28. Nils

28

Nils

M cQuinn's features are pained as he prepares to tell our pack his secret. I take his hand, giving him that small bit of support I can see he needs. If I could tell them for him, I would, but I know he needs to do this himself.

He takes a deep breath and spits it out. All of it. His original bet. How he wanted to pay for my degree. The way Glenn found us a few days ago and changed the deal. That Glenn wants us to make it to the finals and throw the last game. And the threats he made. McQuinn says it all so fast it's barely understandable. He doesn't sit still the whole time. His leg bounces. His fingers tap. His other hand clutches his rabbit's foot.

When he's done, Oz glares at him. "What the fuck? Seriously?"

"Is that why you were so anxious about the Olympics and so against Meggie being on the team?" Ellis asks.

Dante's posture is all alpha tension. But Harrison is the one I focus on, and he says nothing, his expression impossible to read.

Meggie gets up from where she's sitting and comes to McQuinn's other side, taking his hand, lending her strength. I've never been so proud of McQuinn for speaking the truth and opening up to his pack, no matter the consequences, or of Meggie for standing by him.

"I know I messed up." He exhales sharply, then sucks in a gulp of air. "If you hate me and want me out of the pack, I understand."

"No." Harrison and Meggie say at the same thing.

McQuinn gives both of them a confused look. "No?"

"I don't want you out of the pack," our pack alpha says.

"But—"

"You messed up." Harrison shrugs in a way that's too casual for the situation. "But you're part of this pack, this family, even if you made a mistake."

McQuinn stares at him the way he stared at me the first time I told him I loved him, like someone seeing the expansiveness of the ocean for the first time.

"So what do we do?" I ask. "We can't just pay him off anymore. Now that he knows who McQuinn is, Glenn won't accept a simple pay off. He wants the game thrown."

"We're not doing that," Harrison says, all calm control.

"But he'll hurt you guys if we don't." Meggie's brows pinch together and she hunches forward like the thought physically pains her.

"Not if the bastard's in jail." Harrison turns to Oz. "He's selling illegal suppressants. Correct me if I'm wrong, but he could go to prison for a very long time. We just need to get him caught."

"And make sure he can't tie it back to us," Oz adds, a protective expression on his face as he looks at our omega.

"What about…" Meggie wrings her hands in her lap. "What about the girls he's helping?"

"Shit." If Glenn hadn't gotten suppressants for Meggie, she wouldn't be here. We might never have found her. That asshole ex of hers probably would have bonded her the second she perfumed, and we would have lost her completely. The thought of other women facing that fate makes me sick to my stomach.

The silence is gross. I feel restless and uncertain and the combination is making my stomach turn and my head throb.

Harrison squats down in front of Meggie and takes her hands. "I will forever be grateful to him for keeping you safe for us, but right now, I need to take care of my pack. Illegal suppressants are illegal for a reason."

He's right. They aren't controlled the way prescription meds are. They can be compromised and dangerous. It seems like Glenn has a good source, since Meggie's healthy and hasn't had any problems, but that doesn't mean that won't change in the future.

Reaching over McQuinn, I touch Meggie's knee. "Did I ever tell you why I want to go into medicine?"

McQuinn stops fidgeting with his rabbit's foot, the absence of motion so at odds with my firecracker of a man. I've never told any of my pack mates this before.

"My cousin was given an illegal substance without his knowledge at a party. It wasn't made correctly. It was essentially poison."

Meggie gasps, her hands flying to cover her mouth.

"Thankfully, he was rushed to the hospital, and they were able to save him. I knew right then that I wanted to do that. I wanted to save people who were put in impossible, dangerous situations." Holding Meggie's gaze, I try to convey the weight of my feelings on this. "Without the safety of a regulated lab, the women Glenn is selling to could be put in that same position."

"Fuck." Oz drops his elbows to his knees and his head to his hands. "That could have been Meggie."

"It wasn't," I say, firm and calm. The atmosphere in the room is a strange mix of anxiety and relief.

"We're not putting Meggie back on suppressants," There's a firm set to Harrison's jaw as he looks at me. "Even if this Knox guy brings them."

"That's not your choice to make," Meggie says.

Harrison's hands tighten around hers. She yanks away and stands up, stepping around him. "I'm taking them. I can't go into heat here. You know that."

Harrison growls, shooting to his feet. "You. Will. Not. Take suppressants again."

"Did you just fucking bark at me!?"

We're all shocked. Harrison has put authority in his voice, slipped close to a bark, but he's never barked at any of us. Meggie brings out the most primal side of him, and it's clear he doesn't know how to control it.

He winces and shakes his head like he's trying to clear it. "Shit. I'm sorry, Meggie. I just…"

She takes a deep breath, and her face softens. "I know. It's okay. Just don't do it again."

"You can… you can take…" He can't bring himself to say it, so I put a hand on his arm for reassurance.

"Harrison, she's gonna be okay. I had a friend test her suppressants as soon as I found out she's an omega. And I've been watching her closely. There's no reason to believe she's at risk. I wasn't trying to scare you," I look around the room, "any of you. I just wanted Meggie to understand why we have these laws, and why it would be a good thing to put a man like Glenn in jail. There are other ways to fight for omega rights."

Harrison pinches the bridge of his nose and sighs. "Alright. We'll get her suppressants and get through the Olympics. But after that, we're revisiting this conversation."

"After that, we'll bond her and there won't be any need for suppressants." Ellis grins like a kid who's just been told he's going to Disney World.

The tension in the room dissipates, and I've never been so grateful for his cheeky playfulness. Meggie blushes a gorgeous pink, and no one argues with Ellis's statement. It's the closest we've all come to admitting what we want. And it takes a weight off my shoulders to know my pack mates finally realize what I've known all along. She's ours.

"So how are we supposed to put this bastard in jail so we don't have to throw the final?" Oz asks.

"We might have a way." Meggie shares a look with Dante and Ellis, who both look like they don't like whatever Meggie's about to propose one bit.

"If it keeps us safe from Glenn, it's worth the risk," Meggie adds.

Ellis nods, pulls out his phone, and turns toward the other room. A second later he says, "Em, hey, we need a favor from your—" His voice cuts out as he closes the bedroom door.