“No.” Owen pulled a hand from his pocket and raked it through his short, brown hair. “Just trying to find a way to end this war without getting killed for being nonhuman.”

  Rick noticed that Owen’s men weren’t in the room with them.

  Why would the president be standing with the enemy unprotected?

  “What happened?”

  Dorian grabbed Rick’s hand. “Nate overtook the president, putting a gun to his head. He demanded that you be brought in here. We’re kind of holding him hostage.”

  “Nate?”

  “He was shot.” Dorian blinked a few times, the tears gathering in his eyes. “He’s over on the other couch healing. It was close. They got him in the chest, inches from his heart.”

  “Then how did Owen save me?” Rick didn’t care that he hadn’t addressed the president properly. Screw him. He was a damn changeling, letting his own species die by the thousands. Rick was half tempted to toss the man outside and tell his well-hidden secret.

  “It was his idea to be used as a hostage.” Dorian grabbed Rick’s hand tighter. “He made himself vulnerable by stepping away from his men, allowing Nate to grab him.”

  Nate should have shot the fucker. He was going to have a talk with his enforcer about his damn kind heart. No matter how the president explained things, Rick was bitter as hell that he hadn’t stopped the war before now. So many lives could have been saved.

  “Now what?” Rick cleared his throat a few times, trying his best to gain back his normal voice. “Do you know it was Naval Special Warfare Captain O’Hanlon who started all of this?”

  President Owen looked stunned. “How…why?”

  “He’s Rick’s bio-daddy,” Dorian answered for Rick. “He didn’t want anyone to know he had an illegitimate changeling son.”

  “An animal son,” Rick corrected. “Weren’t you tested?”

  The president nodded. “But I and my staff found a way to beat the test.”

  “Your staff?”

  A rueful smile tipped the president’s lips, making him look years younger. “The entire staff, along with my Secret Service, is changeling. I needed protection from anyone who found out the truth.

  We’ve kept the secret hidden well.”

  Rick wanted to smack the man. “While the rest of our kind died for having nonhuman DNA.”

  The president’s expression darkened. “I’ve been putting measures into place, Enrique, to ensure our species doesn’t go extinct. I haven’t been sitting on my ass this entire time.”

  “Gee, thanks,” he said bitterly. “What about O’Hanlon?”

  “He’ll be tried and convicted for what he has done. I not only have the backing of half the congressional leaders, but the UN is on our side as well. The Prime Minister is jaguar.”

  Rick was stunned to learn so many leaders were changeling. He had thought them all human. “What are our chances of ending this war and drawing up laws that protect the changelings?”

  “What about vampires?” Owen asked.

  Rick fixed his mouth to say screw them, but remembered Salvador, his coven, and the Shadow. “Them, too.”

  “The laws are already written. I told you, I have been putting measures into place. I was just waiting for you to arrive.”

  Rick wasn’t sure what that meant. “Why?”

  “Because you are the one who is going to end this war.” Owen moved toward the door and opened it. Rick grabbed Dorian, even though his limbs felt sluggish and his body protested in pain at the action. He shoved his mate behind him as men dressed in black suits entered the room.

  “I have already called a halt to the fighting outside,” Owen said as he turned back toward Rick. “But it seems some soldiers are very determined to kill every changeling in sight.

  Rick could still hear the fighting, the gunshots, the shouting and screaming. Those sounds were going to forever haunt him. “How are you going to stop it?”

  “I’ve called for reinforcements. They should be arriving soon. The problem we will face is disbanding the Breed Hunters and mercenaries. They are widespread and still being paid by private corporations. As soon as I track down who is funding them, they will be arrested.”

  “You make it sound so easy.” Rick placed his hand behind him, stopping Dorian from moving.

  “It is not that easy, Enrique,” Owen said. “But it will be done.

  Anyone caught giving the BAT or hunting a changeling will serve a life prison term.” His eyes narrowed. “I will have zero tolerance when it comes to killing changelings.”

