by Jade Royal
“Okay, I want that done asap. After the meeting, Bliss, get Kyra and Gemma and get their prints scanned in.” Bliss nodded. “How much did you pay for the cameras?"
“The cameras plus the monitors all for about 2 grand. I got a friend that owns an electronic shop. He gave me a good deal.” Kellan nodded.
“I set up a pack bank account,” Kellan said. “Jayce, you and I have control over the account. I put both our names on the paperwork. We have about 20 grand in there of pack money; most of which my parents left me. I’ll wire you back your money Tristan for the equipment.”
“You don’t have to,” Tristan said. “I’m part of the pack and we all pay our dues in some way. And I’ll use my own money for the protection of my pack.”
“Thanks,” Kellan nodded. “Anything else?”
“The she-wolves. We should be monitoring when they come and go,” Tristan said. “Especially with someone like Maverick out there kidnapping women.”
“What? You want us to start asking permission to come and go?” Bliss asked.
“You know that’s not what I mean, but in times like this, I’d like to know where my female pack members are if I’m supposed to be protecting them,” Tristan said.
“None of us have even been going anywhere. The only place we’ve been is the natural springs on the other side of the cave which still protects us because, with the waterfall, our scent can’t be detected.”
“You get my point though right, Kellan?” Tristan asked.
“Yes, I do , but the she-wolves also have a right to their privacy, so we’ll have to discuss some ways to keep them safe out there and to make sure they aren’t followed when they return back here.” Tristan and Bliss nodded ending that topic.
“Any reports?” Kellan asked looking at Jayce waiting for his Beta report.
“The pack that Gemma’s parents have been taken too, I haven’t been able to get back in contact with them. I tried calling both Gabe and Gina and got nothing. I’ve phoned their Alpha and got no answer. I’m wondering if we should go back to their land and figure out what’s been going on.”
“How long has it been?” Kellan asked.
“For as long as Rita’s been gone, which is a couple of days, almost a week now. The question is, should we go on a search or not?”
“Me and you can go on a search,” Kellan said after thinking. “That way Tristan and Jaxson can stay here and man the fort.”
“I understand we need to protect other packs, Kellan, but right now, we’re missing our own pack member.” Jaxson spoke up.
“Our energy needs to be wholly on finding Rita, and afterwards, we can help other packs. I don’t see how we can provide any help when we ourselves are scrambling because of what Maverick did.”
“He’s right,” Bliss murmured.
“I know, but Gemma’s parents are part of that pack.”
“And if anything were wrong with them, Gemma would be able to sense it.” Jaxson added. Kellan nodded.
“Alright. When we find Rita, we will deal with everything else.”
“The question is, how do we find her?” Tristan asked.
“We’ve been all over these woods, and we can’t get one single trace of her scent.”
Jayce took a deep breath. His claws were elongating, so he put his hands under the table and dug them into the flesh of his thighs. Inflicting pain on himself somehow was the answer to keeping him calm.
“She’s not dead, is she?” Jayce asked Kellan.
“No,” Kellan replied. “I can still feel her. She’s very much alive.” As the Alpha, Kellan felt every one of his pack mates, and he knew when things went bad with them. For Rita, he felt her pulse, and that’s it. Nothing else.
“Have you tried projecting to her?” Kellan asked.
“I’ve tried. She hasn’t responded, and I didn’t receive any messages. It’s like I can’t sense her period. Both me and my wolf don’t know what to do.”
“Wait. If you two didn’t complete the bond, then how come you’re not in pain?” Bliss questioned.
“Because we marked each other,” Jayce said.
“My wolf can be content about that, and I don’t feel physical pain.”
“Thank goodness for-” Bliss hissed and clenched her fists. Pain lanced through her body, but it didn’t come from a clear direction. Kellan looked at her immediately.
“Baby?” he asked. Bliss stood slowly as the sharp pain zinged through her again. Her claws began to elongate, and her eyes lit up.
