Chapter Twelve
He couldn't calm Luci, but that was probably because he was such a wreck himself. The baby cried and fussed and no amount of rocking would calm her. Tension radiated from him, and it clearly had an effect on her. She refused her bottle and pacifier and refused to stay bundled in her blankets. The whole time she continued to scream, her face red and tearstained.
Isaias had a hard time not letting his fears overcome him. What was Marcus going to do with Adela and Becky? If this was a ransom, why didn't he just come in, take them all hostage and demand a wire transfer right away? Or was he too afraid of Isaias to do that?
His cellphone rang and Isaias dove for it. Blocked number. He knew he wouldn't be able to hear a thing with Luci screaming in his ears, so he reluctantly took the baby to her bedroom and left her in her crib, closing the door behind him.
"Marcus, if you've hurt them—"
"This isn't Marcus."
The voice sent shivers down Isaias' spine, though he wasn't sure why. It sounded familiar but he couldn’t place it. "Who is this?"
"Forgotten me already, have you?" The man chuckled, though it sounded more triumphant than amused. "Oh, well. I suppose you can't expect to be remembered all the time. It's a shame what happened to your fiancé and housekeeper, isn't it? But then, what can we expect from shifters? Filthy animals, a danger to the normal population. And what they've done with dear Rebecca Lake and Adela Choi is proof of that. They need to be controlled and regulated, and I aim to make sure that happens."
Thick, cold fear slid down Isaias' throat, choking him. He might not have recognized the voice but the words… the words were all too familiar. His hands began to shake as he clutched the phone tighter to his ear. It couldn't be. After all of these years, he couldn't be back.
"Do you know who I am now?"
"Dwayne Sawyers." Isaias managed to choke out.
The man who had locked his family and Adela's in a burning house, murdering them. Their parents had managed to get the two of them out and he had carried Adela away, into the woods, where they had been hunted for two days before the police finally found them and arrested Sawyers. He had been utterly unrepentant about his actions.
"I thought you died in jail," Isaias whispered. Bile scorched his throat. "There was a fire…"
"There was. But I was preserved. When I found myself free, with the world thinking that I was dead, I realized that I had been spared to complete my work. There must be an end put to shifters and if I have to work behind the scenes and prod them into destroying themselves, so be it. It was so easy to convince those bears to steal your women."
"If you hurt them—"
"I will hurt them if you threaten me."
Isaias forced himself to remain silent, breathing hard. His bear clawed at his chest but what could he do? There was no attacking the man who had Becky and Adela's lives in his control. Besides that, he didn't even know where to find Sawyers.
"Are you going to be reasonable?" Sawyers pressed.
"Yes."
The other man chuckled again. "Good. Now, you are going to reveal your true identity to the world. You are going to tell them all how you have been lying to them. And you are going to let everybody know exactly how many entertainment networks you control and tell them that you've been shoving shifter-controlled media down their throats."
Would it destroy all the work he had done? Isaias closed his eyes. He had tried so hard over the years to improve the views non-shifters had of shifters. He had tried equally as hard to stay out of the public eye. There was only so much attention a man could take. No interviews, press conferences, nothing. It had been a costly struggle to get his painful past silenced, to have a little peace in his and Adela's lives.
Becky's safety was worth more than anything else he might have to give up. He would do anything, give up anything, to have her back in his arms. There was no question that he would do as Sawyers demanded. Would it destroy what he had tried to create? No. People were smarter than that. It would fire some aggression towards him, but whatever Sawyers hoped for, he wouldn’t get.
But the dread still swirled in his gut. "And what about Adela?"
"The girl who defiled herself and bore a shifter child?" Sawyers paused for a moment. "See? Even you don't deny that she did."
There was nothing Isaias could say or do that Sawyers wouldn't twist to serve his own purposes and so he remained silent still. The stillness between them stretched on, broken only by the screams from Luci's room which were starting to quiet. Would she ever see her mother again?
Don't think like that.
"The girl will serve as a good reminder about what happens to those that betray our pure heritage to enter into bestiality."
"Please don't hurt her," Isaias whispered, hating that he was begging. "Please. I'll do whatever you want—"
"I want you animals to stop stamping down on my people. Humans are being denied jobs because they are going to shifters."
This being despite the fact that it was legal to fire a shifter just for being a shifter, but non-shifters needed a reason for being fired.
"Our resources are going to fund your drug habits."
The majority of shifters still lived right around the poverty line but received less financial aid from the government compared to non-shifter groups. The rates of drug abuse were higher in non-shifter communities but shifters received harsher sentences for minor infractions.
"I will not let this country be ruled by shifters."
There hadn't been a single shifter elected to a government position in the history of the country. But none of those facts mattered to Sawyers. All he cared about was the fact that shifters were no longer allowing themselves to be hunting targets and demanding rights and protections for themselves. Men like Sawyers, they didn’t care about facts. They just had no way to feel powerful unless they were standing on the backs of others. If shifters weren't their targets, it would be someone else.
