Chapter Twenty-Four
Lachlan
I parked the truck in front of the small house and shut off the engine. It was nearly four in the morning and Chloe and I were exhausted.
“We need to check the place out,” I stated tiredly.
“I know,” she answered, her voice quiet.
In agreement, we climbed out of the truck and Chloe gestured to the right. I went left. We circled the house, finding no evidence that anyone had been there. Not even humans.
When we met back at the truck, I pulled our bags out of the cab. “Come on, let’s get to bed.”
She dug the keys out of her bag and unlocked the door. I followed her inside, my nose twitching from the dusty smell of the house. She walked through a compact living room and down the short hall. A door stood open to our left that revealed a bathroom. The door at the end of the hall was open as well and Chloe went inside. I followed her, discovering a spacious bedroom. Against the far wall was a king-sized bed.
Chloe gestured to a chair in the corner. “You can stick the bags there. Are you hungry?” she asked.
“It can wait. We need sleep.”
She sighed. “That sounds good. I’m going to go turn on the air then we can go to bed.”
I dropped the bags in the chair, grabbing the phone chargers out of mine. In her rush, Chloe had stuffed them both inside. Then I stripped out of my clothes, letting them drop to the floor as I walked to the bed.
I heard the air conditioner kick on and felt cool air blowing into the stuffy room. When Chloe returned a few moments later, I was already in bed. She removed her own clothes, disappeared into the bathroom for a minute, then came back to slide into bed, sighing as she settled against me.
I slid my arm under her head and exhaled as her cheek hit my chest. In the last few days, I’d grown so accustomed to having her in bed with me that I wasn’t sure how I’d ever sleep alone again.
If I hadn’t been so tired, the thought probably would have scared the shit out of me. As it was, I could barely keep my eyes open.
“Do you think Carter will be okay?” Chloe asked suddenly, her voice sleepy.
I rubbed my hand over her shoulder. “Yes, I do. He’s a survivor.”
“He should be alpha of the pack,” Chloe stated.
“You don’t want the job?”
She chuckled against my chest, rubbing her nose on my skin. She had a habit of doing that at night before we went to sleep, as if she wanted to make sure that my scent was the only thing she smelled in her sleep. “Hell, no,” she replied. “I don’t have the temperament.”
Now that I knew her better, I was inclined to agree. Still, I was impressed that she understood that about herself. A lot of wolves, male or female, would assume that their fighting prowess meant that they would make excellent pack alphas. Often times, they were wrong.
“He should change the name of the pack,” she said idly. “I don’t think it will be led by MacArthurs ever again.”
“What about your children?” I asked.
She shrugged. “I doubt I’ll have any.”
“You never know when you’ll meet your mate,” I pointed out, ignoring the shaft that pierced my heart when I uttered the words. I shoved the feeling away. I cared about Chloe, but she wasn’t my mate. My mate was dead.
“I already have,” she whispered, her body going lax against me. “He doesn’t want me.”
Every muscle in my body tensed at her words. “What?” I asked.
She didn’t answer. She was already sleeping.
I lay awake until the sky was tinged with pink, unable to stop thinking about the mate that hadn’t wanted Chloe. I couldn’t wrap my head around it. Any male would be lucky to take Chloe as a mate. I could have the she-wolf with me for the rest of my life and never regret it.
I cursed myself, because I knew if Chloe had a mate and he returned for her, she would leave me behind.
The smell of coffee and bacon woke me up the next morning. I sat up, throwing my legs over the side of the bed and rubbed my forehead with my hands. A glance at my phone showed that it was nearly noon.
Hoping a shower would clear the fuzziness from my head, I walked into the bathroom, emptied my bladder, and climbed into the tub.
“Fuck me!” I yelled when the water came out ice cold. The showerhead was low, the nozzle pointed at my chin rather than raining water over my head. I got a face full of frigid liquid.
I heard Chloe’s chuckle on the other side of the shower curtain, stepped out of the spray, and stuck my head outside to see her put a cup of coffee on the counter. “I see you’ve discovered the horrible plumbing.”
“Jesus Christ, you could have warned me,” I complained.
She grinned at me. “But where’s the fun in that?”
I gave her a look that promised retribution, which only made her smile widen.
“Will I be forgiven if I tell you I made breakfast?” she asked sweetly.
“Maybe,” I mumbled, ducking back into the shower and reaching for the shampoo. She must have gotten it out of my bag while I slept. I stared at the bottle in my hand, a testament to her thoughtfulness, and once again my mind wandered to the mate that refused her.
His loss would be my gain, I decided. At least for now.
I heard Chloe leave the bathroom as I washed my hair. When I finished my shower and dressed, I came out of the bedroom to find a huge mound of bacon and waffles waiting for me. There was even orange juice.
“Did you go shopping this morning?” I asked.
She shook her head. “No, I had all this in the freezer. I left some things here. I planned to come back for a week or two after this was all over. It’s not the best meal we’ll ever eat, but at least we won’t go hungry today.”
My stomach rumbled as I looked over the food. “Looks good to me. I’m so hungry I don’t really give a damn how it tastes.”
