Mase narrowed his eyes. “Not much, why?”
It might not come to anything, especially as I couldn’t exactly tell him what to look for, but Mase’s newfound magical ability, sketchy as it was, might just come in handy. “Fancy going for a drink later?”
* * *
The driveto Clumber Park was about as fun as I expected it to be. The three witches we had contained in the back of the van said nothing, but the emotions rolling off them were stifling. Anger, despair, resignation, and a heavy dose of fear.
Fae prisons had a reputation for a reason.
But I had zero sympathy for any of them because they’d brought it on themselves. The three witches sat across from me supplied Melhak with witch magic that he used to break Vai Zh’alek out of prison. That he stockpiled in the Fae Realm. They also helped Yates refine Blue Alhuirn at his hunter compound, and at least four people died because they gave that poison to Caleb Tombs to use in his grudge against Mase. Rys, Axel, and Dathal almost died because of them.
They deserved everything that was coming their way.
I glanced at Wyn sat next to me.
The emotions coming off him weren’t surprising either. Anger, disappointment, and underneath it all a hint of sadness. I understood that too. As a witch himself, it had to be difficult knowing that they’d taken everything he loved, that his whole life revolved around, and twisted it to cause so much pain and suffering. But at the same time, they were his brothers in magic.
I imagined it would be how I’d feel if a shifter had done something similar. Taken the gifts we’d been given and used them to hurt people for their own gain.
My mind drifted to John Allen and Xen and that whole fucking mess.
Not the same thing at all, Max.
And yet I couldn’t help but feel a tiny bit betrayed by it all. That instead of letting me report it and allowing the paranormal police to investigate what was an unlawful killing however you looked at it. Xen and Haylen Frost had used an archaic law, which hadn’t been used in decades, to serve their own purposes, ruining Jake and Myla’s lives in the process.
And mine.
Xen said it was all to save John’s life—and that might be part of it, keeping his pack safe should be his main focus. But I felt there was more to it. And keeping his pack safe was one thing, but none of us should be above the law. That’s how it used to be, way before I was born, but I’d heard the horror stories, and I was pretty sure no pack wanted to return to those days. Even Xen.
I nudged Wyn with my foot as Mase pulled onto the long road leading into the park itself. I raised an eyebrow at him when he glanced my way.You okay?
He sighed but nodded, sitting back against the wall of the van. “Dathal’s meeting us there, right?”
“Yep. Axel’s busy doing something in the Fae Realm, so Dathal’s meeting Lady Sarhin and her guard escort.”
The witches across from me flinched in unison, but Wyn relaxed more.
I didn’t blame him.
Magic-dampening restraints prevented any of the three witches from using their magic, but they were powerful. Having Dathal on hand when we delivered them to the fae was a backup that settled my wolf as well.
Soon enough we drove past the main pack house for the Dark Forest Pack. As a police detective, I’d gone through the proper channels to get permission to cross Rys’s territory with our prisoners. As mycousin, Rys had long ago given me permission to come here whenever I wanted.
It would’ve been different if Jake and I’d been part of his pack. As much as Rys put pack,family, before everything, he would never have done what Xen and Frost did. Because he also believed in facing up to the consequences of your actions. I wasn’t saying he would’ve just handed over Jake’s dad to be killed by Frost. More likely he’d have let me do my job and fought tooth and nail to prevent Frost from using old laws that had no place in the present. The one thing he wouldn’t have done was let Jake pay for his dad’s mistake.
But that was Rys.
And unfortunately, he wasn’t my alpha.
But he could be.
His offer from a couple of weeks ago was still fresh in my memory.There’s always a place for you here. You and whoever else needs one.
It was tempting. So fucking tempting. I’d spent more than one night wondering if it wouldn’t just be easier to take him up on it. But that would mean Jake leaving his dad to pay with his life, and I knew he’d never go for that. As angry as I was at John for creating this mess, I wasn’t sure I could leave him to deal with it on his own.
No, if it ever got bad enough that we had to renounce our pack and leave, then we’d be taking his dad with us. And there was no way I could bring all the uproar that would cause to Rys’s door.
Mase pulled the van to a halt, jolting me from my thoughts.
