia man, he’s as good as you can get. He took out Cian when he tried to start usin’ omegas as currency, he’d never let an innocent person get hurt, and he values family above all else.”
Dad’s brows furrow. “Values family…except when he killed his own father.”
Jo lets out a bitter laugh. “I can see why you might be put off by that, considerin’ the fact you are also a father.
But just ‘cause someone donated their DNA to your existence…well, it don’t make ‘em family. Cian Gallagher was a vindictive, abusive, evil motherfucker and the world is better off without him in it.”
“Just like the world is better off without the thirteen alphas you killed,” Dad observes. I can see his mind working overtime, trying to figure out how he feels about the whole thing.
“Fourteen.” She bares her teeth in a smile. “Plus a number of betas I can’t seem to keep track of—though those have only been in self-defense.”
Dad is silent for a moment as he looks between Jo and me. He’s never been one to have a gray moral code, but I know that some things shook up his perspective after he stopped working for West’s dad. It makes me wonder if Xavier Bowen’s Beta Liberation Union had anything to do with it.
Jo and Dad are in a silent stare-off, Jo nonchalantly sipping her coffee. After what feels like forever, Dad sighs. “Alright. I’ll come with you.”
My omega’s smile is genuine as she hops up and plants a kiss on Dad’s cheek. “That’s just peachy keen. Why don’t you go pack a bag and we’ll all head to my brother's place?”
Dad chuckles, shaking his head as he dumps the rest of the coffee down the sink and walks past me. “She really does run everything around here, doesn’t she?”
I can’t help but laugh. “You have no idea.”
He pauses, looking back at Jo as she chugs the rest of her coffee.
He wears a wistful expression on his face.
“Oh, I think I do. Walk with me.” I follow Dad as he moves out of the kitchen and starts going up the stairs.
“Now I know why you mouthed the word ‘mom’ at me when she was standing in the yard covered in blood as she introduced herself. They couldn’t be further from each other when it comes to looks, but there’s that same fire.
That same inextinguishable spirit roaring through her veins. ”
“We’re true scent-matches.”
Dad halts in his steps. When he turns, there’s a look of pure glee on his face. “Well, my boy, you never had a chance then, did you?”
“Not for a second. Though…I fell for her before we knew about the match.” At his confused expression, I detail everything that happened from the moment I first came upon Jo at Thornfield. I help him pack up for the journey, and one full suitcase later, Dad is caught up on every event.
“It seems that you five have stumbled into a big mess of trouble.” Dad zips up his suitcase.
“That’s one way of putting it.” I grimace, running a hand over my face.
“I have a few buddies in the FBI…” He trails off thoughtfully. “Maybe I can reach out.”
“Declan has guys too,” I shrug, “but right now they don’t know who they can trust. Maybe give their names to Aidan and he can look into them.”
We jump at the sound of Jo’s voice ringing up the stairs. “Do you boys need help up there? We gotta be out of here in the next ten minutes!”
Dad smirks. “The lady runs a tight ship.”
I snort. “That’s putting it lightly.”