Daddy

PATRICK

Not long after I took over as the alpha of my pack, my dad decided it was time to show my mom the world.

I knew better. They’d traveled plenty during their time together. This was about giving me room to make my own mark.

He didn’t want to hover, and my pack wouldn’t feel confident if their new alpha was still under the old one’s wing.

They started their journey in the south of the country, hitting Australia before Europe.

Right now, they were still in Australia. That wouldn’t be a big deal, except I got a call from my dad.

He couldn’t mind-link me because the connection didn’t reach that far.

Part of me wished the phones didn’t work either. But they did, so here I was, head in my hands, trying to figure out how to do what needed to be done.

I was a mess. Giving bad news is tough unless you’re heartless, and I knew I wasn’t.

“You can’t put it off any longer, my love,” Eva’s voice came from beside me. “They’re coming this afternoon.”

“I know,” I groaned. “I know. But I can’t. I just can’t.”

“Do you want me to do it?” she asked gently.

I shook my head. As much as I appreciated the offer, it wouldn’t be right. I had to be the one to do it. I knew Max better, or at least I thought I did.

I took her hand and kissed it, while she used her other hand to stroke my hair.

“He was so happy with her since Cal left,” I said. “Why did it have to be now?”

“Now or later, it would still hurt, my love,” Eva reasoned.

I sighed deeply.

“You’re right,” I agreed, half-heartedly. Then a hopeful thought crossed my mind. “But just because they’re coming doesn’t mean they’ll take her all the way to Australia, right?”

I looked up at her for reassurance, but all I saw were her sad eyes looking back at me.

“Shit,” I whispered. “How am I supposed to tell him now?”

“You have to. If they show up and Max isn’t prepared to restrain his wolf, things could go bad. They’ll take her, and he’ll never see her again.”

“Why can’t we keep her?” I shouted, frustrated. “Why can’t they move here instead of uprooting the pup? Where the hell has the man been all these months? All these bloody years?

“What kind of person abandons his family like that?”

The angry questions poured out of me, and Eva had no answers. But her gentle touch was soothing.

I glanced at the clock on the wall, took a deep breath, squeezed her hand, and then left.

MAX

The past month, we’d settled into a nice routine.

Caleb left to start his schooling and training, and my dad enrolled Estella in the local human elementary school.

I decided to do my senior year in a human high school too.

We’d already talked about it with my dad, even before she came into my life. We both agreed it would be better to study medicine alongside humans, so I’d go to a “regular” university.

I’d been my father’s assistant since I was seven. I had most of the skills I needed to take his place.

Estella was still sleeping in my room, and we’d put a temporary bed for me in the study, which wasn’t used much anyway.

She threw a fit because I wouldn’t sleep with her like Caleb did. She tried to find me in the study, but I’d locked the door.

So, we didn’t talk for two full days. Eventually, she settled for afternoon games and three bedtime stories, which turned into four because she always wanted more.

Every morning we had breakfast together: Mom, Dad, Estella, and me. My dad left early for the pack clinic.

I’d take her to school, and if I finished early, I’d pick her up. If not, my mom would do it and keep her busy until I got home. Then she’d insist we shift so we could play.

On weekends, she’d bang on my door at an ungodly hour with a ridiculously big picnic basket in her tiny hands, almost dragging her down. We’d picnic by the lake.

I didn’t know where she got the idea. I’d never seen another child like her. But I went along with almost everything she asked.

She was so cute that it was hard to say no. And when I had to, and I did, my wolf would give me an earful, which I’d ignore.

It was after one of those picnics that I found Patrick waiting for us outside my house, pacing nervously.

I was in my human form, carrying Estella with one arm and the empty picnic basket with the other. Her head was resting on my shoulder, half asleep, like always.

“Good morning, cousin,” I greeted him cheerfully.

“Morning,” he muttered, looking uneasy. “Max, can we talk for a sec? Alone.”

I gave him a look. Something told me it would be much longer than a sec, and I probably wouldn’t like it. But I nodded, a heavy feeling in my heart.

Without a word, I went inside, but Patrick didn’t follow.

Okay.

I left the basket in the kitchen. Mom wasn’t there yet, but that was normal. She always spent Sundays doing creative activities with the pups.

Next, I took Estella up to my room, took off her shoes and dirty clothes, dressed her in my shirt, and tucked her in.

She’d be out for at least three hours before she woke up, all charged up and ready to play again.

