by Jen L. Grey
"Really?" Kai snorted from the driver seat. "It took you the whole ride to come up with that?"
"No, I had something else, but when I saw my sister, I couldn't bring myself to say it." Max winced and frowned. "It would be borderline..."
"Stop there." I opened up the passenger back door and pointed at him. "I have a feeling it's better for everyone that way."
He bobbed his head from side to side. "Yeah, you're probably right about that."
I climbed in the very back with Liam following me while Evan and Bree sat in the middle row.
"Where's Nate?" Bree asked.
"Oh, he did a mission with Willow." Max glanced to the backseat. "He'll be back by the time we get there."
After we all got settled, I curled up in Liam's arms and took a quick nap.
As Bree and I walked toward the grassy field that served as the training area, I was surprised to find Willow heading out of a building that was used for meetings, moving in the same direction as we were.
When she looked in our direction, she frowned. "You guys are here already?"
"Yeah, we are." I forced a smile despite her negativity. "Are you joining us today?"
"Well, yeah." She sighed. "We have around four hundred now, so we need more than two trainers."
Evan appeared beside me, and his eyes scanned Willow from top to bottom. "Hey." His voice was deep and husky.
The smell of arousal hit my nose as it poured off both Willow and Evan in waves.
I hated that she was putting him through this. It was obvious she felt the same way, but something was holding her back. "How long are you going to fight this between you two?"
Bree cleared her throat and glanced at the ground.
"What are you talking about?" Willow lifted her chin.
"The mate bond." Evan was a great guy and didn't deserve this treatment. She'd been fighting it hard for two months now.
"It's never going to happen." Willow's eyes darkened as she glanced at me.
"Why not?" Evan asked as he swallowed hard.
"Because I know what you do." Willow wrinkled her nose in disgust. "My mom was Mr. Rafferty’s fated mate, and he rejected her. She never recovered and died shortly after I was born. I was raised by my father, who was killed by the regional alpha because he stole food just so I could eat. I don't want anything to do with the likes of you or the council. If I had it my way, we'd still be taking the whole thing down."
Now, I understood why she was fighting it so hard. "They're not like their fathers." Didn't she see that? Hell, they were going to fight against their fathers.
"It doesn't matter." She spat the words as she turned her back to us. "That changes nothing."
“So you’re going to do the same thing to him that his dad did to your mom?” Did she not see that she was doing the exact same thing she hated the council for? “He wants you. You’re the one rejecting him.”
She paused in her steps as my words struck a chord with her. She glanced over her shoulder at Evan before she took a deep breath and turned away from the field, heading back to her home.
Good, maybe I finally got through to her.
I moved to follow after her when Evan caught my arm. "Don't. She needs her space," he sighed, his gray eyes darkening to metallic.
"But you're hurting." He was one of the nicest and most loyal guys I'd ever met. "I have to protect my family." The last word hung in the air.
A small smile spread across his face as he pulled me into a hug. "You're my family too." He whispered the words in my ear.
It took those words for me to finally see things for what they really were. All of these people were my family, and I'd fight like hell to save them.
Chapter Sixteen
It was the last Friday before Christmas vacation, and we all planned on spending the next week at the rebellion camp. Time had been running at warp speed, and I was ecstatic that we'd have a normal day schedule for the next seven days. It'd been hard training at night, trying to appear awake during classes, studying, and trying to find time to sleep in between all of it.
I forced myself to stand and grabbed my backpack as I headed toward the door now that Comp One had ended.
Of course, my sexy mate leaned against the wall with a cup of coffee in each hand. He winked at me as I approached. "Here, I thought you might need this," he said as he held out one of the cups for me. "It's your favorite."
A moan left me as I held the cup to my nose and then took a sip. "Yes, I needed it desperately. Thank you." Even though I thoroughly enjoyed my next class with Professor Johnson, I was so damn tired today. "Hopefully, this will give me enough juice to last through history."
"I got an extra shot in there too." He took my hand as we headed to the back stairwell. "After this class, go get some rest. I won't be far behind you."
Last night, we'd trained longer than normal. Although now that we had so many rebels there, we needed to increase our training. I had almost kicked Evan's ass last night, which was surprising. He told me pretty soon I'd be coaching him.
The only problem I had was my left shoulder. I'd had so many injuries to it, making it my weak spot. Evan told me ways to compensate for it when fighting, but it was my Achilles’ heel if you will.
"Don’t worry, I won't be stubborn this time. I need the rest." I took another sip as we walked down the stairs, enjoying the sweet taste as it rolled over my tongue.
"Good." He opened the door for me and kissed my cheek as I walked past him.
When we reached the door to my history class, I was a tad disappointed the room was empty. I'd hoped Professor Johnson would've gotten here early so he and I could have a few moments to talk again like we had been doing the past few weeks.
"Maybe something came up." Liam gave me a sad smile as his eyes met mine. "I know you were hoping he'd be here."
"Am I that obvious?"
"Well, the disappointment flowing through our bond kind of helps tip me off too." He used his free hand to grab my waist and pull me into his chest.
