Page 89 of Cruel Revenge
I’m coming, Carey. You’re going to get to go home soon.
32
CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO
HEATH
Heath slammed his foot on the gas, hyper-vigilant as he blasted through traffic, weaving between other cars. Landon was checking their guns. There was no time to have either of them Change. They were going in with live rounds and a prayer.
Why didn’t they tell me Jacky wasn’t in a good place? She better be alive. God damn it all, she better still be alive.
He couldn’t believe Hasan and Subira weren’t surprised. It was clear that they had an idea it could happen, but no one told him. He would have changed the plans. He would have made sure to check on her more, tried to reach out, triedanything.
“Pa, I’m going to get the headset in,” Landon said, reaching for the bag Dirk had tossed at them. Heath was grateful for their mate bond. Without a word, Heath had watched them make eye contact, then Dirk was in action, shoving two comms devices into a bag and tossing it across the room in the chaos.
“Good. Prep mine. I’ll toss it on when we get there. Dirk did bring the long-range ones, right?”
“Yup.” Landon pushed in an earpiece and got the wire under his shirt. Heath kept driving, knowing his son was going to make sure everything was good to go. “Dirk, you hear me?”
There was a pause. Heath wished his hearing was as good as a werecat’s, unable to hear Dirk’s reply.
“Yeah, everyone is freaking out, huh? Fuck ‘em. We know we can’t trust a single one of those werewolves not to fill Jacky with silver when they see her. She’s going to be a mess if she’s not already in the Last Change.”
“Is she?” Heath asked softly, his hands tightening as he came to a realization. Landon knew what they might find. Heath didn’t. He knew Jacky had a looser control, but he never really thought there was anythingoff. Nothing unexplainable. Nothing troubling.
Landon froze at his question.
“Answer me.” There was no power behind the order. Heath just wanted his son to tell him the truth, not his second to bend the knee.
“Yeah… she can do what Fenris used to do… partially changing pieces of herself as her control slips. If she’s fighting the Last Change, but not in her right mind… I’ve seen her fangs elongate and start trying to leave her mouth. I’ve seen her fingernails turn into real claws. Her structure… shifts a little. It’s not super noticeable at first, but when we fought Fenris, she really pushed herself. It gives her strength more comparable to her werecat form. She went blow for blow with him.”
Heath fought to control his breathing. No one thought to tell him. No one thought to tell him that Jacky had picked up the technique of the mad wolf and had been using it when his back was turned. Everyone knew that Fenris was flirting with the end when he was doing it, and they had all been right.
“Why didn’t you… You should have told me,” Heath tried to say it clearly, but his words were garbled by a growl.
“I didn’t want you to kill her,” Landon admitted softly. “Because you love her. Because Carey loves her. She is Carey’s mom. There’s no denying that. There’s never been any denying that…” Landon swallowed. “And she’s important to me because she’s the one who finally helped me believe in your dream.”
My dream…
Heath pondered those words. Landon kept everyone at arm’s length except for him, Carey, and once, Richard. Then Dirk came into the picture. Dirk was now the closest to his son, and Heath played second to that. It was okay. His son deserved love, and Heath would gladly play second fiddle to the love his son finally had.
He’d always dreamed of that for his middle child. Born from a promise to build a world that fully accepted him. He could have everything that every parent should dream of for their children. Safety in the arms of real love and a place to call his own. Security. No more hate. No more fear.
“I see,” Heath whispered.
“We have strict rules about the Last Change. The only reason Fenris was never put down was his exception from Callahan. We all know why now. It didn’t make it right. And now Jacky is going to be deeper in that… madness than we’ve ever seen.” Landon took a deep breath. “She’s normally perfectly sane. It’s a heat-of-the-moment thing. She’s in the fight, and she’s continuing to push, but she’s sane.”
“But if we’re to believe Hasan and Subira, she isn’t right now,” Heath said, understanding fully. He hadn’t wanted the other werewolves near her the moment they realized she had probably gone alone. His son had caught his intentions and jumped in without needing a word, and now Heath understood his son’s complete loyalty. He should have argued. His second should have said it was crazy and tried to collect more of the pack to help, or any other werewolf or ally.
But Landon had just made sure they had what they needed and jumped into the truck with him. Not a single word trying to convince him.
It wasn’t loyalty to him. It wasn’t loyalty to Dirk. It wasn’t even Carey at this point.
It was loyalty to Jacky that had Landon in the car, ready to go against unknown odds without any backup. Just the two of them versus an unknown number of witches, a mad werecat, and a prayer that they got four young people they cared about away from it alive.
Because she helped him believe in Heath’s dream.
“I willneverkill the woman I love,” he promised. “I will never raise a weapon or my own might against Jacky Leon, daughter of Hasan and Subira.Never.”
