The Light in Us

61. Zeke

61

Zeke

I force out a breath as I stare down at the gift I have for Fallon.

It’s not especially pretty. Or new.

But I’m hoping it’s the right one.

When it’s finished.

When my phone rings, I answer it absently. “If you’re calling to brag, I’ve already had a good ten messages from Teddy sending me photos of their flowers.”

But Fox’s voice is hard. My body turns to ice as I listen. “We’ll be down now.”

I can hear Fallon humming, a sweet, melodic sound as I walk up to Teddy’s office. She rocks back on her heels, smiling at me. “Hey, you.”

I try to smile back at her, but it feels forced. “Hey.”

Fallon stiffens, picking up on my tension. A little crease appears between her eyebrows. “What is it?”

“Zeke?” Teddy appears from behind me, glancing between us.

“Something’s happened,” Fallon whispers. She pales. “With the Smith pack. Hasn’t it?”

“Nothing you need to panic about,” I force out, striding to her. She doesn’t respond as I tug her to her feet and pull her into me. “Nothing bad is going to happen, sweetheart, I promise you. Fox is down there with our legal team, and Ro is down there too. But they want to speak to you.”

“Who?” Fallon whispers. She grips onto my suit jacket tightly.

“The cops.” I cup her cheeks, stroking her soft skin. “The Smith pack… they’re accusing us of abducting you, Fallon.”

***

Teddy and I exchange concerned glances as we descend in the lift.

“I’m not staying behind,” he snaps at me again when I open my mouth. His face is flushed. “Not a damn chance, Zeke.”

Fuck. Fox is going to lose his mind.

And Fallon… Fallon says nothing. She’s gripping her own arms, hugging herself in that way that she has of retreating when it all gets too much. Her breathing is deepening by the second into panicked breaths that rip at my heart.

We can hear the shouting before the door even opens on the first floor.

“We have a meeting room here,” I say quietly. “Fox took them there.”

Except that’s blatantly obvious, because I can hear Fox yelling from all the way down the hall. Teddy lets out a soft whine at the fury in his voice.

—not taking my fucking mate anywhere—

And Rowan. Rowan is arguing with Fox, trying to calm him down.

Fuck, I hope Wilder isn’t in there.

“This will be sorted out in a few minutes.” I turn to Fallon.

She’s staring at the meeting room door.

And then my mate takes off at a run.

“Shit,” Teddy breathes as we both stop in shock.

But I’m already pelting after her. “Fallon!”

She bursts into the meeting room ahead of me. By the time I catch up, I’m expecting to dive into a clusterfuck of alpha rage and my mate’s panic.

But that’s not what I get as I skid into the doorway, ducking to push my way through.

The room is full. Against the far wall, two uniformed cops are tense, watching the scene in front of them. And another alpha male not in uniform is staring in shock at my mate.

Fox is growling, the sound rippling through the room.

But it’s not the only sound.

Because standing in front of him, with her teeth bared, is my mate…

And she’s growling louder than Fox.