His original plan to abort the child and go live with his father was back on. He was blindsided by great sex and a pretense that he would be happy serving some Alpha because he needed one, but he didn’t.
While Cade was in his office taking over his life Jaden had attacked him, and it was Brogan who saved Brogan. He hadn’t needed a big strong Alpha, all he needed was himself.
Slowly he stood up and walked to the counter and retrieved his phone and dialed, “Dad, please come and get me.”
Even though he was leaving the office an hour early, the day had been a long one for Cade. It had started with that clusterfuck with Jaden Matthews and ended with a call from Amanda Wheeler who apparently was ready to make one of her surprise visits. Since Brogan was already home, she thought that this would be a good time to talk to him alone without his Alpha’s influence.
That made Cade nervous because even though he thought things were going well, despite his history, if the representative from the Omega Center thought that Brogan was in danger he would be removed from Cade’s home and he would be investigated and possibly jailed.
To distract himself from what Brogan and Amanda might or might not be discussing, he turned on the radio to a sports channel Brogan had preset, but that didn’t go well because they were discussing some injury that Jaden Matthews had suffered and how that would affect his team.
He’d had enough of Jaden to last a lifetime so he searched until he could find something to take his mind off his shitty day. By the time he turned into their subdivision Bob Seeger had rocked him into a better frame of mind, but that lasted until he came to his street.
He had expected to see Amanda’s car but the three police cars and forensic van that were there were not expected.
Brogan!
He barely placed the car in park before running towards the house where he was stopped by one of the policemen.
“Sir you have to wait here until we’re finished collecting evidence,” the taller of the two said.
“Evidence for what? Brogan… I live here, I’ve got to check on my mate,” he told them as though that was going to gain him entrance. He was trying to think of a way to get past them when he saw Amanda walk out of the house with a grim expression on her face.
Moving past the policemen, Cade all but ran towards her trying to think what Brogan could have said to have the police and the Omega Center investigating. He was too busy wondering if he was going to be arrested than the policemen, he’d just moved past who had now caught up to him.
“Sir,” the tall one began when Amanda stopped him, “It’s okay officer Jenkins, I need to talk to Mr. Cooper.”
The question died on his lips when he smelled the blood.
The wide-open spaces of outdoors made it difficult for him to scent to whom the blood belonged, but it could only belong to Brogan. What did he do? Surely, he hadn’t decided that killing himself was better that facing this thing with Jaden? Yeah, he was angry, but it was an anger that he’d get over.
“Amanda?” he asked hoarsely.
“Cade calm down,” she said sternly only serving to make him angry. The circumstances were bad enough but another Alpha ordering him to do something while he was in the highly emotional state made the fine hairs on the back of his neck stand up. He could feel his teeth drop and the hairs trying to prick through his skin. His wolf was ready to tear her throat out to get to his mate.
“I will when you let me see Brogan - let me know that he’s alright.”
“I’m going to let you in Cade,” Amanda ignored Cade’s question and issued an order of her own, “but I have a request from you first. I need you to promise not to touch anything.”
“Amanda,” Cade pleaded this time, trying to see past her and his eyes focused on the blood on the walkway behind her.
“We need you to tell us if there is anything missing or if you recognize the Alpha whose blood this is.”
Pursing his lips Cade nodded his head because he was eager to get inside to see Brogan to make sure that his mate was okay. Amanda hadn’t said anything, but he was worried, He should be able to sense Brogan from here but as hard as he tried, there was nothing over their bond.
There was a question at the back of his mind was Brogan… dead? Amanda was focused on the house and its belongings, all he could concentrate on was where was Brogan and was he okay.
“Okay, let’s go,” she finally relented before stepping aside and letting him enter the house. “He’s not here,” she said softly when he stopped on the threshold before walking inside.
He was relieved to hear that, but that statement raised other questions, like if he wasn’t inside, was he at the hospital from losing all that blood?
Taking a deep breath, Cade stepped inside and was immediately assaulted by the smell of iron and he knew that it was from the blood, but what shocked him was the familiar scent of the Alpha he’d kicked out of his office earlier this morning.
He knew that Jaden and Brogan had been friends, but he thought that it was more of a casual friendship, and had he realized that Jaden knew where they lived, he would have warned Brogan or even better, gone home. He was Brogan’s Alpha he should have known.
He should have known that Jaden left too easily this morning and as he took in the mess before him, he was going to beat himself up over it for years to come.
The kitchen and the den area were a wreck, and then there was the blood.
There was blood fucking everywhere, he followed it from the doorway to where it ended at the refrigerator where it culminated into a large pool with a large butcher knife right next to it.
