At the front door, which was still barred by thick magic, we both examined the weapon. The enforcers weren’t anywhere to be seen, but I could feel their energy around the back of the house, followed by heavy thuds of what sounded like metal on wood. They were doing their thing, and we had to do ours.
“This looks like a piece of tech they brought home a few years ago,” I said, recognizing Hunter and Slade’s work. I tried to keep up with Reeves Industries as much as I could. “It has a similar control panel. Do you remember the robot Slade brought home for security?”
Finley nodded as I opened the panel to examine the internal components. “The one he trashed after it fucked up his commands.”
“Yep, that’s the one. It looks like this works off the same basic power concept.”
Finley took the full weight of the prototype so I could fiddle with the switches, and relief hit when it whirred softly to life. “My bear doesn’t like it,” Finley grumbled, his face paling. “There’s an element of magic attached to this device.” I could feel it too, the whir settling uneasily within my poor, grieving wolf.
“What do we do now?” Finley asked, his muscles bunching as he struggled to hold the device wreaking havoc with our beasts. He wasn’t the only one fighting an urge to smash it to the ground.
I pressed another familiar button and there was a pop as the front opened to reveal an emerging half circle, like a satellite dish, on the nose of it.
“I think if we press that to the door,” I said, noting the design, “and I initiate the energy, it should blast through the shield.”
Finley turned to the door. “Okay, let’s do this and save our mate.”
We moved slowly, and when the dish was flush with the wood, apopsealed it instantly. Finley tugged on it once, but it was stuck tight. “It suctioned right on,” I said, nudging him to release it.
“Well, then, crank it all the way up and we’ll hide behind the car,” Finley said as he opened his hands and stepped back, leaving it against the door.
Hoping my basic knowledge and guesswork was right, I cranked the dials for power and hit the countdown to initiate. Twenty flashed up in red numbers, and then immediately dropped to nineteen.
Finley dragged me down the steps and behind my car, where we pulled on the vests, in anticipation of racing into the house. That and the Tasers were all we had, and I hoped it would be enough.
I silently counted in my head as that clock made its way down to zero. Finley started to mutter under his breath: “This better not be like those stupid-as-fuck movies where they try to set off explosives and then nothing happens, so they have to go and check, only to get themselves blown up.”
“Yeah, fuck that noise.” But I’d totally check for Emme.
We were out here without a damn clue, hoping this crazy plan worked. There was a reason that device was a prototype and not in production yet. It no doubt had some real kinks. And not the fun kind.
The whir of the prototype got louder. I could feel vibrations from here as the hairs on my arms lifted. “Something is definitely happening,” I whispered, bracing myself behind my car… right as the front door opened.
Lifting from my half crouch, I blinked stupidly at the doorway where my mate stood, staring at two of her alphas hiding behind a Bugatti like weak-ass fucks. She was covered in blood as she stumbled forward, and we were running toward her as fast as our legs could move.
“Emme!” Finley shouted. “Get away from the door!”
With his shout, she noticed the prototype, but thankfully I got there in time to shut the power off before any of us exploded. The whir and vibrations eased immediately, and everything felt calmer as we all stared.
Emme’s eyes were wide and very blue as she took us in, like she couldn’t believe we were here. When the first tear slipped down her cheek, all three of us crashed together, until Finley and I wore as much blood as she did. Blood that thankfully, my wolf could scent, was not hers.
“Darlin’,” Finley crooned, as I choked out, “Shortcake.”
Emme sobbed against my chest, and I might have shed a few tears myself.
Having her in my arms like this, safe and whole, was everything I’d been praying for. It was overwhelming in thebest damn ways.
When Emme pulled back, as if she needed to see us once more, I had to ask, “Is Jewels…? Do we need to get away from the house?”
She shook her head, her lips trembling. “She’s dead. She overestimated her own strength… and underestimated my ability to use wolf and magic together.”
Finley was practically beaming at her as he cupped her face. “Here we were trying to save the day,” he said, “and you, our perfect mate, destroyed her all on her own. Not that I ever expected anything less, but fuck I feel useless.”
A small snort escaped her, and it was the cutest sound I’d heard in a long time.
“Do you want me to go back inside so you two can bust in and rescue me?” she asked. “‘Cause I’m happy to do that.”
Nudging her playfully, I forced a teasing tone. “Could you, pretty mate? We’re all hyped up with nowhere to go.”
