I fought back tears as I hugged Sera goodbye. Our first meeting hadn’t gone as planned, but her hugs did something to me on an emotional level that I hadn’t expected.
“I’m going to come visit you two soon,” Sera said as she pulled away.
“I’d really like that, and I know Liam would, too.”
Caleb honked the horn; he and Jamie were already waiting in the truck. I gave Sera another quick hug and let Liam have one more moment with his mom alone. I slid into the back seat with Jamie, glad that she had sat in the back, waiting for me, instead of in the front with Caleb.
Liam got in the vehicle with a smile on his face. It made my heart happy to see it there. We’d all been through too much over the last couple months, and I was ready to find a new normal that didn’t consist of hunting down rogue alphas.
“It feels weird not knowing when we’re going to see each other again,” Jamie said. “I don’t like it.”
I held my phone up. “That’s what technology is for. We can video chat every day.”
“It’s not the same,” she pouted.
“I know. How about this? We plan a trip to somewhere with a beach and little umbrella drinks. We can start thinking of ideas now, so it gives us something to look forward to after we’re done kicking the asses of Declan and all his pansy spies.”
“I’ve never been to a real beach with an ocean, so it sounds perfect to me,” Jamie admitted.
I shook my head. I hated that she’d been under Declan’s thumb for so long. I was glad she had Caleb now, though. I knew he’d treat her right and show her the world. If he didn’t, he would wish he had balls of steel, because I’d be throwing cheap shots if he hurt my girl.
We continued down the property line and hit the mountain roads. The nearest airport was a couple of hours away and it wasn’t even five in the morning; I considered taking a nap but didn’t want to waste my time left with Jamie.
We continued to talk about random stuff, sticking to lighter topics. We began discussing how the climates were different between Raven Point and the Catskills, and Caleb wondered idly if Liam would lose his fluff.
I laughed, mostly because I’d never called any of them out on their longer wolf coats, but also because I couldn’t picture Liam any other way. I hoped he would stay just as he was.
Before we could dive too far into the science of it all and nerd out as if Augie was with us, our front tires blew out. Caleb was quick to react and maintain control of the vehicle, but not before we slid into the guard rail on the opposite side of the road. I peered out the window, grateful we hadn’t flipped the vehicle, because there was no end in sight beyond the rail. It was a straight shot down the mountain.
“Is everyone okay?” Liam called out.
I felt for Jamie, finding her slumped beside me. When my vision cleared, I saw a cut on her head.
“Jamie hit her head, but I think she’s just passed out.” I felt her neck. “Her vitals are fine.”
Caleb let out some choice words I hadn’t heard before but made a mental note to remember them for future use. He was blocked in against the rail and couldn’t get out to check on her without climbing over Liam, which I fully expected him to do until I heard pinging sounds against the exterior of the truck.
“Get down!” I yelled. I knew that sound like the back of my hand. Someone was shooting at the truck, and we were sitting ducks with nowhere to take cover.
Twatwaffles!
Apparently, I was using Caleb’s words sooner than I thought.
Liam pulled out his phone. “Get people down on the main road now. We’re being ambushed.”
I didn’t know who he was talking to, but whoever they were needed to arrive quickly, or we would all be dead.
I unbuckled Jamie and guided her to the floor, out of the way. As soon as we were out of sight, the shooter stopped wasting bullets. We had two choices: sit in the truck and wait for them to come closer or get out and hope we could find cover before landing back in their line of sight. Neither of those options was ideal.
“Caleb, can you push that door out at all?” Liam asked.
Caleb cracked it open a couple inches, but it didn’t budge much further. He twisted his body, so his feet pushed against the door and Liam had his back. Together they used brute force and I heard the guard rail groan in response.
Before we could claim victory, a shot broke through the window, whizzing right next to Liam’s head. I was pretty sure my heart stopped. His hand went up to clear the broken glass and came away with blood.
I started to panic, but he shook his head. “Just nicked my ear. I’m fine. Caleb, again.”
They went back to pushing and I tried to do the same with the back door. It was fine and dandy if they got out, but I wasn’t too keen to be left behind in the truck. Though, I was afraid to leave Jamie alone in the truck with no idea what was happening. She could wake up and get herself killed if she didn’t stay hidden. I wouldn’t risk it.
Finally, the door opened enough for Caleb to slip through. He began pulling on the back door, while I pushed. The guard rail was already compromised, from us crashing into it and the additional damage they’d done when they got the front door open, so it was easier to get the back door free.
