The morning and afternoon passed by slowly as word began to spread about Rick’s trial. The pack was full of mixed opinions, especially Rick’s family. He still had living parents, and I made sure to give them a wide berth before the gathering. I didn’t know what to say to them. For some reason, their son had a death wish.
“Would you mind if I went to see Augie?” I asked Liam after lunch.
We were back at our house, and I hated leaving him now that his brothers weren’t around to entertain him.
“Taya, I am not your child that you need to mind. Nor do you need to ask permission to leave my side. I am more than capable of taking care of myself while you spend time with your best friend.”
God, he was perfect.
I went to him, wrapping my arms around his neck. “You’re pretty amazing, but something tells me you already knew that.”
He smirked. “Yeah, but only because I love you. Now get out of here before you become dependent on me and I have to do damage control.”
I laughed and rolled my eyes as I headed for the door. I cracked it open, then looked back at him. “I love you, too, and I’m glad you’re here.”
“I wouldn’t have it any other way.”
I slipped out the front with a smile on my face. Without Liam’s bright presence in my life, I wasn’t sure I’d be coping with everything as well as I had been. Augie did a great job of calming me, but Liam reached me on a level no other ever could.
When I arrived back at the pack house, I checked my dad’s office first, but neither him nor Augie was present. I continued toward the stairs and headed for Augie’s room. His door was still shut, so I tapped lightly on it, not wanting to wake him if he was still sleeping.
He answered the door, hair wet against his forehead. “Hey.” He pulled me in for a hug. “Where’s Liam?”
“He’s at our house. I told him I wanted to come spend some time with you. I’ve missed you.”
I walked into the room, shutting the door behind me. I didn’t plan on talking about anything top secret, but I also didn’t want anyone interrupting my Augie time.
We sat on the couch in his oversized room.
“I’ve missed you, too,” he said. “Why did we think it was a good idea to grow up and become responsible? I miss our days at the pond and shooting range.”
“Same here. Who could have predicted I’d have a mate and you’d be the pack beta?”
It felt like just yesterday that Cord, Augie, and I were running around the forest driving Davis crazy with our antics. Things had changed so much in such a short amount of time.
“How are you doing?” he asked. “What happened in New York? I was two seconds from jumping on a plane, but Gerald wouldn’t let me. He said you’d work it out on your own.”
I sighed. “It was bad at the beginning, but we did work it out, so it doesn’t matter.”
He glared at me. “I smell bullshit. Tell me.”
“Fine, but don’t say a word until I get through it all, even though it will probably upset you.”
He laughed. “No promises, but I’ll do my best.”
I relayed a summary of the dirty details of our trip, trying my best to skim past the worst of it, but there was no way to make any of it sound better than it was.
Augie’s eyes bulged. “How is Liam still alive? I would have helped you hide the body.”
“Grief makes people do crazy things and, while I’ve forgiven him, I have to admit, my heart is still on edge. His actions hurt like hell, and it will take a while to truly move past what happened.”
I was glad to have Liam with me back home, but the trip had slammed on the brakes, halting the direction our relationship was going. We had been moving a million miles an hour with our final destination being a blood bond, but now I wasn’t so sure I wanted to be tied to him like that when I still had niggling doubts.
My wolf growled deep inside me. She didn’t agree. Her black-and-white thought process had fully forgiven Liam and moved past the hurt, but my head wasn’t there, and she didn’t like it.
I hadn’t let the ache stop me from wanting Liam with me in Oregon, but it had made me second-guess cementing our bond so soon.
“If I hadn’t seen him with my own eyes earlier, I wouldn’t have believed that you hadn’t put a hurting on him, but I get why you didn’t. I’m glad you cut him slack. I can see how happy he makes you, and that is the only reason I’m not headed to your house to kick his ass right now.”
I laughed. “Not necessary at all. We will work it out. For now, everything is fine and we’re doing good. That’s good enough for the time being.”
He nodded. “How did things go with Rick earlier? Screwed up situation, huh?”
