Standing slightly taller and broader than his brothers, Ross took the lead. Keeping to the shadows, he began to trail Mr. Davidson through the small town of Rockshore, his ears taking in every single sound.
The trail zigzagged around the town, as though the man had gotten lost and was trying to get his bearings. Either that or he was deliberately trying to confuse them. At two separate points, his scent crossed over the path he’d already walked on and Ross had to work hard to separate the fresher scent from the slightly older one.
Finally, the path led toward the back of the town. It stopped zigzagging and became much straighter. Ross fixed his eyes on the path, moving carefully but quickly.
We got him, he heard Ash say. He can’t hide now.
No, he can’t, Ross replied, his chest rattling in warning as they approached a large, dark house. There wasn’t a single light on in the place, shrouding it in darkness and gloom. His fur ruffled, his paws taking careful steps.
Stopping suddenly, Ross caught another scent. Something was wrong. There wasn’t just Davidson—there was something else. Someone else. In fact, there were at least four other scents leading toward the house, and none of them had come back.
Careful.
Connor butted him with his head, apparently unafraid. We know. You’ve said it a few times.
He walked over to the house, his nose sniffing hard.
Ross followed, taking his time. For a good few minutes, the three shifters worked hard to find where the scents led, finding one that seemed to lead around the back.
I’ll be back in a minute, he said, seeing his brothers lift their heads. Stay here.
Trotting around to the back of the house, Ross froze as he sensed movement. He still couldn’t see anything moving, but his senses told him something—or someone—was nearby.
A slight sniff caught his ears. Someone was crying. Sniffing the air, he moved forward, keeping his body pressed against the cold stone of the house.
Hearing the sound again, he walked forward until he found a grate. The sniffing came again, much more clearly this time, until Ross had no choice but to look.
From his angle, he could see very little, given the darkness, but eventually, a small, crouched figure came into view. His breath huffed from his nose in surprise, his lip curling back. There was a woman down there, and she was crying.
Ross didn't know what to do. Normally, he was pretty good at making decisions and acting on them straight away, but right now he was pretty stuck. If she did see him, she'd probably scream and that would ruin everything. Unfortunately, Ross was certain that this was the missing Jenny, the one Mr. Davidson had been “so upset” over. A low growl escaped him as he thought about how much the man had pretended to be upset. Ross wondered if he'd managed to fool the police. It wasn't going to be difficult to do that since the police didn't have the skills or the expertise they did.
“Is someone there?”
Ross slunk into the shadows, pressing himself bodily against the wall. He froze, not moving a muscle as he waited for her to either speak again or move away.
“Please,” came the voice again. “If you can help me, I need to get out of here.”
A growl rippled out of his chest as a flood of emotions filled his wolf form, a protective instinct greater than he’d ever experienced before. Ross tried to hide the sound, stop it from escaping, but his growl was caught by the wind.
“I know you’re there,” came the voice again. “I can sense you.”
Slowly, Ross moved closer, his glowing eyes looking sharply through the grate. A pair of eyes looked back at him, a couple of fingers pressed through the grate. For whatever reason, she wasn’t afraid of him.
"You're one of us, aren't you?" the woman said, her voice a breathy whisper. "You have to run. You have to hide. He won't stop until he gets all of us here in Rockshore."
Who? If she really was a shifter, she'd hear him. He waited, not moving until she answered.
"Greg," she replied softly. "He called himself Greg Davidson, but I don't know if that's his real name. He's after us. Hunting us. Please, go."
Ross didn’t want to. He knew she was a shifter now. She had to be, and a shifter didn’t leave another shifter in danger. It wasn’t done. The alliance between the packs across the states meant that he had a responsibility. No matter if she begged him, Ross wasn’t about to leave her here.
A sudden whine came from around from the front of the house, making Ross immediately on edge.
“Listen to me, please,” she said again. “Go, now. He’s here. He knew someone would come.”
I’ll find a way to get you out, he promised, hearing the sound of her stifled sobs.
The fingers disappeared back into the grate, and she dropped her eyes as she moved back into the darkness. Ross was forced to run back toward his brother, suddenly terrified as to what that whine had been about.
Chapter Three
Ross heard the whine again and pushed himself into a run. Ignoring the shadows, he stayed out in the moonlight, in the front of the house. His eyes caught Connor almost immediately—but there was no sign of Ash.
Where is he?
His breath came quickly, his mouth hanging open as he took in great lungfuls of air.
Careful, Connor warned, flattening himself into the grass. Lie down, Ross.
Ross did so immediately, his eyes searching the gloom for signs of Ash. What happened?
Before Connor could respond, Ross caught the scent of Davidson. Pushing his body into the earth, Ross stayed as low as he could, hoping the tall grass would hide him.
Davidson was muttering something under his breath with what looked like a tranquilizer gun in his hand. Jenny—since he presumed that was who she was—had been right. He wanted to catch them, for whatever reason. This wasn't good.
