Carl was in the kitchen and starting to prep for their dinner later, with Bebe on his hip and offering him expert chef opinions on his methods.
He arched an eyebrow at the two women as they emerged.“Everything… settled?”
Tamsin found Aisling’s hand and smiled up at her.“Yes,” Tamsin said.
Carl wiped his free hand off on a towel and hugged Tamsin first, then Aisling.
Aisling took Bebe from him.“Apologies,” she said, meeting his gaze.
He scowled.“For what?”
“Fer...Well, fer before.Thank ye fer yer patience and kindness when I was being a pillock.”
He chuckled.“Welcome to the family officially,” he said.
“What’s a pillock?”Bebe asked.
Carl snorted.“You get to take that question, Auntie A.”
ChapterThirteen
Dewi
“Why doI have to be the one to call him if we’re saying Badger’s the acting Pack Alpha?”Dewi griped.Badger had flown back to Idaho and would be there for a couple of weeks helping Trent, and would help coordinate the operation to grab Ray Dorland.
“Because you’re my little sister and a Prime, Dew.And the Head Enforcer, who is in charge of security logistics.We’ve been through this.”Peyton sounded patient, but she knew she was pushing the boundaries of that patience.
“How many others are in on this?”she asked.“The other Pack Alphas, I mean?”
“Over thirty,” he said.“The big ones who matter.The ones who were actively involved in the search for Faegan, and who’d be invited to a gathering like this one.”
“And none of them will let it slip that this is a ruse?”
“No.I’ve talked to all of them in person.We had them here at Trevor’s.They’re all on board and will help sell it.It’s being touted as an invitation-only event, which explains why the smaller packs are excluded.And most of those aren’t in Europe or the Americas, either.Or they’re not wolves, and want nothing to do with any of this.”
She stared at her notepad, where she’d jotted salient points as he talked.“So I’m trying to find out his days of travel, how many people are coming, and get him to commit to a specific arrival flight?”
“Exactly.Couch it in terms of accommodating him and his team, and making sure they’re treated as ‘dignitaries.’”
She nearly choked on her coffee.“I don’t know if I’m that good of an actor, Peyton.”
“Just don’t do it with a video call, so he can’t see you rolling your eyes right out of your head,” he teased.“And remember to imply you’re in Idaho and will be when he arrives.Not that you’re greeting him at the airport, but that you’ll be present for the meetings.”
“So you’re still missing, Badger’s in charge, and we’re all muddling along as best we can?”
“Exactly.Stay vague on details about the search for me—he’ll buy that.He’ll think you’re trying to conceal what’s going on with the Pack Alpha situation.Don’t talk about Duncan, don’t say anything about Jake or Carl, or the search for Faegan.”
“He’ll probably ask me about that.”
“You haven’t heard anything new,” he said.“Repeat as needed.”
“Hope you know what you’re doing, big bro.”
He laughed.“Kiddo, none of us know what we’re doing at this point.There’s no playbook.We’re all faking it.”
“That provides absolutely zero comfort to me, jerk.”
“Love you, too, Dewster.”
