Kell Etting Iverson—soon to be Cross—couldn’t believe how much his life had changed in the two months since his murder trial ended. From being terrified of the gallows to happily bonded, about to mate a man he loved to bits and who treated Kell like royalty. Branson was growing like a weed, Ronin and Tarek were house hunting for their joint family, and his baby brother Braun was pregnant.

Sometimes Kell wasn’t sure how to feel about that, and neither was Braun. They’d both cried when Braun told him, a mix of joy and fear from each of them. But he’d already seen Dr. Troi and was taking every precaution so that this would be an easy birth. Kell was a little nervous about mating with Ronin during his next heat in a few weeks, because a second pregnancy could be fatal. He’d mused once to Dr. Troi that maybe Branson’s birth could have been less problematic if Krause hadn’t been such an abusive mate.

Dr. Troi had admitted that Krause’s constant sexual abuse had likely contributed to Kell nearly dying during childbirth.

But Kell had stopped trying to predict the future and, instead, he lived in every moment he was given, whether it was with his brother or their friends. He especially enjoyed spending his weekdays with Jax. Having another omegin his age to bond with was a wonderful thing, and he loved learning signal language so they could communicate more clearly. Braun was better, but Kell was trying.

After spending a wonderful weekend with Ronin and Branson, Kell was looking forward to hanging out with Jax again. Except Branson was being particularly fussy about teething, so Jax suggested a walk in the Sansbury Botanical Gardens. They’d visited the place twice before, as a way to get out of the house without taking Jax anywhere too public, and all of their alphas had agreed it was a safe place to go.

Braun was working, so Kell and Jax loaded up their strollers and diaper bags. Ronin was between client meetings, so he picked them up and volunteered to take them home whenever they were ready. Kell had a mobile, and he promised to call when they got bored. Braun took the bus once in a while, but ever since his trial, Kell disliked being recognized. So the gardens was a good compromise for him, too.

Despite having brought his stroller, Jax mostly used it to store the diaper bag. He always preferred to keep Karson in the sling and close to him when they were out in public. They couldn’t converse easily while they walked, so they parked at a bench to rest and catch up from the weekend.

“Karter’s father relented about university. Sloan is able to go and he can continue living at home.”

“That’s fantastic news,” Kell replied. “I know the deadline was soon, and you guys were so worried about that. Are Karter and his sire on speaking terms again?”

“No. Sloan told us the news. I’m glad everything is working out for him.”

“Same. Good for him.” The Sloan news was fantastic, but it wasn’t the news at the forefront of Kell’s mind, and he wasn’t sure it was polite to bring it up first. But Jax had never seemed the bashful type. “So enough time has passed since you and Karter mated. Do you know?”

Jax smiled. “Not pregnant. Thank goddess, I can’t imagine being pregnant again with Karson still so young.”

“I hear you. Branson is five months and change, but even that is young. Still, when Ronin and I mate in a few weeks, it’ll be up to the goddess what happens. Just like Braun.” Kell slapped a hand over his mouth.

Jax perked up, his eyebrows rising. “Is Braun pregnant? Officially?”

“Yes, but he and Tarek wanted to wait a little longer before announcing it, so don’t say anything to him, okay?”

“Your secret is safe. Promise.” Jax made a face and fidgeted on the bench.

“You okay?”

“Yes. Nature calling, I think.” He carefully lifted Karson out of the sling and settled him into the stroller. The infant gurgled once, but continued sleeping. “I might be a few minutes.”

“I’ll watch him, I promise.”

“Thank you.”

Kell watched Jax walk back down the path for a moment. He was never not impressed by Jax’s size and muscular frame. Omegas rarely ever got as tall as Jax, much less bulked up like an alpha. But knowing Jax had been forced to get into that shape and knowing what Jax had done in order to survive, Kell didn’t envy him his size.

