by Kian Rhodes
Scott
I was dozing contentedly, Harley sprawled across my chest, his legs tangled with my own when a howl from outside brought me back to the present.
"I should probably be going," Harley murmured.
"Too soon," I disagreed, tightening my arms around him to hold him in place. "Been without you too long already."
"I know but you heard them call me." Harley gave a small laugh and kissed my pec, right above my heart. "I can't believe you waited for me."
"Oh, Har," I nuzzled into his hair and then kissed his temple. "You were worth a hundred times the wait." I propped myself up on one elbow, grinning when he clung to me, laughing eyes looking up through his lashes as he did. "But now that I've got you, you need to know I'm serious. I want to cl..marry you," I barely caught myself. "I'm going to talk to Zade."
His eyes clouded and I knew the briefest moment of fear that he didn't still want me. After all, in his mind, we had just met. "You will, won't you, babe? Marry me?"
Harley studied me for a minute before his eyes cleared. "Yeah, Scott. If you're sure that you want me, of course I will." He peeled his body off of mine with a grimace, brushing uselessly at the cum-crusted denim of his jeans. "I think I better get back and get changed before I go to that meeting," he said with a nervous laugh. "Otherwise, it's going to be pretty obvious what we were up to."
"Good idea," I agreed, brushing my lips over his cheek. "I'm going to catch up with Zade and then I'll find you."
Chapter
Fourteen
Rafe
"You know you could've ridden, Rafe. Fugly isn't your idea of traveling in style."
"He's not that bad, Colby," I disagreed lightly, pulling into an open parking spot next to Clint's truck in front of the Coruscation pack house. "He's kind of grown on me. Besides, it's just not the same without you next to me, baby."
"Bastard," Colby sniffed, shoving my shoulder. "You know you're not supposed to say sweet shit like that. It makes me cry."
I snickered. "Oh, please. You cry at everything now," I teased lightly. "The other day you teared up watching that cooking show."
Colby glared at me. "They were chopping onions. Fuck off."
That just made me laugh. "Baby, you know that's not how onions work, right?"
His pregnancy hormones back under control, Colby snorted and flipped me off.
"Not nice, Daddy." Leia's reprimand finished on a yawn.
"Finally awake back there, huh, princess?" I glanced in the rearview mirror and saw her stretching. "You hungry?"
The responding images of hamburgers, chicken fingers, and ice cream flashed through my mind on fast forward before stopping on an image of a large jackrabbit roasting on a spit over a fire. I laughed when Colby clucked disapprovingly.
"Leia, honey, you know it's not polite to hunt on other packs' property."
"Uncle Clint will let me," she said confidently.
"Yeah, he will, " I agreed with a laugh. After all, nobody seemed to be able to tell our little girl no. "Still, even if you catch one, we'd have to skin it and roast it and all that takes time." I had to smother another laugh at her disappointed groan. "So maybe we can just have something out of the snack box and then have rabbit for dinner."
"I guess." I didn't have to check to know she was pouting.
"Good girl." I swung out of the van and pulled the slider open. Leia had already unbuckled the car seat harness and I caught her as she jumped, swinging her up to perch on my shoulder. Walking around to the passenger seat, I held my other hand out to my Omega and steadied him as he climbed down but didn't make a big deal about it. I'd noticed that the further along Colby got, the more cautious he became. It was a far cry from his fuck you and double fuck your rules attitude that he'd carried through Leia's pregnancy. Knowing that he still blamed himself for her disabilities, the change in him chafed at me, but I couldn't find a way to broach the subject.
"Come on, Papa," Leia whined, tugging at my hair. "I wanna go play!"
Once I was sure Colby was steady on his feet, I scooped her down and set her on the ground. "Okay, princess, but no hunting, got it?"
"Yes, papa," Leia chimed dutifully before scampering off, her dark-blond braid bouncing as she ran.
As we often did, Colby and I watched in amazement as our blind daughter managed to skirt the obstacles around her at top speed, only stumbling once before she reached the Warrior Course that Clint had built for the pups to play on. I could see Adrian and Eric – Clint and Trevor's twins – already clamoring around on it. She was perfectly safe with them to watch over her.
