Page 186 of Dream Mates
“Hi, I’m Evan, Rose’s advocate. I’m curious as to why you’re reaching out now after all those years of silence.” I eyed him. Rose told me a very different story than the one in his email.
He shrugged. “I’ve tried reaching out to Iris a few times after she turned eighteen, but she wants nothing to do with me. I found out that their mom is in jail, and what happened to Rose, and I got worried about her. I mean I’ve always been worried about Rose and Iris, but…”
“Yet you haven’t seen them since they were babies?” My eyes narrowed.
“I know from my very brief conversations with Iris that what my ex told them and what actually happened are very different.” Colt rubbed his forehead. “I got Kira pregnant with Iris when we were in our last year of high school. We married. I studied agriculture. She took community college classes for teaching. Then Rose came along. One day, I was at a rodeo and met my pack. I was so excited to come home and tell Kira and the girls. But…”
A heavy sigh escaped his lips.
“She wasn’t excited?” This was different from what Rose told me, but similar to the divorce records.
“I thought she would be. The pack knew all about her and the girls. Sure, we’d need to move. But it would be nice for the girls to live on a ranch and get Kira away from her good-for-nothing brother. Who is apparently also in jail. Instead, she picked up the girls and disappeared in the middle of the night. It took me years to find her. By then she’d met her new husband and poisoned the girls against me. She divorced me and moved backby her brother. She told everyone that I abandoned them and ran off with an omega–and Iris believes her. I didn’t abandon them. I didn’t refuse to see them or support them. Please believe me when I say that I love them and want nothing more than to be with them. I want to help support them, as long as her brother doesn’t have access to the money.” He sighed again.
Now the stories came together. Also, this bit about her brother was interesting.
“How did you find out that she was in jail?” I was curious.
“My parents don’t live in that town anymore, but I have friends and a sibling who do. I do my best to look out for the girls from afar,” he replied.
“Do you? How so?” I asked.
“My friend owns the diner Iris works at. When her car broke down and she didn’t have enough for repairs, I paid the rest and the mechanic, another friend, told her that he found a cheaper way to fix it. I always anonymously buy raffle tickets or whatever Rose is selling for cheer. You see, I try to do what I can. It’s hard when Kira always sends back the cards or gifts I’d send the girls.”
Yeah, Rose and Iris were told that their alpha dad abandoned them and their beta mother because he found his pack and omega and refused to see them. But according to their pack records, they didn’t find an omega until a couple years later.
There was also a record of the cops being called by Kira’s brother because Colt tried to see the girls. No violence, he was just asked to leave town–and did–and never came back. He also tried to get custody, or at least visitation, multiple times, and each time the case was just sort of shut down. Which was curious because from my research Pack Sterling could care for those girls just fine.
Wouldn’t Kira at least want child support? But then it was a lot easier to paint him as a ‘bad alpha’ if he didn’t. There were fewalphas in the very beta area they lived in. Her brother was one… as were the bad dudes interested in Rose.
“Is Rose okay? Her being a ward of the Center is troubling, but I’d rather it be that than her uncle. Never met the step-dad but from my understanding he’s a good guy and treats the girls well,” Colt added.
“What do you think of your ex-wife’s brother?” I changed the subject.
“When we were married he was the source of most of our arguments. She gave him all of our money on more than one occasion. He always said she could do better than some bull rider like me. He’s been in and out of jail since he was in high school and has a habit of owing money to the wrong people. I didn’t like the idea that he had a hand in raising the girls–another reason why I was excited for them to meet everyone and move. And probably the reason why she didn’t want to stay with me. Not that she said anything other thanwe’ll talk about it in the morning.Only in the morning she wasn’t there. I wasn’t going to leave her. They were going to love her and the girls. Just like I don’t know why I couldn’t get visits other than somehow she got the ear of the judge.” He looked so sad as he absently pet the cow.
That’s probably exactly what happened. Those small, predominantly-beta towns were tight. Colt had fed right into thatDon’t date an alpha, he’ll just leave you for an omegastereotype.
“Again, why now? Does this have anything to do with Rose being an omega?” I prodded, needed to protect her.
“Kira’s in jail. They’re struggling badly. I can’t figure out how to help them without alerting Kira’s brother. We’re not rich, but we have enough to share with the girls. Rose could come to live with us, if she wants. I think she’d love it there. We have horses, cows, and lots of land. It’s really pretty. But if she’s happy atthat omega school you have her in, I support that. Education’s important. If she’ll let me, then I’d just like to do whatever I can to make her life a little easier. Maybe she’ll have a way that I could help Iris, too.” Again, he looked so sad. So forlorn.
Okay, I liked that answer.
“Do you know why Kira’s in jail?” I asked.
“Someone told me child abuse. While she turned them against me, I couldn’t see her hitting them. Her brother, but not her.” Colt frowned.
Yeah, he checked out. Everything he said matched my research.
So, I told him everything. From Rose coming into the Center to be matched at sixteen, to Rose’ uncle breaking the gates at the school and trying to gun me down.
“Oh fuck. My poor little Rosebud.” His knuckles went white. “I can’t believe Kira would do that. But it probably was never her idea in the first place. She tends to do everything he tells her, even without him barking her to get his way. I’m sorry he did that to you.”
“We can’t prove that it was her uncle’s idea. But considering he sees himself as head of the family, being an alpha, Rose mating with a rich pack could help everyone,” I replied. Though that other pack’s interest in Rose worried me.
Colt nodded. “Let me know what I can do. I’m coming down to Rockland in a couple of weeks and I’d love to see her. Maybe we can arrange a meeting? Or could I at least talk to her? I’m trying to do everything proper, especially since just reaching out to Iris didn’t go well.”
“I appreciate that, and I’ll talk to her.” I was meeting with her next week anyway. “As for Iris, she’s incredibly parentified and stressed, and using that to guilt Rose. If you have any friends with job opportunities that could get her out of that town, that might be the way to go.”
