Chapter 37

The house is incredible. Beautiful, modern, and spacious. Not that Cas's house in Vegas isn't, but I must admit, I'm fond of the trees in the background and the grass that makes up the yard. It's nothing like the arid climate of Nevada, and it actually reminds me a little of home. Perhaps that's why I find myself so fascinated by the prospect of actually calling this place ours.

Annika and I explore long enough to find the pack bedroom.

Kane brought up our bags before heading out, which was nice, but I would have put Annika to bed nude if he hadn't. She's dead on her feet, but more than that, she's mentally at her limit.

Omegas are meant to snuggle and nest with their pack following their heat. Also during and leading up to it, but the point is, she needs a break from the massive amount of changes.

She spins to face me as we wrap up our shower. My head tilts, and a smile crosses my face when she wraps her arms around my back. It pushes her wet tits to rest against my skin, but this is supposed to be a sweet moment.

"Thanks for taking care of me," she whispers, kissing the edge of my jaw.

"Always, lass." I palm her wet hair. "Now, let's rinse off and get a few hours of rest."

"Okay," she agrees. "I just need you to know that I appreciate you. You make me feel safe, and…" She shrugs. "I have feelings for you." Whatever she's feeling slaps into me in the bond.

I bend to kiss her slick forehead. "Me too." My hand flies to the handle to cut off the water, and I grab one of the towels hanging over the shower wall and wrap it around her body. "Damn, maybe I should have brought three towels."

She laughs. "Yeah, Grady and I usually use four, since his hair is so long too."

I grab the other, wrapping it around my hips. "We'll get you one for your hair, but then, it's time for a few hours of sleep."

"Sounds like a plan."

We spend several hours napping before Cas shows up to tell us Ranger's next surprise has arrived. Annika pops out of bed, dressing quickly, and I do the same.

We make the short trip back to Ranger's home, but Annika is on edge. Once we get inside, it's clear his visitors from earlier are gone.

Kane, Grady, and Ranger are all huddled around the table.

Ranger nods when he spots us, but he looks at a man I've never seen. "You can collect the package, Maverick."

Annika cuddles deeper into Cas's chest. "What name is on the marriage certificate? I'm getting tired of wondering."

Ranger chuckles. "Merrick crafted a new identity for you. I believe it's Annika Sparrow. It wouldn't be completely unheard of for someone to call you by your maiden name, even after marriage, and I find I'm unwilling to compromise when it comes to calling you by your real name."

"Did I get a fancy new identity?" Grady asks.

Ranger hums. "You are no longer Grady Wells, former sex worker. You're now Grady Wellington, long-lost brother of one of my men."

"No shit?" Grady laughs. "I really wanted to keep Grady. Thanks, man."

Shuffling and commotion heads our way, and Annika's jaw drops when she spots Ranger's man, Maverick, dragging a woman by the elbow into the room.

"Lyra?" Annika gasps, stepping away from Cas. "Holy fuck. Let go of her right now!"

"Anni," the woman sobs, shaking out of Maverick's hold. "Ohmigod, I'm so fucking pissed at you, but thank God you're okay."

"Pissed at her?" Grady growls. "You sold her out!"

"Fuck off, Grady. You don't know shit," Lyra snaps, pulling Annika in for a hug.

"Who, exactly, is this?" Cas asks.

"Annika's former roommate," Kane says, looking mighty uncomfortable. "There's probably something I should admit."

Annika goes rigid, and she steps back from Lyra. "I swear to God, if the two of you fucked…"

"Hell, no," Kane growls.

"No way," Lyra says, shaking her head. "But he is how I ended up in this mess." She looks at Annika, swallowing thickly. "I'll tell you everything, but I need your help. They took my little sister."

Annika ends up in Kane's lap on the couch, which earns the alpha a look of distaste from Ranger.

Maverick nods for Lyra to sit down in the club chair next to the couch, and she does.

"I brought her here for you to decide her fate." Ranger gestures to Lyra. "I want you to know that you have a say in things from here on out."

