Talis slid his arm around Axel. “Let’s go. They have things to sort out, and I know Jake’s itching to go to Max.”
“I am.” It was getting harder and harder to ignore the pull.
He shot me a sympathetic look, then guided Axel out the door. Dathal and Nick followed them, leaving the six of us.
Rys closed the door after them. “We’ll make this as quick as we can,” he said, walking back into the room. “What did Thornton say when you told her everything?”
I ran a hand through my hair, frustration building as I remembered our conversation. “She said that she’d send officers to my dad’s house to have a look. They couldn’t class him as missing until Xen reported it. Which he’s not going to do. And like we thought, she can’t do anything about Faris, because Haylen Frost said his death was a pack matter, and unless I have evidence that a crime took place, her hands are tied.”
“What about his attack on you and Max?” Gabriel asked. “Surely he can’t get away with that?”
Rys put his arm around Gabriel. “If Xen insists they tried to go against his direct orders, the old pack laws give him the right to punish them how he sees fit.”
Gabriel scoffed. “They really need to fucking change that.”
“Agreed. None of the alphas I know would ever invoke them or treat their pack members like that.” His lip curled in distaste. “I never thought Xen would.”
Unless he was desperate. And desperate men didn’t act rationally.
Wereallyneeded to find my dad.
“So now what?” I held my hands out. “My dad is missing, I’m still bound by a pact to marry Myla, but Xen is no longer my alpha. How will that work?” An awful thought occurred to me. “If Xen’s big plan was to join our packs, then he fucked that up by attacking me.”
“It would make sense.” Elliot stopped pacing and leant against the worktop. “The Thoresby Park Pack are wealthy. If Xen is looking for money, then joining our two packs would be one way to do it.”
“Except that won’t happen now.”
Elliot shook his head. “No. But he doesn’t know that. And we need to keep it that way because I don’t know how he’ll react if he finds out. The pact will stand regardless, but Xen won’t benefit from it.”
I slumped forward, resting my head on my hands. This was getting us nowhere.
“I should go back,” Elliot said, voice quiet. “They’re still my pack. I need to know what’s going on.”
“Is it safe?” I asked, looking up at him. “He’ll know you’ve been here with me.”
He shrugged. “I don’t think I have a choice. Xen isn’t answering my calls. And everyone I’ve contacted says they haven’t seen him. I don’t know if I believe them.”
“If you need to go, then go.” Rys stood and walked over to him.
“He’s going to be pissed off that you have Max and Jake. I don’t want to bring trouble here.”
Fuck, that was a good point. “Neither do I. Max has every right to be here. Even Xen can’t moan about him seeing his cousin. Maybe I should go back home.” No part of me wanted to leave Max here, and it would kill me to do it, but Rys didn’t deserve Xen’s wrath.
“I can handle Xen,” Rys growled. “No one leaves unless they want to.” He faced Elliot. “I understand you need to check on your pack. Don’t worry about Xen finding out I have Jake and Max. I don’t care. But be careful.”
Elliot nodded. “I will.”
I stood and walked him outside to his car. “Are you sure about this? I thought the whole idea of coming back here was that we don’t know what’s waiting for us at the pack house.”
“I know.” He toed the ground, watching the stones roll away before looking up at me. “But we can’t just sit here waiting. Besides, by all accounts, Xen isn’t there.”
“And if it turns out he is?”
Elliot sighed. “I’ve been his beta for long enough that I’d like to think he’ll listen to me. Maybe I can get through to him. Get him to see that kidnapping John isn’t the way to handle this.”
He made sense in theory, but the Xen who’d broken my leg without so much as a second thought wasn’t the same man I’d chosen as my alpha. “Let us know when you get there. And keep checking in.”
He smiled. “I will. Take care of Max.”