“No, shit. I can’t decide how I feel about it. Whatever is going on, it’s not good for our pack, and Rick needs to be held accountable for his actions. I hate that it could mean he’ll no longer be breathing by the end of the day, but that is nobody’s fault other than his.”
“I agree. Even if he’s not working for Declan, he’s hiding something, and that’s not how this pack works. Hopefully, we can get him to break at his trial and figure things out. I’d much rather see him banished for lying, instead of executed for treason. It’s been over three decades since we’ve had to deal with this.”
I grimaced. “It’s going to take everyone a long time to recover from the mess Declan has made, even if this one isn’t his fault. We’re all on edge because of him.”
Augie stood up from the couch, reaching for my hand. “Let’s go on a run before we have to meet with the pack. Some wolf time might be good for both of us.”
I nodded eagerly, taking his hand. I hadn’t had a carefree run with my girl in a while. I didn’t count my frantic search for escape in the Catskills as an enjoyable stroll. I was depending on her to help me sort through some of my shit. Not all of it. I wasn’t greedy. I knew everything couldn’t go our way and I was prepared for that. Or so I thought.
***
When Augie and I got back to the pack house a few hours later, we were bombarded by pack members. Word had officially gotten around that we would hold a public trial for Rick tonight and, for the most part, people didn’t seem happy about it.
Questions flew at us, left and right.
“Why are you doing this to our pack?”
“If he’s a traitor, why does he even get a trial? He should be dead already.”
“Haven’t we already lost enough?”
This was my first real moment to act as the alpha I was training to be one day, and I had no fucking clue what to say to them. Where the hell was my dad? I didn’t know what I was supposed to do with unhappy pack members. My first instinct was to tell them to go away and mind their own business, but this was their business. It affected us all.
Augie held his hands up, silencing those who stood in front of us. “Nothing has been decided yet. Rick will get his chance to defend himself and if he can’t, then we will decide what to do with that information. But that decision will come from Gerald, myself, and Taya. We will listen to your opinions, but ultimately, we have to decide what is best for the overall safety of the pack.”
A few of them huffed as they stormed away, not appreciating Augie’s answer, but I sure as hell did. I couldn’t have said it better myself.
Those who stayed turned to me, waiting for my comment. I was now someone they were supposed to be able to count on for guidance. I sent a silent prayer up, hoping I could live up to their expectations.
“Augie is correct in his statement, but I’ll also add, we are doing everything we can to come to a resolution and figure this out. We won’t jump to conclusions and let what Declan has done destroy our pack from the inside out. We are better than that. Just remember there aren’t always things we can share with everyone, so have faith that we are doing everything we can to keep the pack safe.”
The remaining shifters began to disperse, and I breathed a sigh of relief when they didn’t question us further. Augie and I headed for the office and it wasn’t until we shut the door behind us that I fully relaxed.
“Taya, do we need to add more exercise training to your schedule?” my dad teased. “You look exhausted after the run.”
Augie laughed. “No, she’s just recovering from the lynch mob that was headed your way but saw us first. You would have been proud of her, though. She didn’t lose her shit until after everyone turned away.”
I straightened and elbowed him in the gut even though he was right.
“It was just more overwhelming than I thought it would be,” I said. “Everyone wanted something different, but there’s no way to make them all happy. It’s a lot of pressure to say the right thing without upsetting the majority and do what’s right for the pack.”
Dad smiled, coming around his desk. “Welcome to my world.” He put his arm around me. “You wanted in, and now you are. There’s no backing out even when the going gets tough, but you’ll be okay. We’ll be right beside you every step of the way.”
“If I can survive tonight, then I’ll be glad,” I said. “For the time being, ‘one day at a time’ is my new motto.”
He patted my shoulder. “Nothing wrong with that. It’s time to get ready. Why don’t you go get Liam while Augie and I get Rick? We will start everything in about an hour.”
“That I can do. We’ll come right back over in case you need help with anything else.”
