Unconditional

by Lauren Dane

  She reached up and squeezed his hands while she looked to Josh. She was still pale, and the stench of his fear and that wrong energy hung in the car heavily, rendering his wolf skittish and unsettled.

  “There is something…else. Not a mage. Not a turned witch. Something I’ve never felt before. More than that, they took shifters too. They smelled like Pacific wolves,” she mumbled as he pulled away from the curb.

  They had a few MIA wolves, but that hadn’t been public knowledge. In fact he’d been inclined to believe the wolves they hadn’t heard from were just temporarily out of pocket. Some traveled for business, some could have been on a vacation.

  “I didn’t smell any other wolves there.” Akio spoke quietly as he kept his hands on her shoulders.

  She gulped water from the bottle Josh handed her.

  “No, not on the ground. In the magic. In…whatever it was I felt. It took power from all sorts of Others. Not just witches. Whatever it is, it’s bad. So so bad.”

  Akio made a low, frustrated sound. “We knew they were taking wolves. But this… Listen, we need to go to Boston, Josh. Right now. I need her to talk to Cade about this whole thing. The wolves need to know what is happening.”

  The imperative to protect his people drove Josh. Filled his veins until he couldn’t think straight.

  She reached out and squeezed his hand. “I feel it too. I guess it happened when we joined or whatever. I know you need to talk to Cade. I can call Clan Owen from the airport or whatever.”

  “At least let Gina meet us at the airport before we go. You were out! I had to use the link to get you.”

  “And you did. I’m here. I’m working on being fine again. Gina’s not a doctor or a nurse. I’m the one who felt it. I’ll describe it to someone at Owen. I promise.”

  He frowned.

  “I’d kiss you to reassure you, but I have vomit breath. Which is not romantical in the least.”

  “I’ll arrange a flight out as soon as possible.” Akio leaned close enough to kiss the top of Michelle’s head. “You scared the hell out of me. Let’s not do that again, all right?”

  She saluted him and leaned back into the seat, closing her eyes as he plotted the ways he’d kill whoever had done this to his mate.

  Akio spoke low on his phone, making arrangements to get back to Boston. Internally, he was relieved to be taking her there instead of Seattle. Witch politics were outside his scope, but he understood wolf politics and he could protect her better with that knowledge. He knew the witches had their own response to this kidnapping thing, but it involved more than just them. Wolves were being taken now. And he’d do whatever he had to to protect his people.

  “I need you to talk to Tracy, Nick and Gabe too.”

  She sighed. “I need to brush my teeth. And I need a shower. At your place, not theirs.”

  He stifled a smile. If she felt well enough to say that, she was getting better. “All right, I’ll make you a deal.”

  “I’m not interested in a deal, Josh. I want to go take a shower and brush my teeth. Where I have my clothes and toothbrush. Then you can haul me to your Alphas and to Boston. But I’m not deal-making for anything else.”

  Akio snorted but wisely continued his call.

  “All right.” Josh concentrated on driving and keeping the smile off his face. “Mighty wolfish of you.”

  She kept her eyes closed. “What is?”

  “You want your own territory. It’s where you feel safest.”

  “I don’t want to be naked where another female wolf’s magick is. Sue me.”

  He grinned. “Beautiful, it makes me hot when you’re like this. It appeals to my wolf.” He took her hand and squeezed it.

  She snorted. “Everything appeals to your wolf. He’s pretty easy.”

  Akio laughed then. “She’s got your number.”

  “Only for you. Fine. I’ll take you home. To our place and you can clean up. I’ll call to see if they want to come over or if we can go on our way to the airport.” Wasn’t like it was an option to keep Cade Warden waiting on such key info. Nick, Tracy and Gabe would know that too.

  Chapter Fourteen

  After her shower and a great deal of scrubbing the stench of the death magic off her skin, she’d put her hair in a quick ponytail. When she stepped out of the bathroom, Tracy and Gabe were at the apartment, waiting for her.

