Legacy (Blackwater Pack, #3)

by Hannah McBride

Allan fell forward limply, his neck broken. He was dead before his cheek hit the dirt. “Sorry,” Nikolai apologized, almost congenial, before stepping back and away from the two Alphas. He gestured to the space separating them. “Carry on as you were.”

“Just so we’re clear,” Lulu said softly as I turned back to the group to get ready for the challenge, “I can totally just suck all the air out of his lungs right now and kill him.” My eyebrows shot up. She shrugged at me. “Or set him on fire. Snap his spine. Really, there’s a lot of possibilities.”

“If your friends are throwing you a party, I would like to as well,” Nikolai spoke up. He scanned the group of Long Mesa members. “Are there any other heads you would like? I could post them on spikes around the fence of the house for when you return to visit.” Skye stared at him. “I probably won’t be back to Russia for a while.” He waved a dismissive hand. “It’s cold there more often than not. The cold will preserve the heads well. Simply point them out, and we’ll take care of it.”

“No heads,” she said forcefully. “I don’t want heads as a gift. Ever. In any context.” Nikolai turned to Addie. “Sometimes she truly is more your child than mine.”

“He might be kind of hot if he wasn’t such a complete douche canoe,” Lulu remarked. “And I’m assuming he’s a grower, not a shower because yeesh.”

I turned towards Cassian, who was still naked. His limp dick hung like a literal white flag between his legs.

“You look like you’re in a lot of pain,” I murmured, reaching down to brush a lock of sweaty blond hair from his eyes. My jaw hardened. “Good.”

I stopped a few feet from where the crumbling front steps would have been and simply looked. The sky beyond the horizon was hazy with an impending sand storm. Dry lightning cracked through the sky like an ominous warning as I glanced around. My mind could reform where walls and doors had been.

Nikolai glared briefly at Remy, who snorted. “Your dad thought we should just burn the whole town to the ground,” Remy explained. “It made the most sense,” he insisted.

“Actually, is just staying here an option? I’m comfortable. You make a good bed.” I yawned at the end of the sentence and cuddled against him more. He snorted lightly. “Lucky for you, your bed is portable.” “Huh?” I squeaked as Remy stood up, still cradling me in his arms.

He had a body that would make a sculptor drool. His muscles flexed and moved as he ran the towel over his body, finally knotting it low on his hips. To hell with the sculptor; I was the one drooling.

He grabbed another towel and started working it through my hair. By the time he started running a comb through my tangled strands, I was well on my way to the land of dreams.

“And who am I marrying?” I asked. If he said Trace, I would throw up. Damien laughed again. “Why me, of course.” Okay, that was actually worse.

“You and my uncle are well acquainted.” “Yes, we are,” Nikolai agreed, his smile turning feral. “But he is no friend of mine or my pack. I would just as soon fashion a new chandelier from his ribcage.”

Nikolai grinned back. “Well, you’re failing all over the place, aren’t you? First with your useless uncle, and then with your pathetic attempts at alliances. If your current allies are as strong as Long Mesa, I’m not even sure what chance you possibly have. And that’s not even mentioning the absolute cock-up of your untrained elemental wreaking havoc on a captive female population that you’ve stolen.”

Skye smirked at him, her lips pulled back to reveal her teeth. “That’s Alpha bitch to you, bitch.”

Griffin’s frown deepened and he turned to me when Trace got out. “We can kill them in their sleep,” he muttered, running a hand through his blond hair. “Fuck, I’ll burn the hotel to the ground tonight.” Nikolai’s eyes grew big as he started to grin. “I rather like this fellow. Griffin was it?”

“I might be able to accelerate the healing, but it won’t fix that fact that your bones are broken.” “No magic,” Remy told her, shaking his head. “We can’t look like we’re cheating.” Lulu’s mouth flattened. “So, me just standing here and making his brains liquefy is also off the table?”

“It’s kind of nice having an uncle who isn’t completely psychotic.” My father winced. “Well, I can’t assure you he’s entirely sane, especially when there’s vodka involved, but I’m not concerned.”

“You did it, baby.” I glanced over to where Skye was hugging her Mom and then to where Maren was reuniting with her parents, and lastly to my friends gathered around me. “We did it,” I corrected.

“Strange isn’t it?” he murmured, stroking my hair. “What is?” I asked as I looked up at him. “A month ago I didn’t know you existed,” he answered, “and now I can’t remember a time when you weren’t in my life.”

Ryder let each of the kids design something to tattoo on him. He liked being able to wear what they created, but he needed to grow more skin or we had to stop having kids.