There was no hesitation in her reply. “On it, boss.”
Casey had been with me for over ten years because she took whatever I threw at her and made it better. Without question. In this situation, I needed the bodies to go away so I didn’t have to deal with the rest of the Alpha Council before we headed for Silver City.
When I reached my bike, I cleaned my hands more thoroughly on a towel from my bag while I mentally ran over the plan. We’d land in Silver City just after lunch, then we’d track our pack mates using tech and our beasts to follow the bond.
When I figured out where they were, the approach would be crucial. We’d have to take our time or risk spooking their attackers, which could put our pack in danger. I wouldn’t makeany firm decisions until I saw who and what guarded Emme and Slade.
Slade especially.
They held the strongest alpha in the world, and if he hadn’t escaped and torn them to pieces, they knew what it took to keep him contained. The most likely scenario was that they had a witch on their side and used magical restraints. My brother, Slade Riverson, was the last dragon shifter in the world, and while most magic would simply bounce off his skin, if they found a strong enough witch…
Whipping out my phone, I sent Kellan a text to also bring the ShiftLar, an iron-laced armored vest I’d invented to shield against low level magic and spells. His reply came through instantly, and satisfied with our plan, I kicked my leg over my bike and started the engine.
As the powerful motor thrummed under me, I dialed the one number I’d never wanted to use again. “Hunter.” The purr of her voice was familiar, even though I hadn’t heard it in almost five years. Jewels was born and raised in Mexico but barely had an accent. The witch was well over fifty years old,while looking twenty-five, and had lived in America for at least half those years. “It’s been a long time, love. To what do I owe the pleasure?”
“I need your help.”
Four simple words shouldn’t burn, but here the fuck we were. For Emme, I’d burn in a much hotter hell than Jewels Amaro.
My bike was loud as I took off along the main road back to town, my phone pressed between my ear and shoulder. Jewels’ silence was weighty, and I let her have the moment. As the entitled alpha of our quintet, I was used to commanding and getting what I needed immediately, but that wouldn’t work with Jewels. She played a whole different game, and I frankly wasn’t in the mindset for it today. But I had no choice.
I was almost back at the house by the time she responded. “I’ve waited a long time to hear those words,mi corazón.”
Gritting my teeth against the urge to insult her, I instead responded calmly. “You know I wouldn’t call unless it was urgent. They took Slade.”
She’d always had a soft spot for the dragon. Her need tofixbroken alphas would have been her downfall if she wasn’t so damn powerful.
“My dragon is hurt?” There was a stronger purr in her voice now, the accent bleeding through as her magic almost reached me, sending my wolf into an uneasy stir. Shifters might have been created from a witch’s curse, merging human and beast, but that didn’t mean I enjoyed the trickling of icy magic down my spine.
“I don’t know if he’s hurt or not. We tracked down some of the mercenaries, but Slade had already been taken to Silver City, according to the intel we received. You know the only way they can hold him is with magical restraints, and I don’t want to go in underprepared. Will you help us?”
“Give me five minutes.” She hung up abruptly, and I was happy to be off the phone.
In the garage, I left my bike in its usual spot and forced my gaze to move past the empty spots where Slade and Emme’s bikes should have sat. Both were totaled in the attack, lying in broken heaps out in the open desert lands.
Kellan had blamed himself for a solid fifteen minutes when he’d found the crumpled remains of the pink bike he’d gifted Emme, tearing into the wreckage until it was scattered across the sand. They’d need a metal detector to find all the parts now.
That destruction was nothing on what we’d bring if our pack mates weren’t returned to us. In perfect condition. Our tenuous holds on our beasts would snap and we’d ravage this fucking world to the ground without a single care for the fallout. Theonly reason I hadn’t lost it yet was my ability to focus on retrieving my pack. But eternal darkness hovered at the back of my mind.
A darkness that if let loose would make even my father look like a saint.
“Weapons and ShiftLar are packed,” Kellan shouted as I marched into the main foyer, my dirty boots slapping against the marble. “I grabbed some clothes for you, so just shower and change into Tactical gear before we head out.”
“Warrick here yet?” I asked.
He shook his head, blue eyes wide and focused as he peered through the front door to doublecheck. “Not yet.” Kellan was dressed in black cargo pants, boots, and a fitted shirt. He had the armored vest strapped over his chest, and multiple weapons already secured around his body.
“I meant what I said. I’m not waiting for him.”
Kellan nodded, as Finley bit out harshly, “Nope, no waiting.”
Finley wore black too, but his vest wasn’t strapped properly yet, and he had no weapons. Our bear shifter could fight, but he preferred to use his hands. His expression remained neutral as he watched me and then Kellan, and I had no idea what he felt deep inside. He’d fallen into hating Emme for her rejection, which had triggered him back to his shitty upbringing. His parents were on par with my dad, and that was fucking saying something. He was here though, and clearly prepared to fight for our pack.
Which was more than enough for now.
“I’ll get cleaned up,” I said, kicking off my boots. Florence, our housekeeper, wouldn’t freak if I tracked blood and dirt through the house—she was far too used to it—but I didn’t want to leave a ton of work for her.
Taking the stairs four at a time to reach my bedroom, I threw off my clothes and dove under the icy spray of the shower. It tookme a full five minutes to get all the blood out of my hair, and when I was clean, I pulled out one of my rarely used enforcer outfits. I hadn’t dressed in black tactical gear since the day I quit to take over as entitled alpha and the CEO of Reeves Industries.
