My Defender(75)

Grant let Ellie pull him back onto the love seat. "He's gone?" For so long that man had haunted his nightmares. He looked at his mother. "Are you okay? Did he hurt you?"

His mother's face was streaked with tears. "He ripped out my heart the day he took my son away from me. What happened?"

Grant drew in a shuddering breath. "He said I was too weak to be part of the pack. That if I stayed, he would kill you. He told me to run as far as I could as fast as I could, because if I stayed close by and you found me, he'd kill us both."

Grayson sucked in his breath. "You were barely twenty."

Grant nodded. "A natural wolf pack helped keep me alive before I found my way here." He looked around. "These people became my new pack, my new family." Grant looked at Declan, who acknowledged their bond with a fierce nod. He looked at his brother. "How did you find me?"

Grayson shook his head. "That little human found us."

Meryn waved her hand. "He means me." She eyed him. "Hate me?"

Grant stood and lifted Meryn up before kissing her forehead. "How can I ever thank you?"

"You can start by putting my mate down," Aiden growled.

Grant kissed Meryn's forehead again before setting her down. He pulled Ellie to her feet. "Mother, this is my mate, Dr. Eleanor Kimball."

Ellie waved, smiling wide. "It's a pleasure to meet such an amazing woman. Grant speaks of you with such love; it's evident where he got his kindness from."

His mother's eyes widened. "You remembered me?"

"Of course I did! You're my mother," Grant muttered.

His mother laughed, the same joyous sound he remembered as a child. "You were always my frowny face. I swear you were born scowling."

Grant stared up at her. "I was always like this?"

She nodded. "Oh yes. You used to give your father this flat, fearless stare that would infuriate him. It was like you weren't afraid of him at all."

Meryn snorted. "Well, him being all Alpha Born probably meant his wolf saw his dad as a chew toy."

Grayson paled. "Alpha Born? Sir, I..."

"Don't!" Grant barked. He stared at his brother. In a softer voice he continued. "Never, ever call me sir. That was him."

Grayson nodded, his eyes full of understanding. "The pack doesn't call me 'sir' either."

His mother didn't look too surprised at Grant's refusal. "You don't want to come home and lead one of the country's largest packs?"

Grant just stared at his mother until she laughed. She rested her head on Grayson's shoulder. "I told you he wouldn't want to lead. He never did, even as a child." She hesitated. "I knew you were Alpha Born and tried to hide it. If your father had known, you never would have made it to twenty."

"There was some speculation earlier if that was a deciding factor to Grant's exile," Magnus said.

His mother blinked then turned to Meryn, horrified. "Meryn! You never said anything about being in the Prince's quarters! Oh dear!"

Grayson looked at Grant, who shrugged. Grayson's shoulders relaxed a fraction. "Prince Magnus, thank you for allowing us this time to meet my lost brother."

Magnus inclined his head. "I am happy to see that the Fenrirson's pack is being led by someone with such a good head on his shoulders. I have to admit I was worried when I heard Grant's story."

"We will let you go," his mother said. She looked at Meryn. "We can do this again soon? Maybe not in the prince's quarters?"

Meryn nodded. "I can hook you up in my batcave."

His mother frowned. "Batcave? There are bats in Noctem Falls?"

Grayson coughed to hide his smile. "I'll reach out to you later Meryn, to schedule something." He looked at Grant. "I gave her my phone number. I'd like to get to know my older brother."

Grant smiled. "You have a quite a few here."

Grayson looked around. "That I do." He smiled at Ellie. "Take good care of my brother."

"I will," she promised.

When Meryn ended the call and turned off the television, Grant felt like someone had let all the air out of him, and he collapsed back on the love seat yet again. "I have a little brother."

Kendrick's smile was a bit sad. "They can be annoying, but they are worth it."

Grant looked over at Meryn. "What made you reach out to them?"

Meryn shrugged. "I didn't want your dad getting away with hurting you. So I talked to some of the peeps in my cult, and they referred me to this guy who said he was in your dad's pack. Then I kinda cyberstalked a few Facebook profiles until I found your mom and then your brother. When I messaged them, they were shocked you were still alive, and the rest kinda just happened."