by Jana Leigh
***
Ryan stood and watched as his mate took Jordan to the atrium. He shook his head and turned back to his Pridemates.
“So, how is it going? He asked and looked at them pointedly.
Romy answered. “Well, she is hurt, pissed and feeling all alone. Larkin and I have extended your invitation, she wanted to meet you. I hope she realizes how much she needs a Pride, or a Pack.”
Ryan nodded and said, “We will discuss it over lunch. No matter how much I would like to have a Chosen one in my Pride, if it hurts her it is not worth it. She is perfect for you two. I could see it right when I walked in, your bond is strong.” Larkin smiled and nodded. “We are her family now, and she knows how much we love her. I don"t know what to do about the rest.”
“Her parents?” Blaze spoke up.
“She won"t talk to them yet. Or any of her family for that matter. The wound is still to raw. Did you find anything out about the man who was in the chat room?” Larkin asked. They had sent all the information they had to Blaze, he was a wiz at computers, and if anyone could find the asshole that started the fucking mess, it was Blaze.
“Not yet, we are still looking. He accessed it from a coffee shop across the street from where she lived. He has been watching her. We are looking for any video from the stores around there. We will find him.” Blaze said confidently. Larkin and Romy had seen the man pull the impossible out of his ass, so they knew that he would keep at it until he found out who The Master was.
“I just don"t like being out here without knowing what we are up against.” Larkin said and Romy nodded.
“We have seven of our best Warriors at your disposal. They are permanently assigned to Jordan and you. The dogs have backed off but not left. They are across the street now, watching and reporting back to Jordan"s parents. I feel for the man. I called him earlier and there was real pain in his voice. He said that he never meant to hurt her, only protect her. I told him we would now. He accepted the offer, for now.” Ryan said.
The men went into the kitchen and Larkin and Romy began to load the plates down with the food they had made. They were surprised when Blaze and Ryan joined in.
“What?” Ryan said. “I was a bachelor before, you know.” They laughed and Blaze said, “Yeah, but you didn"t cook. Do you remember when you first tried to impress Ariel with your cooking skills?” Ryan laughed. “Yeah, when we lived in the apartment on the west side. I nearly burned down the fucking building. The super called the Prime and told him if they did not pay for the remodeling of the apartment they were going to kick us out.” Ryan and Blaze had been best friends since they were small. Their mothers called them the „terrible two". They got in so much trouble when they were young; everyone still talked about their wild Alpha"s teens. It did not surprise anyone when they went to college together. And when Ryan was appointed the new Prime, Blaze had been by his side and named the Second.
The men laughed and joked about their cooking skills. Romy and Larkin relaxed. They had hoped their Prime would be happy about their mating and would like Jordan. Blaze stepped out to answer a phone call and Ryan turned to them.
“What can I do to help?” Ryan asked and picked up a piece of egg and popped it in his mouth.
“Jordan decided to go to Colorado. She does not want to have anything to do with her adoptive family right now. She said she was going to look at it as a business. She wants to live outside the compound for now. I agree. One of the New Council member"s father is the one accused of killing her parents. She would not feel comfortable being so close.” Larkin said.
“I will send our best construction worker out today to find you a plot. We will make sure that it is guarded by the cat nation. I will call Quin and Jaden and ask permission. How do you want me to handle it?” Ryan said seriously.
“If they don"t agree to Jordan"s requests, I don"t think she will go. It"s plain and simple.” Romy said.
Ryan nodded and ran his hands through his hair. “I can play hard ball since she is a member of the Pride. New Council or not, they have no jurisdiction over her until she officially pledges to the New Council Pack.”
“She won"t do that. We already discussed it. She will take her place on the Council, but she will not pledge to the Pack. So I really don"t know where that"s going to leave us.
We have not called anyone yet.” Romy said.
Ryan looked at his Pridemates and when Blaze came back into the room, he turned to his Second and explained what they had been talking about. Blaze frowned and nodded.
