Reynold glanced between Liberty and I before speaking. He shifted in his chair as much as he could while being tied down. “Tobias is a piece of work. He told me if I went to the cops about you, he would shave off some of my debt, so I agreed. Before he left my place, he took a phone call.”
People would do a lot to pay down debts—my mother included. I couldn’t blame him.
“On the phone he said he needed his sister back because she was the ticket to their family improving their position with the alpha crime families in the city. He said he set up something with the Belisle pack and it involved his sister bonding the Ashby pack. Since it was his deal, he wasn’t pleased about you bonding ‘the bitch’—his words, not mine—but you were valuable, and his father insisted on keeping you. They said something about paying off high society debts, but a lot of that was on the other end of the line. I didn’t hear it.”
I stared at him, turning the words over.
We already knew a lot of that, but I’d assumed the deal had more to do with Noah Connolly than Tobias. That made this worse. Not only did Tobias hate Kiara, but her escape and our dark bond had fucked up plans he’d made to better his standing with their father.
“Is there anything else you can remember about the high society debts?” Ambrose asked.
His hand went to the small of my back. I let him touch me, indulging in it. Liberty raised an eyebrow skeptically when she saw the casual affection, but didn’t comment.
She’d be ribbing me about it later, I was sure.
Reynold shrugged. “They were a woman’s debts. If they were partially paid off, Tobias said they could count on the woman accruing more. I’m not sure what the potential payment was, though.”
Ambrose’s aura flared, filling the small room with hot iron and smoke. Reynold’s eyes widened and he shied back against the chair, but my employees were unphased. “That’s fine. I think I know.”
They had been talking about my mother. That much was clear. I didn’t know what the payment was either. Based on the accounts Dash had hacked into, my mother owed the Connollys so much money she would have to clear out all her accounts, sell off the houses, and then some, to clear her debt.
When Ambrose tilted his head toward the door, I nodded and followed him. Liberty hopped off the desk and tailed behind, while Jasper stayed with his patient.
“Your mother is paying off her debts by giving them you.”
He stated it like fact the moment the door closed behind Libby. I faltered, a denial on the tip of my tongue. I swallowed it down, a myriad of emotion swirling through me. Betrayal, disgust, pain.
“I wish I could say that doesn’t sound like something she would do,” I said quietly.
Ambrose tried to hug me, but Liberty pushed her way in between us. I considered her my best friend, but I’d always kept her at arm’s length—just like everyone else. Maybe my mother had fucked me up more than I thought. She’d damaged me as much as she had my brother, I just hadn’t realized it.
“She’s a raging cunt,” Liberty declared. “But if they’re paying off some of her debt in exchange for you, that means you’re valuable. They wouldn’t have entertained her if you weren’t. That’s a leverage point. Especially if Noah Connolly is the one who believes you’re important.”
Her hands clutched my shoulders, her brown hair loose and wild. She had a smile curling her lips, the look in her eyes almost feral. The amount of work she’d been doing behind the scenes was astronomical—especially because she was aware of how many of my contracts had dried up. I wouldn’t be able to afford to keep paying her forever, but she hadn’t jumped ship. She’d dug in her heels and supported me.
Maybe she considered me as much of a friend as I considered her, even if I hadn’t been a very good one.
Acting on impulse, I wrapped my arms around her and tugged her against me in a hug.
It was a weird feeling. The only person who hugged me on a regular basis was my brother, and not because I initiated them. He was a touchy person by nature. Kiara and I hadn’t even hugged much, despite the cuddling and sexual activities we’d participated in.
Liberty squeezed me before pulling back with a grin. “Maybe the strange omega was good for you after all.”
Touching moment or not, I growled at that. She laughed.
Ambrose placed his hand on my shoulder possessively, tucking me against his side. Once again, I relaxed under his affection, as unfamiliar as it was.
My mother may have sold me to fix her mistakes, but she wasn’t someone who mattered to me. The betrayal didn’t cut deep. I’d known for a long time that blood relations meant nothing to her.
“What if we went above Tobias?” I asked, glancing between Libby and Ambrose.
“To his father?” Liberty confirmed.
“Yes. We could offer Noah Connolly something he can’t refuse. I have some expertise he wants, clearly. With a bit more research into the Belisle pack and their connection to the Ashby pack, I’m sure I could give him something better than that alliance.”
“Won’t Tobias come after Kiara, still? She seems confident she’ll never be safe from him,” Ambrose said.
“It’ll be part of the deal. He won’t do anything that would sacrifice his position in his father’s empire. Noah Connolly will have to agree to keep Tobias away from us if he wants what we have to offer.”
