Page 121 of Fated to the Wolf Prince
His voice softened as he continued. “I know you don’t want to leave Ty, but if we distance ourselves from Presley Acres, we can go somewhere Castro won’t know where to find you. And it’ll give Ty time to get this all handled.”
Why did he have to be reasonable and logical? I didn’t want reason and logic. As a matter of fact, I freaking hated those things right now.
I sighed and plopped onto the sofa. “Hiding won’t do any good, Dad.” If I honestly thought it would help, I’d have done it already. I hated being the reason people were in danger. Loathed it. The sad fact was, no matter where I went, Castro would catch up to me. “My identity has been hidden my entire life, yet somehow Castro still found me.” Of course, he had money, and he apparently used it to employ a crack group of experts who assisted him in all his nefarious endeavors. I had no doubts about his ability to hire people with mad tracking skills. “If I run, he will find me.”
Mom sat beside me and gently took my hand in a show of solidarity as she looked up at my dad. “She’s right, Scott.”
Dad turned his back to us, punching his fists on his hips. I’d never seen him so worried in my entire life. As a lawyer, he faced any number of stressful situations on a weekly basis. This was different, though. His only daughter’s life was at risk. It made sense that he was desperate to find a solution.
Of course, my parents weren’t the only ones who were scared. The maniac was after me. I was anxious and felt like I had no control over my own life, because right now, I didn’t. Now that all my memories had come flooding back to me, I was terrified. It hadn’t escaped my notice just how unhinged Castro was.
As a young child, he had showed signs of being unstable. His mental health had only declined when he grew older and hit puberty. Now that he was an adult with financial means, Castro was capable of anything. The guy didn’t have a moral compass to keep him in check. Whatever the opposite of a moral compass was, that’s what he had. An anchor, maybe. A moral anchor, dragging him down into the deep. Fitting.
Dad huffed and slowly walked to the couch. He knelt in front of me, steadying himself as he lowered by grabbing my knees. “Liza, I’m worried about you. Are you okay?” His voice caught in his throat, and he took a few seconds to compose himself. “Mentally? Emotionally? You’ve been through so much, honey, and your mother and I can’t bear to see you wrestling with the memories of your past.”
Mom squeezed my hand. “We had no idea what you witnessed as a child. It’s unfathomable. Now that you remember it all, we’re worried that it could have a negative effect on you. PTSD, possibly.”
My parents were as good as gold, and seeing them this upset broke my heart. “I love you both and appreciate your concern. I’ve had my memories back for weeks. Yes, it hurts, and it’s taking me some time to process everything. The more I remember, the deeper the wound. Honestly, though, I’d rather remember my past than forget it. My memories of that time are just as much a part of me as my memories from the age of four until now.”
I loved my parents with every ounce of my being, but I also still loved my biological parents and grieved over losing them so tragically. At night, when the house was quiet and I had nothing to distract me, I closed my eyes and racked my brain for tiny details about them. My mother had had a beautiful voice and would sing me to sleep each night while she gently rubbed my forehead with her fingertips.
My father had been a strong alpha, and he’d always made me feel safe. Even in the middle of important meetings, he used to stop everything to lift me into his lap and listen intently as I showed him the flowers I’d gathered in the forest. I remembered how he held me closely when I was scared, and told me stories of distant lands and incredible creatures.
Fresh waves of grief punched me in the gut as I tried to come to terms with the years I’d missed out on by not having them in my life. One thing was for certain, though. They’d loved me, and I still sensed that love deep down in my bones.
“I’m lucky enough to have had two sets of parents who adored me and treated me so well.” I wrapped my arms around my mother and father. “I don’t ever want to forget that.”
A knock at the door had us all jumping. We really were wound up tightly. Then, I remembered that Ty had texted half an hour ago, letting me know that he was coming to pick me up and take me home. I’d been about to tell my parents when they’d started talking about running.
Dad stood and walked to the door, his shoulders pulled back and his hands clenched into fists at his sides. If it wasn’t Ty, I pitied the person at the door.
Ty walked past my father, his shoulders slumped, body stiff and dejected. I could immediately detect the defeat in his stance. “How is everyone?”
I went over and hugged him, then stretched onto my toes to kiss him on the cheek. “We’re tired. And stressed. You?” I said itwith a smile. I didn’t want him to think we were totally defeated. Not yet.
“Same.” Twining his fingers through mine, he led me back to the couch. Mom moved to a chair that faced the sofa, and Dad took the other chair.
“What did you find out about the coroner?” I turned to look at Ty, hopeful that he’d figured out where the bastard was hiding or had any new news.
Ty pinched the bridge of his nose and closed his eyes as he let out a soft sigh. “I wish I had better news, but at this point, we’re still trying to hunt Sylas down. The good news is that we know where, in a broad sense, to find him. He’s a gambling addict with a preference for the poker table, so Dad has his best men searching regular and underground casinos in the region.”
His best men. Ty’s voice held faith I didn’t share.
Dad sat back in his chair and crossed his arms. “Gambling, huh? Interesting.”
“How so?” Ty asked.
“I’m helping a friend with a money-laundering case. The details are bizarre, and I won’t go into all of that…” He couldn’t tell us if he was employed and working on the case. Not in more than the abstract, anyway. “But the interesting part is that the client has charges against him for an illegal gambling ring.”
Ty perked up. “Really? Do you know where the ring is located?”
Dad nodded. “As a matter of fact, I do. It happened in Loveska.”
Loveska was about a three-hour drive from Presley Acres and was known as theCity of Sin. I’d never been there and, quite frankly, had never had even the slightest desire to visit. It was a relatively small city, but an abnormal amount of criminal activities were said to have been going on there since as far back as I could remember. Illegal gambling, of course, but alsoprostitution and drugs. And rumor was that ‘made men’ ran it all.
Mafia.
All my life, I’d heard that drunkards, prostitutes, drug addicts, and outlaws hung out in Loveska. It wasn’t a place for straight-laced young ladies, and it certainly wasn’t a location the future alpha’s mate would want to visit, therefore, I’d never even thought about setting foot in the place.
