Chapter 34

Kadeem

“Kadeem.”

It didn’t make sense. Something had to be wrong.

Kadeem couldn’t shake the feeling as he sat in the editing room with his team, watching the faces of the babies play over and over. Their little smiles haunted him as he just heard Merrick’s voice over and over.

“They share no relation to you.”

It didn’t make sense.

“Kadeem.”

“What?” The Alpha snapped, glaring at the man - Erik - next to him as he practically bared his teeth. In turn, Erik blinked, his shoulders raising as he offered an apologetic look.

“I was asking…if you liked this edit?” Erik asked sheepishly.

Kadeem huffed in response, surprised not to see steam exciting his nose. He then clipped his gaze forward, watching the few seconds Erik had pieced together. Again, Kadeem was lost in the babies’ faces.

“If there’s something wrong with it then -” Erik tried, noticing Kadeem’s empty stare.

“It’s fine,” the Alpha threw back, wanting to grind his teeth together. He could see Erik give a quick nod at his side as he saved the clip. He then began to work on another. Soon, Kadeem heard the man give a nervous chuckle.

“You know…it’s funny. I heard the rumors, but it’s true,” Erik rattled out. “These kids do a lot like you. I would think -”

Kadeem’s chair loudly scratched across the floor as he stood, nearly taking out the desk in front of him. However, it managed to settle without taking any damage. However, Kadeem also needed to get out of the room before he caused any real damage. His vision was beginning to go spotty, his hands tightening as he longed to ram his knuckles repeated into Erik’s face.

Erik must have noticed Kadeem’s anger too as he promptly shut the fuck up.

Smart, Kadeem thought as he abruptly turned, heading for the door. The room was still silent as he left - his team smart enough to keep their whispers to themselves until he was gone.

Out in the hallway, Kadeem began to pace, more hot air roughly exiting his nose. Only, calming breaths gave him no relief, causing him to soon send a harsh punch into the nearby wall. He grunted, but not because of pain - it was purely frustration.

It didn’t make any fucking sense!

Still not tamed, Kadeem whipped out his phone, his fingers colliding aggressively with the screen as he dialed a number. It rang twice before he heard a familiar voice answer.

“Hello -” Sam tried.

“Those kids, Sam,” Kadeem began, pacing again. “They have to be mine.”

“Whoa, slow down, buddy,” Sam tried, doing nothing to help Kadeem’s rage as the Alpha gave a warning growl. In response, Sam sighed.

“Kadeem, they’re not yours. You heard what the guy said. They don’t share any relation to you,” Sam eased out.

“Fuck the scientist,” Kadeem bit out. “He has to be wrong.”

They had to be his - someway, somehow. There was something special about these kids, something special about them all together. He knew it.

The way they instinctively warmed to him the moment they met, didn’t resist his requests or make him repeat himself a second time. They were content on simply pleasing him, looking for validation.

They didn’t shy away from him like other children did, or stare at him in amazement as they registered he was the Alpha. There had been instant comfort - as if accepting each other was inevitable.

And then there was the way they perfectly fucking resembled him.

“Kadeem,” Sam drew out after a few moments. “You know as well as I do that he’s not wrong. You hired him and all the other scientists for a reason - they’re the best in the region. Hand picked. They wouldn’t screw up the test.”

“Then something else has to be wrong,” Kadeem retorted, still fuming. He’d love to make another dent in the wall.

“Like what? We have pretty firm evidence that these kids are not yours,” Sam proceeded cautiously, but still his words were like knives on Kadeem’s skin.

“These kids are not yours.”

“They share no relation to you.”

No relation. No relation at all.

The only baby who shared any relation to him was the one currently growing inside of Susan. But for some reason, that thought did not excite him as it had the first time she’d announced the news. It hadn’t excited him for a while.

Kadeem continued to take short breaths, picturing the babies’ faces that he knew were still playing on the screens within the room behind him.

“Kadeem? You there, man?” Sam said, attempting to pull Kadeem back out of his thoughts. Nut the Alpha continued to think about the babies - just the babies.

The kids may not be his by blood, but maybe that didn’t matter. There was still a connection there. Maybe that’s what this was - a bond that went beyond blood.

