by Joyee Flynn
“Nice to have power on our side,” I chuckled as I stood, still holding on to Brad.
“You can put me down,” he giggled.
“I don’t want to. You’re my security blanket right now.” He wrapped around me and gave me a wink, realizing I needed his comfort.
“Okay, but it might be hard for me to find Ramses if I’m wrapped around you like a monkey.”
“Well you can do it from my lap,” I chuckled. There was a banging at the door as we reached the first floor.
“Brad, go find out what you can. We’re going to have some fun,” Davis chuckled. I lowered Brad to his feet and he raced off. Then I flanked Gavin, acting as his second and guard. Davis checked that we were all ready and opened the door. “Leader Ellison, nice to see you. I was just going to call you.”
“What are you doing back here, Davis?” the man asked with narrowed eyes as he stepped into the house with the Sweeneys.
“Apparently my brother has gone missing. That is after he left coded messages that Ms. Sweeney threatened James and Brad. Alpha Ashby informed me immediately and I flew right over with my security team.”
“Are you fucking kidding me?” Ellison growled, staring at the Sweeneys. “And here you’re accusing them of taking Hilary!”
“Oh, we have her,” Davis said with a broad smile. “And surprise, surprise, the paternity test shows the baby isn’t my brother’s. Won’t you come in?”
“You kidnapped a member of my coven?” Ellison growled as he stormed after Davis. “Are you nuts?”
“What would you do to protect your family?” Davis asked as he raised an eyebrow at the other leader. “I thought that was a much more reserved move than my initial reaction to come in and take over this coven so they’d have to answer to me anyways.”
“Where is Hilary?” Mrs. Sweeney snarled, her fangs out.
“Woman, put your fangs away before I end you,” Davis threatened. She did and huddled against her husband. “Sit the fuck down, accept some coffee, and we’re going to talk like civilized people. None of this would have happened if you hadn’t been so goddamn difficult yesterday!”
“Just tell us if Hilary is okay. Please, Leader Davis?” Mr. Sweeney begged as they did as Davis wanted.
“Yes, she is fine. She’s sleeping peacefully. We knocked her out with an injection that my doctor assures me wouldn’t hurt her or the baby. The paternity test was the noninvasive one too so she’s just fine. But she is my prisoner.”
“She could never have subdued Ramses. She’s seven months pregnant and he’s got about fifty pounds on her. This can’t be right,” Mrs. Sweeney said thoughtfully.
“I can answer that. I hacked into Hilary’s phone,” Brad whispered as he held it up with a shaking hand. “She threatened us.”
Davis walked over to Brad who was sitting at the kitchen table off to the side, and took the phone from his shaking hand. Davis’s eyes went wide and then he let out a scary snarl/hiss sound. “Your daughter sent shooters after my brother’s mates-to-be? You’re lucky I don’t kill her!”
“Holy shit,” Ellison hissed as Davis showed him and the Sweeneys the proof. Then he handed me the phone. I felt my knees give out as I saw a picture of Brad with a laser sight targeted on him. The picture had been taken from another building across the street and the clarity was scary good.
“Breathe, man. Brad’s safe,” Gavin said gently as he rubbed my back.
“Need him,” I whispered, gasping for air. In a flash, Brad was placed in my lap, shaking as bad as I was. We wrapped around each other and tried to keep it together. “Yeah, he would have left with her if he’d seen that.”
“We’re okay. We’re okay,” Brad chanted over and over again.
“Yeah, and Ramses will be too. We’ll get him home, little mouse. I swear it.”
“Okay, I can deal,” he squeaked. I kissed his cheek and held him tightly. “You didn’t see the one of you.” I realized the phone was still in my hand and flipped to the next picture. It was me in the grocery store this morning picking up deodorant and a few things. Sure enough, I had a laser sight on my chest.
“I’m right here and just fine. We’ll stay here with guards until we go in for Ramses, okay? There’s nothing to worry about. Hilary can’t call in a hit on us, can she?”