“I thought all the New Council members had to be a part of the Pack?” Blaze said.
“Well, we are going to have to talk to Quin and Jaden about that before we make our plans.” Larkin said. “Jordan doesn"t want to do that.”
“Let"s get the women.” Ryan said and Romy went to the door to the atrium, opened it, and called out for Jordan and Ariel. They all relaxed when the women came back in arm in arm laughing as if they were old friends.
Larkin went to his mate and kissed her on the forehead. “Everything okay?”
“Well, I didn"t bite her and eat her, dumbass.” Ariel said laughing.
“That"s a good sign.” Ryan said and took his mate in his arms and kissed her soundly in front of all of them.
Blaze stuck his finger down his throat and made a gagging noise. “Come on.”
“Wait until you find your mate. I am not going to let you forget this.” Ryan grumbled to his Second and then slapped the man on the back of the head.
“Let"s eat.” Romy said and moved everyone to the food laden dining room table.
As they ate, the group got to know each other better, talking about their pasts. They became more comfortable as the meal went on. Romy and Larkin were glad that their mate was so comfortable around their Prime. It would make things a lot easier.
When the meal was over, Ryan clapped his hands and rubbed them together. “So, let"s get down to it. Jordan, what do you want to do?”
Jordan looked at her mates and they nodded to her. She cleared her throat and said,
“Well, I feel very comfortable around you all. I"m really glad that you came over. I won"t go through all of the stuff that happened the last few days cause you all know.” Everyone nodded and waited for her to talk. “I would like to go to Colorado, but remain part of the Pride with my mates. I feel like my real parents would want me to follow my destiny.”
Jordan felt the tears build in her eyes. When she thought about her adoptive parents and her birth parents, she felt so torn. She had no idea who she should give her loyalty to. It was a messed up situation. Slowly she talked about what she was feeling and Ariel stood up, came to her side, and held her hand while she talked about her vision of what she wanted. Ryan nodded and made notes so he could be clear on what he needed to do.
“Okay, here"s what I think.” Ryan said when everything was done. “I will call Quin and Jaden form here. We will make our feelings known and see what they say. If I may, I would like Blaze to contact your birth parent"s family. Before we do anything, I would like to make sure that they are safe.” He held up his hand when Jordan was going to say something. “I know you may not agree with it, but your mates would do the same thing.
You are a part of our Pride and we look after what is ours.” Jordan nodded and waited for him continue. “I will not order you to talk to your parents. But I have spoken to your father. At least let them know where you are going.” Ryan said.
Ariel knelt down next to her chair and took her hand firmly. “We will travel to Colorado with you and wait until you are settled before returning. We will face this together.” Jordan felt the tears gather in her eyes, smiled at her mates, and nodded. Blaze stood, armed with a list of things he needed to do. He excused himself and left the penthouse.
“Well, let"s get this over with.” Ryan said. “Where is the phone?” Romy stood and went into the kitchen and grabbed the extension. When he returned, Larkin had moved them all into the living room so they were c
omfortable. Jordan and Ariel sat on the couch still holding hands and whispering.
Larkin smiled and handed the phone to Ryan who sat in the chair closest to his mate.
He took his seat next to Romy on the loveseat.
“I will talk first.” Ryan said.
Chapter 15
Quin sat at his desk in the New Council compound and stared at the wall. Nothing was turning out like he expected it to. Everything was a mess. His mate Cami was constantly trying to figure out a way that Oliver was not guilty. She refused to vote against her best friend"s father.
Blaine and his mates had not had a vision other than to tell them a time of indecision was upon them. Quin had roared „NO SHIT" when they announced that. The rest of the Council was quiet and thoughtful. Basically, they were divided. This was not supposed to be what the New Council was about. They had to work together.
Jaden entered the room, plopped down in the chair across from him, and said, “Well, I am sleeping on the couch tonight.” He announced and put his head back.
“Why?” Quin said grimly.