“Bliss, what’s the matter?” Kellan asked. Kellan instantly felt the burning of the pain his mate was feeling through their bond, but oddly, though she was experiencing the pain, it wasn’t hers.
“I can’t control my wolf.” Bliss grunted as her canine’s filled her mouth. The pain of whatever was happening to her was enough for her wolf to push at her walls trying to protect her from the pain. Kellan scooped her in his arms and quickly ran out of the room heading towards the workout space beneath the living quarters, so Bliss had a safe place to shift. Her bones shifted while in his arms. By the time he reached the bottom level and dropped her to the ground, her wolf came bursting out ready to attack. Kellan growled at her, and she heeled immediately, but the wolf was not ready to let Bliss out, so she just paced the room, but it seemed the moment Bliss shifted, the pain she was feeling switched onto Kellan. Because of the connection with his wolf, he knew how to maintain the beast on the onslaught of the pain and not feel the need to shift. Anyone as new as Bliss wouldn’t be able to control their animal. Kellan winced at the pain piercing throughout his body.
“What the hell is going on?” Jaxson asked seeing both his alphas being affected by something. Kellan looked at Jayce.
“It’s Rita,” Kellan said.
“She’s in pain and a lot of it. Me and Bliss both felt it.”
Jayce lasted a total of three seconds before he completely lost it. He roared as his beast tore from his body. Kellan shifted just as quickly to protect his mate from the feral wolf.
********
Rita clenched her teeth as pain seared throughout her body. Sweat rolled down her heated skin as she bore through the pain being inflicted. Her wolf was constantly pouncing forward trying to emerge to protect Rita, but the silver cuffs kept the wolf chained inside.
“Where’s the pack now?” Maverick asked her evenly. Rita took raspy breaths with her head hung down. Her arms were suspended above her head shackled together with her feet dangling off the ground. After she’d awoken from the poison in her bloodstream, she was in another bedroom, and the questioning began.
“Fuck off.” Rita spat out. She clenched her teeth as the leather strap Maverick wielded smacked against her skin. She didn’t know what the strap looked like, but she was aware that her skin was being torn open, and it wasn’t healing like it should. She had no clue where the new pack land was, but she would rather show her allegiance to her pack by telling Maverick to fuck off rather than she just didn’t know.
“It’s been three hours, Rita. Still wanna be defiant?” Maverick asked.
“Might as well just kill me.” She shrugged. “Because I’m not telling you where my pack is.” Maverick twirled his fingers through her locks before inhaling them.
“You can try to keep them from me, but I will find them and kill them all.” Since she was naked dangling in front of him, Maverick stood and looked over her body. He kneeled down and sniffed the claw marks across her hip. It was the mark of a mate. Inhaling, he smiled and looked at her.
“Jayce, huh?” he questioned. “Didn’t know the two of you were a thing.” Rita didn’t answer him.
“Does he know I wanted you to have my pups, and that’s why you ran off to find Kellan?” Again, Rita was silent. Maverick laughed sensing that there was much Jayce didn’t know.
“Well, here’s what I’m going to do,” Maverick said.
“I’m gonna find your little pack. Take back my bitch, Bliss, take you, and Gemma, hell even Kyra, and
I’ll put my pups in all four of you, and then I’ll kill your Alpha, Beta, and the enforcers, and then I’ll go around making sure that every female wolf within fifty miles of here is having pups by me. Because then, even when I die, my bloodline will see no end.”
“You’re a psycho,” Rita mumbled out.
“Aw, thanks.” Maverick smiled. “I think you’ve had enough for one night. We will resume again, and if I were you, I wouldn’t resist for too long. I don’t plan on lightening up.”
“Neither do I,” Rita said. The two male wolves that had drugged her came into the room again.
“Bring her to the room with the others.” Maverick ordered. The both of them stalked over to Rita. She hung there limply, but her mind was moving a mile a minute.
