Chapter 45

Rachel POV

Bella & Rachel's Apartment

"You're going to demand an inquiry into your mother's death, okay? You have to insist on it. Jack says if you insist on an investigation? They have to listen to you because your mother is the keyholder for the Alpha House."

Bella has replaced Jack at the table with me where the papers which make up my life have been collected.

Jack finally gave up to go back to his own place to get some sleep and hopefully a shower since he'd been sequestered with me for most of the week trying to come up with a "plan of attack" before I go in front of the Alpha Council.

"I got that part. Inquiry. No problem. Why do they have to take me seriously though? Patrick and this Richard guy are both more connected than I am. On paper? I'm the daughter of an omega house marriage."

Bella shook her head, "No. According to the documents we have here? Your official birth record lists your father as Richard Campbell who is the Alpha of House Campbell. They're your blood house based on everything we know. We just need to prove it."

"What about this Linda? Do you think she's my sister? Could she be like Tyler and Richard is also her father while his mistress was her mother?"

Tyler had grown up with whispers all around him because of his parentage. Wolfen society didn't take kindly to a man cheating on his fated mate. Most wolves would never even consider breaking their matebond. His father was a particular kind of asshole to have cheated on Claire with Tyler's mother, but to take him away from her when he was only a boy?

I knew the experience hadn't endeared him to Tyler, but I also knew Tyler would be more likely to try to take my child than risk losing them to another house.

"I don't know," Bella sighed, shrinking into her chair as fatigue seemed to settle on her like a heavy blanket, "I think it's possible. Probable even. He had to get a baby girl from somewhere, right? Everyone had known he was having a daughter with your mom. Your birth was announced through the Alpha House network. There was a party to celebrate. We've got documents for all that."

Humans liked to document, but it turned out wolves did, too. We had paperwork to support all kinds of facts relating to my birth, my conception, and my mother's two matings.

I still couldn't wrap my head around the idea of my mother being alive somewhere out in the world while her children -me and Ethan- grew up without her. Patrick had not gained anything from her death as far as I could tell. Richard Campbell seemed to have gained control of her Alpha House. What did she or Patrick stand to get out of faking her death?

"Do you think he bought a baby?"

"He had to get a baby from somewhere. Jack says he would have been passed over as Alpha if he didn't have a blood heir to replace him. House Campbell runs on the old laws."

"People don't just buy a baby in my life," I said, feeling incredulous at the idea alone, "Who even thinks about buying a child? This is not normal."

"I hate to break it to you, Rach, but normal people don't have moms who fake their death either. Or dads who sell them to pay off gambling debts. You know this could all be some kind of thing set up by Patrick, right? He's a slimeball! I wouldn't put it past him to have had your mom killed or to have sold her or something."

Wolves were trafficked less than humans, but it did happen. Our blood was valuable. We were hardier, physically, than humans which made us more desirable to certain kinds of people. I had heard the rumors growing up about wolf girls who were stolen to be sold to the highest bidders. Could my mother have been traded away by Patrick? No better than an animal at auction?

"I feel sick."

I had been lucky enough to get a break from the nausea for a while, but I did feel ill when faced with the knowledge something terrible had probably been done to my mother while I'd never even questioned her death.

"We're going out," Bella decided, standing up from the table and straightening her smock, "I need groceries and we can both use some sugar therapy."

Smiling, I stood to follow her to the door. My shoes were a little tight from some light swelling, but I felt pretty in my sundress and I knew Bella looked every bit the professional chef she was in her kitchen smock and uniform pants. We could walk to the nearest grocery store and maybe---

"You think we could stop at Cannedy's on the way to the grocery store?"

Cannedy's Candies was a small shop owned by a wolf family who were one of the oldest in New York. Bella and I had discovered them when we were children; everyone thought Bella renting an apartment close to their shop was no coincidence. She'd become a pastry chef because of her love of Cannedy's gourmet desserts.

"Sugar therapy is the best medicine," Bella stated primly, leading the way.

We blended with the evening crowd instantly and I felt my body relax in a way it hadn't in days. I loved the anonymity of life in the city. House Campbell lived in the Poconos where they were semi-isolated these days as most of the popular vacation spots there were no longer in business. I couldn't imagine moving to live in the country.

"Do you think I would have to move to the Poconos if House Campbell recognizes me?"

Bella laughed, "Goddess, I hope not. They'd never be able to stand you. If they let you play your piano all day every day, you might not go totally crazy, but you wouldn't sleep without the sounds of the city."

"I know. I can't imagine how dead it must be out there. No cars. No people. Nothing except trees and animals and abandoned summer homes."

I didn't bother to suppress a shudder. My baby would hopefully love the city as much as I did. Some children grew up with a sensitivity to sound and wolfen babies who were particularly sound-sensitive often had to sleep in soundproof nurseries. The idea alone made me want to take a cab to Times Square and stand there screaming for no other reason than to see how many others would scream with me.

New York was the perfect place to raise a child who accepted their world rather than feared it.

I wanted my baby to be fearless in a way I felt I hadn't been. I still felt as if I had lost three years of my life trying to be someone I wasn't in order for my mate to love me. Tyler was trying to get me back for his own reasons---but my child would not sacrifice their life for a mate the way I did.

I would teach my baby to go out into the world with a brave face on. To never settle for second best with a mate or a friend. To demand respect.

Bella and I filed through the door at Cannedy's with a spring in our steps which only came from visiting the confectioner's shop. The displays showed all types of treats. I knew I wanted truffles as soon as I saw them in their neat little piles.

We ordered quickly and waited for them to weigh out our selections. I was already tasting the chocolate on my tongue when I heard a rude sound behind me.

"They let absolutely anyone in here. I thought you said this place was exquisite, Nathan?"

Charlotte Wright whined at Nathan Lewis whose lips were compressed into a fine line as he looked me over. He hadn't seen me since the day I had refused his marriage proposal. I was still not sure how I felt about the bruises he'd left on my arms while he tried to convince me to marry him immediately.

"This place is exquisite, Char. That's why Bella and Rachel are here. You know they're foodies, right? Bella got a write-up for being one of the best pastry chefs in the city and she still thinks Cannedy's is the best place to go for a sugar fix."

"I don't know if I would trust her judgement or not, but if you say so?" Charlotte practically purred, leaning against Nathan so her breasts brushed his arm, "I'll take your word for it. I know you're an Alpha of exquisite taste."

She was letting it dangle between us he had chosen to step out with her rather than me---but I found I wasn't jealous at all.

I found myself hoping they'd make a match together because Nathan deserved to be happy and Charlotte -while not a good person- would be devoted if nothing else.

Bella got our purchases while I tried to find something to say. She rescued me with her usual skill, ushering me to the door with barely a backwards glance.

"Bye, Nathan and Charlotte! Hope you enjoy your Cannedy's!"

I giggled at the breezy way Bella waved them away and then we were back onto the sidewalk, blending with the crowd again. We both laughed and laughed around mouthfuls of chocolate as we went to the grocery. It was hard to feel anything other than joy with sugar fueling our every move.