“She is deathly afraid Josiah will come here and do the same to the Blackwood Pack as he did to Fox River. When Steel mentioned Rune, Aunt Hope’s mind moved from thinking of him to hearing screams as the fire consumed your younger siblings…and that brought back that night…the night she lost everything, or so she thought. But as she found out…that wasn’t true. Learning that the seven of you were alive gave her a reason to live. And now, the fear that all of us…her sons, nephews, and more importantly, her grandbabies…could be taken from her by Josiah, is something she’s finding hard to deal with,” Mac said, softly.
“Maybe this will help…the High Council has taken over Josiah’s pack,” Steel said.
“What about Josiah?” asked Mac. “I think Aunt Hope’s fear is centered more on him than his pack.”
“He’ll be arrested…when they find him,” Jackson replied. “I know that won’t help Mom right now but at least it might provide some relief.”
Rubbing his chin, Mac thought about it before saying, “I don’t think so…the only thing that will eliminate her fears is Josiah’s death, because that will permanently remove the threat to her family.”
“Fine…but there must be something we can do in the meantime to help Mom cope with her fear,” Jackson said.
“Before I can answer that, I want to find out what Ian suggests,” Mac replied.
“Have you told Dakota what triggered Hope’s episode?” asked Steel.
“Not yet,” replied Mac. “But I will after Ian and I talk.”
“How’s Dakota doing?” asked Jackson.
“So far…good. His vitals are back to normal…thank the gods…but that’s only because he’s been confined to bed rest. I can’t stress enough how important it is to the health of Dakota and his pup that he remain there until he gives birth.”
“Meaning we have to figure out a way to help Mom cope with her fear for the time being,” Jackson murmured, his brow furrowed in thought.
“Yes, that would be the best solution for now,” Mac replied. “Dakota is so in tune with his mother’s emotions, that it’s impossible to hide anything from him…especially since he has nothing else to think about right now.”
“Maybe there is something Dakota could do, and it might help Hope at the same time,” Steel suggested. “Earlier, your momtold me Dakota had drawn up a menu for Theo, Norm, and Smokey’s mating breakfast and then gave it to her, along with instructions for how to make it.”
“Oh shit,” Jackson said, giggling. “That’s like giving your teacher lessons on how to teach.”
“Ya think, right?” Steel said, smirking. “However, Hope didn’t have any problem with it. What if Mac suggests Dakota does it for every meal?”
Smiling, Jackson nodded. “It would kill two birds with one stone…so to speak. Dakota has something to do while he’s confined to bed rest, and it helps keep Mom’s fear at bay.”
Impressed with Steel’s proposal, Mac grinned. “Especially if each of them thinks they’re helping the other.”
“Exactly,” Jackson agreed. “But we just have to make sure neither of them ever figures out our game plan.”
“What about Theo?” asked Steel. “Should we tell him about it?”
Jackson thought for a moment, then shook his head. “No, if this backfires, it’s better he’s not put in the middle…I’ll take the blame.”
Nodding, Mac stood up. “Good…the fewer people who know about it, the better. In the meantime, I’ll talk to Ian and see what thoughts he has about Aunt Hope.”
“Fine,” Jackson replied. “Let me know if anything changes; otherwise, go ahead with the plan.”
“Will do,” Mac said, getting up to leave.
Jackson waited until he and his mate were alone before saying, “Babe, can you check with Remy and find out how long it will bebefore Cody and Dylon can return? The only way my mom will truly be free of her worst nightmare is if Josiah is dead and, as far as I’m concerned, it can’t happen fast enough. That asshole has caused all of us enough pain and I’m damned sick and tired of it!”
Sensing his mate’s distress, Steel pulled Jackson onto his lap, hugging him tightly while releasing his Alpha pheromones. Slowly, Jackson’s body responded to them and his tension receded. Relaxing his grip, Steel bent his head down, burying his nose in his mate’s hair and inhaling his scent. Jackson was right. It was time for Josiah to die and he was going to be the one to do it. He owed that much to Jackson and his brothers.
~/~/~/~/~
Standing outside Cain’s cell with Frank at her side, Oracle quietly took a deep breath, aware that convincing this prisoner wasn’t going to be easy. But she was determined to succeed; there really wasn’t any other choice. Cain was only half of her assignment?Jackson was the other half. And if she thought Cain was going to be a challenge, Jackson would be ten times harder to persuade. She probably should have started with the Alpha, but after thinking it over, felt there was no need to upset him if Cain refused.
Slowly exhaling, she mentally assumed her armor—at least that is what Maximus always called it. And in a way he was right. It wasn’t often she needed to toughen up because the majority who sought her out were only too happy to receive her help. Peering thru the narrow window in the door, she saw Cain with his chin resting on his chest; clearly he was still feeling the effects of the drug the guards used.
Oracle’s gaze continued its journey down his naked body, taking in the wrist and ankle shackles linked to chains dangling from eye bolts in the ceiling and side walls, forcing him into a very uncomfortable starfish position. Noting the strain on his shoulders and the occasional shakiness of his legs, it was obvious the guards had taken a show-no-mercy stance in securing Cain and, after reading his file, Oracle couldn’t fault them.
