Plans had been finalized. Vehicles were packed and ready to go. We had three teams prepared for everything we could possibly think of. Team one was me, Augie, Liam, Caleb, Aiden, and Davis. We would be the front lines. Team two was Tommy, Rick, Sam, and Joe. They would be responsible for getting the turned humans out of the building they were in and bringing them back to the vans we would be leaving about a mile away. Four more members of our pack made up team three, and they would guard the vehicles until group two got the humans out, then immediately leave with the humans while team two came back to assist us if necessary.
I was leaning against the porch railing, watching the last of the necessary gear get loaded into the van. It was only 10:30am, and we were ahead of schedule. Aiden got up before we planned to wake him, insisting he was okay. Everyone knew their roles, and we just had to hope everyone made it back.
“Are you doing okay?” Liam asked as he joined me on the porch.
“I’ll be better tomorrow when we’re back here. I don’t like leading all of these people to a crazed alpha who can use magic and has a sorceress girlfriend at his beck and call. I wish there was another way to get the humans out.”
“Everyone here knows the risks. You’re not responsible for them.”
“I will be. One day. Hopefully many years from now, but one day I’ll be their alpha and each life will be entrusted to me. They’ll look to me for guidance.”
“Are you okay with that?”
I took a moment to think about my answer before I gave it. “I didn’t use to be, but losing Cord awoke something in me. I feel a deeper connection to the pack. Not like an alpha, but protective of them regardless. I couldn’t imagine letting anyone else be their leader.”
“That’s good. It must feel nice to be so sure.” His tone was devoid of emotion, making me question the odd statement.
“You don’t feel anything like that for your pack?”
His shoulders sagged, and he sighed. “I don’t know. Aiden has always been better at the political stuff than me, and I can see how much he cares. He’s a lot like our father, even though he’d be the last to admit it.”
“Couldn’t you pass on it and let him take over?” I asked, having no idea since it had never been an issue between Cord and me.
“I’ve never mentioned it to anyone before. I figured it wouldn’t make a difference and I haven’t had a good enough reason to fight for something different. Maybe that will change soon.”
My lips moved up and down, but no words came out. I wasn’t sure if he was referencing whatever we had going on or something else. Regardless, I had trouble replying to his statement.
Caleb saved me by walking up. He squeezed in between Liam and me, giving each of us a grin. “You two lovebirds ready to go?”
“Yup. I’ll meet you in the truck.”
I made a quick escape. Yes, I knew I was being a chicken, but I wasn’t ready to take Augie’s advice and see how things went. I was okay with avoiding it for as long as I could. I just wasn’t sure how long my wolf, or even Liam, would let me do so.
***
A little after ten, Liam shook me awake. This was it. We were finally in Colorado and so close to Declan. I sat up and peered out the window, but it was pitch black outside. Nothing to see but the moon and stars. My wolf stirred. She was anxious to get out of the truck and ready for the fight.
The truck stopped, and Aiden turned back to us. “Let’s get out and go over the plan once more with everyone. We’ll be heading out on foot from here.”
Liam, Augie, and I got out of the back seat, while Aiden and Caleb exited the front. Davis had driven team two in another truck, while two others followed in the vans we’d rented.
Once everyone was gathered around, Davis took the lead with Aiden, adding details when necessary. Aiden had been able to hack into a satellite, which gave him an infrared view of the area. There looked to be an additional building that we hadn’t seen before due to the tree coverage. It held at least twenty-six body signatures, and they hadn’t moved much during the last eight hours Aiden had been monitoring it.
The main building we’d seen before had eight signatures moving around. It seemed as though two would occasionally leave to check on the humans, but that was it. Nothing else stood out to us. Our main group was outnumbered, but if we could hold our own until team two came to back us up, then we should be okay. We just had to hope they’d be quick and the humans would cooperate.
“Anyone have any questions?” Davis asked when they were done explaining everything. When no one responded, we separated into our groups and headed out. The moon was full tonight and provided enough light for us to see the dirt service road we needed to travel. Anything beyond that or under the canopy of trees was blind to us.
Aiden kept his GPS device out and led the way. We stayed silent on the walk and kept our focus on our surroundings. Liam went back to holding my hand, and it once again gave me the warm and fuzzy feelings I wasn’t used to. I ignored them as much as I could, but it wasn’t without effort.
Davis held up his hand and we all halted. He made a hand signal and team two separated from us. It was show time. Liam’s grip tightened on mine, but I shook it loose and whispered, “I can’t defend myself if I’m stuck to you.”
“Sorry.” He shrugged, and I brought my attention back to Davis and Aiden.
“I have a radio connection with Rick.” Davis pointed to his ear. “He’s going to let me know when they reach the area we couldn’t get a visual on. Once he determines he has a clear view and can move in, we’ll proceed toward the other building where we believe Declan is.”
We were approaching in our human forms, but we’d brought extra clothes, so when we needed to shift, we could shred whatever we were currently wearing. A quick shift would be painful, but necessary. The hope was to hear Declan out and keep him distracted until the humans were all safe. Then, we’d shift and take him down.
Augie scooted closer to me, and I felt sandwiched between him and Liam. I quickly realized I now had three very overprotective men in my life and I wasn’t sure if that was a good or bad thing. I was curious what my dad would think about Liam. Augie may have accepted it quickly, but my dad would be a different story. I had no idea what to expect when he woke up, and he would wake, because I refused to think of any other outcome. Positive thinking for the win.
“Are you two going to let me do anything useful?” I asked both of them.
“Not if we can help it,” Augie answered. “We already talked about it.”
