Chapter Nine
“I’ll be gone at least a month, maybe longer. The chances of me being unreachable are high so if you’re unable to get ahold of me, I trust you to make the decisions.” Radley rattled off direction after direction for William, his beta. The man had been more than just a beta for him, however. After so many years of taking care of the Clan, they’d become best friends.
“You sure this is a good idea?” William asked, blinking his eyes. He was purposely trying to avoid looking at the fae currently standing with his mother, talking to the person he cared the most for. He wasn’t afraid for his mother—she could take care of herself—but it probably wasn’t smart of him to leave them alone. Who knew what childhood memories his mother was telling her? He watched as something his mother said made Cricket laugh and it lit up her entire face.
“No,” Radley admitted. “But I owe a debt.” He knew William wouldn’t tell anyone why he was actually leaving, but as his beta, he deserved the information. The rest of the Clan, except for his mother, would know he was away on business. It was mostly to protect Cricket before the big reveal. While the Clan was trustworthy, many of them were fans of ale and could easily mention it at the wrong time at the bar in town. It was best to be safe. After all, if Cricket was pulled from the race, his debt wouldn’t be paid, and he’d still have to live with it hanging over his head.
William looked him over before nodding his head. “Well, just try to stay alive. I’ll never forgive myself if you go for this debt that I should owe.”
“You owe nothing.”
“So you’ve told me,” William scoffed. “Year after year when I ask for you to transfer the favor over to me.”
So long ago, those wolf cubs that had been saved were William and Sila’s. He’d been badly beaten and hurt trying to protect them, to the point where he hadn’t been awake during the hunt. For a wolf to be so badly injured and heal so slow, Radley couldn’t imagine the pain he went through. Poor Sila almost lost her babies and her husband at once. But William had been saved and the children found. Still, Radley refused for the man to take on the responsibility. He already blamed himself for his children being taken twenty-five years ago. It was Radley’s responsibility because their security had failed, so it was his fault. As alpha, his responsibility was to keep his clan safe. He’d failed that day.
The three cubs were grown now and strong members of the Clan. All three held something great, but the oldest female, Lily, had something special. One day, she’d make a great alpha herself. Only time would tell what type of leader she would become.
“I have to go say good bye to Mother. You’ll call if you need anything?” Radley asked, clapping William on the shoulder.
“Of course. We’ll be fine. Go win the Games and then when you get back, I expect a full telling of it.”
“You’ll be seeing it live.”
“You and I both know they don’t show everything, and besides, I have a feeling Cricket will bring her own sort of trouble to the mix.”
Radley huffed. “You’re probably right.”
William winked, pulled him close for a hug, and then turned to wander off into the Clan, directing the build of the other houses.
Glancing at his watch, Radley realized they had barely ten minutes before they were due to leave. He’d spent the day getting things in order for his absence, but now, he just wanted to spend time with his mother.
Crossing the ground to where she sat in a rocking chair on the porch, he smiled gently at her. Cricket glanced between them, understood that he needed some time, and inclined her head just barely before stepping off the porch.
“I’ll wait by the car.”
“See you around, bug,” his mother called to her, bringing a smile to her face as she winked and did as she’d said she would. Radley stared after her for a moment longer before taking a seat next to his mother.
Before he could say anything at all, his mother took the lead, as she was always apt to do.
“She’s something, isn’t she?” his mother murmured, staring after Cricket. “I’ve never seen anyone so effortlessly pretty.”
Frowning, Radley shrugged. “All fae are pretty.”
“Don’t be so dismissive, son. This one has something most don’t.”
Frown deepening, Radley looked over where Cricket stood leaning against the Bentley. She had her phone out as she swiped across the screen. It was always odd seeing creatures like the fae using modern technology. It was as if some weird conditioning made it seem strange. They had magic. Why did they need cellphones? But that was a silly thought. The fae were just as technologically advanced as the vampires. It would be foolish to think it strange for them to be using cellphones.
The way Cricket stood, her blonde hair hung around her in waves, fluttering in the wind that filtered through the trees. She was wearing a different pair of jeans today, still equally expensive, but the shirt she wore looked like an ordinary shirt from the local store. Front and center was a kitten in a taco and the words “Taco Cat” were written across the top. It should have looked silly, especially with her wings out, but somehow, it only made her more endearing.
If Radley was into that sort of thing. Which he wasn’t. Not in the slightest.
“What do you mean?” he asked, looking back to his mother.
“Cricket has a backbone.”
“Most fae have some sort of misplaced bravery,” Radley argued. “Just as wolves do.”
His mother shook her head. “That’s not it. It’s not misplaced. Whatever that girl is trying to prove, it’s important. You best believe that.”
Radley narrowed his eyes. “You’ve felt something?”
As a small child, Radley realized his mother sometimes had feelings. The thing was, those feelings almost always turned out to be true. If she’d been feeling something around Cricket, then he would take that seriously.
“I sense change,” she murmured softly, her voice a soft hum.
“In her?”
“Around her.” She reached out and took his hand, patting it gently with the other. “Take care of yourself, son. I suspect many would like to snuff out her light.”
“I’ll be fine,” he grunted, dismissing her worry on the outside, but inside, he was filing it away for later. If Cricket would be a harbinger of change, he would make sure to watch her until it was no longer his job to. “I just gotta help her win this race and then we’ll be free of the debt with the fae and the Clan can use the money for new housing.”
His mother’s eyes sparkled as if she knew some grand secret she wasn’t saying but he knew better than to ask. She wouldn’t tell him, and he was out of time anyways.
“Love you,” he told her, standing after giving her a quick hug she returned twice as hard.
“I love you, too,” she replied, her eyes crinkling. “The world is changing, Radley. Be careful you’re on the right side of that change.”
“What?”
But she was already looking away, watching the wolves building the new cabins again, and he knew she wouldn’t say another word on the matter. She may sense things, but his mother was a firm believer in letting things unfold naturally. He just wished he had such patience for things.
When he picked up his small duffle bag and walked over to the Bentley, Cricket gave him the tiniest acknowledgement, but when she looked at his mother and waved, the smile was genuine and wide.
For the barest of moments, he almost wished she would smile at him like that, but that was silly.
Werewolf alphas didn’t need smiles from pampered fae heiresses.