"You ready to go in?"
Colby nodded, removing a manila envelope from the dash of the van. "I've got the records right here and I texted Zade when we started up the drive. They should be waiting for us."
Sure enough, Clint ushered us into his office where Zade, Levi, Harley, and Colt sat around a small conference table. After closing the door behind us, Clint dropped into the vacant chair by his twin brother, leaving the two chairs at the end of the table for Colby and me.
We did the quick, polite greeting thing and then I moved straight to business.
"Harley?" I waited for him to raise his eyes from the table. "Did Zade tell you why we're here?"
He shook his head, his eyes flitting to Zade and then back to me.
"Okay. When you were missing, we searched your room looking for information." I waited for his reaction. It was just a shrug acknowledging my words. "We found this." I held up the purple tablet computer. Harley stared at it blankly with no sign of recognition. "There are several apps on here with dating profiles in your name."
That got his attention, but he still only seemed surprised, not worried or guilty.
"Do you remember any of that?"
"No, sir," Harley's voice was quiet and strong. "I don't."
"Okay. Colby is going to show you some emails and I need you to tell me if anything triggers a memory, okay?"
The Omega nodded and Colby began to pass him papers one by one. Other than a wicked blush as he read the more x-rated missives, Harley didn't respond. Not until Colby reached the second from last paper, that was. As soon as Harley glanced at the profile picture at the top of the printout, he began to shake violently.
"You know him, Harley?" Zade asked, placing a gentle hand on Harley's shoulder.
"I..I don't think so," Harley denied in a halting voice. "That is, I don't but for some reason, he makes me uncomfortable."
Uncomfortable? The kid was shaking like a leaf in a hurricane. I nodded to Zade and he patted the boy's shoulder.
"Okay. I think that's all for now," Zade said gently. "Why don't you go get some rest?"
With Harley safely on the other side of the door, Colby snorted. "That's the one, all right."
"What do we know about him?" I asked.
Colby shrugged. "Pretty much zilch. He sent a dozen steamy direct messages suggesting that he and Harley get together, but his last known address was an Omega house on the East Coast. We'll need to send a crew for recon."
"I can do it." Colt volunteered. "I'm going to be heading that way in a couple of days." He shot a sideways glance at his brother. "Assuming you can spare me."
Clint just nodded.
I didn't ask why he was traveling to the coast. Hell, I didn't need to. Everyone was aware that Colt's mate had up and taken off a while back and he was still determined to hunt her down. If he was hitting the trail, it meant he'd been turned onto a scent.
"That'll work," I agreed. While Colt – and Clint and Trevor, for that matter – weren't COPSD members, they'd lent a hand more times than I could count, and I knew the werewolf could handle himself. "Send up a smoke signal if there's as much as a hair out of place on his head."
Colt nodded and I sighed, more than a little relieved. The last thing I'd wanted to do was head out on recon with my Omega due any day.
Colt caught my eye and winked, telling me he'
d known exactly how I felt. Werewolves get a pretty bad rap, but they're some of the most loyal friends a shifter can have.
Chapter
Fifteen
Scott
"You did what?"
As dramatic as it sounds to say that Zade roared a half hour later when I dropped the bomb that I'd proposed to Harley, it really wouldn't have been inaccurate.
"I asked Harley to marry me," I repeated calmly.
"You fucking promised me that you weren't going to tell him about your past until the Doc said it was okay!"
I shrugged and, yeah, it might have been a little sheepish. "Well, Zade, the truth is that I meant it and I didn't intentionally violate it." His blatantly disbelieving look made me sigh. "Shit, Zade, I swear. He showed up while I was working on my laptop and I forgot that the screensaver was a slide show of our pictures, okay? It really was an accident."
"Excuse me." Rafael had been passing by and he spun around, a couple of steps bringing him close. "Did you just say that Harley remembered that you have history together from seeing pictures on your computer?"
