by Tigertalez
“They talked about what happened. The alpha thought what dad did was ok, so he told him he could easily keep Slate away and if he needed h-help g-getting,” she paused and steadied her breath, “rid of Mom’s body, to give him a call. And t-then…” She sounded as if she lost her breath, but she looked around then straightened her shoulders. “He told dad to make sure I knew to keep my mouth shut n-no matter what it t-took.”
Kace swore. “That lying piece of pig shit! How did we not scent his deceit?”
“More than likely he used enough truth, added with his extreme actions, and maybe even banked on the heavy scent of blood and pain already in the room, to mask it,” replied Tyler.
Slate groaned. “Fuck.” A sick sort of dread soured his stomach. “This means my sister could be in more danger than my mother because she knows the truth about the alpha and my mother doesn’t.”
“It would seem likely,” Tyler said. He looked back at Elise and gave her an apologetic look. “Please continue.”
“After he left, Dad started breaking down my door. I crawled out the window and jumped down and took off as fast as I could. I was hurt pretty bad so I couldn’t go far, but I wanted a place I knew I could watch for him coming while I rested. That’s where you found me.” She turned and looked at Dex. Dex ran a tender hand down her faced and placed a soft, short kiss on her lips.
Tyler cursed and took out his phone. He paced the small living area while Slate saw his two guards looking out the windows. More clicking had him looking back to Dex. While Tyler was on the phone with some American shifter councilmember, Dex was on the phone with his coven leader, Raymond. Slate suddenly realized it was his job to inform his alpha what was going on and that Alphy may very well need to challenge another shifter, but this one would be a predator shifter.
Taking out his cell, he placed it to his ear and listened to it ring. A breathy Alphy answered. “Damn it, you have the worst timing!”
Slate grunted. He was amused but was too upset to really laugh. “Yeah, but this way I made your mate happy with the opportunity for you to make it up to her.”
Alphy guffawed. “Yes, she does have that look of glee on her face. How’s your mom and sister?”
Slate suddenly felt emotional. Having to say it all out loud was a bit harder then he realized. He took a breath to steady himself. “It’s bad, Alphy. We’ve got big trouble.”
“Shit, hold on a sec.” Slate heard Alphy mumble his apologies to his mate. Sure enough, he heard her chipper response to her mate that she’d be looking forward to him making it up to her. After a moment of hearing him moving around, he heard Alphy calling for the others, then get back on. “Ok, we’re all here and you’re on speakerphone.”
Slate detailed what he saw when they arrived and the hunt for his sister. He did put in that one of the assisting vampires was her mate. He wanted to give them some kind of good news, and then he continued to tell them her story.
“Fucking lousy piece of shit!” Alphy raged. “We need to get your mom back to Bancroft. Is your sister going to go to the coven with Dex, or is she going to accompany her mom with you?”
“Uh, I don’t know yet. I hadn’t thought about that yet. Hold on, Tyler is just now getting off his phone. He was on with an American shifter councilmember.”
“Put us on speaker if you can,” his alpha ordered. Slate looked at the councilmember, who nodded his head. He clicked the button for speaker. “Ok, you’re on speaker.” Glancing over at Dex, he could see him doing the same thing with his cell for his coven leader, Raymond.
Tyler waited until everyone was ready before he began. “I spoke to a friend of mine on the American Shifter Council. He said we have another danger to watch out for. Apparently this alpha has a buddy on the council who would back up just about any decision that the alpha here makes, more than likely even helping to cover up any crimes. The council member is unofficially…” Tyler emphasized the word and gave everyone in the room a look.
Keep it secret, got it, thought Slate.
“…being investigated and in order to keep from blowing the bigger case, they can’t help in the smaller matter.”
Slate growled at the situation being labeled a “small” case. Tyler gave him an understanding and apologetic look while the others in the room and over the phone swore and spat their distaste at the situation.
Alphy sounded over the line. “Councilmember Tyler,” he kept the tone official, “how soon can you get them back home?”
