By the time they resumed their search for exiles after breakfast, Gale felt like they’d reached an impasse. If Jude didn’t give him a sign that this was a bond worth pursuing he may need to reconsider returning home to take a different mate. It would be better to be wanted by someone he could tolerate than endure this constant push and pull Jude put him through, one minute desperate for him, the next ashamed of whatever they shared.
Drew stopped the car in the parking lot and faced the team. Janet sat beside him, and Isaac had squeezed into the back seat between Gale and Jude, a much needed but oblivious buffer. “With Eliseo injured, I’m putting you in charge, Gale. You’re the eldest, and this guy will respect you more if he recognises or remembers your place in the pack,” he reasoned as he did every time they investigated a new lead.
But in the previous speech they had been told that Eliseo was in charge due to being Simeon’s mate. Officially mated, despite Simeon being dead, he was a less threatening choice to approach the exiles. One poor guy, early on, had scented Isaac approaching and had run, admitting later he thought a Vihaan had come to mate him. While he’d been gay, he was afraid of being dragged to Vihaan by the mate bond. He was one of the few who chose to remain in Dnara.
Not like Gale knew why anyone would stay. His homesickness for Vihaan was almost crippling.
Once Drew had run through the rest of his speech—offering a rundown of this guy’s appearance, name, and place in Dnara—they left the car and walked two streets. While Drew could have driven to the front door, Eliseo insisted on approaching by foot to avoid more mishaps, by letting exiles see them coming and scenting them from a distance.
The new rule was: if they ran, no one would chase. Not unless they posed a threat, or their name was on the list of those with family members in the pack.
Today, their destination was a warehouse with a guard outside. Drew removed a black item from his pocket and flashed it at the guard. “Drew Colley, fromFashion Lifemagazine. I have an appointment,” he said, natural and comfortable with spouting complete shit.
Gale was impressed, though a lifetime of warrior instincts left him disappointed when the guard gave them access.
Inside, Janet whistled at the bright lights, flurry of action, and rails of clothing. Drew headed towards the tall, imposing man talking on a phone, the only person in the room in a suit.
He returned and ushered them into the corner by the door. “The model goes on break in ten minutes. I’ve agreed to wait,” Drew explained, knowing not to cause a scene or piss anyone off.
Gale leaned against the brick wall of the warehouse and let the constant activity wash over him. The chemical scents made it reckless to risk a smoke, so he dug his hands into his pockets and kicked his feet out to wait.
Jude leaned beside him, not too close but closer than necessary.
Isaac stood on the other side and lay his head against Gale’s arm. He lifted an arm around Isaac’s shoulders, as he hugged Gale’s waist. “If it storms tonight, with the thunder…” he said, eyes so sad Gale realised he should have checked on him last night.
“Sure. You’re little. You’ll fit in the middle,” he promised, nodding towards Jude in a silent admission he wasn’t the only one who didn’t like the storms.
It was sweet that Isaac took comfort from his presence. As the one with the most refined senses, Isaac must have felt claustrophobic in this world, bombarded with scents and sounds he couldn’t block out.
Gale pressed his hands to Isaac’s ears and let him bury his face in his armpit. His scent was unmistakably m’weko, Vihaan, and pack, more comforting than what lingered in this room.
After two steady, deep breaths, Isaac sagged, and the tension in his shoulders evaporated. He tilted his head to rest a cheek on Gale’s chest. “Do you think the pack are safe?”
He blanched at the question, suddenly full of uncertainty and fear. “Why wouldn’t they be?”
“Rylee said when they get storms here, it causes a bad storm in Vihaan.” Isaac had worry etched on every line of his face.
Gale cupped his face and held Isaac’s gaze. “They’ll be fine. Keon’s a good Alpha. He’ll do what is necessary to protect the pack.”
Isaac could trust him to be honest because he’d lived under three Alphas and Keon was the best. While no one had been unhappy with Grier, they hadn’t realised life could bebetter. Now they did, and he trusted Keon to keep it that way.
Even if the storm had affected the pack, they would be safe. No one could control the Mother, but they could lessen the destruction She wrought.
“Do you think it’s right—what he’s doing?”
Gale tread carefully, not knowing Isaac’s feelings about same-sex matings. Since Yosi first confided in him, he’d done his best to breed honesty and acceptance in the people he spent time with, worked with, and let into his life.
Isaac was like a brother, and it would kill Gale to discover he was as homophobic as the rest of the world.
“Yeah, I do,” he answered honestly, trying not to preach or tell Isaac what to think. “If you felt the true mate bond, wouldn’t you want to claim them? Would it matter if your true mate was a guy?” he asked, putting a finger to Isaac’s lips before he could speak. “I’m not asking you to tell me, but think about the questions. You need to decide and live with your beliefs.”
Isaac watched him, patient and pliant, waiting for his mind to be moulded, eager to learn. The open mind Gale hoped for.
He spared a glance in Jude’s direction, to check he was listening. “What I think, and what I believe,” he said, offering Isaac a supportive squeeze, “is that Keon is right. He’s not telling us the pack willonlyaccept you if you’re gay, nor is he saying that if you can’t be gay or support being gay then you need to leave. He’s asking us to be a family. To love and support one another like a family.
“Families don’t always get along. They don’t always agree or see the world the same, but they stand by you through the hard times, to be there during the good days,” he said, wishing his parents could feel the same. “Keon has made our pack a safer place to live. He was strong enough to stop the cycle and say, ‘We refuse to hurt each other anymore.’ I believe in him and that promise.”
A touch grazed the side of his palm and though he wanted to bask in the look in Jude’s hazel eyes, Gale let Isaac cuddle in, then waited. Jude’s fingers caressed the length of his hand, twining with his. When Isaac wasn’t looking, Jude dipped his head into Gale’s neck and inhaled deeply.
