Page 57 of Old Secrets

I put some serious thought into throwing the jerky at him. “We will?”

“We will. You can’t undo what your ma did. You can’t fix what that asshole supervisor did. You can’t change the past. But you can change the future. I should be able to see the auras your parents inflicted on the Greenwich members directly responsible for the deaths pictured. You might be able to, too, for all we know. But if we missed anyone in Greenwich, we might be able to stop them—and we can better protect CARD from being sabotaged again.” Jake sat up and stretched, reminding me of a contented cat rather than a wolf. “You like Daniels, I like Daniels, but there’s a problem. My parents are heavily involved, even in New York.”

“Kelvin has accepted a transfer to Seattle, which is where you will be headquartered. The issue of your pack will be addressed later. After this mess is handled here, there will be a one year training period, which you’ll spend traveling the United States, evaluating most FBI resident agencies for Greenwich infiltrators, and participating in actual training. Once that period is over, you’ll be resettled in Seattle. It’s uncertain if you’ll join Desmond’s pack or Seattle’s pack, but my current recommendation is a pack transfer. This will allow more therapy with your family to take place without any obstructions on the professional front.” Mellisa smiled at my mate. “How are you feeling?”

“Much better, thank you.”

I glared at my spouse. “You said you were feeling fine!”

“I was tired, Karma. Really. I was fine. I just needed some sleep.” Jake got out of bed, came over, and leaned down so he could give me a kiss. “I woke up when Mellisa came in, but I decided to eavesdrop because I could.”

“That’s probably for the best,” I admitted. It’d been bad enough working my way through the shock of so many betrayals with my psychologist watching me like a hawk. Jake, had he been an active participant, would have found some way to compound the problem. Sighing over the insanity of the situation, I reached for him, wrapped my arms around his waist, and hugged him. “What if I break?”

“You’ll have a team of psychologists on hand, a stable pack to offer support, and I’ll be at your back every step of the way. If you break, we’ll get the emotional super glue out, and we’ll use it until you’re put back together again. It’s like riding a horse. You need to get back into the saddle, else the fear takes over until it grows to the point you can’t climb on that horse no matter how hard you try. After the reorganization, if you want to go back to violent crimes, we can. But I think you need to conquer this. And this time, you won’t be obstructed. But now we know, for certain, that you were obstructed. It wasn’t in your head.”

I’d worried about that, and I’d harbored more than a few doubts. After taking a few calming breaths, I nodded. “All right. What about the Corvette, though? I wanted to steal it.”

“You can still test the garage security,” Mellisa promised. “But you’ll get the Corvette as part of your hiring package. I already discussed that with the FBI, and they’re willing to offer it to you as your official vehicle, and when it’s retired, you will take ownership of it. I cited emotional attachments, and considering the circumstances, it was a simple enough arrangement to make. You can do some road tripping in the Corvette with its trunk space, too.”

With the bribe of the Corvette dangling in front of me, I struggled to concoct reasons to refuse the job offer. “And Daniels is really going to be our boss?”

“He will be. He’s been fully briefed on the situation, including Jake’s probable transition to an Omega, which will be invaluable in CARD.” Mellisa engaged my mate in a staring contest. “I will be changing therapy strategies with you, however, as we do not treat Omegas as we do submissive wolves, which explains a few of the hang-ups we have been having. You’re free from the restrictions most submissives face, but you’ll never be a true dominant, not like your parents wanted for you. However, you’re going to be most comfortable supporting Karma. But that has been the case since you partnered with her, right? You’ve always been working to support her, even when you had to pretend you have steel in your spine while you don’t.”

Jake sighed. “It makes sense. What would have happened to a submissive in my situation?”

“He would have broken, Jake,” our therapist replied in a quiet voice. “And while you have struggled, you have not been broken—or if you did break, whatever magic Karma has worked on you put you back together again. And when I’m honest with myself, you would make a terrible dominant and a worse Alpha. You don’t want to submit, but you want to help. You also don’t want to dominate anyone in order to help.”

As I had no idea how to support my mate, I gave him a tighter squeeze.

He rested his hand on my shoulder. “Do you think the Inquisition will try to use Karma’s parents?”

“To help Richard? Certainly. For other Fenerec? No. They’ve established their boundaries at my recommendation. I am trying to convince them they do not need to adopt Richard, but after witnessing his past with their magic, I expect he’ll be considered one of their children. I am of the opinion their magic works best when love is involved, echoing the Earth’s love for all her children. They have seen Richard’s spirit and want to repair the damage that has been done to him. Other Fenerec aren’t damaged. They are as they are for a reason. But they will likely be consulted to lower the numbers we lose to the wildness.” Our therapist grinned. “As I expect Charles Desmond will try his best to adopt you both, this will work well.”

“Adopt us?” I asked, straightening and releasing Jake, though I kept one arm around him. “What do you mean?”

“That man is an old wolf who loves children. Just humor him. He adopts those he likes into his family. Once he decides you’re his, that’s it. The Inquisition is aware of this tendency, and he started making rumblings about running off with both of you when word first spread about your difficulties. Your courage and resilience appeal to him, and he wants to give homes to those who have struggled. And so, you’ll have a new home in Seattle you can visit, and he’ll drive you to the edge of madness with his posturing, but you’ll like it because Charles, when he isn’t being terrifying, is charming. And Wendy? I don’t know of anyone who genuinely dislikes Wendy. But Wendy would benefit from your parents’ insights, as would Charles.”

“And since Mr. Desmond provided so many pictures, my parents will help?”

“Yes, they are aware of the debt they owe to him and have already expressed interest in assisting them in any way they can. Stabilizing their wolves, for they are both old and grow older, would aid the Inquisition and them. They have children, and one of them is still quite young.”

“Bryce is old, though. Older than Mr. Desmond?” I asked.

“Bryce is ancient in Fenerec standards, yes. He is ranked as an Alpha, but he is probably, in truth, an Omega—one who happens to have been raised in an era where men were all dominant, even the most submissive of them, and he was taught to be that way from his first breath. His tendencies would have given him stability, and the culture at the time would have given him outlets. I did ask him. He doesn’t know or care if he is an Omega. He has his purpose, and being as he is allows him to fulfill that purpose. But I would place my bets on him being an Omega. Otherwise, he would have gone mad long ago. And his wolf calms Amelia’s wolf.”

“Her wolf is in trouble, isn’t it?” I asked in a quiet voice.

“She’s been struggling, but she’ll be okay. Bryce will see to that. Neither of them have mated before, so I’m sure they’ll dance around each other long before they get to the nipping portion of their relationship—but for now, she’s stable.”

I breathed a relieved sigh. “Jake thought he would be good for her.”

“Jake can be quite insightful.”

“Jake is standing right here,” my mate muttered.

I giggled and gave his hip a pat. “Why don’t I kick our therapist out and console you in the shower? We should rejoin the rest of the world and get ready to go to China. We certainly can’t cut off any heads here. This room is far too nice for such bloody affairs.”

Mellisa stood. “Take your time. I’ll let the others know you’re on the move, inform them most of the fatigue issues are resolved, and that our favorite fox requires some attention before we get to work.”