"Why me?" he whispered. "Why Adela? Why are you so intent on destroying us?"
"Oh, you know why, Isaias. It all stems back to your mother's duplicity."
A click, then a dial tone. Isaias let his hand drop, heart beating shallowly, bile rising in his throat. He did know why. This was unfinished business. He and Adela had to die for Sawyers' work from all those years ago to be completed. It was personal as well.
Sawyers had wanted Isaias' mother. He had literally stalked her until his father stopped him and had him arrested. Once he got out of jail, he returned with a vengeance. The fact that his mother had chosen a shifter over him had sent him into a murderous rage. It didn't matter that Adela's parents weren't shifters, they were friends with his father and that was enough.
Isaias turned toward Luci's room again, but there was no more noise coming from it. He peeked inside to find that she had cried herself to sleep. Her face was wet with tears and her breathing still hitched but her eyes were closed. He pulled a blanket over her, a cold feeling twisting his stomach.
The doorbell made him jump. Hurriedly wiping his face to get rid of any tears or sweat that the conversation might have brought up, he hurried to answer it. Two men in casual jeans and button-up flannel shirts greeted him.
"Hello." One of them gave him a smile. "My name's detective John Dolls and this is my partner, Xavier Holliday. Can we come in?"
Isaias stared at them.
Dolls leaned on the doorframe. "We received an anonymous tip that there was some… disturbances here. Given the circumstances we were given, we thought it best to not draw too much attention to ourselves. Let us in and we can talk."
Marcus had said no cops. But this was bigger than Marcus, Sawyers was involved. Isaias hesitated only a moment before stepping back to allow them in. If it had just been the kidnapping, maybe he'd have tried to deal with it on his own. Sawyers, however, was as likely to kill Becky even if Isaias did as he said. And Adela? He already planned to kill her.
Isaias couldn't let that happen.
"Thank you," Dolls said, flashing him a smile as he and his partner stepped in. "So… we received an anonymous tip that your fiancé and housekeeper were kidnapped and you were forbidden from contacting the police."
"Where would you get that information?" The hair on the back of his neck prickled. Were they working with Sawyers?
"Have your fiancé and housekeeper been kidnapped?"
Isaias stared stonily at him.
Dolls and Holliday glanced at once another, then Holliday spoke, "We'll take that as confirmation. We believe that one of the kidnappers may have gotten cold feet and reported it. We need you to tell us exactly what happened."
***
The house was overrun with surveillance equipment. After he explained the situation, Holliday and Dolls had called in another team, who had arrived in plainclothes. The four of them quickly set up systems to track any calls that were made to them and Isaias had called one of his female bear friends to come watch Luci until they got Adela back. In the meantime, he had put out word on his media sites that he was going to make a major announcement.
Even if this turned out in his favor, even if he got Adela and Becky home safe, he might just tell the world about his past. Maybe it was time to face down his demons.
"The important thing when you get the call is to keep them talking," Dolls told him. "We need three minutes to triangulate their position. Got it?"
Isaias nodded. "And if they don't call?"
Dolls and Holliday glanced at each other. "We'll deal with that when the time comes. Stay focused, stay positive. We'll do everything we can to get them home safe."
They didn't have to wait long for the call. Isaias tensed as he answered to hear Marcus' voice.
"I'm going to kill you," he snarled before he could stop himself.
Marcus made a loud yawning noise. "I'm sure you'll want to. But let's be reasonable here, buddy. I have the girls and you have nothing. So let's not get all macho, let's talk about this rationally. Are you willing to do that, bud?"
Isaias ground his teeth together. "Yes. What do you want, Marcus?"
"Five million dollars for each of the girls. I want it delivered to the middle of the park, underneath the swing set. Tomorrow at noon, or one of these gals is going to lose their toes. Think you can do that?"
"Ten millions dollars in less than a day?" Isaias glanced at the clock and paused for as long as he dared. "It will take longer than that to liquidate my assets. I can't just go to the bank and pull out that sort of cash."
Marcus coughed. "No? Then we'll start with a gesture of good faith. Four thousand dollars tomorrow and two days to get the ten million. Is that enough time?"
Holliday, who had been typing furiously at the computer, suddenly grinned. He gave the thumbs up and Isaias smiled.
"Yes," he said. "That's just enough."
Marcus hung up and Isaias strode over. The cops talked around him but he ignored them all. His gaze zeroed in on the computer screen, where a red dot flashed. He knew instantly where it was from the buildings around it and headed for the door at once. Dolls called after him but he ignored the cop as he burst from his home.
His bear beat against his chest, wanting blood and Isaias grinned. They would have blood–and Marcus would finally be out of Adela's life for good.