His pulse stuttered, fury swelling. A sharp pain in his temple threatened to blind him. His vision went red. The bastard had used Landry as bait. Christ...Rosa. Why would she do such a thing? His life wasn’t worth the cost of hers. He staggered.
“Landry!” It was Kaleb, but his voice sounded disconnected as if channeled from a far away place.
He would kill Arick. Drown the sick son of a bitch in his own blood.
“Michaels!” Hard fingers gripped his biceps followed by a hard shake. Reflex launched Landry into his fighting stance, one fist drawn back ready to take down the target in front of him.
“Whoa!” The male backstepped, his forearms snapping into place around his face. “Hey...Landry, it’s me, Kaleb.”
Landry blinked, trying to bring the image of his partner into focus.
“Hey, man... What the hell? Come back to me.”
He lowered his arms, the red fading away like a fine mist from his corneas.
Kaleb shoulders relaxed, and he yanked the cell from Landry’s grasp. “What did you find in here?”
“She...” The word exited Landry’s throat as if scraped off his vocal chords. “He used me to get her away from the grounds.”
“Used you?” His partner glanced at the display, taking in the text message Landry had left open. Kaleb scrubbed a palm over his face. “Dammit! He made her think your life was at risk if she didn’t meet him in Hollows.”
“Rosa had to know how suspicious that sounded,” Landry said, his jaw tight, aching. “Especially considering the timing,”
“Sure she did.” Kaleb nodded. “But you know her. Rosa wouldn’t take the chance his threat wasn’t real. Not with your life on the line.”
“If he’s hurt her, Kaleb...” Landry shook his head, savoring the sweet flavor of revenge on his tongue.
“I’m right there with you, my friend. I want my piece of him as well. For many reasons.”
Unfortunately for both packs, if Arick was jonesing for a war, after Landry delivered the news to Rosa’s twin, a war he would get.
Chapter Twelve
The sun had already dipped behind the trees when Kaleb knocked on the alpha’s door.
He stood on the porch beside his partner who looked as if his cooling system had failed, and he was about one degree away from a nuclear meltdown. Kaleb’s temples pounded, and he swore his own mercury was about to blow the roof on his top. He could only imagine the effect the news bomb would have on Evin. The reaction to his sister’s kidnapping would probably measure around plus ten on the Richter Scale. Thank God, Evin at least had Mason to help get him through shit storm they were about to face. And the worst part? Not even Landry understood how horrendous the timing was of Rosa falling into the Gregorsons’ hands.
The weight of the knowledge on Kaleb’s chest felt like an eighteen-wheeler crushing him. Keeping her secret had been a gigantic mistake. He should have never agreed to remain quiet. If he hadn’t, Rosa wouldn’t be in this situation. And based on the intensity of their earlier bathroom encounter, she was so damn close. Christ. He didn’t want to think what they would do Rosa if her heat fully rose while she was their captive.
“Fuck...” he whispered, the tips of his canines biting into his lip.
“You can say that again,” Landry muttered.
The door opened, revealing Mason on the other side, his cheeks flushed, blond hair mussed, the tail of his T-shirt half in and half out of his faded jeans. His bare feet stuck out from under the ragged denim.
“Hey, there,” Mason said, clearing his throat. “What’s up?”
“Sorry to have shown up without notice,” Kaleb said with a glance at his partner.
“This can’t wait,” Landry added.
“Yeah. Sure.” Mason stepped back.
At that moment, Evin sauntered into the great room, jeans riding low on his hips as he tugged a shirt over his bare chest. “Landry.” He nodded to Kaleb’s partner then looked to him. “Kaleb... From the expression on both your mugs, I don’t think I’m going to like why you’re here.”
“There’s no easy way to put this, so I’m just going to say it,” Landry began as Mason made his way over to his mate’s side. “Arick Gregorson has Rosa.”
Evin took a step back from Mason, his gaze fixed on his enforcers. “Come again,” he growled, his eyes burning a feral red.
“Arick lured her off the grounds without our knowledge,” Kaleb said.
Landry handed the note Arick had left on the seat of Rosa’s Jeep to the alpha. Evin snatched it from his lead’s fingertips and studied the message. Seconds later, the alpha’s gaze rose, meeting Landry’s.
