41: Rough Road Ahead

DRAKE POV

“You sure you don’t want to come in?” Callum asks me. Zoe’s just parked their SUV across from our townhouse. I guess I shouldn’t be surprised she knew where we live without asking.

“I’ll be fine,” I answer flatly with an involuntary glance at Sasha’s limp form beside me. It’s not super comfortable sitting on the folded-down back seats of the SUV, but I’d rather stay here than leave her alone, or give these WASP operatives a chance to bail without us.

WHAM!

I jump and jerk around to look out the window while Callum rolls his eyes at me. Xander’s just parked his truck next to the SUV; the noise was him slamming his truck door.

“We live just a couple streets over,” Zoe informs us cheerfully as she and Rika hop out of the SUV. “We’ll be right back.”

“And if you do anything to Sasha, I’ll drink you dry and then use you for target practice,” Rika threatens.

“She’s safe under my watch,” I assure her irritably. At least, I hope so. My medic skills aren’t the best, and it’s hard to be certain of anything, given—

“They’ve been living basically next door to us this whole fucking time?!” Xander squalls through Callum’s open door, voicing my thoughts more or less verbatim.

“Well. If WASP sent them to Columbus to investigate us, it wouldn’t make sense for them to be livin’ at OSU,” Callum points out. “Can’t beat ourselves up. What’s done is done, and like I been sayin’, WASP special ops is on a whole nother level.”

“You’ve been remarkably chill and lacking in ’I told you so’s, and I don’t like it. Go ahead and ream us out. We deserve it,” Xander snaps, both aggravated and petulant. “You’ve at least been skeptical of them this whole time.”

“Don’t do any good to do that now. We’s stuck.” Callum gestures broadly to me and Sasha, and I look away.

This whole situation is my fault, on some level, but at the same time it’s not. None of us can help who we light up for, who we’re attracted to.

“Elder Eric’s likely to give us more than enough reaming anyway,” I mutter. “I’ll call him while you get our stuff.”

“You sure? Don’t want you dealin’ with that alone—”

“It’s my problem, more than yours, and he’s my dad. I’ll handle it.”

“Any requests of what we pack for you, then?” Xander inquires, moving straight to taking action, like always.

“Comfortable and warm clothes. At least a week’s worth. The usual necessities. Snacks and water bottles.”

“Energy drinks?” Callum offers. He’s seeing right through me again and I hate it.

“Doesn’t matter. I won’t sleep until I know for sure about her, one way or another.”

“Right. We’ll be back as soon as we can.”

Callum and Xander shut me in the SUV and walk off towards our townhouse. Finally. I wait until they’re inside to let out a long breath of everything I’ve been holding back and take out my phone.

Shit. I forgot I set that picture of us from the archery range as my wallpaper. Looking at it now, I can’t help wondering how much of the enjoyment evident in her face and her posture was genuine. Our kiss—was that really just a few hours ago?!—would have felt different if there wasn’t something real between us. But that doesn’t change the fact that she was working that afternoon, faking her skills, trying to decide whether or not I’ve violated WASP law.

Would she have executed me if she’d found that I had?

No sense worrying about that now. She’s in no condition to answer that question or any others, and anyway, I’ve got to call my parents, before any of the others come back.

What the fuck am I even gonna tell them?

I decide to call my parents’ land line—why they still have one, I have no idea—and pray that my mom is the one who picks up. Of the two of them, she’s more likely to have compassion, and less likely to tear me a new asshole over the phone. Or at all.

“Hello?” my dad’s gruff voice answers after a couple rings.

Fucking dammit.

“Hi, Dad,” I reply, swallowing hard.

“Drake. Good to hear from you. We’ve been worried.”

“Sorry. I’ve been meaning to call—”

“You’ve heard about the recent WASP raid in Columbus?”

“Um. Yeah.” The night we met them. When Sasha supposedly wiped out a bunch of rogue vampires. He must be referring to that. I didn’t believe it when they told me. The Nikki I knew didn’t seem capable of that. But the panther in the warehouse certainly was. Who is she, really?

