<b>Chapter </b><b>97 </b>
** Ryder’s POV **
<b>+25 </b>Points
The house is quiet, apart from the faint hiss of water running upstairs. Paige has disappeared into the shower, herughter from training still echoing in my head. Only it’s not the memory of herughter that keeps my wolf pacing. It’s the way she moves. I already knew she was fast, but this is more than speed or instinct. The way she blocked every move before any of us could touch her. Then there’s whatever the hell happened with Callen.
None of us calls her on it, not out loud, but the look we all share speaks volumes. I’ve trained wolves for decades. I might not know the limits of what the bond can do for a human, but I do know that the abilities human mates develop onlye from our wolves. This… isn’t that.
Remy leans against the kitchen counter, arms folded tight across his chest, his usual smirk gone. Callen sits at the kitchen ind, tapping his fingers on the marble restlessly, while Parker hovers by the window, looking like he’ll bite anyone who says the wrong thing. My wolf is already on edge, and their tension only feeds it.
“She shouldn’t be able to do that,” Remy says finally. His voice is calm, but there’s an edge to it. “Even with the bond, no human reacts like that.”
Callen snorts. “Maybe it’s just beginner’s luck. Adrenaline does weird stuff. You’re all acting like she sprouted wings.”
“Don’t be an idiot.” Remy pushes off the counter. “You’ve seen bond–enhanced speed, same as me. That wasn’t speed. She knew where we were going to strike before we even moved. That’s something else.”
Parker turns from the window, his jaw tight. “So what, you’re saying she’s not human? We’ve all sensed her. She’s not a wolf. If she were, we’d know.”
wolf I say nothing. Not yet. Because the truth is, I rey it over and over in my head, and my won’t stop growling. Paige’s scent, her heartbeat, her bond to us, all of it screams human, fragile, mortal. But her movements today… they remind me of something I’ve only heard stories about when learning about the supernatural world. Something with instincts that outmatch a wolf’s.
Then my
mind
goes somewhere else… Jaxon.
My chest tightens. I’ve known from the second Iid my eyes <i>on </i>him that my <i>boy </i>is a <i>wolf</i>. From the moment I first scented him, it was there, the steady thrum of Alpha blood waiting <i>to </i>rise. I know that whatever human part he inherits from Paige will be gone when he <i>gets </i><i>his </i>wolf. But if Paige isn’t entirely human… if there’s more in her blood <b>than </b>she knows…
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My mind flips through every moment with him. Jaxon is giving out pack <b>connections </b><b>faster</b><b>. </b>than cubs twice his age, pups flock to him already. His hearing is sharper than it <b>should </b><b>be</b>, even for an Alpha’s son. His ability to do everything faster than others his age. His superior intelligence. I’ve brushed it off as early wolf instincts and being brought up in the human world, as well as him being advanced. But what if it’s not just wolf?
My wolf rumbles low, unsettled. Jaxon is my heir, my blood. The future alpha of this pack. If there’s something else living inside him, something I can’t name, I need to know before anyone else does. Before the world puts a target on him.
I drag a hand through my hair. “She’s not telling us everything,” I say finally.
Callen straightens, bristling. “Don’t start with that. You, of all people, should know that Paige
doesn’t lie.”
“I didn’t say she is lying,” I snap. “I said she’s not telling us everything. There’s a difference. We all saw her out there, and we felt something. She tried to brush it off, but deep down<b>, </b>she knew something wasn’t right, and that scared her. Can’t you feel her anxiety right now?”
Parker nods and Callen grunts in agreement.
Remy’s eyes narrow, calcting. “You think there’s something in her bloodline.”
“I know there’s something.” I meet his gaze. “But I don’t know what.”
Parker’s jaw works. He wants to argue, to defend her, but the memory of what we all saw must be tormenting him too. Finally, he sighs, “Then what the hell is she?”
The question hangs heavy in the air. Witch? Fae? Something older, something worse? My mind flips through possibilities I haven’t considered in years, most of them things I never wanted near my mate. Most are thought to be extinct.
I push away from the table and grab my phone. There’s only one way to start getting
answers.
