Midnight Lies (Shifter Island #2) - Raye Wagner Page 0,57
dad about Rage and me. ‘Or what about the fact that we’re on the run from the king and maybe the High Mage Council, all of whom I’ve pissed off?’
He winced. ‘That’s a lot to catch him up on.’
‘Yeah,’ I snorted. ‘No one’s got this.’
And because I’d taken the magic oath when I’d boarded the boat for Alpha Academy, I wouldn’t be able to tell him anything. This was going to get interesting with hand gestures and broken words. Would it hurt when I tried to tell him? Or would no sound come out? I didn’t know how the spell worked to keep all that transpired at school a secret…
‘Maybe it would be best if I let you two talk—’
‘Nice try, mate. You’re coming with me.’
Rage nodded and put the car in park as Justice pulled up next to us.
“I’ll wait in the car until you give us the all-clear,” Elaine said. “This is so far away from official business…”
She was a foreign wolf, the wife of the alpha douche who banished my pack … I’d need to get my father’s invite for her to step foot on this dirt.
I nodded, and Rage stepped out of the car and opened my door.
“Shirt!” I whisper-screamed at Rage.
His eyes widened. “What?”
“You’re shirtless!” I gestured to his incredibly yummy washboard abs, but it was too late, my father stepped out on the porch, and his gaze jumped from me to the half-naked man holding my hand.
His brows drew together, and he clenched his jaw. “Nai?”
Emotions bubbled up in my chest, and a sob caught in my throat. This man might not have been my “bio” father, but he chose to raise me—he was, and always would be, my…
“Dad!” Running, I broke away from Rage and raced up the path. The cold air nipped at my nose and bit my cheeks, but none of that mattered.
My father wasn’t a very emotional man—being the alpha of a large pack will do that—but tears glistened in his eyes as I ran to him. The moment I hugged him, he wrapped his arms around me in a fierce embrace.
“Nai,” he whispered in my hair. Then, he cleared his throat, and his voice dropped, low and threatening. “You smell of blood. What’s wrong?” He pulled back and glanced at Rage. “Who the hell is the half-naked Midnight wolf? And why are you home early?”
I took in a deep breath, praying that I could somehow explain this to him with the spell in place.
“I’m half high mage, which I think you know, and we’re on the run because the alpha king wants to kill me.” Holy crap, I could talk. Maybe being half high mage meant the spell didn’t work on me? “He”—I pointed to Rage—“is Courage Midnight, my fated mate. His mother, the queen, is in the car as well as his brothers and two of my best friends from Harvest Clan. We need safety until my grandfather, Geoff, who is the high mage of spirit, arrives, because we’re going to bring Honor, one of the Midnight brothers, back from the dead.” Having run out of air, I sucked in a ragged breath and then smiled to soften the blow … or blows.
Eyes wide, my father stared at me, his eyebrows so high that I wondered if they’d hit his hairline.
“Fated mate?” His gaze went down to my fingers.
“Really?” I muttered. “Out of all that, you are stuck on fated mate? What about Grandpa Geoff, or bringing Honor back from the dead?”
He shook his head as if none of that made sense—because maybe it didn’t, and then ran his hand through his hair. “Nai, my sweet girl…” He swallowed hard and then brushed an errant lock of hair from my forehead. “I should have told you sooner, but everything I did was to protect you.”
I nodded. “I believe you.”
I was old enough to protect myself now, not so much as a defenseless child.
He looked at the car. “You trust everyone there?”
I nodded. “With my life. Ten times over.”
He dipped his head once. “Then tell all of them to come in, and we can talk.” At this, Rage opened the door to the sleek SUVs, letting our crew out. My dad kept his attention on me, and added, “Lona is making chili.”
My sweet Lon—always in the kitchen, always taking care of us. A grin pulled at my lips with the thought of her cooking. “With honey cornbread?”
He gave me a side-eyed look of have-you-lost-your-mind? “Of course.”