Mated in Mist (Talon Pack #3)(8)

The world had shifted on its axis, and Ryder wasn’t sure if bringing a baby into the world was safe. In fact, his friend Quinn and Quinn’s mate Gina, the fire witch, had been mated for fifteen years and were only now thinking of having a child. They were long-lived as shifters, their bodies sharing space with the soul of a wolf. Some mated couples waited a century to have a child. They were blessed with time.

Yet cursed with it all the same…

Cursed bastard.

Again, he pushed the whisper from his thoughts. He had to in order to stay sane. Or at least as sane as he could be.

His cousins Max and Mitchell went straight for the food, their attention on each other as they continued their conversation from before. He wasn’t sure what it was about, but the two were brothers and had their own connection. Max may not hold a high-ranking position like his brother Mitchell, the Beta, but he was on the council that they shared with the Redwood Pack. Even if the moon goddess hadn’t blessed everyone with a sacred duty, they all had their roles nonetheless.

Brandon, Walker, and Kameron came in next. They were triplets, though fraternal. They looked alike, though, almost as if they were identical but with just a hint of uniqueness. Though they were the youngest of the Brentwoods, the goddess had touched them all. Brandon was the Omega, the one who cared for the emotional wellbeing of the Pack—his quiet and caring nature an asset for all members. Walker was the Healer and able to Heal using his powers for most Packmates’ wounds. Kameron was the Enforcer and it suited his icy personality. It was his job to protect the Pack from outside forces. He could feel the threat through his Pack bonds like the rest of the goddess-touched could.

Though with the way their Pack kept battling, he wasn’t sure that any one of them could do their duties to the full extent anymore. In fact, he wasn’t sure if they ever had. They’d been brought into the fold much later than most Pack royalty. They’d had to kill and fight for their roles, though he knew no one had truly wanted that blood on their hands.

He let out a breath and nodded at his brothers. He needed to stop thinking about the past. Yet ever since Leah had fallen into his arms and his wolf had gotten her scent, he hadn’t been able to think about much except how he’d come to be and where he had to go.

The damn witch was changing everything.

“Everyone’s here, so let’s get started,” Gideon said as he sank into his large armchair. He pulled Brie on his lap, wrapping his hand around the back of her neck. She melted into his hold, and Ryder couldn’t help but feel a bit envious of the display of affection. His brother had never been like that before, so open with his feelings, and yet the man couldn’t stop touching his mate.

Ryder wondered what that felt like.

You could know if you weren’t such a useless piece of shit.

He closed his eyes at the whispers. He’d heard them all his life, the voices. Only recently, it wasn’t voices. Just a voice.

His uncle’s voice.

He sucked in a deep breath and focused on Gideon’s voice instead. His Alpha would help. He had to.

He purposely ignored Brandon’s stare. His Omega brother saw too much, always had.

“How’s Leah?” Brie asked as she ran a hand over her mate’s thigh.

“She’s stable,” Walker answered. “I left her with my assistant. She should be up by tomorrow morning.”

Ryder let out a breath he didn’t know he’d been holding. Brandon tilted his head at him.

Damn it.

“Hopefully, she’ll have answers when she wakes,” Gideon said.

“You think whoever was coming for her is on their way here?” Kameron asked. “I have my men on it, just in case, as do the Redwoods.”

“Good,” Gideon said. “And I don’t know. We’re all on edge, and having a witch get shot near our borders isn’t helping. The fact that her brother was killed just makes it worse.” He met Ryder’s eyes. “I know you and Brandon and the Redwoods are meeting with the local Coven next week and now with Leah getting shot like this…it just seems too much of a coincidence.”

The Coven had asked to meet with the wolves, as witches were afraid they would be next in the public eye. Shifters and witches had always gotten along and mated when the goddess willed it, but having something formal was different. He was on the taskforce to ensure there was an open line of communication, but it hadn’t officially started yet.

“I don’t know if we should inform the Coven we have Leah yet,” Ryder said. From the looks on others’ faces, he must have surprised them. With his words or the fact that he’d actually spoken, he didn’t know. He didn’t speak much for a reason.

The voices would know. They would hear. They always did.

“Why?” Brynn asked. She sat next to Finn, their hands clasped. “Do you think the Coven has something to do with this? Isn’t she one of theirs?”

Ryder sighed. “She said she was alone,” he whispered. “I don’t know if she even meant to say it aloud, but she cried it. Wouldn’t someone with a coven to call home not be alone? I don’t know if the Coven had anything to do with it, but I just have a feeling we should stay silent about it until Leah wakes.”

Gideon nodded. “I agree.” With that, his brother began the next bit of business, and Ryder kept one ear on it while he went into himself. His wolf needed to run, needed to breathe. But he couldn’t do that, not with Leah so close…and he didn’t know why he even thought that. Why was she so important?