Cody burst out laughing as Steel joined in. “Well played.”
Dr. Luna hung up the phone. “Pablo has an old shack about a hundred miles from here. His sister is sending her son over with a map showing where it is located.”
“Okay,” Steel said, “as soon as we get it, Cody and Slate will head there. Ian and I will stay here to make the payment. Oh, one other thing, Slate. Send the men to Pablo’s house. I’m betting he’ll go home to pack up before leaving after getting his money. I don’t want him killed. Make sure they understand that.”
“I’ll tell Turk,” Slate said, just as a faint knock sounded on the door.
“Excuse me gentleman, we have a visitor.” Dr. Luna walked over and opened the door. “Hi Oscar, that was fast. Thank you for bringing the map,” he said as he took the paper from Oscar’s hand. “Be careful going home,” Juan cautioned before closing the door. Juan handed the map to Slate who spread it out on the desk.
Slate scrutinized the location of Pablo’s shack, figuring where it was in relation to them. “It’ll be a two hour driveso we better get going, Cody. Steel, hold off as long as you can before making the payment in case we find Colton first. I’ll call you when we get there.”
“Okay, before you leave, remember to tell Turk about Pablo. Oh, and Cody, be careful.”
Cody nodded as he left with Slate.
~/~/~/~/~
Colton watched as the man left, hearing the lock click in place. He remained motionless, waiting to see if he’d come back. He thought about what the man said.Power? What power?He wondered what the guy had been smoking. But then a thought crossed his mind—Jackson.Oh gods!He knew his brother would have been notified as soon as Colton didn’t show up for his shift. By now, there’d be an all-out search, led by Slate, in an effort to keep Jackson and Steel calm.
After fifteen minutes, he started on the ropes again.Crap, what kind of ropes are these?His sweat made it harder as the ropes got wetter. He looked around for something to use but found nothing in the old shack. Finally, grabbing his t-shirt with both tied hands, he pulled it over his head, so it now was wrapped around his arms, soaking up the sweat. Then he started to bite the ropes with his dropped fangs. Close, closer, almost…Finally!He was free.
Bolting for the door, Colton yanked it, but it didn’t budge.Shit,his prison was built better than he thought. After exhausting himself with repeated tries, he sat down to take stock. He was thirsty and hungry and still suffering the after effects of being drugged. But he needed to escape now. Pondering his options, he spied a loose board on the far wall.Mmm, a possibility.Maybe he could slip through.
Pulling on the board, Colton could see it moving. Now he needed something to pry it apart. He spied a rusted pipe lying in the corner. Grabbing it, he wedged it behind the board. Pushing with all his remaining strength, he broke the board in half, leaving an open space he could squeeze through.
~/~/~/~/~
Steel’s phone rang. It was Turk. “Hello, Steel here.”
“Sir, it’s Turk. We have Pablo. What do you want us to do with him?”
“Bring him here. Make sure he can’t shift.
“Yes sir. We’ll be there in 10 minutes.”
Steel hung up and called Slate.
“What’s up?” Slate asked his brother.
“Turk got Pablo at his house. He’s bringing him here. How close are you to his shack?”
“Another ten minutes,” said Slate, “but then we have to walk the rest of the way.”
“Okay. Keep me informed.” Slate hung up. “Turk captured Pablo,” he said to Cody, “and he’s taking him to Steel.”
“Well, finally some good news. Did he make the payment?” asked Cody.
“Shit, I didn’t ask. But it doesn’t matter. If we find Colton, then Steel can cancel the payment.”
“That’s good,” Cody said. “Did my brother enjoy himself while he was here with Dr. Luna?”
“Colton?” asked Slate. “Yeah, he loved it…loves it. Why the fuck didn’t he know what he was?”
“Our father never told him, only Jackson and our mother knew. When Oracle told Ian he was the fated mate of Colton…that’s when the whole story came out.”
“Yeah, I get that,” Slate said, “but didn’t any of you notice his ability to heal by the laying on of his hands?”
“He was just Colton and all we knew was to go to him when someone got hurt,” explained Cody.
