Chapter Eleven
“What?” Jared stared open-mouthed at Ale. How was Chester involved?
“He attempted to negotiate her release, but from what I’ve been told, he took Chester hostage.”
“How? I mean, Chester isn’t stupid. Why would he do something like that?”
“I don’t know. In fact, the intel they’ve given me is shit, and I think they’ve fucked up.”
Miguel stepped closer, crossing his arms over his chest. “I thought the ex had been cleared from the investigation.”
Ale grunted. “Yeah, his brother’s an officer.”
“Fuck.” Jared kicked the ground and stared out over the fields surrounding them. “What now? Are we going over there?”
Ale stared at him. “Definitely. Let’s borrow one of these trucks.”
Both Jared and Miguel grinned. Borrow wasn’t what Ale meant. The three of them marched over, and Ale grabbed a set of keys from one of the officers. They ignored his shout of protest and got in. Ale quickly drove away, ignoring everyone around them.
“Where are they?” Miguel asked, looking at the map.
Ale glanced at it and pointed to a wooded area before looking back at the road. “Here. There’s a cabin there that’s apparently been empty for years.”
“Perfect location. Hidden by woods, stream nearby, hardly any foot traffic,” Miguel murmured.
Jared grunted when the truck hit a deep pothole. “This road is shit.”
“Try driving on it.”
Ale’s hands gripped the steering wheel, the knuckles turning white. The windshield wipers were going as fast as they could, but hardly made any dent in the rain that fell on the window. It was torrential now, visibility drastically reduced.
Jared grimaced, staring at the sheet of rain that poured around them. “Shit, Ale. We can barely see. How much further?”
“Not far now. We’re on the main road leading up to it, and then it’s on foot from there.”
After another ten minutes, they finally arrived and the three of them armed themselves with Ale saying, “If anything happens, we take the bastard out.”
The road—well, muddy path—wound through the trees, and they slowed down when they heard a voice up ahead.
“Stan. You know me. We’ve known each other for years. Release Serena and Chester, and we can all go home.”
Jared looked at Ale and Miguel.
“That’s not good,” Miguel muttered. “He shouldn’t be negotiating. He’s too close.”
“If this Stan is an officer’s brother, then they’re all too close. Ale?”
“Let’s move forward, cautiously. We don’t know what we’re walking into. Stay in the cover of the trees and scope the area, then we’ll plan.”
All three moved slowly, watching where they stepped, and once they were close enough, they squatted down. Jared stared at the scene in front of him, one thing apparent.
“There are too many people.”
“Our guys are withdrawing and will rendezvous with us here, but we can’t do much about the rest.”
“There must be twenty at least,” Miguel whispered. “Can we radio one and relay a message? Too many will agitate him especially if he knows them.”
“I’ll try to get closer. Maybe I can catch the attention of the closest officer and advise them to pull some of their men back.”
Ale slowly crawled forward, and from Jared’s position he saw Ale motion to one of the men, but he waved him away. Ale tried again, and the officer eventually stepped closer.
Jared heard the whispered conversation and grimaced when the officer left. Ale crawled back, a look of anger on his face.
“They won’t leave. The man is there is one of theirs.”
“What?” Miguel asked. “I thought he was the brother of an officer.”
“Seems he’s recently joined the local force.”
Jared shook his head. “Fuck, Ale. What are we going to do now?”
“Hey,” Donnie muttered as he and Michaela arrived. “This shit has gone south. Fuckers won’t listen.” He shook his head, spraying water everywhere.
“They don’t want to listen, D,” Mich muttered, squatting next to them.
Ale asked, “What do you know?”
Donnie snorted. “Twenty-two local law enforcement surrounds the cabin-”
“Twenty-two?” Miguel interrupted, shock written all over his face.
“Overkill, I know.” Donnie glared over at the scene in front of him. “Chester attempted to negotiate, but you can imagine how that went with that crowd out there.”
“How did this Stan get him?” Ale moved closer, his voice low.
“Chester was attempting a swap. Him for her. He could see how this was playing out. The guy’s unstable.”