They didn’t discuss it much, but Jax had shared the basic overview with him and Braun one afternoon, while both babies were napping. Kell hadn’t been ashamed of bursting into tears over some of the more painful parts, especially when Jax admitted to Senior Iverson’s involvement. But those tears had been ones of rage—rage knowing a man he’d detested for years had so horribly hurt one of Kell’s friends.

It had not, however, surprised him to learn that Senior Iverson had been involved in such a thing as pregnant omegas being forced to beat each other unconscious for the reward of not being raped.

He played with Branson for a few minutes, until his mobile rang. “Hey, Ronin,” he said. “What’s up?”

“You and Jax are still at the gardens, right?” Ronin’s voice was tight, and that put Kell on instant alert.

“Yes, why? What happened? Is Karter okay?”

“He’s fine, as far as I know. I need you and Jax to head for the front entrance and stay put. I’m coming to pick you up.”

“Why?” Kell stood and looked around, but he was alone. “Ronin, tell me what’s going on right now. You’re scaring me.”

“I’m sorry, little one, I don’t mean to scare you. The constabulary raided the fight ring this afternoon, during an actual fight.”

“Holy shit! Really? Do they need Jax to make identifications?”

“They will eventually, but that’s not why I’m getting you two. Tarek and the others arrested five alpha participants, plus Dent, one of the kidnappers.”

Kell’s stomach plummeted to the floor. “They didn’t get the second alpha?”

“No, Udall got away. It’s possible he was tipped off they were coming and ran. We don’t know where he is, or what he knows about Jax, so getting you two safely tucked away at the cottage is our first move, okay?”

“Yes, okay. We’ll meet you by the entrance.”

“I’ll be there in fifteen minutes. I love you.”

“Love you back.”

Kell hung up, then looked down the path again, hoping to see Jax returning. But it sounded as if Jax had some business to do in the bathroom, which was near the entrance, so meeting him there made more sense. Managing two strollers, two diaper bags, and two infants was not the easiest plan in the world, and he passed a beta couple who kindly offered to help him.

They got both strollers parked near the bathroom door, and then the couple headed back into the gardens. Keeping half an eye on both babies, Kell opened the door. “Jax, we need to leave soon. Something has come up. Bang on the stall so I know you hear me.”

Kell’s voice echoed in the three-stall room. He poked his head in and crouched. No feet under any of the stalls. His heart lurched. “Jax?”

Don’t panic, maybe he took a different path back to the bench.

Kell pushed both strollers toward the ticket counter by the entrance. “Do you have a loudspeaker system to page people who get lost?” he asked the attendant.

“Yes, did you lose someone?” the attendant replied.

“I did. I need to page my friend Jax Jenks. We came together, and I have his baby with me, but we got separated.”

Please let that be the truth, goddess, please.

The attendant paged Jax to the main entrance, please, and Kell bounced from foot to foot while he waited. No Jax. After a third page led to no appearances, Kell started to panic. “A few minutes before I showed up, did you see a big, muscular man with a beard and long hair leave?”

“Yes, I did.” The attendant frowned. “He was with another man. They were walking close together, but I don’t really pay much attention to folks who are leaving. They already paid the entrance fee, you see.”

Kell was torn between racing into the parking lot to look for Jax, and his duty to their babies. He couldn’t leave them with a stranger; Jax wouldn’t want that, no matter what was happening to him. Jax had entrusted Kell with Karson’s care, so he’d put the baby first.

“I need you to call emergency,” Kell told the attendant. “I think my friend was led out of here under duress and may be in danger.”

The attendant nearly fell out of his stool as he reached for the phone.

Kell had his out, and he was already dialing Karter, dreading breaking this news to the man.

* * *

Karter stuffed the empty burger wrapper into the paper bag it came in, then wiped his mouth on a napkin. Not the healthiest meal option, but it had been a busy day, so he didn’t want to risk getting a call in the middle of a meal break. Eating in his car saved time.

His mobile rang. Kell. He’d texted Karter earlier about him and Jax visiting the botanical gardens today, so he flipped his phone open. “Hey, Kell.”