  “I know it’s hard, but anything you can tell us about what you felt would really be helpful.” Gabe watched her intently as Josh put a mug into her hands.

  “Drink that. I made a call to Gage while you were in the shower, and he said tea would help you feel better. He wants you to call and fill him or Lark in on what you felt when you get the chance. They’re going to try to send someone down, or at least have a more trained witch go to the scene. But there’s something major going on, and they’ve got all their powerful folks working on figuring out who this big bad is and how to stop it. They don’t want just anyone going out there, especially given how you reacted to it.” Josh pushed a sandwich her way. “He also said protein helps after you get a shock to your magick the way you did.”

  Akio sat on her other side, squeezing her shoulder. “Your color is a little better. You will sleep on the trip out to Boston.”

  Suddenly all that alpha male in the room drowned her. All that attention and concern stifled her, even as she found it reassuring.

  Tracy rolled her eyes with a grin and then shrugged. “I know. I grew up in a house full of them and now I have two of my own. You’ll get used to it.”

  “This is nice. I mean, thank you, Josh for the sandwich and for touching base with Owen for me. And thank you, Akio, for your concern. But all this alpha-male smothering is a lot and I need to breathe.”

  Akio eased back. Only a little. But enough. Gabe smiled and winked at Tracy, who leaned into his body and took up some of his attention.

  On the other hand, Josh stared right back at her. “Tough. You scared the hell out of me, Michelle. It’s going to take me a while before I can manage to feel any better about it. I need to know you’re okay. My wolf needs to take care of you.” He tipped his chin. “Eat while you talk.”

  She sighed but obeyed, eating automatically, and yes, after several bites of the rare roast beef on the sandwich, she did indeed feel better.

  In between bites, she explained to Tracy and Gabe what she’d felt at the scene, in the circle, and tried to make sense of the way she’d sensed the energy of Pacific wolves. She was certain they’d stolen the magick from the wolves, the way they had with the witches. But who they were and where they’d gone was still a mystery. And this new and altogether terrifying presence she’d picked up at the murder scene made her very concerned.

  They didn’t overstay their welcome after that. Only urging Josh, Michelle and Akio to stay safe and check in frequently. Michelle needed to pack a quick bag, and they were on the way to the airport where Akio had arranged for a plane to Boston. They’d added Pacific wolves to Jack’s team so Akio would be free to fly back to Boston with Josh and Michelle.

  “I’ll be all right, you know,” Michelle murmured to Josh after Akio had gone off to check in and connect with their pilot. “Your job is here. Your job is protecting the Alpha trio and you can’t do that if you’re with me.”

  “My job is protecting my pack. Which I’m doing by going to Boston. And now my job is protecting my mate. You’re out of your fucking mind if you think I’d let you fly across the country without me. Even with Akio. We just mated. You’ve had an extraordinarily shitty week. I’m with you and that’s all there is to it, so don’t waste your energy arguing any further.”

  She leaned against him, sensing how agitated he was, wanting to comfort and soothe. “Okay then.” Since they needed to wait until they got all the stuff in place to take off, she took that time to call Owen and ended up with voicemail. She left as detailed a message as she could about what she’d encountered at the scene. About that other sort of magick she’d sensed. Not relate
d to the mages or the turned witches. Something she’d never encountered the likes of before. Even talking about it hours later, it filled her with dread. A dread Josh must have felt through the bond because he pulled her closer, wrapping his arms around her until she felt a little better. It worked both ways.

  Akio returned and hustled them onto the plane where she strapped in. The melatonin she’d taken just an hour before began to make her eyelids droop, and it wasn’t very long until she gave in and let herself sleep.

  Josh kept an arm around her as they flew. Reassured by the slow, deep rise and fall of her chest. Gage had told him once she slept, her magick would begin to heal her and replenish from the shock of what she’d experienced at the murder scene.

  Their bond, golden, brilliant and strong, hummed between them, and his wolf eased back. A little. He’d been in a high state of agitation since he’d seen her slump over and their bond had gone pale and thin.

