by J. L. Madore
She didn’t know where it was, but that wasn’t what he asked. As long as she could keep him from asking, maybe she could negotiate.
“Okay, Hannah, so tell me. Where is the Alpha’s ring?”
Oh, cowpucks.
Between one thought and the next, I found myself standing in the grand living room of my sister’s massive home. Shit. I spun on my heel and gave her my back. Not only did I just abandon Hannah in Oklahoma, but the image of Zophia macking with Aust on the couch was now forever emblazoned in my mind’s eye.
Sorry. New powers. I said into her mind. I didn’t mean to beam here. My bad.
Zophia laughed behind him. “It would’ve been more awkward in another few minutes, so be thankful you’re here now. What can I do for you? If your powers brought you here, you must want to speak with me.”
I need to locate Jade and Bree. We were ambushed by rogue Weres, and they were taken, along with an innocent girl.
“Taken?” She brushed past me, her pretty blue skirt rippling behind her as she ran. “Were they hurt?”
Not that I know of. Honestly though, if Jade were conscious, they wouldn’t be gone. She’s got enough juice to get them out. The longer they’re missing, the worse my gut twists, thinking things went south.
Zophia led the way into one of the large guest rooms down the hall. Near the window, a loom sat threaded and empty. Along the far wall, rows and rows of tapestries hung in open-ended wood frames.
Mid-stride, she raised her hands, and a gust of wind rustled the tapestries. Obeying her call, two woven accounts of life came flying to the forefront. She locked one into a wooden frame while Aust rushed in beside her to lock the second one down.
“Who is it, neelan?” he asked. “Who has been taken?”
She raised her finger to her husband and focused on the tapestries. “They’re together and alive, but that doesn’t tell us much. We’d learn more from Zinnia’s seeing bowl.”
Is she still in the wind with Dane?
“Yes, but her bowl was returned and is up with Zora and Zana in the Hall of Destiny.”
Those bitches won’t tell me shit.
“But lucky for you, I still hold the Fate ability to command the bowl.” Zo grabbed Aust’s hand and squeezed it. “I’ll be right back. Don’t worry. I’ll explain later.”
The two of us materialized Behind the Veil and onto the steps of the Hall of Destiny. As Castian’s sanctum in the heavens, few people had access to come and go Behind the Veil. We did, both by privilege of our stations and by the Fae god blood running in our veins.
“Okay, big entrance,” Zo said, taking the ascent on a run. She pushed her hands out in front of her, and the doors flew open. The thundering echo of wood on marble had our two half-sisters squealing and ducking for cover. “Hello, sisters. It’s family reunion time.”
I followed, hard on Zo’s heels. The more time I spent with her, the more I liked her. Standing next to two of the other three Fates, I regarded the three of them together. Zana and Zora both shared her dark hair, iridescent skin, and midnight blue eyes, but that’s where the similarity ended.
Zophia had courage and morals and loyalty—all characteristics she learned from her mother, Shalana. Sadly, the other girls had their father, Dane, as their role model, and he was a corrupt, selfish asshole.
“Don’t worry, girls. We aren’t staying.” Zophia sat at the center bowl of three—past, present, and future. “Show me Jade and Bree.”
After waiting a brief moment, she swiped her fingers through the golden water and started tugging at appearing images. “Okay, got them. And yep, things are going badly. Grab my hand.”
I did as she commanded. I might be a Talon warrior and Fae god on my father’s side, but Zo was Fae goddess royalty off the charts. Both parents, plus the gifted powers of her dying mother. She was scary powerful.
We materialized into the center of what looked to be an antique car warehouse. Riley was tied up and trussed to a chair. Jade was out cold on the floor. And three Weres were roughing up Bree, trying to strip her and pin her down.
A growl ripped from my throat. I combated every kind of heinous violence against innocents but at the top of my list of vile was a male forcing himself on a female.
And for it to be someone I cared about—I’ve got this.
Rushing forward, I pulled the first one off and twisted his neck so hard he fell to the ground, looking down at his own ass. I stomped the second one’s knee sideways and snapped it like a twig. While that one fell, screaming obscenities, I drew my gun and squeezed off two into the skull of number three.