If Davidson caught them, Ross’s entire pack would be in danger. The other packs would be in danger too since he wouldn't be able to pass on the message that there were hunters around. At the same time, Ross worried about Ash and where he was. Had Davidson already got him? If so, where was he? There was no way Davidson would have been able to lift an unconscious wolf into the house by himself. Remembering the other scents he'd caught earlier, Ross's hackles rose. There were more hunters inside. There had to be.
“Cowards,” Davidson spat, his eyes looking over the ground. Wanting to do nothing more than attack the man, Ross had to force himself to lie still. It wouldn’t do any of them any good for him to lose it now.
Walking inside, muttering something about “getting help,” Ross and Connor quickly got up.
This way, Connor said, running across the grass.
Ross followed immediately, quickly catching Ash's scent. He was downwind, away from the house, but a pink-tipped dart was sticking out of his side. His eyes were half closed, his tongue lolling out of his mouth. He was clearly unconscious.
What are we going to do?
Ross tried not to panic, glancing toward the house and then back to Ash. Davidson could come back at any minute with whatever “help” he had gone to get.
We have to shift.
Leaving no time to argue, Ross pushed the wolf down. He had to get out, get out of his wolf form and back to his human skin. It was quick and painful, but Ross caught his breath almost at once before bending down to Ash.
“We have to carry him home,” he muttered just as Connor shifted. “If we leave him here, Davidson will get him and put him in that cellar with Jenny.”
Ross felt rather than saw Connor open his mouth to ask what he meant before he closed it again and bent down to Ash. With an effort, Ross and Connor managed to settle Ash across Ross’s shoulder, his arms hoisting him up carefully.
“Got him?” Connor asked quietly.
With a grunt, Ross walked across the cold grass, hoping that everyone in the town would be asleep and not out on the street. The last thing they needed to see would be two completely naked men striding across the town of Rockshore with a wolf in thei
r arms.
"We need to stick to the back streets," Ross muttered, catching his breath for a moment. "Let's just hope they don't realize he's gone—"
The rest of his sentence was cut off as a shout of frustration and anger came from behind them. Ross picked up his pace at once, practically running as he took Ash back home to safety.
It seemed to take hours to get back to their offices. Ross was breathing heavily when they pushed their way through the front door. Sweat dripped down his back, and his hair was soaked.
“What on earth happened?”
Thomas was there in a moment, helping him put Ash down on the long sofa.
Connor flung a towel at Ross, pulling on a pair of joggers. “Looks like Sarah was right.”
“I am?” She walked in, ignoring Ross’s nakedness and bending down next to Ash. “What happened?”
"Mr. Davidson's not all he appears to be," Connor replied grimly. "Took out Ash with a tranquilizer of some sort."
“At least it wasn’t a bullet,” Sarah murmured, lifting Ash’s eyelid. “He’s not injured, is he?”
“No,” Thomas reassured her. “Just unconscious. He won’t be able to shift until he’s woken up, though.”
Sarah glanced up at Ross, her face a mixture of anxiety and relief. “Thank goodness you got him back.”
Ross’s lip curled. “I need to get dressed quickly. You too, Connor.”
Connor nodded, as a look of understanding passed between them. They both suspected that more than likely, Mr. Davidson—and the rest of his hunters, whoever they were—were going to be after the pack sooner rather than later. It would be best to be prepared.
Once washed and dressed, Ross strode back down the stairs toward his living room, where Ash was still be tended by Sarah.
“Anything?”
She shook her head. “Nothing yet. That must have been something pretty strong to have him out for so long.”
Ross growled, his face twisting with anger. He should have been more careful, should have protected Ash somehow. As both the alpha and the pack leader, he was responsible for every other shifter and, in this case, it felt as though he had let his brother down. He’d been distracted by the woman in the cellar, whoever she was. Not that she wasn’t important—she just wasn’t as important as Ash.
Connor slapped him on the back, walking into the sitting room. “Don’t beat yourself up about this Ross. You couldn’t have known.”
Shrugging, Ross walked around the room, making sure all the curtains were shut tight. His brothers always seemed to know what he was thinking and when he felt as though it was his fault. It made him feel slightly better, knowing that they didn’t blame him the same way he blamed himself.
Peering through a small crack in the curtains, Ross tensed. “There’s someone outside,” he murmured, just low enough for everyone to hear.
Connor was beside him in an instant. “Who is it?”
Ross shook his head slightly. “I can’t see,” he said quietly. “It’s just a shadow moving at the moment.” Even his enhanced eyesight wasn’t helping him here. Whoever it was, they were skulking around their offices for a reason, and Ross didn’t like not knowing what that reason was.
“Should we go out and confront them?”
“No,” Ross said firmly, closing the curtains again. “Let them come to us. I doubt we’ll have to wait long.”
He’d barely finished his sentence when a sudden knock at the door echoed through the building.
“That’s the office door,” Connor muttered, striding toward the door that led from the living room to the front hall, where the office was. “What on earth is someone doing here at this hour?”
