* * *
Troy jumped awake. Someone had poked him. The light in the attic was fading. He was cold. If they were going to have a fort up here, then maybe they should bring up a whole bunch more blankets.
Something moved near the foot of the old mattress he was lying on. The shadows were deep, but a man was there. A big one. He had a dark beard, black hair, and dark eyes. He was squatting there, watching Troy. Troy blinked, fast, several times. The man looked just like Captain Hook, mean and growly. Troy’s new dad had several men at their new house. This one didn’t look familiar. He wasn’t glaring at Troy, just cautiously watching him. Maybe he wasn’t any scarier than any of his dad’s men, and none of them were mean.
“Who are you?” Troy asked.
“No one. Why are you up here?” His words sounded funny.
“We play up here some. Eddie said we could.”
“Mmm. Are you the leader’s son?”
“Yeah. One of them. Why are you up here?” Troy asked.
“I like it up here.” His voice was deep and rumbly.
“I do too.”
“They’re looking for you downstairs.”
“Oh.” Troy rubbed his eyes. “I fell asleep.”
“You’d better go to them. Your maman weeps for you.”
Troy heard his mom crying. He didn’t like that sound. “Mom?” he called out, but she didn’t answer.
“She’s downstairs.”
That was weird. How had Troy heard her so clearly when she was two floors below him? He stood and looked back at Captain Hook, who also came to his feet. “Okay. I’ll go. Are you coming with me?”
“Non.” The man was really tall. He looked even bigger than Owen. And then, right before Troy’s eyes, he vanished. Troy screamed and ran down the dark attic stairs. Halfway down, the lights came on. He pulled on the door, pulled and pulled before he remembered how to open it. When he got the door open, he rushed through, heedless of anyone on the other side. No one was there. Troy looked behind him to see if Captain Hook was chasing him, but he was alone.
He ran down the hall to the far end where the stairs led down to his parents’ rooms. Before he was all the way down, he could hear his mom crying, softly, just like she had in the attic. She was alone in the sitting room outside their bedrooms.
“Mom! Mom! Why are you crying?” Troy threw himself at her.
“Troy?” She grabbed him and hugged him hard. “Troy!” She set him on his feet and held him in front of her. Her grip on his shoulders was painful. “Are you all right?”
“Yeah. I’m fine.”
“Where were you?”
“I fell asleep in the attic.”
His mom choked on a laugh. She hugged him again, then wiped her eyes. “Come with me. Everyone in the house is looking for you.” She took his hand and rushed him down the hall toward the living room.
Troy had to jog to keep up with her. “Mom, there’s a ghost in the attic. I saw him.”
His mom stopped and frowned at him. “There’s a man in the attic?”
“No. Not a man. A ghost.” She looked worried about that. He didn’t want to scare her, but nor did he want to admit to being scared, so he played it down. “He was a nice ghost. He told me you were crying.”
“Owen!” They resumed their rush toward the living room. “Owen! I found him. He came back.”
Several people were in the living room. Troy was anxious as he watched his new dad’s expression shift from something intense to relief. He lifted Troy up in his arms and hugged him in a grip even tighter than Mom’s. Troy started to cry, worried a beating would come next. Owen leaned back and looked at him. He blinked and his face tightened, then he hugged Troy again. After he set Troy down, he knelt in front of him.
Owen pulled Troy’s plastic necklace from his shirt. “Your security necklace wasn’t working. We lost track of you.” He removed the necklace and handed it to Greer.
“I’ll check it out and get him another,” Greer said.
“Where were you?” Owen asked.
Troy looked at his mom. She nodded to him. Troy told Owen what happened—including the man in the attic.
“Tell me about this man,” Owen said.
Troy was scared of his dad’s frown. He looked at his mom again. She came over and put her hand on his shoulder, which helped. “He has dark, poofy hair pulled back like this.” Troy tugged at his short hair as if it was long enough for a ponytail. “He has a mustache and beard. He had earrings in his ears. He wore clothes like the pride wears. It was Captain Hook, but he didn’t have a hook. He was big, like you. Bigger, maybe. And he talked funny.”
