Kyle shrugs. “I doubt that. He wants women in the pack for sure, but he has no intention of looking after them.”
I see Bae’s hands tighten on the steering wheel as he processes this. I lean on Jack’s shoulder, letting the motion of the car rock me back and forth. Even though the boys keep talking, I drift off into a light doze.
When I feel someone shaking my arm, I jump away, shrieking. Jack reaches out to me, trying to be reassuring.
“It’s okay, hey, you’re alright.”
“Jack?”
“Yeah, it’s me. We’re back. You scared us a bit. We were worried you had a concussion.”
“Oh.” I reach up and feel around the back of my head. There is a bit of dried blood, but the wound seems to have healed. “I’m alright.”
“Do you need to go to the hospital?”
“No, it’s okay.”
I’m starting to look around. As my eyes clear, I recognize the house we’re parked in front of.
I’m home!
CALEB!
I leap from the truck, shoving Jack out of the way. Racing across the lawn, I see Bae and Kyle turning to watch me in surprise. The door cracks open, shedding light across the front steps, I take them all in one leap and barrel straight into Lucy.
“Fiona!” she screams, wrapping her arms around me. Both of us are crying and hugging each other hard enough to leave bruises.
“Where is he?” I demand, but Lucy doesn’t get a chance to answer me.
“Mommy?” a soft voice calls.
I practically shove Lucy out of the way, and when I see my little boy standing at the end of the hall, I completely lose control.
“Caleb!” I shriek, stumbling forward.
“Mommy!” he yells, running into my arms. I collapse onto my knees as he charges at me, slamming into my chest. I lock my arms around his small body and squeeze him, crying so hard, I can barely breathe.
“Oh, my baby,” I sob, stroking his soft blond hair. “I’m home now, baby. Mommy’s home.”
“Where did you go?” he moans, pulling back to look at me. His eyes widen in fear when he sees my torn clothes and the dried blood from my wounds. “What happened to you?” he cries.
I put my hands on his shoulders, trying to give him a reassuring smile. “I got roughed up by some enemy wolves, but I’m okay. I just need a shower and some clean clothes.”
He tries to talk, but tears streak down his face, and he just throws himself at me, hugging me as tightly as he can. Behind me, I hear the others talking.
“We’ll be holding an official meeting at the hall tomorrow afternoon,” Bailey says. “I’m heading off now to make a few stops and put in some calls. I need Decker and some of his guys, and I’ll get a hold of Sasha, too, so she can bring in those lone shifters.”
“Wow, you’re calling in the whole army,” Lucy says.
“Yeah,” Bae agrees. “I’ll have Kelta and her wild ones come in from the mountains to guard the town and work out full defenses with Decker before the meeting. Then we head into Sawpit with force. I’m finishing it this time.”
Still holding onto Caleb, I turn around to ask Bae how far he’s willing to go—if this means he’s going after Rider, too. But he and the others are already walking away.
“I have to go to that meeting,” I tell Lucy.
“What?” she cries, slamming the door shut as she turns to me. “Don’t be ridiculous. You’re home safe now. All you have to do is rest and be with your son.”
“Oh, I’m not letting go for a second,” I say, snuggling Caleb against my chest. “But there are things I need to discuss with Bailey before he goes.”