Annika is a mess in the bond. She's confused but grateful; more than anything, she wants to know how Kane knows her old roommate. She finally breaks down, glancing at Kane over her shoulder and flat-out asking the question.

"I couldn't find anyone else who had information on you." Kane sighs. "I met with her one day, while you were at work, and paid her five grand for the fifteen-minute conversation."

Annika squints at him.

"Yeah, and you led those psycho assholes right to our door." Lyra huffs, crossing her lithe arms over her chest. "All I told him"—she nods at Kane—"was where you work and that you and Grady are together. I didn't even mention that your boyfriend killed the real Grady Wells and pretended to be him. I'm a damn loyal person, generally, but I also don't have a pack of mercenaries at my back. I did what I had to do to survive that meeting with Lucien Andretti's goons."

"Fuck," Annika whispers. "I'm sorry that you were in that position because of me."

"How did you know I wasn't the real Grady?" Grady asks, assessing Lyra with a dangerous look on his face.

"I fucked him years ago for a sex tape." Lyra rolls her eyes. "Luckily for you assholes, I know how to keep my mouth shut, but yeah, that doesn't apply when my life is in danger. It wasn't like when Kane popped up, asking for info. Those guys were seriously fucked up."

"I get it completely," Annika says softly. "You had every right to tell them whatever you had to say to make sure you survived."

"That's not exactly how you build loyal relationships, now, is it?" Ranger growls, frowning.

"Stop," Annika snaps. "It's different for women. Especially when men use sexual violence to force information and exert control."

Ranger's face twists into a mask of disgust as he takes a step back. "You'd think humans could be a little more civilized. I treat all my victims the same. I've found stapling the eyelids open and forcing someone to watch televangelist shows on repeat to be quite effective, no matter age or gender."

"Jesus Christ," Cas mutters.

"Okay, thanks for that." Annika scoffs. "Why did you hit on Grady, if you knew he was mine? That bothers me more than anything else."

Lyra rolls her eyes. "I didn't want to fuck him. I was trying to give him a heads up that Kane was nosing around."

"Well, you went about it the wrong way," Grady deadpans. "I would have slit your throat myself if you caused problems between me and my omega."

Annika's face breaks into a bright smile that makes me very sure she's got a dangerous side. "Okay, that was sweet, but how did all this end up with your sister going missing?"

"After those guys interrogated me, I realized I had to get out of the city. I left you a note telling you I had a family emergency and to call me." Lyra swipes a hand over her face. "I was going to warn you, but only once I was far enough away to be safe. I don't know if they followed me, or found the note, or what, but they broke into my sister's apartment. I wasn't there when it happened, but the neighbor had a video camera on their doorbell, and…" She sobs, bending in half. "You don't get it, Annika. Laken isn't like us. There's no telling what's happening to her right this very second."

Maverick scoffs, and my eyes narrow.

"Yeah, and where were you when they took her?" he growls, glaring at the crying woman.

"It really doesn't matter, does it?" Annika snaps, pushing out of Kane's lap and moving to comfort her friend. "It's done. It can't be changed."

"She was out, trying to score," Maverick says.

"Well, someone is overly self-righteous," Grady says, gesturing at Maverick. "It doesn't matter. That woman…wait. How old is she?"

"Twenty-one." Lyra sniffles, looking at Grady over Annika's shoulder. "She's an unbonded omega."

"Fucking hell," Kane mutters.

"Right, and she's only involved because of us." Grady crosses his arms over his chest, looking at Ranger. "I think our timetable just moved up significantly."

Ranger nods. "I'll gather Kate and see if we can offer a trade for that woman."

"There will be no trading anyone." Annika shoves to her feet, meeting her brother's eyes. "It's time the Andrettis went extinct."

"I agree." Ranger nods. "But setting up a meeting under the guise of trading Kate for Laken would give us an excuse to move quickly."

Annika sighs, shaking her head. "I think you're asking too much of that woman. She ran for a reason."

"Do you have a better idea?" Kane asks, surprising the hell out of all of us.

Annika nods. "I just might."