I kissed him. “I’m sorry. I promise not to almost die ever again.”
He stared at me for a few seconds before snorting out a laugh. “Yes. Please don’t almost die. Deal?”
“Deal. I love you.”
Nico settled down in the seat beside me. “I love you so much. How is your wolf doing? Now that you’ve shifted, I mean.”
That was a good question that was hard to answer. “Well, she feels much calmer and more at peace. I have to be honest. I was sure I was going to shift into a werewolf my first time. I’m sort of surprised I didn’t.”
“Well, if it makes you feel better, you were still damned terrifying.”
I smiled, despite myself, and felt a flush of pride from deep inside my mind. My wolf liked hearing that. “Really?”
Nico nodded. “You were huge. Even for an alpha. A full head taller than my wolf. Your eyes were red like an alpha’s too, but not a subtle red shine like most of us have. It was like your eyes were literally full of blood. So red, it was frightening. If I didn’t know who you were, I’d have probably thought about running.”
“Well, I’m glad you approved,” I said, laughing and leaning into him.
A few hours later,we were back on the ground. Nico said he’d made a new friend who’d helped them get to Europe, and the plane belonged to him. He’d allowed us to land at an airfield near Clearidge. That was good because I was desperate to see my parents and Abi. It was pretty much the only thing I could think about for the last half of the flight. He’d let me know all three of them were staying at our house until we got back.
Nico barely had the car in park before I was out the door and running up to the house. I burst in and saw Mom and Dad sitting with Nico’s parents on the couch. Abi was in the kitchen drinking a cup of coffee. Everyone froze when I came in, then the whole house erupted into movement. There was hugging, tears and sobs, and a thousand questions. It was the best five minutes of my life. I was happy to have them all back safe and sound. Nothing could have made me happier at that moment.
Once we’d calmed down and Nico came in, it was decided that all three of them would stay with us for a while. My parents were more than happy to do so. I think they’d been rattled by the kidnapping, but I think Abi had the worst of it. After our reunion, she withdrew and was quieter than I’d ever known her to be. It was strange, but she probably needed space. Hopefully, after a few more days, she’d start to snap out of it. There was no reason to push her. She’d been through a lot—we all had. We each had to deal with what had happened in our own way.
That night, I slipped into bed beside Nico, and nothing had ever felt so comfortable in my life. I rested my head on his chest and listened to his breathing.
After a moment, Nico cleared his throat and nudged me. I glanced up at him. He looked worried. “You know we’ve got to brace for whatever is coming. You know this isn’t the end of it.”
I nodded. “Yeah, the royals are not going to be happy with what happened. Viola is their leader. She won’t be happy we made a fool of her.”
“She’s going to want revenge. She’s going to come for us.”
I laid my head back on his chest. “I’d already figured that was coming. It’ll be fine. It’ll all work out as long as we have each other.”
77
NICO
Maddy’s parents were still living with us, even though we’d gotten back almost three weeks ago. I was actually happy about that. There was no way I could blame them for being scared to go home. I’d thought I would have to talk them into it, but they’d asked Maddy if it was okay the day after we got back. It was one less thing to worry about.
Abi was staying too, but something wasn’t right. Maddy’s parents were still sort of shell-shocked and wary, but Abi was worse. It was strange. She’d always been so bubbly and exuberant, but since getting rescued, she’d been withdrawn and quiet. Sebastian had been hanging out with us more often, hovering around Abi quite a bit, trying to help her. He’d get her whatever she needed, grab her food or stuff from the store, but even with him doing all that, she didn’t really acknowledge him. She seemed like a ghost of herself. I mentioned it to Maddy one day after I got back from checking on things at the auto shop.
“Hey? Is Abi okay?”
We were standing in the bedroom, and Maddy glanced toward the door with a worried look. “I don’t think so,” she whispered. “She’s not been acting like herself.” She went overand closed our door before continuing. “I thought she’d get better after being home for a few days, but if anything, she seems to be getting worse.”
I raised an eyebrow. “Do you think it could be some kind of PTSD or something?”
Maddy shrugged. “Maybe so. I don’t know how to help her.”
Neither did I. The only thing I knew to do was to increase security. Uncle Miguel had survived his shooting, thank God. But he’d probably never do guard duty again. I’d commissioned a company to come out and install motion-activated cameras all around the pack lands. We’d increased the amount of fencing, electrifying a lot of it and adding barbed wire. Several of the guys had volunteered to work as perimeter guards. It was the best I could do to keep things as safe as I could.
The entire pack had been on edge, and a little down since the royals broke in and took Maddy. The guys and I decided everyone needed something to lift their spirits. A massive cookout seemed like the best idea. The royals weren’t gone, and we knew they’d be coming back, but for now, we needed to try to get back to normal life.
Felipe and Sebastian went out and bought almost thirty pounds of brisket to smoke. Mom and Maddy worked on a bunch of sides and salads, with my cousins Francisca and Eliza helping out. The entire pack was invited, and we had everything set up in my backyard that Friday night. It took almost a full day to prep and cook everything.
Once the party got going, it seemed like everyone was really enjoying themselves. Beer and wine flowed freely, food was plentiful, and laughter rang through the pack for the first time in weeks. I even saw Abi smiling a bit while talking to my family. It filled my heart with happiness. I was the alpha, and not only was it my job to protect and lead the pack, but I was also supposed to keep morale high.
I was standing over by the dessert table trying to decide if I wanted apple pie or chocolate cake when my cell phone rang. A quick glance showed it was Javi. I’d invited his pack to the festivities, but he’d declined. I wasn’t sure what he might be calling about.
