Wolf's Claim (The Royal Heir Book 3)

by Jen L. Grey

  Chapter Fourteen

  The sounds of people talking woke me from my slumber. I reached for Mason, but all I found was cold blankets. He'd been up for a while.

  My body was sore from the fighting and digging last night, but it wasn't anything I couldn't push through. I crawled out of bed and took a deep breath as last night replayed in my head. The vampires were somehow after us again. The last I'd heard, there was a bit of a vampire civil war as multiple people were clamoring to claim the crown. I'd hoped it would buy us time, but that obviously wasn't the case.

  As I padded out of the room, I followed the sound of voices into the den. Brent and Mason sat on opposite ends of the couch while Louis sat in the love seat. The sacred scent of coffee filled the air.

  "What's going on?" I took a deep breath, savoring the aroma.

  "Uh-oh." Ella's voice sounded from the kitchen. "I better make another cup before Elena comes back here and kicks my ass."

  "That's a valid point." I wandered over to Mason who opened his arms to me. I crawled into his lap, resting my head on his chest. My eyes connected with Brent's. "How's your mate?"

  "Stronger." He let out a breath. "Her color is returning. Both she and the baby's heartbeats are strong again. Thankfully, we got her set up in time so her wolf could begin healing."

  At least, that was some good news. "I'm glad. I didn't realize you were expecting."

  "I try not to let anyone know. It's something that could be held over my head." He sighed. "Of course, the one person I had trusted outside the pack ran as soon as the first vampires appeared."

  Yeah, I wasn't about to ease his conscience on that.

  "Well, for being an alpha, you aren't all that good at reading people." Ella walked in, somehow balancing three cups of coffee. She headed straight over to me and nodded for me to take the middle one, which was being held up precariously by the other two coffee cups in each of her hands.

  I sat straight up toward her and grabbed the cup of coffee. "Thank you." Those words were said with so much love. I moved to sit next to Mason so I didn't spill any coffee on him or me.

  "It has nothing to do with reading people. He was just being opportunistic." Mason's jaw clenched.

  I loved him somehow more for the fact that he didn't hold back exactly how he felt.

  Brent took in a deep breath and nodded his head. "That hurts, but you're right. I deserved it." His eyes settled on me. "And I'm sorry. I'll be honest; I was thinking more about money than the well-being of my pack, obviously. But that changes now."

  "I won't lie and say it's okay, but I'm glad that we're on the same side now." I couldn't be a leader, walking on eggshells, and Mason seemed to feel that same way. "Now we need to find time to go to Nashville and talk with the alpha there."

  "No need to." Brent bit his bottom lip. "I'll handle it. He was only going against you because of me."

  "At least, that solves one problem." It probably should upset me that he was the instigator of it all, but in that moment, I was relieved. We needed to quickly figure out who the witch and vampire leaders were before something else horrific happened.

  "Did he give any clue as to who he was talking to?" Louis took his cup of coffee from Ella and sipped.

  "Not really." Brent pursed his lips as he tapped his fingers on his leg. "He did mention that he had someone thinking they were more powerful than they really were, but that's about it."

  The front door opened, and Tommy appeared in the den. His already dark olive skin somehow seemed even darker under his eyes. He covered his mouth as he yawned. "Nothing seemed out of place. I think you all should be good, but you’ll probably want to ensure you have a few people standing guard until we know what's going on."

  "Have you slept at all?" It just dawned on me that he was supposed to be sleeping on the very couch that Brent, Mason, and I were all sitting on.

  "No, but someone needed to stay up and make sure there wasn't a second attack." He nodded at me and smiled. "It's fine."

  Footsteps sounded from the stairs; soon, both Mona and Kassie entered the den as well. They looked rough but more rested than Tommy.

  "Everything looks okay?" Kassie hurried over to Tommy and took his hand. She stiffened, as if she just realized what she’d done, and dropped his hand before looking in my direction. "Just needed to make sure his hands weren't blistered from all the digging last night."