  “She’s going to be all right.” Akio handed him a cup of coffee. “So strong, this one. Witches have a spine of steel. She’ll get along well with Renee and Kendra, the witches I know in Boston.”

  “Renee is Jack’s mate and Kendra is her sister, right?”

  Akio nodded. “Kendra is mated to Max de La Vega, who is the Alpha of the jaguar jamboree in Boston. She took on a jaguar without being bitten. Her magick just sort of…absorbed it. Insane how powerful these two sisters are. I’d wondered if they were an anomaly. Neither of them operated within a clan or a coven. But I’ve met other witches since, and the women most especially seem to have the hearts of lions.”

  Josh snorted. “Too bad they don’t have the physical strength of one. She’s so fragile. It fills me with terror. You only saw pictures of the results of what they did to Allie. My wolf is not happy at all. Keeps sending me mental images of that as he snarls.”

  “Not like you’re going to be able to manage her.” Akio grinned before it faded. “We’ll keep her safe. You have my word that I will do all I can. Do you think she’d ever consider taking on the change?”

  Some mates who weren’t wolves opted to be bitten and go through the change after they were claimed. It made them physically stronger and longer-lived as well. She’d already have a longer life as she was a witch, but the physical strength was something he really liked the idea of.

  “I might suggest it. In the future. She’s had enough to deal with lately.”

  Akio nodded. “Would you two consider staying in my home while you’re in Boston? It’s safer than any hotel. I’m near the pack house and so I can easily up the number of guards. And I’ll feel better, safer, if she’s safer.” He paused. “I know this is hard for you. She’s yours. I don’t dispute that. But she’s mine too in many ways. I just want to protect her.”

  Josh understood it, though he couldn’t have before Akio became their anchor. This male wouldn’t ever get between Josh and Michelle. But he loved Michelle because of their bond and would die to protect her. That meant a lot. And he didn’t feel threatened. Not like he did when other males came around. His wolf recognized Akio as theirs in some sense.

  Josh nodded. “I’d appreciate that.”

  She woke up to Josh kissing her softly. “Hello, beautiful. We’ll be landing in a few minutes.”

  She stretched, feeling a lot better after sleeping pretty much the entire flight. “I’m sorry, did I drool on you?”

  He laughed. “Not that I noticed. You didn’t even stir as Akio and I talked. You were out. How do you feel?”

  “I’m glad I slept. I do feel like my magick has recharged. I’m not feeling dirty the way I did before. Or weighted down by whatever I brushed up against.”

  “Good.”

  She stood. “I could totally get used to private-plane travel.”

  Akio approached, smiling when he caught sight of her awake. “I was just checking with the pilot. You look better.” He hugged her before setting her back to look her over carefully.

  “I’m fine. Though I will clean up a little before we land.”

  “Bathroom is through there.” Akio pointed.

  She grabbed her purse and headed back. Nicely, it wasn’t one of those teeny bathrooms they had on commercial flights. This one was roomy, and in the medicine cabinet, it had toothbrushes and other things she’d need to freshen up with.

  She brushed her teeth and washed her face, moisturized and dealt with her hair. She was going to meet the king, or supreme Alpha or whatever he was called officially, and that was important to both Josh and Akio so she didn’t want to look like she just fell out of bed.

  Thank goodness she’d tossed her makeup bag into her purse before she’d left so she could do some basic foundation, blush and some lipstick. By the time she joined Akio and Josh as they’d announced their descent and to get strapped in, she felt a lot more human.

  Josh smiled as she took his hand.

  “Are you nervous about flying?”

  “No.” And she realized he must have felt it through the bond. “No, I’m just…I want to make a good impression on Cade and the rest of the wolves. It’s sort of like meeting the family, I guess.”

  “Beautiful, they’re going to love you. And they’re your family now too. Nothing to be nervous about because you’re wonderful. You’re going to like Cade and Grace a lot. I promise.”

  It seemed a lot to promise but she let it go. She wasn’t a wolf, after all. But she did love Josh and she hoped they could see it.