“The plane is ready for an emergency takeoff, so as soon as we pack everything we can possibly take, we’ll take off. The councilmember is able to quietly help with a few logistics, but he has to be careful not to be found out that he’s helping. It could tip off the councilmember under investigation.”
Raymond sounded over Dex’s phone. “Dex, I know you want your beloved safe, but maybe when you land, you and the others should accompany them back to Bancroft, give them the illusion that you are part of their pack. There’s no need to tip off how many allies Alphy’s pack really has. I’d like to unofficially contact two members on the coven council. I grew up with them. I know I can explicitly trust them to keep this quiet while still putting up the official cover that we will need.”
Slate was a little bit relieved his sister didn’t have to make a choice yet whether to stay in Bancroft or Toronto. He wouldn’t mind if she chose Toronto. It was closer then what they had been, but he just didn’t want to have to face that just yet. He was also thankful that he wasn’t the only one taking care of his family. He may have had all these people backing him, but none of them had a personal interest invested so they could leave at any time. With Dex being his sister’s mate, he’d want to keep her safe with everything in him. Slate hugged his mate close to him and buried his nose in her neck, taking in her scent.
Hang on! Slate dropped the cell and buried both hands in his mate’s hair and took in several more breaths, searching for the odd smell she’d had that he assumed was her cancer.
“Uh, Slate, stay with us.” Kace’s voice had him looking up and around the room. His mate giggled in his arms.
“It’s gone!” he burst out. He moved around a bit and sniffed some more, causing his mate to squirm and giggle more. Apparently she was ticklish.
“What’s gone?” Kace asked.
Slate looked around as he thought how to mention it. Perhaps he would wait until later? Well, he would have, but Tyler insisted. . “Would you mind sharing with everyone?”
He looked into the happy face of his mate. She must have known what he was talking about. Looking back around the room again, he explained. “My mate had an unnatural scent mingled with her natural scent. We had tests run, and I was told she had cancer.”
Slate heard Seamus’s voice come through the dropped phone. “I remember the smell. You’re saying it’s gone?”
“Yes!” Slate couldn’t hide his excitement. With everything he has been forced to endure these past several days, he felt overjoyed that the one person who mattered most to him would be all right.
Kace came forward as did Pierce, and both modestly leaned in and sniffed her. Kace was the first to comment, but he was also more familiar with her scent from before their mating. “He’s right, Sea man. That odd scent is gone.”
“I do not smell anything odd. I can sense her blood is very healthy.” Pierce stepped back. Slate knew that even though shifters had a slightly better sense of smell than vampires, vampires had a kind of sixth sense, used with their noses, about blood. Slate felt happier still. Even if he might have missed a more subtle scent, the vampire’s judgment about her blood was confirmation his mate was well again.
“Congratulations, Katie,” Seamus replied. “I’ll be sure to inform Henry.”
“Katie, I’m happy to hear your health has improved. I know Gale will be relieved. I need to get us back on the matter at hand.” Alphy reminded them. “I’ll see if I can get Frank and his mate to take over organizing the rest of the herd’s moving deta
ils and we’ll head home tonight.”
It was Tyler who responded. “We’ll head out as soon as possible and meet you back home. Raymond, thank you for the use of your lovely plane and all your support.”
“It has benefited us. Our coven will be delighted to hear of Dex finding his beloved. Even for a coven of our size, it is not a common blessing.”
After further good-byes, the group hung up the cells and planned their next move led by Tyler. “Dex, perhaps you and two of your friends can help Elise to pack while the rest of us pack for Beverly. We’ll leave her to sleep until we take off. Elise, could you tell us of anything you know of that your mother would want to bring?”
They worked through the night, filling the SUVs as full as they could get them. They were able to get everything in them they wanted to keep, using the limousine to carry everyone but the drivers. Just before dawn, as they were heading out, Slate noticed they were being followed, and he also noticed one of Tyler’s guards was missing.
