Chapter 35

"Frank, good to see you again," Jackson said, shaking his hand.

"You, too. How are my grandpups doing?"

"Good…Jessica has a crush on Eamon but I don't think it's mutual. As for Jake, he's having fun chasing after Daniel."

"A crush? I knew she was going to be one to watch," Frank said, chuckling.

"Dylon said you might be visiting soon?"

"Actually, Lizzy and I plan to move out there so we're closer to the grandpups."

"What about your job here?" asked Jackson.

"I'll keep it for now, but I'm reducing my workload to allow me to work from our new home in California and I'll only have to commute for Council meetings," Frank replied.

"I know Dylon and Cody will be happy to hear…" Jackson started to say.

"We haven't told them yet… Lizzy wants it to be a surprise, and I wanted to wait until everything was settled with Josiah. We've sold our house already, so right now Lizzy is at the house packing up because the movers will be coming next week."

"Have you bought another place yet?" asked Oracle.

"No, everything will be in storage until we decide on whether to build a new house or buy an existing one. I'm in favor of starting from scratch so Lizzy can have everything she's always wanted, but it'll depend on finding the right piece of land," Frank said.

"Lizzy will be happy no matter where you two live," Oracle smiled.

"I know. She never complained during all our years of moving and making do with whatever house we could find. Now it's time to give her a home that has everything she's always wanted…her dream home," smiled Frank. Then, changing the subject, he frowned as he said, "I understand you want to speak to one of my prisoners."

"Cain Foster," Jackson replied.

"Then you are going ahead with this hare-brained scheme," Frank growled, "and there's no way I can persuade you to do otherwise? The man's a menace to our world and could be a real danger to the young pups in your pack."

"I can assure you no decision has been made," Jackson said, calmly. "But whatever it is, it will be made by me alone."

Feeling Jackson's Alpha Power once again, Frank tilted his head in acknowledgment. "Sorry," he mumbled, "no disrespect meant."

"I know that," Jackson said, pulling back his power, "and your concern regarding the safety of the youngsters in my pack is noted. It is one of the reasons I requested to speak with Mr. Foster before consenting to the Fates' request. Be assured, though, whatever decision I reach will certainly take into consideration the safety of every member in my pack."

Nodding, Frank said, "That's all I ask for." Then turning to Oracle, he continued, "As you requested, Foster is not shackled, nor is the camera on."

"Also no audio, right?" Oracle asked.

"Correct. Jackson will have complete privacy when he's in with him."

Nodding, Oracle asked Jackson, "Would you prefer to speak to Cain alone or with me present?"

"Alone."

Frank spoke up. "I feel I must warn you that if Foster attacks you, I'll have no way of knowing."

"I understand," Jackson replied. "Now, if you'll please show me to his cell…"

~/~/~/~/~

After getting into the SUV, Reeve checked his phone, grinning at the photo Heath sent him. Rudy and his cohorts were aboard the plane, shackled and chained to the bulkhead. The conspicuous absence of Josiah did not, in the least, make Reeve feel that he'd failed somehow by not capturing the Alpha alive. In fact, it had avoided a long and contentious trial and he knew justice had been done—Smokey had meted out exactly the sentence Josiah deserved. Before starting his car, he hit the button on his phone to speak with Heath.

"Hey, did you like your present?" asked Heath, answering the call.

"Which one?" asked Reeve.

"Uhh…the photo. Shit! Did you also finally tell him? Did he kick your ass for not telling him sooner? What did he say?"

"I assume you are referring to my mate, who by the way, was quite happy to find out about us."

"No shit! He wasn't mad you kept it a secret? You live a charmed life, my friend. My brother had to get down on his knees and beg his mate for forgiveness when he fucked up," Heath said.

"I'm fuckin' lucky, that's for sure," Reeve said, smiling. "We haven't claimed each other yet…mainly because he's dealing with his family and what to do with Josiah's remains. I'm on my way to the pack right now, but he agreed to stay at the safe house for another couple of days. By that time, I hope to have my report done and turned over to the High Council."

"Was I right?"

"About what?"