  Akio leaned out to squeeze her knee. “They’re going to love you. Josh radiates joy. You’re the reason. If for nothing else, they’d love that. But as it happens, though I’m obviously biased, you’re pretty amazing. And courageous. They’re going to appreciate your coming all the way across the country to talk to Cade and Grace in person.”

  Michelle sucked in a breath and hoped he was right. Josh kissed the top of her head and murmured that he loved her. And for that moment it was more than enough to make her smile.

  “I arranged for a car to meet us with a few of my guards.” Akio exited the plane with Josh just behind Michelle. They shielded her, which was silly as, hello, she was a cop for goodness’ sake! But it was sweet anyway, and to be honest, it made her feel better given what had happened to Allie.

  A very large male raised a hand in greeting.

  Akio waved back. “That’s Dave Warden, Tracy’s cousin and Grace’s personal guard.”

  “Why’s he here then? Are things that bad?”

  “Good question. I just asked for guards. I assume Dave would only leave Grace if the situation merited it.”

  Josh’s body tightened and he got even closer to Michelle.

  “Hey, get in.” Dave opened the door and indicated they climb up into the clearly armored SUV. He grinned at Michelle. “Introductions in a moment, let’s get out of the open.”

  Akio had Josh go first and then Michelle, Akio bracketed her other side, and Dave got in the front seat, ordering the driver to get moving.

  Dave turned around once they cleared the airfield. “I’m Dave Warden. I’m sorry for lack of a proper introduction back there, I just wanted you safe right away.”

  He held a hand out and she took it, his totally dwarfing hers. Josh growled low in his throat, and Akio narrowed his eyes at Dave as well. She sighed and looked to Akio, befuddled.

  “Really? You do it too?”

  Dave laughed.

  “I’m Michelle Slattery. Mind filling us in on what’s happening so they’ll ease back a little?”

  “It’s what mated wolves do. It’s all right, I get it. There’s been a fair bit of chatter in the Other community about that scene in Portland. What happened to the witch.”

  “The witch was my best friend. She has a name. Allie.”

  Josh squeezed her hand. “He didn’t mean offense.”

  “No, I apologize. I was told she was your friend, and if it had happened to anyone I knew and cared about, I’d be upset if anyone referred to her like that as well. So gossip about how Allie wa
s found is all over the place, as is talk about you coming out here. Jack called from Seattle where he and Lex, the Alpha of the Cascadia Werewolf Pack, had talked. They wanted extra people on you. Better safe than sorry. Especially after the trouble the local witches here have had with mages.”

  He explained that Jack’s mate Renee and her sister had been targeted by some turned witches and mages. Mages with ties to some human separatist groups who’d been working with the disgruntled brother of one of the local ruling members of the jaguar jamboree.

  Michelle shook her head. “I can’t understand any of this. Why anyone would do that. I understand addiction. God knows I’ve seen my share of junkies. But a shifter working with human-only bigots? To turn over family to those who’d kill them? What is the world coming to?”

  “I wish I knew, Michelle.” Dave looked to Josh. “They’re putting a big dinner together at the pack house. I’m sure you guys are hungry. Grace wanted me to extend an invitation to stay there if you wanted. They have plenty of room.”

  Akio shook his head. “They’re staying with me.”

  “Okay. Good idea. Your place is locked up tight.”

  Discussion went on all around her as she leaned her head back against the seat and listened, her eyes closed. A wall of exhaustion hit her, though she’d been feeling all right after she’d slept on the plane.

  Everything swamped her, leaving her overwhelmed and angry at herself for allowing it. There wasn’t any other thing to do but exactly what she was doing.

  She tried to manage it all. Because what else could she do? Allie sure as hell deserved better than a best friend who was reeling and out of sorts all while she was overjoyed and in love and at turns filled with so much grief she choked on it.

  She wanted to sleep for a week. To sleep and sleep and when she woke up she wanted everything to have stopped being so painful and complicated. She just wanted to be with Josh and she wanted Allie back and for all this weird stuff to not be happening.