Peace Maker

by Mary Rundle

  “Yes, I have noticed it,” said Jackson. “One more question. What happens if Cody loses the will to return to this world?”

  “He will die.”

  Jackson gasped at Oracle’s answer. The final piece of the puzzle had fallen into place and he knew what needed to be done. “Cody? Is Dylon helping you? Do you want him to continue?” asked Jackson softly.

  Cody nodded.

  “This investigation is closed. Dylon, you have my deepest appreciation and thanks. If you need anything at all, tell me and I’ll take care of it. Understand? Anything at all.”

  “Yes. You should also know Carson was not acting alone. Cody told me Zane was researching me in an effort to find something to get me expelled from this pack. Cody is very worried about it.”

  “I will take care of it. What do you want to do now?”

  “I’m taking Cody back to our room. This was a setback and I need to reestablish his safe zone. Would you please make our excuses at lunch?”

  “Certainly. I’ll have Dakota bring you something.”

  Dylon got up, still cradling his mate, and said, “Thanks, and you too, Oracle,” before heading back to their bedroom with Cody.

  Jackson turned to Oracle. “I really appreciate your help. I only wish I had known about Cody’s problem before it got so bad.”

  “Sweetie, one of the hardest things I learned as an Oracle is to let go of what happened in the past. Concentrate on what is going on right now and make decisions that will lead to a better future. It is really all you can do otherwise you will miss out on all the important events in your life—like Daniel saying his first swear word,” Oracle said, trying to inject some lightheartedness into the room.

  Snorting, Steel said, “See babe, even the Oracle knows Daniel is going to swear.”

  “No, he won’t if you and my brothers stop with the ‘fucking this and fucking that’ all the time,” Jackson said.

  “I think that is my cue to leave. I am sure you will sort it out.”

  “Yes, I will even if I have to gag them,” Jackson responded.

  “Oh, I like that—some BDSM,” said Steel.

  “Stop it, Steel,” Jackson ordered, then adding in a whisper, “Not in front of your mother,” causing Steel to burst out laughing.

  “Oh, don’t worry, Steel,” his mother smiled, “I’ll have your father give Jackson some lessons.” And having said that, Oracle left.

  Jackson smirked as he watched Steel’s laughter come to an abrupt end. “What’s the matter, babe? I think it’s great if your father can give me some pointers.”

  “Stop it, babe. That isn’t nice. I’m going to have to scrub my brain with bleach to get rid of that picture. This is worse than finding out she swears—and that was bad enough!”

  “Poor baby. I’ll make it all better for you tonight.”

  “Oh yeah? How bout we start now?”

  “What? You don’t want...” Jackson stopped his teasing as Daniel’s cries were heard through the baby monitor. “It’s your turn. Give our son a kiss from me.”

  Steel groaned as he stood. Thumping his cock to force it down, he said, “Our son has impeccable timing. At this rate, he’ll end up being an only child.”

  Chuckling, Jackson, “Go. Tell Carson to get Zane. I want to see both of them.”

  Mumbling about being denied relief, Steel left to take care of Daniel.

  Jackson smiled at how his big, bad mate was twisted around their son’s finger. Shifting his thoughts to the actions of Carson and Zane, he contemplated his options. This was not going to be pleasant.

  Steel saw Carson waiting in the great room and headed over. “Carson, Jackson wants to see you and Zane so get him.”

  Zane? Oh fuck! He found out! Carson walked slowly downstairs, trying to figure out what to say to his brother. Shit! Sucking it up as his father taught him, he knocked, hoping his brother was not in there. But no such luck when he heard, “Come in.” Slowly entering, he waited by the door while his brother was furiously typing while looking at his computer screen. Finally, Zane looked his way, “Hey bro, what’s up?”

  “Jackson sent me to get you.”

  “Okay, I’ll be right there. Fuck, look at the time. Well good time to break since it’s close to lunch. I wonder how Dylon’s mom got on with Dakota. Oh shit, I sure hope we don’t have to eat her mistakes.”

  “Ah, Zane, there is something you should know.”

