“However, Earl’s mother’s family apparently descends from one of Cornith’s direct grandsons. And Earl’s wife Leila, her father’s family descends from a great-great-something grandson of Cornith. Meaning Dania and her little sisters basically closed a loop in that family tree. I’ll keep working on tracin’ ancestors to figure out if there are other wolves sprinkled in there.”
“Beatrice Wycroft Drexler was also a great-something granddaughter of Cornith,” Dewi noted. “And we know Bebe can shift, so it’s very possible Dania and her little sisters might be able to.”
“Perhaps. There’s another connection, however, that we really need to discuss.”
Dewi was starting to get a headache trying to keep all of this straight in her head. “Now what?”
“Ye know how ye like to joke about pack relations bein’ complicated? Well, it’s the Goddess’ own truth.”
“Why?”
“Hamish closely shares DNA with another person in this family.”
“Pleasejust tell—”
“Ken.”
She stared at him. “Don’t screw with me, Badger. I’m not in the mood for it.”
“I’m not. The man we’re presuming is Hamish Lewis has to be the brother of Ken’s maternal grandmother. His birth grandmother, not who Ken thought his grandmother was. Yes, to be clear, I’m talking Faegan’s sister. I come to that conclusion based on the DNA results from Tamsin, Maisie Rue, Ken, and Imani.”
Nowthis was starting to give Dewi a headache. “So Ken and Reggie and Reggie’s brothers are cousins to each otherandTamsin,andare nephews of Faegan Lewis?”
Badger nodded. “Ken through the sister of Hamish and Faegan, Reggie and his brothers through Hamish, and Tamsin through Faegan. And don’t forget Imani. She and Tamsin and Ken’s mum are first cousins. Ken, Reggie and his brothers, and Tamsin are first cousins once removed to each other.”
She propped her elbows on the desk, her head in her hands. “Holy shitballs,” she groaned. “Why can’t this be easy?”
Badger continued. “That means yer baby will have a dose of corgi shifter and she’s a great-grand-niece of Faegan Lewis.” He looked a little confused. “Or maybe that makes her a first cousin something removed. Anyway, that’s still not all. I’m fairly certain Ken’s maternal grandfather—who mated with the unnamed sister of Hamish and Faegan—was a wolf shifter. Because that wolf’s DNA shows up in another wolf’s family line.”
She lifted her head enough to look at him. “Whose?”
Badger stared Dewi dead in the eyes. “Mine.”
CHAPTERTHIRTY-EIGHT
Dewi
Dewi temporarily forgothow to form words.
Badger forged onward. “I have reason to believe Ken’s maternal grandfather is one of my uncles on my mother’s side. If it’s who I think it is, then the man is a powerful Prime Alpha. Name of Callum.”
“Is?”
“No one knows what happened to Callum, or if he’s alive or dead. He disappeared long ago. My mum was one of eighteen and they mostly scattered to the winds before I was ever born. Not like they had social media back then. But this proves he was still alive at least up until nine months before Ken’s mother was born, when for centuries before that people thought he was dead. At least, that’s what the rumors said. Mebbe he wanted them to say that.”
“Why?” Dewi asked.
“Because these results mean Callum has to be the wolf who ran off with the younger sister of Faegan Lewis. Supposedly, Faegan killed both of them fer matin’ without permission. Mebbe he didn’t, though. At least, not before they had a baby. Because, obviously, they had a baby. Mebbe they faked their deaths to let people believe that.”
“Or Faegan flat-out lied because his ego couldn’t handle his sister defying him and running off. Or he lied to buff his ego to make people think he killed a Prime Alpha wolf,” Dewi said.
Badger nodded. “Could be.”
“Why wouldn’t a Prime Alpha wolf just kill Faegan Lewis for threatening them?” Dewi sat back. “Faegan’s a lucky asshole, not Iron Man.”
“Aye, that’s a good question, innit?” Badger noted. “Perhaps Faegan used somethin’ against them as leverage.”
“Or someone?” Dewi asked.
