Becky had been without a man by her side for more years than she cared to count, but Jase’s absence felt like half of her heart was missing. Every moment he was gone seemed like an eternity and now he was on his way home. It had only been hours since they’d left but something had happened—something he wouldn’t tell her about over the phone. Even the connection between them wouldn’t give her any insight as to what was going on.

The work Kaden had given her was done and until he came back from the security job he went to check on with Ari there was nothing for her to do. So, Becky was left sitting there, waiting for Jase to return to answer her nagging questions.

“Mommy!” Billy came running down the stairs. “Doug’s outside. Can I go?”

She got up to look out the window to see Doug had just stepped off his porch “Were you watching out your window for him?”

“Uh…” Billy refused to meet her gaze. “So can I? Can I go outside?”

“Little man, Doug’s mom said she’d send him over after lunch and you’ve been up there watching for him while you were supposed to be cleaning up the toys you left all over the floor at bedtime last night.”

“It’s clean, I swear.” He bounced around, inpatient for her to let him out.

“Okay, but if I go up there and find one toy not put away, I won’t let you stay over at Doug’s tonight.” It was a good threat but as much as Billy was looking forward to his sleepover, Becky was looking forward to it more. It would give her time alone with Jase and even though he had only been gone a few short hours, she needed that.

“Everything is put away.” Billy didn’t even flinch at the possibility of not going to Doug’s for the night, so either the toys were back in the toybox or he didn’t have faith in his mother’s threat. She hoped it was the first one.

“Go on.” The words barely left her lips when Billy pulled open the front door and took off.

When she wrapped her fingers around the door handle, the air shifted. She didn’t need to look at the gate to know that it would be sliding open. Jase was home and she couldn’t withhold her excitement. She stepped out onto the deck and waited. It took everything she had in her not to run to the gate to meet him there, but she wanted their homecoming to be private. Seconds ticked by before the SUV came to a stop in front of the house and Jase hopped out from passenger seat and strolled toward her.

“Hey baby, did you miss me?”

“Every moment since you left.” As he stepped onto the deck, she wrapped her arms around his neck, careful of her arm that was still in the air cast. “It’s good to see you again.”

“Kiss me.” He didn’t give her a chance to argue as he closed the distance between them, pressing his lips to hers. His tongue slipped between her lips and the hunger of the kiss burned through her, leaving her breathless.

“Ahh.” She moaned as he lifted her off the ground; she wrapped her legs around his waist, and held on as they moved inside. His mouth never left hers until they were in the house and he kicked the door shut. “Jase…”

“I’ve missed you.” Pressing her back against the wall, he slid his hands under her shirt. “Now I understand what others mean when they’ve said it’s hard to be away from their mates. Every minute away from you was torture.”

“Is that why you’re back?”

His hands stilled, no longer inching up under her shirt. “I’m back because there’s nothing we could do.”

“What?” She unwrapped her legs from his waist and he lowered her back down to the floor.

“Pat and Polo Gutternburg were no longer any use so The Saviors killed them. They were the reason we were going and with them dead, our job is done.” He stepped back from her. “The financial evidence that was gathered has been sent to the authorities. Karri and Arlene’s parents have been arrested, along with other members of the community.”

“Arlene…did you find her?”

He shook his head. “Roger and Brett are still searching for her. But with the community torn apart, they are no longer a danger to her. Karri’s beside herself with worry but we have no idea where she is. I left two of my men near her hometown in case she makes it that far. They have to lie low because if anyone finds out they’re a shifter there will be trouble. It’s the best we can do for now.”

“I should go talk to Karri.” She had just started to get to know the young woman but she felt like she had to do something.

“Later. Noah’s with her and her mate will be able to help her more than we can right now.” He moved farther into the house and shook his head. “I told Billy I was going to take care of the bad man that hurt you two but I didn’t. The Saviors are still a threat. You’re still in danger.”

“All of us are.” She stepped up behind him and placed a hand on his back. “I never expected this to be over with one move. This is a war and I’m afraid there are many more battles to come.”

“Jase…” Ari banged on the door. “It’s important, open up!”

“It’s open!” Becky hollered, not stepping away from Jase.

The door swung open and Ari rushed in. Kaden followed closely behind with his laptop opened. “It’s happening.”

“What?” Jase turned to them and as he did so he slipped his arm around her waist, pressing her along his side. “What’s happening? What are you talking about?”

“The Saviors.” Kaden put the laptop down on the coffee table. “Before Pat and Polo were killed, Pat dropped a package off at his sister’s. By the time, she opened it, he was already dead. With no reason to protect her brothers any longer, she took everything that was in the envelope to the police. All the evidence they needed to take down The Saviors was in that envelope. Pat knew he was a dead man walking and he wasn’t going to go down alone. Polo had got him into this mess and if he was going to die, he wanted to make sure everything went down with him.”

“It’s all over the news. Hundreds of people all over the country have been arrested.” Ari dropped down on the sofa. “It’s over.”

“We don’t know that for certain,” Jase reasoned.

“Between Brett, Kaden, and me reaching out to our contacts, we do. Believe it or not, the law enforcement agencies across the country worked together, sending out teams to make the arrests before word could spread through The Saviors’ ranks. Most of the key players are already behind bars; a few minor ones are still out there but the authorities are sure they’ll catch them before long.” Ari let out a deep breath. “This is huge.”

“You said most of the key players. What about the others?” Becky asked.

“There’s a standoff in California with four members. They have hostages. Law enforcement are not sure if the hostages are part of The Saviors or not, but they’re working on a peaceful surrender.”

“There’s also another one that is believed to be in New York,” Kaden added. “When they went to his hotel room, he was gone.”

“Maybe it really is over.” Jase slid his hand up her back. “But until we know for certain, we don’t let our guard down. The few that are left out there might regroup.”

“Let’s hope not.” Ari shook his head. “This should be something we celebrate. Even if they’re not out of the game completely, they’re knocked down. We’re winning the battles and in the end, we’ll win the war. We’ll take them down, each and every one of them.”

“I hope for all of our sakes it’s over.” Becky sighed.

She leaned into Jase’s embrace, yearning to feel a little relief but none would come. It might have been different if Arlene had been found but with her still out there alone, Becky was uneasy. The Saviors might be on the verge of going down but there were still nut jobs out there that could pick up where they left off. Only time would tell how things would go. For the moment, she would embrace the news and hope for a better future for all of them.