Page 47 of Forced Pregnant Mate

Bae nods. “They had a very nice setup, apparently. Extended family moved away years ago, it was just Pete and his parents in a big house out of town. They were well-respected, and elders on the council.”

“So, what happened?”

“Pete started getting into trouble in high school. He started fights, engaged in vandalism, that kind of thing. He had a real problem with authority from the very beginning.”

Bae sighs, taking a sip of his drink. I’m just a little relieved that he didn’t sink this one quite so fast.

“His parents tried to cover for him, but he got kicked out of school. They tried everything they could to get him back on the straight and narrow. Apparently, he met Lena’s Mom—Susie Kane—and had a brief period of good behavior. During that time, he was an exemplary pack member and contributed a lot to the community.”

I have a hard time believing this about Peter, but I keep my mouth shut.

Bae fiddles with his glass, looking deeply into the amber liquid.

“Then what happened?” I ask. I’m getting afraid to find out.

“Around the time he married Susie, there was a money dispute with his parents. They paid for the wedding but told him he’d have to buy his own house. They wanted him to work for it. Things got ugly, and he tried to take them to court for his inheritance.”

Bae sighs as if the weight of the world sits on his chest.

I wonder if Lena knows any of this.

“While the court battle was going on, he started getting money from somewhere and put a deposit on a house. Then he got busted. Theft, drugs, you name it. Susie almost left him, apparently, but she was already pregnant.”

“Jesus!”

Bailey nods. “Pete tried to get help from the pack. He convinced Decker that he was a good wolf, he deserved to be an elder, and he could come good again. His parents were at a loss. They wanted to help him but didn’t know if bailing him out was the right thing to do.”

“I don’t like where any of this is going. I can’t see how he possibly got out of all of this. What happened next?”

Bae looks up, and his eyes are fierce, shimmering with the power of his wolf. “His parents died. It’s all very suspicious—the family home burned down. Peter immediately tried to claim the insurance. It looks really bad, Jack.”

“Jesus fucking Christ! Do you think he did it?”

Bae shakes his head. “I don’t know. The insurance company didn’t pay out. The fire was deliberately lit. Pete wasn’t arrested for it, there was no evidence. Around that time, Susie had Sam. From what I’ve heard, she was trying to leave him, but he wouldn’t let her.”

I grab my whiskey glass, down the whole thing, and signal for another. The bartender pours one for me and hurries away.

I don’t blame him. I’m not having a great time sitting here hearing this.

Bae sighs. “Okay. So, he also met Kelly around this time. He barely paid off his debts to the criminals he’d been working for. He and Susie had to move to the crappy little shack they live in now. It was pretty common knowledge that he was cheating by this point.”

Bailey pauses, staring at his whiskey again.

“Oh, God,” I mutter. “Don’t fucking tell me. Susie died next.”

Bailey nods. “You got it. Tragic car accident. Same as the house fire—no evidence. Nobody got done for it. It was accepted that she spun out on black ice. She didn’t have immediate family in town, so I’m not sure about her story. All I know is the kids were left alone with him and Kelly moved in.”

“How?” I ask, astonished.

Bae frowns. “They cleaned up their act a little bit. If they kept the kids, Kelly got a carer’s pension or something. If they looked like they were putting in an effort, they could stay in the pack. Pete had nowhere else to go. Everything went really quiet for a while, and Decker tentatively assumed everything was getting better.”

“Until the guns,” I say softly.

“Until the guns.” Bailey nods. “Pete had a big ring running, guns, drugs, fuck knows what else. Decker busted him, was ready to kick him out of the pack. Peter begged for another chance. He used the kids as leverage. Decker kept it quiet from me, said he handled it, but let Pete stay.”

“So, now what?” I ask, taking a long sip of my drink. “We just wait for him to fuck up again? What happens after that?”

Bailey stares right at me. “It gets worse.”

---