I was confused. “What are you talking about?”
Ox shook his head. “Later. You did well, Robbie.”
I struggled not to preen at the praise. I failed miserably, if Kelly’s laugh was any measure.
“Aileen and Patrice,” Ox continued. “They think we’re fractured. And they’re right.”
“Rico needs to pull the stick out of his ass,” Kelly snapped. “He’s only going to make things harder if he—”
Ox held up his hand, and Kelly fell silent. “I’ve already talked with him. It’s going to take time, but I don’t know if that’s something we have. And it’s not just him.”
I jerked my head up. Ox watched me with a calm expression.
He said, “Our father, he brought us here. Me and Joe.” He looked off into the distance again as he spoke. “I thought it was mostly for Joe, because of what he would become. I thought the only reason I was there was because of what we meant to each other. But now I think he was preparing me as well. I don’t know how he knew or even what he knew, exactly, but he saw something in me that no one else had, aside from my mother. My daddy, he….” Ox shook his head. “It doesn’t matter what he thought. Not anymore. It hasn’t for a long time, though there are days when I’m still haunted by him. But I know the difference now between ghosts and reality. And know which is true.” And then he said, “Robbie, I failed you. We failed you.”
“Oh, hey, no, you don’t have to—”
“Listen.”
My mouth snapped closed.
He said, “After the hunters came and tried to take over Green Creek, we were angry. We turned it into something positive. To rebuilding the town, to taking care of the Omegas and Carter and Mark.” His eyes filled, a swirl of violet and red that made me sweat. “This… thing that I am now, this power that I have, it’s more than I ever thought it could be. And I don’t take it lightly. I can’t. I won’t. Too many people depend on me. On all of us. Thomas, he… he told Joe that being an Alpha was more than being in charge. An Alpha is a unifier. A protector. That he or she must be willing to give everything for his pack.”
“Even his life,” Kelly whispered.
Ox nodded. “Even that. And I wanted to tear down the world. My pack had been hurt. They’d been changed. Mark and Carter found control in their tethers—”
“Gordo and Kelly,” I said. Ox looked surprised. “Tattoo on Mark’s throat. The raven. It’s the same as the one on Gordo’s arm.”
“Okay,” Ox said slowly. “And Kelly and Carter?”
I plucked at a blade of grass. Without thinking much about it, I handed it to Kelly, pressing it against his palm. “Carter’s always aware of where Kelly is. He turns to Kelly whenever he enters a room. I don’t think he knows it. It’s just….”
“Instinct,” Ox said.
“Yeah. Or something close.”
Ox nodded. “Good. You’re observing.”
“I was going to use it against you at first,” I admitted. “When I thought you were all crazy.”
Kelly arched an eyebrow. “We kind of are.”
“Weaknesses,” Ox said. “You were looking for weaknesses. What did you see?”
I hesitated. Then, “Not much. I thought about going for the humans first, but Jessie literally knocked that idea out of my head.”
Ox laughed softly. “She tends to do that.”
I took a deep breath, choosing my words carefully. “If there’s any weakness, it’s you.”
Kelly gasped, but Ox ignored him. “Explain.”
“You’re an Alpha,” I said, “which means you’re willing to sacrifice yourself for your pack. But it goes further with you. With all of you. And if I… if I wanted to hurt you, hurt your pack, I would exploit that.”
“Our pack,” Ox said. “Because you’re part of this too.”
“Am I?” I couldn’t hide the bitterness in my voice.