  “What? You know that’s what’s being served? Oh well, I can fake how much I enjoy it. After all, I don’t want to hurt her feelings—she being Cody’s mother-in-law and all, but I hope Dakota doesn’t keep giving her cooking lessons or else I’ll be forced to sneak into the kitchen late at night for something to eat. You know, I’m still growing…” Zane stopped after looking closely at his brother’s face. “Oh shit, now what? Is it Daniel? Is he okay?”

  “No, fuck, yes, Daniel’s okay,” Carson said, “There’s no other way to say this, but I think Jackson found out about my investigation into Dylon, and your involvement.”

  Zane’s mouth fell open as he stared at his brother. Putting the pieces together he growled, “You fucking lied to me. You promised you would drop it if I found nothing. But you didn’t, did you? What the fuck did you do? You’re a fucking asshole, you know that? A fucking asshole!” Pushing Carson out of the way, he stalked down the hallway yelling, “You are going to owe me, so fucking big.”

  Chapter 18

  Zane was beyond furious. Never again! I’m not going to let myself get talked into doing something I know is wrong. Stomping up the stairs, angry with himself for making a bad decision, he knew he’d be punished for it. I earned it. Cody deserves my loyalty and I fucked up badly. Stupid, stupid, stupid! When am I ever going to learn? He sensed Carson behind him before hearing his name called. Swirling around, he bit out, “WHAT?”

  “I just think we should get our story straight, you know, before we see Jackson,” Carson said.

  “Story straight? You think I’m going to lie for you? You’re a bigger asshole than I thought. Listen to me Carson. I’m going in there and telling Jackson everything. Then, if I’m lucky, I will only have thirty days of whatever punishment he wants to give me. And you know what? I will gladly do it because I hurt my brother. I knew what you asked me to do was wrong but I did it anyway. So, no, there’s no story to get straight. You say whatever you want, but me, I’m telling the truth. Now, fuck off.” Zane turned toward Jackson’s office only to discover his brother was standing in the great room listening to them.

  “Zane, wait here. I want to speak to Carson first,” Jackson said in a low voice before heading back to his office.

  Carson felt his stomach turn over when he heard the tone of Jackson’s voice. He didn’t know what to expect but knew Jackson was going to punish him. Granted, he was out of line for going into their bedroom, but he thought it would be empty. Dragging his feet, Carson resigned himself to telling the truth and hopefully he could convince Jackson he only had the pack’s interest at heart.

  ~/~/~/~/~

  Kicking the door shut behind him, Dylon carried his mate over to the bed and sat on the edge, still holding Cody. What happened in Jackson’s office frightened him. He could feel his mate disappearing in his arms, but felt helpless to stop it. Then his training kicked in and he was able to pull his lover back to him. What his mate needed was some loving and then sleep. Dylon began by giving Cody feather light kisses on his face and neck. Once he’d covered every inch, he started over again, this time adding some sucking, leaving several small bruises.

  When Cody sighed, Dylon knew he was on the right path. He kept it up, varying the intensity of kisses and bruises until his mate groaned. Laying Cody gently on his back in their bed, he undressed them both all the while kissing his mate’s body. Cody was needy for his mate, needy for release, and needy for a connection. Dylon knew he had to get his mate to focus on coming so everything else in his mind would be forgotten. Once they were naked, Dylon added his fingers t
o the mix, massaging, pinching, caressing and tweaking.

  Cody cried out, “I need more…more…please, sir,” as his body twitched and jerked with the sensory feelings his mate was triggering. He drew up his left leg when Dylon pinched the skin below his left cheek. It slid back into place before his right leg jerked up when the pinch was repeated on that side. So many touches, so many places…“Please sir, stop, no more. It’s too much!”

  Dylon glanced at his mate and found him hard and leaking. Ignoring his words, he continued to touch and suck his mate’s tender spots. He had to get Cody out of his head, so he would feel and think about nothing except pleasure. Stopping only to lube his fingers, he resumed his mission, pressing a finger on Cody’s puckered rose and hearing the low growly moan of his mate. Dylon thrust his finger in, vowing to make his mate come unaided.