"Not exactly," I responded, taken aback by the intensity of his stare. "He doesn't remember, but when he saw them, it was obvious that we'd been close." When Rafael raised a brow, I groaned. "They're pictures from when we were dating. Hugging, kissing, that sort of thing."
Instead of clearing things up, the other Alpha's eyes hardened further. "Did you tell him who was in the pictures with you?"
Huh?
"No," I said slowly, feeling more lost every minute. "It's obviously him."
"So you're saying he recognized himself in the pictures?" Zade's anger fled and he sounded concerned.
"Yes. Then he asked me about them." I looked from Rafael to Zade and back. "What the hell is with the third degree?"
Levi spoke from his spot at Zade's side for the first time since we'd exchanged greetings. "Since he was returned, Harley hasn't been able to identify his own image," he explained softly, his forehead creased. "Mirrors, pictures, nothing."
"At least, that's what he has claimed," the Blood Valley Alpha broke in. "We're going to need to talk to him again, Zade."
Harley's guardian nodded, still frowning.
"I better call the doctor," Levi muttered. He stretched up to kiss his Alpha's cheek before turning to face Rafael. "Can you wait about thirty minutes? I want to be there."
Rafael nodded. "Sure. I'm going to need to make a few calls first, anyway." He gave me another intense look. "We're going to have questions for you, also."
"Okay." I kept from shrugging – it seemed like I'd been doing that a lot – but, truthfully, I really wasn't sure what they were all so worked up over. A little over an hour later, things went from confusing to alarming when I found out exactly why they were all so concerned.
Clint and his brother had apparently stepped out, the rest of us – Zade, Levi, Rafael, Colby, and the Empath, Trevor – were all sitting around the conference table in the Coruscation Alpha's office when Zade began to speak.
"Harley," Zade kept his voice calm, but there was an unusual hardness in it, as well, "Do you know why we want to talk to you?"
Harley's scent was tinged with fear. "I..I guess so."
Rafael pinned Harley's wide eyes with his own steely gaze and my Omega's Adam's apple bobbed as he swallowed nervously. "What do you have to say for yourself?"
"I.." Harley choked out the word and turned to me for help. Help I'd had to promise not to give to be allowed in for his questioning. "I'm sorry," he finished weakly.
"Sorry?" Colby snapped. "After everything that's been done for you, to help you, all you can say is sorry?"
Panic filled Harley's face as he stared back at Rafael, his body beginning to shake. He opened his mouth, but no words came out. Instead, silent tears began to slide down his cheeks.
"Dammit, Rafael," I growled, shoving my chair back and striding to my Omega. I gathered Harley's trembling body in my arms and held him close, allowing my comfort to wash over him. "You're scaring the shit out of him. Just tell us what the hell this is about or we're leaving."
Zade stood and I glared at him. "If I have to go through you, I will, Zade," I warned him. "I tried to work with you, but I'm not letting you put him through this."
"Sit down, Scott."
I stayed where I was and Rafael sighed. "Look, everyone in this room understands how you feel, but this is a criminal investigation."
What? They thought accusing my Omega of a crime was going to make me less protective? That absurdity nearly made me laugh.
"Criminal?" Harley squeaked from his spot against my chest. "We didn't even screw! We just made out a little!"
"What?" Zade and Rafael exchanged confused looks and Zade cocked his head. "Harley, why do you think you're here?"
I felt Harley's swallow. "Because Scott and I were…you know…and he said he wants to marry me?"
"That's ridiculous," Colby snapped. "No one cares if you're getting laid."
"The pictures, Harley," Rafael added, his voice equally harsh. "Your swiss-cheese memory seems to have conveniently healed itself. Or maybe you never forgot who you were at all."
"The pictures of us?" Harley's voice was barely a whisper. "That's why they're mad?"
"I guess, Har," I murmured in his ear, ignoring everyone around us. "I'm not sure what the deal is."
"The deal," Colby said coldly, "is that a significant amount of resources have been wasted on this dick pretending he was kidnapped and abused."
