Chapter 12

12

SKYE

“ S kye? Skye, wake up!”

I jerked awake, my eyes snapping open as I gasped and pushed myself up onto one elbow. I blinked, disoriented and confused. My gaze finally sharpened to see Tate across from me.

“Tate,” I muttered, rubbing my face. “What time is it?”

“I’ll ask you one better,” she said quietly, her eyes darting around. “Where the hell are we?”

Oh, crap.

I shoved my hair away from my face, knowing it was probably a mess from the quick shower I had taken before climbing between the sheets and passing out. Someone had even been considerate enough to lay out a pair of flannel bottoms and a t-shirt so I didn’t have to hunt for pijamas.

Which was convenient, because this room was massive. Clearly Tate had come to the same realization.

“It’s okay,” I told her softly, trying to be comforting.

Her eyebrows lifted incredulously. “Skye, I love you, but not wake-up-in-bed-with-you love you. And can you please explain why we’re in a freaking palace?”

I sat up, letting the sheets pool around my lap. “What’s the last thing you remember?”

She frowned, sitting back on her haunches. A line creased the center of her brows. “We were at the Summit? I think I saw you and Daniel. You were looking for the guys, right?”

“There was an explosion,” I told her, trying to measure my words, but no matter what I said, it was going to shatter her world and break her heart.

Her hazel eyes went wide. “An explosion?”

I nodded, hating that there was no way not to tell her the truth. I reached out and grabbed her hand in mine. “The explosion knocked me out. Daniel took us both to his pack to protect us.”

“ Protect us? And since when does Daniel have a pack?” she demanded. “He said they all died, remember?”

“His real name is Dimitri,” I explained with a heavy sigh as I rubbed my eyes. “He’s actually my... brother. Step-brother.”

“Your step-brother ?”

I nodded. “It’s a long story, and I’ll tell you all of it, but he needed to save me, and you were with us, so he... took you, too. You’ve been unconscious for a few days.”

She jerked her hand away from me. “What the fuck, Skye?”

I took a deep breath. “Tate, listen to me. Remy and Dante are fine. I talked to Remy a few hours ago, and Dante’s with him.”

Tate raked a hand through her dark hair. “I need to call him and Ryder. Shit, and my dad. They’re probably losing their damn minds.”

Pain hit me like a lightning bolt to the chest. “Tate.”

She looked at me impatiently.

I licked my lips and dropped my head. “Tate, your dad.”

I swallowed hard, trying to form the words but my mouth just couldn’t handle the task. All I could do was look at her helplessly.

Slowly, horror dawned on her face. She scooted back on the bed, shaking her head. “Skye. No.”

“I’m so sorry,” I whispered, my heart breaking for her. “Remy told me he didn’t make it.”

She opened her mouth and then snapped it shut, looking around the room like the answer was somehow hidden in here.

“Tate?”

Her breathing turned ragged and looked at me brokenly. “I... I need to talk to Dante and Ryder.”

“Okay,” I said slowly. “Dimitri said he would bring us each a phone so we could call home.”

“There’s a box on the table,” she whispered woodenly, looking over her shoulder to the sitting area.

Suren enough, a plain white box was sitting on the coffee table. I scrambled off the bed and padded barefoot on the super plush carpet. Two phones were inside the box, each one had our names scrawled on an attached sticky note.

I took out Tate’s and walked back to her, handing it to her.

She held the black device in her hands. “I think... I think I need to be alone.” She slowly climbed off the bed and walked into the bathroom, closing the door.

I sat down on one of the armchairs, not wanting to eavesdrop, but also worried she might need a friend. A piece of paper in the box caught my attention.

Skye-

Here’s a phone for you and your friend. I didn’t want to wake up, but we will serve dinner at 8. We would love for you to join us.

-N

I glanced at the clock on the fireplace mantle. Ten minutes until it was eight o’clock.

I picked up my phone and powered it on, storing Remy’s number before sending him a quick text message.

SKYE: This is my new number. I’ll call soon. I love you.

I started to put the phone down when it dinged with an incoming message.

REMY: I love you, babe. Stay safe.

There was no denying the relief I felt at having a way of communicating with Remy again. Between the phone and the bond I felt through my wolf, I could almost pretend things were normal.

At least until I walked into the massive closet to get ready for dinner.

“Holy shit.” It was the only thing I could manage as I got a good look at all the clothes. Everything from sweaters to ballgowns were hung up on the racks. Upon closer inspection, everything was my size.

There was a chest of drawers in the middle. I opened the first one and my jaw dropped at the amount of sparkle that shone up at me. Diamond earrings, necklaces with every possible type of gemstone, crystal and diamond encrusted watches... There was a fortune in jewelry here.

I shoved the drawer shut with a trembling hand.

The next drawer had a lot of lacy underthings. I gingerly searched through the scraps of satin and lace, trying to find anything with cotton. The closest I came was a pair of lace boyshorts and matching bra.

A little more rummaging and I found leggings, which was good since I spied the triple digit price tag left on the first pair of jeans I had found hanging up.

I quickly pulled on the underwear and leggings, not letting my mind wonder how exactly they knew my bra size. I grabbed a red sweater and pulled it over my head, gently removing the price tag and making a point not to look at it.

Judging by the way the soft material was like cuddling a plush teddy bear, I imagined it cost a small fortune. Socks were easy, but it took some looking through the rows of shoes lined up on a wall to find a pair of sneakers in the midst of boots and heels.

I crossed the room and knocked on the door.

A second later, Tate poked her head out. Her eyes were red and puffy, and her lower lip was trembling.

