by Celeste Raye
He worried about what was going on with his boys. He would rather them be under some kind of spell that would save them from having to remember such horrible things later.
As much as Jack had on his mind, he was still a little upset that he didn’t get Mona the way he wanted her. He had to come back and tell her that the rest of it would have to wait.
Mona wanted to come with, but he wasn’t sure that it was a good idea or not. He was afraid that something was going to happen to her, and Jack felt very protective of her.
Jack had told Chris that he would give him a call when he heard something. It wasn't that he needed his help, though he would take it. It was more about the fact that Chris had his own revenge that he wanted to take care of. There was a part of Jack that didn't blame him. He knew that once he found his boys, which he would, then he was going to still want revenge. It wasn't going to be enough to get Samuel and Abel back. No, he was going to have to get more out of the situation. Whoever had done this to his kids would pay. He just felt like it was right to give Chris that same chance.
He had known almost immediately that Chris was going to want to come with, and he was the perfect person to have on his side. Jack knew that Chris was not only strong and competent, but he was also the Alpha of a very large pack. While they would not be coming tonight, because tonight was just a rescue mission, it did mean that they would come in handy later.
Once Chris met up with Jack, they both set out with a couple more people to go to the address that was given to him earlier in the day. It had been the worst timing of course, but if there was any way that Jack could get his kids back, that was obviously what the priority was.
Soon, when that was done, he could finish what he started with Mona.
Chris had a good feeling when they got to the address. There were five of them, and they were in the bushes, watching the house like it was somehow going to give them the answer that they were looking for. He felt like the kids were close, but it could have just been him sensing what he wanted to.
“I don't feel anything. Do you?”
Jack was trying to use his senses to tell him what he needed to know, but he didn't feel anything when he tried to tap in on what he felt earlier.
“I don't know. We are going to go in there and find out. I don't trust my own instincts anymore. Those damn witches can do all kinds of things. I did not even know that I had a witch locked up in my basement. That’s something that I certainly should have realized, but I didn't even know that she was there. That old witch was very powerful, and she did something to my senses. That could be what is happening now.”
Chris looked like he was not sure about his explanation, but he wasn't going to go against it either. They all wanted to believe that the kids were there, then there would be two fewer victims that the Franklin Organization had gotten to. It would not make what happened to Chris’ family any better, but at least he would feel like he had done something. Chris was almost as anxious to get in there as Jack was.
“How long are we going to stay out here?”
It wasn't that Jack was scared. He wasn't afraid of anything, but he was in a way apprehensive about what he would find. As much as he liked to believe that everything was okay, at the end of the day, he wasn't sure. His kids could be there, but they could be dead.
Chris slapped him on the shoulder. “We got this.”
“I sure hope so, man. Those kids are my life, and I don't know what I would do without them.”
Chris agreed. Though they weren't his children that had been killed, it was people close to him. He had taken it rather hard. He was supposed to protect them, and he hadn't been able to.
Finally, there was no way that they could wait any longer. They had to figure out what was going on and the best way to do that was just to go in and see where everything landed. It wasn't the best idea obviously, but at the same time, his creativity was gone. He just wanted his kids back, no matter what he had to do to make it happen.
He was the first one in the door, and they went in ready for an attack. Witches were powerful, and the best way to take care of them was to make sure that they did not know that they were being had. The element of surprise was the only way that they were going to get through one or more of them.
Shifters were strong, but witches played by their own rules that nobody else seemed to understand. That gave them an advantage that few other people, even supernatural beings, had. That is why shifters were wary of witches; they just had too much power, and more often than not, they would not use it in a good way.
There were witches in the place, and they were lucky that they caught them off guard. Before the spell could be done, the witches were lying bloody on the floor.
To Jack, it took a long time for all of this to occur, but in reality, it had only taken a few moments. Jack left the person that he had attacked first alive because he wanted to use her to get information. Then he realized that her throat was slit and she wasn’t going to be talking anytime soon.
“Does anybody else have one alive?”
There were five witches on the floor, and it didn't look like any of them were living.
He cursed out loud. He could not believe his bad luck. All he needed was one of them living so that he could get some information on his boys, but he couldn't even do that right. His moment of anger and revenge could have cost them everything.
Chris was trying to comfort him. Nobody knew what to say, but then Jack heard something, and he didn't need anybody to say a damn thing to him. All he wanted everybody to do was to shut the hell up. He could hear their voices, and he started running towards the back of the house. With everything that had been going on, Jack was still was confused. Or from all the things that he’d heard about the Franklin Organization from other people, it sounded like this was a bigger deal than half of a coven, in a dilapidated house.