I ran down the stairs to find him in the same spot. As I approached, he turned and headed for the woods.

“I just came back from there, you know,” I joked.

He nodded but didn’t say anything else until we reached a clearing. There, he turned to face me, but he stayed silent, a serious look on his face.

“Alright, we’re here, alpha. Now, can you tell me what the hell is going on?” I asked, my patience wearing thin.

His mood was rubbing off on me, and I didn’t like it.

“Just give me a minute,” he said, closing his eyes briefly before opening them again. “You know my parents are traveling the world, right?”

“Yes,” I answered slowly, unsure of where he was going with this.

“They made a stop in Australia to visit an old friend and ally.”

Australia? I took an involuntary step back, trying to keep my wolf calm. She was catching on and getting upset.

My first instinct was to bolt, but I knew it wouldn’t do any good. So, I stayed and listened.

“My dad’s friend is human but knows all about us. So, my dad filled him in on the pack’s latest news.”

He paused, looking at me intently.

“He mentioned Estella,” he said. “My dad’s friend found it odd that he had a sister named Estella who died years ago.”

My jaw tightened, and my head began to throb. It was getting harder to keep my wolf under control when I was so emotionally charged.

“It’s her Uncle Julian,” he continued. I must have missed something, but at this point, I didn’t care.

“They were on a safari. That’s why they couldn’t be reached. When they got back, Julian ignored the calls and messages he had received, thinking they weren’t important.

“When my dad told him about Estella, he wanted to know her last name. So, they called me…”

His voice trailed off, leaving me to connect the dots.

“Are they coming?” I asked, my voice sounding strange to my own ears.

Patrick nodded.

“Today, in the afternoon,” he said. “I don’t think they’ll take her right away, though. There’s probably a lot of paperwork for humans.”

“I see. It was bound to happen, eventually.”

I felt numb. I shut down.

“Max, I’m…”

“Leave me alone.”

UNKNOWN

When she woke up, rubbing her eyes with her small hands, Max was there, watching her.

He looked a bit sad, so she crawled into his lap and peppered his cheek with kisses to cheer him up. It usually worked, but not this time.

He smiled at her as he stroked her hair, and she hugged him tightly, resting her head on his chest.

His breathing was off, and his heart was beating too loudly, lacking its usual comforting rhythm.

“Are you okay, Max?” she asked.

“Yes, darling. I’m fine. I just have something to tell you…” he started, but was interrupted.

Someone was calling her name. The voice was familiar. Too familiar. It couldn’t be, could it? She tried to wriggle out of Max’s hold, needing to see for herself.

“No, baby, not yet,” Max soothed, holding her tighter. “Let me tell you first.”

But she couldn’t listen to him when the voice was calling her.

She slipped out of his arms and ran to the stairs, descending so recklessly that it was a miracle she didn’t fall.

When she reached the bottom, there he was. Tall and smiling, his dark-blond hair as unruly as ever. He knelt down and waited for her with open arms.

She ran to him, her heart filled with joy at the thought of having him back, only to stop abruptly when she was close enough to see his eyes.

Gray…

Gray.

Not brown.

Her world shattered for the second time in that moment because she had thought that if he were alive, the rest of her family would be too.

“Estella,” the man whispered, his smile fading.

“You’re not my daddy,” she accused. “Why?”

“I’m sorry.” He lowered his head.

But she didn’t care that he was sorry. She only cared that she had lost her daddy again, as if once wasn’t enough.

She backed away, her eyes stinging. She wanted to run, but her feet felt like lead.

This time she did fall, and she couldn’t get up. It was Max who picked her up, holding her protectively against his chest.

She clung to his shirt as the stinging in her eyes became unbearable.

“Get out!” he growled, his voice echoing in her mind.

She faintly heard the front door open and close. Then they were moving. Back upstairs.

He gently placed her on her bed, but when she felt his warmth leaving her, she panicked and grabbed his shirt.

He gently removed her hands.

“I’m not going anywhere, darling. Just give me a minute,” he said.

He was back in less than a minute, and she was grateful. She tried to look at him, but her eyes were burning and blurry.

“It hurts, Max,” she whimpered.

He wrapped his arms around her small body, and she inhaled his scent for comfort, but it didn’t help, and she felt even more desperate.

“I know,” he said, his voice sounding strange. “I know. Just let it go. I’m here. Let it go.”

And she did.