Chapter 95
Claire’s POV
35 vouchers
It wasn’t unusual for me to take the children for a walk, even this close to the border. The border was well–protected, and 1 also trusted my own abilities against anyone who might dare to actually try to be fool enough to cross it uninvited.
So I was utterly confused and unprepared when I spotted Ivan speaking with some of the warriors assigned to the border, and when he rushed over to the children and me like we had done something wrong.
His face was stern and his arms outstretched like he was trying to shield us from the unknown man at the border. But it was already too late. The man had seen me and the children. Right now, he was looking at Leo with surprise.
“Get the kids back to the pack house,” Ivan said, his voice hard, leaving no room for argument.
I already started to usher Nova and Leo. They must have been able to sense the danger from Ivan’s tone because they didn’t try to disobey, coming at once to my side.
“Who is that man?” I asked.
“Back to the house,” Ivan said again.
“It was just a question,” Leo said.
“Now,” Ivan said shortly.
Ivan wasn’t going to tell me anything here, I could gather that much. And I didn’t care for the way that strange man was eyeing Leo.
So I decided to guide the children back the other way, ending our walk early to return to the pack house like Ivan had wanted.
I felt unnerved, but tried not to show it in front of the children. I had thought, with how tight security was around the pack perimeter, that everywhere within the pack borders was a safe space. It had always been that way before, for the past six
years.
Even without knowing who that strange man was, I disliked him and the disruption he brought to our regular routine, as well as the danger he potentially meant for Leo.
While Nova and Leo were both walking quickly back to the pack house with me, the further we went, only Nova seemed to be okay with having obeyed Ivan without question. She knew Ivan, and knew that he would only take that heavy tone with us for good reason – like protecting us.
Leo didn’t know Ivan as well, and therefore seemed a bit annoyed with Ivan, grumbling about him now that we were well outside of Ivan’s earshot.
“He wasn’t very nice…”
“That stranger?” I asked.
“Alpha Ivan…” Leo replied.
Nova held back a minute to walk alongside Leo. “He’s just worried about us.”
“He snapped at me,” Leo said.
“He gets like that when he’s protective,” Nova said. “He doesn’t mean anything by it. He’s just watching out for us.”
38
Chapter 95
“I don’t know…”
“I’m sure of it!” Nova said. “We get back to the pack house like he wanted, and he’ll be nice again.”
“Okay…” Leo said, but still seemed unsure.
35 vouchers
“Nova’s right,” I said, placing a steadying hand on Leo’s shoulder. “Ivan cares about all of us, and just wants us to be safe.”
Nova was right, which was why my stomach was currently tied up in knots. Ivan did only act like this when he was being protective.
None of this made sense. Leo was supposed to be safe here, so what happened? What changed that made our typical daily walks so dangerous?
When we arrived at the pack house, I sent the children to one of the living rooms to play. I stayed nearby, pacing between that room and the front door, anxiously awaiting Ivan to return home.
I wanted an explanation. No, I needed it. If Leo was in direct danger, I needed to know about it sooner rather than later.
It was becoming more and more difficult to be calm in front of the children. By the time Ivan finally returned to the pack house, I felt like I was buzzing out of my skin.
I rushed toward him, greeting him as soon as he came in the door. “Ivan, what’s going on?”
He looked around.
“The kids are in the living room,” I said.
“Step outside. I don’t want them to hear.”
I followed Ivan out onto the porch. After he closed the door, I started again. “Ivan, please. This is making me paranoid.”
“You have a right to be concerned,” Ivan said, and then told me about the man, how he was worried for his safety against Darius and his family, and how Ivan had given him residence on the edge of the pack where he would be watched by guards.
“He saw Leo,” I said. I had thought talking to Ivan would relieve my fears. Instead, they intensified tenfold.
“He did,” Ivan confirmed.
“Why didn’t you tell me about this, the moment that you knew? I never would have taken the kids for a walk if I knew there was this kind of danger.”
“You are dealing with enough.”
“I can’t protect Leo without the facts,” I said. “If Gregory gives intel back to Darius, or anyone else, Leo will be in danger again, even if we are here.”
“I know,” Ivan said. “It’s not an ideal situation.”
“We have to tell Gideon,” I said.
Ivan frowned. I could tell he wasn’t happy about that, but what was there to be happy about in this situation? Everything was terrible, and without proper planning now, it could only get worse.
“We have to,” I insisted. “He has a right to know about this new danger.”
“I know,” Ivan says. “I’ll call him.”
Gideon’s POV
Chapter 95
Peter, Xavier, and Farrived at Darius’s family estate. I wasn’t expecting a warm reception, but neither was I expecting to have the gates of the estate entirely locked to us. With annoyance, I tried to speak calmly with Darius’s wife Gladys through the
intercom.
“Gladys, you must open these gates at once and speak to us,” I said.
“Haven’t you done enough to my family?” came her crackling sound through the speakers.
I decided it was better to ignore her. Instead, I phoned several of my enforcers and waited for them to arrive. When they did, I had a small army who could knock down the gate if it came to that. It would be much less messy if Gladys would simply open the door.
“We are looking for Gregory,” I said. “Open the door, let us conduct our search, and we will be on our way.”
“Gregory isn’t here,” Gladys said, like I was just supposed to take her word for it.
“We have to come in and check.” I waited for a response. When she didn’t give one, I told her, “Open the gate, Gladys, or we will knock it down.”
I waited a moment more, my irritation rising. I lifted my hand, yet before I could give the signal, a buzzer sounded and the gate at last popped open.
I imagined the family was protecting Gregory somehow. “Search the entire premises. Fan out to every corner. I want Gregory found.”
Maybe, by the end of today, we could finally have a steady lead to follow.
“Soon,” I whispered, promising myself, Raven, and my son. “Soon, you will be safe again.”
AD