Dropping my aim, I finished number two as well.
Bree was crouched against a wooden crate, her coyote flashing gold in her eyes.
You’re safe now, Bree. I got you. I had no idea if she could read my hands in the state she was in. Zo. She’s more animal than woman right now. See if you can reach her with your Dr. Doolittle powers. She probably doesn’t want a man near her right now anyway.
With Bree in good hands, I flashed Riley an ‘okay’? She nodded, and I headed straight to Jade. Aside from one hell of an egg on the back of her head, she seemed otherwise unharmed. After all the fireballs she’d been throwing around, this might be half crack-to-the-cranium, and half out-of-juice exhaustion. As far as I could tell, she was simply out cold.
I shifted her onto a car cover and went for Riley next. Pulling my dagger from my thigh sheath, I waited for her to realize what I was doing. I needn’t have worried. The kid was calm and collected.
I cut her free from her bindings and let her pull the duct tape off her mouth herself. The moment her mouth was back in business, she launched from the chair and against my chest.
“Thank you, thank you, thank you. I knew you’d find us. I knew you’d kick their asses. When they started horndogging Bree, I didn’t know what to do. I worried you might not get here in time.”
“But he did,” Jade said, wincing. She tried to straighten but gave up and laid back down. “Thanks for the save, Sav.”
I laid my cheek on the top of Riley’s head and closed my eyes. Okay, you guys get home. I gotta find Hannah.
“Fuck that,” Bree said, spitting blood onto one of the dead wolves curled up on the floor. “We’re all-in until this is over. I’ve been blown up, beat up, and now I’m pissed. You’re not sidelining us now, Sav.”
“Sidelining? No. I’m going too,” Riley said, pulling back. “If Hannah’s in trouble, I’m not sitting around not knowing what’s going on.”
“Me either,” Zo chimed in.
Jade pulled herself to her feet and probed the back of her head. “When have I ever missed out on a party?”
I knew better than to argue with four strong females. Pulling Riley tight against my chest, I nodded my defeat. Okay, Zo, where to next?
“Hannah!” I grabbed Riley’s shirt and kept the kid from running to her sister. Materializing into the diner, with Jade, Zo, and Bree flanking me, it became obvious immediately that we arrived in the nick of time. The relief on Hannah’s face lit me up, and yeah, I totally felt like the badass my press-kit said I was. Score one to the good guys.
“It’s about time you got here,” Hannah said, sagging into the hold of the wolf holding her up. “I was spinning my wheels here and losing traction.”
“Let her go, Matt,” Riley said, pulling at his hold. I handed her off to Jade and gave her the signal to calm the hell down. “You think you’re hot shit, but we’ve got the fricken Fae gods on our side, asshole. Sucks to be you.”
Jade chuckled and wrapped an arm around the kid’s shoulder. “Look at the dumb expressions. You don’t know what you don’t know, right?” She gave me a nod, and I felt the truck parked on my chest ease off.
We had this. Still, I worried. Are you strong enough for a fight, Blaze? I asked on our gods wavelength.
She winked. S’all good. Go get the girl.
I didn’t have to be told twice. Beelining it for the frat boy manhandling Hanna
h, I got my groove on. My muscles burned to strike. Every violent instinct I possessed rushed hot to the forefront. I had no right to be furious about this guy’s familiarity with Hannah. It didn’t mean I wasn’t.
I growled long and low. The aggressive sound rolled from my throat, and I assessed the males who stiffened, drawn by the challenge. The scraping of chair legs against tile floors set the stage for what was building to be an all-out brawl.
Living with the King of Weres and his Beta taught me tons about the etiquette of the species. Growling at a territorial male wolf surrounded by his pack was dumbass stupid, but it got everyone’s attention. I wanted him overconfident. It was the only way he’d give up Hannah without a struggle.
My shitkickers thumped hard as I approached the beat-down. Mutt responded exactly as planned. Tossing Hannah at an empty booth, he readied for impact.
