Page 85 of Coming Home

“Shit! That’s Alice.”

“One of yours then?”

“Yeah,” he confirmed.

“Great, then I’m sure you already know who the father is and can pass the pups off to him,” I said.

“Actually, I don’t. Alice wasn’t mated. She went missing only five months ago though, and these are full-term babies, or pretty close. I’ll send word through the Pack and see if we can identify him.”

“Thanks. I’d appreciate that.”

“Heard you were the one who personally delivered them.”

I nodded. “Yeah. I just couldn’t leave them there,” I confessed.

Four hours later the babies were clean and determined healthy, but there had been no leads on the father. Worse, news had spread that Alice had been taken by the Raglans and because the rumors told people that they were experimenting on shifters, no one in New York Pack would step up and take them, not even the Alpha.

“Honestly, Ben, I can’t. I’ve put out calls to the five closest packs to see if anyone will take three newborns. I’ve had offers to take the girl by two families, but no one so far willing to take all three,” he told me. “I’ll find someone to look after them for a few days, but if nothing better arises, I’ll pass off the girl and call the human authorities to take the boys. I’m sorry. I know you went through a lot to save them, but that’s the best I can do.”

I was torn up inside and didn’t know how to proceed.

“I’m sorry, man,” Grant said. “Too bad you and your mate can’t just take them.”

I froze and stared at him. “What did you say?”

“I said, it’s a shame you can’t just take them. You’re already attached to them and risked a lot to bring them into this world.”

I sat down hard on the ground and ran my hands through my hair. “Alpha? Would that be an option?”

“What? For you to take them?” he asked.

I nodded. “Yes, my mate and I. Of course I’d have to clear that with her first, but would you agree to that?”

“What animal spirit are you, Ben?” he asked.

“Wolf sir, from Collier Pack, though we reside currently in Westin territory.”

“Let me put in some calls to Thomas and Kyle. I need to let them know the fears my people have and make certain they are okay with that.”

“May I ask what fears?”

“If Alice was with the Raglans the entire time she was gone, then who knows what sort of experiments she was subjected to. They’re calling the babies freaks of nature that shouldn’t be alive.”

I growled. “They’re just babies, for goddamn sake.”

He smiled sadly. “I agree with you, but my pack has been hit harder than most by the Raglans over the last year especially. There’s a lot of fear right now, which is why I think it would be in their best interest not to be raised in my territory.”

He made some phone calls and came back with a smile on his face. “Talk to your mate, Ben. If she’s willing to take them, all three are yours.”

I sucked in a deep breath and nodded.

My hand was shaking when I reached for my phone and dialed Shelby’s number.

“Hey, handsome. How’d your first day of work go? Are you back?” she asked.

“No, um, I’ve been delayed. Sport, I need you to sit down,” I said.

“Ben, you’re freaking me out. What’s wrong?”

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