“He’s not wrong,” Maddie piped up.
“But we will do the right thing, and if that means some of us go to the human jail, then so be it,” he continued.
“No one is going to any jails.”Roan sounded very put out.“We will trust Visata to work out the details of the females who choose to go back to their human lives.I imagine few will.Would you?”He looked pointedly at Maddie, who suddenly found the tops of her shoes very interesting.
“Besides,” Wyatt said from somewhere behind Callon, “none of our males would do well in captivity.They’d probably go crazy and wind up killing a bunch of humans.It would be bad publicity.”
“We don’t have any sort of publicity, idiot.”
“Not the point, Kian,” Wyatt retorted.
“I agree with Roan,” Taras nodded firmly, his gaze shifting towards the Shaman in a silent show of solidarity.
Lola pulled Callon’s hands from her face and nudged him to the side so she could see the rest of the room again.She was amazed that the migraine that had been about to make her puke on the floor was gone, as if it had never been.
“Okay, we’ve worked out absolutely nothing because—let’s face it—we have no clue what’s going to happen to these chicks,” Maddie pointed out.“So, what’s our next move?You know, after we tell these women, ‘Just kidding, you’re free to go, or you can be shipped off to a different kingdom and live there a hella-long time until your soulmate comes along, which may be hundreds of years from now.Surprise!’”
Everyone stared wide-eyed at Maddie.She raised her hand like a student in a classroom.“I vote we haul-ass to New Orleans and get our bestie back before she gets herself killed.You guys don’t know her well, but she has a tendency to be uncooperative, even at the best of times.I can’t even imagine the hell she’s currently putting her kidnappers through.”
Lola couldn’t disagree with her friend.Obviously, Katy’s kidnappers wanted her alive.Lola could only assume it was to find out if Katy was the mate to one of the males in their kingdom.But the girl could seriously push them too far.Eventually, they might put themselves out of their misery… by taking her out for good.
“We will get your friend back.The entire might of the Kingdom of Claws will ensure it.”Lyra’s tone was one Lola would never want directed at her.“But we have to be smart about it.”
“In other words”—Taras smiled—“we can’t just haul ass and run headlong into a situation we don’t know enough about.”
“We’re not completely in the dark, Prime.”Wyatt changed his stance and rested against one of the giant windows.He could have been leaning on nothing for all that was seen; the glass was so transparent that it gave off an illusion of invisibility.
Taras glanced at him and dropped his chin slightly.“True.You have some information that will be helpful.Still”—he looked at the group of them that had been in Lola’s room—“I need to know everything that happened tonight.”
Callon took Lola’s hand in his and pulled her back over to the spot next to Maddie on the love seat and once again guided her into his lap.She looked at him.“Really?”
He shrugged.“Get used to it,Sazzi.”
Those who’d been standing also took seats in the plush, leather chairs and a couple of couches facing the Prime.Lola settled against Callon, giving in to the fact that he wanted her in his lap.And truth be told, she really didn’t mind, but that didn’t mean she wasn’t going to give him shit about it.She drew strength from his nearness.The gentle caress of his thumb soothing small circles over the back of her hand might have distracted her from the present matter if the Prime’s face hadn’t suddenly done that half-human, half-animal thing briefly before returning fully to human.The fierce look in his eyes made it clear he was in beast mode.Okay, that’s totally going on a shirt.Katy and Maddie would be all over it.
The Prime leaned forward.“Now, tell us everything.”Authority rang in his deep voice.
Chapter 3
We'll Shake The Trees And See What Falls Out.
“Emotions are a pain in the ass.I think I liked it better when mine weren’t bouncing around like a toddler hyped up on caffeine and sugar.”~Callon
Callon listened as Lola tried to give as much detail as she could recall about the chaotic events of the last twenty-four hours.She told them everything that had happened from the moment she and Callon had left the very office where they currently sat until Roan had called Taras from Lola’s bedroom.He and the others added clarifications when needed.By the end, grim determination shone brightly in the eyes of the Kingdom of Claws’ rulers.
Tack leaned slightly forward in his chair, his eyes wide and his jaw clenched.Faith sat in his lap, her back pressed against his chest as he tightly wound his arms around her.His expression was one of disbelief and fear, mingled with a hint of disgust.His blue eyes looked as cold as a glacier.“You mean you had no recollection at all when you were in the berserker state?”His voice was tight and incredulous.
Callon didn’t know if he would ever forgive himself for the way he’d treated Lola because of his own pride.But even worse was the fact that hehadn’tremembered that he’d done it.He dropped his eyes from the white tiger, something he never would have done before.But his shame ensured he couldn’t even hold the gaze of one lower than him in the pride.“That is correct.”His voice was rough and his throat so tight it hurt to even speak.
“Damn,” Kian muttered, which was followed by similar mutterings from the other males in the room.
Lola’s soft fingers intertwined with Callon’s.A surge of electricity traveled from his chest throughout his body, along his skin, then down into his muscles, veins, and nerves.His heart rate quickened, and he fought the instinct to sweep her up into his arms and take her away to a place where they could be alone.Knowing that wasn’t an option, at least not yet, he settled for pressing his face into her hair, his nose brushing her neck as he took a deep breath.Her scent filled his lungs, stirring the beast inside of him.Okay, he had to get a grip.He was drawn to her in ways he never thought imaginable.
“So according to Bane’s senses”—like a bucket of ice water, his father’s voice pulled Callon from his fantasies of having Lola all to himself— “this Antonio person is somehow aligned with the Kingdom of Venom.Do we know if he’s a human or a beastwalker?”
Bane shook his head lazily from where he rested in a plush leather chair.His laid-back posture was deceptive.Callon did not doubt that, if need be, the panther could react in a split-second.Bane’s senses were on high alert.It’s how the Prime expected their warriors to be trained.
“I detected no animal scent on him,” Bane answered.“But as a panther, my nose isn’t as sharp as that of a canine.The scent of the other was definitely a reptile.And it could have messed with my ability to detect anything from Antonio.I might have missed subtle clues.”