  “What do we get out of this?” Rick asked. “Besides our freedom, which I might add won’t come easily. Not all humans are going to accept us.”

  The president nodded. “Nothing worth having ever comes easy.

  But the entire East Coast is now changeling territory. The humans may continue to live there, but it will be changeling ruled. Any humans who break the law will answer to the local alpha.”

  The man was handing Rick a dream come true. He was scared beyond belief to think it real. There was going to be a lot of resistance and fighting ahead, not all conforming to the ways of the new government. He could think of quite a few humans who were going to protest the new mandates.

  This meant Rick now ruled his territory fully, no human involvement. He slowly rose to his feet, feeling like shit.

  “Bathroom?”

  Owen pointed to his left. “Through that door.”

  Rick glanced back at Dorian.

  “He’s safe. You have my word.”

  “And mine.” Sasha stood from beside Nate’s prone body, his expression fierce. Rick was glad as fuck to see the leopard hadn’t died. “No one is going to fuck with him.”

  Knowing Sasha was there to protect Dorian made Rick feel slightly better. Not much, but enough to allow him to go to the bathroom without having to take his mate with him.

  With uneasy steps, Rick made it to the bathroom and closed the door behind him. He didn’t pay attention to the fancy paint or the high-end fixtures adorning the bathroom. He couldn’t care less.

  Instead, he sat on the closed toilet seat and let out a shaky breath. This wasn’t going to be as easy as Owen made it sound. Breed Hunters were still going to be around. They would always be around as long as there was something to hate.

  Mercenaries…they were a different story. If Rick found them in his territory, they were going to be killed on the spot. Genocide was a horrific crime in his eyes, and there would be no mercy shown to any changeling found killing his own kind.

  This moment was so fucking unreal. For eighteen months Rick had fought a war that should have never taken place. Was it really over? Was his species finally quasi-safe? Could they finally live in peace without fear of being killed because of their nonhuman blood?

  He would have to read over the new laws. He was also going to have to add some himself. Like that outdated one about half breeds.

  That law was being tossed out the window along with the one about an alpha having to mate by the age of thirty-five.

  Although, if it weren’t for that archaic law, Rick wouldn’t have Dorian—a mating he was thankful for every single day.

  Rick stood, walked to the sink, and ran the water, needing to quench his parched throat. It was only tap water, but it would do. He didn’t like the woozy feeling either. He was going to have to talk to Bryson about the drugs he used. Rick couldn’t afford to be out of it at a time like this.

  Drinking his fill from his cupped hands, Rick began to splash water on his face, trying to bring more focus back to his brain. As he dried his face off with paper towels, he saw something move in the mirror.

  Rick spun, nearly falling over from the pain and drugs. O’Hanlon had come in through a secret door, gun in hand.

  “Did you think I would give up so easily?” The man’s expression was mottled with anger. “You have ruined my life, my career, and everything I have worked so hard to achieve. I’ll see you dead before I allow you to rule your own territory. This war is not going to end in the animals’ favor. I’ll kill every last one of you myself if I have to.”

  The man was insane. Rick could see it in his father’s light-grey eyes—eyes that were the mirror image of Rick’s. Only his weren’t filled with such loathing, such hatred. Rick knew there would be no reasoning with O’Hanlon, no talking him out of his plans of world domination, or whatever the hell he was after. The man believed Rick was evil, the enemy, and was going to kill him.

  “It’s such a shame you never let your hate go and found out who I truly am,” he said. “But I can tell you one thing.” Rick moved closer, uncaring of the gun in O’Hanlon’s hand. He’d been shot so many times that one more bullet was nothing to him. Well, just as long as it wasn’t a kill shot. “You are the true animal. You are the one so filled with hate that it blinds you. You started a fucking war, uncaring of who died just so you could cover up your dirty little secret. I am your biological son, a changeling. You would let hundreds of thousands die to keep the fact that you fathered an animal hidden.”

