Oh, no. I had a bad feeling about this.
Dino and Bricks climbed out of the car when they saw us watching Rabid ride up to the front of the house. He jerked his bike to a stop, swung his leg over, and looked up. His eyes looked right through us, lost in his head, full of venomous rage. He walked up the steps to the patio, barreling through Duce and me as he entered the house, leaving the door wide open.
The four of us all gaped at each other for a second, stunned by his attitude, before we all moved at once into the house to figure out what the hell was wrong.
We heard Emma’s voice, followed by an angry shout. Suddenly, Emma appeared in the foyer, shoving us out of the way, fuming as she went out the door, cursing under her breath about how Celine deserved better. Then she slammed the door.
Duce spun towards the hallway Emma just came from. His hands balled into fists, and his usual pretty boy charm was wiped away with fury as he stomped after Rabid. Fuck. This was not good.
The rest of us quickly followed Duce, who had already turned down the hallway to the living room. “Hey! What the fuck is your problem!?”
I stepped faster, seeing this as a ticking time bomb, and wanted to see if I could stop it before it erupted. As I got to the living room, I viewed Duce standing, facing Rabid, who was sitting at the head of the table, staring at his open beer that looked untouched. Rabid’s voice has always been deep, but this time, it sounded like darkness was being born. “Did any of you know?”
All of us looked around at each other, not knowing what the fuck he was saying, so I took a step forward. “Know what?”
He continued to stare at the beer, not looking at us as his hands tightened together, making his knuckles white. “Did you fucking know she was the siren princess?” He laughed, and it suddenly made the room colder. “Or maybe while you were fucking her, you learned she was a cop and didn’t want to say anything?”
He turned his head towards us. Shadows played along his face, making him look meaner than he really was. I focused on the little details as the others gasped. I saw the tremor underneath his left eye, which indicated he felt betrayed. I saw his teeth clench when he said princess but not when he said cop, realizing that he was more affected by the former than the latter. When he mentioned fucking her, it was more of a spat, which indicated that he felt duped. Connecting all those things, with his disheveled hair and clothes, I could see that my friend was more in pain than mad.
Dino surprised the shit out of all of us when he crossed his arms. “And? What does that matter?”
I moved to stand in front of him, not knowing how Rabid was going to take that, but he just got up from his seat and turned to us. “What do you mean?! She lied to us!”
Bricks clapped his hands for us to all look at him as he signed,Not really. She just left out information that she didn't think was important. If we asked her stuff, she answered.
I didn't know if that was the right approach as Rabid started to shake, his eyes narrowing. However, we were already down that road, so I put in my two cents. “If you honestly think about it, the cop part makes sense.” I thought about that underground bunker she had and amended my words. “Well, maybe not a simple cop. She wouldn't have all those unmarked guns and weapons if she were a simple cop. She’s definitely an assassin, we all saw her fight yesterday, and you don't get that good for no reason.” I was lost in my thoughts, stringing all the lines together now, seeing all the connections now that I had something to go off of. “In fact, it’s most likely that she’s some kind of deep government assassin. I mean, think about all of The Songbird kills. All terrible criminals that got away with shit that even their royalty or councils couldn't control.”
Rabid opened his mouth, but Duce cut in, “And who gives a fuck if she’s a princess. She has been slummin it with us and never once complained or even hinted at being uncomfortable.” His pinched mouth turned up as he followed with, “Plus, she fucks like a goddess, and that’s higher than a princess.” He turned around, giving us all a lewd smile.Oh, Duce. Not now. Read the fucking room.
“She also saved your life, man.” Dino’s unusually calm voice called out to Rabid, making him stiffen. “Out of any of us, you should be the one that cares the least about all that shit.” I saw Rabid flinch at his words, and it all clicked. All of that only applied if he thought that he deserved her, and I knew with Rabid, he didn't. It all made sense now. Why he didn't trust her. Why he kept his distance, even when he knew deep down that she was his mate. Why he kept pushing us to believe that she was just going to leave.
While this was all enlightening, I felt like I was still missing something. If she was awake and they talked, then why did it seem like he was working with half information? Why didn't she come here and explain it to the rest of us? She would’ve pushed him to bring her here and then dealt with the fall out. Our mate wasn't a coward, I knew that.
“How did you find all this out?” I knew my question hit a cord when he suddenly looked away, his hand picking at a notch in the table.
“I… I overheard her talking to her mother. The queen.” He blew out a sigh, starting to calm down. “She sounds like a piece of work, by the way.” He closed his eyes, and when he opened them, they shined a wolfish yellow. “I already hate that woman and want to tear her into pieces for the way she talked to her.”
Duce scratched his head. “Okay, fine. So, you overheard it. When you brought it up with Celine, what did she say?”
This time, a flush crept up his face as his jaw set, not able to look any of us in the eye as he bit out in a rush, “I acusedheroflying and shekickedmeout.”
Bricks made a fist with one hand as he punched his other palm, glaring at Rabid as he threatened him. My wolf growled in my head as he realized what he had just said. I flicked my eyes around the room. Dino’s eyes flared up, as Duce shook his head and looked at Rabid with half pity and half disgust. I think Bricks’ sentiments reflected how all of us felt at the moment.
Dino growled out loud, before furiously stomping out down the hallway to the front door. “Hey!” Rabid called out, “Where do you think you're going?”
Dino flew back into the room, right up into Rabid’s face, as he said in a deadly calm voice, “I’m going to go visit my little killer. Make sure she’s patched up all nice andbegher to come home after the shit you just pulled. I’m half inclined to fucking beat your ass right now, only that would just waste more time.” He left just as fast as he came and bolted for the door.
Bricks glared at Rabid as he backed up a couple of steps, signing to him,She’s more than just a title or a job. She’s our mate, and she deserves men who love her. He stuck his fingers out, emphasizing that last part, before he turned around and went after Dino.
Duce and I both stared at Rabid, whose shoulders were deflated as his sadness began to bleed out of him. Duce stepped up to him, put his hand on his shoulder and said, “In the end, none of that shit matters. She’s meant for our wolves. Meant for us.” Then he swiveled around and followed after the other two.
Rabid sank onto the table, both hands gripping the sides as he started to shake. I knew he was struggling, but I couldn't let him ruin this. I started to turn but left him with this, “They are right, and you know it.” Then I whispered just enough for him to really hear it, “You can let yourself be happy. You can still be a serious, not-a-good-man leader of the Moon Raiders and still want to make a sweet life with your mate. You're not alone. And now we need to ensure she’s not alone, either.”
I walked out of the room, catching up with the rest of the guys who had just started their bikes, waiting for me to join them. I hopped on, turned the engine over, and felt the calming rumble between my legs before I pushed the accelerator, and we all left to get our girl back.
As we were on the freeway, wind in our hair and our hearts leading us, I saw a familiar bike creeping up on our pack in the rearview mirror. I blinked a few times before I smiled, seeing Rabid racing up to us like the devil was on his tail to join us. I moved to the side, allowing him to saddle up next to me.
I looked over once he settled in. Gone was his anger-laced pain, and what replaced it was a stern look of determination. We were going to get our mate. We would need to have a long conversation, and apologies would need to be said, but this was far from the end of the road for us.