I hugged each of them goodbye and made my way home. Relief swept over me when nobody else was waiting outside to ask more questions about Rick. I decided on our run that I was going to go with whatever decision my dad made.
The only thing I hadn’t decided on was whether or not he deserved to die for whatever he was refusing to admit. I was counting on my dad and Augie to help with that decision when the time came. I knew neither of them had fully decided on it either.
I also thought a lot about Liam, the blood bond, and what the last several days meant for us. He had hurt me deeply by his rejection. I was his mate. I was supposed to be the first person he turned to, not the one he pushed away.
The more I thought about it, the more my wolf began to see where I was coming from, but she was persistent about the fact that Liam was our mate. When it was all said and done, two wrongs didn’t make it right. We either needed to forgive Liam fully and commit with the blood bond or walk away before we both were hurt even more. She was right, and I knew exactly what I planned to do next.
I stalked toward the house with my intentions set. Liam deserved the truth from me and he was going to get it. If I didn’t do it now, I’d continue to torture myself with what to do, even though I knew what was right.
I pushed the door open and found Liam in the kitchen, making lunch. The smile on his face was almost more than my heart could take. He truly did love me. I knew that without a doubt.
“Did you have a good time with Augie?” he asked.
“I did. Can we talk for a minute?”
A shadow fell over his face. “Sure. Lunch can wait. What’s going on?”
I grabbed his hand, pulling him toward the couch. We sat down, and my body began to shake from nerves. I wasn’t sure I was ready for the conversation, but it needed to happen.
“I’ve thought a lot about what happened in the Catskills over the last two days. I was really hurt, but so were you.”
“Taya, I really am sorry for acting like a dick. Please, you have to know I’d never do something so stupid again.” His voice was frantic as his grip on my hand tightened.
I smiled at him. “I know you’re sorry and I forgave you when I said I did, but it is still hard to forget. I kept a lot of how I was feeling inside, because you just lost your dad. I didn’t want to be selfish. I knew you hadn’t hurt me intentionally, but that didn’t change the fact that you did. I should have told you how I felt, so we could move past it.”
“Why do I feel a ‘but’ coming that I’m not going to like?”
The crease between his eyes and the shaking of his hands told me I was completely screwing up what I was trying to do.
“Argh. I’m doing this all wrong. I’m sorry.” I was trying to make him excited, not hysterical. I really needed to get better with my words. “I want the blood bond with you. I wasn’t sure when we got back. I began second-guessing everything, unsure of what I wanted with you, but I know now. I love you, and I fully forgive you.”
His arms wrapped around me, crushing me to him. “Holy fuck, Taya. Don’t ever do that to me again. I thought you were leaving me. I love you so damn much.”
He pulled back just enough to push his lips against mine. He demanded entry and I quickly didn’t know where he ended and I began. Our hands desperately ripped clothes off each other and soon, we were naked on the couch.
He gazed down at me, trailing his hand down my face as he pushed into me. “This is going to be quick, but soon, we’re going to follow through on that blood bond and I’m never letting you go.”
“I think I can live with that.”
We made love on the couch for the first time, and my senses were on overload. The passion flying between us was overwhelming and we were sated before we knew it. I held on tight to my mate, not wanting to release him just yet. I wanted to keep the real world at bay for a little while longer.
Finally, he pushed himself up and headed for the bathroom. I followed, enjoying the view of his perfect ass and wishing our hallway was a hell of a lot longer. We showered together, and he decided a second round was necessary after my profound revelation. I didn’t argue, but I did come to the realization that we needed to find something stronger for our shower walls if we were going to keep this up. Tile didn’t hold up well against the likes of us.
When we eventually made our way to the pack house and around the back where the trial would take place, the bubble of joy I had been in burst. Rick was tied to a chair on a riser as the crowds began to arrive. Murmurs of mixed feelings coursed through the pack, but what killed me most was the look on Rick’s face that said he had accepted his fate.
He had no intention of coming clean. He was prepared to die.