“Hey,” I said gently. “Want company?”

She shook her head carefully, the phone tucked to her ear. “Dante and Ryder are on the phone.”

“Are you hungry? There was a note in the box. Dinner starts in a few minutes.”

“No,” she mumbled. “I’m not hungry.”

“I can stay,” I offered, even as my stomach growled.

“No,” she declined again. “I just want to be alone. I’ll eat later or something.”

“Okay.”

The word barely left my lips before she closed the door.

I turned away and paused in front of the mirror of the vanity, picking up the brush and working it through the tangles before quickly braiding it. My green eyes looked huge against my pale cheeks.

With a heavy sigh, I walked across the room, grabbed my phone, and opened the door, jumping when someone was waiting on the other side.

“Shit,” I muttered, pressing a hand to my racing heart.

“I’m sorry,” Nikolai apologized, looking genuinely contrite. “I was debating whether or not to knock. If you were sleeping, I didn’t want to disturb you.”

“Um, no,” I mumbled, closing the door. “I was just going to try and figure out where exactly dinner is.”

He grinned at me. “May I escort you then?”

“Sure,” I said slowly.

He nodded to the phone in my hand as he started walking. “Did you speak to your mate?”

“I texted him,” I replied. “I’ll call him when we get done eating.”

He seemed to hesitate. “And your mother?”

“I’ll call her, too,” I answered.

“You and your mother are close?” His gaze darted questioningly to me.

I nodded. “Yeah. We’ve been through a lot together.”

“At your former pack,” he said, his voice even and giving nothing away.

“Yeah.” I almost choked on the word.

“You look like her,” he said suddenly, smiling when I frowned. “Your mother. You have her eyes.”

“Markham eyes,” I muttered. The same eyes my uncle and grandfather had. “Family trait.”

“It was her eyes that caught my attention first,” he confessed.

My breath caught, and I didn’t want to speak or breathe too hard in case it snapped him out of whatever memory he was clearly in.

“We were at a pub.” He frowned and chuckled as we turned down the hallway. “A bar, I believe is what she called it. Her eyes drew me in.”

I wasn’t sure what to say. Mom never talked about her life before the omega house. She had shared a few stories, but I stopped asking about them when I realized how much it cost her. How much the memories haunted and tormented her.

“There was a beautiful sort of sadness to her. Like a tragic painting you wanted to know the story of.”

I could see that. Mom’s life was definitely a tragedy.

“I don’t know much about her life before... me,” I answered softly as we reached the stairs and started going down.

“She never spoke of her childhood?” He seemed surprised.

I hesitated on the last step and Nikolai turned to look at me. My hand curled into the wooden railing, holding on for support.

“Mom never talked about any of that,” I said slowly, not sure how much I should tell him before I was betraying her confidence.

“Dimitri told me that your life in Long Mesa was... less than desirable.” His mouth curled like he had tasted something rotten.

I snorted. “It was hell. Complete and utter hell. And Mom endured a lot more than I did. She protected me as much as she could, and she saved me when she had to.”

“And who protected her?” he asked curiously, his dark eyes cold.

“No one,” I replied, meeting his gaze. “I don’t know what happened between you and my mother. I asked her, but every time... It was too hard for her to talk about. So, I stopped asking. I hated causing her pain when every day was hell on Earth for her.”

The corners of his mouth tightened, his nostrils flaring slightly.

I leaned a hip on the railing. “Look, I have no idea what happened between you two back when you met or bonded. But I do know that my mom spent the last eighteen years focusing on surviving and keeping us both alive. I don’t think she had a choice.”

“She could have called,” he replied coldly. “I would have come for her. For you.”

I shook my head slowly. “No, she couldn’t have. We didn’t have a phone or internet or any way to communicate outside of the pack. The only reason we escaped was because of my Aunt Zara.” I flinched, remembering Zara and Bella had paid the price for that heavily.

He rubbed his jaw thoughtfully. “Unfortunately there is no going back, is there?”

“No,” I agreed. “All we can do is move forward.”

His gaze sharpened on me. “And will I be in that future you move forward to?”

I wasn’t sure how to answer, so I deflected the question. “Do you want to be in my future?”

“You’re my daughter,” he said simply. “My heir.”

I held up a hand in protest. “I’m not your heir. And I’m barely your... daughter.”

“I know Dimitri told you of your place in this pack,” he said softly, watching me for any sign that I was on board. “Your bloodline grants you more power than you know in our pack.”

“Why?” I asked, shaking my head. “I’m no one.”

“You’re a direct descendant of the first Alpha. Females have always led the Narodnaya pack.”

“You’re leading the pack,” I refuted. “And you’re clearly not a female.”

He smiled. “Only because it has been over two hundred years since there was a female born into the Dashkov line.”

I glanced down at the space between us. “I’m not interested in leading your pack. I want to go home to my mate. To my Alpha.”

“He could come here,” Nikolai replied easily. “The pack would welcome him as your mate.”

“Remy can’t leave Blackwater,” I said, shaking my head. “And I can’t leave Remy. Our pack is on the verge of a full blown war with Norwood. I’m not leaving them.”

A dark scowl twisted his features. “The doctor’s pack.”

I nodded. “Dimitri told me that you’re planning to question him tomorrow. I want to be there.”

“That may not be for the best,” he replied, his lips twitching in a suppressed smirk.

I lifted my chin. “I’m going to be there. Elias didn’t just screw you over, too.”

Nikolai appraised me with calculating eyes until he finally dipped his head in acquiescence.

“Very well, little wolf.” He stepped back with a grin. “But first, shall we eat?”