“Captain Hook?” Owen arched a brow, pinning Troy with a piercing glare from his pale blue eyes. Troy squirmed.
“Uncle Owen, we were playing Peter Pan a couple of days ago,” Casey said.
“Ah. Son, is it possible you just dreamed you were seeing Captain Hook?”
“No. He was there,” Troy said. “He told me Mommy was crying. I heard her. But how could I have heard her in the attic when she was downstairs? He must have helped me hear her.”
Owen gave his men a look that sent Rocco and Val hurrying up the main stairs. They split apart at the bridge and went in different directions to the two attics.
“Don’t worry. He’s not up there now.” Troy shook his head. “He’s a ghost. He disappeared.”
Owen’s brows lowered. He sent Mom a dark look, then said, “Troy, it’s one thing doing something thoughtless like hiding from all of us and making us panic when we couldn’t find you, but it’s an entirely different thing to lie about it.”
Troy swallowed hard. Augie and the pride had come into the living room. His brother probably wouldn’t believe him either. “I’m not lying, sir. I talked to him. He said he liked being in the attic.”
Owen stood. Troy stared at Owen’s knees. He knew there’d be a beating coming. But if Owen thought to hit his mom, he was going to have another think coming.
“Greer,” Owen said with a sigh, “can you take a look for our ghost Captain Hook?”
Greer grinned. “I’m on it.” He set his hand on Troy’s head. Troy looked up to see his friendly smile. “If your ghost is still up there, I’ll find him.”
“He’s not,” Troy replied. “I told you he disappeared. He was right there in front of me, then he wasn’t.”
“Either way, I got your back.” Greer followed the other men up the stairs.
“Kit, call off the search for Troy,” Owen said.
“Already sent the all-clear,” Kit said.
Owen took Troy’s hand. “Let’s go have a talk, son.”
Troy’s stomach somersaulted. He went along meekly, but at the stairs that led out of the living room into the foyer, he looked back at his mom, who was following them. He held up his hand, stopping her. “You wait here, Mom.”
“Why?” Addy asked.
Troy looked up at Owen then back at her. “Because. It’s safer.”
She and Owen exchanged glances. Owen sighed. He picked Troy up and started down the hall. “Boy, my job is to keep you and your mom and brother—and everyone here—safe. I failed that duty when we lost you this afternoon. We’re just going to have a talk. No one’s going to get hurt. We want to figure this out. Okay?”
Troy nodded. He wrapped his arms around Owen’s neck. “Just don’t hurt my mom,” he whispered.
“Son,” Owen whispered, putting his hand on Troy’s back, “your mom is my heart. Hurting her would hurt me. I will never do it.”
“My other dad said it hurt him more than it hurt her, but she was always the one bleeding afterward.”
Troy felt Owen’s arms tighten around him. “Your other dad is dead, Troy. Those days are gone, and the cautionary lessons they taught no longer apply here, where we do things differently. We treat each other with respect and kindness. We don’t lie to protect ourselves.”
“I didn’t lie. I saw Captain Hook.”
Owen patted his back. “I can’t sp
eak to that, since I wasn’t there and can’t prove or disprove what you saw or thought you saw. That’s not what your mom and I would like to talk to you about.”
“Okay.”
When they got to their suite, Owen sat on the sofa next to Mom, and set Troy on his feet. His mom looked worried about him, but not fearful of Owen. Troy took a deep breath and let that air out in a fast huff.
“Why were you alone in the attic?” his mom asked him.
Troy shrugged. He didn’t want to tell his parents that he’d been fighting with Augie. “I was tired and wanted to be alone. I didn’t mean to fall asleep. I didn’t hear you calling for me.”
Owen nodded. “Usually, we can find you by your security necklace. It’s not your fault that it wasn’t working. But in the future, if you want to be alone, you must tell one of us where you’re going to be. I’d prefer if you chose a place other than the attic when you want to crash. You could even use our bed for a nap.”