“No, but I’m going to shift and bite her all over!” Brad’s eyes filled with tears as he clutched my shirt. “I want him back, James. She’s nuts. We have to get him back in case she does something else to him.”
“Just like prey to fall apart,” Mr. Sweeney growled. In a flash he was on the floor right by us, knocked off the stool.
“You have no room to criticize anyone!” Ellison bellowed. “Look at all the chaos your child has caused with your help. We could have been invaded over something like this. Are you fucking insane? You’re lucky Hilary’s still alive!”
“So what do we do now?” Gavin asked when everyone settled down.
Now wasn’t that just the five-dollar question? I had no idea. We needed Hilary awake to get Ramses’s location. It sounded simple but things rarely were. And that didn’t account for the condition we’d find our vampire in.
Chapter 9
Ramses
Apparently being trapped, even in a nice room, was enough for me to lose what was left of my mind… Well that and not knowing if Hilary was going to be good to her word. Once I had my meltdown, I decided to raid the fridge. Just as I picked out a few things, I had a thought.
Did I really trust the crazy woman to provide food for me?
Not even remotely.
I changed what I picked, making sure to only take sealed foods. There wasn’t much then, mostly snacks but it would be enough to tide me over. When I was done it crossed my mind to unpack but I shivered at the idea. That would be the same as accepting all this and I couldn’t do that just yet.
I picked up one of the baby books she’d left but it was the same as unpacking. And it made me want to break down again.
It was too quiet. I flipped on the TV for some background noise. But then something hit me, an idea at the back of my mind that hadn’t completely formulated. If I relaxed maybe it would come to the front of my brain.
Once the Xbox loaded I chose Vampire Diaries on Netflix. As much as it drove most vampires crazy, how wrong the show got the facts about us, I loved the drama. It was nice to watch someone else’s issues, even if it was fake.
Halfway through the third episode I was barely watching… It hit me. If the Xbox could have Netflix and games, it had Internet! I quickly grabbed the controller and brought up the menu. I needed to get a message to Brad. He was the computer geek in our relationship. Scrolling through all my options, I found I could download the Facebook app. It took forever but it was like waiting for water to boil.
And then of course it needed an update. I was sweating bullets by the time it finally opened. I quickly logged in, glad that Ant had made me create an account so I’d be up to date on all the pride’s postings. Then I posted everywhere! I left a message on my page saying if anyone got it to contact Brad or James to check their messages.
Then I sent Brad, James, Gavin, Ant, and Reginald a message where I was and to be careful of Hilary because she had hired men to hurt the men I cared about.
“I’ve got your lunch, Ramses,” the guard said from the other side of the door.
“I’m not going to eat anything you guys prepare for me,” I snapped as I darted across the room and shut off the Xbox. “I’m trapped, not stupid.”
“We’re not going to poison you, man. Hilary wants you to marry her, not dead,” he grumbled. He slid the food through the slot at the bottom of the door and while it smelled great, I wasn’t going to take the risk. I got a message out and I knew it was only a matter of time before someone came for me. Maybe this nightmare would be over soon.
I prayed it would be.
* * * *
Brad
My phone kept beeping with messages as I ruled out more and m
ore properties. Mr. and Mrs. Sweeney were sitting quietly in the kitchen, not starting trouble, but unwilling to help either. No matter what Davis threatened them with. Ellison was helping Ant and I since he’d given Davis full rein to do as he wanted.
“Why is my phone blowing up with messages?” Ant asked right before it rang. Then mine and Gavin’s did as well.
“Hello?” I answered as I glanced at the strange number.
“It’s Gigi. I couldn’t get James on the phone. Ramses figured out a way to get on Facebook from wherever he is. He posted on his wall that if anyone saw the post to tell you and James to check your messages.”
“I knew he was a genius!” I exclaimed and quickly pulled up my Facebook page. I read his message and let out a strangled sob. “He’s at the Sweeneys’ family estate in a cell encased in concrete.”