We sat down and ate, Chloe asking me what I wanted to eat for the next few days as she made a list. In the midst of chaos, the simple domestic task seemed blessedly normal.
“We’ll have to go shopping this afternoon. It’s probably a good idea to grab things that we’ll eat for the next few days. If we have to leave again, we can put what’s left in the freezer.”
“We need to call Calder and your grandmother today,” I reminded her.
She looked at me. “I know, but we also need to eat, so food comes first. We can go into town after breakfast and make the call when we come back.”
The trip to the grocery store revealed another facet of Chloe’s personality to me. She marched through the aisles as though she were on a mission, working her way through the store with swift precision. She rarely lingered over choices, selecting products after a quick perusal of ingredients and price.
Within twenty minutes, we’d gathered what we needed, paid for the items, and were back in the truck, heading out of town. I noticed Chloe checking her mirrors, making sure we weren’t followed as she drove. I’d been doing the same and it seemed we were safe for now.
Once we were back at the house, the groceries put away, Chloe and I opened the bag that Carter had given us last night. Inside we found everything he promised—a map of the city, blueprints of the police station, and something he hadn’t promised, his father’s habits, schedule, and, best of all, the combination to his safe. Then we called Calder and her grandmother, Sophia.
Quickly, I explained what had occurred over the past two days. Calder and Sophia remained quiet as I spoke, neither saying a word until I was done.
“You don’t know where Carter went?” Sophia asked, her tone displeased.
“No, I don’t, but I trust him.”
“Yes, well, my son trusted Darrell and look what happened.”
“Gram,” Chloe interrupted. “Lachlan did the right thing. Carter got us everything we need to break into his father’s station and get proof of everything he’s done. Including proof that he murdered Mom and Dad.”
Sophia was silent.
“How many wolves will you need?” Calder asked.
“Four, maybe five,” I answered.
“That many?”
I sighed and rubbed my forehead. “There’s a complication.” When Calder didn’t speak, I continued. “Brian and Brayden Kirkpatrick are here.”
“What?” Calder’s voice was loud enough to make me wince. “What in the hell are they doing there? They were just in Dallas a few weeks ago.”
“I don’t know but it definitely gives me a bad feeling.”
“Me too,” Calder murmured. “So do you think they’re there to see Chloe?”
I glanced over at her and knew she’d heard Calder’s question. Her eyes were intent upon me and full of questions. “Yeah, I do.”
“Fuck, I really don’t like this. Okay, so four or five wolves. Do the Kirkpatricks have any of their pack with them?”
“Not that I know of.”
“Maybe I should send more than five,” he stated.
“It’s your call,” I agreed. “Either way, we’ll need to wait a few days and give Carter a chance to heal before we attack. If you send Mason and Shane, plus two others, the six of us should be able to handle it. None of them are as strong as our weakest wolf.”
“Seven of us,” Chloe corrected me. “Unless you were planning to stay behind because I’m sure as hell not.” Her tone held a warning.
“I’m not sure how effective Carter is in a fight,” I explained. “Even if he’s healed, it’s doubtful he’ll be at his full strength for weeks.”
Chloe tilted her head. “I think he’ll surprise you,” she drawled.
“But a few days’ wait will give them time to get ready for us,” Sophia argued.
“Maybe, but Carter said we’ll need his help to get in and I believe him,” I replied.
“I’ll tell them to get ready to leave tomorrow. It will give you time to formulate a plan and get them up to speed,” Calder offered.
“Sounds good.” I glanced around the house. “Tell them to be prepared to rough it. There are only two bedrooms and a damn tiny couch.”
Calder chuckled. “They’ve slept in worse places, I’m sure.”
We talked for a few minutes longer before hanging up.
“What did you mean by the Kirkpatricks being here for me?” Chloe asked.
I stared at her, unsure how to explain the feeling in my gut every time Brayden Kirkpatrick looked at her, or the way his eyes flashed whenever he heard her name. I had no proof, just a deeply seated sense that something was wrong.
“Lach?”
“I’m trying to figure out how to explain it,” I answered. “It’s nothing concrete, just a feeling I have about Brayden. His body language and the look in his eyes when you’re even mentioned gives me…” I trailed off, searching for the best way to describe it.
“The creeps?” she injected.
I huffed out a laugh. “For lack of a better word, yeah.”
“He doesn’t give me the best feeling either, especially after seeing him yesterday,” she agreed, surveying the papers spread on the kitchen table. Chloe rubbed her hands together. “Well, we should probably get to work,” she stated, changing the subject.
I could sense the agitation in her. She wanted to end this, the sooner the better. She really hadn’t been lying when she said patience wasn’t her strength.
“It’s just a few more days, Chloe,” I said quietly.
She looked up at me, her hazel eyes bright. The green stood out in her amber irises, a clear sign of her frustration. “I want him to pay,” she growled and I realized she wasn’t thinking of Brayden Kirkpatrick anymore. She was focused on Darrell. “With his blood and his bones. Because that’s what he took from me.”
“He will. I promise.”