Page 59 of Brutal Reign
“Did he say when?” Madd asks, the muscle in his tightly-clenched jaw ticking.
“Next full moon,” River replies.
Avery blows out a breath, shaking her head. “Shit, girl, you’ve had anight.”
Riv snorts a laugh. “Tell me about it.”
An uncomfortable pause ensues, everyone glancing at one another warily while the reality of the situation settles over all of us.
“Alright, so here’s what’s gonna happen,” Fallon announces, the sharp tone of her voice commanding everyone’s attention.“None of this leaves this room until River’s ready,” she states, sliding her hand over Riv’s and giving it a squeeze. “She’s got enough on her plate already, and the last thing she needs is Theo going on the warpath. With everything else going on, he’ll probably lock her up and throw away the key, and I think we all know that isn’t the answer here.” She turns to face River, her expression softening. “I think you should consider telling your mom, though. She’s always got great advice, and I’ll bet she could help you try to sort through all of this.”
River jerks a reluctant nod. “Yeah, maybe,” she mutters.
Fallon swings her gaze over to me and Seb. “You two better watch yourselves and not give River any grief in the meantime,” she warns. “My sister’s mate isn’t known for being calm or understanding when it comes to his daughter.”
“Yeah,” I agree, nodding my head emphatically.
She turns back to Riv, stroking her hair away from her face gently. “You want a ride home, or are you staying the night?”
“Can I stay?” River croaks.
Fallon smiles warmly, looping her arms around her niece’s shoulders and pulling her in for a hug. “Of course.”
“Can we stay?” Seb pipes up.
“No,” River and Avery answer in unison, pointing twin glares in his direction.
Seb frowns, grunting in dissatisfaction as he shoves his hands into the pockets of his jeans. “But we’re mates, Riv. How are we gonna figure this shit out if…”
“I’m not ready to deal with you two yet,” she snaps back, frowning. “Don’t tell anyone about this, and maybe I’ll think about talking to you guys on Monday when I’m back at the complex.”
“Okay,” I concede. “That’s fair.”
Seb shoots me a side-eyed glance that says he doesn’t agree with leaving her behind, but we don’t really have a choice. We’rethe ones who did the damage here. The ball is firmly in her court, and respecting her wishes right now could go a long way. It’s a step in the right direction, at least.
“Fine,” he grits out, pinning River with a stare. “We’ll go. But this definitely isn’t over.”
“Yeah, yeah,” she sighs, waving a hand at him dismissively. “Goodnight, boys.”
Seb stiffens, looking like he’s about to fire off some snide retort, and I elbow him in the ribs to prevent that from happening, giving him a hard look that says to leave it. Maybe the best thing for all of us right now is some space to wrap our heads around this.
He turns sharply to head in the direction of the front door, and I cast one last, longing glance in River’s direction before I follow, my chest aching with every step of retreat. Even though leaving is the last thing I want to do right now, I comply with her wishes.
Even though in doing so, it feels like I’m leaving a piece of myself behind.
20
When I left the squad complex on Friday afternoon to head home for the full moon run, I was actually excited at the prospect of getting away for a few days to recharge. I figured I’d spend time with my family, catch up on sleep, and come back to training camp on Monday morning fresh as a daisy, relaxed and ready to tackle another week.Boy, was I wrong.
As it turns out, fate had other plans. Jake had other plans. And somehow, my entire life completely blew up in one damn night.
I’m not even sure which is worse– being challenged by Jake, or finding out that the boys who have been tormenting me are my fated mates. Each are tough enough pills to swallow on their own, but together, it’s enough to choke.
Thankfully, Avery and Sloane were around all weekend to give me the metaphorical Heimlich whenever I started to spiral. They never strayed far for the two days I was holed up in the Goldenleaf packhouse, and though my dad wasn’t happy about the change in my weekend plans, Mom talked him into agreeing to give me space. A challenge to my future Alpha rank is a lot to deal with, after all.
If only they knew how much I’m truly dealing with.
Which they don’t, and they won’t– at least not until I’ve decided what the hell I’m going to do about this.