Page 152 of Haze

“That makes sense.” Cade groans. “Six months ago my biggest worry was where Peter was sending me and for how long. Now it’s if I’m going to end up king of a whole fucking country.”

I laugh. “Well, as long as you don’t vacation in Bucharest, you’ll probably be safe.”

Cade snorts. “Crossed right off the list of potential vacations.”

The pause after that sentence seems to be a redirect, and I wait for it to happen.

“I’ll level with you.” Cade’s body becomes more rigid, and we lock eyes. “Time is of the essence with figuring out what I’m doing. My mate is coming due for heat. If she goes into heat at the wrong time, it’ll leave Lena and Deacon at risk to fight their own challenges.”

I don’t envy his position.

Heat with Lena was fun, but from my understanding, Thalia’s a new wolf, and this will be her first. Tensions run high with the unknown. Then, to worry about his pack in addition to her...

“Deacon mentioned your mate’s timing,” I confirm.

Cade being open with me does help with the assurance that this isn’t a trap or misdirect.

“I’d like you not to kill him.” Cade lowers his voice. “I know Deacon will push. I know he’ll fight until he physically can’t. And I need you to try and leave him alive.”

“There’s something off about him, isn’t there?”

With a shake of his head, Cade looks up at the ceiling. “Deacon hasn’t been okay for a long time. He’s made a promise not to attempt to end his life prematurely within a period of time, but I don’t trust that simply giving his word will be enough to truly fulfill that promise, given his gift and the constant struggle he lives with.”

Taking Second is an easy decision. I’ll be taking the place at Cade’s right hand.

“I will be...”

Cade’s phone rings. He flips it over to look at the screen. His eyebrows knit together, and he lifts it to show me the phone.

My stomach sinks reading the name. Doctor Thorpe.

“Hello, this is Cade,” Cade answers the phone and taps it on speaker.

“Sovereign Alpha. We have an issue,” Doctor Thorpe says quickly.

Cade rolls his hand around over the phone like he’s trying to hurry him up. It seems I’m not the only one with a distaste for the doctor. I pull my phone out of my pocket and start tracking Lena’s location.

“There are news crews. People with cameras and microphones outside. They say they want to speak with Ms. Alden.” Doctor Thorpe’s voice is sharp with anger. “They’re blocking the sidewalk in front of the doors. The patients can’t get in and out.”

“Lena isn’t there, is she?” Cade looks at me, but I’m one step ahead.

My phone finishes loading, and I turn the screen to face him. At the very least, Lena’s phone is upstairs. Cade opens his laptop.

“No. Ms. Alden isn’t here,” Doctor Thorpe answers him. “She doesn’t come into the lab on Thursdays. She shouldn’t come in at all if this is the sort of thing that we should expect. This is very disruptive.”

“I agree. I can’t have Lena exposed to potential security issues like this,” Cade corrects him.

He turns his laptop around and shows me Lena’s red SUV parked in the garage before closing the lid.

“I will start the paperwork for a sabbatical for her,” Doctor Thorpe says.

“No. I don’t think that’s a good idea,” I interrupt the conversation.

“Who is that?” Doctor Thorpe is quick to answer.

“It’s Griffin O’Leary,” Cade answers. He nods to me to keep me talking.

“The media hasn’t had Lena in their sights long. Undoubtedly they’ll move on. She’s a researcher, not a socialite.” I try to put in sound logic.

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