“Fine, okay, yes! Just tell me.”
“Sorry. I love you. Hold on a sec. And do not be loud.”
He passed the phone to Peyton, who now wore a smile that reminded Ken of Dewi’s playful grin.
“Heeeey, Dewster. Is who dead? Did you miss me, ya brat? Better not have rearranged my damned office.”
Her shriek of joy cut off mid-scream. Ken suspected she’d clapped a hand over her mouth because now she sobbed, but it sounded muffled.
Ken closed his eyes and checked out for a few minutes, exhaustion taking over. He was aware of Peyton talking to Dewi, trying to get a word in edgewise, finally giving up and letting her run it out of her system before taking over again.
Rather, tried to take over.
“Okay, will you finally let me talk, Dewi. Please? I… No, I can’t tell you the whole story right now. … No, you cannot tell anyone yet—not Badger or Da or even Gillian—that I’m safe… Yes, I have a damned good reason, but I need to tell Ken the story first, okay? … Yeah, I love you, too. Now, Ken’s safe, he’s exhausted— … No, I’m not letting him tell you where your passport is. And he needs sleep. You cannot leave the pack compound, okay? That’s— … Dewi, honey, please just shut the hell— … Okay, yes, you can go as far as to the store in town, but no further. … No, not down the main road south. Please calm down and let me deal with stuff. …”
Peyton closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. “Yes, you can punch me when I get home. … Yes, right in the face. … Okay, sure, and the balls. If Gillian doesn’t yank them off me first. But I— … I’ll call you back in a little while from a different phone, so stay right there, and alone, okay? … Because I have to talk to Ken first before he drops into a well-deserved bed and I activate a burner phone. I’ll call— … Less than an hour, I promise. … Yes, he’s safe. … Yes, you can kill me yourself if he— … Dewi, he’s safe, I’m safe, and I promise you we’re not in any danger. … Love you, too. Here’s Ken again. Don’t keep him long because I mean it when I say he’s about to collapse, and I need to talk to him first. … Because he said he hasn’t slept in nearly 48 hours and— … Exactly. Here he is.”
Peyton held the phone up to Ken’s ear.
Dewi was crying, which woke him up a little. “Please don’t punch me, babe,” he said. “Punch Peyton instead. I was only following Pack Alpha orders.”
She laughed, but it sounded full of sniffles. “No, you’re getting the best goddamned blow job in the world when you get home, mister. I’m sorry for all the angry things I said between when I realized you were gone and right now. And please delete all my texts and the voicemails if you haven’t listened to them yet. I love you so much.”
“Love you, too, baby. I really need to go sleep now. And I guess I can’t do that quite yet. But I promise I’m safe.”
“Okay. Call me when you’re awake. Love you.”
“I will. Love you, too.”
The phone left his hand, and he assumed Peyton took it and ended the call.
“You didn’t sleep on the plane, Ken?” Trevor asked.
He thought he shook his head but he wasn’t sure. “I don’t mean to be rude, but I really need sleep. I barely made it here. I should not have been driving.”
“Of course,” Trevor said. “Likely the effects of the stress finally hitting you, as well.”
“Yeah. That, too.”
“I promise you can sleep shortly,” Peyton said. “But I need to know what I’ve missed in Idaho since I was captured. And I need your help activating one of the phones so I can access all my contacts and info. I don’t have my admin password memorized.”
“What about your phone and laptop?”
Peyton gravely nodded. “As far as the world’s concerned, I’m still missing. So my electronics have to stay powered down. We can’t risk it.”
Ken turned to Trevor. “Is Peyton up to speed on the murdered family?”
The older man gravely nodded. “Yes. He now has all the information I have.”
“So is there anything else I need to know right now from your end?” Peyton asked Ken.
“Nothing that can’t wait until I’m vertical again,” he said, then reconsidered. “What about Jake?”
“You can say anything in front of him,” Peyton assured him.
Ken summarized the transition of power, of Badger being the acting Pack Alpha but not wiping all the info from his brain, and bringing Duncan into the fold.
“That’s fine,” Peyton said. “That works out better, in fact.”