Caleb moved me out of the way and pulled Jamie into his arms. She was finally starting to come around but was severely disoriented.
“What’s the plan?” I asked.
“We need Jamie on her feet. Then, we move and stick behind these trees as much as we can,” Liam answered.
“What’s going on?” Jamie asked.
Caleb cupped her face. “We’re being attacked. You hit your head when the truck crashed. Are you okay?”
Her eyes widened in fear. “Put me down.” Her voice was full of the strength I knew she had in her. “I’ll be fine as soon as we kill these dickbags.”
That’s my girl. I grinned at her confidence.
Caleb shook his head but complied. “You two have spent too much time together.”
More shots rang out, coming from two different directions. Whoever was out there, they weren’t working alone. We bent further down behind the truck and I peered out in front of us. The closest section of trees to hide behind was at least ten feet away. It left us in the open for longer than I liked. Now that we were out of the truck, my gut told me staying put was the better plan and I said as much.
“Taya is probably right. They’ll get impatient and come for us. Our only chance is hand-to-hand fighting. Our wolves aren’t bulletproof,” Liam said.
“How long until help arrives?” I asked.
Liam pulled out his phone again. “Ten minutes or less. Not soon enough.”
A man’s voice boomed from across the road, “Why don’t you come out onto the road and make this easier on everyone? You’re going to die regardless. Why prolong it?”
“Why don’t you put those guns away and fight like real men instead of fucknuggets?” Caleb called back.
He was on point today with his cuss words.
“You want a real fight? Fine. Just remember you asked for it. We were trying to make it quick and painless on you,” the voice taunted, and I was actually a little nervous.
I heard their footsteps come down off the mountain and hit pavement, followed by the sounds of their guns clattering to the ground.
Liam and Caleb stepped forward first, and I held Jamie back. “You don’t have to go out there.”
She flipped me off. “You guys can’t baby me forever. No better training than field training, right?”
I rolled my eyes at her. “Whatever you say, but stick close to me. Caleb and Liam will be their main targets and we’ll likely be underestimated. Keep to the basics I showed you and I’ll watch your back.”
She nodded, and we moved forward to crouch behind the guys. Neither of them objected to our choice to join in the fight, which was smart on their part. I may have only heard two shooters, but that didn’t mean there were only two of them out there.
When we came around the front of the truck, I was proven right. Five men stood on the road, dressed in all black. They looked every bit the part of the rogue mercenaries I had heard about. I’d never interacted with one in person, but I wasn’t afraid. I wouldn’t let these asshats hurt my family.
Once we knew how many we were up against, we didn’t pause. All four of us charged ahead without waiting for them to make the first move. As suspected, three went for Liam and Caleb, while two headed for me and Jamie.
If these were true rogue wolves, I had no intention of fighting clean, because I knew they wouldn’t. I let my wolf partially shift. My hands became claws and my strength increased. I wouldn’t be able to hold the position for long, as it was painful to stay partially shifted, but at the same time, I was strongest when my human and wolf worked together like this.
I headed straight for the larger of the two and kept as close to Jamie as I could. I wasn’t sure she was ready to fight on her own, but we didn’t have much of a choice and I’d never be the one to hold her back.
I raked my claws across the man’s chest, but he was wearing some sort of Kevlar and I didn’t even break skin. He grinned as he punched me in the face, knocking me back several steps. I recovered and headed for him again without hesitation.
I rammed my shoulder into his midsection as his arms came around my upper body, but my impact was stronger, causing him to crash into the ground and slam his head into the asphalt.
I didn’t let up when I got the upper hand. I retracted my claws and pounded my fist into his face until the man was unconscious. It was cathartic. Once he went limp beneath me and I heard the crunch of facial bones, I stood up to check on Jamie.
The dickface she was fighting had control of the fight, but not by much. He was bleeding from his nose and favoring his left side. Jamie had done some damage and I was damn proud of her. Unfortunately, I wasn’t taking the risk that she couldn’t finish the fight on her own. I plowed into the man on top of her and together, we finished the fight.
Liam and Caleb were holding their own, but not for long. They had managed to take one out, but they each still had an opponent to take care of.
Three bastards down, two to go.
The one Caleb was facing pretended to give up, letting his arms go slack, but he was actually reaching for a blade in his side pocket. The guy pulled it out and jammed it into Caleb’s side as he twisted.
Jamie went nuts and charged.
Holy shit, my bestie had a crazy side.
