by Tami Payton
MASON
Cammie said that Gage was following us and my blood turned to ice. I figured that asshole would have ran for the hills by now. Guess he’s got some balls on him. Well, he’s about to lose them because when I get ahold of him, I’m gonna rip him to shreds. “That asshole is mine.” I growl as I grab the bag of bracelets that Cammie was carrying and run off in the direction that I can now sense Gage in. First, I’m gonna beat the shit out of him, then I’m gonna put on of these damn bracelets on him and shock the fuck out of him. He’s the fucking reason I lost Cammie and that Mother Fucker will fucking pay, one way or another. Oh, I’m not gonna kill him yet, no way. I’m gonna make sure he suffers for everything that Cammie’s been through, not to mention everything me and her family has been through.
I hear Sam, Cameron and Cammie running behind me and curse under my breathe. Shit! I didn’t want them to follow me, I turn towards them. “Ya’ll need to head towards the trucks and get going.” Cammie narrows her eyes and grunts. Yeah, this is a fight I’m not winning. “I don’t know what the fuck you think you are doing Mason but this is stupid! I mean, seriously? You’re gonna go after Gage now? We are this close to being back home and now you want to just risk it all?” She’s pissed and I can see it on her face and in her eyes. “Cammie, I can’t let him get away. He’s responsible for everything you’ve been through. He needs to pay and he will. I’m gonna grab him and we will take him with us.” She growls at me and I know that no matter what I’m fucked. She throws her hands up in the air. “You’re such an ass! I’ve been through too much shit these past few weeks and now this! You want to go all He-Man and shit. I just want to go home! Fine! You go do whatever it is that you want to do. I’m leaving, you don’t know if he’s alone or if he’s got other people with him. I can’t pin point that.” She turns and shifts and takes off into the woods. I look at Cameron and Sam. “I’m with you all the way, man. Let’s go get this asshole.” Cameron nods at me. Sam sighs. “You boys have thirty minutes to do what you have to before we’re back here. I’m going after Cammie. Grab him and bring him to the truck. Alive.” He looks at me as he says alive and I smirk, he knows I want to kill him. I nod so he knows that I will keep him alive, it will be barely but he will be alive. He takes off after Cammie and Cameron and I head towards Gage.
We locate him just about a mile away, he’s walking towards where our trucks are parked and is in wolf form. That’s how he’s managed to track us so fast, smart. We shift and Cameron attacks from one side as I take the other. We manage to take him down pretty fast and when he’s down he shifts back to heal the wounds we have inflicted on him. He groans. “Where have you taken Cammie?” He manages to get out. The sound of her name coming out of his mouth pisses me off and I kick him. “Don’t fucking mention her name. You don’t have the right to say it, you asshole.” I growl as I slap a bracelet on his wrist. He tries to fight me when he sees what it is, I smile. “Yeah, I guess you know what this is, huh? Well, I plan on having a little fun with it. You see Micah had one on Cammie, thanks to you, and she was shocked quite a few times. So, the way I see it I think you need to see how it feels. It’s only fair.” I shrug and press the button and watch as his body starts to flop around on the ground like a fish out of water. Cameron starts to laugh and I can’t help but smile. Damn, that looks like it hurts. I then wonder how bad it affected Cammie and my heart breaks for her. Gage passes out and I look at Cameron and nod. “Ok, let’s get his ass up and head to the trucks. We can take turns carrying his heavy ass. We’re not that far away.” Cameron sighs. “I really wish we could just kill him and leave him. I hate pack politics. I mean, I know you will get the pleasure of killing for what he did to Cammie. But why does Zander get to talk to him first? We should just be able to get it over with now.” He shakes his head. I laugh. “Yeah, I know what you’re saying but it is what it is. His Alpha wants to know why he did what he did. Can’t say I blame him. I’d want to know as well.” Cameron shrugs as we head towards the trucks with a passed-out Gage in tow.