“Oh, goddess, Karter, I’m sorry, he went to the bathroom, and why would that even seem like a dangerous thing, and I’m so sorry.”

Kell’s nearly incoherent babble sent a jolt of fear down Karter’s spine. “Kell, what happened? Where’s Jax?”

“I don’t know!” His breath hitched on a sob.

Okay, stay calm. Ask questions. Think, damn it!

“Are you still at the gardens?” Karter asked, pulling on all his constable training to figure this out.

“Yes, I’m here with both babies, but Jax is missing.”

“He left?”

“He left with someone, and I don’t know who, and Ronin called to say they’d raided the fight ring, but one of the kidnappers got away, and Ronin was going to come get us, but when I went to the bathroom to collect Jax he wasn’t there, and the attendant paged him, but then he said he saw a big, bearded man leaving with another guy.”

Karter growled with frustration, then bit it back. Getting angry at Kell for his overwrought state wouldn’t help. “I’m on my way. I’m pretty close to you guys anyway, so it shouldn’t be five minutes. Did you call emergency?”

“Yes, and Ronin’s coming, too.”

“Okay, good. I’ll be right there.”

He snapped his phone shut, turned on his emergency light, and gunned the engine. It was good that Ronin was going; he could be there to comfort his freaking-out omega. Plus, there were two kids to deal with, and if Dent or Udall—Kell hadn’t specified which alpha—had taken Jax, Karter would pull the man’s spine out through his ass.

The drive seemed to take forever, until he was finally barging into the huge building. A patrolman was already there talking to a shaking, near-tears Kell, who was holding a crying Karson. Little Branson looked close to pitching a fit, too, with that scrunched, unhappy face. Another man who was probably the attendant, stood nearby, hands clasped demurely in front of him.

The instant Kell saw him, his face fell. “I am so fucking sorry I wasn’t with him.”

Karter shook his head, his alpha side instinctively needing to comfort the quailing omega. “It wasn’t your fault, and if you had been with him, all four of you could have gotten hurt.”

“We’ve already got a BOLO out on Jax,” the patrolman said.

“Okay, good.” To the attendant, Karter asked, “Do you have security cameras?”

He nodded. “Yes, but only one. Angle is of people coming in the front door. Mostly it’s to catch people who try to sneak by without paying the admission fee.”

“I need to see it.” To the patrolman, Karter said, “See what kind of security cameras are near this parking lot. We need every angle was can find.”

“Yes, sir.”

Branson started wailing, so Karter took Karson from Kell so he could tend to his own son. Karson seemed to settle being close to Karter. They all went into the small office to watch the security footage. The attendant rewound to about fifteen minutes ago, then pushed play. Onscreen, a small family paid their fees and went inside. Then the back of what Karter instantly knew was Jax’s head appeared, along with another man.

Karter growled at how closely they were walking together, the stranger’s arm around Jax’s back and angled up where his hand gripped Jax’s shoulder. They walked with purpose, two people intent on getting somewhere, and then they were gone. Karter rewound it, wishing they had the slow-play feature that Mal had back at division.

This time he studied the man with Jax. Plain brown hair, tall, slim build. But the detail that made Karter’s heart pound with rage was the familiar black sash the man wore across his right shoulder that tied by his left hip.

“Fuck me,” Karter. “The man who took Jax is a constable.”

“Why would a constable take him?” Kell asked. “Why wouldn’t someone call you if they needed to speak to him?”

“I don’t know.” To the clerk, he asked, “Do you remember seeing this man come inside? When he paid?”

“Didn’t pay,” the man replied. “He walked in with a purpose and flashed his badge, so I let him go in. Figured maybe someone called him. It’s why I didn’t think much of him leaving with the fella you’re looking for.”

Fan-fucking-tastic.

Karter stepped out of the office to call division. No one had any open requests to interview Jax, no warrant for his arrest, no call asking an active constable to collect Jax for any reason whatsoever. Angry and confused, he called Higgs directly. “Sir, did you send a constable down to the Sansbury Botanical Gardens to collect Jax about twenty minutes ago?”