“I see our suspicions about Arick were dead on.” Evin slowly nodded, his eyelids narrowed, nostrils flared. “There’s more to this than his greed for power.”
“He won’t get away with this, sir,” Landry snarled. “I can assure you.”
“I agree.” Evin’s eyes flashed, canines bared. “He’s crossed a line there will be no coming back from. Arick’s ass is mine.”
“No disrespect, Alpha,” Kaleb interjected. “But you’re gonna have to share.”
On a nod, Evin’s lip curled into a smile that said not if I get to him first, then his gaze tapped Landry’s. “Call in every available former and current member of the team. We have a...visit to make.”
“On it.” Landry pulled his cell from his pocket and turned.
“Hey, before we all get moving on this,” Kaleb said. Landry pivoted, facing him. “There’s something you need to know.”
The alpha’s brow lifted. “About what?”
“About Rosa.” Damn, this fucking sucked. If he were Evin, Kaleb would want to kill the male who’d kept that kind of information hidden.
“What about Rosa?” Evin’s jaw ticked. “Dammit, Kaleb, if you know something about her you need to spill it now.”
“She swore me to secrecy—begged me for a little more time to figure things out. But Rosa promised me she was going to come to you today—but then she disappeared.” Kaleb cursed under his breath, swinging his gaze away from the infuriated alpha male in front of him.
“Get to the point, Kaleb!” Evin closed the distance between them. “What the hell are you trying to say?”
Kaleb inhaled deeply, bracing himself for the shit about to rain down on his head. But he couldn’t blame them. “There’s a good chance Rosa’s in heat.”
There wasn’t a chance in hell Kaleb could have ducked. The alpha was too damn fast. One second, he was on his feet. The next, his ass was kissing the floor, pain blooming along his jaw, and his ears ringing. Kaleb palmed his cheek and shook his head, the act rattling his brain even more.
“I should kill you!” Evin loomed over him. Mason held him back from finishing Kaleb off by one arm. “What the fuck were you thinking?” He stabbed his fingers into his dark hair. “Fuck...” Evin spun out of his mate’s hold. “I can’t even begin to imagine...” he growled. “I can’t go there. Shit. I can’t stand to think what my sister is going through.”
Landry’s broad hand appeared in Kaleb’s face. Kaleb latched on and hauled himself up. But before he could let go, Landry yanked him into his chest, putting them face-to-face. “And here I thought I was the only one with a secret,” Landry rumbled, the sharp points of his canines flashing. “What a hypocrite... If they harm her, I will never forgive you.” His nostrils flared. “I could have kept her safe,” he spat.
“That’s just it,” Kaleb barked. “She didn’t want to be locked away.”
“Well, I’m sure that’s exactly what Arick’s done to her now,” Evin called out from the other side of the room. “We can only pray she’s alone in that cell.”
Bile swelled in the back of Kaleb’s throat. He swallowed hard and massaged the knot the size of his fist at his nape.
“What’s done is done.” Evin strode over to the enforcers, the heat in his glare aimed at Kaleb. “We can’t change the decisions that were made, but we do have power over the present.�
� The alpha glanced at Landry, then to his mate. “Let’s get my sister back,” he snarled.
Chapter Thirteen
Landry squeezed the wire cutters, snipping the thick links dividing the KinKaids from the Gregorsons. With a loud snap, the final piece of metal keeping the packs separated gave way, the sound triggering another dose of adrenalin pouring into his veins. The hunger for blood had never gripped him as fiercely as it did tonight.
Landry glanced up at the full moon, howled, and waved their pack through to the other side.
A large black wolf leaped through the opening first—the alpha—followed by his mate. Evin had demanded Mason stay behind, to allow him and his team to deal with the Gregorsons, but Mason had stood his ground. The male had refused to back down, stating Rosa was his family too, and he wasn’t going to sit on his ass when he could help bring her home. Only Mason could have gotten away with denying a direct order from the alpha. But in the end, as unhappy as Evin was with Mason putting his life at risk, Landry hadn’t missed the pride in Evin’s eyes for his mate’s willingness to be there for Rosa.
