“What the hell was that?!” Savannah shrieked as soon as Hayes disconnected the call, throwing the phone to Jacques. Grabbing his arm before he could mentally call to his brethren, his mate shook the appendage like a dog with a bone, adding, “You said to keep calm. Not to get angry. Then you go and hang up on the rat bastard.” For the second time in as many hours, his feisty lioness pushed up on her toes, challenging him on every level as she growled, “If he hurts my sister because of what you’ve done, I’ll…”

“Do you really think I’m that much of an asshole?” Hayes tore his arm from her grasp, leaning down until they were eye-to-eye. “Do you think I would put Makayla in danger?” He scowled. “Your sister?” Lightly tapping the tip of his index finger against her temple, he continued, “Stop and think, Savannah. Use your brain.”

Moving his hand to her chest, he murmured, “Listen to your heart.” Taking her hand with his free one, he placed it over his heart. “Let yourself feel what is happening between us.” Letting his forehead touch hers and lowering his voice, he added, “For better or worse, we are in this together, forever.”

Holding his breath, waiting for his head-strong mate to come to terms with his words, Hayes breathed a sigh of relief when she slowly nodded, “Okay, dragon man, I’ll trust you, but this is the Savannah Show. We do it my way, or I do it by myself.”

Stealing a quick but passionate kiss, the Guardsman grinned, “Lead on, my Queen, I am yours to command.”

“Oh, brother.” Shaking her head and grabbing his hand, Savannah turned and walked into Royal Hall, asking, “Can you call the other dragons? Will they come?”

“Absolutely. That’s what I was trying to do when you tried to rip my arm off back there,” he chuckled, trying to relieve some of the tension. “And I’m guessing it’s a secret since we’re talking this way?”

“Give that dragon a gold star,” Savannah snickered, entering the office with the large, carved, wooden door at the end of the hall before quickly shutting and locking it behind them. Hurrying across the room, she first slid on her jeans, sat behind the mahogany desk and instantly began typing on the laptop.

Turning the computer towards him, she pointed at a location with a day and time beside it– West Delivery Gate, Saturday, 01:25 AM. “That’s the only entrance on that side of the Pride and it also happens to be the closest one to Mack’s house.”

“Holy shit that was just a few hours ago. About forty-five minutes before the rock went through my window.”

Looking at him, her eyes filled with unadulterated wrath, Savannah slowly nodded. “And the dragon gets another gold star.” Then with a steely tone, she asked, “You know anybody who delivers plants at one in the morning…on a Saturday?”

“Nope and I’m guessing you don’t either.”

“Not a chance.”

“So, you think this was an inside job, or at the very least there’s a rat amongst the lions?”

“Exactly!” She jumped up, came out from behind her desk and began pacing. “How else could they get into the Pride, into Makayla’s house and escape without anyone seeing them? It’s the only explanation.” She stopped beside him. “Unless you have something better.”

“I learned a long time that the simplest solution is usually the right one.” Closing the distance between them, he wrapped his arm around her, pulling Savannah to his chest. Kissing the top of her head, he whispered, “But that doesn’t mean it doesn’t suck. Betrayal is the worst kind of hurt. It not only stings like a bitch, but also makes you doubt yourself, your intuition, hell, just about fucking everything.”

Raising her head, Savannah asked, “Sounds like the voice of experience.”

“Oh yeah, but we’ve got time for those stories later. Right now, we need to find your sister and skin a few dozen jaguars, which means, you and I need to head over to the Lair.”

“Lead the way.”

Exiting Savannah’s office, Hayes was forced to swerve to the left to avoid running headlong into Jacques. With a look of shock and surprise on his wise, old face, Savannah’s advisor asked, “Is there news? You two look as if you’re hurrying off somewhere.”

“We have a few leads,” Hayes answered with Savannah immediately adding, “Stay by the phone. I’ll call you as soon as I know something.”

Patting her arm, the old lion nodded sadly, “Please do. I am just sick with worry.”

Walking out the way they came in, Hayes suggested, “I think we need to go to your sister’s house first. See what we can find out there. Something tells me Simon is too smart to get his hands dirty.” Holding the door for Savannah, he asked, “Is it far from here?”

“Not at all.” She pointed to her SUV. “Let’s take mine. It’ll be easier if I drive.”

“You’re the boss,” Hayes teased aloud, laughing out loud when Savannah answered back, “And don’t you forget it, Beast.”

Sliding into the passenger’s side, the Guardsman chuckled while waggling his eyebrows, “I’ll show you how much of a beast I can be just as soon as we find your little sister.”

