wrap his arms around my waist. My back now rested against his chest, so Lane shifted to drape my legs across his lap. It was nice. The fact that Pax, Trent, and Seth didn't seem to care made it even nicer. For just a moment, I allowed myself to relax, simply enjoying that my guys were here, willing to help make this easier.
"Our kids," Ian said softly. "That's the thing, Elena. They really are all of our kids. Samantha and that boy, Theo? They're helping because they want to. That's what makes Gabby so amazing, though. She's an alpha, and one day, she will inherit this pack from me. She has a way of bridging the gap between wolves and humans because she's lived as both."
"And she's fourteen," I reminded him.
"Almost fifteen," he pointed out. "Her quinceaċ¸½era is coming fast. Only a few more weeks."
"Which is still a child." I looked up at him, making sure he knew I wasn't mad.
So he kissed the top of my head. "Sometimes, we have to let them help. When I was her age, I was being groomed to be the next pack alpha. I had to deal with plenty of things, but Dad was always right there, or one of his betas. Why can't we do the same for these kids?"
"Like those teenagers from Florida," Seth said. "Their school had a shooter, and they made it into a movement. Their parents couldn't have done the same thing."
"Or any young adult urban fantasy novel," Trent added. "Sometimes, the kids really are the ones in the best position to fix things, and this is one of those times."
"But," Ian said, "we'll help. Maybe it's from the background, and maybe we won't get any credit for it, but we can still help. And if this works? If those kids can turn that video of Roman shifting into an accepted hoax that people forget about? Then all it does is help them. The next time there's a video, Samantha's tutorial video will be cited to explain it away."
"Making their own world a little safer," Lane said softly. "We all knew it would happen one day. Well, that day has come, and Gabby knows what she's doing. Better than I do, truth be told."
"They grew up online," Seth said. "That girl has never known a time before Twitter and Facebook. Handling the nuances of social media is no different for her than choosing what clothes she wears."
"But she shouldn't have to save the pack at her age," I reminded them.
"You're right," Ian agreed. "She shouldn't. She also shouldn't have to worry about some kid shooting up her school or anything else. That doesn't mean it won't happen, Elena. I'm sorry, but that's life. In an ideal world, she'd be able to have no worries for a few more years, but she convinced Roman to bite her, and this is the price of that. She's going to have to consider who knows what and how that can affect those around her for the rest of her life."
I just leaned forward to rub at my eyes. "She was supposed to be safe here. I left Gerardo to make sure she grew up properly, not having to worry about the things I did."
"So she gets to worry about others instead," Ian said. "I wish I could say I'm sorry, but I'm really not. I'm glad the two of you are a part of the pack. I hate that all of this happened, but I can't change that. I can't make people accept us, Elena. I can't change what I am, no more than you can."
"She's talking about the pressures on Gabby, though," Pax said. "Ian, she's right. Gabby's a kid! Samantha's the same age, and she's about to be grilled for this. The news won't care how old she is or what she just went through. All they'll care about are the ratings."
"So what should we do instead?" Ian asked, looking at his betas. "Because I'm open to suggestions here. Should I make a statement? Maybe just say that we're all werewolves, but it's cool?"
"That's not what he meant," Trent said, but there was a warning in his tone. "Don't be a dick, man."
"I'm being serious," Ian said. "If anyone has a better idea, I'm more than willing to take it. The kids already have this started, but I actually agree - they shouldn't have to do this. I just don't know how else to fix this problem."
"What if Samantha breaks?"