“No, I didn’t,” Higgs replied. “Once we realized Udall had escaped capture, Bloom called that Cross fellow, so he could make sure Jax was in a secure spot until Udall is found. Why?”

Pushing aside his annoyance at not being contacted directly about his own mate, Karter explained what he knew.

“Dear goddess,” Higgs said. “I’ll get a report on all active constables right now, find out where everyone is, or is supposed to be. We’ll find your omega, Jenks, I promise.”

“Thank you, sir.” The reassurance from his superior helped, but Karter was bordering on panic. He hated to think that a constable could be connected to Udall and the fight ring, but all evidence was pointing in that direction. “Do you think this is tied to your bust?”

“The timing is too perfect for it not to be. If there’s a rat in my division, I’ll flush him out. For now, don’t let anyone else leave. Start preliminary interviews. Your mate is involved, so I’ll have someone I trust over there to take over as soon as possible.”

“Thank you.”

Karter rewound the security footage to find the constable entering the gardens, and the same figure did walk straight ahead with purpose in his steps. Flashed the badge, but he also had his hand raised to cover his face. Karter tried pausing it, but couldn’t see enough of the man to recognize him.

Bastard.

Ronin showed up right as Karter’s call ended. Kell and Branson were both visibly upset, and he hugged his family tight, murmuring soothing words to his omega, while Kell cried into his shoulder. Ronin also shot Karter a few dirty looks that Karter didn’t take personally. No alpha liked seeing their omega distressed, and Ronin didn’t seem to know what was happening. “What’s going on?” Ronin asked. “Where’s Jax.”

“I don’t know,” Karter replied.

That made Kell cry harder.

Karter explained everything for the second time in five minutes, growing angrier by the second. “This isn’t Kell’s fault, and I don’t blame him. The timing was too aligned with the bust for it to be a coincidence, which means someone has been following them, maybe for a while.”

“I can’t imagine what you’re feeling right now,” Ronin replied.

“I’m not entirely sure what I am feeling, other than pissed off.”

“Listen, I can’t stay. Tarek wanted me to pick up all the omegas and take them to the cottage for safekeeping. Braun’s already in my car.”

“Okay, do that.” Karter looked down at the squirming baby in his arms, and his heart tore in two. “Can you take Karson with you? I need to find Jax.”

“Of course, we can. You know we adore Karson.”

He reluctantly handed Karson over to Ronin, then watched them leave with the strollers.

I’ll find your omegin, Karson, I swear it.

A beta couple tried to leave, but Karter stopped them by showing off his badge. They didn’t remember a man matching Jax’s description, but they did help Kell move the strollers up to the bathrooms, because he was looking for his friend. Karter got their contact info, then let them go.

By the time Constable Higgs showed up personally to take over the investigation, Karter had spoken to everyone who was still in the building. Only one man remembered seeing Jax as he was exiting the bathroom, real close to another man wearing a constable’s uniform. But he didn’t get a good look at the constable’s face. Their witness had had a few run-ins with the law and avoided the authorities whenever possible.

Once Higgs was updated, he looked as pissed as Karter felt. A man had been abducted in broad daylight, and no one had batted an eye, because who’d question a constable removing a man from a building? Or putting him into a car and driving off?

“It’s a safe bet this is related to Udall,” Higgs said. “Question now, though, is Jax a hostage he’ll negotiate for, or is he revenge for busting his ring?”

Karter’s gut cramped at the idea of Udall using Jax for revenge. Goddess knew what a monster like that might do to his mate.

“He’s only been missing for about thirty minutes,” Karter replied. “There’s honestly no way to tell, until we get a ransom demand.” He refused to think that he might spend days wondering where Jax was, only to get a call that his body had been found.

No. Nope. I’m getting you back, Jax, no matter what line I have to cross to do it.

Karter would risk anything—his health, his job, his life—if it brought Jax home safely.