I started to laugh, but then realized they weren’t joking. They had actually talked about my safety behind my back. I wasn’t sure whether to be pissed or all sappy on the inside because they cared.
“Good luck with that. I bet I’ll take out more of them than either of you.”
“Is she always this insufferable?” Liam asked Augie.
“She is. You get used to it after a while.”
Caleb butted in, snagging my arm so he could pull me toward him. “Will you two leave her alone? My money is on the Firecracker.” He peeked down at me. “You can stay with me. I’m the hotter brother anyway.”
I leaned into him. “Fine by me. They were holding me back.”
Liam growled. Augie laughed. Caleb gulped loudly. It was all a good time.
“Easy boy,” I teased. “No reason to get territorial. We’re just having fun. But seriously, if you try to hold me back, I will castrate you.”
Davis stopped our conversation when he walked closer to us. “Rick is in place. Their part should be easier than we thought. The asshole doesn’t even have the humans in a building. They’re in a fenced-in metal cage. Rick and Sam are already working on cutting through it. We can move in.”
I shook out my arms and tried to release the tension I was feeling. I had so much pent-up anger at the people we were about to face that I worried I would turn into a monster. I’d never had to fight anyone with the intent of killing them if they didn’t surrender, but I knew we had no other choice in the matter. We couldn’t let Declan and Jaye continue to harm the humans, or even worse, begin enslaving wolves. We had to succeed.
We moved as a single unit. Nobody spoke as we made our way toward the building. When it came into sight, I saw it was a large cabin made from wood logs and a green tin roof. Only one window was visible, and there was a shifter I didn’t recognize standing in it, looking out.
Before we came out of the shadows, Davis stopped us once more. “As soon as I say go, we shift and attack. We need to give the others as much time as we can. If Declan is on to us, we shift before Rick gives me the all-clear and hold Declan and his people back as long as we can.”
All of us nodded. We’d been over the plan at least a dozen times, but I knew Davis was nervous. A lot was depending on us succeeding tonight. If we didn’t, I could only imagine what the ramifications would be.
I remembered Jamie’s request from the day before and added, “If any of them surrender, we need to give them the benefit of the doubt. Jamie said some of them might not be here by choice.”
Nods and agreements from each of them came, then we moved out of the shadows one at a time. I observed the window and saw the moment the shifter lookout saw us. His head snapped to the left briefly, then he went back to watching. He didn’t move until someone opened the front door.
When the light finally landed on Declan’s face, I bit back a gasp. Sure enough, he had a silver ring around his dark eyes. I feared for how powerful he might have become in the time it took us to find him.
“Welcome!” Declan called out animatedly. “I had hoped it would take you longer to find us, but not to worry. My mate and I are ready.”
Mate? He couldn’t possibly be serious. My stomach turned at the thought of his wolf being alone for the rest of its life. Thankfully, we were about to put the wolf out of his misery. Shifters didn’t mate with anyone other than other shifters, because it hurt our wolves. Made them go crazy from loneliness without a pack lifestyle. Maybe after Declan’s wife died, his wolf had gone off the deep end, and that’s what brought us to this point. Either way, it wasn’t okay.
“We’d love to meet your new mate. Where might she be?” Davis asked, somehow managing to keep most of the disgust out of his voice.
“Oh, yes. You would, wouldn’t you? I don’t think we’re at that point. Let’s chat first.” Declan’s hand reached out toward me. “Taya, I’m so sorry to hear about your father, and I’d like to offer you the chance at a new family. Would you care to join mine?”
I tilted my head at him, unsure of why in the world he would ask such a thing. I hadn’t thought him a complete idiot, but apparently, I was wrong. “Why would I want to do that? You’re the one responsible for hurting my family. I’d much rather rip your head off.”
“Can’t you see they were holding you back? Even now, I can see the way the men surround you as if you’re incapable of handling things on your own. I would never treat you in such a horrid manner.”
Oh, he was good. He wasn’t an idiot. He saw through our group dynamic and he was right. The men around me were concerned with my safety, but I knew without a doubt that they also trusted me, which is why I did what I did next.
I let my shoulders sag and lowered my head submissively. “How did you know?” I asked meekly.
“I know a lot of things, dear. If you come with me, I’ll teach them to you.”
I glanced at Liam and then Augie. “I’m sorry,” I whispered. “I don’t want to fight anymore.”
I took one step forward before Liam caught my arm in his tight grasp. Augie pulled him back. “Let her go. We knew she wasn’t happy and we have to deal with the consequences.”
Augie once again proved he knew me better than anyone else. He knew exactly what I was doing. Liam finally seemed to understand, so I proceeded to close the gap between Declan and me. Before I got close enough to try to lay hands on him, Jaye made herself known. Her eyes were pure silver, with no black or white showing at all. It was rather creepy. Her hair was long and jet black, braided behind her. She was tall and thin, reminding me of an evil version of a supermodel.
“Hello, Taya,” her voice purred at me. “I sense you may not be as sincere with your feelings on the inside as you’re portraying on the outside. You wouldn’t be trying to hurt my mate, would you?”
The way mate rolled off her tongue, it seemed as though she wasn’t fond of the word. Interesting. I smiled sweetly at her, but before I could reply, Davis yelled, “Go!”
I heard the shredding of clothes and breaking of bones before I had moved a muscle. I began my shift, but when I was mid-shift, Jaye struck me with some sort of magic that stopped it.
She sneered at me, taking a step forward and raised her hand.
I had no way to defend myself and the others were now occupied trying to fight off Declan’s wolves. No one was coming to my rescue anytime soon.