"Kahn refusing to be Alpha."

Sighing, Reeve said, "Yeah, you were."

"So what are you going to do?"

"Keep it quiet for now while I try to figure it out. It would solve every problem if Jackson would take over the pack. Then Rudy wouldn't have claim to the Alpha position because Jackson was Josiah's nephew, and family trumps a non-family claim."

"That's why Rudy wanted to marry Kahn's sister. That would've made him family," Heath said.

"Don't I know," Reeve agreed.

"Are you sure Jackson doesn't want the pack? I find that hard to believe cuz what Alpha doesn't want a bigger pack? You know the saying…the bigger the pack the bigger the Alpha's balls."

Laughing, Reeve asked, "Where the hell do you come up with this shit?"

"You haven't heard that before? Where the fuck have you been? Everyone knows that," Heath retorted.

"You're making this shit up," Reeve replied. "And even if you're not, I get the impression that Jackson's balls are big enough for a pack ten times the size of his. Regardless of all your testicular bullshit, I have to find someone who's willing to take over the pack."

"What about one of his brothers? Besides Jackson, six others survived and they're all related to Josiah."

"And they're all Alpha's," Reeve added. "Damn, now I know why I keep you around. That's a fucking excellent idea."

"You should call him today and throw out the suggestion. Who knows, maybe Jackson's twin would like to lead his own pack, after all he can't be too happy being down on the totem pole."

"Logan…I forgot all about him…probably because he wasn't around when I spoke to Jackson…only his mate, Steel, and the Vice Chair's son, Dylon Royd."

"Well, that says it all. Most likely, Logan would jump at the chance to get out from under Jackson."

"Yeah…" Reeve said, more to himself than Heath. "I'll have to get Jackson's permission to speak with Logan, but that shouldn't be a problem."

"Nope…a piece of cake."

The more Reeve thought about Heath's idea, the more he liked it because it ticked all the boxes: related to Josiah, approved by Jackson, acceptable to the High Council. Besides, the faster he wrapped up this job, the quicker he could tender his resignation. Then, he'd be free to begin his new life with Kahn. "I'll call Jackson when I get to the pack and see if Logan's available to see me today."

"Sounds good," Heath said. "Hey, the pilot just announced we're ready to leave. I'll call you once these goons have been handed over."

"Good…have a safe trip." Reeve ended the call and then sped up, eager to get to the pack and do some research on Logan Blackwood. He'd use every scrap of information he could find to help him convince Logan to take the job of Alpha of the Silver Point Pack.

~/~/~/~/~

Jackson stood outside Cain's cell, peering through the small window at the man the Fates had picked. Nothing about his looks would lead anyone to believe he'd committed the heinous crimes attributed to him, but looks could be deceiving as Jackson knew only too well. Shifting his gaze to Frank, he nodded and then waited for the cell door to slowly creak open. Stepping inside, he looked around and was pleased at what he saw. Even though he was in prison, Cain had kept his surroundings neat and orderly, a sure sign the man hadn't given up on life. And he could work with that. When Cain finally looked up at him, he said, "I'm Jackson, Alpha of the Blackwood Pack. Before we talk, I have a couple of questions for you. First, if you could have your choice of any job, what would it be?"

Cain sat on his bunk, staring at the man Oracle told him would decide if he had a chance at a new life. There was nothing extraordinary about him except the aura of power emanating from him. Ignoring that for the moment, Cain thought about the man's question. What he expected was to hear a rehash of his past and how fucking lucky he was to be given a chance at a new life. He'd already come to that conclusion, so he was surprised when the man didn't behave the way everyone else had always done.

During the time between Oracle's last meeting and today, he thought about what he'd be asked and had spent a lot of time figuring out how to respond, but that question never crossed his mind. No one had ever asked him what he wanted to do; instead, he was always given orders. But Jackson…yes, Jackson, that's his name…hadn't done that.

Cain considered possible answers but then intuitively guessed Jackson wanted him to be truthful. "I love growing things."

"Like flowers, you mean?"

"Yes, that and vegetables."

Nodding, Jackson asked, "What's your sexual orientation?"

