Part 4

Inside the envelope were two new social security cards, Jericho and Slade Cannon. He even took my name from me. It was a painful blow to my already fragile state of mind. I felt defeated as I opened the note and read it as tears threatened to escape again.

“Jericho,

The bank card holds your inheritance, use it wisely. You have no further claim on the St. Claire name and I suggest that you don’t try to use it. You’re on your own now, I hope you make better choices in the future.”

The letter wasn’t signed but I’d recognize my father’s handwriting anywhere. I felt like a piece of my soul had died in that square. Slade opened my door ten minutes later with his own bag slung across his shoulder and I put the note back into the envelope. The bank card went into my wallet and I pulled a jacket on.

“You should stay, Slade. You still have a future in this pack,” I said to him.

“Not a chance, where you go I go. We’re brothers for life,” he said and smiled at me.

“I need to say goodbye to my mother. I’ll meet you out front,” I said to him and he nodded as he took my bag as well.

I found my mother in the library where she stood in front of the big windows and she turned around as I closed the door behind me. Her eyes were red from crying and she started crying again as she walked toward me. I took both of her hands in mine as I fought my own emotions.

“Don’t go, Jericho,” she said to me.

“I’ve been banished, Mom. I have no choice,” I said to her.

“I can talk to him once he’s calmed down, I can convince him to let you stay,” she said.

“It’s better for me to leave. I couldn’t stay here and see the hate and disappointment in his eyes every day,” I said and hugged her tightly.

“I love you, Jericho,” she said to me.

“I love you too, Mom,” I said to her as she cried into my shoulder and I could feel her body shaking as I held her.

“This isn’t right, it was an accident,” she said as I took my arms away from her.

“Mom, I drove that bus. I was drunk. I killed them,” I said to her.

“I don’t care,” she said and my heart broke even more. She loved me enough not to care about my guilt, but I couldn’t ever forget.

“I have to go, just….I’m sorry, Mom,” I said to her and walked out of the library.

I walked past Kai’s office and I stopped in front of his door. I could smell him in there, but I didn’t knock. I knew he didn’t want to see me so I took a deep breath and kept on walking. As I walked down the hallway towards the entrance I saw Gabriel and Adira on the steps with Slade.

“Jericho,” Gabriel said as he turned towards me and I saw that he’d been crying as well. Adira wiped her eyes as they both hugged me at the same time.

“You’ll make a great king, Gabriel,” I said to him.

“I can’t believe he’s doing this. Your place is here,” Gabriel said as he looked at me.

“Everything happens for a reason, I’ll stay in touch,” I said to him and turned to Adira.

“Please don’t go,” she said in a small voice.

“I have to, Adira, just remember that I’ll always love both of you no matter what. You’re my family and even if I’m not part of this one anymore, I’ll always be there if you need me,” I said to them.

“I’ll miss you,” she said.

“We need to go,” Carter said.

“I hate him for this!” Gabriel said angrily as he watched Carter put our bags in the car.

“Don’t, Gabriel, he’s punishing me for my crimes. I’m guilty, I killed my friends and I deserve this,” I said to him.

Their sadness made it even worse for me as I hugged them one last time and turned my back on the only home I’d ever known. Nobody acknowledged us and the Zetas didn’t even look in our direction. It all stung, but I knew Kai had given the order. I was now an outsider, no longer their prince.

We got into the car and I turned around and watched Gabriel and Adira until the road made a turn and I couldn’t see them anymore. We drove in silence and I felt the connection to the pack break as we crossed the border out of Oban. Slade and I inhaled sharply at the same time as we felt the pain of the pack disconnecting from us.

It hurt, more than I expected it would. I knew suddenly that my connection to Kai had broken as well and I wondered if I would ever be able to speak to him in my mind again. I wondered if Blaise had also lost his connection to Onyx and if that was why he was so quiet or if he hated me too. He hadn’t spoken to me in three days and I missed his voice in my head.

“Jericho, will you be okay?” Carter asked me just after we crossed the border.

“We’ll be fine,” Slade said.

“I didn’t ask you,” Carter said to him.

“Why do you care anyway?” Slade asked him.

“I do care, Slade, about both of you, even if I don’t agree with what’s happening, Kai is still the king and his word is law,” Carter said.

“It’s okay, Carter, I understand and your loyalty should be to him,” I said and Slade frowned at me.

“Still sucks,” Slade said.

“Why did you choose banishment with Jericho?” Carter asked him.

“Jake’s my Alpha, just like Kai’s your king. In fact, Jake’s my brother. I’ll follow him to the ends of the earth no matter what happens or how wrong he is, I don’t care,” Slade said.

“We are brothers,” I said and looked at Slade.

“I think you two will be just fine,” Carter said.

“Of course we will,” Slade said and smiled before looking out of the window.

“Call Kiran if you get into trouble,” he said.

“Grandpa is one badass I wouldn’t mess with,” I said. I wondered if Kiran knew what I had done and if he’d stayed away because he hated me or if he didn’t know.