“I hope he isn’t fussy about formula brands. We only keep one kind in stock, but it’s very good. High quality,” Ms. Beth said as she got a waking Henry settled into the crook of her arm.
“No, ma’am. He’s used to making do with whatever we have,” Kai said. He kept his head bowed as he spooned broth into his mouth, scolding his ears and neck for heating again at something he shouldn’t feel embarrassed about.
“That’s good. We wouldn’t want the pup to get a tummy ache.” Ms. Beth smiled down at Henry as he sucked at the bottle, unperturbed at being held and fed by a stranger. Without looking up, she said, “After you eat, we can find you a couple of rooms, and you can get cleaned up if you’d like.”
Oh god. She was so polite, but Kai knew they had to be rank. They’d only been allowed to bathe out of buckets once a week, and the last time had been a few days ago. He glanced at Sammi and could just see one of her red cheeks where she was bent, making sure Callie didn’t spill while she insisted on trying to feed herself.
Kai cleared his throat. “We’ll need to wait for Bennett and the others. He has our things.”
Ms. Beth gave him a genuine smile before looking back down at Henry. “Don’t worry, dear. We have plenty of extras around here in all sorts of sizes. I’m sure we can find you something until we get your things washed and back to you.”
He choked down another mouthful, making a noncommittal noise, but his eyes burned with humiliation. Ms. Beth had known them less than an hour and had already made the correct assumption that everything they owned was dirty.
Because they were dirty.
Half-breeds.
He ducked his head and focused on breathing for a moment. Mildred had screamed that nasty word at them so many times he felt it in his bones. Could feel the filth of their disgusting origins on his skin. Could feel her hands grabbing his—
One breath and then another.
Her voice finally faded from his ears, and he could hear Ms. Beth asking Sammi about things she liked. He was glad his sister was at least answering, even though her responses were fairly short. He quickly finished his bowl, nodded at Sammi to do the same, and stood from the table.
“Thank you for the food. Can I help clean up?”
“No, no, no. Don’t you worry about it. Just leave your bowls there, and I’ll come back and tidy up after we get you situated upstairs.” She checked the bottle and realized Henry was back asleep. She chuckled as she set it on the table. “I guess he’s all done too.”
She handed him back to Kai without hesitation. When Callie complained about still being hungry, Ms. Beth told her she could come back for some more broth in a little bit. Within a few minutes, they were headed out of the kitchen, and the tightness around Kai’s chest finally eased.
Chapter Three
It was later than Rick had planned by the time he and the others returned to the manor, both SUVs kicking up dust into the twilight. After removing both Kings’ right hands, he’d called the pack’s coven leader, Agnes, to come meet them at the southern border of the territory. She’d taken nearly two hours to arrive, waiting until it was time to close the coven’s store before joining them. Her scent had reeked of magic, but he could still tell she hadn’t meant her apology for keeping him waiting, claiming she “hadn’t realized” they were already at the border when they’d called her.
He snarled at her, but Bennett’s hand on his shoulder had stopped him from calling the old witch out on her bullshit. She may not have been the most powerful witch in the pack, but she knew how to manipulate people into following her. Rick didn’t need the headache of fighting within the pack because she disrespected him and wasted his time.
She’d finally gotten around to doing as he asked and adding warding to the border to specifically prevent the Kings from crossing back over. Marcus and Nico had stood on the other side with the whimpering and defeated Kings to be sure they didn’t try to enter before Agnes was through. When she finished, everyone had simply gotten into their vehicles and driven away, the Kings’ cries for help ignored.
Bennett parked the SUV Rick was in off to the side and turned it off, but no one inside said anything or moved to get out for long moments. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see the other vehicle sitting there the same way.
Finally, Bennett cleared his throat and spoke. “So that was… fun.”
Rick’s answering chuckle held little humor. “Yup.”
“What’s the plan for those kids?” Bennett finally just asked as everyone exited the vehicles. He and Marcus each held pillowcases filled with the saddest collection of clothes and books Rick had ever seen.
Rick grunted as he made his way to the front door, knowing they’d all follow him. As they climbed the porch steps, he said, “We take care of them.”
“Okaaay.” José, one of his youngest betas, stretched out the word to really show Rick how little he thought of that answer.
Marcus elbowed the beta before Rick could respond, and he hid a smile. Marcus didn’t believe in sassing alphas, though Rick was fairly lax about most things alphas traditionally insisted upon. He wanted loyalty and obedience, not robots.
“Ouch! Sorry, but seriously? What happened to those kids was beyond messed up. They’re going to need more than a day and some pampering from Beth to recover.”
Hand on the doorknob, he turned to look over his trusted Enforcers and betas and saw the sorrow and concern he felt reflected on each of their faces. “We give them whatever they need. Understood?” He waited until he got nods from everyone. “Good. We’ll wait until tomorrow before questioning them about how they ended up in that shed or where their mom is.”
He led the way into the entrance hall and saw Beth standing off to one side, waiting for him. He heard José say behind him, “Anyone else think it’s kinda poetic that Rick got the ‘mate’ that bitch tried to barter with and still got to banish them? With prejudice.”
A couple of them chuckled as Bennett swung the door shut with a bang. “You’re all awful people.”
“Oh, come on, B. You gotta admit it’s a little funny. Especially the way he waved that rake in your face.” José wrapped an arm around Bennett’s shoulders as everyone laughed at the reminder. “If you can’t laugh in the face of such a fucked-up situation, you’ll end up crying into your pillow.”
Bennett’s reply was lost as the group wandered off toward the dining room to make sandwiches with the fixings Beth would have left out for them. Rick waved her over once they were gone.
“Oh gracious, Rick, where on earth did you find those poor babes?” Beth blurted out as she hurried over to him. “Vanessa texted me right before they arrived but didn’t give much in the way of details.”
“We don’t have many to give.” Rick quickly rehashed what had happened as he made his way to the stairs, intent on showering the Kings’ blood off before eating anything. When he finished the short tale, he added, “Has Doc been by to see them? V said hours ago she was calling him but never got back to me about what he said.”
“We forgot he’s on vacation. He called and I spoke with him. He offered to call a friend of his, Tom Wen, to come and examine them, but I declined.” She paused, and he nodded. Unless absolutely necessary, he wouldn’t allow a stranger into his home or near the King siblings. She’d definitely made the right decision. “I told him I’d let him know if we changed our minds or something happened, and he agreed to make the manor his first stop when he returned.”