“Deal.” The Queen replied with a wink as she started her vehicle and backed out.

Getting the lay of the land while they cruised through the populated areas of his mate’s Pride, Hayes made mental notes of all the dark alcoves and hidden trails the kidnappers could have used to escape without being seen and was frustratingly coming up with nothing. Sure there were an abundance of hidey holes, but only those who lived here would know where they were and none led to an exit.

“There’s just no way someone without intimate knowledge of the landscape and setup of this place could’ve made it out without being noticed,” he commented. “The damn place is a maze with a lot of dead ends.”

“Yes, it is. That was my grandfather and father’s plan. They wanted it to be beautiful but impenetrable with places for our people to hide in case of attack.” She gave him a quick glance before taking another turn. “Looking more and more like an inside job, huh?”

“Damn sure is,” Hayes sighed.

“You think we’ll find anything at Mack’s?”

“It’s a long shot but something my brethren will ask about and who knows, maybe the asshole was careless. I know I would be shittin’ bricks if I’d done something to piss you off,” Hayes snickered, just barely moving his leg in time to miss Savannah slap.

Opening his door while the engine was still running, the Guardsman’s feet hit the ground running, as he jogged to open Savannah’s door for her. Walking hand-in-hand in silence, the couple entered the small white cottage with black shutters using the Queen’s key. Opening his senses wide, the Guardsman looked for anything that would lead him to either confirm or deny it was indeed the jaguars who had kidnapped Makayla.

The house felt comfortable, lived in, and was filled with some of the best scents he’d ever smelled. Apple pie, home baked cookies, and rolls of every variety made his stomach growl and his mouth water.

“Does your sister own a bakery?” Hayes laughed to cover up the loud rumbling of his stomach.

“She wants to, why?” Savannah asked then quickly added, “You hungry?”

“Hell, yeah, I’m starving and the smells in this house are making me crazy. Your Makayla is an amazing cook.”

“She is the best. I swear her peanut-butter-chocolate-chip-cranberry cookies are to die for.”

Holding his stomach and acting as if he might faint dead away, Hayes feigned a groan and pleaded, “Please tell me there’s some leftovers in that kitchen somewhere.”

“Look first, then food. Got it?”

Giving Savannah a mock salute, he headed down the hall, starting in Mack’s bedroom. Looking at all the photos covering almost every available inch of wall space, Hayes smiled at how happy Savannah’s family looked in each shot. Counting the number of little girls with long dark curls, dressed in matching yellow dresses, standing in front of the gorgeous garden across the street from Royal Hall, the dragon called out, “How many sisters do you have?”

“Four,” Savannah answered from the living room.

“Including Makayla, right?”

“Yes. Why?”

“Just making sure,” he chuckled. “Wanted to know how many interrogations to expect.”

“Just one,” she laughed out loud. “Mack is the only one who still lives here. The other three are mated to lions from other Prides, who are already Kings or the next in line to take the throne, so the girls moved in with their men.”

“I see,” Hayes replied. “It sucks, but I understand.”

He could feel how much Savannah missed her sisters and saw in all the family photos what a close-knit family they were. Smiling to himself, the Guardsman made a mental note to make sure to invite them all back for a family reunion as a surprise for his lioness.

Looking away, Hayes began his inspection. He concentrated on every detail, every scent, hair and fiber he could find, but continued to come up with nothing but traces of male and female lions. Moving slowly through every room, checking each closet, even the medicine cabinet in the bathroom and pantry in the kitchen, he met Savannah back in the living room where in unison they exclaimed, “I got nothing.”

“I don’t understand,” the Queen sighed. “Not a trace of anyone who doesn’t belong. How could that be?”

“They could’ve used magic to mask their identity.”

“But we would feel the traces,” Savannah looked up. “Wouldn’t we?”

Shaking his head, Hayes thoughtfully answered, “Not always. Some witches are really good at hiding their trail. Of course, most that are that strong are mated to my brethren and I know for a fact they don’t have Makayla.”

“Wizards?”

“None, I know. In my experience, there’s always a trace of black magic somewhere.

“Well, shit. Then how are we gonna find her?”

The sound of heartbreak in Savannah’s voice nearly ripped Hayes’ heart from his chest. Closing the distance between them, opening his arms wide, the Guardsman was overjoyed as his mate walked into them without pause. Holding his Queen close, the dragon poured love and support through their mating bond while reassuring, “We’re gonna call in the cavalry.”

Looking down into his mate’s upturned eyes, Hayes chuckled as she teased, “Only your cavalry uses wings instead of horses.”

“Oh, never fear, my darling lioness, we’ve got horses, too.”