The Ties That Bond (Love Conquers All Book 1)

by Riki Bishop

  Okay, Levs. I’ll try it. I love you too. I’ll talk to you when I wake up and I’ll see you soon.

  With that, we end the call and that just makes things harder. I know she’s uncomfortable and I’m not there to help her with that comfort. I know just holding her in my arms helps her sleep as much as it does me. “Alright, let’s get this over with. Did you call Shay?” I ask Ryder.

  “Yeah. She said she’s doing fine and has been with Willow and Alexis since she’s been off work. She said since tomorrow is her day off, they’re going to have a girls’ day and just hang out. I hate being away. What if something happens while we’re gone?”

  “I’m glad that they are all close. It makes things a little easier, but not much. I know what you mean man. I hate being away from Willow. Even more now that she’s pregnant and in danger. We just can’t think like that. If something were to happen, Jason is there and there are still great warriors that are guarding things. They will be okay. Besides, we’re going to be here for a few days at most. I’m going to have Victor, James, and Lucas stay here to watch the Vampires and Nathan’s mom. If anything happens, we’ll know about it.” I finish as we pull up to the Packhouse. We step out and are greeted by the King and Queen. “Thank you for having us King Tristan. We appreciate you for thinking about the alliance.” I say and I am grateful. Hopefully, this will shed some light on what has been going on here that we didn’t know about. That’s the hope anyway.

  “The pleasure is ours. I have been trying to reach out to the former King to set an alliance, but he kept turning it down. Shall we go inside and get you guys settled and fed and then we can discuss things.” King Tristan says. We follow him inside and he shows us to our rooms. I call Willow before showering and going downstairs. It’s around seven in the morning here so, it around two in the morning back in the States. Maybe I should wait until later to call her. Especially if she’s sleeping. It’s been hard for her to get to sleep and every time she turns around it’s like she gets bigger. Before I can finish my internal debate, there’s a knock on my door. “Come in.” I say, getting things ready for a quick shower.

  “Hey, we need to talk.” Ryder says as he walks in.

  “Okay, let me get a shower really quick and then we can.” I say walking to the bathroom. I took the quickest shower I have ever taken before. I wonder what he needs to talk about. Then, I think about Willow and how she and the pups are doing. I just want to be home next to her. I get out of the shower and dry off and get dressed before walking out to the room. “So, what did you want to talk about Ry?” I ask my brother.

  “What if all of this is just a dead end? What if we don’t find anything more out than what we already know? I was thinking that if this talk didn’t bring any new information about the threat, we could just head home afterwards. We’re leaving warriors here so they can keep us informed on what’s going on. We need to be ready to hear anything. They could even not be in the United Kingdom now and be in the United States putting their plan into motion. What if they wanted it to where we weren’t there to make Willow an easier target?” Ryder says. I know he hates being away from Shay as much as I do Willow and he does have a point. I never thought that this could be a part of their plan.

  “Alright, let’s go talk to King Tristan and we’ll go from there. I’m okay with leaving tonight if we don’t find out any new information or if we do find out that Nathans mom and the Vampires are in the States, we will head back as soon as possible because that means our pack is in danger along with my mate and pups.” I said and Ryder just nods, and we head to find the King.

  “Ah, King Levi, Beta Ryder! Glad you could join us. Please help yourselves to some food and then we’ll go into my office.” King Tristan says. We grab some food and sit at the table with King Tristan. I have had a bad feeling since Ryder talked to me earlier. I just can’t shake it. I don’t know what it is, but I decide that I’ll push it off and we’ll head home shortly after we sign the treaty.

  We’re heading to his office about thirty minutes later. He sits behind his desk and Ryder and I each grab a chair in front of his desk. “Shall we get started with signing papers? I would like to inform you that after this meeting we will be heading back home. My mate is pregnant with triplets and she doesn’t sleep well, and I would like to be there with her since I can provide her with some comfort.” I explain.

  “Ah, yes. I heard you and your mate are expecting the most powerful beings that have existed. Let’s speak of this first. I have heard of the prophecy of the three beings that are to be born. One is a female that will become the next Moon Goddess and the other two will be males. One is to rule over the Vampires and the other is meant to rule the Werewolves. You are one lucky man. There are a lot of people that would give anything in order to have such power. I have heard the Vampires talking about wanting to behold this power. I understand that in your mates bloodline there are Vampires on her mother’s side. I also know that since your mates uncle fell out of grace with the Vampire King he killed him and took the throne. We have been keeping an eye on him since we do not trust him. He has taken a Queen by the name of Summer. I have heard whispers about them wanting to get their hands on the greatest power that is to be known. In fact, I found out that they left the country a few days ago.” I’m shocked and pissed.

  “You mean to tell me; you knew all of this and knew that they left the country and didn’t bother to call and inform me? No one is going to get their hands on my pups nor Willow. Not her uncle or her brothers mother. Nathan, your mother’s name is Summer, correct?” I ask.

  “Yes it is. I didn’t expect this. This is a lot. If they have teamed up then we need to get home as soon as possible. My mother is not stable and from what Josiah has filled me in on this uncle, I don’t know who is more unstable.” Nathan said and I couldn’t agree more.

