Where The Ice Gives Way (Charlotte and Blake) novel Chapter 246

Chapter 246 Before Fear Can Get Its Claws In

Gareth

I am reaching for my mug when the phone cuts through the kitchen.

Everyone stills, because a phone ringing at this hour never brings good news.

I pick it up on the third ring. “Gareth Atlas.”

There is a pause on the other end, then a man clears his throat. “Alpha.”

My wolf lifts his head.

I turn slightly away from the table, but not enough to hide the conversation.

“Who is this?” I ask.

“My name is Callum Hart.” Another pause. “My daughter is Jessica.”

Charlie’s head snaps up, Titan flashing through his eyes. Blake’s hand lands on his shoulder before I can say a word.

I hold Charlie’s gaze while speaking into the phone. “What can I do for you, Callum?”

“My wife and I need to speak with you,” he says. His voice is controlled, but only just. “Tonight, if possible.”

“Come over,” I say.

Callum lets out a breath that sounds almost painful. “Thank you.”

I give him the address even though I suspect he already knows it. Then I hang up, set the phone back in its cradle, and turn to the room.

Charlie is already standing.

“Jessica?” he asks.

“Sit down.”

He freezes, torn between me and the storm Titan is throwing inside him.

Reluctantly, he sinks back into the chair, breathing hard through his nose.

“Her parents are coming here,” I tell him.

Chapter 246 Before Fear Can Get Its Claws in

“Why?”

“I do not know yet.”

Mara dries her hands slowly on a tea towel, her eyes meeting mine across the kitchen. Then she takes the Biscuits from the table, adds more to the plate, refills the kettle, and pulls two more mugs from the cupboard, quietly shifting the room from shock to waiting,

Charlie watches het, pale with fury and fear.

“What if something happened to her?” he asks.

“If something had happened to her, Callum would not have sounded so composed,” I say.

It does not comfort him much. Titan is already in a frenzy, but it is enough to keep him seated.

A few minutes later, headlights sweep across the window for the second time tonight. The car stops outside, doors open and close, and footsteps come up the porch.

I meet them at the door.

Callum Hart stands beneath the porch light with his wife beside him. He is broad through the shoulders, with tired eyes. Elena stands close, one hand wrapped around his arm, her face pale but set.

“Alpha,” Callum says again.

“Gareth is fine in my home,” I tell him, stepping back. “Come in.”

His eyes flick past me to find Charlie standing in the kitchen doorway behind Blake.

Elena’s hand tightens around his arm.

Charlie looks as if he has forgotten how to breathe.

Mara moves in, saving everyone from the sharp edge of that silence. “Come through. Tea?”

Elena gives a small, broken laugh. “I don’t think I can drink anything.”

We settle in the lounge room this time. Callum and Elena sit on the couch. Mara takes the chair nearest them. I remain standing for a moment, not to intimidate, but because my wolf wants the room

Chapter 246 Before Fear Can Get Its Claws in

“Our family has lived as human for generations,” he says. “We know enough to hide in plain sight and avoid attention.”

His jaw lightens as he reaches for his wife’s hand.

“But we do not know how to help our daughter through what is happening now.”

Elena closes her eyes, het knees bouncing.

I sit forward, giving them my attention. “What is happening?”

Callum looks toward Charlie, and Charlie takes one step into the room before Blake can stop him.

“Is Jess okay?” he asks, voice rough

Elena’s expression softens with something that is not quite comfort. “She is, and she isn’t.” Her eyes shine. “But she is home, and Charlotte is with her.”

Charlie’s whole body reacts to Charlotte’s name and Jess’s safety at once, relief and pain folding through him so quickly I almost feel sorry for the boy.

I nod for my boys to step into the room.

In this house, I don’t keep children outside the door when the truth concerns them.

Callum drags in a breath as they come to stand behind me. “I come from an old werewolf bloodline.”

He looks at his wife, and she gives him an encouraging smile before he continues. “Any child born from my line is taken to a witch at birth to suppress the wolf and let the child live human.”

Elena speaks now, her voice barely holding. “We just wanted her safe.”

Callum nods. “We believed we were doing the right thing.”

I look at the man across from me, and I do not see cruelty. I see a scared father who wanted to do what he thought was right.

“So your daughter is a wolf?” I ask.

“She’s not just any wolf,” Callum says, looking up to Charlie. “She’s from a white wolf bloodline.”

The room takes the words like a bucket of cold water.

Even the fire se

11:18 Wed, Jul 29

Chapter 246 Before Fear Can Get Its Claws In

Callum hosts slowly, his mouth trembling beface he gets the words fit. “Our family has spent generatings hiding on, scared it what would happen if anyone found us. Scared of rogues, mostly Scared of packs too, if I’m honest? His eyes foto me fate of apology and oid tear. “But now the spell is breaking. We can see the signs. Her senses are coming through. Her instincts. Her wulf is coming, and we

we don’t know what to do.”

Elena presses a hand over her mouth, but the sob still slips through.

Callum’s grip tightens around hers. “We weren’t raised like you. We don’t know how to guide a shift. We don’t know how to explain a

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