“Yes, sir. And don’t worry—I won’t be alone in the attic anymore. I don’t like ghosts.”
“Good. Now go wash up,” his mom said. “Use soap.”
Troy hugged her then Owen. He paused at the threshold to his room. “Dad? Captain Hook asked if I was the leader’s son. I told him I was… I am, right? I wouldn’t like to lie to Captain Hook.”
* * *
Owen felt a chill slip through him. That wasn’t the kind of question a kid would just randomly come up with. He nodded, trying to keep the shock from his face. “You are my boy.”
“He talked funny. He said ‘leadaire,’ not leader. Maybe he needs to go to school too.”
Owen frowned. “What else did he say in a funny way?”
Troy thought about that. “He called Mom ‘maman.’ I’m glad he’s gone now.” Troy jogged into his room.
That little revelation put a whole new spin on things. “Did your boys ever take French?” Owen asked Addy. “Or did you have a French employee at your house?”
“No. That was odd. Do you think he made up that whole interaction?”
“I’m not at all sure. Maybe there’s a French character in one of the games he plays. Or maybe Zavi taught him some French. I’m still getting used to being around kids.” Owen leaned back and opened his arm for Addy to come close. “He thought I was going to beat you.” Owen sighed against Addy’s temple.
Addy put her hand on his chest. “I was hoping he was too young to have many memories of Cecil. I guess I was wrong.”
“He was young—those days were already half his lifetime ago. We’ll reset him, in time. Trust takes a while to build.” They sat in silence for a moment. “You know what most impresses me about him?”
“What?”
“Two things. I overheard him fighting with Augie and a couple of the cubs before he disappeared, but he didn’t try to shift the blame off him to them. And even more than his fear about being in trouble, his concern for you was uppermost in his mind. In some big ways, he’s got his priorities straight. All the rest, we can work with.”
“He and Augie often would hide in our other house, especially when Cecil came around. I suppose finding hiding places is a natural thing for him.”
“And it’s not a bad instinct. The cubs learned to do it instantly and expertly, like any wild animal.”
“Thank you for not losing your temper.”
Owen chuckled. “This wasn’t the sort of infraction that makes me lose my cool. It wasn’t an infraction at all.”
“But what about his storytelling about seeing Captain Hook?”
“Maybe he really thought he did. Could have been a dream based on what they were playing earlier. Who knows. Either way, I didn’t want to make him dig in and make a bigger hole for himself. And given how he protected his brother and you, I doubt he feared facing us, so there was no reason to lie.”
“You’re a good dad, Owen.”
He smiled. “I’m still learning the ropes. I always ask myself, what would you do in whatever situation with the kids I find myself in? You set a good example.”
10
Hope looked over at Lion standing next to her with his head under the hood of his—new—used Explorer. She’d worked with both Hawk and Lion, showing them the things they needed to check periodically when they did their oil changes.
Hope moved away from Lion’s vehicle and removed her nitrile gloves. She scrubbed her hands and dried them, then waited for Lion to do the same.
“I’m happy you’re going to school, Lion.”
“But?” he asked, probably hearing the hesitation in her voice.
“But I wish we’d had more time to get to know each other.”
“I can put it off a year.”
“No. You can’t. Who knows what trouble the world will be in in a year. You have an opportunity you need to grab a hold of right now. Besides, even if we talked day and night for the next several months, we still wouldn’t know each other better. That takes time. And we have that time.”
“And talking day and night would probably kill me.”
Hope laughed. “Have you gotten used to the idea that Fiona and Val are your family too?”
“No. I really believed it when I was told that my father was King—not that I admired him or even was proud of that fact. Val’s dad wasn’t King.”
Hope shrugged. “That whole group was truly messed up. Maybe Jason was a kind of king. Maybe there were several men acting as King. That was never cleared up for me. Just knowing that Edwards and Jason are both dead makes me feel safer. But promise me that you’ll keep your eyes and ears open. The Omnis have spies everywhere.”
“Like my pride.”