“Wait,” Ross said sharply, sniffing the air. It didn’t take long for him to confirm that it was Mr. Davidson at the door. “It’s him. He’s here.”
“Who?” Sarah asked, glancing from Connor to Ross and back again.
“Davidson,” Ross replied, casting a worried look over the form of his brother Ash, still in his wolf skin. “And I’ll bet he’s looking for Ash.”
Chapter Four
"What are we going to do?" Connor whispered as they walked to the front door together. The knocking hadn't stopped, and Ross guessed wasn't likely to either. Evidently, Davidson was quite determined. His mind lingered on the frightened pair of eyes looking up at him from the grate, and a growl escaped him before he had the chance to stop it. He didn't even want to think about what Davidson was doing to Jenny.
“We’re going to act natural,” Ross replied firmly. “We do our best work at night, remember? And we don’t let him anywhere near Ash.”
“Right.”
As the knocking started up again, Ross pulled open the front door, his eyebrows practically knotted together.
“Yes?”
Davidson stood on the doorstep, looking quite frantic. “Oh, thank goodness you’re here,” he said, attempting to push past Ross and come into the offices. “I’ve had such a terrible news.”
Ross blocked his way. “It’s the middle of the night, man,” he exclaimed, making no bones about how irritated he was. “What on earth makes you think that we’re open all hours?”
Davidson looked up at him, with a glint of steel in his eyes. “I’m your client, ain’t I?” he asked, still pretending to be completely shaken. “I thought that meant that you’d see me.”
“During normal working hours, yes,” Ross replied firmly. “If you have bad news, then you take it to the police.”
"Oh, but I have!" Davidson exclaimed at once. "But I know you guys do a much better job than the police, so of course I wanted to tell you immediately. After all, Jenny's life could be in danger!" He cast a curious look at Ross and Connor. "And, from the look of it, I didn't exactly get you out of your beds!"
“We do our best work at night,” Connor said, repeating Ross’s earlier words. “But that doesn’t mean we see clients. We have our peace and quiet for a reason.”
Davidson spread his hands, now looking quite desperate. “I just need a moment of your time. Please, I’m begging you.”
With a sigh, Ross opened the door and gestured toward the office, glad that Thomas had left both the door unlocked and the computers on. It would give the appearance that they had been working, and hopefully Davidson would stop being so suspicious of them. He had absolutely no doubt that everything Davidson said from here on out would be complete and utter lies.
Davidson sat in a chair opposite Ross’s desk while Ross sat by his computer. Pulling out his notebook, Ross looked at Davidson, who was now looking extremely pale. He can act well, that’s for sure, Ross thought to himself grimly.
“Do you all stay up to work?” Davidson asked, his eyes on a blown-up photo of the team on the wall. “I had heard it was you and your brothers who run this place.”
Ross gave him a tight smile, immediately sensing Connor’s tension. “Yes, it’s me and my brothers, plus a sister-in-law,” he explained quickly. “They’re all having a break right now.”
Davidson nodded slowly. “Well, I do hope I get to meet them all before I go,” he said softly. “It would be wonderful to thank them personally for what they’re doing to help Jenny.”
“Can I get you something to drink, Mr. Davidson?” Connor interrupted, his back now ramrod straight. There was no doubt what Davidson was attempting to get at, and Ross wasn’t about to give him what he wanted.
“A coffee, please,” Davidson replied at once, turning to face Connor. “I know it’s the early hours of the morning now, but after what I found at home when I returned, there’s no way I can sleep now.”
Connor gave him a curt nod, throwing a look at Ross. Shifting slightly in his chair, Ross wondered how he was going to get out of this one. There wasn’t exactly a way to prove to Davidson that everyone was here when Ash was still unconscious. But then again, if they did manage to do that, perhaps Davidson would be off their case for a while.
“The reason I’m so upset is because I received a terrible
note when I got home,” Davidson began, sitting forward in his chair. “It’s demanding money. Otherwise…” He swallowed hard, knotting his fingers together. “Otherwise, they’ll kill her.”
Ross attempted to rearrange his face into a look of compassion, but inside he didn’t believe a word of it. “Where is this note?”
“The police have it,” Davidson sighed, wiping his eyes with the back of his hand. “I’ll get it to you if I can.”
Jotting that down in his notebook, Ross turned sharp eyes onto Davidson. “And do you have any idea where she might be?”
He shook his head at once, as though he’d been expecting the question. “No, not at all.”
“No idea who would have taken her?”
Another head shake.
At that point, Connor walked in, with Thomas in tow. Handing Mr. Davidson his coffee, he quickly made the introductions. Thomas gave Mr. Davidson a jerky nod before sitting down at his desk on the opposite side of the room.
“And you have two more, is that right?” Davidson asked, turning his attentions back to Ross.
“Yes, that’s right,” Ross replied tightly. “Now, you were saying about this note—you have no idea who could have taken Jenny, yes?”
Loved by The Alpha Wolf (The Lone Wolf Book 1) Page 2