A lifetime of training had me waaaay overqualified for this dipshit. I ducked the swing, grabbed the guy by the wrist, spun, and had him pinned face down on a bussed table before anyone blinked.
A quick grab to my thigh had a dagger pressed to loverboy’s throat. Unless I missed my guess, good ole Matt played cock of the walk because he was on the inner circle and thought he had things all figured out.
“Let him go,” the fatso cook thundered out from behind the counter and frowned. “Who the fuck do you people think you are? Do you have any idea the trouble you’re in? Boys, cover the exits.”
Bree laughed as Weres took position, blocking the doors. “Oh, this is going to be good. Waitress, can the kid and I get some popcorn for the big reveal here in a moment?”
Jade flipped back the cuff of her sweater and fingered the skirl wrapped and tied around her wrist with a leather thong. Each of Bruin’s siblings possessed one of his enchanted bear-claw whistles.
“Is that a dog whistle—”
“No, it’s a brother whistle.” She raised the long, polished claw to her mouth and blew.
Bruin materialized beside his sister, gun drawn and looking homicidal. Cowboy Flashed in beside him a milli-second later.
“Blaze?” Bruin said, taking in the crowd. “What’s happened? Where are we?”
Cowboy took three long strides and pulled Bree against his chest. He brushed a gentle finger over the scuff on her cheek, then took in her torn clothes and the bruises coming up on her neck. A deadly warning rumbled from through the diner. “We’re in fucking Woodsboro Creek and this is my pack. Will someone please tell me what the fuck happened to my mate?”
Stepping in front of Hannah and her sister, I blocked access to my girls. With this much power on Team Haven, we were good, but I wasn’t taking chances. When the two hugged me from behind, I stood tall, feeling indestructible.
The movement caught the attention of Cowboy, and he straightened. “Hannah? What’s happened?”
“I’m sorry, Waylon,” she said, her voice choked. “Your mate was hurt trying to save my sister and me.”
“Save you from what?”
“Your pack killed your family, and I got tangled up in it. They wanted the Alpha ring and think I have it.”
There was a momentary flash of pain in the guy’s caramel-colored eyes, and then it was gone. “Who? When?”
“Lock us down, Blaze,” Bruin said, circling his finger in the air. The instant pressurizing of Jade’s magical seal made my ears pop. A couple of chair legs scratched the floor and Bruin shook his head. “For anyone with big ideas, wondering who the fuck just prevented you from leaving, I’m Bruin, your King, and my fucking ring trumps them all, assholes.”
The Weres fell silent as Hannah, Jade, and Bree recounted the past few days. I zoned out, content with the arms of two girls clinging tight around my waist. I winked back at Riley, who seemed to be having the time of her life.
Yeah, we were all soaked and filthy from rolling around in the snow and on cold dirt and concrete floors. We’d take care of that soon enough. I planned to take them home, soak with Hannah in a hot bath, and warm her up, both inside and out.
When the ladies were done their recap, Bruin sat on one of the tables and swept his palm through the air. “This is all you, Cowboy. Handle this however you want.”
Bree laughed. “Payback time, bitches.”
Cowboy kissed the top of Bree’s head and stepped away. He paced the room, meeting the confused gazes of younger wolves and the frightened gazes of the older. How many of them were involved in the attack that left Cowboy near death?
“You know,” Cowboy said, meandering between the tables, the heels of his boots bumping the tile with each step, “I never thought I’d be back. I came to terms with my pack despising me, and my parents betraying me. My best revenge was living an honorable life, seizing each day, and protecting the innocent—like one amazing person did for me.”
He stopped in front of Hannah and the hug he gave her lifted her off her feet and brought a glorious smile to her face. “Thank you, Banana.”
She beamed. “By the praise of your friends, it sounds like you did real good.”
“Right?” he said, his smile hitting Bruin, Bree, Jade, and then me. “I’m the Beta to the Were King. I’m mated to a beautiful coyote girl who’s got way more brains than to fall for a goof like me, and I have the kind of love and family support I’d never get here.”
“Damn straight,” Jade said.