  "Yeah, sure." Ella snorted. "Let's pretend we believe you."

  Kassie's eyes narrowed at her.

  "Nothing seemed out of place." Tommy filled what felt like awkward silence. "So, I think we're good."

  "It must have been some kind of point made for Richard’s benefit, ensuring he realized that he was not the one in control." That was the only thing that made sense. We needed assistance determining who the hell was helping him. "I know you all disagree, but I think we need to stop by home. See if Rose can help us."

  "Elena ..." Kassie growled the words.

  "No, she's right." Mason nodded his head and sighed. "We can't let our pride get in the way. She's already helped us several times before."

  "Helped is a strong word to describe what she did." Kassie sighed, realizing she was about to lose this battle. "But obviously, you both have your minds set."

  "I'll go make the flight plans." Mona's warm brown eyes landed on me. "I'm assuming we want to head out sooner rather than later?"

  "Yeah. We need to go back and check on James's pack, make sure nothing weird has happened." I linked to Mason. Have you heard from your dad?

  No, but he knows what we've been dealing with. He took a deep breath.

  It wouldn't hurt to stop and check on our family. "Let's go back to the hotel and get packing."

  As we entered our plane, the hair at the back of my neck stood on end. It felt as if we were waiting for the last thing to drop. I hated feeling like we didn’t have at least some control over anything happening. The only good thing about this flight was that we wouldn’t spend much time in the air.

  "Yeah, we'll be there in about an hour and a half." Mason entered the plane right behind me as he talked to his father on the phone. "Okay. No need, they've already reserved us some vehicles to get there. We'll see you soon. Bye."

  Everything okay? I could've probably eavesdropped on their call, using our bond, but I hated not giving him some privacy.

  There are some odd things going on, but Dad wouldn't elaborate. He said he'd tell us when we got there. He took my hand and pulled me toward the couch in the middle.

  The rest of our group got on board, and Ella plopped on the floor right in front of me. "When we come back, I want to stay at that hotel again. It was super nice, and they had our bags ready so we didn't even have to stop and go in."

  "It's one of the better hotels, that’s for sure." Louis took a seat a few feet away and grinned. He still appeared a little unsure of where he stood with us. Despite having already begun earning our trust back with his actions in protecting Ella and fighting the vampires.

  "Hey, you." I stood and walked around Ella as I pointed at Tommy. "Yes, this may be a quick flight, but you get the bed in the back. Try to take a nap."

  "No, it's ..." A huge yawn cut him off.

  "See, you can't even finish a sentence without trying to show me your tonsils." Ella scrunched her face. "Trust me, it's not a good look on you."

  "And it is for some?" Mona chuckled.

  "But it's your bed." Tommy shook his head. "That's … not okay."

  "You are family. I insist." There was no way I was going to let him fall asleep sitting up. "If you sit out here, you're going to fall asleep and get a crick in your neck. I need you in tip-top shape."

  Ella jumped to her feet. "You know they're not going to give up."

  "Fine." Something akin to gratitude passed across his face. "I could use a nap."

  "And don't worry. When they started going at it on our last plane ride, I stopped it before anything could progress." She sat in Louis's lap and winked at him. "So yo
u're good."

  "They change the sheets between flights." Mason shook his head and frowned. "You know what. It doesn't matter. Please go get some rest."

  Tommy nodded and headed through the back door, shutting it behind him.

  "All right." The captain entered the plane and pointed at Mona and Kassie. "Please take a seat, we're about to take off."

  Mona and Kassie followed the captain and took a few seats right up front. After a few minutes, we were in the air.

  Hey, come here. Mason wrapped his arm around my shoulders and took my hand. You’ve been quiet for a while now.

  Just mulling over everything that’s going on. I leaned in to his shoulder and took a deep breath. He always smelled earthy and made me feel at home.

  He turned his head so he could kiss my forehead. If Tommy wasn’t back there in that bed, I could be doing things to you that would help take your mind off all of that.