I stood on my tiptoes and pressed my lips against his and then pulled back. "Let me go get settled. I'll see you soon."
"Love you." He kissed my lips once more and turned, heading out the front door.
I paused, enjoying the view, and when the door shut behind him, I entered the classroom.
Once I got settled, Sherry bounced into the room. "Hey." Her eyes brightened when they met mine, and she hurried over to me to take her seat. "Everything okay?"
"Yeah, just tired," I yawned.
"Well, all right then." She chuckled. "Was it later than usual?"
"Yeah." We tried to be covert when talking out in public. You never know who might be listening.
Gertrude came into the room and frowned at me.
"Uh... hey." She'd been giving me mean looks for the past several weeks.
She rolled her eyes as she took her seat in the back.
"What's your problem?" Sherry glanced over her shoulder at the girl.
"She had to get yanked from class then Kai and Tripp go missing." Gertrude crossed her arms. "So now I'm stuck training with Barry. When I said I wanted harder training, I didn't mean hand to hand combat with a guy who's twice as strong as me."
With all the student changes going on at school, I hadn't even considered the implications that we were responsible for. "You do realize I didn't purposely do all that. It wasn't even my idea to be pulled from the class."
"Oh, I know." Her face smoothed out into one of indifference. "It's just been kinda miserable, that's all. It's easier to blame someone."
At least, she was honest.
The remaining students entered the classroom, and I glanced at the clock. Class was supposed to have begun a minute ago. The professor normally breezed through the room right when the clock turned to eleven.
I pulled out my notebook and turned to a new sheet. I grabbed my favorite teal pen and put today's date on it. The classroom buzzed with voices as we waited for our professor.
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"Do you think the ten-minute rule applies here?" One guy in the back asked.
"How about the five-minute rule?" His buddy who sat beside him chuckled. "I'm ready to start break early."
"You and me both." The guy laughed.
An unsettling feeling washed over me. Something wasn't right. The professor had never been late before. Could something have happened to him? He said he was being watched closely by the council. Did they catch him doing something or worse?
"This isn't like him." Sherry glanced at the clock and back at me. "Maybe he emailed us and canceled class today." She pulled her phone from her backpack and checked her email. "No, nothing is there."
Nerves took over as I tapped my fingertips on the desk. I tried to keep my mind from running wild, but the later it got, the worse it took over. When I glanced at the clock again, it was five minutes after.
I had a feeling he wasn't coming.
"Okay, I'm out of here." The guy in the back stood and picked up his backpack, throwing it over his shoulder. "My dad is apparently coming here for a couple of days before we head home. So I better get back to my room to clean up." He made his way to the door.
That was odd. At Thanksgiving, it had been a mass exodus with no one coming on campus.
Just like with anything else, when the first stood to leave, all the others followed suit as well. It wasn't long before Sherry and I were the only ones left. We both sat there in uncomfortable silence.
"Us staying here isn't going to force him to show." She pointed at the clock that now said he was fifteen minutes late. "Come on. Let's head out."
"No, he wouldn't do something like this." I had a bad feeling deep in my gut. "Something has to be wrong."
Hey, what's going on? Liam's voice sounded in my head.
Professor Johnson. I took a deep breath, trying to get my thoughts together. He never showed up to class.
What? Liam even sounded surprised by that news. My dad said his attendance and punctuality were always his strong suit. Something doesn't seem right.
The fact that someone agreed with me didn't bring me any comfort. In fact, it made the feeling inside me grow worse. We need to go check on him.
Okay, give me a minute, and I'll alert the other heirs. Meet you at our dorm. His tone was intense and scared me to my core.
"Come on. We're going to Evan and Liam's dorm." I stood and threw my backpack over my shoulder as I rushed toward the door. With shaky hands, I reached into the pocket of my plaid skirt and pulled out my phone. For some reason, I hoped there was a message from the professor there. It was asinine to consider it because he didn't even have my phone number. Though at this point, I was hoping for miracles.
"Calm down." Sherry reached out to take my arm.
I dodged it, but her other hand grabbed me securely.
"You've got to calm down." She said as she jerked me around to face her before we reached the large wooden doors that led us outside. "People are watching you. If something did happen, they'd enjoy you being so upset right now." She licked her lips as she stared me right in the eyes. "You'll make mistakes if you don't get your head on straight."
Dammit. She was right, but the thought of my only family left on my dad's side being hurt affected me more than I ever thought possible. I closed my eyes and forced deep calming breaths. I wasn't sure how long I stood there like that, but when my heart rate settled, I opened my eyes. "Okay."
"Good." She opened the door with her back and waved me through. "Now, we're ready to go."
We rushed down the stairs and walked quickly across the grassy field toward the boys' dorm. As we made it through the front door, a group of guys in the corner was talking loudly, buzzing with energy.
“Yeah, the council asked for my dad to come too.” One of the taller guys said as he stood proud. “He’s a district alpha who now reports directly to Mr. Hale now that Mr. Thorn has been removed from his duty.”
“Wow, you’re lucky,” One of the other ones said. “I’m just heading home, but at least we don’t have any classes till next year.”
