Page 19 of Howling With Wolves

“You think he’s coming here, with my mother, to kill Cyan?” she asked, letting me know she’d been paying attention to my side of the conversation.

“I do.”

“And Sam.” She paused, clearing the clogging emotions from her throat. “You think he could be dead also?”

“Possibly. I can’t imagine your father leaving him alive when he killed Jonathan,” I admitted, stepping closer to her. I didn’t like the distance between us, though it was only a few feet. “I’m sorry, baby.”

“I can’t…” Tears poured down her cheeks. “Jonathan deserved better.”

“You deserve better,” Anthony said as we held her in between us.

“I have you.” She shuddered as she fought and gained control of her emotions. “Both of you. I have this pack and…” More tears flowed. “A brother I never had the chance to know but would like to. And I won’t give up hope of finding Sam. Of finding my mother. Do you think she’s alive, and my father plans to use her to get to Cyan? She’d never want that. She’ll fight him tooth and nail to prevent it.”

“We’ll find a way to make sure neither of them are hurt,” I vowed, meeting Anthony’s gaze and getting a nod. “But I need a promise from you.”

“What?” she asked.

“No matter what gets thrown at us, you stay with the pack. You go nowhere by yourself. If you find yourself confronted by your father or anyone from your old pack, you do whatever’s necessary to keep yourself safe until we get to you.”

Anthony turned her face toward him. “Because we will get to you. Nothing will ever keep us from you.”

Emma nodded. “I promise.”

“Good.” I dropped a kiss on her lips, meaning for it to be a quick brush, but I couldn’t help but take it deeper, to claim her. When I finally broke away, Anthony was there, and it revved my pulse even higher to watch him kiss her with the same intensity as I had.

“Let’s go,” he said when he broke their kiss.

We kept her between us on the way out to the vehicle. No matter what was headed our way, she would remain safe. I’d spill blood to assure that. Even if it was my own.

Chapter Nine

~Emma~

Discovering the depth of evil in your father was a hard pill to swallow. The lies. The manipulations. Not just for me, but for all of us. My mother, Jonathan, Sam, and me. How could one man have so much hate inside him? And Sam? Was he alive, or had he been tortured and killed like Jonathan, who’d never been anything but kind and loving, not just to his siblings, but to everyone in the pack? Was the need to be an unrivaled alpha deep enough for my father to murder all his children? The same as he’d murdered his brother? How much blood would be enough? I had a feeling it wouldn’t stop until he was stopped. How many people would die before then?

I patted water from my face and took a deep breath. I’d ducked into the bathroom once we’d arrived at the main house, more to have a moment to myself than for anything else. I felt the crushing weight of someone else’s decisions squeezing my lungs and making it hard to breathe. I’d never had control of my life. Not as a child, not as a young adult. I still felt as if autonomy was just beyond my reach. As if someone else stood in the shadows, pulling all the strings to decide my fate. The bad thing was, I didn’t know how to stop it.

I sucked in another shaky breath. If I stayed in here any longer, one of my mates was sure to come looking for me. Instead of Anthony or Donovan waiting for me, I found Piper.

“Are you okay?” She shook her head and spoke before I could say anything. “Of course, you’re not. Michael told me what’s going on. I’m sorry you’re having to deal with this.”

“Hell, since I was dumped here, the whole pack is having to deal with this mess. I hate that you’re all in danger with me,” I told her. I’d hoped to be friends with Piper. I knew my mates were closest with Michael out of all the pack, so it made sense for me to connect with Piper. From what I gathered we’d be hanging out a lot outside of pack events. After all this, she might not want to be around me, and I wouldn’t blame her.

“Please, this is nothing.” Piper blew off my concern as she linked her arm with mine and gave a squeeze. “Rebbie, Taylor’s mate, was attacked in their home. Then there’s Bee who was kidnapped and beaten. It’s how she met her mate, Han.”

“I didn’t realize that.”

“Simon’s mate, Cici, was attacked, as well. She’s fierce for a human, though. She more than held her own against the shifters who tried to use her to punish the pack. And Eliza! You met her and Gabe the other night. When she found us, she was on the run from her old pack and alpha. All of that to say, you’ve nothing to worry about. Shit happens, and we handle it. No one blames you for any of this. This isn’t happening because of you. It’s happening to you. Plus, from what Michael said, it has more to do with Cyan anyway.”

It was happening to me. She was right. I’d needed to hear that.

“Do you know where Cyan is?” I asked, wanting to see him, wanting to make sure he knew that neither my mother nor I would ever expect him to put himself at risk.

“He’s in the office with Bas and some of the others. Our mates are in there. I promised Anthony and Donovan I’d bring you to join as soon as you were good.”

“Piper.” I stopped her before we entered the fray. I could already hear the flow of many voices the closer we got to the main room. “I appreciate you checking on me.”

“Of course.” She smiled. “I’m hoping we can be close. Honestly, I could use a close friend. My best friend left the pack after Michael and I mated. She’s always been a wanderer and admitted she’d only joined this pack to find a home for me.”

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