Page 8 of Freed

“That depends,” Maddox says. I look up and relief fills me when I see him and Hunter stepping out of the house. Maddox looks tired, like he’s just gone hours with the punching bag, but at least he’s upright and not puking anymore.

“We didn’t have a chance to confirm his involvement other than that he is from another facility.”

“Another one?” Cody asks, his eyes sparking with excitement. “As in, not the one we’re about to go to?”

“That’s right,” Maddox says with a nod. “Dr. Jahan Jovanek,” he says, gesturing to the man watching us all with wide eyes, “works in North Carolina, but Cherry’s been taken to Georgia.”

“What do we do with him?” I ask as Bain and Gage exit the house, pulling the door shut behind them, each carrying two bags, their jaws clenched like they are in pain.

They are in pain. They just had their mate bond severed. I don’t know whether to be upset that I never got a chance to cement mine with Cherry or happy that I don’t have to go through what they’re going through right now.

“Can I have him?” Cody asks, sounding more excited than I’ve ever heard him.

“Oh, if you’re giving out humans, I want one too!” Casper says.

“What do you want him for, Cody?” Hunter asks, ignoring Casper’s comment.

Cody opens his mouth to respond, but stops when Alaric steps forward and punches the doc right across the face, knocking him unconscious.

I raise an eyebrow at him in question.

“We don’t want him to hear our plans,” he explains before crossing his arms over his chest.

“I want to interrogate him,” Cody tells us quickly. “I’ll lock him up at the station and extract the location of his facility.”

“That’s a good idea,” Gage says with a nod of his head as he tosses his bags into the trunk by the doctor’s feet. “The more of those fucking places we can take down, the better.”

“Perfect!” Cody says, happier than I’ve ever seen him. He steps up to the back of the SUV and grabs the doc’s body, throwing him over his shoulder like he weighs nothing, then turns and heads down the driveway, into the street.

“Wait! Where are you going?” I ask in confusion.

He turns, walking backward as he tells me, “You guys need the cars. I can carry him back.”

“Take my car,” Philip says, jogging down to pass him his keys. “I’m going with the others.”

“Thanks,” Cody says, opening the trunk of the car and tossing the body in. He waves goodbye and takes off, seeming more than happy with his prize.

“You’re coming?” Hunter asks Philip as he walks back up the driveway toward us.

“Yeah, I figured I can help in case there’s any magical defenses you need me to break through.”

“Thanks, man,” I say, meaning it. He’s putting his life on the line for our mate. I won’t forget that.

He shrugs. “If I’m being honest, it’s also because I have a personal vendetta against the facilities.”

“You were in one?” Hunter asks in surprise, but he shakes his head, looking sad.

“No, not me. My older brother, Edwin. He was taken to one of these facilities and died there.”

“Fuck, I’m sorry,” I say, grimacing. I try not to think about Cherry dying there, but at least she has the ability to come back. His brother obviously wasn’t so lucky.

After that, it doesn’t take us long to exchange phone numbers with our new travel buddies and get on the road. The four of them travel in Finn’s car, and the five of us in our pack take our SUV.

Hunter takes the wheel, and I sit beside him to navigate since we aren’t sure of the effects of the numbing potion, as Philip called it, on the other three.

I try to engage them in conversation, but it’s clear they don’t want to talk. I don’t blame them. Of course, it leaves my mind with the chance to spin scenarios of what could be happening to Cherry right now.

None of them are good.