He studies my face. “Can all vampires sense each other?”
“I don’t know. I just know I can feel other vampires; I get this...sensation. I can also pinpoint their location. Last night, they suddenly came up on my radar, and there was no time to do anything but run. I knew I was the fastest one there and the best choice to take Daniel.”
I can tell he’s not very pleased with my assessment, but he doesn’t argue. “How does Ajax fit into all this?”
“He was the one coordinating the attack. When I got to the drop site, he was waiting,” I tell him.
“Ajax has been after Emma for a while,” Ava says softly. “He has a score to settle with her.” Ava shakes her head. “He’s not going to stop, Garrett. He blames her for the death of his pack and his alpha, Emma’s brother.” I knew this; Ava told me after we first made it out.
“I was the one who killed her brother,” Max says gruffly.
“It doesn’t matter,” Ava says, not backing down. “He’s holding Emma responsible. He's going to keep coming at her.”
Garrett stares at her and crosses his arms over his powerful chest. “I’m going to end this thing.” He looks around the room. “I’m going to go to the vampire site, find Ajax, and do what I should have done a long time ago.”
“When?” Liam asks.
“As soon as Emma is cleared by Paul.”
Liam faces Max. “Team?” Max doesn’t say anything.
“We already lost one the last time we went there,” Liam reminds everybody, and silence descends on the room. I know they’re all thinking of the alpha they lost.
“We losttwoof them,” Ava corrects. I think of the alpha Cade and his mate Amber. I hadn’t known them personally, but they meant something to Ava.
There’s a soft knock on the front door, and it opens. Talya walks through, and Liam walks over to her immediately. “Hey, Love.” He kisses her and then holds her hand.
“Who’s with the kiddos?” Raechel asks.
“Star’s watching them.”
“Oh. I haven’t seen her in a while. How’s she doing?” Raechel asks, and I can hear the concern in her voice.
Talya gives her a sad look, and I wonder what it is I’m missing. Talya must notice my look. “Star’s mate was killed in a vampire attack.”
“I don’t understand. I thought mates died when the other one is killed.” I look around the room, trying to understand.
Bryce frowns. “That’s usually the case.”
Garrett nods. “Yes, but Star and Steven hadn’t been mated all that long. And neither of them was a dominant wolf, so their bond was much weaker.”
Bryce stares at Garrett. “I had no idea.”
“Yeah. We didn’t either until it happened to another young couple in our pack. It didn’t use to be that way, but it’s changed in recent years.” He shakes his head. “But a lot of things have changed in recent years.”
“Yeah, like mating humans,” Liam says with a smile as he tugs Talya into his arms.
“There’s nothing to worry about in your bond,” Garrett says to Bryce. “It only seems to happen to less dominant, newly mated couples.”
“Well, nothing to worry about for us then,” Ava says, patting his chest. “You’re plenty dominant.” He smiles down at her, and I look away from the lovebirds.
“So, back to the task at hand. My thought is to infiltrate the facility with a small team, take out Ajax, and get out,” Garrett says.
“You sure you want to risk going back?” Bryce asks.
Garrett doesn’t hesitate a second. “Yes. I need to end the threat to my family.”
“Then that’s what we’ll do,” Liam says. “We’ll work on the logistics.”
