CHAPTER TWELVE
“Welcome home, everyone.”
Isaac’s voice washed over Dylan’s ears, his figure standing in the middle of the area where they docked. A guard ship had met them twenty minutes prior and had guided them back here, and from this far, he could see Jason approach the clan leader and speak to him for a few minutes. There was tension on Isaac’s face coupled with disapproval, and Jason’s shoulders were filled with the same tension. Dylan waited for it to spill over into a mess, his hands ready to turn into claws in case he needed to stop it.
But the brothers didn’t fight. Isaac pulled Jason for a hug instead, and though it was almost perfunctory, at least it was far from a fight. Jason left towards the cave, guiding the first batch of children, and Dylan breathed a small sigh of relief.
The panther clan leader sauntered over to him. When he was near enough, Dylan gave him a nod. Isaac nodded back, eyes glancing at the children filing out and being guided by the older ones.
“Didn’t think you could do it,” he commented.
There was no open aggression in the panther shifter’s tone, and Dylan decided to take the words at face value.
“It was personal for me,” he replied easily. “I wouldn’t want it to be anything other than successful.”
He felt more than saw Isaac tensing again, but the neutral expression on his face remained. Someone approached them from behind Dylan. Suddenly whatever neutral expression the clan leader had on his face disappeared, to be replaced by joy and relief. He stepped forward and opened his arms.
Isabella fell in them without hesitation, hugging him back. This hug wasn’t perfunctory at all—in fact, it was so affectionate that there was no mistaking who Isaac valued the most in this team. He stepped back to sweep her over with his gaze, and displeasure crossed his face when he saw that she had some minor injuries on her. They all did, but the lift of whatever barrier the island had the moment they sailed away had worked its wonders on them, their shifting abilities helping heal the major injuries faster.
But it was Robin who worked on the rest. Using her witch healing abilities, she cured kids that could barely walk and were too weak to function, lending them some necessary strength until they got here. Dylan searched for her in the crowd and found her almost asleep on her feet, blinking her eyes repeatedly and shuffling with the children. She stopped just near him and nearly swayed, and his arm automatically shot out to steady her.
Simon was there in an instant, grabbing her other arm. Dylan suspected the wolf shifter had been observing her, but Robin had been insistent that she was fine as she did on the ship earlier.
Dylan turned back to Isaac, who was watching the whole exchange.
“My people need rest,” he said evenly. “They were acting as slaves, then defenders, and haven’t gotten any sleep since.”
Isaac nodded his head, but it was Isabella who stepped forward and took Robin out of Dylan’s hand. Their skins brushed and a spark was there, but she gave no indication that she noticed.
“I’ll take them to their rooms for today,” Isabella said firmly. “I’ll call Lana to feed the children. Come on, Simon.”
Simon glanced at him, and Dylan gave a subtle nod. Then the wolf shifter was off following the two women.
“I’ll also need a prison cell to hold someone,” Dylan continued while the others were still within earshot.
“Of course. Whoever for?”
“Someone,” he said, not mentioning his brother or the surprise betrayal. The other would find out soon enough, and he didn’t feel the need to explain at the moment. Isaac didn’t pry, instead watching the people endlessly file out. He already had men everywhere in the area, both guiding the refugees and watching their every move.
When the two leaders were finally alone, Isaac’s attention turned completely towards him. Dylan waited while the other looked at him, almost in consideration.
Finally, Isaac spoke, blue eyes piercing.
“I’ll be setting a meeting later on with my sister and some trusted advisors. I would appreciate it if you would come.”
This. This was the opportunity Dylan was waiting for. Isabella mentioned on the ship that her brother never let any outsiders inside any meeting—at all—and he had to hide his surprise at this sudden turn of events.
“I’ll come.”
