by Sadie Moss
Judging from the notes and markings on the blueprint, it was likely whoever had designed the building hadn’t had any idea what the underground structure was going to be used for. Just another way Strand protected their secrets.
Carl spent most of the drive tapping away at his phone, lips pursed in concentration, while the rest of us discussed plans for how we’d get into the complex undetected—once we found out exactly where it was, anyway. The blueprints, as helpful as they were, gave us no clue where the complex was located.
That was the one missing piece in our plan, and with every mile that rolled away under us, the nervous churning of my stomach increased.
What would happen if we arrived in Salt Lake with no real clue where our target was? Rhys had threatened in anger to bang down every door in the city until he found what he was looking for, but that clearly wouldn’t work in actual practice. And the longer we spent in the city, poking our noses where they didn’t belong, the more likely it was that the Strand hunters would catch a whiff of what we were up to.
I had to suppress the urge to keep darting glances out the back window to make sure we weren’t being followed. Where were Nils and his team now? Cleanup from the ambulance crash may have slowed them down, and they couldn’t follow the tracking chip that’d been implanted under my skin anymore. But I was positive they were still searching for us. It was a miracle we’d managed to stay in Vegas as long as we had without them finding us—although maybe the recklessness of returning to a previous location had worked out in our favor. They probably assumed we were smarter than that.
Resting the blueprints on my lap, I closed my eyes for a moment. Jesus. I can’t remember what it was like not to be on the run.
Doctor Shepherd had always counseled me to take things day by day while I was at Strand, but I’d made plans for the future in my head anyway. I had daydreamed nonstop about the time when I’d finally leave the confining walls and make a normal life for myself.
But since my breakout from Strand, I’d been forced to truly follow his advice. My life had been broken down into a series of individual moments, with the unknown future stretching out in front of me like an abyss. Nothing was clear, nothing particularly mattered, beyond living through the current day, the current minute.
I wanted more than that. I wanted to think of the future again. To imagine my life with the four men who had become my mates—to hope and plan and daydream. But when I tried to picture my future with them now, all I saw was a vast, empty abyss that revealed nothing.
As if that future didn’t exist.
A wave of fear washed over me at the thought, and I wrapped my arm through Noah’s, clinging to him as my other hand went to Jackson’s knee.
They turned to look at me, then shared a glance over my head.
“You okay, Alexis?” Jackson murmured, his amber eyes flashing with concern.
The only answer to that was one I didn’t want to give, so I just shook my head slightly and tightened my grip on both of them. They seemed to understand though. Both men scooted closer to me on the seat, encasing me in the warm space between them.
“Fuck yes! Finally!”
Carl’s loud voice from the front made me jump, and all heads turned to him.
“What?” Rhys asked, his voice tight.
“My hacker buddy found them. Slippery bastards covered their tracks well. They’ve got an official, known Strand office on the west side of the city. But it looks like a shipment of supplies was accidentally sent to the underground complex instead of the main office once. They changed the order, but the invoice still has the original address.” He swiped a finger across his phone with a flourish. “Gotcha, fuckers!”
A disbelieving, slightly manic smile crossed my lips.
That was it. The last piece of the puzzle. We knew where to go.
Whoops and hollers broke out among Molly and the guys. Rhys didn’t join in, but I saw his hands tighten on the steering wheel, and the van lurched as it picked up speed.
Chapter Twenty-One
We checked into a hotel just off the interstate on the outskirts of the city, about a mile away from the location of the underground complex. It was in a remote area on the east end of Salt Lake, as far away from the public Strand location as possible. Molly and Carl checked into the penthouse suite, posing as newlyweds. Unsurprisingly, he’d already had fake IDs for the two of them ready to go—I was sure with his line of work, contingency plans were second nature.
The rest of us unloaded the van before heading up to the top floor laden down with luggage. There were several bags I didn’t recognize, ones that had already been in the van when we loaded up our packs in the morning. I handled them with care, certain they were full of weapons and other equipment.
West kicked the door shut behind him as soon as we were all inside the large space. There was only one bed, a massive king-sized thing set against the far wall. A small kitchenette took up one side of the space, and there was a full extra room that was set up to be a living room or office.
The lack of beds wouldn’t be an issue, since only Carl and Molly would actually spend the night here. The rest of us would be breaking into Strand and, with any luck, leaving the city with Sariah in tow before the night was over.
My brain kept trying to ask what happened after that—assuming we were successful—but my mini freakout in the van had convinced me it was better not to even ponder those questions. Not right now, anyway. There would be time for that later.
I hope.
Dropping a large backpack in the corner, I set down the other bag I carried more carefully. The contents made a metalic rattle as they settled, and I crouched beside it to tug the zipper open. Several guns were stored inside, as well as what looked like bulletproof vests and an assortment of ammunition.
“The trick is gonna be keeping our gear,” Jackson commented, coming to stand behind me and peering over my shoulder. “If we have to shift, we’ll lose pretty much anything we have on us, so we’ll have to be smart about who carries what.”
“Oh. Right.” I craned my neck to look up at him. “I hadn’t really thought about that.”
“Not my first rodeo.” He winked at me.
