Chapter 12
Rafe
The phone in my hands felt like a bomb about to go off. I ran my fingers through my hair again before I threw the phone through the wall. I could barely contain the rage flowing through my limbs. Jinx, one of the lower-ranking wolves in the pack, had been able to trace the phone number that Tracey had gotten from Jade’s mother. None of it was good. The phone number was linked to one of the witch covens on the other side of the Racer Pack. We couldn’t go through their territory without permission but we had no idea if they were working together either.
When my father had been Alpha things had been strained between our two packs for hundreds of years. I had no reason to patch things up. I had no reason to dig up old memories of my old man before he got sick. I also didn’t have much reason to bring it up to my mom… until now.
She was watching me across the table, with my brother. My brother ignored my gaze as he shoveled food into his mouth. My mother, however, had her eyes set on me. Neither of us had touched our food. I leaned back in my chair and crossed my arms over my chest. The phone was now discarded on the table.
“Tell me about the Racer Pack,” All the commotion at the table skidded to a halt. My mother’s eyebrow quirked slightly as she rose from the table and walked down the hall. I knew where she was headed before I stood from my chair. I ground my teeth together as I followed behind her.
The smell of Jade was faint now, but it was enough to make me flinch as I pushed the office door closed behind me. She had bought a little succulent for her desk and had brought a water bottle from home. There was a pen set neatly next to the monitor. Those were the only traces of her here.
I rubbed the center of my chest with my fist as I tried to process all the emotions flooding me.
“Your uncle is the Alpha of the Racer Pack,” My head snapped up at the words. My mom leaned back in the office chair and closed her eyes. “He left this pack for a number of reasons but the first one was when your father chose a wife.”
I leaned against the wall and took a deep breath. This was a story that I wasn’t ready to hear, but also, a story that my mother needed to tell. I could see it on her face, how much pain it was causing her to keep it all in. To keep it all together. Her shoulders relaxed an inch.
“She was a witch,” I watched as my mom’s throat bobbed and the air filled with her nervous scent. “There was already enough turmoil with the witch covens at the time. Your father thought marrying one would be a good thing. Axel, Tracey’s dad, had married a half-witch. He had mated with her. What was the big deal?”
I ran my hand down my face and she continued.
“He thought the mate bond would just snap into place eventually, but there were complications and eventually she died.” Complications? I narrowed my eyes. What were the complications? How long ago was this? I pressed my lips together even though all of my thoughts and questions fought to come out. “That was at least a hundred years ago. There was much that happened after that but apparently, your uncle was in love with her. When she died, he was devastated. He told your father he was never allowed to come through the pack again. That he would never be welcomed back or forgiven. The covens eventually forgave your father because it wasn’t his fault. Complications with pregnancy happened all the time, especially when mixing supernatural races. Your Uncle Jared never got over it, unfortunately. We haven’t seen or heard from the Racer Pack since.”
I exhaled through my nose and shook my head. Was he involved in this? Was he working with the witches and the rogues?