  “A mistake I plan on correcting. You should have never been born, Enrique. You should have been the seed running down your dead mother’s leg when I was done fucking her.”

  Rick launched himself at O’Hanlon the same time his father shot the gun. He heard the bullet shatter the glass in the mirror as Rick took his father down to the floor, wrapping his hand around the man’s throat. “I fucking hate you,” he shouted as he used the other hand to repeatedly punch the man in his face. “You have killed so many people who I loved. I. Hate. You.” He landed a punch on every word.

  Rick felt himself slipping into someone he didn’t like, someone he didn’t recognize as he choked the life out of O’Hanlon. The man fought to get Rick’s hands from around his throat, but Rick was changeling strong.

  The bathroom door flew open, and Owen’s men pulled Rick away from O’Hanlon. Rick threw his head back and howled out his pain of what he was becoming. He may have killed out of necessity, but he wasn’t a murderer. He wasn’t his father’s son.

  “He’ll be tried and convicted,” one of the men was saying.

  “You’ll get your justice.”

  It was a lie. Rick would never get his justice for what happened to Miguel’s parents, to Olivia and Graham—two changelings who made the wrong choice just to try and save their precious family. Leon would never be brought back, and Silvia and George would never have their wedding. Even though they had betrayed Rick, once upon a time he had called them friends. If it hadn’t been for O’Hanlon, who knew if they would have ever made that choice to try and save themselves instead of staying true to him.

  So much had changed, so many had died. All because of the man lying on the floor in front of him. Rick kicked out, throwing the five men aside who held him as he went for O’Hanlon again, ready to kill the satanic bastard.

  “Be careful of who you let in your life. Not all are what they appear to be.”

  Rick stopped dead in his tracks, the voice familiar to him from someplace long-ago. He turned to see the old man with blue eyes and wrinkled skin. He was confused as hell. “How did you…” Rick wasn’t even sure how to finish that sentence. He was stunned into silence.

  The old man moved closer, going around Owen’s men until he was standing in front of Rick. “Not all are what they appear to be.”

  He smiled. “I am your grandfather, Enrique. I am Jordan O’Hanlon.”

  Rick gave a slow blink, wondering if he was going to wake up from this dream. Nothing, absolutely nothing seemed real right now.

  His life was on a track Rick wasn’t familiar with and heading to an unknown destination. He wanted to shout for the train to stop, to let him off somewhere that he recognized. This reality was too damn baffling. “But—” Rick turned, running his hands over his head. “You were at the rest stop, showed up at my hotel room.” He turned back around. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

  The old man gave him a sad smile. “You had to find things out on your own. But I was always there, Enrique, even years ago when you made district manager, when you became alpha of your pack.” The old man glared at O’Hanlon, who was knocked out cold. “I even tried to stop the murder of your brother Bruno. But I had arrived too late.

  I’m sorry for that, and the death of your parents. Such a tragic waste.”

  “I can’t deal with this right now.” Rick pushed past the men, walking to the other side of the room, running his hands repeatedly over his hair. “I just want to go fucking home.” Rick voiced his thoughts out loud. He didn’t want to be the Rebellion leader any longer, yet he knew his journey wasn’t over.

  “Once the laws are set into place and we have our backing from all over the world, you are free to go,” Owen said. “But you still need to end this war.”

  “How?” Rick asked.

  “The proof you have been collecting, for one. Make copies and send them to the media. Change started taking place when you went on air months ago. It’s time to show your hand, give them everything you have.” Owen glanced toward the bathroom where the Secret Service men were guarding O’Hanlon. “We have his confession recorded. Once the public hears why the war was started, it will be the beginning to the end of madness.”

  Which meant Rick and his group were stuck here for a few months. He would deal with that, just as long as it resulted in the freedom of changelings. He glanced at his grandfather, unsure of how to feel. Rick doubted he would ever have a relationship with the man, but knowing not all O’Hanlons were evil settled something deep inside of him.