More than a hundred members of the pack rushed the opening in the fence. The ground rumbled with the multiple strikes of paws and boots as a lethal mixture of fangs, knives, and firearms funneled through. There was no way of knowing how many shifters they would be facing, but one thing was for sure, none were better trained. And tonight, Arick would feel the full wrath of the KinKaids.
Kaleb pulled up the rear, his long auburn hair hidden beneath a black skullcap. A dark backpack hung over his shoulders, matching Landry’s own satchel of emergency supplies. Under the moonlight, dark shadows slashed the shifter’s face enhancing Kaleb’s high cheekbones and the strong lines of his jaw. Landry’s partner looked fierce as hell.
“That’s everyone?”
“I’m the last of them,” Kaleb said and joined the rest of the posse on the other side. Glancing back over his shoulder with a devious grin, he added, “Let’s do this.”
“Hell, yeah,” Landry muttered and ducked through, allowing the fencing to fall behind him.
Like a howling horde from the pits of Hades, the KinKaid pack charged across the Gregorson territory.
Their target: the alpha’s residence.
But it didn’t take long for their presence to be detected. Not that they were trying to hide their attack. Evin had wanted Stefan and Arick to know they were coming. Wanted them to anticipate their demise. Because death was on its way.
Near the perimeter, they ran into the Gregorson first line of defense. A wave of shifters in wolf form barreled through the trees, fangs bared, eyes flashing with a reddish glow. Surging forward, Landry roared, jerking a pistol from each side of his belt, aiming the twin Glocks straight ahead.
Right. Left. Right. Left. Landry pulled the triggers in rapid succession, the percussions ringing out with a deafening boom. In front of him, blood exploded from the wolves’ dark fur like macabre paint ball strikes, dropping the shifters in their tracks. Their sickening howls of pain filled the night air and competed for dominance with the gunshots and growls.
His heart pounded like a bass drum. His breathing reduced to hard pants. Out of the corner of his eye, Landry spotted Kaleb. Palming a long dagger in each grip, Kaleb slashed through the enemy. Garnet stained his partner’s face, his arms, and chest. The warrior was a machine, plowing through the shifters as if they were piñatas blocking his path.
Fuck. Kaleb was an impressive sight, and every molecule inside Landry screamed, Mine.
Shit. Not here. He needed to focus.
The impact came out of nowhere with the force of a bus, slamming Landry to the ground. Air punched from his lungs, paralyzing his diaphragm. Landry shook his head, blinking, his vision coalescing on a rust-colored wolf standing on his sternum. Roll, roll, roll. The mantra chanted inside his head. Landry had to get out from under the wolf, or he was dead.
Mustering every ounce of strength, Landry swung a fist up, and using the momentum of his shoulder, pounded into the shifter, knocking him over. Landry flipped, scrambling for purchase to launch forward.
White-hot pain sliced into his flank, crippling his movements. The wolf had Landry in his jaws. Landry cried out. Gritting his teeth, he forced himself to turn into the agony. He had to get the damn beast to loosen his hold.
Suddenly, on a yelp, the shifter ripped his canines free from Landry’s flesh. The wolf whipped around, and Landry glanced up. Kaleb. The moment the animal performed its one-eighty, Kaleb swung, cleaving the shifter’s throat. The carcass slumped to the ground with a heavy thud.
Kaleb reached down to Landry, offering his hand. Clutching his side, Landry grabbed hold with his other palm and rolled to his feet. The jarring movement sent a lightning bolt of pain up his spine. His breath hitched, and Landry bit down.
“You okay, man?” Kaleb quickly retrieved the weapons Landry had dropped and handed them over.
“I’m fine,” Landry managed to get out. “Thanks...for everything.”
His partner’s assessing gaze zeroed in on the growing dark stain along his side. “You’re losing blood. You need to shift.”
“Fuck that.” Landry marched forward.
“Landry!” Kaleb called out behind him.
“I said I’m fine.” Landry slowed for a second. “We’ve got a job to do.”
“Stubborn...” his friend muttered, the rest of his sentence lost in the chaos. But Landry didn’t need the remaining words to get the drift of the context. Kaleb could call him whatever he wanted as long as they achieved their goal—the retrieval of Rosa KinKaid.
