“Alpha Mate?” called Eddie.
Turning, Heath found the enforcer heading his way followed by two men. Pausing, his eyes slid past Eddie, recognizing one of Jackson’s brothers. He’d seen him the day Tristan met with Jackson but couldn’t recall his name.
Stopping in front of Heath, Eddie said, “These two appeared suddenly in front of me outside and insisted they were here to help Tristan.”
Stepping forward, Carson held out his hand, “Nice to see you again Heath. I’m not sure you met my mate, Remy, the other day.”
“No, I don’t believe I did,” Heath replied, shaking Carson’s hand. “You’ll have to forgive me, but I’ve forgotten your name.”
“I’m Jackson’s brother, Carson…and also Tristan’s cousin. We’re here to evacuate everyone.”
“We aren’t leaving,” growled Marty.
Seeing the confusion on Carson’s face, Heath explained, “Some of the men have decided to stay and fight alongside their Alpha. As for the others, Tristan ishandling that.” Then pointing to his mate on the stage, he added, “He’s over there.”
Nodding, Carson grasped Remy’s hand, and led his mate through the throngs of shifters milling around, breathing a sigh of relief after reaching Tristan. “Hey Cousin, reporting for duty. This is Remy, Ruler of the Mystic Kingdom, Great Warlock, and Keeper of All Magic, and, most important, my mate.”
Tristan’s eyes widened slightly before he quickly bowed his head. “Your Highness…”
“Please…call me Remy.”
“Right…I appreciate you coming so quickly. What do you need from me?”
“I first want to see where I’m supposed to relocate your pack members. Jackson mentioned it’s in San Francisco,” Remy said.
“It is…there are a number of meeting rooms for our use. My brother has already cleared them out so they’re basically empty,” Tristan replied.
“Good…what’s the address?” asked Remy.
Scribbling it down on a notepad, Tristan tore it off and handed it to Remy.
Glancing down it the address, Remy murmured, “I’ll be right back.”
Before Tristan could utter a word, Remy and Carson had disappeared. “Holy fuck!” he muttered to himself. “Jackson could have at least told me who the hell he was sending…Ruler of the Mystic Realm…fucking unbelievable.”
Within a second, or at least that was how it always seemed to Carson whenever Remy translocated them,he found himself staring at a ghost from his past. “Oh hell,” he whispered to himself.
Kahn froze when his cousin materialized in front of him and no matter how hard he tried, he could not contain his fear.
After hearing his mate curse, it took Remy only a moment to realize who Tristan’s brother was—the son of the man who’d tried to kill Carson and his brothers. Stepping in front of his mate, he said, “I’m Remy…can you show me the rooms reserved for the members of the Silver Point Pack?”
There was no way Carson was going to let Remy go off alone with his cousin, so he moved to his mate’s side, explaining, “This is my cousin…Kahn.”
Hearing Carson say his name resurrected many memories of pleasant times Kahn had spent with his cousins during his childhood. Ones he’d locked away when his father accused his cousins of killing everyone in the Fox River Pack. But then the truth came out. His father had lied to Kahn to make sure he’d hate his cousins and never want to seek them out again. Now, though, it seemed the Fates were encouraging him to reclaim what had been stolen from him, and Kahn wasn’t about to hesitate. “Carson…I need you to know my father didnottell me what he was planning. If he had, I would’ve warned Aunt Hope and Jackson.”
Kahn was telling him the truth. Carson could smell it and see it clearly on his cousin’s face. And just like that, the animosity he’d harbored through the years fell away. After the massacre, his anger reached the boiling point, nearly consuming him. And though the passage of time had reduced it to a simmer, it had never cooled, not even when Smokey killed Josiah. Now, with the knowledge Kahn was not involved, he knew the threatto his brothers and the rest of the Blackwood Pack had truly been buried with Josiah. Nothing could bring back his younger siblings, but he had made peace with that and now it was time to make peace with his cousin.
Chapter 31
Walking into the room, Rudy wrinkled his nose at the smell of blood and stale urine, figuring both belonged to the man shackled to the wall. Not that it mattered, because by the time he was through, there’d be nothing left except a pile of bones. Examining the propped-up body, he found what he expected—the Vice Chair of the High Council. Kicking Frank’s foot, he asked, “What’s the matter, Frank, aren’t you gonna beg for your life?”
When no reply was forthcoming, he continued, “Did your son tell you we broke him on the first day? No, I bet he didn’t. What a fucking whine-baby he was, begging me to let him live, promising me he’d do anything. Too bad he didn’t do the one thing I ordered. What a fucking failure. You know how I know that, Frankie? Cause the sonofabitch lived. Did he tell you what I did to him? How he was beaten for days until his skull was finally smashed? And how my men dumped him in a ditch…a fitting burial for a traitor.
“Your fucking son got me into a whole heap of trouble after he swore to be loyal to me! I don’t know how you managed to save him, but it doesn’t really matter because this time I’ll make sure there won’t be anything left of you to be saved by him. Payback is a bitch, ain’t it, Frankie?”
Pissed when Frank didn’t answer, Rudy kicked him in the balls, but silence was the only response. “Fucking hell,” he muttered. Then glancing at Bruno, he said, “Make sure he stays alive…I’m not done with him yet.”
Bending down, Bruno grabbed Franks’ hair, pulling on it until he could see his battered face and noticed the shallow rise and fall of Frank’s chest. Then he let go ofFrank’s hair allowing his head to fall forward until his chin was resting on his chest. “He’s alive…for now.”