"Everyone is psyched about break." Sherry rolled her eyes at me. "It'd be nice to have a home to go to."
That thought resonated with me. Yes, I'd be with my parents over the break, but it still wasn't the same thing as being home. It was strange though that some of the alphas were visiting Wolf Moon. Only, right now, there were more important matters at hand.
We rode the elevator up, and when I unlocked the door to their dorm room, I found Evan sitting on the couch, putting on his tennis shoes.
His eyes met mine, and his frown was set deep into his face. "The others should be here shortly. Then we'll go to his house and check on him."
"You know where he lives?" I don't know why, but I didn't expect that. Maybe he was in trouble and needed our help there.
"Yeah, he lives near campus so the council can keep their eye on him." He leaned over and tied his other shoe.
I entered the room and went over to the window that overlooked the grassy field. My eyes landed on Liam and Micah heading toward the dorm.
A slight knock on the door sounded a second before it opened, and Simon entered the room. He walked over to Sherry and pulled her into his arms.
"Hey, you." She said as she leaned forward and kissed his lips.
It was so nice to see the two of them so in love.
A minute later, the door opened as Micah, Liam, and Bree appeared.
"Now what's going on?" Simon asked as he pulled away from Sherry and looked at all of us.
"Professor Johnson didn't show up to class today, and we need to go check on him." It hit me how strange this was. A few months ago, none of them would've ever listened to me, but now they nodded, ready to get to business. It felt like something had snapped into place.
"We thought it might be best if all of us go to check on him." Liam made his way to me and held my waist.
"Yeah, there's no telling what's going on." Evan stood.
"Do we need to spray up?" Micah asked.
"It probably wouldn’t hurt." Evan made his way down the hall. "I'll go get it."
"The rebellion hasn't heard from him either." Bree frowned as it somehow made the circles under her eyes darker. "They said he was worried yesterday that they might be on to him."
Great, it was exactly what I was afraid of.
Evan came back into the room, already soaking wet from the spray. "Here it is."
The seven of us took turns spraying each one of us down, and soon we were ready to go out the door.
“Apparently, some of the alphas are coming in to pick up their kids.” It seemed odd that it would be happening right now when Professor Johnson disappeared.
“Our dads have regular meetings with the top alphas in the territories,” Liam said as he put the bottle of spray on the table. “It’s probably their last meeting of the year. It’s nothing to be worried about.”
Evan took the spray bottle and hurried back to his room. As he made his way back to us, he said, "Come on." He opened the door, and it was eerily silent. "Most of the students should be gone, but for the few who have stayed back, we'll need to be careful and keep our ears open." We hurried down the hallway, and soon we came to the last door on the left, which led us down the stairwell that had us exiting near the border of the woods.
"Stay here." Evan stepped out the door and glanced around. "Come on now." His words were just a whisper.
Our group ran into the woods deeper than normal. We all followed Evan as he ran toward the place Tripp had been kept that one day.
Today was cold even for a shifter. As we ran outside with our clothes still damp, it felt like ice cutting my skin. The chill outside closely matched the one inside me.
We kept a fast pace, and when we reached the gravel road that had led us to Tripp, Evan turned to follow it.
The ground began to descend, which helped our pace. After about another ten minutes, Evan slowed down.
I walked beside him and sa
w a small house about fifty feet away. The white house looked like it had seen better days. The shingles were hanging down in several areas, and the black, wooden front door was left open. It was a one-level with some sort of shed behind it.
My heart pounded so hard it rang in my ears.
Liam stepped beside me. "It doesn't look like anyone is here."
"Yeah, but we need to be careful," Evan said as I pushed past him to make my way to the house.
"Dammit, Mia," Evan growled behind me. I heard his and Liam's footsteps both racing to catch me.
We have to plan this out. Someone could still be there. Liam caught up to me and grabbed my arm, pulling me behind a tree. We can't lose our heads just because we're close.
He was right. Fine, but we need a plan. So hurry.
"I'm going to go down there and walk around." Evan narrowed his eyes at me. "I'll be back in a second. Keep her here."
"I will." Liam pulled me against his chest as Evan moved toward the house.
Hey, it's going to be okay. Liam placed his finger under my chin, forcing me to look into his eyes. We're going to help him.
The others joined us a moment later.
"What's going on?" Simon leaned his head over so he could see around the tree. "Does Evan need help?"
"No, we need to stay here until he comes back." Liam glanced at the others. "Once he comes back, we'll make a plan."
An uncomfortable silence descended amongst us as we waited. The seconds felt like minutes if not hours at this point. There was no telling what had happened to the professor or what he was going through now.
Suddenly, Evan appeared beside me, startling me enough that I had to hold back a scream.
"It looks like no one is here." Evan glanced at the place over his shoulder again. "Micah, come with me, and we'll keep an eye out behind the house."
"Good idea." Liam nodded. "Mia and I will go in and check things out. The rest of you guard the front."
"Okay." Simon nodded.
Our group slowly made our way down to the house. It was as if the house was in a little valley. When we were only about ten feet away, I turned and saw a paved road and parking space in front of the house.
