I hated not knowing what was wrong with my dad. I hated not knowing if I could trust the people who seemed so eager to help us. As I stewed over the shitstorm that kept growing in my life, we arrived at the place without incident. It was only minutes from where the gathering took place, but time seemed to slow with every passing minute.
My phone vibrated in my pocket, and I considered ignoring it, but something told me it wasn’t a good idea. Davis’s name was displayed on the screen and I groaned, not wanting to tell him over the phone about my dad.
“Hey, Davis,” I said as I clicked the answer button.
“What happened?” he snapped.
I forgot he would have known immediately when my dad became incapacitated. Alphas were linked to their pack to feel emotions and be able to sense if people were alive. If the alpha was unable to do so, then this power was passed down to the beta during the interim. Davis must have felt the shift in energy and knew.
“We don’t know. Elijah thinks he was poisoned. We’re headed back to Oregon now.”
I heard the heaviness of his sigh through the phone. We both knew this was the last thing we needed right then.
“Who’s we?”
“Augie and I were going to drive him, but Elijah insisted on lending us their plane. I’m not sure who’s included in the we yet. I haven’t gotten that far, but I just arrived at the landing area. I’ll update you again as soon as I know our ETA.”
“Elijah is good people, Taya. Just look after your dad and let them get you home. Don’t be difficult.”
I couldn’t help the small laugh that left my lips. Davis knew me so well.
“I’m being a darling, don’t you worry. I’ll see you soon.”
I clicked the end button before he could reply and tucked my phone back in my pocket. It eased some of my nerves that Davis also thought the Anders family was good people. I trusted Davis as much as I did my dad.
Elijah and his sons were on the plane doing whatever needed to be done to get us going. I stayed by the truck with Augie to watch over my dad until they had a place ready for him. I leaned my head on Augie and closed my eyes for a moment.
He wrapped his arms around me. “It’s going to be okay, Tay. We’ll figure this out. Your dad is the strongest man I know. He’ll hold on until we fix him.”
My body began to shake as I thought about everything that had happened. Augie held me tightly as I let my emotions take over for the briefest of moments. I needed to release some of my despair before I exploded. Each tear that fell was a small weight lifted off my chest.
A few minutes passed before I regained my composure. “What’s taking so long?” I complained.
“I don’t know. I’ll go find out, though.”
I nodded as Augie headed toward the plane. Before he could make it up the stairs, the others were coming out one by one. Hopefully, that meant they weren’t coming with us.
“We’ve got the bed in the back of the plane made up for Gerald,” Elijah said. “We’ll get him settled, then you guys can head out.”
I looked around and still didn’t see a pilot. “Who’s flying the plane?”
Caleb grinned, and I groaned. He couldn’t be. There was no way. I liked him, but I was ready to leave these people behind and get home.
He smacked Aiden on the back. “Aiden is an excellent pilot. You’ll be in safe hands with us.”
“Us?” I asked hesitantly.
Elijah stepped forward, placing his hand on my arm. “I’ve asked my sons to escort you home. Your father has been a dear friend of mine for many decades, Taya. We may have lost touch over the years, but I still care about his well-being and making sure you’re safe. Please, let me have some peace of mind by knowing they are with you to help.”
Ugh, I wanted to be a bitch and say no, that I would handle this myself, but the dark grey depths of his eyes held an agony that rivaled my own. I couldn't say no, not to him. Especially when Davis had also vouched for him.
“Okay, but what about you?”
“I have to go tell the alphas what has happened. I won’t mention we think Declan is involved, but I’ll let them know Gerald has fallen ill and you’ve taken him home. I’ll get some men and pack things up. One of my men will drive your truck home with your stuff, then fly the plane back to our pack. I’ll go home as soon as everything here has been cleaned up.”
Maybe having help wasn’t so bad after all. I had already forgotten about our stuff in my worry for my dad and was glad I wouldn’t have to deal with it later.
Aiden and Liam moved to the truck and took my dad from the back seat. The good news was that he didn’t look any worse, but he wasn’t any better, either. Caleb came on the other side of me and swung his arm around my shoulder.
“Wanna sit next to me on the plane? I make great conversation.”
The wink he gave me had me shaking my head at his carefree attitude. “I’ll think about it.”
Augie pulled me a little closer to him and Caleb’s arm fell away. I glanced over at him, surprised of the protectiveness. Caleb grinned but left it alone and walked away.
“What was that about?” I asked as soon as we were alone again.
“You already have a best friend. Three’s a crowd.”
I patted his chest. “August James, are you jealous?”
“Of course not. Just remember I’m your best friend and we’ll have nothing to worry about.”
“You’ll always be my number one guy.”
He laughed and nodded his head toward Liam. “That one can’t keep his eyes off you.”
Now it was my turn to laugh. “He’s only curious because I shut him down earlier. Don’t worry, they’ll fly back to their territory after we get home. We’ll be yesterday’s news to them before we know it.”
“If you say so. Let’s get on the plane and get out of here.”
We headed toward the aircraft and once we stepped inside, I was thoroughly impressed. The plane was around twenty-five feet in length. Up front was a small cockpit area with two seats and a sliding door to block the area off. The back was split into two sections. Four plush leather seats were first, followed by a curved couch meant for two or three people. To the right of the sofa was another sliding door. Aiden and Elijah walked out of the room, so I assumed that was where my dad was.
