Chapter 35 #2
I bite my tongue. Remember, they’ve probably been worried sick.
“Yes, I’m alive. Yes, I’ve been a shit sister.
I handled blackmail very badly, and I’m sure both of you would have done a much better job.
I’m sorry for making you worry. I’m sorry I haven’t been in touch.
But I rang as soon as I could.” I give them a limp smile. “Look, here I am.”
“You’re with Kaiden and his pack,” Rowan states, rather than a question, his expression otherwise blank.
“Yes...” I frown. “I’m sorry, wasn’t that already made clear with Rue’s rant?”
Rue scoffs. “He means are you with them?”
I scowl. “Stop speaking in fucking riddles—”
“Dating, courting, whatever the fuck you wanna call it, just...” He takes a deep breath. “If you are, that’s... fine. Good. I guess.”
“Oh, I am so glad you approve of your adult sister’s possible romantic partners.”
“That’s not what—” Rue shuts himself up, for once. “What I mean is… they’re good guys. Even before all of… this. If you are with them then… I’m happy for you.”
“Kaiden is a good man. I’m sure his pack is too,” Rowan adds. “They found you when we couldn’t. You’ll be safe with them.”
My cheeks heat as I shift on the sofa. “Well... good. That’s good to know... if I was dating them, which of course has nothing to do with you—”
“And why the fuck are you living in those shitty flats?”
I guess the sweet sibling moment is over.
“Again, dear brother, that has nothing to do with you—”
“Your safety does, Revea,” Rowan interrupts. “When Mum and our dads went on this trip, we promised to look after each other, and you’re making that very hard to do.”
I grit my jaw. “I needed money, okay? No, listen!” Rowan’s open mouth shuts. “Just for a few months. Taking on Serena was an extra cost I hadn’t accounted for, so I rented out my house, got a cheap flat. I wasn’t even staying there much. Most of the time, I slept in the salon.”
“Why the fuck didn’t you tell us?” Rue shouts, because his worries always come out in him yelling. “You could have stayed with us! We could have given you some money!”
“Because... Because...” I close my eyes. “Because, clearly, I have a problem with asking for help. I’d rather suffer in silence than hinder anyone. So I put my house up for temporary rent online rather than telling you guys so you wouldn’t think I was a failure.”
There’s a pause as I peel my eyes open, one at a time.
“Re-Re.” Rue sighs. “You know we’d never think that.”
“Never,” Rowan confirms in a firm tone but with a soft gaze that makes my eyes water.
“You’ll come stay with us,” he abruptly adds.
“Erm, no. No way. I’m a grown woman. I am not staying with my brothers.”
“You are not going back to that flat,” Ro counters. “I know your courting pack will agree to that too.”
I fight the butterflies in my stomach at that title.
“I also agree with that, just so you know.” I roll my eyes, but deep down, I battle the horror curdling inside me.
There’s no way I’d ever go back to that place. The images of me asleep flash through my mind… I shake them away.
“Anyway, the guy renting my house is only there for another month. I’ll stay in a hotel close to the salon until then. Done.”
I look at their faces. They’re not disagreeing. Even Rue isn’t throwing something in, because I think talking about the flat has brought everything back up. They’ll have seen the email, the images, and everything else Sylvan sent.
The emails that had him suggesting murder.
They must have been so worried about me.
“I’m sorry for not telling you about the email,” I say, struggling to hold their eyes even over the phone.
“It’s not an excuse, but I was exhausted.
The guys said I had a virus, and I just wasn’t thinking straight.
You know how I overthink things, and the threat of prison felt so real…
” My teeth drag across my lower lip. “I’m sorry. ”
“Re-Re...” Rue sighs long and hard. “Honestly, I don’t know what I would have done in that situation. Sorry for giving you a hard time.”
“Me either.” I’m shocked to hear Rowan say that. “But it’s been dealt with now. Thanks to Kaiden and his pack.”