We finally make it to the truck and Sam jumps out and rolls his eyes at us. “Please tell me he’s alive. I really don’t want to have to get into it with Zander when we get back.” I laugh at him. “Yes Sam, he’s alive. Barely but he’s alive. He’s just taking a long nap right now.” Cameron laughs as he throws Gage in the back of the truck and ties him up. “Yeah, I don’t think he’s gonna wake up any time soon but I will ride back he with him just in case.” I nod at him and toss him the controller for the bracelet. Cammie gets out and stares at Gage. There’s a little fear in her eyes but it’s quickly replaced with anger. “When he wakes up, I want to talk to him.” She growls out. I look at her and can understand where she’s coming from but under no circumstances am, I letting her in the same room as the Bastard. “Cammie, you’re not getting anywhere.” She cuts me off with a look that actually sends chills through me. “Mason, I will talk to him one way or another and you will not stop me. This is about me. Not you.” She growls the last part so I understand she’s not fucking around. I shake my head and walk towards the truck door. “We will talk about this when we get back. We need to get out of here.” She’s challenging me right now and I don’t like the feeling of it. She knows what she’s doing, it’s her Alpha female coming out, I shake my head and the whole Fated Mate thing is going back through my head. Two Alpha’s together is bound to be a disaster waiting to happen, too many challenges, heads clashing and fights non-stop. God, what have we gotten ourselves into? I shake the thoughts away as we climb into the truck and I pull her next to me. The only thing I can think about right now, that my wolf can think about right now is having her next to me. I need to know that’s she’s really here, safe with me.
JACOB
I have no idea what’s going on, no one has contacted me to give me an update. I’ve tried to get in touch with the men I sent to assist in the rescue but every call goes to voice mail. I guess that makes sense, phones would be off as the would use radios for contact. Mason should contact me as soon as the job is done, if he was successful but since I haven’t heard from him yet I’m thinking it wasn’t. The auction was due to happen over two hours ago, so Cammie should have been extracted by now and they should be long gone. I haven’t been able to get in touch with Sam or Zander either, so it’s not looking good. My only other contact is Jenny, I know she was going there as well. She was using this as her excuse to save her ass with her Alpha, Zander. I pick up the phone and dial her after three rings she answers.
“Hello?” She answers and sounds a little nervous, I hold in a laugh. “Hello, Jenny? This is Jacob, I’m the Beta of Mason’s Pack.” I hear her swallow as I introduce myself like we’ve never spoken before. “Yes, hello. How are you?” Trying not to laugh I respond. “I’m good. I’m actually trying to get ahold of Mason, well anyone really. I’ve tried to call Mason, Sam, and Zander. It seems everyone’s phones are still off and I haven’t been given any updates on my Alpha or men. I just wanted to get an update on the rescue mission.” I can hear her nod against the phone. “Oh yes, of course. You must be worried. Let me give the phone to my Alpha, Zander and he can fill you in.” I hear her pass the phone. “It’s Mason’s Beta Jacob, he said he’s tried to call everyone but their phones haven’t been turned on yet. He finally called mine; my number was in Mason’s contact for business. He’s trying to get an update.” Zander gets on the phone. “Yes Jacob, sorry for the delay. The men must have forgotten to turn their phones back on with trying to get out as soon as possible. The mission was a success, we got Cammie out and are headed to Sam’s compound now to debrief. I will have Mason contact you as soon as we arrive.” I ball my fists, damn it. “Thank you, Sir, I appreciate it. Were there any injuries? Did everyone make it out?” It was my hope that Mason lost a man or two, it would make the pack going against him so much easier. “No, we came out with everyone we went in with, plus a few more.” I sigh then catch myself. “That’s very good to hear. Ok, thank you. I will await to hear f
rom Mason.” We say our goodbyes and hang up.
Well Fuck! This isn’t exactly how I expected the night to turn out. I really hope Jenny has something else up her sleeve. I need to figure out a way to get rid of Mason and soon. Cammie is the way to do it, I just need to figure it out. I sigh, I guess I will have to continue working with that nut case Jenny for a little while longer.
