Chapter 36

The remainder of the afternoon went by well especially with the hard part of the meeting over with. Thalia was welcome to join the Hellhound pack whenever she was ready although, she technically was a part of it given that Kade and she had mated successfully. Thalia wanted to wait until they headed back to the township before she finished the process of joining the pack. She had technically been packless for over five years now so what was another couple of weeks?

It was agreed that when Daniel and Eva returned from their holiday in the south, Kade and Thalia would join them in the journey back to the pack but until then, Kade and Thalia were affording fourteen more days to themselves.

It was dark by the time Daniel and Eva left, leaving Kade and Thalia in peace. It had been a long time since Thalia had done any cooking and she had feared she would have forgotten how to boil water let alone remember half of the recipes her mother taught her when she was younger. However it had all come back to her and Thalia had enjoyed the few hours of therapeutic activities which resulted in a delicious meal for the alpha couple. Everyone had enjoyed it, which helped settle the last of Thalia’s doubts.

“So I think it’s safe to say, they love you.” Kade smirked once they were settled on the couch, the beta’s arm curled around Thalia’s shoulders. “But how do you feel?”

“Hm,” Thalia bit her lip, staring at nothing as she thought about the day. “You have a very good Alpha and Luna and two great friends. I look forward to meeting the rest of the pack.”

Kade grinned before pressing a kiss to the top of Thalia’s head. “I am glad and they will love you especially if you make food like that for them.”

Thalia laughed softly. “I can manage that. I do have something to ask.”

“Oh?”

“When the babies are born, I want to train to defend myself and the pack.” Thalia replied. “I don’t want to feel helpless anymore.”

“Thalia, you’re not helpless.” Kade frowned, shifting so he could look at his mate properly.

“I am.” Thalia argued. “If my pack had let me train like my brothers then I might have been able to protect myself against those who took me. Even then, soon we will have two pups to defend. The least I could do is learn to help defend the pack against anymore threats, especially if Dante ever learns the truth.”

“Dante’s not going to find out.” Kade assured her. “How could he?”

“I don’t know but…”

“Thalia.” The firmness of Kade’s voice simmered the growing wave of panic inside of Thalia. “He’s not going to find you. He thinks you’re dead. But, I won’t stop you from doing what feels right to you. You have proven yourself to be a fighter and tougher than you think. You can be whatever you want to be.”

Thalia couldn’t stop the spread of her lips into a smile. Leaning forward she caught Kade’s mouth in a kiss, letting it linger before pulling away gently.

“Thank you.” She whispered. “But right now, I want to be in bed. I’m exhausted.”

“Sounds perfect.” Kade replied before pressing a kiss to Thalia’s lips.

—

The bright weather had brought half of the city of York out to enjoy the golden rays of sun. Light bathed the beige stone buildings as people milled through shops and boutiques or met with friends and family at the various pubs and restaurants around the place. The river Ouse shimmered like the scales of a fish as canal boats and river ferries putted along the silvery waters. Yet despite how busy the path along the river was, no one paid any attention to the dark-blonde haired man sitting on one of the many benches in a white and blue pinstripe shirt and sand coloured chinos.

Dante's tanned skin still glowed from his time in Greece meeting with Castor Georgiou. The Alpha had been nothing but forthcoming with the information he had on his own daughter and showed no remorse as he sold her out. Ordinarily Dante despised traitors and had this been any other situation he might have been inclined to reward Castor with a painful death but as it was, his intel had proven extremely useful.

Thalia had made the mistake of reaching out to her pack and that had given Dante all he needed to track her. He wondered what she would think about her own father betraying her for a second time.

It seemed his little wolf had been busy whilst out of Dante's custody. The Intel gathered by his men showed that thankfully she was still pregnant. He had worried they would have perished in the fall but that wasn't the case at all. However there was one undesirable development which Dante knew he would have to take care of. Thalia had found her mate. It was a complication but one Dante knew he could overcome and would overcome. Thalia had something that belonged to him and he wasn't finished with her yet.

He didn't move when a familiar presence made themselves known but he did bristle slightly when someone sat down on the other end of the bench.