  That sounds very appetizing. Right now, I’d love to feel his body all over mine. I raised my head and brushed my lips against his.

  A low growl was his response.

  “Oh, hell no.” Ella stiffened and wrinkled her nose. “Don’t even go there.”

  “Sometimes you can keep your comments to yourself.” Mason’s voice was raspy with need.

  “And see, that there is why I can’t.” Ella shook her head. “Louis and I behave better than you two.”

  Not wanting to hear her mouth the entire trip, I brushed his lips once more and cuddled into his side.

  It was nice being able to relax for the short time in the air, but there was an uneasy feeling inside me.

  Hey, what’s wrong? Mason pulled me into his chest and kissed my forehead. I figured you would’ve taken a nap.

  Something doesn’t feel right. I didn’t know how to put it.

  Right then, the air attendant appeared and smiled at the six of us. “Good morning. We’re getting ready to land. It’ll be only a few minutes longer.”

  “Okay, thanks.” I sat straight up and placed my hand into Mason’s lap. “At least, we’re almost there so we can figure out our next steps.”

  “I hope Mom has lunch made or something.” Ella rubbed her belly. “This beef jerky isn’t cutting it. I need some steak and fried potatoes.”

  “When are you ever full?” Louis leaned over and kissed her cheek.

  “Boy, you better watch it.” Ella arched an eyebrow. "Desperate times call for desperate measures, and besides, you’ve got some muscle on you."

  "We don't want to hear about your foreplay," Kassie complained as she turned and looked over her shoulder. "Just shut it. Your mom always has things to eat, so you know you don't have to ever worry about going hungry."

  The plane began to descend, and I couldn't wait until we landed. Ella got extra mouthy when she was hungry.

  "Hey, I wasn't talking to you." Ella stuck her tongue out at Kassie.

  "But the whole damn plane could hear you." Kassie shook her head.

  "She's just being herself." Mona chuckled.

  I was glad, for the most part, the whole ride had been in silence. We were all tired and needed time to settle in. Tommy was snoring, so I knew that he had slept the entire way. He deserved it.

  The speaker dinged, and a voice came over the intercom. "Uh ... We have a slight problem."

  My body tensed.

  "The landing gear isn't working, which means we're going to have to do an emergency landing." The captain cleared his throat, clearly uncomfortable with the news that he was sharing with us. "Everyone needs to sit in a standard airplane seat and buckle up. It's going to be a … rough landing."

  Crap, the marble we had received on our way to Atlanta popped into my mind. It was in the carry-on bag beneath my feet. We need to go grab Tommy.

  I'll get him. Mason pointed at the three chairs across from Mona and Kassie. Go ahead and get buckled. I'll be right there.

  I wanted to argue with him, but now wasn't the time. I got up and hurried to the seats, sitting near the window.

  "Oh, hell no." Kassie stood from her seat and walked over to me. "Get up and move over."

  "What? No." Right now wasn't the time for us to play musical chairs. "You need to be sitting down."

  "You're right, and you aren't going to take the seat by the window." She pointed at the window that was about a foot away. "If anyone is going to get cut, it's going to be me. Now move."

  My mouth opened to argue, but there was no point. If I didn't move, she'd stand in front of me, demanding for me to comply, and we'd both wind up getting hurt in the process. I stood and moved over to the spot I'd planned on Mason sitting in.

  "Thank you." Kassie plopped down beside me and fastened her seat belt.

  The back door opened, and a groggy Tommy and Mason appeared. Mason pointed to the open spot next to Louis. "Why don't you sit here? I'll go sit next to Mona."

  "Yeah, okay." He slid past Louis and put a seat in between them so he was sitting closer to the window.

  Even though Tommy still seemed tired, the dark circles under his eyes weren't as prominent.

  The beep of the intercom came back on. "We will be descending in the next ten minutes. Please ensure your seatbelt is on securely, and assume the crash position. It's going to be a bumpy landing.”

