Pack Leclerc is a powerful pack, touching many industries, and their friends are just as powerful. From doctors to tech moguls to film directors and lawmakers, the party is abuzz with alphas that have left their mark on society along with their packs. It’s a crowded party, but that hasn’t stopped Cassian from introducing me to just about everyone.
It’s only for the first alpha I meet, a famous movie director, that I bare my neck, but instead of smiling, she takes my hand and shakes it. “We don’t do that here,” she says with a faint smile.
It’s a revelation. Had I tried to shake the hand of any of my father’s associates, I would have been punished—and thoroughly.
“Your mate is destined for great things, as is your beta,” she goes on. “I’ve never seen two more talented mages in one pack before.”
And she has yet to meet Ian and Luca, who are mingling across the room. I had thought Luca might be uncomfortable, but he’s affable and open, enjoying the party just as much as I am.
I smile at that. Somehow, through the bonds of love, Ihavesurrounded myself with powerful and talented mages.
I’m whisked around the room by Cassian, shaking the hands of politicians and tech CEOs, all of whom have nothing but praise for my mate, but I know even more than they do what a great man he is.
At one point, I slip into the kitchen to help plate more hors d'oeuvres, and it’s there I find Simon, tucked away from the festivities, sitting with his mother and sister around the kitchen table.
“You should be out there,” I tell him. “You’ve accomplished the same as Cassian. You should be proud, and you should be celebrating.”
“Big parties like this give my brother hives,” Ellie teases, hazel eyes sparkling with mirth. “Especially when he’s the center of attention.”
I stoop to give him a quick kiss, and he takes my hand and nuzzles it.
“Believe me, kit-kat. I’ll be more than glad when this is over.”
“Just go mingle a little. Stand with Cassian. You never know who you’ll meet,” I plead.
He sighs. “Fine, but only for you.”
Their little family leaves the kitchen, only to be replaced by Gerard and another council member. I go to Bethany’s side to help her with the hors d'oeuvres, but it becomes immediately apparent that she’s eavesdropping on herhusband’s conversation, and I do the same as I fall in beside her.
“We have to do something about Holden, Gerard,” the female alpha councilor, Annette Claude, says in a low voice. “The council is starting to splinter, and fear is running rampant. We’re just rebuilding after the attack by the Soldiers of Saint Aldous, and I know Baphomet’s Prince has greater, more devastating plans in store for our council and for our countries.”
“I’m trying to hold everything together,” Gerard tells her. “What we need is a special election to oust Holden, but there would be an uproar and backlash. As much as I hate it, his side isn’t just the Soldiers. There’s anti-omega sentiment spreading among the population that we must quell before it truly gets out of hand. We’ll have more than the Soldiers to deal with if ordinary citizens take up arms in their support of the Prince’s grand plan.”
I shudder beside Bethany. Of course I’ve seen the changing tide, the rise of a conservative movement sweeping the United States and Canada, but to hear Gerard speak of it scares me. The other omega stops plating hors d'oeuvres to grasp my hand and squeeze it.
“And what of the Canadian Prime Minister’s reelection?” Annette asks him.
“He’s nothing more than a puppet for the Soldiers,” Gerard scoffs.
“I think I’ve heard enough,” I whisper to Bethany, who nods and joins me in taking the plates to the servers she’s hired for the party.
I’m making another circuit of the room with Cassian when his phone buzzes in his pocket. “Jack,” he says in a low tone, just loud enough for me to hear, while flashing me the screen. We quickly excuse ourselves and make for his father’s study. Cassian answers on the very last ring.
“Jack, what is it? Are the omegas all right?”
But it’s Graeme who responds. “Cora’s gone,” the royal detective inspector says, his voice thready with panic. “She took my phone and credit card, and vanished.”
One by one, Marcus and the rest of my pack join us.
“She stole from you?” I ask, incredulous. Cora is many things, but I never thought her a thief.
“It was her best option, the right move. I’m glad she did. She’ll be safer with both.”
“Do you know where she’s headed?” Ian asks.
“I do not. She didn’t say anything to me. Not even goodbye. She just vanished. Simon, if you’re there?—”
“I’m here.”
