Page 177 of The Heart of Winter

"What the hell is this, Blue?" he snapped. "Why are you bringing these people here?"

"Calm down, Jake. I think we should hear them out."

"Hear them out? Have you lost your mind?" Jacob’s voice was sharp, full of restrained emotion. There was a certain similarity in their mannerisms, both exuding a cold, commanding energy. "I understand their grief, I’m going through it myself! But I’m not going to delude myself into thinking my son is still alive. Let’s be real. No one could survive that crash, Blue!"

"I survived."

Jacob’s jaw clenched. "What the hell does that have to do with anything?"

"My bodyguard got a text from his cousin; someone he believes has unusual abilities. That’s why I canceled my flight."

Jacob’s expression twisted. "I don’t believe in premonitions! And what does this have to do with—"

"That same cousin claims they’re alive. He knew they were on that plane. And he helped them survive. It’s not just Winter, Sariel is alive too."

Jacob’s face paled, then flushed red in rapid succession, like he was battling conflicting emotions.

"And you believe this?" he finally burst out, slamming his hands onto his desk. Despite being an omega, he looked more intimidating than most alphas I ever knew.

"The plane exploded as he predicted," Blue said evenly. "That man somehow knew it was coming. I can’t ignore that."

"Blue, in your case, it’s not exactly shocking that someone was trying to kill you again. That could have been a random attempt—"

"You’re not listening to me," Blue cut in, his voice like a razor scraping against glass. "Snow didn’t send that warning text to save me. He doesn’t care about me. He sent it to save Gabriel, his cousin. And Gabriel isn’t exactly a high-profile assassination target."

"But he works for you now. Obviously, that puts him at greater risk."

"He didn’t know Gabriel worked for me. And I fly all the time, Jacob, mostly on my private jet. So why that flight, specifically? Snow first tried to warn Winter, his own brother. Then he warned Gabriel. That was the order."

Jacob scoffed. "So what, you’re saying he’s some kind of psychic? Sure, we all have alien DNA in our blood, but are you really trying to tell me Snow has actual telekinetic abilities?"

"It’s not even about him. Snow has different powers, more prophetic, and he can subtly manipulate energy," I interjected. "But there’s a young omega staying with us right now. We’ve been taking care of him, he was in a bad situation. He’s the one with those abilities."

Jacob rolled his eyes. "Even more magic? Do you realize how ridiculous this sounds, Blue? Like a damn fairytale."

"Damien, our own nephew, has strange abilities! It’s a scientific reality. And… this is your son, Jacob. Don’t you think it’s worth at least checking? If money’s the issue, I’ll pay for the whole thing." Blue tilted his head, almost challenging.

Jacob’s expression darkened. "Don’t bother. I’ll cover the costs," he said tersely. "He’s my son."

"There’s a government-owned company in Japan that operates long-range drones," I interjected, wanting to push the conversation in a more practical direction. "They mainly work with the coast guard, and they have their own rules and restrictions. Private individuals can’t just hire them like a regular service."

Blue exhaled. "I have a lot of connections in Japan. I can arrange it. And I mean that, I’m willing to split the costs. I want Sariel back too."

"We can contribute as well," Aiden said firmly. "The issue isn’t just money. These types of drones aren’t commercially available. Standard drones only have a range of a few miles. The ones we’d need, ones with a range of two thousand miles, are usually military or government-owned. You can’t just walk up and request access. The alternative is using commercial drones deployed from a mothership, but that requires renting a ship capable of operating them. That’s another massive logistical hurdle, it’s not something you can do without official clearance."

Blue cut in. "I’ll handle the clearance. I’m involved in the government’s Beta Activation Program. I’ll reach out to my contact and see if he can secure the necessary permits. But this will take some time."

"Winter and Sariel’s situation has stabilized for now," I added. "They’ve found a food source, but the situation on the island can quickly change. We need to get them out of there as soon as possible."

Jacob stared at us, his expression still skeptical, still defensive.

"I hope you’re right," he muttered. "I don’t want to get my hopes up. It’s hard enough accepting that my son died at twenty-two."

"Our son is missing too," I said, meeting his gaze head-on. "And we’re struggling just as much. But we refuse to give up, not while there’s even a sliver of hope."

Jacob held my stare for a long moment, his eyes searching mine. Then he sighed.

"I’m sorry for ignoring you," he admitted at last. "But I don’t have the luxury of grieving the way others do. I have a company, hundreds of employees who depend on me."

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