  The velvet soft channel hugged his finger as Dylon sought his mate’s gland. Finding the pleasure button, he pressed it before pulling back, causing Cody to buck off the bed. He repeated the action again and again before adding another finger and then a third as he finger-fucked his mate. Glancing up, he saw the wildness in Cody’s eyes and the neediness of his mate’s cock. He increased the speed of his finger-fucking until he felt Cody’s ass muscles squeeze, cum shooting out of his cock. He kept it up until Cody had given him everything.

  Removing his fingers, Dylon pushed his cock into the sweet warm heat of his mate’s hole. He wanted another orgasm from his mate. He gave Cody no pause but continued the hard pace. Dylon would drive every last fucking vision from his mate’s mind until all he felt was the love that flowed between them. He began to hit Cody’s gland with every stroke.

  “No, please sir…no more…need…I need.”

  “Yes, my pet, I know.” Dylon said, as he increased his speed. He was fighting his impending orgasm but would not come until his mate did again. He reached down for his mate’s nipples, tweaking one and then the other, hearing the growls coming from his mate as his need built again. Leaning forward, he sucked on Cody’s mating scar, then licked it with his tongue. Suddenly his cock was in the vise of his mate’s spasming muscles as Cody’s cock erupted again, coating them both with cum. After several more pumps, Dylon’s orgasm followed and he sank his fangs into Cody’s claiming scar, renewing the bond between them.

  When his cock stopped shooting, he withdrew his fangs and licked the drops of blood from his mate. He rolled over to his side, pulling Cody to him his cock still inside his mate. Keeping his arms tight around Cody, he examined his mate’s aura and found it to be pure, bright silver. He could feel his mate’s love flowing through their life thread to him. Exhaling a deep breath over the relief he felt, he closed his eyes and pulled the covers over them.

  ~/~/~/~/~

  Carson closed Jackson’s office door and walked over to his brother’s desk. Standing silently, he waited for Jackson to speak. There wasn’t any way to sugar coat his disobedience to his Alpha, but he would do it again if it meant saving his pack. I’m an Alpha and that’s what Alphas do—they protect their pack. Now all he had to do was to make Jackson see it that way.

  Studying the brother in front of him, Jackson saw the defiance lurking behind Carson’s eyes and his brother’s aggressive stance. Inwardly sighing, he knew what he had to do. “Carson, I know what you did, but tell me why you disobeyed my order.”

  “That man comes from the pack that wants to kill me and you let him waltz in here like he owns the place. How did you think that made me feel? Safe? Protected? Secure in my pack? No, instead you handed over my brother to a deviant who wants to kill Cody’s wolf. I had no choice but figure out a way I could make you see that traitor for what he is. I don’t trust him, and gods know why you do. Yes, I persuaded Zane to help me. So what? That is what any good Alpha does. Father told me—‘use the resources that are available and that’s something you should have done before you let a killer loose in my home.” Carson paused his tirade.

  “Enough! I get the gist of why you disobeyed me. Now I have some questions for you. Are you the Alpha of this pack?”

  “No, but if I were, I wouldn’t have let that weasel in.”

  “What did our father teach you about obeying your Alpha?”

  Carson didn’t answer.

  “I asked you a question.” Jackson said, and hearing nothing, rolled out his Alpha power in full strength forcing Carson to his knees and his wolf to whimper.

  Unable to remain silent any longer, Carson answered, “Always obey.”

  “And yet you chose not to obey your Alpha. Tell me Carson, what would our father do to you if you questioned his authority as you have mine?”

  Carson had seen what his father did to pack members who disobeyed. Oh gods! My brother won’t kick me out, will he? What will I do? Where will I go? Realizing the consequences of his action, Carson broke down and tears fell. What the fuck was I thinking?

  Jackson let his brother reflect on his potential future. Damn our Alpha father and the horse he rode in on! His whole childhood was spent trying to live up to his father’s ideas of what an Alpha should be. Luckily for him, he learned how to ignore it, but Carson wasn’t as fortunate—as he could see from his current transgressions. Jackson pulled back his Alpha power allowing his brother to stand. “Sit down.”