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Remus drove through Shelton, glancing around at the disaster. It was going to take a long while to clean this mess up. He had volunteered to help Rick and what was left of his pack clean the town and get it back in order.

  But until then, he was heading home. Sasha decided to keep the leap, stating he, Nate, and Selene were going to whip it into shape.

  That not only made Remus a happy man, but Marco was well.

  His mate worshipped Sasha as their alpha. Loving who led them and worshipping him were two different things. Remus was going to have to talk to his mate about who he had on a pedestal. Yeah, he was jealous. Sue him.

  “I can’t believe it’s all over,” Marco said from beside him. “It doesn’t seem real that I can walk down the street now without getting harassed.” Marco shook his head. “No more than usual.”

  Remus grunted as he pulled Marco close. “No one is going to fuck with you, baby. If they do, they’ll have to answer to me.” He ran the tips of his fingers over the scars on Marco’s face and then laid a kiss to each one. They were almost to Remus’s and he couldn’t wait to get his mate home. Everything felt so different now, so strangely new.

  Remus had known Marco his entire life, yet he felt like there was so much he didn’t know.

  That was going to change. Remus was going to learn his mate inside out. “You are so damn gorgeous.”

  Marco was no longer ducking his head and trying to hide his scars. The man held his head high, a bit more confidence in the way he spoke. The war had taken a toll on all of them, but a lot of good things had come from it as well.

  Like the man sitting next to him. Their friendship had blossomed into something so much more. Remus pulled into his driveway, glad to be home at last. Cutting the motor, Remus climbed out of the car and met Marco on the other side. Without a word, he swooped the smaller man up into his arms and carried him across the threshold. It was corny, but he wanted to give his mate all the attention and love he could shower on the man.

  As he walked through the door, Remus saw the condition of his home. God, this place was dusty as hell. And what was that smell?

  “It smells like puke in here.” Marco held his nose as Remus set him on his feet. “At least the electricity is back on.”

  Remus followed the source and found that his tub was filled with sewer water. It must have backed up when the electricity came back on. He and Marco worked to get the tub drained, cleaned out, and spotless.

  By the time they were done, they both needed a shower. Remus turned the water on and let it run, stripping his mate down in the process. Marco’s body held a multitude of scars from what Jayson had done to him, but all Remus saw was the beauty of a man who had survived. Nothing else mattered to him.

  Running his hands up Marco’s sides, Remus glanced up to see his mate watching him with those sexy, hooded eyes. In a way, it still felt strange to see his best friend staring at him with such longing. But then again, he couldn’t believe he had lived without Marco as his mate all these years.

  “We’re supposed to be taking a shower,” Marco reminded him, but Remus could hear the need deep in his mate’s voice.

  “We are,” he said, licking a path around Marco’s navel. “So get under the spray.”

  Marco didn’t move. He just stood there, his breath coming out in pants. Remus grinned and then stood, undressing and then guiding his mate into the stall. As soon as the warm water hit him, Remus moaned. God, that felt good.

  “Keep making noises like that and we’ll never get out of here.”

  Marco grabbed the shower gel and poured some onto his hand. Remus thought he was going to wash himself, but instead, Marco turned toward him and began to lather Remus’s body. He stood still, reveling in the feel of his mate’s hands slipping over muscles and into creases that made him shudder.

  “Do you know how many times I heard you showering in here when I was hanging at your house and wished like hell I was in here with you?” Marco slid his hands over Remus’s back, his hands moving in a circular pattern. “You sure know how to torture a guy.”

  “I didn’t know,” Remus said honestly. “Call me Mr. Thickheaded.”

  Marco chuckled. “I thought I was going to have to beat you over the head with my cock to get you to see me as more than just your friend.”

  “Now that would have worked,” Remus replied. “Although I probably would have thought you were just joking around.”

  Marco gaped at him. “You really are thickheaded.”

 

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