“You’re getting better using the dyslexia font,” Slade said, reading over my shoulder.
I jumped a mile in the air, almost hitting send. “Fuck, you need a bell. Don’t be so creepy.”
His lips twitched, but I didn’t get a proper smile out of him.
“Do you see any errors?” I asked, holding out the phone.
He read it in like three seconds and I was both jealous and turned on by his skills. Sure, it didn’t take much to turn me on around Slade, and reading wasn’t an advanced or difficult skill, but for me he was the most capable shifter I knew—right behind Hunter.
“It looks perfect, Snow.” He tilted his head and nodded. “And that reminds me that we should get started on reading lessons as well. I’ve been gathering resources to help.”
Of course he had. “Yeah, I’m managing easier with the new font and background, but there’s a lot of room for improvement.Though stamina and fight training are my highest priority, since I have no skills there at all.”
Rudely, Slade didn’t argue that point with me. Shaking my head, I hit send on my message to Cora.
Emme: I’m so sorry, Cores. I’ve been a shitty friend. I’m sorry I worried you, but it means everything that you care. I hate that I’ve been slow to sort myself out since returning, but I promise I’m okay. Or I will be okay. I do have a lot to tell you, though. SO fucking much. Can we catch up soon? I love you, and I’m eternally grateful to have you in my life.
Slade waited until I slid my phone into my pocket to say, “The boys have a game today, but we all decided it would be safer for you to avoid major events. Until we have a greater handle on how widespread Fletcher’s reach and control is.”
As annoyed as I was that they’ddecidedfor me, not to mention the disappointment at missing their game, I couldn’t really disagree with their assessment. I didn’t want to create a dangerous situation for me or my pack. “You four better not get used to making decisions for me, but in this case, I don’t disagree. I just really fucking hate letting that asshole take away the things I love.”
Slade was grim as he gestured for me to head for the G-class. “Yeah, here’s hoping we can remove him from existence long before he ever gets near you again. I just need Talon to start cooperating.”
“Did he tell you anything new?”
He opened my door for me, his expression shuttering. “Not much. He admitted that he’s visited the volcano where our egg rested a few times, and agreed that was why I’d felt the pull toreturn. It wasn’t the first or only time, but I ignored the rest after my initial search didn’t pan out.”
With a shake of my head, I pulled myself into the passenger seat. “I can’t believe he was just out there all along, one half of your soul. Fletcher’s scum, and a fucking liar. Blaine probably isn’t even his son.”
Slade grumbled. “It looks like that part might be the truth. Talon believes Blaine’s mother was an omega… one that Fletcher kept until shedied.”
I nodded. “As I said, a fucking liar. I knew that bastard was part of the reason there are so few of us in the world.”
My stomach twisted at the very thought of what he’d done to ensure he had a son. The thought of Fletcher imprisoning and raping an omega for breeding was enough to have me near vomiting in the car.
“Why is he doing this?” I choked out, feeling unstable as I tried to deal with this revelation. “Surely, he already has enough power and money. Hunter said he was rich and well-connected, but clearly it’s never enough.”
Slade’s expression was shrouded in shadows. “He’s not stable,” he finally said. “He’s spent too many years trying to break down our designations in the hopes of controlling us all. His power and money have corrupted his beast. They’re no longer able to tell right from wrong.”
He shut my door before I could respond, and I pondered this information while he crossed to get in the driver’s side.
Once he was inside, I asked, “And you’ve still had no luck in tracking him or anyone else down?”
Slade shook his head. “I’ve spent days attempting to unravel the web he wove around himself and his actions, but when there’s magic involved, it’s almost impossible to figure this out digitally. Our best bet would be to release Talon and follow him back to his master, but I have one major issue with that.”
I already knew exactly what that issue would be. “I’d have to go too, or my wolf might retreat again.”
The engine roared to life, and Slade backed out in one skilled swing of the wheel. “Yes. Your bond is brand new, like with Hunter and Kellan. It takes weeks before the beast is okay with distance, so we can’t let him go until yours settles.”
There was also that unanswered question of what happened if we never completed the bond properly and cemented those frayed tethers between us.
Was there a chance Talon and I could never be apart?
CHAPTER 25
SLADE
Emme was quiet for the first part of the drive out to the training facility, as she fidgeted in her chair and kept messing with her ponytail. It would normally annoy me to have a shifter bouncing around beside me, but worry took over as my strongest emotion.