“Weapons?”
“The kidnapper has a Glock, a Sig and a shotgun, possibly a Mossberg. Hard to tell at the distance we were, but he’s heavily armed. I imagine he’ll have plenty of ammo too.”
“Fuck, it’s bad out there,” Michaela added. “Tension is at a breaking point.”
“Mich,” Ale turned to Michaela. “Did you scope out the back?”
“Yeah. Two windows and a door. I’d say from the looks of it, the windows are boarded. He planned this.”
“Distraction at the front, in through the back?” Jared asked the group.
“Shit.” Ale ran a hand over his face. “What choice do we-”
The sounds of shots stopped him, and everyone launched from their positions and ran over to the cabin and the officers shooting at it.
“Mich, Donnie. Hit the back!” Ale shouted, and the team divided up, Donnie and Mich heading to the rear of the property, with Jared, Ale and Miguel running to the front.
They dropped down behind a cruiser for cover and Ale shouted over to the closest officer. “What the fuck is going on? We’ve got a man in there!”
“He just started shooting.”
The officer glanced at the gun in his hands and Jared watched him straighten up, turn and point his pistol over the hood of the car and aim at the cabin.
“Don’t shoot. Everyone stop firing!” Ale screamed.
It took a few seconds for him and the sheriff in charge to gain control, and when the shooting stopped, the silence was deafening.
Over the earpiece, Jared heard Donnie’s voice. “Man down. Need medical and helicopter out.”
“Who?” Ale asked, staring at Jared. They both knew who was down. The sound of Donnie’s voice told them.
“Chester. Chest. No exit wound.”
There was a moment of stunned silence before Jared shot up and ran over to the front door of the cabin, ignoring the shouts behind him.
Once inside, he pushed emotions aside and knelt next to Chester. Michaela already had bandages over the wound, attempting to stem the flow of blood pouring out.
Jared quickly scanned the room and winced when he saw the woman, lying dead in the corner.
“Possibly dead forty-eight hours,” Michaela informed him.
“Let’s roll him, so I can check his back.”
Between them, they rolled Chester on to his side, who grunted in pain but said nothing else. His back was clear, which meant the bullet hadn’t passed through.
“Bullet’s still in.”
“No shit, Jared,” Chester muttered, coughing up blood.
“Donnie. ETA?” Jared asked, working on Chester to stem the blood flow.
“Chopper’s five out.”
“Let’s get him as stable as possible and ready for extraction.”
They worked quickly and efficiently, hearing the sounds of the helicopter approaching.
The next few minutes were a blur until the paramedics came in and took over. Jared passed all the details over and stepped back, letting them do their job.
“I’m going with him,” Ale shouted over the noise, and within seconds, the helicopter was airborne.
Jared glanced at the scene around him then walked away, the others following. He needed to get to the hospital. They had a man down.
❊❊❊
Sacha read the papers in front of him when he was suddenly overwhelmed by shock and fear. His heart raced in his chest, sweat breaking out over his skin, and he gasped loudly, pushing away from the table and trying to stand.
“Sacha.”
Sacha shook his head, stumbled a few steps and managed to say, “It’s not me.”
Alessio rushed over to him, grabbing his arm and helping him to stand. “Is it Jared? Has he been injured?”
“No, I don’t think it’s him. I need to call him.”
Sacha rummaged through his jacket, trying to get to his cell and was vaguely aware of everyone leaving the conference room until only he and Alessio remained.
He almost cried. “I can’t find my cell.”
“Sacha. Stop and think.”
“Shut up, Father. I need to-”
Alessio spun Sacha around and shook him. “Listen to me.”
“What the fuck-”
Alessio tapped Sacha’s head. “Talk to your mate.”
Sach closed his eyes and slumped against Alessio. “I’m sorry,” he mumbled into Alessio’s jacket.
“Understandable. Now speak to him.”
Taking a deep breath, Sacha spoke to Jared.
Jared. What’s wrong?