I loved that he could remain so lighthearted even in the midst of such an intense, stressful operation. I had no idea how the hell he managed it; I was a nervous wreck.
Carl was already setting up what seemed like a maze of computers and cords in the adjoining room. He called out instructions to Molly as she helped him, and I had a feeling he must really love her to allow her to touch his babies. With three different monitors and two laptops, it looked like the command center in some kind of spy movie.
How the hell was this real life?
“Hey, you guys need any help in there?” Jackson asked, leaning to the side to see through the door better. Carl muttered something unintelligible, waving a hand toward us. A second later, he flicked on his computers, and the light from the screens bathed his face in an eerie glow. My mate turned back to me with a grin on his face. “Ah, he’s fine.”
The blueprints, as it turned out, had been an even greater gift of luck than we’d realized. Not only had they given us an idea what we’d be walking into, they’d also shown us a way in. Combined with the city records Carl had accessed, we were almost certain we’d found a way in that wouldn’t be guarded or rigged with an alarm.
Mainly because it wasn’t an actual door.
“You should get some rest. None of us got much sleep, and it’s gonna be a long night,” Noah put in, coming up to stand beside Jackson as Rhys unpacked the rest of the gear Carl had procured for us.
“Are you going to rest?” I narrowed my eyes at him. He glanced sideways guiltily, and I shook my head. “No way then. Not unless you do.”
“Damn, dude. She’s got your number.” Jackson chuckled.
I pointed a finger at him. “Hey, same goes for you, buddy.”
He grinned brightly at me. “If agreeing to a nap means I get to
cuddle with you, then hell yeah. Count me in.”
A blush warmed my cheeks, although his suggestion didn’t sound half bad.
“We should all get some sleep.” West strode over, addressing the two men behind me before his gaze flicked down to me briefly. “We’ve got our plan laid out. Once Carl’s set up, he’ll hack into the city’s CCTV and get eyes on the Strand complex and surrounding area. Other than that, there’s not much we can do till tonight.”
“Then why the hell did we leave Vegas at such an ungodly fucking hour?” Jackson grumbled jokingly.
“We needed to get out of town—and we didn’t know how long it would take us to find Strand. We caught a lucky break.” West grinned at him, his dimples flashing. “You should thank me, really. Rhys wanted to get up at four a.m. I talked him down to six.”
“Jesus.” Jackson rolled his eyes. Then he reached down and tugged me to my feet. “Come on, Alexis. Sleep now. Insane rescue mission later.”
The Strand complex was dark and quiet, the hallways empty. My bare feet slapped quietly on the polished floor, the only sound to break the silence.
The hospital gown I wore shifted gently around my body as I walked down the corridor.
No… This wasn’t right. I was missing something.
The guns. The weapons. The bulletproof vest. I hadn’t worn any of it—hadn’t even put on shoes or clothes. How was I supposed to rescue anyone like this?
Suddenly, all the lights flashed on, bathing me in a warm, yellow glow. My heart jerked in my chest, and I spun, my heels squeaking on the floor. Doctor Shepherd stood at the end of the hall behind me, only thirty yards away. He wore his white lab coat, and his short ash-brown hair gleamed in the light.
“Alexis.” His voice was soft and smooth like always. Eerily calm. “I knew you’d come back to us. This is where you belong, after all.”
His thin lips tilted up into a satisfied smile as he raised the gun in his hand. He aimed it at my chest and fired.
A red-feathered dart flew straight and true, penetrating muscle and bone as it buried itself in my chest, piercing my heart. Pain exploded through me, and I collapsed to my knees, toppling sideways as my body began to seize and jerk. My head slammed against the hard floor, making my vision swim, and Doctor Shepherd’s black, hard-soled shoes clipped out a steady rhythm as he strode toward me.
No. Please, no… Not like this.
“Scrubs! Scrubs!”
“Lexi!”
Hands grabbed my upper arms, holding me still as I thrashed. I opened my mouth to scream, but when my eyes flew open, piercing blue ones gazed back at me.
Not Doctor Shepherd’s.
Rhys.
I let out the breath I’d pulled in on a shuddering exhale, my body finally going limp in his arms. Behind him, three other concerned faces peered down at me.
“Nightmare?” Jackson asked, wrinkling his nose sympathetically.
I nodded, blinking away the tears that stung my eyes. My heart still thudded painfully hard in my chest, and unspent adrenaline buzzed uselessly through my veins.
After hammering out the last few details of our plan, we’d all crawled onto the massive bed to rest for a few hours. I’d been convinced it was a hopeless endeavor, but surrounded on all sides by the warm bodies of my mates, soothed by the sounds of their breathing, I’d drifted off to sleep quickly.
Now I sort of wished I hadn’t.
I sat up, pushing my sweat-dampened hair back from my face. “Did I wake you all up? I’m sorry. What time is it?”
The room was dim, and a soft orange light spilled under the closed door that led to the attached room.
“Eh, it’s fine. We need to get up and get ready anyway. It’s ten forty-five.”