“Gerald is in bed. The sides curve up, so he won’t get jostled during the flight,” Elijah said. He turned and shook each of his sons’ hands. “You boys behave. Don’t piss off Taya. And keep them safe.” He gestured toward Augie and me.
I wanted to be irritated about Elijah assuming they would be keeping me safe, but I appreciated his comment about them not pissing me off so much that I ignored it.
Each of them gave their dad a ‘yes, sir’ before Elijah walked down the stairs, shutting the door behind him. I glanced at each of the men before me. Aiden held no emotion on his stoic face. Caleb was far too happy with the situation, and Liam… just looking at his face annoyed me. He was a conundrum with his mood swings. I knew they all shared the same face, but there was something about Liam I couldn’t put my finger on yet. My wolf was curious, and I didn’t like it. I didn’t like him. She was going to have to deal with not figuring it out.
***
That was the longest couple hours of my life. Ever. Aiden silently flew the plane with no updates except to buckle up when we were taking off and landing. Caleb attempted to extract information from me on every facet of my life, which drove Augie absolutely insane. Liam would go from cocky to pissed every few moments. I was irritated, tired, and stressed. Augie was feeling the same way, and I was sure one of us was going to snap soon.
Once Aiden had said we were landing, I used the satellite phone on the plane to call Davis, so he could be waiting for us with a vehicle to take my dad home. There was a section of land on our property big enough for the small plane to land on and take off. It wasn’t going to be a smooth landing, but it would do the job. Hopefully, the brothers didn’t plan to stick around. I had enough to deal with without worrying about having guests in the pack house.
The plane came to a stop after a bumpy landing on the rough ground. Augie unbuckled almost as quickly as me, but I beat him to the door. Once it was opened, I sucked in the fresh air as shivers of contentment ran down my body. Home. There was nothing like it.
“I’ll put the ladder down,” Liam said gruffly from behind me.
I attempted to move out of his way, but he hadn’t waited for me to do so and I ended up pressed flat against his back in the small space for a moment too long. My wolf hummed at the contact, but I shut her down. It had apparently been too long since my last male encounter if she was reacting so strongly to a man who drove me batshit crazy, and not in a good way. I needed to fix that and tame my wolf, but it certainly wasn’t going to be with Liam.
Davis was waiting for us right outside the plane with Sam and Tommy. Liam moved aside, this time without making contact, which I appreciated, and allowed me to exit the aircraft first, with Augie right behind me. Davis wrapped me up in a tight hug that I gladly accepted.
“Don’t worry, Taya. We’ll figure this out,” he whispered before letting go.
I nodded but didn’t reply. I was tired of people telling me we would figure things out. I wanted more action and less reaction. I needed to see results, but things had only gotten worse so far.
Liam, Caleb, and Aiden exited the plane and shook hands with Davis.
“Thank you for getting them here so quickly. We appreciate your help. We have a pack doctor waiting at the house to treat him,” Davis said.
“Would you mind if we stick around for the night?” Aiden asked. “We need to wait for one of our pack members to drive up with your truck before we fly back to the Catskills.”
I hadn’t thought about that, and they were probably tired. It was dusk already and we’d all been up early to accommodate the Decennial Gathering schedule. I would have to deal with their presence for the night.
Davis nodded. “Not a problem. We have several rooms in the pack house to lodge guests. Grab your stuff and hop in the back of the truck. We’ll get Gerald into the back seat.”
I could handle them in the house as long as they stayed out of our way while we figured out what was wrong with my dad. I was surrounded by enough alpha males, I didn’t need any more.
I headed straight for the truck and let the men do their thing. Augie helped Davis and the others get my dad, and I was glad to have a moment to myself. I leaned my head against the back of the seat once I was settled. My body was tense and sore. As soon as everyone was situated and I spoke with the doctor, I was going on a long run with my wolf. I needed a release, and a race was the best way to get it, at least for now.
I opened the back door, and I helped lift my dad’s shoulders, settling his head on my lap as Davis got the rest of him in the back seat. I ran my fingers through his greying hair and prayed that he’d be okay. I wasn’t ready to lose him so soon after losing Cord. My heart wouldn’t survive that. That would be a hurt neither Augie nor my wolf would be able to heal.
Several thumps landed in the back of the truck, but I didn’t pull my eyes away from my dad. Davis started the vehicle while Augie and Sam squeezed into the front.
“Alex is waiting at the house for us. Hopefully, he can figure out what’s going on,” Davis said to no one in particular.
Alex had been our pack doctor since before I was born. I hadn’t met any other better than him, and I hoped we could count on him to save yet another life. The most vital being in our pack. There was no other outcome I could picture if I intended to stay sane.
When we made it back to the house, Alex met us outside. He opened the back door, taking stock of my dad’s crumpled form. “Get him inside.”
Davis and Augie were already out of the truck and ready to do just that. I glanced out the window and noticed over a dozen pack members standing in the yard, their faces all sullen as they watched our strong alpha be carried into the house like a child. I knew exactly how they felt.
I followed the others as they carried my dad into a room downstairs that had been converted into a medical area while we had been gone. Where there was once a small bed and desk, there was now a king-size medical bed with rails. Alongside it was an IV stand and other medical supplies I couldn’t recognize.
Alex looked down at me after his initial examination of my dad. His eyes said everything I didn’t want to hear.
“I’ll do my best. But, Taya… this is bad.”