  His last comment caused my anxiety to skyrocket. I tried taking deep, calming breaths as I leaned my head forward and placed my hands behind my neck. There had to be some kind of witch magic causing all of this. I knew it was, but that didn't make any sense. There was only one witch who knew about my personal fleet. And still, the possibility filled me with fear.

  It's going to be okay. Mason reached across the small aisle and took my hand. I'm sure the pilot knows exactly what to do.

  We only hired the best, so that wasn’t what I was afraid of. I know, but what if it's tied to the marble we found on the way to Atlanta?

  You think a witch is doing this. Mason sucked in a breath and nodded his head. There is only one witch who would know this plane.

  Neither one of us uttered the name we were both considering.

  The aircraft began lowering with the nose pointing downward. I glanced out the window, watching as the ground rushed to greet us. We were racing to our collision.

  Silence filled the aircraft, which was unusual for our group. The aircraft hit the ground causing my neck to jerk and snap. I tightened my hold on it as we slid on the runway with sparks flying everywhere. Metal on the bottom of the jet scraped against the asphalt, sounding worse than nails on a chalkboard.

  Right when I thought that the plane was going to catch on fire, we finally came to a stop.

  The quiet was eerie until the cockpit door opened and the pilot emerged. His face was red, and sweat covered his brow. “Let’s get off this damn plane before something else strange happens.”

  I couldn’t say it better myself, but I had a feeling this wasn’t just a fluke accident. It had to be intentional.

  Chapter Fifteen

  As we stepped out of the plane onto solid ground, the familiar smell of Columbia hit my nose, immediately releasing some of my anxiety and tension from our near-crash. The very fact that we were here had my heart feeling at peace. There were at least five emergency vehicle cars, and paramedics raced toward us to check on every one of us.

  After they let us go, we headed toward the building.

  "Holy shit." Ella raced down the steps and headed straight to me, wrapping her arms around me. "I wasn't sure if we were going to make it."

  "I think we might have all felt that way," Kassie huffed, scanning the area as if she was looking for a threat to pop out.

  Tommy and Mona were the last two who were released, and both of their faces were lined with worry. Despite what we'd just gone through, Tommy appeared to be a little better off than he had been before his power nap.

  "Let's get moving." Mona nodded to the airport.

  As we walked through the building, I noticed there was hardly anyone standing around. It was
still early, not even ten in the morning.

  A Suburban sat out front with someone standing right beside it. When the younger man saw us, he immediately headed straight to Tommy and handed him the keys.

  "Thank you." Tommy took them but didn't slow down as he hurried to the vehicle.

  "You're tired. Maybe I should drive." Kassie reached for the keys, but Tommy dodged her.

  "No, I'm fine. Thanks." He sped up, rushing to the driver’s side door.

  "That man ..." Kassie frowned and shook her head.

  Mona scanned behind us and whispered loud enough for all of us to hear. "Hurry. Let's get out of here." There was an edge to her tone.

  "I don't see anything odd." Kassie scanned the area, looking for whatever threat Mona had found.

  "It's more of a feeling that we're being watched." Mona waved us forward, wanting us to move even faster.

  As Kassie reached the vehicle, she opened the back passenger door for all of us to pile in.

  "I'll go first this time." Louis jumped into the Suburban, closely followed by Ella.

  "Go, hurry." Mona waved both Mason and me in. "Let's get moving."

  Not needing any further encouragement, both Mason and I clambered into the middle row. Soon everyone else got situated, and we were on the road.

  "So was that not peculiar to have that happen back there?" Louis asked from the back seat. "I can't be the only person thinking that whole thing was a little too convenient after everything."

  "No, I agree with you." Mason turned his body so he could glance at the backseat. "Magic or something like it had to be in play."

  "We need to figure out who's in charge of all these attacks." My heart dropped as I thought that one of them could be the very person I'd trusted for so long. "Do you think we could stop by Rose's shop before heading to James’s?"

  "I know you and Mason are hell-bent on ..."

  I cut her off. "No, I'm afraid you might be right about Rose. I'd like to go visit her and see if anything is strange."