16. Chapter 16

Chapter 16

L ayla watched Hope run through the garden, laughing as she chased butterflies.

She didn't remember anything at that age but must have done the same with her mother. Rebecca had been involved in every aspect of their lives.

She had been a good mum until she'd gone.

What would Hope remember of her?

How long would she have with her daughter before the Hunters forced her to abandon her?

Pain lanced through her before she could block it out.

"Mummy!" Hope's delighted squeal pulled her focus back. The little girl ran over, hiding something in her palms and a little smirk that looked so much like Jackosn's on her lips.

"Open," the toddler ordered.

"It's not a spider again, is it?" she asked hesitantly.

Hope shook her head and giggled.

"Open," the girl demanded again.

She took a breath while she held the green gaze that was the same as hers and then gently pried Hope's fingers open. A worm wriggled in her palm, attempting to escape to safety.

She sat back and made a face. She'd never been a girly girl but digging up bugs was something she'd never done. Hope laughed as if she'd got the reaction she hoped for, then ran back to where she picked the worm up. The little girl cooed at it as she gently put it back and said goodbye. Hope was always gentle with the creatures she found, and that wasn't something she had to teach her.

At sixteen months, the toddler showed more empathy than her father.

How could he leave like that, knowing there was this issue to deal with? Couldn't he have spared even a minute for her? She'd spent the whole morning feeling like crap because of their disconnect.

"Are you two fighting?"

Diedre's voice was low as she came to sit next to her on the picnic blanket. The older woman put a small basket between them and stretched her legs. Her hair was coloured a vibrant pink, and her face was smooth as if she was in her twenties. No one would ever believe she had looked like a corpse the year before. It still freaked her out when she thought about it.

"Yes. No. I don't know," she answered with a sigh. "I don't think he understands why this whole situation is frustrating for me."

And he was being a hypocrite about keeping secrets.

"He's just used to making all the decisions," Diedre said, brushing it off as if it was something she accepted. "Just sit down and talk about it. I'm sure you can work things out."

She hadn't been in their world that long but knew what being an Alpha meant. Jackson's word was the law. Being the Alpha King meant she couldn't go against him at all. But where did that put her as their Luna and Queen?

Not that it mattered now. There was a bad feeling in her stomach since the close call with the Hunters at the hotel. Something was going to happen, and she would have to go on the run. So she needed to solve the problem with Britney as soon as possible.

"Maybe," she said.

"You're true mates. Of course, you'll work it out. You don't have much of a choice," Diedre pointed out.

Hope ran over to them with another bug. She fussed over her daughter for a little while before she watched her run into the garden again.

"Have you seen my mother?"

"Not since before all the guests started arriving for Jackson's party," Diedre answered. "She's probably waiting to make sure Alpha Braxton is gone."

That could be one reason. Her mother was a regular visitor but kept her distance when Alpha Braxton was around. And she probably didn't know Britney was home early from college, so she had no reason to rush from wherever she was.

Anxiety shot through her for a moment, but she brushed it away. Her mother had been on the run from Hunters for a long time; she knew how to keep herself safe. She was probably just caught up wherever she was.

"I'm going to run through the woods to make sure she's not hiding in there again. Can you watch Hope?"

"Sure. The little princess and I have a picnic date," Diedre smiled as she patted the basket she brought over. "It's nice being able to do that instead of spending every waking moment trying to break a curse."

She hoped that was true. Since Faith left for college, Diedre spent more time with Hope than anyone else. She thanked Diedre as she stood and kissed Hope on top of her red curls. Her gaze went up to Britney's window. Her sister had watched them all morning, and part of her felt guilty. But Britney was still terrified; she couldn't bring her outside without attracting attention.

Her sister moved away from the window when she noticed her. With a sigh, she focused on her surroundings as she headed toward her mother's favourite trail. Over the months, she'd learned how to focus on finding individual people. Ever since Jackson marked her, she could mindlink with everyone in the pack, and she suspected that was how she could find them.

There was still no sign of her mother. She went as far into the woods as she could and still couldn't sense anyone. But she did sense Jackson approaching. The closer her mate got, something came alive inside her, and Diedre's words came back to the forefront. They were mates; they had no choice but to make up. The alternative was to stay miserable.

She walked through the woods, her eyes adjusting to the darkness as she cut across to reach the driveway. The five trucks that drove away after Jackson left came through the gates first.

