by Brenda Trim
Expecting shit to go bad wasn’t giving them a new start. The acerbic tone would seep from his mouth next time he saw her if he didn’t make an effort to change his thinking. Millie might have kidnapped him and conducted unthinkable experiments on him, but she hadn’t been unnecessarily cruel like the guards and Jack.
They needed to destroy this program and their information so he could move on and get back to her side. The reminder was too fresh sitting in the trees less than a quarter mile from the fence.
“Is that the building?” Zander’s voice broke through Hayden’s mental battery.
Hayden rubbed his eyes and scanned the area. “I think so. Honestly, it was late at night and I wasn’t exactly in tiptop shape.” Not to mention his mind was running on benzos and his body was eating itself to survive.
The extra room he had in the leather pants Zander had brought him was proof of how much body mass he’d lost in the last ten days. He had to roll the waist to ensure they didn’t fall off!
Evzen clapped him on the shoulder. “You’re out now and already looking better. This is the area where Millie directed us. I’m sure we are staking out the correct building.”
Zander shook his head. “I’m no’ saying she gave us false information. What I’m saying is we could be in the wrong place. I’ve never been here before. But I was hoping your other senses might help confirm we are no’ wasting our time.”
“You’re right. This place puts me on edge and I instinctually shut off my animals when we got close.” Hayden hated admitting such cowardly behavior.
“So that’s why Zeke couldn’t locate you and the shifters felt cut off. That was smart thinking.” Zander’s words were a shock. He expected recrimination.
Evzen bobbed his head as he held his staff close to his side as he continued to conceal their presence. “Who knows what that asshole Jack would have done if he’d seen you actually shift. My guess is he would have hacked you up himself in an effort to get the information he wanted and taken the video to everyone in the government to mobilize the troops.”
Hayden had to hide a shiver that coursed through his body. Hearing that was like being dunked in a tank of ice water. “You’re right. He would have shown up before they returned me to my cell and there wouldn’t have been anything for you guys to find. And to answer your question, this is the right place. Now that I stopped shielding my beasts, I can smell the sour odor he emanated.”
“Have the staff already arrived? Or was Millie right that they altered schedules?”
Hayden considered Zander’s questions. Millie had informed them shit would change the second they discovered he was gone along with her. “There’s too much to sort through, but I would have to say they’ve changed shifts. I can’t pick up any hints of the lab techs having been here recently, so perhaps they’ve told them not to come in.”
“I’d bet they don’t want individuals without combat training showing up until they locate Millie and you,” Evzen pointed out.
“That makes sense. And based on what my mate told us there are triple the guards patrolling the building this time of night. And there were double the soldiers stationed at the gate. We can safely assume all passwords have changed which will make accessing her computer a problem.”
Zander ran a hand through his hair. “That’s why Killian will need a couple minutes before we destroy the computer system. His program has to hack into their network first.”
Hayden glanced sideways at his friend. “I never heard him explain that.”
Zander chuckled. “You were preoccupied with your mate.”
“This mating compulsion is fucking brutal. All I can think about is Millie and being with her. I want this over with so I can get back to her.”
“I can’t wait to return to Braelynn, too. At this point in her pregnancy, she’s craving lemon tarts and sex, so she hates having me away.”
“I remember those days with Elsie,” Zander shared. “She was insatiable when she was pregnant. I think that’s the only reason she agreed to move back to the Tehrex Realm and leave Izzy behind. No’ that we told our daughter that.”
It was nice to hear Zander talk about being away from Izzy without his mood souring. He knew it was still a sore subject for his friend, but perhaps they were making progress with her.
Hayden’s phone vibrated in his pocket. He pulled it out to see a text from Zeke. “Fucking hell. Not now.”
Zander’s head snapped toward Hayden. “What is it?”
“The shifters felt when I closed my beasts off and some of the younger ones shifted in public.”
“Shite! Where? Do we need to leave and handle the falloot?”
“No. Kyran has already dispatched the Dark Warriors to Myrtle Beach to erase memories there. Because it was the middle of the night there weren’t too many witnesses. They’re more worried about someone recording the incident. And the one in Tennessee wasn’t as public and is being handled by the local alpha. He’s in contact with Kyran in case they need help with humans.” Hayden would have to thank the Vampire Prince for jumping in to help
“Let’s get on with this then. We canna have you closing yourself off again. I can handle the gate guards.” As a vampire, Zander could manipulate human minds. As the Vampire King he could control several humans at once. “Based on Gerrick, Orlando and Santiago’s reports, it seems as if they’ve sent most of their soldiers off base to search the closest cities.”
“Is there a way we can keep this section from seeing what’s happening on the other side of the fence?” Hayden didn’t want the soldiers out here seeing them approach the building. They could set off an alarm and get them caught underground.
They had started walking toward their car but Evzen paused and turned to face the building. “I can cast a perimeter along the fence that’ll block the rest from view.” A second after Evzen chanted his spell, Hayden could no longer see the building and they continued on their way.