“Because I told Cami she was not allowed to go down to the jail. She screamed at me for twenty minutes but I held firm just like we talked about. Thanks, by the way, for making me deliver that news. Then she slammed out of the room and threw a comforter and pillow at me.” Jaden said glumly.
Quin closed his eyes. When their mate was pissed, the whole household was pissed.
Great. Just what they needed.
“What the fuck are we going to do?” Quin said.
“Well, Braden just returned. He is with Oliver right now. Maybe he can tell us at least what the fuck he saw that night. I can"t believe the man covered up a murder for Oliver.
What the hell was he thinking? They had to know that it was going to come out sometime. Now we are the ones who have to pick up the pieces. Oliver is a mess. He says he does not remember a damn thing from that night other than the fact that he drank a lot of alcohol. I can understand what he was going through. If anything happened to you and Cami or the kids I would go nuts. But Braden should have known his Alpha needed him. He was the Beta of the Pack. I have people looking into the records of who was at the Pack house that night. They are piecing together things slowly. Finding them is another problem. Most of them are still employed by Oliver.
But there are a few who have disappeared, I am sure there are more, we will have to wait and see. Any word from Devon?”
Quin sighed. “Sure. Jordan is not speaking to any of them and no one knows who this Master guy is. Basically, nothing new. We have to get Jordan back here with her mates.
We can"t have this separation right now. If the Rogues attacked again, we would not be able to help her. Devon and Sid are going to try to talk to her again this afternoon.” Jaden made a frustrated noise and then yelled, “WHY?”
“Because we are in hell.” Quin said calmly. “My father and mother are coming out.”
“Shit, we are in hell.” Jaden said.
“Yeah, they are bringing yours.” Quin laughed.
The phone rang and Quin hit the speaker phone. “Quin.” He said briskly.
***
“Quin, this is Ryan Greene, Prime of the Northern Pride.” Quin sat up straighter and leaned over his desk.
“Hey, Ryan, what"s up?” Quin said tensely. He liked Ryan, he was a good Prime. They had dealt with him in the past and liked him. They had sent Warriors to help them recently.
“Well, we have kind of a little problem here; I hope I can facilitate some kind of arrangement.” Ryan said smoothly and winked at Jordan.
“What kind of problem?” Quin said slowly.
“A Chosen one problem. Jordan has become one of my Pride, since she mated with two of my Pridemates. She is requesting to remain part of the Pride but still come and take her place on the Council.” Ryan said.
“All the Chosen belong to the New Council Pack.” Quin said firmly.
“Well that seems to be a problem then. She will not pledge to the Pack. She wants to have her own house, outside of the compound. In addition, she refuses to talk about her personal business with anyone but her mates. She will attend meetings and do her duties as they are lined out. Like a business deal. She has certain conditions as well.
Jordan does not want to see or talk about Oliver. She will refrain from that vote.
Jordan is looking for her birth family and wants no interference from anyone. Also, she will be traveling back to Colorado with my mate and me. We will stay until her new home is built and she is comfortable. I have sent out my best construction crew already, they are seeking a plot of land suitable. Her security will be provided by my Pride, period.” Ryan continued.
“Holy shit, Ryan. What you are asking for is going against everything that we have established.” Quin said.
“If you want Jordan to come to Colorado, then these are the stipulations.” Ryan said with an edge to his voice. Jordan shivered and she could see her mated bow their heads.
He was giving off serious power. Ariel sat by her side and covered her mouth to keep from laughing.
“Ryan, may I speak to Jordan?” Quin said.
Ryan looked at her and she nodded. “She is in the room and you are on speaker phone.” Quin sighed and then said, “Jordan, I am sorry about this whole mess. I want to arrange something for all of us, to make this work.”