"That's enough." Trevor's voice was harsh and everyone in the room turned to stare with wide eyes, leaving me with the impression that it was out of character. The Blood Valley Omega, Colby, began to respond, but Trevor was adamant. "I said enough, Colby. Stop."
Colby's mouth snapped closed and Trevor looked across the table. "Zade, sit down."
Zade obeyed without question and Trevor turned to us. "Harley?" Trevor's voice was much softer now. "Remember when we meditated in the kitchen?"
Harley turned in my arms, his frightened eyes meeting Trevor's gentle ones. "Yes."
"Good." Trevor walked over to stand beside us. He ignored me and reached for one of Harley's hands. "Close your eyes." Very quickly I noticed the change in Harley's body as he relaxed against me. Where his heart had been thundering against my forearm, it slowed. His breathing evened out.
Trevor murmured softly but I couldn't make out the words and then they both opened their eyes.
"Thank you," Harley said to Trevor with a deep sigh.
Trevor nodded and returned to his seat. The look he shot at the end of the table where Zade, Rafael, and Colby were seated was very nearly a glare.
"Harley has no idea what you're talking about, but you're scaring the hell out of him." Trevor shook his head, disappointment flooding out from him. All three of them hung their heads at his next words, "Coruscation lands are a safe place for all Omegas. Shame on you for treating Harley like that."
He stood up and looked pointedly at the door. "It's time for everyone but Harley and Scott to leave."
Chapter
Sixteen
Rafe
"I'm sorry, Rafe," The amusement in Clint's voice came through the speaker on my desk phone clearly. "Can you run that by me again?"
"I said that Trevor kicked us off the compound and kept Harley there," I repeated, pinching the bridge of my nose between my thumb and forefinger.
"Uh huh. That's what I thought you said," Clint chuckled. "I'm tied up at the moment. Why don't you have Colby talk to him?"
"Ah, well," I hedged, glancing at my pregnant Omega who was huddled miserably in the corner, "he kind of kicked Colby out right along with Zade and me," I finally admitted.
The sudden silence on the line assured me that Clint was now taking the situation seriously. When he finally spoke again, there was no humor.
"What happened, Rafael?"
I gave him the rundown on the conversa
tion – okay, interrogation – and the next time Clint spoke, it was more of a growl. "I should be done here in about an hour. Put your evidence together and then I'll evaluate the situation."
I'd known Clint a long damned time and it didn't exactly take an Empath to know he was pissed. I held back a sigh. "Of course. You want me to meet you.."
"At your office," Clint interrupted me. "Trevor already told you that you're not welcome in our territory for now."
Well, shit.
I'd been hoping that Clint would call Trevor and sweet-talk him for me. That obviously wasn't going to happen. I'd been called a lot of different kinds of a fool in my time, but I wasn't stupid enough to push my luck with a werewolf.
When Clint was escorted into my office a little over an hour later, I had several neat stacks of paper lined up on the desk in front of me, and Clint had something of his own in tow.
His husband.
Trevor sat silently in the chair opposite me. Clint stood behind him, strong hands on his Omega's shoulders.
"Hi," I greeted Trevor first. "I'm sorry."
He raised a brow but didn't respond.
"Trev, really, I am sorry," I repeated. "I know we were hard on Harley, but sometimes that is the only way to get to the truth."
"I told you the truth," Trevor snapped. "He doesn't know what happened to him." He looked up into Clint's face. "I was in his mind, Clint."
"I know, love," Clint agreed soothingly. "But let's shelve that for the moment, okay?" Clint looked across the desk at me with a scowl. "We've been friends a long time, Raphael," he said, echoing my thought from earlier. "You know better than most how I feel about the way Omegas are treated."
I nodded and blew out a breath. Yeah, I did. And I also knew without a doubt that I'd fucked up.
"You and yours have always been welcomed in our lands, and my pack and I have covered your back many times." Clint still hadn't raised his voice, but I winced at his words, the truth in them cutting deep. Hell, without him and Trevor I could have lost Colby. Twice. "Today you abused that trust."