Total pages in book: 114
Estimated words: 107670 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 538(@200wpm)___ 431(@250wpm)___ 359(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 107670 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 538(@200wpm)___ 431(@250wpm)___ 359(@300wpm)
“I had a call from someone who claims to be a . . . friend of Clive’s,” said Nick. “He knows she’s on our territory and wants my assurance that she’s safe here.”
Jesse wasn’t surprised. “Clive probably has people monitoring her. Did you tell them about the bomb?”
“Yes. They said they would ‘take care of it.’”
“Which means the extremists who planted the bomb will soon find themselves the targets of an attack.”
“It won’t be as easy as that. They knew when they planted that bomb that there would be retaliation. They’ll have taken precautions, found a place to lie low.”
“One good thing about them lying low is that they won’t be able to reach her.” Even if they did try tracking her, it would take them a while to realize she was here. After all, they would never think she would join a pack, considering she was not only half cat but also had been living with humans for a long time. The moment he claimed her, she’d officially be a Mercury Pack member.
“If Clive really does run The Movement, he’ll have the resources to find them before they find her.” Nick’s gaze moved to the view ahead. “I know a lot of shifters revere Clive. They use him as a symbol of rebellion, imply he’s a hero. But I’ve heard stories from people who actually know Clive. I don’t think he was thinking of shifters everywhere when he hunted those humans. I don’t think he was pushed over some kind of edge by the death of his son. I think he was just doing what came naturally to someone who likes to cause pain.” Nick looked back at Jesse. “Do you think he formed The Movement?”
“It’s possible. What better cover is there for the front-runner than to be under lock and key? But if he was, he wouldn’t tell Harley.”
“Why? She’s his daughter.”
“I know. But such knowledge would put her in a massive amount of danger.” The Movement kept the names of the key players secret because, sad as it was, there were shifters out there who would sell them for the right price. It wasn’t just the extremists that were greedy for those names. Human law enforcement would definitely offer a high reward for such information. “Clive might be cold, but he’s protective of her. He even granted custody of her to her aunt because his pride wasn’t a good place for her.”
“What about her mother?”
“Mother” wasn’t the word Jesse would use. “Lily Vincent is too wrapped up in her own problems to take care of Harley or anyone else.”
Nick puffed out a breath. “Imagine how it would feel if one of the very few people in your life who ever made you feel important and kept you safe was a cold-blooded killer. He might not approve of you mating her. He might have hoped she’d live her life as a human.”
“I don’t give a flying fuck what he thinks or wants.”
“I can see that you’re set on keeping her. Are you sure she’ll be able to deal with you, Jesse? You’re a very intense guy. A highly dominant wolf with a very forceful personality. It’s a combination that a dominant female might find crippling and oppressive.”
“Nothing has the ability to crush Harley.” Life had thrown a lot at her, but she’d always stood strong in the face of it.
“Bracken’s family might not react well to her presence, considering they’re part of the pack that blamed her for Mia’s addiction. I’m not saying that it should influence any decision you make; I’m just saying you need to be ready for that. And there’s something else you need to think about. I know someone else who lost their true mate as a kid and then tried to imprint on another female. It didn’t work for him for the same reason that it might not work for you.”
“Why wouldn’t it work?”
“If what Bracken and Zander said is true, you walled up after your true mate died, which is only to be expected. But if you want to take Harley as your mate, you’re going to have to drop those protective walls. You need to be prepared to give her all of you or imprinting won’t fully happen. And you have to be sure you can do that before you make her promises and demand a commitment from her.”
“I wouldn’t ask anything of Harley that I wasn’t prepared to give in return.”
Nick rose from the swing. “That doesn’t mean you can do it, especially if you’ll feel guilty on some level about giving all that to her. And according to Bracken, you have a habit of torturing yourself with guilt.”
“That’s bullshit.” For some reason, Bracken had it in his head that Jesse blamed himself for Mia’s death, for not being able to find and save her. “I regret my sister’s death just as I would anyone in my family, and I avenged her death. But do I blame myself? No.” Did he miss having a drug addict hanging around, manipulating, lying to, and stealing from him and their parents—breaking their hearts on a regular basis? No. And if that made him a cold bastard, there wasn’t a lot he could do about it.