He kept his sights on the suspicious vehicle when suddenly the dark grey van started to rapidly gain on them. Just before he was about to ram into the first SUV, the van’s engine burst into flames and the van veered off the road into a ditch. The group continued safely on to the airport. He looked over at Tyler, who gave him a pointed look and shrugged. It seemed Tyler was just as dangerous to underestimate as Alphy was. Slate didn’t know whether to be grateful he was on his side or concerned for what that meant. He chose not to think about it.
Chapter Thirteen
The flight didn’t take long, but Katie took the time to sleep. With everything that had been happening the last few days, she wanted to sleep for a week, so the three hours in the air felt terribly lacking, and the four hour drive from Toronto back to Bancroft wasn’t that rewarding in the rest department either. It didn’t help that the Toronto side of that trip was during rush hour.
In spite of her fatigue, she was a trained nurse, and she had a patient who needed her care. Through the whole trip, she was constantly checking on Beverly. Katie had no doubt that if the woman had been human, she would have been dead long ago. The fact that she was still moving was amazing.
As soon as they reached the long dirt driveway, Kace, who was driving, looked at her through the rearview mirror. “Don’t worry, Miss Katie, I’ll go slowly. I don’t think any man would ever forget your threat. My balls are still crying.”
She huffed. “If that’s what you call being a smart-ass, then your ass needs to go back to school.”
Slate burst out laughing as Kace grumbled through the burn. She smirked at him through the mirror before releasing a chuckle. However, true to his word, he drove slowly. As they pulled up to the house, Katie had the warm and cozy feeling of coming home wash over her. She hadn’t spent more than a few hours here, and already she was hooked. She let out a relieved and contented sigh.
They were greeted by an earnest Seamus. He introduced himself as he directed Pierce and Fabian to help Beverly to the apartment above the garage. Slate followed with Dex and Elise right behind.
“Hi, Beverly, I’m Doctor Seamus Rossi. Let’s get you situated and then I’ll check you over, if that’s all right with you. How was the flight?”
Beverly’s voice sounded tired and slightly strained. “All right I guess. I couldn’t tell you.”
The doctor looked back at Katie for an explanation. “She was out for the entire flight. Her nausea is better though.”
Nodding in reply, Seamus helped ease the woman onto an actual hospital bed he had set up in the bedroom of the apartment. Without even looking up at the full room, he spoke to everyone while he situated his stethoscope. “All right, I would like everyone to wait out in the other room please. Katie, would you hand me that blood pressure cup, please.”
During the exam, Katie gave a full report to him. When the exam was done, Beverly was out again. Katie followed the doctor out to the other room where many more had gathered, including the alpha.
Slate winced as he stood along with the others as they greeted them. “How is she, Sea?”
“I believe she’ll make a full recovery.” The entire room let out a collective sigh. “I would also like to take a look at your sister.” He took a quick look around the room, spotting the only other unfamiliar woman in the room. “Elise, is it?” The girl nodded, and Seamus turned his look to Slate. “And I would also like to check you over as well.”
“All right, everyone, let’s head back down to the house and give them some space,” the alpha ordered.
Seamus worked fast. After everyone was reported on satisfactorily, he dismissed her to go get more res, an order she didn’t argue with.
They didn’t get to sleep too long before they were up and downstairs eating supper, joined by Kace’s friends. They talked shop while the girls gathered around the mate of one, Lois, who was expecting.
“Do you know what it is yet?” Gale asked.
“Uh, no. We haven’t had any access to a doctor,” she answered shyly.
Katie was horrified. “Wow, you’ve gone the whole pregnancy without a doctor?”
The short, petite woman blushed and looked down and sadly rubbed her partly extended belly. “Pack doctors are only for those in a pack. We haven’t had a pack since we mated.”
“Is it because you guys keep moving for Rushod’s work?” Katie felt her heart ache just a little for Lois.
Betty answered for her. “It’s because most alphas don’t want a mixed mating in their folds. Rushod’s a wolf, and Lois is a coyote.”