Jackson pressed a kiss to my forehead before sliding off the bed. Noah cupped my cheek, staring into my eyes with a probing gaze for a moment, then followed his pack mate. West looked like he wanted to say something, but he just swallowed hard and turned away.
Rhys pressed his lips into a thin line, his assessing, ice-blue gaze cutting into me. “Lexi, you don’t have to come. Truly. You’ve done more than you realize already.”
“No!” I scrambled onto my knees, ready to bolt for the door if they tried to leave without me. “I do! And I am. I’m a part of this now, Rhys. I have to see it through! You can’t—”
He stopped my tirade by pulling me toward him, his strong hands grasping my hips firmly. Then he kissed me, hard. Instinctively, my arms latched onto him, and I gave back as good as I got, my lips moving against his with a desperate fervor. When he finally broke away, I felt a little lightheaded.
His forehead rested against mine, his eyes closed and his lips so close to mine I could feel his breath on my skin. “Of course I want you there. I want you by my side. Always.”
A starburst of emotions exploded inside my chest at his declaration, and I clung to him for a few seconds longer, needing to prolong this moment, to lock it away tight somewhere I could never lose it.
I was terrified of what might happen tonight—that one or more of us might not survive to see the dawn. But we were in this together, and I wouldn’t change that for the world.
“You have me, Rhys,” I whispered. “For as long as I li—”
His lips met mine again, cutting off my words with a single kiss.
“Forever, Lexi,” he murmured, his voice rough. “I won’t take anything less.”
When he looked down at me, I could see all my own fears reflected back in his eyes. But I saw hope there too. And so much love and determination, it nearly overwhelmed me.
“Forever.” I echoed his words then tightened my arms around him, drawing in a deep breath. “But first, let’s go get your sister.”
Chapter Twenty-Two
My breath fogged the air in front of my face, and I rubbed my hands up and down my arms, grateful that our operation had required us all to wear long-sleeved, black tactical wear. It was early summer, but it still cooled down a lot at night.
West peered around the side of the building we hid behind, scoping out the single story structure across the street. It too, was similar to the Strand complex outside of Austin. Just like that one, this building seemed designed to deflect attention, to let the eye slide right over it and the casual observer immediately forget about it.
He pulled his head back, nodding at us. “I see the path around the side Carl told us about. There’s a front entrance, and an employee entrance around back.” Then he pressed a hand to his ear, speaking into the small communication device Carl had given him. “Carl, you got the cameras taken out?”
I couldn’t hear the other man’s response, but West nodded, satisfied with whatever answer he received. Only he and Rhys wore the devices, and they’d try not to shift unless absolutely necessary, so we could maintain a connection to our outside eye.
“He’s got the cameras turned off, and he’s watching all the streets in a three block radius. If unexpected company arrives, he’ll be able to give us a heads up,” Rhys reported.
I fingered the gun holstered to my belt, trying to find comfort in the cold steel. My wolf whined inside me, anxious to get this fucking waiting over with and do something.
West glanced up and down the street to make sure the coast was clear, then gestured us forward with two fingers. We darted down the empty sidewalk like shadows, heading away from Strand’s dummy building. As innocuous as the front door looked, there was no way the entrances weren’t rigged with state-of-the-art alarms. Trying to break in that way would be nearly impossible and way too risky.
When the men had broken into the complex where they found me, they’d used their man on the inside—Noah, or Cliff, as I’d thought he was called then—to get them into the building. But we didn’t have time to send an undercover agent in this time; and it would’ve been impossible anyway. Strand wouldn’t fall for the same trick again.
That left us having to break in the old-fashioned way.
Several blocks away, when the
single-story brick building was no longer in sight, West slowed, veering into the street. Noah stepped up beside him, and the two men bent to slide a manhole cover out of place. The rest of us joined them, crouching around the small, dark hole in the middle of the pavement.
“Fuck. Are we sure this is a good idea?” Jackson made a face in the darkness.
“No.” West snorted. “But it’s the best option we had out of a pile of shitty ones.”
“Oh, right. That.”
Rhys pulled a small flashlight from his tactical vest, shining it down the hole. “Come on. We gotta hurry.”
He slipped inside the open hole, his feet finding the rusty iron bars that formed a ladder along one side. He clamped the flashlight between his teeth, the small circle of light illuminating the rough brick of the wall as he descended quickly. I followed after him before I could lose my nerve, and Noah came after me.
About twenty-five feet down, the claustrophobic brick chute opened up into a wider space. I climbed down several more steps before my boots landed on solid ground, and I moved away to make room for the others. It was pitch black in the tunnel, the kind of darkness that swallowed up light, that seemed to have a form and shape all its own. Rhys’s little flashlight barely penetrated the gloom, and I tried to tamp down the goose bumps that rose along my skin.
“This way.” He reached out to squeeze my hand once before starting down the wide, dank tunnel.
It was larger than I would’ve imagined, with ceilings at least twelve feet high and stained cement walls. My sense of direction wasn’t good, but I’d memorized the path we needed to take, just in case. As intersecting tunnels met with ours, we turned left, then right, then right again. The guys crowded around me, all of us sticking close together, but not even the warmth from their bodies could dispel the damp chill in the air.