“And that’s the problem.” He picked up a bag of chips from below the register and opened them up. Popping one in his mouth, he chewed and shook his head. “I get what my father tried to do here, but he did it through politics and backstabbing. He was ruthless and, in turn, his pack grew to be untrustworthy assholes.”
I raised my hands. They don’t know a thing about loyalty.
Cowboy nodded. “Exactly my point, Sav.”
“How many are in the pack now?” Bruin asked, looking around expectantly.
“Forty-six at the last moon run,” the blonde waitress, Jayne, answered.
Cowboy wrote forty-six on a menu pad and looked up. “Okay, forty-six, less my family, and how many more?”
I started the tally. Two in the pasture. Four in the barn. Two in the drive shed that day. How many walked away from the nine that attacked us in the yard?
“Originally, three,” Jade said. “A guy named Jonas and two injured.”
And now?
“Well, the Jonas guy tried something very ungentlemanly on Bree, and the others backed him up, so that number had to be adjusted.”
Cowboy’s eyes flipped gold as his wolf ascended. “What is their current status?”
Bree shrugged and offered her mate a sweet smile. “They no longer have names in the living column of the pack roster.”
“Good,” he said, his pacing trail taking him back on a loop to kiss his bride. “Down to twenty-six. Almost forty-five percent of the pack is dead in two days because you’ve all been groomed to think you’re tough-as-shit top-of-the-heap untouchable. Does anyone else think that’s fucked up?”
“It’s arrogant,” Bree said, “and it’s because they live here in a pocket among humans. If they were in the Realm of the Fair, they’d learn humility pretty fucking quick.”
“Bullshit,” Blake said, his round face getting redder by the moment. “You think I’ll believe that this ink-splash hoodlum and those two girls took out seventeen full-grown males from our pack? That would take an army.”
I lit up with a shit-eating grin and wished I could tell them that his guys were fermenting under six feet of cow dung. Being mute sucked some days.
Hannah caught my expression and almost laughed. “No army. Just one Talon Enforcer here to check on me, and two very skilled and talented women.”
Jade waved away the compliment. “It’s all in the raising. Where Cowboy’s father was a brute, I was brought up by two fathers. My biological father is Castian, God of gods, and the man who raised me is Maximus Reign. You all might know him as the Reign of Terror? Well, both had gifts to give and lessons to teach.”
&
nbsp; “Speaking of Reign,” Bruin said, looking to Cowboy and waving his phone. “I texted him the sitch. You stay and decide what you want to be done with this pack. I gotta get back to Africa.”
Cowboy chuckled. “When’s he coming?”
“I mentioned Jade was taken prisoner and roughed up, so . . . uh, now.”
As the words left Bruin’s mouth, Reign Flashed in, looking murderous. Then Kobi, Sin, and Rue. Then Nash and Samuel. The Whippoorwill filled up with men in leather, and the Weres in the room looked sick.
I chuckled and kissed Hannah’s cheek.
The Cavalry is here.
CHAPTER TEN
Hannah almost peed her pants when Talon warriors started popping into the café like massive black-leather flies. It wasn’t so much that she didn’t believe what Savage told her—she’d seen Jade throw jets of fire from her hands—she simply didn’t have perspective on what it meant. Savage was part of something powerful and important.
Honor. Duty. Sacrifice.
He left his girlfriend to track down and destroy his brother instead of staying put and saying yes to a half-baked proposal to play house. She understood why—truly understood. Lives were at stake in his world, and he sacrificed for what needed to be done.
That didn’t make it hurt any less that he’d sacrificed her.
Still, she saw the same level of commitment displayed in each of the new faces around the diner. One text that one of their own was threatened and bam, they were there.
Like Savage had come for her.
With the Whippoorwill locked down, and massive men appearing in every empty space, it got claustrophobic quickly. Savage led her and Riley straight for one of the biggest men in the room. Older than the rest, he looked no less lethal, despite the fine navy suit and his long, brindle hair.
Reign, he signed. This is Hannah, the one who saved Cowboy way back when.
A resounding grunt of approval rose from the warriors surrounding them, and heat crept into her cheeks.