Jack was happy, of course, that this wasn't the case, but at the same time, he was wondering why his children were in a different type of facility. They were obviously supernatural beings, and from what he had heard from everyone that he had talked to, the Franklin Organization wanted to take care of all of them.
He was relieved to think that they had some sort of soul, but that did not mean that they were not going to do something to them. He worried as he ran up the stairs to find them and see if his boys had been messed with in some way. He heard about experiments and the idea of it had made him shudder inside. As long as they were alive, Jack knew that everything would be fine. He would figure out a way to fix them, even if it didn't seem like they were able to be fixed. He would find a way, one way or another.
Then, he was pushing open a door to the back bedroom, and the twins were in the room. They were cuffed by their ankles to a radiator unit, but they were breathing, and they were together. Jack couldn’t have asked for anything more. He moved forward quickly, afraid that what he was seeing wasn’t real. It wasn’t an idea that he was able to truly stomach.
Abel said his name quietly, and he smiled while he pulled them free.
“Hey, boys. We’re going home.”
Chapter Fourteen
“I don’t know how to thank you, Chris.”
“Don’t thank me, Jack. I’m just glad that you had a better outcome than we did. I am glad that they are going home and are safe. I wished this for you.”
The kids were sleeping in the back seat of a rental car. They weren’t up for flying as they had some kind of chemical in their system. Jack was doing his best not to get all worked up. He wanted to know everything about what happened, who took them, but for now, he was just going to have to settle for the fact that they were safe.
“Thank you. I wanted to believe that they were safe, but I was afraid that I would be wrong and disappointed. After everything I've heard about the Franklin Organization, there was no way that I thought that my kids would be alive. I saw a couple marks on their body. It seems like they were testing on them or something. I don't even want to think
about it.”
Chris was quiet for a moment, and then he agreed. “You know that we have to get rid of these people. The witches, whoever it is behind it all. We have to stop them.”
Even though Jack had gotten the best results that he could have hoped for, he was right there with Chris. It wasn't just enough that he saved his family. He wanted to save every family that was going to be taken and attacked by them. He couldn't let humans, or whatever they were, take his people away. Shifters had been on the earth for a very long time, and the actions of a few witches wouldn’t change anything. Or humans. Whoever, or whatever, was behind it was going to pay.
“What do you want to do?”
“I think that we need to track down whoever is running this thing. Take them down and end this.”
Chris made it sound so easy, but Jack was not that naive. He did not know how in the hell he had gotten his kids back. He didn't, but what mattered to him was that he had.
“I think you're right, Chris. I'm going to take my family home, spend a couple of days with the boys, and then I will get in touch with you. I still have several investigators trying to track them down. They found my kids; they'll find the rest of them.”
“And you make sure that you let me know as soon as you find something out. I want to be there.”
Jack could see that Chris was upset. It was all over his face, and the more he tried to look away from the pain and anguish, the more he was unable to. It could have easily been him feeling that way, looking that way. It could have been him that was eaten up inside because he couldn't save the people closest to him. Jack felt for Chris. He knew what must be going through his mind and he promised that he would make sure that he was there. Sometimes revenge was the only thing that kept a person going.
They parted ways, and Jack got back into the car. The kids were still asleep, and he drove them the rest of the way home. It was hard for him to imagine the alternatives. But it was impossible not to think about it. Things could have gone very differently; he very well could have been Chris.
The drive wasn't too long, but it gave Jack time to think. For a time, he thought about Chris, the Franklin Organization, and his children. But then he was back to something else, something more pleasant. He started thinking about Mona and what he was going to do when he got home.
She was waiting for him when he pulled up, and she looked very anxious. As soon as he opened the door and she saw the two kids in the backseat, he could see the relief on her face.
Mona started to walk towards them. She wasn't yelling, but she was talking a little louder than he would have liked. His kids were asleep, and he wanted to keep it that way. There was no telling what they had been through, what was in their systems, but he had a doctor coming that would check them out.
Instead of answering the million questions that were headed his way, he pulled her to him and kissed her like he’d wanted to the last hour he was driving. It was long enough that she was speechless when he pulled away, and that made him smile.
“They are home, safe and sound. We will talk about all of this tomorrow. Let’s get them in and then me and you have some talking to do.”
Mona smiled, and he could see a look of love on her face. It threw him off for a moment. He felt the same way, but he wasn’t ready, not yet. He had a lot to learn.
They went to put the kids in bed upstairs, and even though Mona had a million questions, he wasn't going to let her ask one of them. It had been too long, and she felt too good beside him.
Instead, they went into his bedroom and laid down together. He was trying to recreate the last time they had been in that situation. If Jack would have had it his way, everything would have gone exactly to plan, as it had before.