Hayden’s heart sputtered like it was an old VW Beetle objecting when he pressed the gas pedal to the floorboard. His beasts retreated very aware of the danger he was walking into. He had to use more power than he anticipated to keep from jumping out of the vehicle before Zander flipped them like a pancake and headed to the gate.
Before he knew it, the gate came into view. “You ready, Z?” Hayden didn’t think he would ever be ready to go back there, but he had no choice.
“There are six watching the gate. I can grab all of their minds withoot problem. I’ll need you both to make sure none of those patrolling the grounds see us and try to intervene.” Zander stopped next to one of the guards a second later.
“Identification please,” the guard barked. He held a clipboard and had two soldiers behind him with more in the closet-sized building behind them.
“We’re visiting,” Zander replied. Hayden knew the second Zander grabbed hold of their minds. His gaze had been focused on the guards in the shack and he saw their eyes go blank.
The three by the car stared through Zander, but nothing happened. The bar remained down, barring their entrance.
Hayden’s heart was closer to a hummingbird at that moment and his breathing had increased. “What the fuck is happening?” It was close to sunrise. They didn’t have time for this shit.
“There’s some kind of resistance to my command. I was able to stop their alarm, but there’s a sticky web around their minds.” It was clear the admission bothered Zander greatly.
“Is this normal when you deal with members of the military? Perhaps it’s a natural effect of their training. If not, we are dealing with something far more sinister than greedy humans.” Hayden’s gut clenched as he put that possibility out there.
Zander didn’t respond for a few seconds. The bar finally lifted, and they were driving before Zander answered Hayden. “The few I have had to deal with before were no’ any more difficult to control, but I havena dealt enough to really say if it’s typical or no’.”
Evzen’s eyes narrowed as he shift
ed his gaze away from Zander and toward the gate guards. “I don’t see a sign of an enchantment. And, if a demon is at work here, I should see a dark fog surrounding their minds. We shouldn’t rule out the possibility entirely. I’m sure there are ways to hide all evidence.”
They were halfway to the lab when lights flashed over their car from both directions. Hayden pulled a Gumby and shifted in his seat to discover at least a dozen jeeps barreling toward them.
Hayden gripped the back of Zanders seat and shoved his head between the two front seats. “How the fuck did they find us so fast?”
Evzen pointed out his window. “I’d bet it was through surveillance. Millie was right about them being on high alert.”
“We need to turn around and get the hell out of here,” Hayden growled. His animals retreated and tried to curl into a ball in his chest. That more than anything made Hayden grab hold of the lingering rage over what had happened to him. He was not a coward and would never run from a fight.
He was the fucking Omega, and these assholes should quake before him. He let his power loose just a bit. Zander’s mantle expanded to meet Hayden’s. Evzen followed suit.
“I canna turn around. There are trucks blocking the exit. These fuckers are far too capable. There is no way we can allow them to retain knowledge of our kind. We will never be safe again.” Zande’s knuckles turned white where he gripped the steering wheel.
Zander jerked the wheel to the right and sped down a street, avoiding the approaching vehicles. “Look for a map of the base. We need to find another way oot of here.”
Hayden grabbed his cell phone and pulled up Google maps while Evzen called Killian and asked him to search as well. That was smart. He would likely find a way faster than Hayden.
Scanning the app, Hayden couldn’t see another way off the base. “Turn right up here.” Tires squealed behind them. The soldiers knew the place far better than they did.
“The other way off the base is all the way across from your current location,” Killian said through the speaker on Evzen’s phone.
“It’ll be better to turn back the way we came and fight our way off the base.” They wouldn’t have enough time to get Zander inside before the sun rose and fried him. They’d planned on this being a quick in and out in the dawn hours when there should have been the fewest humans on the base.
“There is no way we can face that number of soldiers,” Evzen pointed out.
Hayden studied the map closely. “I can’t see what is out in this section but turn left here. It’ll get us closer to help than any other direction.”
Evzen’s staff appeared in his hand and he chanted a spell that covered their movements. Smart thinking. If the soldiers went on a wild goose chase it might give them a chance to get away.
Hayden heard rubber burning and voices calling out orders in the cars behind them. The trick might not work after all when some were sent left and others right. Hayden glanced around as Zander drove.
“We’re running out of streets out here. We have to either head north or south to one of the exits,” Hayden told them. “We’re going to have to hope we can get over the fence out here and find a place to hide before the sun rises.”
Hayden’s heart was beating faster than it ever had before and his mating mark was burning like a whore in church. This had not gone like they’d expected. They had all anticipated getting in and out without much effort. That’s why only the three of them had gone on the mission. They were the leaders of the Tehrex Realm dealing with humans for fucks sake. Hubris wasn’t a good look for anyone.
They weren’t guaranteed success just because they were supernaturals and facing a weaker species. It was a lesson they all needed to remember. Zander stopped the rental at the end of a street, and they all jumped out.
Hayden shoved his phone in his back pocket and ran behind some residential units. At least he assumed soldiers lived in them based on the snores he was able to pick up. “The forest is to the west behind that structure down the street and our best bet, but we need to be quiet. Soldiers are sleeping in these buildings.”