“No. Your pride had ethics.”
“Not always. Not when we took orders from the bad guys.”
“Just stay aware. And don’t be trusting. I’m glad you’ll be with Fiona. She’s familiar with the university, if you end up going there. And you and Hawk can keep her safe. She’s so close to graduating. And being there with her will be a great way to get to know her better.”
“I agree. And it’s not like you and I are saying goodbye. Hawk and I will be home for holidays and during the summer. And I’m not so far away that you can’t come see me anytime you like.”
“That’s true. And I will. Be sure to let me know your schedule so I can come down and take you to lunch.” She tilted her head, studying him. “Are you sure you’re ready for this? Your world has been very different from that of the kids you’ll be around at school. They can’t know what you know.”
“I’ll learn what I need to do to get by. I always have.”
“Okay. If you run into trouble, you can always talk to us. Or give Remi a call. Or come back for a weekend to recharge.”
“Hope?” Lion shoved his hands in his jeans pockets. “I have no doubt there’s a lot I can learn from you, especially when it comes to mechanics. But there’s a whole world out there waiting to teach me. Hawk and I will be fine.”
“Are you going to go by your pride name or by your birth name—Randall?”
“Probably a mix. Lion and our last name—Townsend.
“Good. Good choice. I love you, you know.”
Lion gave her a lopsided grin. “I love you too. Didn’t think I would when I first met you. You were kind of scary.” His smirk widened into a full smile as he started moving backward toward the house.
Hope laughed. “I was scary!” She waved her hand over her brows. “You were the one with the tattooed brows and the mean face.”
“They’re still tattooed.”
“Yeah, but they don’t scare me anymore.” Man, she was going to miss him. When he went inside, she turned and opened the carved box that Max had given her. She put her ring on, then slipped his necklace over her head.
Max sneaked up from behind and hugged her. “So their vehicles are gonna work out all right?”
She turned in his arms and set her hands on his chest. “They’ll be great. I told Lion I’d come down sometimes and take him to
lunch. He didn’t say I couldn’t.”
“Course not. He’s a kid. Free food rules.” He kissed her. “So tell me about your dress.”
“I can’t tell you about it. Quit asking.” When he looked wounded, she said, “Val did help me pick out some lingerie, though.” To keep from smiling, she folded her lips between her teeth and bit down.
“I’m gonna kill him.”
“Don’t worry. He just picked some things out. He doesn’t know which of them I selected. And I didn’t try any of them on for him.” She made a face. “He’s like a brother, for crying out loud.”
Max pulled her closer. “You just saved his life.”
* * *
It was dark when Mandy joined Rocco in their room. She was exhausted, and her back ached. Only a few more days until Christmas. All the work had been done; now was just the waiting. One present was under the tree for each of the kids in the house. Late Christmas Eve, they’d put the rest of the gifts there.
She’d been enjoying watching the cubs pause by the tree and look at it in wonder. Zavi had been having fun monitoring the growing pile of presents, making sure there was one for each cub and each of the other kids—even Hawk and Lion.
Mandy, Casey, Fiona, and Russ had spent days baking and fighting off cookie stealers. They hid them in the freezer and refused to bring them out until Christmas Eve. She looked at the two chocolate chip cookies she’d snagged for her and Rocco. She did feel a little guilty. Their hidden stash of frozen treats was dwindling—she didn’t think she was the only one sneaking a cookie here and there. They’d probably need another round of baking before the holiday.
Rocco was on the bed, shirtless but wearing a pair of blue flannel pajama bottoms. He was reading a mystery novel—in French. Seeing him sitting on their bed, his long legs stretched out and crossed at the ankles, warm light from the lamp on the nightstand spilling over him, gave her a sense of calm. In that moment, everything was right in the world.
She paused and leaned against the corner of the short hallway leading into their room. She wanted to just watch Rocco for a moment, but she couldn’t stifle a big yawn. It pulled Rocco from his book. He smiled at her, and she at him. He set his book on a stack of books on his nightstand then lifted the covers on her side of the bed.
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