“This brings back memories.”
“Memories? It was just a little while ago.”
“I'm glad that you're here.”
“Yeah, I am glad the kids are safe. I was hoping that it would work out this way.”
“Are you going to stick around?”
“What do you mean?”
“Are you going to stay and be my nanny for the kids?”
“Are you sure that’s what you want?”
He turned on his side and smiled at her. “That is exactly what I want.”
“Okay, but I think we should put down some ground rules first, if we’re going to be working together.”
“I think it's a little late for that, Mona; don't you?”
Jack could see her cheeks getting red, and he really did like that look on her. It made her seem younger and more vibrant. It also gave her a touch of innocence that drove him wild. While she wasn't completely without knowledge of carnal relations, there was certainly a lot that she didn't know. And he was more than happy to teach her.
“It is never too late, Jack.”
“I think it is. There is no way that we can go back to nothing now. I already know what you taste like.”
She looked away and turned the light off next to her. “Why don't we get some sleep? We’re both so tired, and I'm sure that you've had quite an ordeal today. I saw the cuts on your back.”
Jack got a few gashes from the witches, but it was more because of broken glass flying around than anything else. It was superficial at best, and he knew that he would be completely healed in the morning. None of that was any of his priority at the moment. His only priority was her and convincing her that they needed each other. He certainly needed her, and even though he knew he would sleep that evening, it didn't matter. All that mattered was that she was next to him.
He watched her turn on her side, and instead of leaving her be, he pulled her body up against his own.
“Are you sure that you don't want to stay up for a little while longer?”
Chapter Fifteen
Mona had mentioned going to sleep because she was so embarrassed. He looked at her like she was dinner, and the way he smiled, it was hard to believe that she wasn’t. Now she knew that the position she was in left her more vulnerable than ever before. As soon as he pulled her to his body, she could feel the hard knot that he had in his pants. He pressed against her quickly, and she gasped from the feel of it. His words echoed in her ear, making her remember when they had been interrupted before.
“I think if we stay awake any longer, Jack, we are going to do something that we might regret later.”
“Nothing that we do together will be something I regret.”
Mona didn't know what to say, because she knew that most of the reason that they were going to do anything was to make each other feel better. It wasn't like they had some long-lost love or anything like that. Instead, it had really been about comfort and convenience. Right?
That didn’t seem like a good enough reason to muck things up with her new boss. Then again, she had gotten off many times, and he had not. It was hard for her not to feel a little bit guilty about that. She wanted him to feel the same pleasure that she had felt.
“I am not saying that I regret what happened between us. I am just worried about how this is going to go moving on. If we're going to work together, you're going to be my boss, I don't think that it would be a good idea to fraternize with each other. I am sure that Fran would not like to hear about me doing that.”
It was an excuse, more than anything else and even though Mona knew exactly what it was, she was going to hold onto it for dear life. It was certainly better than the alternative.
He pressed himself against her a little bit more, and Mona closed her eyes to take in the pleasure. He really did feel that good, and when he tilted his hips just a little bit, instead of rubbing against her, he was pressing lower and more intimately. It felt like he was out of his pants and she moved her hand behind her, just to see. He was so hard that it was coming out of his pants, pressing against the fabric to be released. It had nothing to do with anything else.
The handful of need that she got made it even harder to back out of the situation. A few hours ago, she was running headlong into it, but wh
ile he was gone, it had given her time to think and question everything that she was doing.
“You're killing me, Mona.”
Mona told him that she was doing no such thing.
“Then why did you grab me like that?”
“Honestly? I thought that you didn't have any boxers on it and I was going to say something to you about it. I didn't realize that you did and it was just…”
“That's just how turned on I am for you.”
It all sounded good in theory, but at the same time, she knew that there was more to the situation. “You know, I think I can hear your mind working. Do you ever shut it off?”
“Not really. If I did, I think it would get me in trouble.”
“I think maybe it's time for you to get in trouble. Don't make me beg, Mona. We both want this.”
Every word that he was saying was true. Mona wanted it just as much as he did. She was wet from just the idea of the two of them being together. As much as she wanted to believe that she could resist him, there was another part of her that didn't see a reason why she should. He was a handsome man, and he had been very kind to her. Not only that, she was attracted to him in a very real way. There just seemed to be no reason why not.
“I promise I will try to shut it off.”
“I don't know if I like the idea that you have to shut it off to be with me, but I will take what I can get.”
She made a giggling sound, and once she agreed, that seemed to be all he needed to move on to the next step. It came over her quickly, and like a tsunami, she was left buried in the wave.