Chapter 203 The Levee and the Ant

The German shepherds started barking before sunrise.

Eira pulled on a robe and crossed to the front window. Alpha Roger Hale stood outside the gate, arguing with the security officer on duty.

"I’m asking for five minutes," Alpha Roger said. "Tell Eira I’m here."

"I already told you, sir. Ms. Crawford isn’t receiving visitors." The officer gestured toward Alpha Roger’s car. "You need to leave."

The noise brought Mrs. Jones onto the porch, phone in hand.

"You’ve got to be kidding me," she called. "Your wife was here last night. Are the Hales taking shifts now?"

Alpha Roger turned, already annoyed. "This is a private family matter."

"Eira divorced your son. You’re not her family anymore."

"I didn’t come here to argue with the help."

Mrs. Jones gave him a tight smile. "Keep talking like that, and ’the help’ will have the police remove you."

Before Alpha Roger could answer, Eira stepped outside.

"It’s okay, Mrs. Jones. I’ve got this."

Alpha Roger faced her. "Finally."

Eira stayed on the porch. "Say what you came to say. Then leave."

"You’re going to make me stand at the gate?"

"You showed up at my home before sunrise without an invitation. You’re lucky I came outside at all."

Alpha Roger glanced at the security officers. He had spent years as Hale Pack’s Alpha, and he clearly hated being kept outside like an unwanted salesman.

"Think this through, Eira," he said, lowering his voice. "You’re the public face of a federal tech project now. A scene with the Hale family could hurt your work with Sterling."

"Then don’t make a scene." She folded her arms. "Or call the press yourself. Tell them you came here to pressure your son’s ex-wife into taking care of him. I’m sure the Pack Council will love that story."

His expression tightened. With rumors already circling Alpha Sebastian and the Hale Pack, Alpha Roger knew the threat would hurt them more than it would hurt her.

When he spoke again, some of the edge was gone.

"Sebastian is sick. He left the hospital too soon, he won’t eat, and he won’t listen to anyone. Just come talk to him."

"No."

"Eira, you were married for four years."

"And now we’re divorced."

"He’s falling apart because you left."

Eira stared at him. "Sebastian checked himself out against medical advice. He’s refusing food and working himself sick. Those are his choices, not mine."

"You know why he’s doing it."

"Then he needs a therapist along with a doctor. He doesn’t need his ex-wife."

Alpha Roger wrapped one hand around the iron gate. "How can you shut him out after everything you shared?"

The question might have hurt once. Now it only made Eira tired.

"We didn’t share much of anything," Eira said. "I cooked his meals, ran his home, and carried the duties of a Luna while your family treated me like I should be grateful for a place at the table."

Alpha Roger’s jaw tightened, but she did not let him interrupt.

"The affair was the last straw. It wasn’t the whole reason I left. For four years, Sebastian stood by while your family wore me down. He saw it, and he did nothing."

Silence settled between them.

Alpha Roger had come expecting the devoted wife who used to drop everything whenever Alpha Sebastian needed her. That woman was gone, and for the first time, he seemed to see it.

"I gave your son four years," Eira said. "He doesn’t get the rest of my life too."

Alpha Roger looked away. "So that’s it?"

"That’s it. Take him back to Mercy General. Make him follow the doctor’s orders. But stop sending people here to make his health my responsibility."

She looked toward the security officer.

"Please make sure Mr. Hale leaves. If he comes back without an invitation, call the police."

"Yes, ma’am."

Eira went inside. A moment later, Alpha Roger’s car pulled away and the gate slid shut behind it.

Mrs. Jones locked the front door. "Your new place can’t be ready soon enough."

"I called the contractor yesterday. We’re only waiting on the security inspection at Ten Ashford Lane."

"Good. Because I’m done waking up to Hales on the lawn."

Eira glanced through the window at the empty driveway.

Moving would give her more privacy, but it would not fix the real problem. The Hales had barely noticed her while she belonged to them.

Now that she was gone, they refused to let her go.

After breakfast, a black Sterling SUV pulled up outside Number Nine. Eira expected to find Alpha Killian in the back, but the driver stepped out alone and opened the door for her.

"Alpha Killian had to leave the country early this morning," he said. "An acquisition ran into trouble. His flight took off around five, and he didn’t want to wake you."

"He sent you to pick me up?"

"He asked me to stay available while he’s away. If you need a ride, just text me."

"I’m perfectly capable of calling an Uber."

"I know, ma’am." The driver smiled. "Think of me as Plan B."

That sounded exactly like Alpha Killian. Protective without admitting he was being protective.

Eira climbed in. A steady winter rain had slowed the morning traffic to a crawl. Commuters hurried along the sidewalks under umbrellas, clutching coffee as the SUV moved through the gray Palo Alto streets.

At the R&D center, she found Miles near the elevators with a latte in one hand and his phone in the other.

"Aren’t you supposed to be off?"

"That was the plan." He pocketed his phone. "The overseas acquisition hit an antitrust snag. The seller threatened to walk unless Alpha Killian showed up in person, so he flew out with Kate. Natalie’s covering the home front, and I came in to help."

"When will he be back?"

"No clue. The lawyers are still trying to untangle the regulatory mess."

Eira knew Alpha Killian carried a lot. Sterling Group, Council votes, Pack resources, and security along the territorial borders all demanded his attention. Even so, before boarding an international flight, he had arranged a driver for her.

Miles watched her for a moment. "If anything comes up while he’s gone, call me."

"I thought you were taking comp time."

"I’m bad at taking time off."

"I can take care of myself."

"I know." His expression softened. "Call anyway. Work, Pack trouble, personal drama. Whatever it is, I’ve got you."

It was almost exactly what the driver had said.

Eira narrowed her eyes. "Miles, you work for Killian."

"Last time I checked."

"Then why is everyone acting like they works for me?"

Miles took a slow sip of his latte. A knowing smile spread across his face.

"Have a good morning, Ms. Crawford."

Before she could press him, he stepped into the waiting elevator and let the doors slide shut.