He inhaled again just to make sure that he was right. Jaden fucking Matthews.
“Jaden Matthews?” Amanda said from behind him. “you mean the Orlando Manatees quarterback, Jaden Matthews?” she asked.
“Yes,” Cade confirmed as he relayed in interactions with the football player earlier. He also mentioned what happened in Florida.
“I don’t mean to interrupt,” the policeman from outside interrupted, “but they have been talking about Matthews on the news all afternoon. It seems that TMZ Sports were in town covering the basketball game and one of the players were hurt and taken to the hospital. One of the cameramen followed him to the hospital and spotted Matthews there. Seems that he had a deep cut on his throwing hand.”
There had been news on the radio on his way home, but he was so happy that the stupid fuck had hurt himself that it never occurred to Cade that it would have anything to do with Brogan.
“He did this,” Cade said with conviction, “Whatever happened to Brogan I know that Matthews is responsible.”
“What proof do you have, Cade?” Amanda asked, “Because we can’t barge into that hospital making that kind of accusation without proof. Remember Brogan has a history of running away. Matthews could very well say that he was attacked because he found Brogan in the process of running.”
“He’s going to be convicted because of his past?” Cade asked incredulously. “I have witnesses who helped Brogan escape from Matthews the first time he tried this shit.”
“Tried what Cade?” She demanded. “You’re going to have to be more specific.”
“Jaden tried to turn him. He tried in Florida and looks as though he tried again today.”
“That’s a strong charge, Matthews can get five years just for attempting to claim a mated Omega. Why would he jeopardize his career to turn an already mated Omega?”
“He didn’t think he would get caught, once he turned Brogan, he didn’t think that his mate would testify against him. But if my suppositions aren’t good enough then you have gallons of his goddamned blood all over my home. Isn’t that proof enough?”
“Of course, we’ll test it Cade, but I needed to know why you thought that he would do something like this. I also want to let you know that I’ve been upstairs Cade; I know that there are things missing. It seems that Brogan packed in a hurry and he’s gone and a highly paid football player’s blood in
found in his house, so we must cover all angles even if they make you uncomfortable. Look,” she changed tactics, “let’s talk to Matthews and get his story then we’ll conclude what happened.”
The idea of them accusing his mate of deliberately hurting someone to escape him was preposterous. Brogan was more apt to cut using his sharp words than an actual knife. Brogan was in good spirits and had even began talking about the baby in a positive way. He’d been mending fences with his friends. No, Matthews was the reason Brogan was gone and he was not going to let this cold-hearted bitch convince him or anyone else otherwise.
As they walked out to their prospective cars, Amanda stopped Cade before he slipped inside his. “Cade just so we understand, when I say that we will question Matthews, that mean either I or the police will question him. If we need something from you then I will ask.”
Having no other choice but to concede to her wishes, Cade nodded his agreement.
They met at the hospital but chose to go into the back way since the front of the hospital was blocked by media trucks. It seemed that TMZ’s report had bought out all of the vultures in the media and Cade wanted to make sure that Brogan was not caught in the middle of the fray.
When they entered the hospital room, the small space was crowded with Matthews's handlers who all wanted to deny entrance to Amanda and Cade and for once Cade was glad that the woman was so ballsy. She would not be denied entrance, and nor would she let them exclude Cade from the room.
Cade was mildly surprised that the quarterback admitted that he was there.
“Look Brogan and I were friends, have been since he tried to get me to sign with you guys, but you contacted me instead. When I left your office, I decided to visit him since we didn’t really get a chance to talk in Florida.”
“You ly…” Cade started but was cut off by Amanda.
“Continue,” she told him after shooting Cade a warning look.
“I really don’t know what happened, one minute we were talking, he was whining about how he hated being an Omega and wanted out. He offered me a drink and suddenly I’m in the hospital with a severed tendon and a nicked artery.”
“This little thing is his Alpha?” A person Cade didn’t recognize asked derisively, “hell it looks as though he started on you before he went on to Jaden. He may lose some of the use in his hand. I hope you and those officers are here to arrest that goddamned O.”
“Sir, this is a matter for the Omega Center and the police. Mr. Cooper has been asked to refrain from interrupting and I will ask that you do the same. If you speak out of turn one more time, I will ask you to leave.”
“But…” the man sputtered.
“No buts, Mr.?”
“Tucker, Jaden’s publicist,” he identified himself.
“Mr. Tucker, I hope that you’re good at your job, because it’s going to be hard for you to explain away how your quarterback who’s engaged to a beautiful Beta - who by the way is famous in her own right - tried not once but twice to claim an already claimed, pregnant Omega.”