“Let’s head out!” Davis ordered, turning to Ellison. “I’m not holding you responsible for any of this. But they better be here when we return and Hilary as well. I’m leaving a guard on her just in case. After you hear Ramses’s side of the story, I’ll allow you to make a ruling and then we can go back to our peaceful ways.”
“He’s a member of my coven, Davis. I’m not fighting you on any of this. Hell, if I’d known what was going on I would have done the same thing. Fuck, I’m ready to lock up the whole family.”
“We haven’t done anything wrong!” Mr. Sweeney shouted. All it took was dirty looks from both leaders and the man shut his mouth and sat back down.
“Let’s go get our man,” James said with a whoop as he threw me over his shoulder and raced out the front door. I laughed at his exuberance and even more, the hope that soon we would all be together again.
Ten minutes later we were breaking every speed limit there was to get to the Sweeneys’ family estate. I was belted in and clutching onto the handle for dear life.
“I can slow down,” James offered again.
“No, I can do this,” I squeaked. “I trust you. Just don’t crash. And I never, ever want to be in a vehicle that’s driving like this again.”
“I’ll make sure none of us ever get kidnapped so we don’t have to.”
“Why is he freaking out?” Davis asked James quietly.
“His parents were killed in an accident while Brad was in the backseat,” my lion gently answered.
“Wow, you are brave, Brad. I don’t know if I would be handling it as well as you are,” Davis praised. I wasn’t stupid, I knew he was stroking my ego so I’d smile and ignore my freaking out. But I appreciated the effort.
When the Hummer stopped I was the first out of the vehicle, gasping for air as I knelt on the ground. I waved everyone off when they came to help, trying to get my shit together.
“I’m good. Let’s go rescue our man,” I said firmly as I stood on shaky legs. I was glad they took me at my word and let my spazzing- out go. I didn’t need to feel any more like a freak.
“Alpha, you’re staying out here with Leader Davis, Ant, and Brad,” James said firmly.
“Yeah, right,” Gavin growled and checked the clip in the gun he got from one of Davis’s guards.
“Gavin,” James replied gently. “If you go in there, my job is to protect you. That’s why Leader Davis isn’t going. And would you really leave Ant alone in case there’s trouble?”
“Ass. Hole,” Gavin growled, knowing he was bested.
“Yeah, I’m totally trying to be a douche,” James growled right back.
“Fine. Go save your man and then we can celebrate by locking up the Sweeneys.” Gavin gave James a quick hug. “You get hurt and I’ll sick Ant on you.”
“After I spank him,” I added. James turned to me and I launched myself into his arms. “You come back in one piece and bring our man to us or you’re both getting spanked for a week.”
“Promises, promises,” he chuckled. I got a quick kiss and then I watched James and three of Davis’s guards head towards the house, armed to the nines.
They would come back, I told myself. They had to come back and with Ramses.
* * * *
James
The moment I knew everyone was safe and staying put, especially Brad, I ran at full speed towards the house. I didn’t slow down, lowering my shoulder and ramming the door in. It smarted a bit but I kept going. Aiming as I ran in case we hit trouble before we thought we would, we found the staircase.
“On three,” Mark whispered as he grabbed the doorknob. I gave him a nod and he counted it off before throwing the door open. Dave and Bill, the other guard, followed right behind me, Mark covering our rear.
We moved with stealth down the hall and I headed in the direction of a guy clearing his throat. The vampire got quite the surprise when he turned around and four men were holding guns on him.
“Want the key?” he asked in a calm voice as he held his hands up. “Right front pocket.”
“You’re not fighting us?” I was shocked and let it show as Dave retrieved the key.
“Hilary isn’t only pointing her crazy at you guys. She said she’d kill my boy if I didn’t help her or told anyone. I’ve been trying to make arrangements to get him to another coven with my aunt while this was going on before I told Leader Davis where his brother was.”
“That bitch needs to die,” Mark grumbled. “I swear she’s getting too many passes because she’s pregnant. And we can’t do it after the baby is born because then it will be an orphan. And her parents aren’t any better either.”