"Have you not tired of stalking me, brother?" Dante spoke up as a warm breeze picked up causing the water in the river to shudder and shimmer.

"I hardly call it stalking." Lucien replied in that annoyingly amused tone of his. He reminded Dante of a cat toying with a mouse purely for entertainment. "You and I both know the council are looking for evidence to crucify you with but I am merely doing my job to make sure you have given up on this foolish mission of yours now that the girl is gone."

Dante couldn't help but snort at that, lips splitting into a smile as he chuckled. He knew Lucien wasn't doing this out of brotherly love. He was loyal only to himself and the council and even then, if Lucien had to choose he would choose himself before all else. No; Lucien might portray himself as a caring sibling but he would sooner stab Dante in the back than help him. He had to admit it was a clever move by the council to get Dante's own brother to investigate him but it was obvious to Dante.

"It just goes to show how little you know." Dante finally spoke. "Change is coming, brother. You would do well to choose the side that leads to triumph."

"If you mean your side then I will have to decline your offer." Lucien gave a sardonic smirk. "I'm not much a fan of the whole destruction of humanity trope. It seems a bit cliche even for a bastard child as yourself."

The growl erupted from Dante's throat before he could stop himself, the heat of fury and embarrassment filling his veins when he realised Lucien had gotten a rise from him. He didn't need to look at the fallen-angel to know that Lucien currently sat with a smug smirk on his face.

"Your little wolf is gone and the council are closing in on you." Lucien spoke again as he stood up. "Do yourself a favour and put an end to this madness before it costs you your life."

Dante didn't respond, watching as his brother walked away, disappearing into a crowd of humans on some sort of walking tour. Only when he could no longer feel the burden of Lucien's presence did Dante move.

He left the newspaper he had picked up behind as he strolled towards one of the quieter side streets where his presence wouldn't be noticed. Not that anyone would notice him. Humans were oblivious creatures at the best of times. Stepping between the stone pillars of a regency building, Dante went from walking the streets of York to stepping through a row of trees that huddled against the boundary of a holiday park. It was much busier than when Dante had last visited but then again, the weather had been miserable up until recently. Now children were playing football or riding their bikes while adults hovered around barbecues or lounged in garden chairs with bottles of lager or glasses of wine. Somewhere, someone was mowing grass and the air was filled with the scent of burning coal and food.

Towards the back of the park, a static caravan had been placed twenty feet from the boundary and another twenty or so feet from the next caravan. However, it wasn't the caravan itself that Dante had come to see.

A black SUV sat in front of the caravan and wispy blue smoke lazily rose into the air from a small barbeque. The scent of lemon, olive oil and thyme perfumed the air, mixing with the gamey richness of roasting lamb. It almost made Dante chuckle, remembering how Thalia's own mother had filled the pack house with the exact same smells when she had insisted on cooking for him and his men. Now he wondered if Thalia's own food was as good. It was a shame he would never find out.

The four shifters sat around a table talking, none of them aware of the demon watching them. Dante could see them perfectly though, especially Thalia. Her skin was already browning in the sun and her hair fell around her naked shoulders. A dark green dress covered her body, highlighting the swell of her belly, displaying her pregnancy proudly. Beside her, a male with grey eyes and chestnut hair rested an arm along the back of Thalia's chair, fingers brushing over her naked arm slowly.

To anyone else it was a picture of a happy couple expecting their first child but to Dante it was the sight of what belonged to him being kept from him by others. It was taking everything in him not to go over and rip the three strangers to shreds and drag Thalia back to her prison but he wanted to wait. It was still too soon for the baby to be born and once they were, Dante could dispose of Thalia or keep her. Either way he would have more options available to him.

That was until he saw the mark on her shoulder. Faint as it already was, Dante picked up on it and froze.

So Thalia had gone and completed the mating bond? Well that certainly changed everything. The more time the bond was given to strengthen, the harder it would be to separate Thalia from her mate.

No, now his plans had changed. He needed to act sooner.

Pulling his phone from his pocket, he called the head of his security team as he began walking back into the office.

"Ready the men." Dante announced when someone picked up on the other end. "We will be collecting the asset soon."

---
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