25

I paced around the room, waiting for the Councilwoman to come out with Milo. I was likely worried for nothing—there was no way she could seriously recommend sending Milo back to his parents after speaking with him—but when I glanced over at their smug faces, I couldn't stop the inkling of doubt from forming in my head. It didn't make sense to me how they could consider themselves parents, or how they could be so smug about potentially destroying their kid's life all over again. They were truly rotten excuses for people.

The sound of the door creaking open echoed through the room and the Councilwoman reproached with Milo. His eyes immediately found mine and I hurried to him.

"Are you alright?"

Milo nodded as he pulled away from the Councilwoman and into my arms. At the same time, his parents stood up and attempted to make their way toward us, causing Milo to growl and the Councilwoman to hold her hand up.

"We'd like to see our son," Milo's father spoke irritatedly.

"Your son?" The Councilwoman raised her eyebrows. "Now he's your son?" Her eyes narrowed and she scoffed disgustedly.

"Of course he is—"

"You must be joking," I interjected, unable to keep silent any longer. "After everything you've put him through, you think you can just waltz in here and call yourselves his parents?"

Milo's mother shot me a withering look. "This is none of your concern. We are his family."

I felt Milo's grip on my arm tighten. "No. Not my family," he muttered, barely above a whisper, but the words hung heavy in the air.

The Councilwoman turned her full attention to Milo's parents, her expression full of contempt. "It's a parent's responsibility to care for their child, not abuse them to the point where they fear for their lives. How dare you act as if you care for this young man when his well-being has not been your priority since he was born?"

An angry shade of red broke out on his mother's face. "How dare you! You have no idea what it was like raising him! He was terrible—"

"Nothing excuses abusing your child," I told her, my tone icy. "Face it, he doesn't want to go with you. He doesn't want to see you. He doesn't want you a part of his life."

The final word left my mouth and it was like a chain inside her mind broke. She snapped and lunged toward Milo and me. I moved to push him behind me, but she didn't get the chance to reach us before the Councilwoman pinned her to the ground.

"Alpha Slater, I, along with these two, will be leaving your pack lands today," said the Councilwoman, clearly unbothered by the whaling woman beneath her. "I will be leaving Milo here as that is what he wants, however, I strongly advise you both to consider enrolling him in therapy for everything he's endured."

A relieved smile spread across my face. "Thank you, Councilwoman Mira. We'll definitely consider therapy."

"...Therapy?" Milo repeated curiously.

"We'll talk about it later," I assured him, not wanting to potentially scare him after everything that already happened.

He seemed to accept the answer and I turned my attention back to Councilwoman Mira as she pulled Milo's mom off the ground. She glared daggers at me while her mate stood there watching the scene play out. His expression was full of shock, but I knew once the realization of the situation kicked in, they'd be a problem for even a council member to deal with alone.

"Edward, Caleb, please head my way. I need you to help Councilwoman Mira remove two vermin from the premises," I linked two of my warriors.

The last thing we needed was for them to escape and come back.

I waited until the warriors arrived before bidding Councilwoman Mira farewell and taking Milo outside.

"Are you ready to go home?" I asked him.

He didn't hesitate to respond. "Yes!"

I smiled at his enthusiasm and helped him toward the car. An excited smile broke out on his face when we started to drive, leaving his parents behind. I reached for his hand and without hesitation, gave it to me. So I tightly squeezed it.

"...Thanks," I heard him manage to say.

"You don't have to thank me for that, Milo. I'll always fight for you," I promised him and his eyes seemed to light up.

My mind drifted to Solomon and my frustration returned. I loved him, he was my brother after all, but I couldn't deny his behavior was atrocious. I knew he was doing it to hurt me, but it wasn't just me anymore. He was hurting Milo and I couldn't forgive that—blood or not. I'd hoped we could've settled this issue peacefully, but as more issues occurred, it was becoming a real possibility that I'd end up having to fight my brother. Or worse.

I thought back to the young boy who used to follow me around like I was his idol. Where had he gone and when did this...crueler version of him come into existence? It seemed like somewhere along the way, love and adoration had become corrupted and devolved into jealousy and condemnation which hurt me more than anything.

Milo softly squeezed my hand and my eyes drifted back to him. He stared at me with a worried expression on his face and despite everything, I couldn't stop the smile from forming on my face. He'd just seen his tormentors after years and yet, here he was still worrying about me.

"I'm okay," I answered his wordless question. I wasn't sure if he believed me or not, but he didn't let go of my hand.

The rest of the drive back home wasn't long and the moment we pulled into the driveway, Milo was ready to jump out of the car.

"Calm down," I grinned.

The expression he gave me told me my words fell on deaf ears. I got out of the car and moved to help him do the same. We wasted no time hurrying inside and he took a seat on the couch.

"Do you want to watch TV?" I questioned, knowing it was one of, if not his favorite, things in the house.

To my surprise, he shook his head and said, "No."

"No?"

He scooted over and patted the open spot next to him which I wasted no time filling. He turned to face me and I took in all of his features, remembering the omega I'd found in a cage. He had come far and I was so proud of him.

"Milo?"

His gaze lingered for a moment and he said nothing as he reached up to run his fingers through my hair like I had done to him many times in the past. I opened my mouth to ask him once again if he was okay, but all thoughts seemed to leave me when he leaned forward and placed his lips on mine.

I knew we still needed to talk, but that didn't matter at the moment. The only thing that mattered was him and if kisses were what he wanted then I'd give him all the love and kisses in the world because that was how much I cared about him.

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