“I vote for the baby going to his or her real father and locking them all up in a padded room for life,” the guy with his hands up offered.
“You know whose baby it is?”
“Yeah, so does Hilary,” he answered with a shrug. “She had protected sex with two guys that she thought were from good enough families that her parents wouldn’t die of shame. The real guy she was seeing she dumped when she found out she was pregnant. He’s a good guy.”
“Okay, one drama at a time. Can I get out of here please?” Ramses bellowed from the other side of the door. I smiled. It was so him.
“Only because there’s a hot little mouse waiting to know you’re okay outside,” I called back as Dave unlocked the door. He threw it open and I holstered my gun. Ramses raced right into my arms.
“I knew you’d come for me,” he whispered in between peppering my face with kisses. “Did you guys get my message? I can’t believe I didn’t figure it out sooner that I had Internet. And you need to know that I would never leave you guys. I’m so sorry for those messages. I didn’t know what else to do. I tried to tell you what was going on but she was right there and—”
“Breathe, sweetie,” I said gently as I rubbed my hands over his back. “Just take a breath. We figured it out right away. Don’t worry about us. Let’s get you to Brad.”
“Yes. I’ve missed our little mouse.” I saw the tears spilling out of his eyes as he grabbed my hand and practically dragged me after him. I ran with him, my eyes raking him to make sure he was okay. He seemed unharmed but that didn’t mean he wasn’t traumatized by what happened.
We all were.
“Ramses!” Brad shouted as he jumped out of the Hummer and raced towards us the moment we were outside. Ramses dropped my hand to catch him, twirling him around, before practically jumping me with Brad still in his arms.
“I’m so fucking sorry,” Ramses sobbed and I realized then that this just wasn’t the happy reunion I’d envisioned.
Ramses obviously thought we blamed him, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. He didn’t do anything wrong. We all tumbled to the ground, Ramses on top of both of us, holding on to us tightly.
“I didn’t mean it. I swear I didn’t mean it. She was going to kill you. She had pictures and I couldn’t risk you guys.”
“We know, Ramses,” Brad said gently as he wrapped himself around Ramses as I held them both. “We figured it out. It wasn’t your fault.”
“But you had to hear those messages. You won’t ever forgive m
e for saying that stuff to you.”
“Babe, we were never mad,” I whispered in his ear. “Seriously, we figured it out about five minutes after we listened to them. You were so smart to leave us hints.”
“I knew you were a genius,” Brad added. “I was upset but we know you couldn’t help it. None of that matters now. You’re back where you belong and we want to mate you.”
“What?” Ramses gasped as he lifted his head and stared down at us. “You can’t be serious? After all the shit I put you through you want to mate me?”
“More than anything. We don’t want anyone to ever tear us apart again. I love you both so much that nothing sounds better than being with you forever.”
“Me too,” Brad squeaked. “I need both my favorite men.”
Ramses glanced between us, his mouth hanging open in shock. Just as I thought he was seriously going to say no a smile broke out on his lips. “Yes! Yes, let’s mate!”
“Let’s get you home and deal with Hilary and the Sweeneys and then we’ll plan out what comes next.” They both turned somber. “Personally, I think we should live with you in that swank house,” I added lightly when I saw the mention of the Sweeneys ruin the happy mood. “And that bed. I can’t live without your bed. It’s too nice to not have me in it.”
“And that’s the only reason, huh?” Ramses teased as we all untangled.
“It is a really nice bed,” Brad agreed, giving me a wink. “It’s huge.”
“I know, right? And that shower! I could mate him just for his shower.”
“You know I have issues in my past with people wanting me for my money or to be close to the power my brother has,” Ramses grumbled. “It’s not very nice to tease me about it.”
“He’s a good trainer too. I mean, the rewards he gives when you finish his set workout for you are amazing,” Brad said, ignoring Ramses’s comment.
“I witnessed some of that. They were nice rewards,” I chuckled.