CAMMIE
I wake up to the feel of someone carrying me, I look up and I’m in Mason’s arms. After a quick look around I realize that we’re back home and I sigh a sigh of relief. I must have fallen asleep on the way back. “I can walk you know.” I mumble. Mason laughs and his chest shakes against me and the feel of it makes my body quiver. “Yeah, but then I wouldn’t have you in my arms. That’s no fun, sweetheart.” He whispers in my ear and my whole-body shivers. Damn it! I wiggle against him trying to get down so I can walk but it just causes him to hold me tighter. “Just so you know, that’s only making it worse, not helping.” He laughs and I understand what he’s talking about and I blush. What the fuck! I’m blushing like a school girl now? My fucking body is betraying me and there’s nothing I can do about it. UGH!! I turn my head at the sound of laughter and see Sam and Zander standing there watching us. “It’s good to see you back and safe, Cammie.” I look at Zander and smile. “Thanks, Zander. It’s good to finally be out of that place. Mason and Cam have Gage in the back of the truck. I just wanted to let you know that I want to talk to him as well. I know as his Alpha I’m aware that you get first shot at him but I would like a chance to speak with him as well.” I stand my ground, well as much as I can being held hostage in Mason’s arms. Zander shakes his head and laughs. “I don’t see any problem with that. You deserve to say your peace.” Mason goes to argue and I shoot him a look. He just shakes his head. “Mason, Cammie needs this. She needs to confront Gage. Let her do this, it doesn’t have to be tonight.” Mason sighs and nods his head. “Fine but not tonight.” I bite back my laugh and squeal as he turns on his heels and heads towards my cabin.
Once we make it inside Mason heads straight to the bathroom. I look at him funny and he sets me down on the counter of the sink. As he turns on the shower, I’m watching the muscles in his back flex and my body is heating up faster than the water. “Mason, I really just want to go and lay down. I haven’t really had a full night of sleep the whole time I’ve been gone and it will be nice to sleep in my own bed.” I’m lying to myself and I know it. I want to wrap myself around him, feel his body against mine and have his lips all over me but there is no way in hell that I’m gonna say that out loud. “You can get in bed after you’ve had a shower sweetheart. I need you to get in here and get the scent of them off of you. I need you to wash off whatever they had on you. I can’t stand you walking around smelling like them. I need you to wash away the effects of that place.” I shake my head and want to laugh at him. “I don’t think that’s how it works, Mason. You can’t just wash away everything that happened, it’s not that easy.” He turns to me and sighs. “I know but at least we can start by getting the smell of the warehouse off of you. It’s driving my wolf crazy and if I don’t get rid of it, I don’t know what is gonna happen.” He reaches for the shirt I’m wearing and pulls it over my head. I bite my lip as he gets rid of the rest of my clothes. There’s a big part of me that is hoping he’s gonna get in with me and help me wash but all he does is help me into the shower, I raise my eyebrow at him. He shakes his head and grins. “Sorry sweetheart, as much as I would love to help you, I don’t think any washing would get done. You get clean and then maybe we can look into getting you dirty.” He winks at me and walks out of the bathroom. I sigh in frustration. Damn it! I don’t know what I’m gonna do, one minute I want him more than anything and then the next I don’t. Damn bond!
After I’m finally washed and feel clean, I get out and wrap myself in a huge fluffy towel that Mason left for me. I walk towards my bedroom and find Mason sitting on the bed. He’s laid out a pair of my comfy pants and a tank-top. “I have to go and talk to Sam and Zander for a few minutes but will come back as soon as I’m done. Cameron wants to come and talk to you if that’s ok?” I nod as I dress. “Yeah, I’m good with that.” I would love to talk to my brother, I’ve missed him and didn’t get a chance to see or talk to him much earlier. Mason gets up and pulls me to him. He pulls me to him, wrapping me in his arms and kisses me like he doesn’t want to let me go. “I will be back as soon as I can.” I nod, not trusting myself to say anything. I hear him talking to someone in the living room and know it’s Cam and sure enough I’m grabbed from behind in a big hug seconds later. “Do you know how fucking scared I was that I was never gonna see you again? I mean I just found you and I thought I had lost you. This has been the worst couple of weeks of my life.” Cam chokes out and the tears in his eyes make tears start coming to mine. I hug him back with everything I have. “I’m so sorry Cam. I missed you too, I was so scared I wouldn’t see you either. I mean I know I’m new to this whole family thing but when I came close to the thought of losing you guys it terrified me. I can’t ever go through that again.” I’m crying now and he pulls me close again, not letting go. I can feel the bond we have, it’s stronger than it was before. I guess having almost losing each other made it stronger. We sit on the bed side by side so we’re still touching and continue to talk.
