Omega Bound Chapter 196

Thane

I’m collecting items within Della’s apartment to take home and dig through. I could go to the office, but I just need to get as far away from this apartment as possible. I’m confused, hurt, angry, and well, creeped out. Mostly creeped out. Disgusted at myself is right up the list as well.

“Hey, do you remember when you were fourteen and Becky showed up at school with a broken arm and apparently had a cast for a few days?” Ayla asks and I’m almost too afraid to answer.

“Yeah?”

“Della broke her arm.” I might need to see a healer for whiplash because of the speed at which I turned my head to Ayla.

“What? That’s what happened? She told everyone she fell wrong from the top of the fall.” I remember her cast vividly. It was black because she didn’t want anyone to be able to sign it. Becky also didn’t tell anyone why she didn’t want them to sign it either. She was pretty banged up, black eyes and everything. It was a believable story.

I think my eyes are as big as the tires on my SUV. Side note….we need a pup seat and probably some cameras in the back as well. That way I can see the little chubby pup from the dash. I was chubby for a while…he’ll grow out of it….Will Ayla be able to push a pup as big as I was out? Was she big? Of course not, I scoff. She’s tiny.

“Thane!” Little Wolf’s shout pulls me out of my soon-to-be father's spiral. Why is punching through a wall or snapping a neck no big deal, but thinking about driving my pup around is enough to make me want to hand over my Alpha title, become a hermit, and wrap all my family in bubble wrap? Wait….is this normal? I’m sure it is.

“Huh? What?” I tried to compose myself, but it was obvious I wasn’t listening.

“Did you hear me? Della wrote, and I quote; “That stupid heifer won’t try to put her fat arms around my Alpha anymore. End quote.” I can do nothing but blink at this point.

“I’m going to take all these bank statements and devices. I also have Damon and his team tearing up Kian’s apartment as we speak. I don’t know what we will find, but I hope it isn’t any more diaries.” If there is a diary with Little Wolf in it, I will RAGE.

I will probably be tempted to murder his brothers and burn down his….their bar as well.

“Della was clearly obsessed with you, from a very young age. I don’t think she would help with the trafficking ring. Della would have to know that it would put you in danger and I’m not sure she could handle that. Obviously not. I read two pages of heartache she wrote when you and Cyrus got into dirt bike accidents. They were also crazy pages with weird threats, but she was upset regardless.” Her logic is sound, and I hope for her parents’ sake she is right.

“Cyrus threw a metal pipe at me, and it went into my rim. He wasn’t in a dirt bike accident. He got his ass whooped by me and then covered for us when we got home.” My mother was not happy.

“Good thing he covered, or Della would have done something to him.”

“Clearly.” I shake my head as I continue tearing everything apart. The shrines in her bedroom are enough to make me sick.

“If I had known how obsessed she was and how far back it went, I would never have accepted her…well, I just wouldn’t have done anything with her and referred her for help.” Not like she would have told me, but this could have been avoided when she was a child had any of us known.

“Stop beating yourself up, Thane.”

“Usually, I’m the one telling you those things.” I smile at her and throw more crap into a garbage bag. This whole situation is eating at me. It didn’t need to be like this.

“Let’s go home and I will send someone else back in to comb through it and then destroy everything, I guess. I can’t be here anymore. Her parents want nothing as far as I know. They are ashamed. I think I’m more upset that their memory of her was ruined.”

I open the door and wait for Ayla to finish grabbing the journals she is adamant she wants. I don’t necessarily agree that she should be reading them, for her own personal wellbeing, but I’m not going to say no to her either.

Ayla frowns and sends reassurance through the bond, and I wonder how she is handling being here better than I am. I’m not the one that killed her. Well deserved, but I don’t want this to flare up any painful memories for Little Wolf. She is down to hardly any nightmares, and I would like to keep it that way.

I take her hand and lead her out of the apartment as I mind-link Damon an update.

*“What do you want me to do with all the creepy photos of you?”* I know he saw them, hopefully not too many others did.

*“Burn everything in there after double-checking where her family stands. Don’t tell Cyrus about them either.”* That would be a nightmare I won’t hear the end of.

*“Too late.”* Damn it.

I sigh loudly as I tuck Ayla into the vehicle and pull away from the pack house. “What about your trinkets? You don’t want them? She asks, pulling open the journal again.

“Well, trinkets doesn’t sound very Alpha to me, and no. I got the knife, the rest can go.”

“Fine….Alpha paraphernalia.” Little Wolf snorts to herself and I can’t help but laugh.

“Still don’t want it.”

The drive home was short and uneventful other than Ayla reading random creepy passages from Della’s journal. “I will use your kidney for sushi and your finger bones as chopsticks.” Is probably the most demented so far.

Don’t even get me started on the reasons why she wanted to be Luna. None make good characteristics for a Luna in any way. Greed, control, luxury, notoriety. All things I want nothing to do with, and I know Ayla feels the same way.

I pull up the drive and can hear faint rumblings from within my home. One that is being invaded by other shifters. Ronan has no beef with them, but he isn’t keen on other wolves being near his family in close quarters and is on edge.

“They need to find a place soon Ayla.”

“They will, but they just got here. You can’t kick them out yet.” Little Wolf laughs as we walk up the steps to our home.

Opening the door to my home only proves my point. We open it in time to see a frying pan fly across the kitchen, bounce off one of the kitchen cupboards, chipping the wood and rattling on the floor below.

I already have Ayla tucked behind me as I stand in the doorway, ready to murder them both. “What the hell is going on in here?” Ayla grabs hold of my arm, trying to reign me in, but I couldn’t be more livid right now.

“Oh look, grumpy pants is back.” Cyrus smiles standing in front of the cupboard that just took a frying pan. He’s shirtless which has me growling, but he also has pants on which is better than usual for him, I guess. “Did you find any toenails?”

“What?” Raven asks, turning to us. Obviously, the pan thrower. I would be concerned for any other relationship if her mate wasn’t Cyrus.

He loves this shit.

Too bad he’s going to die for his toenail comment.