What the fuck!Cain's instinct was to tell Jackson it wasn't any of his freakin' business, but then, he remembered his promise to Oracle to answer every question Jackson asked. Biting back his initial response, he answered, "Bi-sexual…is that a problem?"

Ignoring Cain's question for the moment, Jackson asked his last question. "Do you like children?"

"I…I…guess they're all right," Cain said, shrugging his shoulders. "Honestly…"

Jackson raised an eyebrow. "Please."

"The last time I was around them was in the foster homes I spent my youth in. Some were good and some you learned to avoid if you could."

"Did you become close friends with any of them?"

"Nope…never was in a home long enough for that. I kept to myself mostly."

"Were you close with any of your foster parents?"

"Not really. I learned early on that most foster parents were only in it for the money and didn't want to get too emotionally attached to any of the kids."

"You were in a number of homes…were all your foster parents like that?"

Pain so sharp, it nearly doubled Cain over, shot through him as the image of one couple appeared before him. He tried not to dwell on it, lest the familiar feeling of despair envelop him and take him down a road he no longer wished to travel. Closing his eyes and banishing the vision from his sight, Cain murmured, "Not all, but most were."

Even though Cain had tried his hardest to conceal it, Jackson heard the pain in his voice and he wondered what caused it. But he knew asking that particular question wouldn't be answered—no matter what it cost Cain. If he decided to accept Cain into the pack, he would eventually find out, but if he decided the man was too dangerous, then it wouldn't matter what had affected Cain that way.

"My pack is a small one, made up of my six brothers and their mates, my cousins and their mates. We're all gay and that's the reason I asked about your sexual orientation. I have no room in my pack for a homophobe. If you join the Blackwood Pack, you'll be expected to contribute, do your own laundry, keep your personal space clean, and you'll be on a rotating basis to help with the rest of the chores. You'll have your own room…a suite, actually, that includes a sitting room and bath, but I would also expect you join us for meals, unless there's a valid reason you can't. In short, you will be treated as every other member of my pack and I will trust you to uphold your end of the bargain by helping me end the threat to my world.

"Before you ask me any questions, I think it's only fair you know something about me. My father was a cruel man and went out of his way to punish me for being gay. The only thing that saved me from following your path was the love my mother and brothers gave me." Seeing the look of surprise on Cain's face, Jackson explained, "When my father beat me so badly that I couldn't even stand, I vowed it would never happen again. The only way out for me was to run away…which I planned to do as soon as I could shift and heal myself.

"A young wolf shifter out in the human world had no chance of surviving unless they were willing to steal, at the very least. But I was prepared to live a life of crime to escape a life of torture with my father. Before that could happen though, my mother stepped in, defied my father and took me, along with my brothers, away.

"The love she gave me helped heal my soul and the love my brothers gave me forged a bond between us that exists to this day. It was what allowed me and my siblings, who survived my uncle's hate make it through until we were able to find the happiness we have today. During this journey, I learned one very important fact…nothing is as it appears on the surface.

"As I said, I read your file but it doesn't tell the whole story and, from my own experience, I know how desperation can drive a good person to do bad things. So if you decide to join my pack, you will start with a clean slate. No one other than my mate will know about your background and, from that point forward, you will get the chance to decide what future notations in your file will say about you. Any questions?"

"Just about a million of them," Cain muttered.

Chuckling, Jackson asked, "How about you start with the most important one first?"

Frowning slightly, Cain thought for a moment then asked, "Why? Why would you do this, especially since I've already been convicted of buying shifters. Why would you risk it? After you've struggled so hard to achieve happiness, why would you now risk it by taking on someone who could be dangerous to you?"

"The simple answer is that the Fates have asked me to. But that's only part of my reason. When my uncle put out a kill order on me and my brothers, we were forced to run but had no resources and nowhere to hide, so it was only a matter of time before he'd find us and kill us. However, two people came to our aid. They gave us a safe haven, even though it meant risking their own lives. And I vowed to myself that if ever I had a chance to do the same for someone in need, I would do it—both to honor their bravery and to pass on their kindness."