“Pet, first let me assure you Jake and Jessica are fine. I spoke to our boys along with Jackson and they will not be leaving.” Dylon felt Cody’s relief about that. “However, I do have matters to discuss with you about what occurred in the meeting. Since I know you’ll have questions, let’s go to the sitting room where we can get comfortable and you can eat the meal Dakota made for you.” Holding out his hand for Cody, he was again enamored with the gracefulness of his mate as Cody rose from his kneeling position.
Dylon lifted the cover from the plate of roast beef sandwiches Dakota made for his mate as Cody sat down. Joining him at the table, Dylon handed him one. Seeing the questioning look on Cody’s face, Dylon said, “Go ahead. I ate while you were sleeping.”
Inhaling the aroma of the rare roast beef, his stomach announced it wasn’t willing to wait anymore, so Cody dug into his food. Examining their life thread—now shining bright silver—Cody was relieved, then searching his mind, found the wall firmly in place holding back any visions still there. Happy that he hadn’t suffered a relapse, Cody concentrated on why he’d had a panic attack in the first place. Revisiting the scene in his mind, it became apparent he over reacted but couldn’t figure out why.
Listening to Cody’s thoughts, Dylon was pleased with Cody’s assessment of the situation and when a frown appeared on his mate’s face, he knew it was time to talk and clear up everything. “The rules are suspended for now, my pet. Tell me what you think happened.”
“Yes, sir,” Cody said, not yet willing to forgo the comfort found there. “Well, when Norman threatened to leave, I lost it. All I could think of was how I was failing the Fates when they gave me the job to save Kieran, Theo and Norman. I didn’t know what was wrong or how to fix it. When I started to shake, and I could feel darkness invade my mind, I called for you. It was the only thing I could think of…I needed you.”
“I felt it through our life thread first and then heard you calling me. I gave Jake and Jessica to Mom and came immediately.”
“Thanks, but I’m confused why I reacted that way.”
“I think it’s because you haven’t dealt with the guilt you are feeling for not rescuing the boys earlier so now you are trying to make up for it.”
“What do you mean, ‘make up for it’?”
“You are trying to make everything perfect for them…at least what you think is perfect. I’ve listened to you talk toKieran, Theo and Norman about what you have planned for them…what they will be doing for the next five years of their lives. And I understand your motive. I also feel terrible about what these boys went through. Butma moité, it is their lives and they have the right to make decisions you or I might not agree with but need to respect.”
“But what if I think they are making a mistake? If they could get hurt? The Fates made me responsible for them.”
“No, my pet, they didn’t do that. The Fates gave you and me the abilities to save the boys…and we did…but that doesn’t mean we own them. Kieran, Theodore and Norman are adults…young adults…but adults under shifter law. Arald took their rights away from them and our job is to give them back. That’s what the Fates want you to do…to let them decide what they want to do. We will be there to guide them and help them when they need it, but we must always respect their decisions.”
“What about traveling to Scotland? Do you think I should have just said, ‘have a good trip’?”
“No, of course not, but why don’t you try telling them what your concerns are and see if they can come up with a solution that will suit them and satisfy you?”
“I thought that’s what we did this morning when I agreed to let them go if your mom went with them.”
“Sort of. I mean the results were the same, but I think we did it backwards. What I mean is this, instead of ignoring them and discussing with Jackson your concerns about them traveling alone, we should have brought your concerns to Kieran, Theo and Norman. Told them what worried us and asked them what their thoughts were about our issues. Because my pet, at the end of the day,the concerns wereourissues, not theirs. See what I mean? Treat them as adults and listen to what they have to say…like you do with any of your brothers, or me.”
Reflecting on how he could have handled his worries better, Cody realized what he’d done, and how angry he’d have been if Jackson had treated him like that after their parents died. Groaning, he started to berate himself for being dumb.