“She’s real cute this one,” he said rubbing his hand along Rita’s thigh. Rita glared at him, and when he ran his hand on the inside of her thigh, Rita popped her legs up and wrapped them around his arm. She twisted and popped his arm from his socket. It was a neat little trick that Jaxson taught her, and with much practice, she could twist anything with her legs and break it. The wolf howled out in pain and fell to the ground holding his broken arm. The other wolf was ready to slap Rita across the face, but Maverick stopped him.
“No one is allowed to touch my girls,” Maverick stated.
“Punishment is left up to me. Got that, Levi?”
“Yeah, I got it, but what about Rory?” Levi asked. Maverick shrugged.
“That’s what he gets for touching her. Next time he’ll think twice.” Rory growled as he sat up and popped his arm back into place.
“Now, get her to the room like I asked.” Maverick looked at Rita one last time before he left the room. Though she was at his mercy, there was no weakness in her eyes. He had said that he was not going to give in, and he realized then that Rita wasn’t going to give in either. What worried Maverick was that not only was Kellan going to be at his back to rescue Rita, but if Jayce was truly her mate, Maverick was going to have to deal with more than just an Alpha. He was going to have to deal with a rogue shifter who would do anything to save his mate.
Rita grunted as Rory and Levi tossed her inside another bedroom. She refused to show weakness, so she kept her grunt as low as possible. She turned around and growled at the two wolves. They simply growled back before leaving the room.
“Rita!” Brandy gasped. Her, Maya, and Amber rushed to her side to help her up to her feet.
“What have they been doing to you?” Amber asked.
“Trying to get information on my pack. Maverick thinks torturing me will get me to talk. He has another thing coming for sure.” Rita looked at the girls and realized what they had on. She gasped and touched the skimpy material.
“Is this the shit they wanted you to wear?” Rita asked. Maya nodded and looked at the teddy she was wearing.
“There’s one for you too,” Maya said nodding over to the bed. Rita eyed the black and white slutty maid outfit. Knowing that Maverick wanted to breed every she-wolf in his path, the outfits made sense.
“This is some bullshit.” Rita gritted. She winced at the pain lancing through her body.
“Let us help you clean up.” Brandy offered. “You must be in terrible pain.”
“I’m fine.” Rita lied. “I’ll go clean up.” Rita left the young wolves and limped towards the bathroom. When she closed the door and locked herself inside, she let out a quivering breath. The luxurious bathroom was decked out in white and pink towels with both a jacuzzi tub and a shower stall. There was a floor to ceiling mirror that Rita slowly walked up to. Her heart beat loudly in anticipation for what she was going to see when she looked at herself. The tears she’d been holding back in front of Maverick slowly slipped from her eyes when she saw the long lashes and welts all over her skin. Like she felt, the wounds hadn’t healed the way they should of.
Each mark was seeping blood, leaving long streams traveling down her naked body. She touched Jayce’s claw marks on her hips. It looked like now after the beating Maverick put her through, Jayce’s marks weren’t going to be the only permanent thing on her body. With her hand still on Jayce’s mating mark, she sniffled and turned to the standing shower and turned on the water. She wished that Jayce and the rest of the pack were going to come bursting through the walls of wherever the hell this mansion was and coming to save her for the pure hell that Maverick had in store for her and the other wolves.
As the warm water stung her wounds, she hissed but kept herself from making any other sound. The worst thing she could do at the moment was show her weakness with three other young wolves who were scared themselves, so she sucked up her tears. An image of Jayce’s smile came into her head, and she felt herself cracking a small smirk remembering how handsome he was when he smiled. She knew it was a longshot, but in her head, she called out his name.
Jayce? She waited, holding her breath, but after a moment, she exhaled with disappointment. Wherever she was, it was too far from her mate for him to hear her call in his mind. Even if it seemed hopeless, she refused to die here in the clutches of Maverick. She needed to see her mate, touch her mate, and kiss her mate before her time ever expired.
“Are you okay?” Amber asked the moment Rita emerged from the bathroom. Rita figured her parents probably named her Amber from the amber color of her eyes and lightness of her skin, making her look like an amber gem.
