The remaining rebels fled the room, and I turned to Garrett. “Start making calls. Get a clean-up crew here right away.”
There would be consequences to what happened here tonight, ones I wasn’t fully prepared to address just yet. I held Kayden close as my eyes fell on Branson’s dead wolf once again, closing my eyes as I sighed heavily.
While Branson’s behavior was unacceptable, Kayden had incited this fight with him. There would indeed be consequences.
30
KAYDEN
Isat on the steps of the building, wrapped in a blanket, but I couldn’t stop shaking even though one of Holden’s men had brought me warm pants and a sweatshirt. In front of me, Holden paced as he spoke to his father on the phone. He hadn’t let me leave his side since the fight, which was fine with me.
“We’re going to need a clean-up crew, but Garrett has that handled,” he said, scrubbing a hand over his face. He glanced down at me, his face pinched as he continued. “Three alphas died tonight.”
He didn’t say anything for a few moments, and I assumed Bridger was talking. What would he say when he found out what I’d done? I hadn’t gone in set on killing Branson, but it had been a distinct possibility in my mind. I’d prepared myself for that eventuality.
As much as I was for saving lives when possible, I had no regrets over what I’d done. Since he’d come into power, Branson had cost many dozens of shifters their lives. In a way, it felt like I’d finally set things right by ending the life of the man responsible for my brother’s death. Branson couldn’t cause any more destruction and was no longer a threat to Holden and the North American pack.
“No,” Holden said adamantly. “I’ll leave the soldiers who killed the other two alphas. But Kayden is coming back with me.”
I glanced up at him, confused, and found his expression hard, his jaw ticking as he spoke to his father. When he ended the call and sat beside me, his head in his hands, I reached out a tentative hand to rest on his shoulder.
“What did he say?”
Holden turned to me. “It doesn’t matter right now. We’ll have an emergency meeting as soon as we get home, and the council will convene tomorrow. For now, I don’t want you to worry about it.”
I frowned. “But it’s okay for you to worry?”
“That’s part of my job, Kayden.”
And if he chose me as his mate, it would be mine as well. How often had he dealt with the fallout of things like this, shouldering the burden alone? I wanted to be there for him, to provide support in some small way, but he was shutting me out.
“We can go whenever you’re ready,” he said. “Garrett will stay behind and ensure everything is taken care of.”
“Can we visit my home first?” The idea just came to me. It would be nice to collect some of my things since I hadn’t had a chance when Holden first took me away.
I marveled at how much had changed. If anyone had told me before that fateful day Holden had shown up here that I would be willingly leaving with him, abandoning my home for a new life at his side, I would have laughed in their face. My enemy had become my lover—my mate—and nothing would ever be the same.
“Of course,” he said, rising to his feet and extending his hand. “I’d love to see where you grew up.”
“It’s not much,” I warned him. “Barely large enough to house my family. But it was home.”
Was. How could I already be thinking of the only home I’d ever known as something that was part of my past now? But that was the fact of the matter. My future wasn’t here. None of my family remained except for Jenna, who was safely ensconced in Holden’s estate.
Following my directions, he drove me to the little family house, and I led him inside. At least it was clean if a little dusty. I shivered, imagining how Jenna must have felt to be here alone, stuck under Branson’s rule.
Not anymore. Never again would any shifter be subjected to his cruelty. I walked around with a bag, gathering some personal items I wanted, including a family picture of the five of us, taken well over a decade ago.
Holden came up behind me, looking at the photo. “You guys look happy,” he commented.
I shoved the picture in the bag. “It was a long time ago.” I looked around, surprised that the place I’d always known as home no longer felt like it. “I think I want to sell the house,” I said suddenly, turning to face Holden. “There’s no reason for me to hang onto it any longer. Not with Jenna at the estate.”
Holden cleared his throat and glanced away. “We can worry about that after the Contention.”
We. I smiled, a rush of hopeful anticipation filling me at his words. He was talking about the future. About our future together.
He gave me a tiny smile, though it didn’t quite reach his eyes. “You should visit Jenna when we get back while I sort things out with my father. It’s going to be a long night.”
“I thought that was against the rules.”