Grinning, Fionn answered, “Yes, they did.”
“Be sure to mention that to Penn, too.”
~/~/~/~/~
UGH!!! Punching his pillow, Hunter’s brother, Mason, turned on his back, nestling his head in the hollow his fist created. There’d been too many nights with too little sleep ending with eyes wide open. He stared at theceiling, wondering when he’d get answers to his many questions, but they never came. Sighing, his hand reached and turned his alarm off; there wasn’t a chance in hell he’d fall asleep again. Giving up on the ceiling providing any answers, Mason rolled to his side, his gaze shifting to the forest, just beginning to become visible, outside his bedroom window, remembering the day Hunter told them he wasn’t going to become Alpha.
The silence that had greeted Hunter’s statement was deafening as Mason and his other brothers tried to make sense of Hunter’s decision. In the end, everyone accepted that Hunter would step aside—but not he. Later that night, he cornered Hunter in their father’s office, demanding to know why his brother had done it. It was the first time he and Hunter nearly came to blows but, in the end, he backed down, settling for his brother’s lame-ass excuse.
It was a turning point in his relationship with Hunter. Never had he been shut out by his brother; no matter how hard he tried to figure out what caused the change, nothing rang true. Being closest in age, he and Hunter always shared everything, but now the closeness was gone and Mason missed it, dearly. He was lonely.
What he wouldn’t give to go back in time before that phone call changed their lives forever.Fuck!Kicking that thought out of his mind for the hundredth time, Mason forced himself to think of his future and the changes their trip would bring to his life.California!It would be the first time back for him since he left with his family when they moved back east and he’d be lying if he claimed he wasn’t looking forward to it.
Jackson, now the Alpha of a pack…the Blackwood Pack…a pack my cousin started on his own. Fuck!He was still wrapping his head around it but why it was sucha surprise wasn’t yet clear. Jackson was firstborn and heir apparent, so why wouldn’t he be Alpha—just another question with no answer. Watching the darkness lift, he smiled, remembering how Jackson always followed Hunter around. Mason would tease Jackson, calling him The Shadow, but his cousin never wavered, ignoring all the teasing. He wondered if Jackson would remember it.
Yawning, his many sleepless nights were beginning to take a toll on him and Mason hoped his brother, Sawyer, wouldn’t say anything to Mac. The last thing he wanted was to have Mac nagging him about how important it was to get the right amount of sleep—as if he didn’t fuckin’ know. But knowing and doing were two very different things as Mason had found out in the months since their mother’s death.
Ugh! And that’s the last thing he wanted to think about; his mother’s death.Nope, absolutely not! Casting around for different thoughts, Mason finally settled on the RV he was going to buy today, but that just led him back to the reason they had to go to California.Shit!The uncertainty of their reception had him on edge, but he had to trust Hunter to handle it, even if he had to use his Alpha power on Jackson.
Noticing the sky turning pink, Mason rolled out of bed, figuring it was late enough that Sawyer wouldn’t throw a fit about getting up. He—they—had a three hour drive there and another one back, hopefully with him driving their new RV. But first, a shower, and then he’d probably have to haul Sawyer’s sorry ass out of bed before making them both breakfast. Realizing their trip to California was really going to happen, Mason grinned as he walked to the shower.
Chapter 16
After emailing Penn, Fionn flopped on his bed, pushing a couple of pillows under his head, closing his eyes as he thought about what his uncle was really after. Logan thought it was his white dragon but without the superpower, his dragon was anything but special. Mulling it over, he rejected Logan’s idea.
Fuck! Why couldn’t I have a normal family? And what the fuck is it with all this cloak and dagger shit?First his father’s, then his uncle’s, and his mother’s siblings’ actions—lies, threats, deceit, greed—all aimed his way. He was getting pretty tired of all of their crap.Maybe I should leave after the court declares me an adult. Go live someplace away from all the assholes in the world so this shit stops. It would be nice for once in my life to wake up and not have to think about who’s out to kill me today.
Desperate to rid his head of the mess his life was in, Fionn reached into his pocket for his phone and, selecting one playlist, tapped the button, letting the words from one of his favorite songs fill his mind, temporarily eclipsing his anxiety. Browsing through music videos online one day, he found the song and couldn’t stop listening to it; the lyrics spoke to him like no other before. Humming the opening bars, he joined in when Red began to sing:
Deep in the shadows, I search
For something, but what?
Never seeing what the future holds
When will I finally be free?
Though it was written about a wolf shifter, the emotions in the song belonged to him. Ever since discovering Red Force, he’d been the singer’s number one fan, followinghim on social media and the web. There were rumors of a tour, maybe even a worldwide tour, and though it was just talk so far, Fionn had no doubt one would be announced soon and, when it was, he’d be buying tickets to as many shows as he could.
Fionn’s voice rose, filling the bedroom as he sang another verse
Somewhere there’s a place for me
With all the love I need,
Free from the hate and evil
That seems to be my fate
As the last note faded, Fionn smiled; the song had done its magic, giving voice to his feelings and reassuring him that he wasn’t alone.
~/~/~/~/~
As he drove along the highway to the RV dealership, Sawyer glanced at Mason, slumped against the passenger side door, gently snoring. He figured his brother was making up for lost sleep from the night before. Shaking his head at Mason’s refusal to use sleeping aids, Sawyer’s eyes turned back to the empty road, happy that Mason had, at least, been able to drag his ass out of bed before sunrise.
Of all the brothers, Sawyer was the easygoing one, never stressing about a decision; instead, letting life take him where it wanted him to go. Hunter always claimed he’d arrived in the world asleep, taking his birth in stride as just another ordinary day in his life while his twin, Sam, was wired differently, always analyzing situations before making decisions. Regardless of their different personalities, Sawyer and his twin, Sam—known as Mac within the family—were close; and they always had each other’s backs.
Sawyer was pretty sure he was the only brother looking forward to the California trip; once they got there, he was determined to try surfing. He’d have preferred taking their time, stopping along the way to have some fun, but he accepted Mac’s decision about getting there fast. Besides, after the visit with their cousins, he was sure his brothers would agree to play tourists on the way back since they’d have fulfilled their promise to their mother.