As if they were mowing through the thick underbrush of a jungle, the KinKaid pack carved their way through the onslaught. And with extreme prejudice, Evin eliminated the shifters who dared to enter his path—dared to keep him from his twin. Cries of pain, moans, gunshots, and growls erupted around them like geysers, filling the air with its hellish mist.
Finally, they broke through the ranks. Evin raced across the grassy expanse of the alpha’s home, his black coat slick and glistening with the remains of his kills. Arms and legs pumping, Landry headed for the back of the mansion. Mason leaped from the tree line alongside him, following their lead, his honey-gold coat now stained garnet.
Then Kaleb was there, pounding up the steps beside Landry. As per the plan, when the rest of the pack emerged from the woodlands, they would circle the perimeter, giving them the time needed to search for the alpha’s sister inside. Together, Kaleb and Landry put their boots to the wood. Once. Twice. With a crash, the door shattered from the frame. Alarms wailed throughout the interior, the shrill pitch ringing in their ears.
Evin and Mason darted through the large rooms, Landry and Kaleb behind them. The house was a fucking maze. Frustration grew like a cancerous sludge inside Landry’s veins. This was taking too long.
“KinKaid!”
All heads whipped in the direction of the male voice. Stefan stood in the archway at the opposite end of the wide corridor.
“I knew you would do anything—spill the blood of your pack and mine—whatever it took to take this land.”
Dark fur receded from Evin’s wolf. Paws retracted and human hands emerged in their place. Then with his flesh bare, Evin unfurled, his spine straightening, taking him to his full height. “Where’s my sister, you insane asshole?”
“You’re the one out of your damn mind!” the other male growled, and edged forward. But Evin matched his approach.
“You haven’t seen the half of it yet.” Evin snarled and launched into the air, shifting in mid-flight. Stefan leaped, taking the form of his own wolf and closing the gap between them.
The two landed muzzle-to-muzzle. Fangs clashing, enamel clicking. Fur tearing.
Next to Landry, Evin’s mate assumed human form. “Shit!” Mason hissed and surged forward. Kaleb snagged the male’s biceps, holding him in place.
“Let me go!” Mason twisted.
“Evin would have my head if I allowed you to get
between them,” Kaleb said.
“This is Evin’s fight,” Landry added. “Alpha to alpha.”
“I swear if Stefan kills him, I will take you both out,” Mason spat.
At that moment, Stefan yelped under the pressure of Evin’s jaws, then reared back, flipping Evin onto his back. The black wolf rolled and scrambled onto his feet. Landry raised his Glock, placing the other alpha in his crosshairs. This was Evin’s battle, but if his alpha was at risk, Landry would end it.
“Evin!” Mason struggled against Kaleb’s solid grip.
Stefan grunted, yet this time, it had nothing to do with a blow on Evin’s part. Landry glanced up, and it was as if he’d been teleported into a scene straight out of a B horror movie. Except the movie was on the wrong speed. Everything moved in a dramatic slow-mo. Stefan’s oversized head sat skewed on his body, as if someone had screwed the damn thing onto the top of his spine wrong. The beast’s large eyes were fixed on the darker wolf beneath him, his lips curled back over his fangs. Then without warning, the cranium slid free from its body, hitting the floor with a sickening thump.
“What the fuck?” Kaleb whispered.
Behind the headless carcass stood Stefan’s brother, a long blade fisted at his side, the steel smeared with crimson. Arick’s glassy stare surveyed the carnage at his feet, a well-satisfied grin sitting on his face.
Before Landry could fully absorb what the hell had just happened, Stefan’s remains shifted back to his natural state, blood pooling like a scarlet pond beneath him. Evin did the same, returning to his human form before springing to his feet.
“Congratulations,” Arick stated, his gaze slowly rising to meet Evin’s. “You’ve succeeded in murdering my brother.”
“This is what you were after all along... You’re a sick bastard.” Evin lunged for Arick, and the rest of the team was hot on the alpha’s heels.
Arick lashed out with his sword, going for Evin’s head. The alpha ducked, then spun, landing a hard kick to the other male’s gut. Arick stumbled, but recovered, coming back with another swing. This time, Evin dropped to a squat. But as soon as the blade cleared his head, the alpha dove forward, ramming Arick’s midsection with his shoulder and skull.
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