“That’s stupid,” Katie exclaimed.
Gale wrapped an arm around Lois’s shoulder. “We had an alpha who wanted my brother dead because he’s gay. It’s their loss, Lois, and our gain.”
Lois smiled at them. “Thank you. When Kace called and told us about the pack, I didn’t know what to expect. But I like it here.”
“So I take it you haven’t seen Seamus yet?” Katie asked seriously.
Gale and Betty laughed. Lois chuckled. “I was hoping to, but he isn’t that bad, is he?”
Looking around the room, Katie realized how it sounded and laughed out loud. “No, that wasn’t what I meant.”
“Sure you didn’t,” Gale teased and laughed again.
Katie shrugged. “Seriously though, you should have him take a look at you. I know shifters don’t usually get sick, but being pregnant is a challenge for anyone, even shifters. I’m sure he wouldn’t mind checking you over right now. Come on, I’ll take you.”
“Oo, can’t I come too?” Gale asked excitedly. Katie snickered at Gale’s excitement when Lois shrugged and said, “sure.”
“Gale,” Betty called. Everyone stopped and turned to look at Betty. “I’ve got packing to do. Tyler and I are leaving in the morning. Your mother will be in charge with meals here while I’m away. Just a heads-up.”
“Wow, he’s not wasting any time giving you a honeymoon, is he?” Gale teased and giggled as Betty disappeared down the hall.
Three of the visiting vampires took rooms in town, but Dex stayed at the pack house with his mate so she could stay closer to her mom and brother.
Over the next week, Katie watched as the pack took on an abundant amount of work. Arrangements were scheduled for other residences several families from the herd, and Kace started working with his four partners from his construction business.
Katie’s dad and sister were apparently staying behind to help organize and assist everyone, so they were going to be one of the very last to arrive.
****
A few days after their return from Texas, Katie was in the doctor’s apartment teaching Reese how to assist in the office and how to be a nurse’s assistant. During the past few days, she’d discovered the kid soaked up the knowledge he was taught like a sponge, and he seemed to genuinely enjoy it. He was certainly a natural with people, so she asked Lois to help her by being a patient. This gave the added supervision over her pregnancy Seamus wanted.
Reese trotted up
and greeted her. “Hi, Lois. You’re looking radiant. Katie and I got an exam room set up for you right behind those room dividers. Let me show you.” He led her around the tall white panels. On the other side, in the bends of the panels, were shelves. Some had things on them like cotton swabs, but one had magazines. There was also an exam bed with drawers underneath.
“Oh, this is really nice. This wasn’t here a few days ago.”
Katie stood back and observed Reese as he helped Lois sit. “Seamus had the equipment but hadn’t been able to set it up yet. He focused what time he had on converting the bedroom into a hospital room.”
Reese grabbed a pressure cup and put his new stethoscope into his ears.
“Reese, you forgot a step.” Katie raised her brow to see if he would remember.
Reese looked up and thought for a second. She knew when he remembered by the recognition on his face. “Oh that’s right. Sorry, Lois. We need to weigh you first.”
After she was sat back down, the two girls talked while Reese took Lois’s vitals.
“How are you settling in?” Katie asked.
“Rushod won’t let me do much. He’s so protective of me. Not that I mind. I love him for it. He’ll make a great father.”
“So what have you been doing?”
“I’ve been looking for houses. There’s a little three bedroom in town I wanted to look at. I set up an appointment for us to go see it tonight after he gets off work. It’s a bungalow, and if it’s anything like the pictures, it’s perfect. It has a little bit of a forest right behind the house, too.”
“Huh, sounds really nice. I should try to find a house for my dad and sister. Do you have the number of your agent with you?”
“Sure, I’ll give it to you after.”
They were interrupted when Reese handed Katie the information. She briefly looked it over. “Looks good. Good job Reese. Now log onto the computer and add this information.”
After he disappeared around the corner, Lois said, “I bet Seamus appreciates you around.”
