Omega's Truth - Nora Phoenix Page 0,36

with deliveries from the city suspended, they can only use existing materials, so it’s all very rudimentary.”

“Okay, that all sounds good, so where’s the problem?”

“Palani, Sando isn’t on the transfer list. He hasn’t officially requested to join the second pack. Maz and Lucan have, but Sando hasn’t.”

“I don’t understand. I thought they were together. They’re not? I mean, they haven’t officially announced anything, but you know how private those two are…and with the events of the last few weeks, who can blame them for focusing on other things?”

Bray’s look was intense. “Hence my worry. What’s going on there?”

Palani’s first thought was to head over immediately with Bray and get some answers, but then he reconsidered. It might not be official yet, but Maz and Lucan were transferring to the second pack. That made them Rhene’s and Sivney’s problem. If they wanted the second pack to stand on its own feet and their pack leaders respected, he couldn’t undermine their authority. Plus—and this was a far more humbling thought—how could he ask for answers when he’d failed them so spectacularly?

“I need to apologize,” he said softly. “I can’t speak for you, but I need to tell them how sorry I am for not following up on this.”

“Yeah, I feel the same. But what about the issue of Sando’s pack?”

Palani took a deep breath. “We’ll let Rhene and Sivney figure that out. Maz and Lucan are their responsibility now.”

“Fair enough.”

Palani rose to his feet. “I hope you’re hungry, Bray, because we’re about to eat some humble pie.”

13

Lucan had just stepped out of the shower when someone knocked on the door. Maz was still over on their new pack land, helping Servas and the others make the barns ready to be inhabited. Lucan had come back already with Sando because the little omega had been tired, and Lucan’s back had started acting up again.

“Can you get that?” he called out to Sando.

The door opened, and voices drifted in. Bray and…Palani? What were they doing here? Lucan dried himself off quickly, then wrapped the towel around his waist and stepped into the room. His brother and Palani were standing near the door.

Bray immediately held his hands in front of his eyes. “Too much skin,” he said, and his tone wasn’t even completely joking.

Sando hurried toward Lucan. “I wasn’t sure if you wanted me to let them in or not… He’s your brother, and Palani is, like, in charge, but it’s your room, and you were showering, and I hope I made the right call?”

“All good, kitten. Can you grab me my clothes so I can get dressed?”

Sando quickly got Lucan’s shorts and shirt and picked a fresh pair of underwear from his drawer, which showed an intimacy that made Lucan warm inside despite the somewhat awkward situation. “Here.”

“Thank you, kitten. I’ll be there in one minute.”

He stepped back into the bathroom and got dressed as fast as he could. Hell if he was doing that in front of his brother. Bray’s damn near-perfect body had caused him enough insecurity and inferiority over the years. He dragged a hand through his wet hair and called it a success.

“What can I do for you?” he asked when he’d stepped back into the room, and if his tone was a little icy, well, then they’d have to deal with it. As exuberant as he had been about Palani’s recovery, that didn’t mean he’d forgotten about his complete lack of care of Sando. And his brother hadn’t been much better, had he?

“I’m here to say I’m sorry,” Palani said softly. “Because I owe both you and Sando one hell of an apology.”

Lucan crossed his arms. “Go ahead.”

Bray’s eyes widened at that barely civil answer, but Lucan didn’t care.

“You came to me for help, to check in and make sure Sando was safe and okay, and I failed you… I can make up all kinds of excuses, but the truth is that I didn’t do a damn thing about it when I could have asked someone else to take over.”

“Why? Why didn’t you jump on this right away? I told you something was wrong… Maz had told Enar already, and he must have talked to you. Why didn’t you believe us?” Lucan choked, and Sando stepped close, trembling a little. Lucan pulled him against him, then kissed his hair. “If you want to step out for a moment because this is too stressful for you, that’s fine, kitten.”

Sando leaned into his embrace. “I don’t like to see you hurt