Chester’s shot. Can’t talk right now. Will talk later.
Opening his eyes, he looked at Alessio. “Chester’s been shot. He couldn’t tell me more. I think it’s bad.”
“Do you know where they are?”
“He mentioned Tennessee when he left. A missing woman.” Sacha grabbed his hair and groaned. “I don’t ask him a lot about it. I just let him do his job.”
“Don’t worry. Jared is uninjured, and he’ll contact you when he knows more. Go back to your office and wait. I don’t want you going home right now until we know for certain.”
Nodding, Sacha said, “Okay, but I don’t think I’m going to be doing much today.”
“Forget about work. Work on your bond, send your love to Jared, and let him know he isn’t alone right now.”
Nodding again, he let Alessio lead him out of the conference room and back to his office. He slumped in his chair and rubbed a hand over his face.
“Do you need me to stay with you?”
Sacha smiled and looked over at Alessio. “No, Father, but thank you.”
“Call me, if you need me.”
“I will.”
Alessio bent and kissed his forehead. “It will be alright, figlio mio.”
As soon as Alessio left, Sacha stood. He couldn’t sit down, he needed to be moving. He paced his office, watching the clock. The seconds dragged by and he growled in frustration. Come on, Jared.
Sacha.
Sacha almost slumped in relief when Jared contacted him.
Jared. What’s happened?
Cluster fuck of a situation. The missing woman was kidnapped by her ex. The ex is law enforcement and had been ruled out as involved, but he had her.
Shit.
Yeah. Found them in an old cabin and somehow Chester was in there with them. Don’t know full details yet, but someone fired a shot and then everyone was shooting. Chester took one to the chest.
How is he?
In surgery. Doesn’t look good.
What about his mate?
He doesn’t know Chester’s been shot. I’ve left him a message to contact me ASAP.
Have they bonded?
No.
At that moment, Alessio walked in, and Sacha tapped his head. Alessio nodded and stood waiting, hands on the back of the chair in front of him.
Wait. Father’s just walked in. Let me speak to him.
“Father. Chester’s been shot in the chest, and it doesn’t look good.”
“Mated?”
“He has a mate, but they haven’t bonded.”
“Have they exchanged blood?” Alessio walked closer and stood next to Sacha.
“I’ll ask.”
Jared. Have they exchanged blood? Chester and his mate?
No, why?
I don’t know. Father asked me to ask you. Wait a sec, and I’ll find out.
Glancing at Alessio, Sacha said, “No, they haven’t. But Chester is a vamp. How would a blood exchange help? His mate’s human.”
“From what I can remember, the blood exchange strengthens the bond. It will explain why Jared is faster and stronger. Maybe we vampires gain something too. Maybe his mate can help to strengthen him.”
Sacha stared at Alessio. “You don’t really know, do you?” he said, dryly.
Alessio shrugged. “Humans gain something from the mating, why not vampires too? It would make sense, but I don’t know what.”
“Okay. I’ll ask Jared and see what he can do.”
Jared.
Yeah.
Father thinks a blood exchange may strengthen Chester. You’re stronger and faster now. So maybe the bond will somehow help Chester.
You’re shitting me, right?
It’s worth a try.
Okay. As soon as the sheriff arrives, I’ll ask him, but I’m not holding my breath. He’s avoided Chester so far.
Let me know what happens. I love you.
God, I love you too, Sach.
Sacha collapsed in the chair and dropped his head into his hands. That had been exhausting. He felt Alessio’s hand stroke his head, and he looked up at him.
“Okay?”
Seeing the concern on Alessio’s face, he nodded. “It’s so tiring.”
“Practice will ease that.”
Nodding again, Sacha sat back in his chair. “He’s going to talk to Chester’s mate then get back to me.”
“Relax then. There’s nothing you can do right now. Do you want to go home? I’ll come with you.”
“No, Father. I think I should stay here and try to do some work. Jared is safe, and he’s the most important person to me.”
“You know where I am, figlio mio.”
“Love you, Father.”
“Tivoglio bene.” I love you too.