The shock on the faces of the men in the room would have made Cade laugh if it was not for the fact that Brogan was missing and the prick in the bed had something to do with it.
“Now to make it easier on your client, we need to know where Brogan is.”
“I didn’t do anything to Brogan!” Jaden lied. “The stupid Omega wanted to be with me, but why would I want him when I have someone as beautiful as Irina?”
Cade was biting his tongue trying his best not to speak, but he didn’t doubt for a minute that Amanda would live up to her word and have him escorted from the room.
“This is your last chance, Mr. Matthews,” she threatened.
“I didn’t do anything to that bitch!”
“After speaking with Mr. Cooper, I texted his office and was in contact with a Tate Wingate and he provided me with the recordings from your meeting with Cade this morning, I think in your desire to hurt Cade you forgot about that. But you probably thought it would be a done deal so it wouldn’t matter. Your publicist and the rest of your staff are going to earn their money. Jaden Matthews you’re under arrest for the assault of an Omega.”
Chapter 16
Brogan didn’t move until thirty minutes after he heard Jaden’s car leave. During that time each time he heard a car drive by the braced himself waiting for Jaden to return. When he was convinced that his attacker wasn’t coming back, he forced himself to move.
He had already called his father, so he would be there any minute and Brogan needed to be ready and he moved as fast as his sore body would allow him.
He had barely made it downstairs when his phone beeped. A cursory glance let him know that it was a text from his father telling him that he was outside waiting for him and demanded that he hurry. After quick glance, Brogan said a silent goodbye to his home but with the dark red blood marring the pristine white countertops and floor, the room looked more like an abstract painting than the home he loved. So before ran out the door to get into in his father’s car and escape to his new life, Brogan whispered a goodbye to Cade who would always be his.
He fell asleep before they reached any of the back roads, but had he been awake he would have known that his father had not taken any of the main roads because he was didn’t want anyone to stop him. Cade would be looking for his Omega and he didn’t want to get arrested before he arrived at their destination.
“Brogan, we’re here,” Richard Ford gently shook his soon awake.
Here was supposed to be his father’s house. The place where he grew up and had great memories. They were now parked in front of a little cabin in the middle of the woods. Why were they here?
“Dad, where are we and why aren’t we at your house?” Brogan asked thinking that he’d missed something. “And now that I think about it, why did I have to change my phone?”
Richard shook his head and smiled sadly, “I changed the phone because I didn’t want Cade or that bitch from the Omega Center to trace you. You’ve only been an Omega for barely a month and you’ve already lost the ability to think analytically or strategically.”
“Or it could be that I just fought a football player off to prevent him from raping me and I’m a little out of sorts.”
“You’re an Omega, son I’m sure it wouldn’t classify as rape. I hope that young man is not in trouble because of you.”
Standing still Brogan looked at his father and asked, “So you’re saying that beating me to make me submit to having sex with someone doesn’t count as rape because I’m an Omega?”
“No - no that’s not what I meant,” Richard backpedaled before changing the subject. “Judging by the bruising on your face getting claimed by someone other than Cade Cooper wouldn’t have been a bad thing.”
“Cade didn’t do this,” Brogan defended his Alpha, “the football player whose career you didn’t want me to ruin did this.”
“He did it once, but I didn’t bring you here to fight, I want you to feel safe and give you time to make a decision about the baby. I’ve got the place stocked with enough food to last a week. I can’t stay with you because I am going to be watched for at least that long while they are looking for you.”
“I’ll be by myself?” Brogan asked both happy and a little upset at the prospect of being alone.
“Yeah, I have a couple of days off at the beginning of the week, then we’ll go the doctor and take care of Cade’s whelp.”
He tried not to let his father’s words towards his baby upset him, but his agreeing to the abortion gave his father reason to think that Brogan felt the same. The only time he’d ever heard of an Omega having an abortion was when their life was in danger. Now that Jaden was no longer near him Brogan didn’t have that claim.
He was just heartless.
They carried Brogan’s things inside and placed them just inside the front door, and soon Richard was gone. Despite the nap on the drive, Brogan was still tired, and his body ached, so he sat on the edge of a knotted pi
ne sofa in the middle of the large room to rest.
He would save exploring for later but from what he could see right now, the layout plan was simple, a large open room with a den and a kitchen and a huge stone fireplace. Off to the side was a short hall that he presumed led to the bedrooms? The place looked more like a cabin in the wilds of Alaska than on the outskirts of Greenville, South Carolina. They were probably closer North Carolina than to Greenville, but Brogan couldn’t be too sure and right now he didn’t really care.
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