Caleb’s attacker went down hard, but so did Jamie. I took a few steps forward, thinking she needed help, but her arms were swinging before I could make it two feet.
Caleb was lifting himself off the ground, holding his side as blood poured from it. I heard the screeching of tires coming around the corner and breathed a sigh of relief that someone would be able to stitch him up. From the looks of it, his wolf healing would take too long to fully kick in before the blood loss became too much.
Liam had tied the one he’d been fighting by his hands and feet, using the rogue wolf’s own supplies against him. I grinned, hoping their pack would be able to take these guys back and interrogate them, providing us with some much-needed information.
Jamie was lying face-up on the ground with blood covering her chest, but very little of it was her own, thankfully. I helped her up and we made our way to the caravan of shifters who had shown up just a few minutes too late to help.
“We had to switch vehicles. Twice,” the man before us said angrily. “Batteries were dead in our normal rigs.”
More fuckery. Someone was getting cocky and they needed to be stopped.
Aiden came from around the back of the van, scaring the shit out of me with just the look on his face. His eyes were dark, and his demeanor was sinister. He’d been pushed past his breaking point and heads were going to roll.
“Are you guys okay?” he asked, voice clipped.
“We’ll be fine,” Liam answered. “We left them alive for you to have your way with. At least one of them should break.”
I turned back to watch the one Liam had been fighting fall over from his sitting position. “Um, someone might want to check on that one.”
The one who greeted us stepped forward for permission to do so.
“Go ahead, Abel.” Aiden nodded.
As Abel looked into the rogue’s health, Caleb and Jamie were taken to the van to get fixed up and we stood with Aiden.
“We’ll find them, brother,” Liam said. “They didn’t win today.”
Aiden only grunted in reply.
I rubbed my cheek and hissed. The bastard had hit me hard and likely fractured something. Liam pulled me closer as we waited for Abel to come back.
“He’s dead,” Abel said. “I smelled cyanide on him.”
These guys were crazier than I gave them credit for. Aiden would have to search the other four carefully for any other poisons if they were to get anything out of them.
“Do you want to go back?” I asked Liam.
He shook his head. “If things are getting worse here, we have no idea what’s happening in Oregon. Aiden and Caleb can handle it.”
That answer caused conflicting emotions within me; I was grateful he was still ready to go back to my pack but also fearful. I didn’t like being so far away from home, not knowing if we had bigger problems to worry about within our own walls.
“We’ll take care of the truck; you can take the car I drove here in,” Aiden said. “Call me when you land and I’ll update you then.”
Caleb and Jamie joined us again. “We’ll still drive you. No more bleeding.” Caleb patted his waist.
“Fine, but I’m driving there,” Liam replied.
We made our way to Aiden’s car, which purred as Liam started it. I sat in front with him this time and got a good look at the grin on his face.
Liam turned toward me. “Aiden has the best toys.”
I shook my head. At least he had something to make him happy after the attack. We wasted no more time and headed straight for the airport.
We arrived with barely any time to spare, so our goodbye was quick, but neither Jamie nor I was able to hold back tears. I was going to miss her more than I ever anticipated.
“Alright, no more crying,” Caleb teased. “Man up and say goodbye like we’ll see each other tomorrow.”
Jamie snorted. “Ha! Says the man who was tearing up last night about how he’s never lived away from his brother before and how much he’s going to miss him.”
I laughed as Liam wrapped his arm around Caleb’s shoulders. “I love you, too, bro.” Then, he proceeded to wipe fake tears from his face.
Caleb gut-checked him. “Get off me, asshole.”
One last round of hugs was given and goodbyes were said before we raced to our terminal. Once we were settled in our seats – thankfully, in first class with plenty of room and privacy – I pulled out my phone to call Augie before takeoff.
“Hey, Tay. On your way yet?” Augie asked, his voice sounding a little off.
“Yeah, we just got on the plane and I wanted to call before I shut my phone down. Is everything okay?”
“Yeah, of course.”
“August James, do not lie to me,” I demanded.
He groaned. “Can’t you just wait until you’re home?”
“No.”
“We found the traitor. Sam caught Rick tampering with some of our equipment. He’s denying it, but there’s a lot of evidence pointing his way.”
Damn it. My gut had told me our traitor was Rick, but I had still held out hope that I was wrong. Now, we had to hope he was the only one and there wouldn’t be any more surprises within our own ranks, but I was beginning to think that likelihood was slim. Everything in me was screaming that things were going to get much worse before they got better.