  Carson rose and took a seat. Looking at his brother, he said, “I’m sorry, Alpha.”

  “Accepted. But why are you apologizing?”

  “Because I didn’t obey your order.”

  “That’s fine,” Jackson said, but realizing this was a perfect teaching moment, he continued, “Do you know why I gave the order about Dylon?”

  “No, not really. I mean, he’s a Silver Point member so I don’t understand why you would accept him as a pack member.”

  “He’s Cody’s Fated Mate, Carson. Do you know the pain Cody would have felt if I refused to let Dylon join the pack? And then, what about his happiness? Does being Alpha give me the right to deny that to Cody? And how would you or Colton feel if Cody left the pack to be with Dylon? Did you think about any of this before you decided on your course of action?”

  Carson bowed his head. When his brother laid it out like that, he realized how stupid he’d been. “No, I didn’t.”

  “As the Alpha of this pack, I have to consider everything before I make a decision. I’m well aware of our father’s lessons on being an Alpha of a pack but some rules need to be broken. What I mean by that is they’re only guidelines when I make a decision. Did the fact Dylon worked for our uncle cause me concern? Of course, it did. But once Cody stated he was going to claim Dylon…”

  “But that’s just it! Cody hasn’t bitten Dylon. If he wants Dylon so much, why hasn’t he done it?”

  “Cody has assured me today he wants Dylon. That’s his right and I will respect it as I expect you to do, also.”

  “But why is Cody chained up? That doesn’t seem right.”

  “That’s none of your business. Cody is going through a difficult time right now and he needs Dylon. That’s good enough for me and you will accept my decision on this matter.” After pausing, Jackson added, “If you love your brother, pray to the gods to help him. He needs our support and love. Let’s make sure he gets it. Now, this subject is closed. If Cody wants you to know what goes on in his and Dylon’s bedroom, he will tell you.”

  “Yes, Alpha. I’m really very sorry. I never meant to hurt my brother. I thought I was saving him.”

  “I know. But next time, if you don’t understand my decision, talk to me first. Now, about involving Zane in this mess—Carson, you are older than your brother and I expect you to set an example for him on how to be an Alpha. That doesn’t include disobeying an order, sneaking around or asking him to lie to me. You are better than that. Do you understand?”

  “Yes, Alpha. I’m sorry for that too.”

  “Stand, please,” Jackson said, and, after his brother rose, continued, “Carson, you disobeyed my order, invaded Cody and Dylon’s privacy and encouraged your
younger brother to join in disobeying your Alpha. Do you deny any of this?”

  “No, Alpha.”

  “As punishment you will do all of Cody’s chores for six months along with yours. Is that understood?”

  Carson blinked. Six fucking months. Fuck! “Yes, Alpha. I’m really very sorry, Jackson. Very sorry for hurting my brother. I hope he can forgive me. I don’t know what came over me. I heard Silver Point Pack and just saw red. I promise I won’t do this again.”

  “That’s up to Cody as to whether he wants to forgive you. I don’t want you going anywhere near his and Dylon’s quarters until I give you permission. Am I clear?”

  “Yes Alpha.”

  “Finally, Carson, you should know that Dylon came up with an idea of how I can find a witness who would verify that our uncle ordered the massacre. And he offered to use his contacts to help us. Don’t be so quick to judge him. You can go now, and send Zane in.”

  ~/~/~/~/~

  After talking to Zane, Jackson went to find his son. This was a morning where it sucked being the Alpha. Power plays, secrets, and handing out punishments weren’t what he expected to face when he woke up today. Hence the need for some loving time cuddling Daniel. My boy is growing so fast. He heard his son’s giggling coming from Maximus and Oracle’s suite, so he turned and headed there. Giving a short rap on the open door, Jackson entered just in time to see his son roll over. “Oh, my gods, did you see that?” asked Maximus to no one in particular. “Come to grandpa, sweetie. Such a big boy you are.”

  “Did I see what I thought I saw?” asked Jackson. “He rolled over. Wow, he is growing up so fast!”