*****
Dylan and the rest were given enough time to rest and take care of personal needs, but they might as well have been prisoners for all the freedom they were given to roam around. His bedroom wasn’t locked, but he could sense the presence of guards just outside and knew that the moment he stepped out, he would be advised to rest inside—or his movements would be reported to Isaac right away.
Dylan didn’t take offense, as he doubted he would have taken his own eyes off Isaac had he been the one visiting New York headquarters. It spoke of the mutual distrust both had of each other, though there was no open aggression.
So he rested, taking a power nap but not really sleeping as fitfully as he would have liked. It didn’t dwell well that he trusted Isaac as much as he trusted Henley—and that wasn’t saying much. He wondered how Lance was doing, considering he’d left the guy in a not-so-good state. Lance would just have to deal, then, because he was in for a harder time once they got to New York.
Dylan was going to make sure of it.
A few hours later, a knock came at his door. Already dressed and prepared, Dylan opened the door and was surprised to find a woman servant there instead of the guard. The woman indicated for him to follow, so he did. They went deeper inside the cave and passed a couple of hallways that were empty at the moment.
“How huge is this place?”
The woman glanced at him before returning her stare straight ahead.
“Very huge,” she said, her tone not quite friendly, but not rude either. The vague answer had Dylan inwardly sighing, but he chose not to comment and instead decided that this place was probably as wide as New York headquarters was tall, considering this cave had no second floor. Not bad for a solo clan, though area access and resources must have been limited.
They finally got to a doorway that the servant opened. He could already see Isaac inside, along with Clay, the guard who’d apprehended Dylan in the beginning.
A few minutes later, Isabella came in, dressed freshly but with dark circles still under her eyes. She spared a glance at Dylan but stood beside Isaac.
Just as they were about to sit down, the door burst open and in came Jason. The youngest of the siblings only had eyes for Isaac. Isaac nodded, and Jason sat beside Dylan.
And the meeting began.
It was mostly a discussion of how they were going to house the refugees, which Isabella solved by mentioning the collection of antiques they’d taken with them on the ship. Then the details of their infiltration were discussed, with nothing spared except for the kiss between Isabella and Dylan, and the discovery of the note from Isaac to Henley. All evidence had been burned save for that piece of paper and some notable documents, which Isabella had stored in secret somewhere.
More things were discussed carefully, things that Isaac probably determined Dylan would be okay in knowing. Dylan mentioned the possibility of an alliance, and Isaac was more open to the idea now, though he warned that he still wanted limited contact and not the same terms as the other clans—namely, that he would still be leader in this territory equal to Dylan’s role. Dylan had already expected this and said he’ll draw up the terms.
Then he went in for the kill.
“One other thing.”
“Hmm?”
“I have plans of courting your sister.”
The silence that followed was deafening.
A flicker of shock crossed Isabella’s face, but no one noticed, because they were too busy staring at Dylan and processing his words. Even Clay was staring at him. The shock on Isabella’s face disappeared quickly, replaced with a look that said she was expecting him to say this.
But Dylan didn’t miss the daggers she glared at him for a split second. He ignored them.
After a while, Jason turned to Isabella in disbelief. “Are you kidding me? A wolf?”
“Jason,” Isaac said easily, but there was no mistaking the warning in it. He turned those piercing eyes on Isabella, quiet and probing. “Isabella?”
Isabella clamped her mouth shut and nodded her head. “I know of his intentions.”
“And your response?”
There was a pause, and her blue eyes met Dylan’s. They were pleasant now.
On the surface.
“I’m not opposed to it.”
Silence filled the room again, with Jason muttering under his breath. But he showed no open dislike for Dylan, and Dylan suspected it had more to do with inter-mating bothering him than a personal offense in the matter.
But it was very personal for Isaac, whose status as leader would be shaken if this came to fruit. Dylan turned his gaze to meet his now.
Finally, Isaac nodded. “Very well. You may as well stay for the next few days and attend the party I’ll be holding for my people.”
Bingo.
Dylan smiled. “That would be wonderful.”