Page 45 of Taming the Alpha's Daughter

“Did you hear what I said?” he asks, his voice strained against my silence.

“I'm still trying to wrap my head around the fact that you have a daughter… and did you say, brother? As in, your dead brother Vince, he is alive?” My mind spins, attempting to keep up.

ChapterThirty

Eziah

“Yes, damn it, listen! Now, I know this has something to do with your mother! I want answers, Eziah!” His demand sharpens into a growl, and instinctively, I snarl in response.

“Ask your mother!” He snaps. I pause, my heart suddenly feeling heavy in my chest. I haven't seen my mother yet. She's just another person to add to my list of people to see. Now I need to add Casen's questions to this already awkward meeting.

“I can't… I haven't seen her yet. I'm still at Marabella's,” I answer quietly, seeing Temperance stir. She rolls into me and I absentmindedly run my fingers through her hair.

“This is all a mess. I don't know what to do with a child, especially one I didn't know existed until…” He trails off, his anger giving way to uncertainty and confusion.

“Maybe you shouldn't have kidnapped her from her mother!” I retort, my patience wearing thin. Why am I the one that cops his anger any time it has something to do with Rose?

“Whose side are you on? I couldn't leave her there, not with Vince abusing Rose.” His words send a jolt through me.

“Pardon?” I ask, my voice barely audible.

“Yeah, some real Stockholm syndrome shit it is. I went away for four years and come back to this mess,” he rambles on, his words tumbling out faster than I can absorb them. I find that difficult to believe. Rose is an alpha? And Jonah would kill anyone that dares touch his sister…. unless he doesn't know?

“Casen, calm down. What do you need exactly? It's almost 3 am.” I attempt to bring the conversation back under control.

He falls silent for a moment, and I turn my gaze to Temperance. Her wide-eyed stare is fixed on the corner of the room. The chill in the air intensifies, making my skin tingle. I turn to see what she's looking at, but find nothing but shadows, a play of moonlight seeping in through the parted curtains.

“Where are you?” I ask Casen, my fingers instinctively reaching out to touch Temperance’s knee, watching her carefully. But the only response I receive is silence, punctuated by the chilling feeling of being watched.

“I don't know, I guess I wanted to yell at someone? I’m staying with Malik for now,” he offers.

“Well, in that case, can you call me back during daylight hours? I have a haunted manor to deal with, a spooked mate, and now I have your situation added to the mix, which I know will keep me up all night.”

Casen sighs heavily when Temperance suddenly sits up, eyes open wide as she brings her knees to her chest. What the heck is she looking at? “I don't know, but the way she is staring at thin air is going to make me crap my fur,” Malachi tells me, also pressing forward. “I just don't understand. I watched him fall off that cliff. I was so sure I killed him,” Casen whispers. His confusion is clear in his voice. “I need to speak with your mother.” I prop the phone on my shoulder, holding it to my ear before feeling for my magic.

It warms my hands, making them glow. I feel the power of it humming through my body. Using my light magic, I direct a beam of energy and light toward the shadowy corner of the room where she stares. The beam warms the room instantly, and the heavy foggy feeling dissipates instantly, forcing away whatever darkness is present. As I focus my magic, the room is illuminated with a bright light. Once I feel the coldness leave the room and can only feel the warmth of my power, I touch the iron bed head, infusing light into it. The metal glows red and then gold, creating a shield.

“Just give me a few days here. I need to look at a few things here. I'll pick you up on the way to my mother's, but if I see her before, then I will ask.”

“What have you got to look at in the city?” Casen asks curiously. “Nothing, it's more what I want to figure out. Dominic recognized Temperance, but it's more than that. She can see them,” I tell him.

“See what?”

“The Octavian ghosts.”

“I thought only family could see them, and how would Dominic know her? She spent her entire life in a cage.” Casen asks. “Exactly. Dominic knows her from the shadow realm….”

“The shadow realm? As in his family's purgatory?” Casen asks.

“Yes, and that is what I want to figure out. Only Octavian's can enter that realm and their mates.”

“Well, looks like you have your own shit storm to contend with. I will let you sleep. But contact me when you know more or hear from your mother. For now, I am going to figure out this father stuff, and what to do about Vince.”

“Take care of yourself, okay? I'm here if you need to talk.” I hang up and sigh. Now to figure out what to do next. Laying down, Temperance crawls on top of me; I tug the blanket up over her and press my lips to her forehead, shocked she wants my touch. “It's the bond. She knows she is safe with us,” Malachi answers my racing thoughts. That offers me some comfort, at least she knows she is safe with me. And she always will be.

“Are you okay?” I whisper to Temperance, and she nods against my chest. I pull back slightly to look down at her. “I don't like it here. And I don't like that old woman.”

“What old woman?” I ask her.

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