Chapter 132 132
Damien POV
“Dominique, what’s going on?” Aurélie finished cutting Delphine’s meat into smaller, manageable pieces before resting her hand gently on Dominique’s arm.
“Just boy stuff, Mum. Nothing to worry about.”
How old was she again to be accepting that answer?
“You name the time, kiddo, and I’ll be there,” I said, offering him a steady look.
Aurélie’s gaze flicked between Dominique and me, suspicion sharpening her expression. “And what about you, Delphine?”
“I want to see Roland…”
“That’s actually a good idea. I need to check in on Émilie anyway,” Aurélie agreed only to be interrupted.
“I’ve missed him so much! I’m gonna give him a big kiss!” Delphine smacked her lips together dramatically, the sound echoing through the dining area.
I groaned inwardly. “Don’t you think you’re a little too young for boys?”
She was far too young to be thinking about kissing anyone.
“Dominique is a boy…” she shot back, all but sticking her tongue out at me.
“Yes, but he’s your brother.”
“Perhaps Alpha Damien is right,” Fabrice interjected smoothly. “Let’s not get carried away too young.”
I blinked, genuinely surprised that he was agreeing with me.
“How about you and I do something together,” Fabrice continued, and I had to swallow both my pride and the unpleasant twist in my gut as he carried on. “Let… Mummy and Daddy catch up on some emails. Élodie gave me a cupcake recipe. We could try that?”
Élodie had, in fact, left several printed recipes spread across my bed the day we were leaving Saint Wolf. I’d taken the hint. I couldn’t bake to save my life but I could certainly eat cake. How hard could it really be?
“You want to make cupcakes with me?” Delphine’s face transformed instantly into something angelic.
I didn’t trust it for a second.
I was fairly certain she possessed the means to send me to an early grave. Angels didn’t do that. Small demons, however, absolutely did.
“Why wouldn’t I?” I replied evenly.
A slow, calculating smile crept across her face, followed by a decisive nod. Just like that, my plans for tomorrow were sealed.
By the next morning, Lucas and I were already at the training grounds before a single Darkvale warrior had arrived.
If these were my men, I’d have them running ten miles after training purely as punishment.
They should’ve been on heightened alert, especially now that their alpha family had returned. Instead, they were late.
Pathetic.
As the warriors finally began filtering onto the grounds far too slowly for my liking I noticed Fabrice joining us. That caught my attention.
I’d expected him to head straight to the hospital after being away for days.
I watched from the sidelines as he took control of the session, moving seamlessly into the role of pack beta.
“Any updates?” I mind-linked Lucas, who stood beside me.
“He’s good. I’ll give him that,” Lucas replied with a reluctant groan. My trackers still hadn’t caught up with Theo, but they were closing in.
“I wonder if Fabrice knows…”
“You’re actually going to ask him?”
“Why not?” I shrugged. Something told me he was just as much in the dark as the rest of us.
Once training wrapped up, I made a point of hanging back. Fabrice hesitated when he noticed torn between heading to the showers or straight to the hospital.
“What can I do for you, Alpha?” he asked, his tone neutral but polite.
“Aurélie refuses to tell me where Theo is,” I said calmly. “I was hoping you might enlighten me.”
“And why would I do that?”
“Because my men are tracking him,” I replied honestly.
“They’re doing what?” His head snapped toward mine so fast I was sure I heard something crack.
“I intend to be the one who finds Geneviève first.”
“And when you do…”
“I won’t be as lenient as Aurélie.”
He nodded slowly, understanding exactly what I wasn’t saying.
After a brief pause, he studied me with open curiosity. “I don’t know where Theo is. She’s keeping it close to her chest.”
The sigh that followed told me he was telling the truth.
That didn’t comfort me. If anything, it unsettled me more.
“What about Dominique?” I shifted the conversation deliberately.
“What about Dominique?” he asked, eyeing me cautiously.
“Have you noticed the anger? He’s showing signs of his wolf surfacing early.”
“That’s not possible,” he snapped automatically, the doctor in him refusing to challenge textbook law.
“I assure you it is. It happened to me.”
He studied me closely then, weighing my words.
“You know she’s my mate, right?” I added quietly. He valued honesty I’d learned that much.
“Are you asking me,” he said slowly, “or telling me?”
“Consider it a memo.”