I nod.
“You need to call Mum. We told her you were sick, so she’s waiting at the hotel to hear from you,” Rue says.
“Does she know about...”
“No.”
I sigh. “Thanks, Ro. I’ll call her now.”
“Then call us back, and we’ll sort out when you’re coming to ours,” Rue throws in, like it’s a done deal.
I could argue, but I decide it’s easier to let them believe they’ve won. For now.
Our chat ends as I swipe out and click straight onto my mum’s name.
Another deep breath in, out.
I whack on a big smile as the call connects.
“Is that my little Vea?! Oh, baby, it’s so good to see you!” The video quality is shit, but I’d recognise my mum’s voice anywhere.
My mum and dads have always loved travelling.
Once my dads left the military, they started taking longer trips while we stayed home, but about five years ago, they decided to really live life to the fullest. Since then, they’ve been travelling all over the world, taking private contracts, helping small communities set things up properly.
Turns out decades in the military make you pretty useful in remote places like that.
I guess they needed something after… everything. Something that kept them moving.
My brothers and I stayed put. We became closer than ever, and even though none of us ever said it out loud, things just… shifted after Dad died.
It’s no one’s fault, but my dad, Shea, and I were similar in a lot of ways. I think sometimes it was hard for them to be around me.
Right now, they’re down near Antarctica, helping a small research outpost get established, which means we can only call them when they’re in one of the rare spots that actually get reception.
“Rowan said you haven’t been very well, so I told him we’d wait here a few more days. Are you better, sweetie? You look—”
“Let me see, love.” My dad, Maddox, pulls the screen to him. “Sweetheart, you look a little pale! Doesn’t she look pale, Sven?”
Pale blue eyes fill the screen next. “You do look a little pasty, poppet.”
“I’m fine, honestly. I’m much better than I was. Anyway, how’s the Antarctic?”
“Oh, it’s amazing, honey. It’s… Prop it up against the—yes, like that!”
I can finally see all three. My mum is sitting between my dads, who each have an arm over her shoulders.
“You would just love it here. The people are so friendly. Anyway, enough about us, how was LA?” She waggles her thin brows.
“Great, Mum.” I stand with my phone, heading to the kitchen. “It was fully booked, a really good crowd. You can actually watch my session online, but I don’t think you’ll have enough signal there… Maybe I could email it to you?”
“Yes, send it our way! My little Revea, a famous hair stylist and…” She leans closer to the screen. “Sweetheart, where are you?”
My eyes go wide.
“Loves, look at this kitchen!” My dads appear on screen again. “Isn’t it gorgeous? But it’s huge. Almost like a…”
“Pack house,” my bigger dad, Maddox, practically barks.
I try to hide my wince by going silent instead. Mentally, I’m scrambling for what to say, how to deny it, change the topic—
“Revea Monroe, are you finally giving a pack a chance?!” My mum is practically squealing while my dads murmur to each other in the background. “How did you meet? When? Where? In LA?! Are they hair stylists too?”
“Your brothers never said anything,” Maddox grumbles.
“Maybe because it has absolutely nothing to do with them, Dad.” I smile sweetly, but my eye starts to twitch.
“Leave it, both of you,” my angelic father, Sven, intervenes. “Sweetheart, ignore these two. You don’t have to tell us anything.”
But the way my mum looks so happy at the thought of me having a pack… I know she worries about me more than my brothers. Being an omega in this world is hard enough.
My parents never treated me like I was fragile, never acted like I was less just because of what I am. They encouraged my independence, even when most packs would have kept their omega daughters close until they started courting.
They trust me. I know they do. But that doesn’t mean they don’t worry.
Especially about me ending up alone.
I have my brothers. We’ll always have each other’s backs. But even that isn’t the same as having a pack.
I sigh.
“You can ask one question each. That’s it,” I say, firm, holding a finger up to the screen. “Go.”