Zander and Evzen cursed as they ran away from their car. Hayden’s animals prowled beneath the surface fueling his efforts. He was still weak and would have fallen behind if not for them.
They barely made it behind a large structure before headlights illuminated the spot where they’d been standing. Sunrise wasn’t too far off and they had a lot of ground to cover before they got to safety.
He had landed them in the biggest pile of shit, and he had to find a way to get them out of it. Too bad they were outnumbered and locked inside a nearly impenetrable military base.
Chapter 16
Isis paced a short circuit in the throne room while everyone discussed the potion, the phantom and how Theo was going to handle this news. Blaine wondered what the witch was thinking about. Her tears had dried up and she wore her burn-shit-down expression.
“I refuse to give up,” Isis announced as she wore a path on the stone floor.
The King approached her and everyone, including Blaine gasped. You didn’t get in Isis’s way when she was in one of these moods. The female would rearrange your face with a whispered word.
“I’m no’ asking you to stop searching. Blaine discovered more in one day than we were able to since you replayed the day that Troy attacked Izzy. He has just started his investigation.”
Blaine stepped forward with a smile on his face. “I promised you I’d discover what happened gorgeous, and I will.” Braeden crossed his arms over his chest and stepped behind Isis to glower at Blaine who smiled wider.
He was familiar with male disapproval. Part of being a lover was appreciating beauty when he saw it. There was no way he would ever be with the powerful witch. She was mated to Braeden, but Blaine would complement her.
All women like hearing they were seen as attractive by more than just their other half. It boosted their confidence and hopefully it would calm Isis down.
Isis leaned her back against Braeden and thrust her hands on her hips. “Seems to me as if you’ve hit a dead end. While it’s nice to know he might have been possessed by a phantom we can’t say for sure, so that doesn’t help Donovan get the fuck out of that cell. And it didn’t give you another direction to investigate.”
“You’re right. We weren’t able to determine Troy was definitely possessed. If we had, we would be asking how much of Troy’s life force had been drained by the phantom. Donovan might not be responsible after all. I will continue looking into this possibility and hunt for any evidence to support that theory.” Blaine wouldn’t stop until he had. Puzzles were his weakness. Once he started one, he couldn’t put it down until he solved it.
“We can run a tracking spell on the potion. I bet it’d lead us to the phantom. If we can capture this Unseelie nightmare we can force it to talk,” Pema interjected in a rush.
Isis stood up straight and nodded vigorously before shifting narrowed eyes to the King. “What exactly do we need to find?”
Angus ran his hand across the back of his neck and looked to Legette who shook his head from side to side once. “Shite, I know many doona want me to tell you this, but I trust you will no’ use it against me. I need proof that the Fae weakened Troy to support Donovan’s claim that he didna use lethal force like he claimed. That ‘tis the only explanation for why a Cuelebre dragon would be killed in a fight. If Donovan only meant to stop him and get Izzy to safety, then Troy would be alive today. Dragons are no’ easy to kill.”
“I know I haven’t been the easiest witch to deal with and I’m not going to apologize for it because Donovan is my son, but I promise to control my temper better. It’s inexcusable for me to keep destroying parts of your castle.”
“Don’t worry about that. I would do far worse if Blaze was in danger, besides it’s not as if you haven’t given the realm peace of mind. Without your spells and potions Cyril would be able to enter any home in Duamutef,” Kiera told Isis with a smile.
“
It has already been a trying few days, but we still have a tracking spell to cast.”
“Let’s go to the parapet before you do the magic.” Blaine wanted to be in dragon form and easily able to follow any trail that was revealed. He told the group as much.
“Can Braeden and I ride on your back, Blaine?” Isis laughed at Braden’s objection and ran toward the stairs.
“That’s cruel, mate,” Braeden growled.
Isis walked backwards with a smile on her face. “Would you rather search by foot? There are no cars on Khoth.:
Braeden’s gaze shifted to Angus and Isis slowed and turned around to walk with Isis. “When are you going to have your designers create the first car? It would make it much easier to get around.”
The King shook his head side to side. “Never. Their carbon footprint will cause as much damage as the Buggane. I considered electric cars, but I doona want to cut down forests to make space for roads. Dragons offer to fly non-fliers around for a small fee. We will stick with tradition. It’s good for the economy and Gaia.”
“We need to take the same approach on Earth. Problem is humans. They’ve tried to make changes, but they’ve already done the damage,” Pema added as the bag over her shoulder bounced on her hip. Blaine swore the satchel had to be enchanted. Anytime the witches needed anything they reached in and grabbed it.
Blaine let the others file out the door as he, Lorne and Legette stayed and removed their clothes. Blaine shoved his uniform in the bag around his shoulder then walked out the door, careful to stay out of sight of the witches.
He shifted into his dragon form and looked down on the events as they unfolded. It was a new angle to see the witches work and gave him a clear view of the gems in their palms. The stones glittered before the King placed the vial on their open palms. The stones flashed the second their mates landed on the witch’s shoulders.