“I’m strong,” Rita replied. She got on the large bed with the three young wolves.
“I may be hurting, but as long as I remember that I’m strong, then I will be okay. Same thing goes for you three.”
“But we’re not strong.” Maya quipped.
“The three of us shifted for the second time only days ago, and thanks to these silver cuffs we sort of have control of our wolves, but who’s the say the moment we can finally shift we won’t lose all control?” Maya’s deep brown eyes and bronze skin made her look like she was carved from Egyptian stone.
“I agree with Maya,” Amber said. Rita looked over at Brandy. She seemed the eldest of the three, but that was simply in her features. The only thing different about her was the fact that she was growing sister locks, but they were short and sprouted in all different directions whereas the other two had a head of curly, wild, untamed hair. Her lips were naturally plump, and her cheekbones were high giving her a mature look.
“I don’t agree,” Brandy said. “Yeah, we’re young shifters, but that doesn’t mean we have to be weak, and maybe we don’t have control of our wolves, but that still doesn’t mean we should be held here against our will, and look at these outfits. It’s obvious they want to make us their fuck toys.” All three wolves shivered.
“So gross,” Maya stated.
“You don’t have to wear those outfits,” Rita said.
“I’d rather walk naked than to wear it. Lingerie gives males pleasure and shows submission, and as wolves, we’re naked all the time, that’s why they want us to wear those shits.” After looking at each other, the three of them took off the outfits.
“You’re mated?” Brandy asked pointing to Jayce’s marks.
“Yes and no. We marked each other, but we didn’t completely finish the bond.”
“How come?” Maya asked.
“Complications.” Rita sighed. “But I care very much for him.”
“I can’t wait to find my mate,” Amber commented.
“Excuse me for being in your business and all, but once you shifted and went into heat who took care of you during the cycle?”
“One of the guys in my pack I like took care of mine,” Maya said.
“The son of the Alpha did mine.” Amber added.
“Same thing as Maya,” Brandy said.
“Are you asking because they want us to be their fuck toys?” Amber asked. Rita nodded. The four of them went quiet. Rita could sense their vulnerabilities and fear. In response, she pushed positivity out towards them. At the same time, the three of them looked up at her and smiled.
“Tell us about your mate,” Brandy said. Rita smiled when she thought about Jayce.
“He’s a hardworking wolf, but the moment he gets around his friends, he becomes this laid-back man that plays teenage pranks on people and shit.” Rita shook her head.
“I wanna see how he looks.” Amber pouted. Maya quickly hopped off the bed. She searched the room until she found a large writing pad and a pen. She hopped back onto the bed.
“Describe him,” Maya said.
“What are you doing?” Rita asked.
“You’ll see! Just describe him.” Shrugging, Rita gave Maya a deep description of what her mate looked like. Slowly on the pad, a hand-drawn image of Jayce appeared. Rita was taken aback by her talent in being able to just draw someone like that. It took her a whole hour with Rita correcting her on some of his attributes, but when she was done, she had it in the bag.
“Damn, Rita, your mate is kinda sexy,” Amber said.
“Kinda?” Rita asked taking the paper from Maya. “He is sexy.” She smiled.
“So, I guess you need to get out of here in one piece to get back to that sexy ass man,” Brandy commented. Rita smirked and looked at the drawing. She drew her finger along the lines and imagined she was touching him.
“We’re all gonna make it out of here,” Rita said. “Don’t worry about that.” Nodding in response, the girls got comfortable on the large bed as fatigue consumed them. Once they’d drifted off to sleep, Rita crawled out of the bed. She went to the window hoping to see something outside to tell her where she was, but there was nothing but high trees and the sound and smell of water. Still, she took a deep breath and closed her eyes with the image of what was outside the window etched in her mind. She wasn’t fully bonded to Jayce, but if he was close, she could project into his mind, but because she shared a blood vow with Kellan, and now Bliss, because of the mating, she could project into their minds no matter their distance.