“Kadeem,” Sam said again, his voice quieter as if already knew Kadeem was beginning to scheme. “What are you planning?”

“I don’t know…” Kadeem replied tightly.

It went beyond blood…and although it stung a little to know they didn’t belong to him that way, Kadeem was willing to grasp onto whatever he could. He just needed to figure out how.

“Yet,” he finished.

~

With the editing complete, Kadeem spent his evening turning to other matters. He had some paperwork to attend to at home, but returning to the house and seeing Susan was the last thing he wanted.

Instead, he went to the fitness club. It was after hours, but he still had things to take care of - payroll, email, the works. Only the security lights were on as he entered the door, making him feel like a ghost as he walked toward his office.

When he reached it, he flicked the light on before going to desk, huffing as he sat. He booted up his computer, leaning back in his chair as he waited for the screen to load. However, as soon as he settled, his brows pulled together as he noticed a familiar object laying across his desk.

But then his shoulders tightened.

Slowly, he leaned forward, pulling the item into his fingers as he lifted it up. It gleamed in the light, the intricate designs across the surface making his chest tight.

His pocket watch - the one he’d given to the babies.

How the hell had it ended up back there?

Instinctively, he stood from his chair, going to his doorway to peer out as if he could catch the culprit who’d left it. However, it was no use. It was clear they were long gone.

Standing there, Kadeem looked down at the watch again, left in contemplation as it shined back at him. How was it possible that the pocket watch had been brought back?

He couldn’t lead himself to believe that the kids had delivered it themselves. Not after how fond they immediately grew of the watch. Besides, he was sure the staff would give him a call if they saw a group of babies wandering in unattended.

Then there was the fact that very few people had access to his office. Only the team could have come in unless someone else had gotten their hands on a key. Only, he also found that hard to believe.

That narrowed the possibilities, though. It had to be someone on the staff. His staff.

Still pondering, an idea suddenly worked its way into his head. The cameras. He could check the cameras.

Going back to his desk, Kadeem set his attention back on his computer. However, he ignored the collection of emails waiting for him and instead went into the video feed. There, he could see the live cameras recording in every room - including his own.

He clicked on his specific camera, accessing the history as he rewinded the tape. At first, he went back too far, watching faces pass by the window toward the rest of the gym. So he fast forwarded a little.

He watched a sped up version of the gym closing, the lights turning off. But then he stopped, seeing that two hours ago the door to his office had slowly opened. His eyes widened as he watched who walked in.

She eased her way toward his desk, only stopping once to look back over her shoulder. She then turned forward again, walking further until she reached into her jacket.

Right then, he saw his pocket watch resting within her palm, but she paused to stare at it for a moment, her lips pressed together. Then she shook her head, her hand lowering again. She placed the watch exactly where he’d found it before slipping out the door again.

Once more, Kadeem rested back in his chair, his jaw clenched hard as he stared at the screen. He’d paused the video right as she walked past the window, her head hanging. His hands began to ball into fists.

Chelsea. It had been Chelsea.

She’d gotten the pocket watch into her possession - and Kadeem was certain he knew how.

When he’d asked the babies about their parents, they had been reluctant to answer. He’d picked up pieces that he’d tried to put together - only learning that daddy was “gone” and mommy worked hard.

Chelsea worked hard.

When he’d gone to Chelsea’s home he’d seen five sets of children's clothing hanging from the balcony. And when he’d questioned her about them, she’d given him some bullshit answer. Now he knew why.

The babies were hers.

Maybe he was delusional, but he couldn’t ignore how the pieces began to perfectly align. Perhaps he’d been a fool not to see it before.

One thing was perplexing, though. When Chelsea had found the watch, how had she known it was his? How had she known to bring it back to him?

Of course, the children could have admitted it to her if she chose to question them. However, they’d already proven they were quite secretive, tight lipped. He couldn’t see them slipping up so easily.

But Kadeem set that question aside for now. Instead, he focused his attention elsewhere.

Now that he’d made so many discoveries - what was he going to do about them?

Because even if the babies weren’t his - they were definitely hers. And he needed to find a way to make her admit it.