“No, you aren’t dumb…just new at this parenting stuff…especially with young adults who can tell you to take a flying fuck if they want to. I think our focus should be on building trust with our boys…showing we respect them and giving them all our love even if we don’t agree with their decisions. Look at it as practice for when we have other boys joining us.”
Smiling at Dylon’s ideas, Cody nodded in agreement but then frowned again as he thought about what led to his panic attack. “I ignored Kieran again when Colton was teasing him, didn’t I? Fuck! I need to change immediately or they’ll want to leave, again. Oh, my gods, what if I screw up again?”
“Take it easy, my pet. I’ve got you covered. I spoke to the boys about how you feel and why you act the way you do. I asked them to cut you some slack until you become more comfortable with being a parent, and they agreed,” Dylon reassured Cody. “Oh, and one other thing, Kieran wants to meet with you when you can.”
Cody felt his love for Dylon swell as he grasped how much Dylon cared about him. “I love you, babe, so much,” Cody said, blowing his mate some kisses. “And I’m fine with sitting down with Ki.”
Dylon pushed back his chair, rose, and taking Cody’s hand, pulled him up into his arms where he smothered his mate with kisses and hickeys.
Chapter 7
Steel entered Jackson’s study after giving their son to his parents and found his mate staring out the window at the trees surrounding the house. Alarmed when Jackson didn’t turn around, he asked, “Babe, is everything all right? Was your uncle’s complaint about Dylon?”
Jackson just sat there, not responding to Steel’s questions.How the fuck did this happen? My son, what about Daniel? What have I done? I have put my brothers in a worse position than they were.As those thoughts ran through his mind, tears began to fall as the full ramifications hit him hard. He had nothing to disprove his uncle’s lies. It was a spur of the moment trip with his brothers, the only ones who survived the massacre.How fucking clever my uncle is! The best defense is a great offense and boy this was a doozy. How in hell can I prove every one of my brothers is innocent? How can I save my son?Then he felt himself lifted up in Steel’s big arms and ended up nestled against his mate’s chest as Steel sat down.
“Mo chroí,what is it? What is your uncle claiming Dylon did? Do you want me to get him?”
Jackson buried his nose in Steel’s neck and inhaled his mate’s calming scent of oranges, cloves, and bourbon. Finally, he was able to give voice to the nightmare he was now facing. “It’s not about Dylon. My uncle is claiming my brothers and I committed the massacre. That we killed our parents and our sibl…” Jackson couldn’t finish saying that word. Just the thought of what they were accused of brought a fresh round of tears followed by the sound of sobs tearing themselves from his soul.Oh, my gods! What have I done?
Steel was finally able to piece together what had happened and a deep rage burned through his body as he swore to himself the death of Josiah would happen sooner than later. This man had gone too far. To accuse his mate of such a heinous crime was unthinkable and if Josiah did it thinking he could escape the consequences of killing the Fox River Pack, he was in for a rude awakening. Jackson’s sobs penetrated his ears and Steel’s heart broke at the hopelessness he heard from Jackson. Whispering soothing words to his mate while rubbing Jackson’s back, Steel felt helpless to protect Jackson from his uncle’s hate.
Time moved slowly as they sat together, one broken, the other trying to offer support and love. Finally, Jackson’s tears stopped, and all Steel heard was the occasional hitches of his mate’s breaths. “Mo chroí,may I read the complaint?”
Inhaling Steel’s scent one last time, Jackson finally raised his head, then kissed his mate’s jaw. “Thank you, babe, I’m sorry I fell apart like that.” Jackson stood, so he could reach the mouse, and hit ‘print’, before explaining, “My fucking uncle is claiming that my brothers and I were the ones who massacred my family and he filed the complaint on behalf of his deceased brother. He is asking the High Council to strip ownership of the Fox River Pack land from me and give it to him as compensation.” Laying a finger on his mate’s lips, he added, “He wants that done first so I can sign all the necessary papers giving clear title before my brothers and I are put to death.”