Her senses picked up several people inside, many scared as they drove past her. And then Jackson's car drove through the gates behind them. It stopped in front of her, and her mate came out of the back seat.

Her heart fluttered. Jax's piercing, ice-blue gaze met hers, and she had to remind herself to breathe. Jax could still affect her like that even after all that time.

The car drove towards the packhouse, leaving Jackson several feet away from her.

"Hi," he said.

"Hi."

Jackson remained on the spot. She could hear his heart beating in sync with hers even from that distance.

"I'd never hurt Britney or anyone else that you love," Jackson said gruffly.

"I know. I'm sorry; I don't know why I reacted like that."

The silence stretched between them again, but she could feel his pain bubbling under the surface, just like hers.

"I don't want to fight with you," he said after a while. "Tell me what I'm doing wrong and I'll fix it."

The thing that squeezed her chest since their fight unbound itself. She let out a breath and took a step toward her mate.

She didn't want him to bend over for her; she just wanted him to include her in his life. If he was open to finally talking, maybe things would be okay.

"I don't want to fight, either. I hate feeling like this," she whispered.

Jackson closed the gap between them and crashed his lips against hers a second later. She would never get used to the heat that rose within her so quickly and burned everything else in its wake. Jackson tightened his arms around her and deepened the kiss, drowning her in a sea of emotions. The taste of him. The smell of him. All of it mixed and made her head spin.

Jackson picked her up and hooked her legs on his waist before he started to move. She didn't stop kissing him. Feeling like she would lose him messed her up, but being in his arms again settled her heart.

When she came up for air, her back was against a tree trunk, and it was dark around them. She felt Jackson's hard length between her legs as he ground against her and trailed kisses along her neck. She shivered when he stopped at his mark, and her body tightened.

Jackson lifted his head, and his blood-red gaze pinned her down.

"You're mine, Layla," he growled. "And I am yours. Every part of me, good and bad. I know I'm not easy to love, but I'm working on it."

She touched his cheek and brushed her thumb against his swollen lips.

"You don't have to be anything other than yourself. I already know who you are, and I love you anyway. Just let me in," she whispered.

Jackson's shoulders relaxed as if he had been unsure of that fact. And all the emotions he'd tried to hold back flooded her through their bond. He put his forehead against hers and released a breath as the contact soothed both of them.

"Let me go and make... Let us go and make sure our guests settle in," Jackson said as he lowered her reluctantly to her feet.

Her body was still wired, still ready for Jackson, but the mention of the people who'd come in doused some of the flames.

"You and I will talk after that. No more secrets."

A little anxiety shot through her but she pushed it away. Jackson was the only person she could tell about what Britney did who would protect her with his life. She should never have worried about that.

"They seem scared. Where did you find them?"

Jackson took her hand and entwined their fingers before leading them to the packhouse.

"They are from the Crimson River pack, a few hours from here. They had trouble in their pack, and their parents abandoned them to live as wolves in the forest."

Her steps faltered.

"They're kids?!"

"Yes."

Though he answered easily, she felt his anger rise in him. Her anger rose to match. Who would abandon their kids like that?

"What sort of trouble?"

"Some wolves have gone missing. The adults think they'll be safer deeper in the forest," Jackson answered.

So they weren't even in any mortal danger? How did they expect kids who couldn't shift yet to defend themselves?

"Can't packs track each other?"

Surely the wolves could find and track individual pack members, too?

"Other wolves aren't like us. If there's no trail or scent to follow, it takes some time to find them."

When they came out of the forest, she saw the children gathered in front of the packhouse. They held hands as they looked around, and their fear seemed to have increased. Most of them weren't much older than Hope.

She stopped, and her fists clenched involuntarily.

‘Are they really in danger?' she asked in his head.

There had to be something that justified the horrible things the adults in the pack did. The day her mother left was still burned in her heart, and those children were going through the same thing.

Jackson turned to her and met her gaze. She saw the hesitation in his eyes. This was the part where he told her not to worry about it and then shut her out. She sighed and looked away from him. She shouldn't have believed that he would change so quickly.

‘I think so,' Jackson said quietly. ‘There have been many wolves going missing lately. I think they've been taken.'

She looked back at Jax, her eyes widening at his revelation.

And then a horrible thought crossed her mind.

Where was Rebecca?