Jordan looked at her mates and bit her lip. Ariel held her hand tighter and she felt the power flow from her. “Quin, I am sorry too. But these are my rules. I will not put myself out there right now. I will agree to keep an open mind for the future, but if you want me to come there, I have to do it my way. That is the only way I will come. If not, then I will go about my life and wish you all well.” There was silence on the other end and she held her breath. “Jordan, I am not sure how this is going to work, but I would really like you here. I can assure you that we will do whatever possible to make you welcome and comfortable.” Jordan nodded and said, “Thank you, Quin. Romy and Larkin will be making arrangements with Ryan for our arrival. We will let you know.” Ryan held up his hand and said, “Actually, we will be there tomorrow. Our plane arrives at noon.”
“Someone will meet you at the airport.” Quin said.
“Actually, we have rented cars, we will come to Milliken. I will call you when we get there. I believe we already have reservations at your hotel.” Ryan said.
***
“Okay. See you then.” Quin said with a tense tone and hung up the phone. “Well, fuck a duck.” He said to his mate Jaden.
Jaden nodded and looked out the window. “Should I call Sid and Devon?”
“Yeah, they need to come home immediately. I think that we are going to have to make some interesting arrangements for all of this. Jordan seems adamant; I think she is going to be stubborn. I don"t know how we are going to deal with this.” Quin said and wiped his face tiredly. “Well, let"s get this over with.” He pushed buttons on the phone and waited for his Beta to answer. “Devon, here.”
“Dev, I need you and your mates to get back home.” Quin said.
“Home? Sid won"t leave without Jordan.” Devon said warily.
“She"s coming here. Jordan will be here tomorrow. The Prime of the Northern Pride called a few minutes ago and informed me that Jordan would be arriving with him and his mate. She made stipulations, including she will not talk or discuss her personal life with anyone. Dev, man, I need you back here and I need your mates under control.” Quin said.
“Shit.” Devon said.
“Yeah, well welcome to my hell.” Quin said and hung up the phone.
“I wonder if we can get t-shirts and claim that as our new motto.” Jaden said and stood up. “I am going to go and see if I can beg my way back into the bedroom.”
“Good luck with that. The last time I pissed Cami off, I was sleeping on the couch for a week.” Quin said and laughed.
“I know, that is why I am going to go and talk to her. I remember what we did
that week and I don"t want to miss out.” Jaden smiled and walked out the door.
Quin sat there for a minute, frowned, and then took off after his mate. This could wait.
Chapter 16
Braden sat in the room that Quin and Jaden gave him and smiled. Things were coming together. Oliver still had no memory of the night that Jordan"s parents were killed. Jo was a mess, and the New Council was divided.
He laughed when he thought about the conversation he had with Oliver.
“Braden, you have to tell them everything that you remember. Something may help.” Jo said.
“Jo, of course I will help. But as I told you, I came afterward. My Enforcers called me when Oliver wandered out of his rooms covered in blood. We searched the Pack house and found the Cheaster"s. They were in your father"s personal living area. He was drunk and did not make sense. All he kept saying was that they had to pay. We sobered up your father and I am ashamed to say that I convinced him that it would be best if we took care of it. Your father was not a bad man. He had a weak moment. Your mother had been killed and you presumed dead. Though I was sorry for their loss, the Cheaster"s deaths would have ruined your father. He was a great leader. Still is. I wish I would have done things differently, but I didn"t. I just hope that we can figure out something.” Braden said and looked as grim as he could.
“I still don"t remember what I was thinking. Where is the archived list of people who were at the Pack house that night?” Oliver said. Braden looked at him surprised because he was. How had the old man even thought about that?
“Alpha, I assume they are with the rest of the documents that we have stored. I will send someone immediately.” Braden said a thin coating of sweat covering his brow. He would not react.
“No bother, I have already sent someone.” Jo said and looked at her father. “I am going to talk to Cami and see if they have heard anything new.” Oliver had sat down on the bench in his cold cell and sighed. “She refuses to give up.” Braden wanted to smile but he held himself back. “Of course, Oliver, we refuse to give up.”