“Brandon,” Imand his attention through the pack link.
“Alpha?” Brandon’s voicees through as fast as ever.
To look at him, you’d never guess he was one of us. He’s small for a wolf andcks the strength we do, but underneath his appearance hums the sharp efficiency that makes him indispensable. My tech guy, my hacker, my fixer. The one man who can dig <i>through </i>both human and supernatural records without leaving a trace.
“I’m emailing you a file. I need everything you can find about Paige Wilson. Birth records, medical history, family tree. Dig deep, grandparents, great–grandparents, <b>cousins</b><b>, </b><b>anyone </b>
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linked by blood. If they existed, I want names, dates, and death certificates if <b>applicable</b><b>. </b><b>If </b><b>it’s </b>there, I want it.”
There’s a low whistle on the other end. “The Luna? Are you expecting to find skeletons <b>in </b><b>the </b>
closet?<b>” </b>
“No.” The wordes out like a growl, my instinct to defend my mate overriding everything else. I take a breath and try again. “Maybe.”
There’s silence for a beat before he responds. “Okay. No limits, no questions. Give me a few days.”
“You’ve got two. Oh, and Brandon?”
“I won’t tell a soul,” he says without me needing to say a word.
“Good. Let me know the moment you have something.”
Three pairs of eyes watch me.
“Brandon?” Callen asks me.
“Yes, he’s looking into it,” I nod.
“You really think it’s that serious?” Callen asks, softer now.
“Yes,” I say tly. “If I’m wrong, we’ve wasted time. But if I’m right… we’ll be d we knew before anyone else.”
“Does it really matter though? She’s still our mate; it doesn’t change anything,” Parker argues.
“Yes,” I snap, making him flinch. “It <b>f</b><b>*****</b>g matters, of course it does. It won’t change the way we feel about her, but it might change the way others do, and it’s not just her, it’s Jax too.”
“But you knew her before, did her parents seem odd at all? Did they give you some weird vibes?” Cal asks.
I shake my head. “Only the typical ‘hurt our daughter, and we will hurt you‘ vibe. I <i>don’t </i>think that counts.”
<i>Before </i>I can say more, a sound drifts down from upstairs. Paige’s voice, <i>muffled </i><i>but </i>clear enough. I freeze, my instincts kicking in. She’s on the phone.
The four of us go silent, listening. Herughter is lighter than I’ve heard all day.
“Poppy,” she says before <i>going </i>on toin about pineapple <b>on </b><b>pizza</b>.
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Poppy. My wolf pricks, sharp and alert as we listen to the whole conversation, mostly about us. But she’sughing, and thatugh… it hits me harder than I want to admit.
The call ends a few minutester. Paige’s footsteps move around the bedroom.
Callen lets out a low whistle. “Well, that was enlightening. I quite like the word harem. I’m a proud member.”
“Focus,” I snap, though part of me wants to storm down the hall and make sure Paige knows exactly what she means to me. To all of us.
Remy tilts his head. “Poppy is her full sister, right?”
“As far as they know,” I nod. “If Paige’s bloodline is something other than human, then Poppy’s should be too. Tomorrow’s dinner is our chance to find out.”
Callen grins. “So we poke around? Subtly, of course.”
“Observe,” I correct. “Not interrogate. If there’s anything off about Poppy, we might notice because we are not blinded by the mate bond. And if there isn’t… then we keep digging.”
Parker’s frown is back in ce. “You think Poppy could be in danger too?”
“If hunters catch wind of any of this?… Yes. Hunters hate wolves, but I bet they’ll hate something they don’t understand even more, and if that happens, both sisters will be targets. Silence falls heavily. My wolf snarls inside me, protective rage simmering.
I head upstairs, just needing to see her, and then pause outside the bedroom door. Through the wood, I hear Paige humming softly as she gets dressed. The sound should ease me. Instead, it ws at something inside me.
Paige doesn’t know what she is, Jaxon is too young to understand, and I’m pretty sure Poppy doesn’t know either. But I will find out, and no matter what we uncover, one thing is certain: all three are mine to protect.
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