“So, I’m still a little confused on a couple of things.” I look at him and hope that he can give me the answers that I need. He sighs, like he already knows what I’m gonna ask. “You want to know about Jenny?” I nod. “Ok, I figured as much. Well, Zander brought her in to help track you down. She is one of the best trackers around, as much as we all hate to admit it, we kind of needed her. She did her job really well, she narrowed down the area and then when Eric started to double check everything, he noticed a few things looked strange.” I looked at him funny. “What do you mean?” He shook his head. “Well, let me back up for a minute. Jenny disappeared after me and Mason blew up on her. Mason came out of the shower and found her here in the kitchen, cooking breakfast.” I balled my fists and my anger started rising. That Bitch! Cam grabbed my hand and squeezed. “Calm down. He went off on her, when he saw her, he flipped out. She was wearing one of your aprons, which by the way you don’t have anymore. Mason threw it away because it smelled like her.” Cam laughs at this and I shake my head. If he hadn’t of thrown it away, I would have. He sighs. “Anyway, I walked in and heard them fighting. Jenny told him that you weren’t coming back and Mason blew up, almost went after her. I had to step in and told Jenny to leave and Mason told her if she ever stepped foot around him again, he wouldn’t be responsible for his actions. It was a big mess. Jenny disappeared after that and that’s when Eric started to notice that her finding were a little off.” I shake my head, trying to take everything in. Why would Jenny tell Mason that I wasn’t coming back? How would she know that? “So, how did Eric know about Jenny’s information? How did ya’ll end up tracking where I was? Was it because of Drake, did ya’ll ever talk to him?” Cam squeezes my hand again. “Eric was keeping a close eye on Jenny, apparently he didn’t trust her either. He took a sample of all of her samples to run his own test on as well. He compared his findings against hers and found out that while she was giving us an idea of where you were, it wasn’t the right place. Then that guy Drake showed up, at first, we were hesitant to believe him. We thought he was sent by Micah as a trap but then he started giving us information that only you knew. That was a good idea by the way.” He smiles at me and I grin back. “Well, I knew I had to give him something or there was a chance he would have been killed by you guys.” Cam laughs. “You’re right. Mason almost killed him on sight as soon as he mentioned your name. It took all of us to hold him back.” I look at him and roll my eyes. I saw the video of him and Jenny and still don’t believe it was doctored. He looks at me and his eyes narrow. “Cammie, you do know that video that was taken of Mason and Jenny was complete bullshit, right? He wouldn’t have anything to do with h
er.” I bite my lip and look away from him. I really, really want to believe it. I want to believe that he wants to give in to the mating bond and just be with me but there’s something that’s holding me back and I can’t put my finger on it.
Cam pulls me to him and kisses the top of my head. “Cammie, if you had seen him when you were taken. I mean the guy was a complete wreck. I’ve never seen Mason like that before, he was destroyed. He couldn’t eat, couldn’t sleep. He spent all his time trying to track down where you were. Every message, every video we got from Micah drove him more and more over the edge. He feels like he’s let you down, like he can’t protect you the way a mate is supposed to.” I snap my head up and look at him. A mate? Cam laughs. “Yeah, you heard me right. Mason is claiming you as his mate, he realized that you are it for him. The moment that you were taken his whole world stopped. He couldn’t breath and we didn’t think we would be able to get him back. It really scared us. That man loves you more than anything and it’s clear that you love him as well. Stop fighting it, Cammie. You two were meant for each other.” I’m trying to hold back the tears that are trying to fall but it’s useless, they come anyways. Cam pulls me into him even tighter. “I’m scared Cam. What if I finally do accept it and he decides again that he doesn’t want it? That he can’t because I’m an Alpha female? I can’t go through that again.” Cam rubs my back. “I don’t see that happening and if he hurts you again, I will personally kick his ass. I promise that I will not let him hurt you again.” I laugh. Picturing Cameron kicking or trying to kick Mason’s ass.