Chapter Fifteen
Our peace shatterswith a single sentence. “I would like to go to Whitlan.”
I pause, fork raised halfway to my mouth, and look at Hannah. Her eyes are trained on her plate, but she isn’t seeing it. She’s back there, in the shithole of a town she grew up in.
“Why?” Foster asks, his tone cautious. I can feel his fingers tapping on his thigh beneath the table as he struggles to hold himself back from rushing around the table to hug her.
She blinks, and then she looks down at Kaitlin, who is too engrossed in her food to care about our conversation. “I just need to be there. To see it for myself. And if I can help the victims Colin and my father sent into Doctor Harrison’s lab, I want to do that too.”
Guilt—that’s what she’s saying. She feels responsible for her family’s actions like her sister does. We’ve spent years trying to convince Omen that what her parents did wasn’t her fault. Now, we’re going to go through the same process with Hannah.
“Do you remember Sable? The angry teenager from the community center?” Foster asks suddenly, pushing his plate away. I rack my brain trying to put a face to the name. It takesseveral seconds before it strikes me. Sable is the son of that serial killer who went on a spree in New York City ten years ago.
“I do?” Hannah’s answer is uncertain. She’s as confused by the sudden shift in topic as I am.
My Omega stands and walks to the living room. He returns a moment later with a tablet in hand. His fingers swipe across the screen before he passes it to her. “That’s his story. His father, Borden Saunders, kidnapped and eventually killed over thirty people. All in a two-year span. The things he did to them…well, I doubt any of us could stomach talking about it.”
Shock parts Hannah’s lips as she skims the news article Foster pulled up. “Poor Sable. And his mother is the one who killed his father? I can’t imagine how hard that is to live through.”
“Let me ask you something. Is Sable responsible for the deaths of those thirty people?”
She looks aghast at his question, but her lips quickly pinch, and she mutters out a terse “no.”
Foster sets the tablet aside and reaches out to pinch her chin, his grip light but firm. “Exactly. He isn’t responsible for his parents’ actions, and neither are you. What your father did in New Hampshire—that’s on him. Same with Colin. Theychoseto partake in those atrocities. Did you willingly take part in the torture of others?” When her head shakes, he nods. “You aren’t responsible for their actions, Angel. There is no blame on your shoulders.”
Tears fill her eyes, but she blinks them away. “It’s just—I was there, Foster-”
“You were there, Wildfire.” I cut in. “You fed information to the DAU for almost a decade. Endangering yourself each time you silently stepped in to help. What you’ve done is enough. No one expects you to do more.”
Hannah doesn’t seem convinced, but that’s alright. It will take time to prove that she doesn’t have to make up for the things she witnessed in her father’s cult.
“If you’d still like to go to Whitlan for closure, I will take you.”
After a long moment, she quietly declines my offer. “You’re right. Going there won’t assuage my guilt, but it will bring up memories I’d rather forget. Maybe I can visit Omen instead.”
“We go sees Auntie Omen?” Kaitlin chimes in, suddenly interested in us instead of her demolished pancakes.
Hannah stands and grabs both their plates, starting breakfast cleanup. “If she’s feeling up to it. Go wash the syrup off your hands, please.”
“I’ll call Bea and see if she’s free today.” Foster leaves the room to call our friends. He has plans to stop by his workplace later to talk to his boss, so it will only be the girls and me taking the trip over to Starburgh.
With him and Kaitlin busy, I join Hannah in the kitchen. She rolls her eyes when I start washing, letting her rinse everything instead. A calm hum of energy vibrates between us. It feels natural to move around each other, as if there’s never been a day she didn’t occupy space in my home and my heart.
Fate-matched mates were always a concept that caught my curiosity. My parents were chosen mates, and my mother never took another mate after my father died, so I didn’t grow up witnessing the magical type of love that comes with a Fated connection. When I met Foster six years ago, the pull between us freaked me out. To be so drawn to someone that it physically hurts to be away from them for long periods of time… that was jarring for someone who had never seen it firsthand.
My Omega grew up in a Fate-matched pack, so he knew what was happening from the moment we met. He guided me through the initial speed bumps, exactly as he’s doing with Hannah. There is no jealousy over the quicker progression of theirrelationship, because I have been in her shoes. Waiting patiently for her to be ready to take those steps with me will make them all the sweeter.
“Thank you.” One brow raises as I turn to look at her. She’s leaning against the counter, one hand resting on her stomach, the other holding a rag. “For protecting us.”
“You don’t have to thank me for that. I’ll always stand between you and any threat you face.”
Whether it’s her ex, her parents, or someone else, they’ll have to go through me to get to her or the kids. No one messes with an Alpha’s pack, not without facing an Alpha’s wrath.
After visiting Omen a few days ago, Hannah lost some of the guilt weighing down her shoulders. I think hearing that her sister holds the same sense of responsibility helped her realize how misplaced it was. They’d talked for a long time inside Omen’s bedroom. Catching up after the five years they were apart. Both women seemed lighter when they reemerged.
While we were there, Omen’s roommate and Foster’s other best friend, Bea, cornered me to make plans for all three Omegas to attend the Candy Courage concert tonight. She believes that getting Omen out of their apartment and surrounded by music will help settle her as she fights the chemical rejection. I had no issues with Foster going with them, but it was polite of her to get my input beforehand. With so much attention on the Montgomery cult and all its members, the DAU doesn’t believe there are currently significant threats against Hannah or Omen. So, they should be safe to attend alone.
I doubt I could leave Hannah and Kaitlin here alone to go with them anyway. There is a feeling deep in my gut that tells me her ex won’t let her go so easily. Not when she’s carrying his son.