“Are you safe?”

“Yes, we’re safe. At least, for now.”

“What do you mean, for now?” I can practically see his eyebrows bristling with concern, despite the hundreds of miles between us.

“We, uh. We made friends with the WASP operatives.”

Fuck, shouldn’t’ve said that. Dad’s gonna lose his—

“After everything WASP has put our family through—”

“They’re not the same ones who—”

“That’s not the point! None of them can be trusted!” I guess that’s a fair point, given everything that’s happened and come to light in the past few hours, but….

“One of them’s my mate.”

I don’t know why I just blurted that out. We haven’t formally accepted each other or even really talked about it. The situation with me and Sasha could definitely still blow up or turn sour.

On the other end of the phone, my father is breathing deep, measured breaths. The way he does before he goes in for a kill.

“Is she one of us?” he asks finally. I think I know what he means, but we have more important things to deal with right now than Sasha’s species.

“She believes in justice. Real justice. And she shares our disdain for…certain persons in WASP.” That much, at least, I’m sure is true. There was something in her eyes when we talked about justice and law school on our dates. Like she was holding something back. Knowing what she is, and that she preferred to kill her boss rather than execute me without sufficient evidence—

“If that’s the case, she’s probably the most dangerous person you could possibly get involved with! WASP doesn’t take kindly to those who rock the boat—”

“I know. Dad….” Am I allowed to say this out loud? Does it matter? “She killed Anselm. The head of WASP Special Ops. She’s supposed to take over that position, but it’s not official yet.”

“And it won’t be. Son, she’s as good as dead once WASP gets a hold of her. Run, and come home, while you still can.”

“I can’t come home. It’s too dangerous, for all of you. These special ops told us Anselm’s had it out for you, for the whole pack—”

“I knew it. I fucking knew it,” he growls. I don’t think I’ve ever heard him this angry. “If I could just have the chance to tear him to pieces myself—”

“Dad. Take the pack into hiding. Just in case. Anyone looking to avenge Anselm will probably come after our pack first.”

“…I hate to run and hide from those bastards. But there’s no sense risking the whole pack for my pride. We’ll start preparing right away.”

“Good.”

“What about you? You’re not staying in Columbus.”

“No. Our…well-connected friends want us to go with them to Montana, to someone they know who owes them a favor—”

“Probably Baryshnikov.”

“Who?”

“He’s in charge of WASP operations out that way. Acquaintance of mine, too. We’ve both run for WASP leadership positions. And lost, to people like Anselm.”

I don’t know what to say to that. For the first time in my life, I wish I’d paid more attention when he talked about WASP while I was living at home, and to his messages about WASP’s activities.

“You’re sure that sonuvabitch is dead?” Dad rumbles after a few seconds.

“I watched her kill him myself.” I’m still trying to wrap my head around how brutal she was. Fucking nightmare fuel. And yet…. There’s some satisfaction in it, too, now, hearing how much my dad hates Anselm.

“Don’t like that, son. That ain’t somethin’ any WASP operative would do publicly. What’ve you been doing that you got such a privilege?”

Gods damn it, what the fuck do I tell him?!

“One of them showed us WASP’s files on our pack. After they determined that we weren’t actually…worthy of their investigation.” Callum showed me Rika’s tablet, on the drive home. “As far as I can tell…Anselm had these special ops targeting me to get to you.”

Heavy silence. I hate this.

“You’ve been right, to be so worried. And I’m sorry I wasn’t more careful. I got really lucky, that one of them is my…” I continue, but it’s so hard to find the right words. “Given the choice to put herself on the line or carry out an unjust execution, she chose to fight him. And she won.”

“Not many in all the world up to that,” Dad remarks thoughtfully. “Rough road ahead of you, son.”

“I know. But I’ll be smart. I’ll make it back someday, as soon as it’s safe. I promise.” Rika and Zoe are coming back this way. Shit. “I’m sorry, Dad, but I have to go. Tell Mom and Logan and Mina that I love them.”

“Stay alive and come home to tell them yourself.”

Click.