  “I agree. King Tristan, if you don’t mind let’s sign this alliance and I trust that you will file it on your end, and I will on my end. I’m going to leave some warriors here in case anything happens. I must get home to my mate. We spend another hour going over the contract of the alliance and then Nathan, Ryder, and myself are packed and heading to the airport along with the five warriors out of the ten that I brought. I’m going to give Willow a call. It’ll take another hour to get to the airport from the Kingdom and I need to let her know what I found out.

  RING. RING. RING. She answers after the third ring and she sounds like she’s been crying.

  Willow, baby, what’s wrong. Why are you crying?

  You need to get home as soon as you can. I’m sorry Levi. They came out of nowhere. I couldn’t do anything. You need to tell Ryder that Shay is in the hospital and critical condition. He can’t feel how bad it is with how far away you guys are. The Vampires came out of nowhere. Jason and the warriors held them off as much as they could. We have around fifty of our warriors down and they managed to get to Shay. I have been hiding in our room where we discussed since I can’t do anything, but Jason left the mind-link open so I could hear what was going on. I felt Shay go down. Jason managed to get her to the hospital in time, but it’s still critical. Levi, baby, they are still here, and the fight is still going on. They are looking for me. Oh no. They’re in the room. I have got to…AHHH! LEAVE ME ALONE! LEVI!

  The line went dead. “FUCK!” I roar. Ryder jumps.

  “What the hell!” Ryder exclaims. I explain everything to him including Shay being in critical condition.

  “Ryder, we’re going to get there soon. That’s not the worst part. They managed to capture Willow.” I say. We’re both shaking trying to contain our wolves. “STEP ON IT!” I shout to one of my warriors.

  CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO: KIDNAPPED

  WILLOW’S POV

  Restless nights of sleep suck. At least when Levi is here I have some comfort from the mate bond, but with him being gone I can’t get comfortable. I’m used to him rubbing my back as I fall asleep. That’s the main source of pain that keeps me up at night. Today marks thre
e months left until these pups come out. If they don’t come out sooner. On the bright side, after we get done with work, we girls are supposed to have a girls' day. I have some papers to file and contracts to go over. So, just the typical stuff. This alliance with the United Kingdom Pack will be a great thing. It will allow us to expand to a different country. I have gone over everything in the contract and I have noticed that the previous King had denied this treaty each time it was offered. Which is stupid on his part because it allows us to have more area and more allies that won’t start a war if we do something they don’t like.

  I have been working for a few hours and have talked to Levi through text. I miss him, but I suppose I’ll live. I have also been able to go over a major investment that was offered to us. It would allow us to expand our territory to unclaimed lands and we can add more businesses and homes that will in turn create more money flow and jobs. I need to call and talk to Nathan since some of the lands would be on his territory along with a few other Alphas. I decide to do a conference call with them. So, I dial Alpha Nathan, Alpha Josiah, Alpha Garrett, and Alpha Ethan. They all answer with a ‘hello’ and I begin the conversation.

  ME: Hello everyone. Thank you for taking my call I have some important business to discuss with each of you. That’s why I decided to hold a conference call instead of just calling each of you individually. I have been given a proposal to go over that will allow us to expand each of our territories along with bringing in more jobs, money, and homes. We need to claim the unclaimed territory that is in each of our territories and then we can go over each business that would be built on each land. You know King Levi and I allow each of you to build whichever business you would like. So, all I need is, if you agree, is for you to gather some warriors and claim each land in your territory.

  NATHAN: I’ll get on the phone with my Beta and tell him to get some warriors. I think it’s a good idea. It’ll make things better for those who are struggling. I do have to go; we are going into the meeting with the King here and I don’t want to miss it. I’ll call you later sis. Alphas I look forward to getting to know each of you. With that, Nathan disconnected from the call. I’m glad him a Levi get along. He seems like he’ll be a great leader.

  GARRETT: Send me the proposal on what we’re talking about with how much land and the restrictions. I will go over it and then get back with you later today, if not tomorrow morning. Thank you, Queen Willow. This could be big; I just like to go over the fine details. That is how the call went with the rest of the Alpha’s as well. After we hang up the phone I fax over the proposals to each of them before I get a call from the Beta from Nathan’s pack.

  Hello?

  Hello Queen Willow. I would like to discuss the new Alpha of the Forestmoon Pack. I don’t like him. He is wanting to come in and change the way I had things set up. I have been doing running this pack for a couple of months now and I don’t like that I wasn’t informed about some stranger coming in and taking over.

  “Excuse me? I understand that you may be upset, but you are just the Beta. You were told my King Levi that you would be interim Alpha until there would be another found and if one wasn’t found within four months, then you would become Alpha. Now, I do not like that you are talking about my family like that and you should know that it is not wise to speak about your Alpha like that. I will allow you to stay on as Beta until Nathan returns, but then you will be stripped of your power unless you can learn to respect those who outrank you. Now if that is all, I have a business to attend to.

  I never cared for that guy. He always did think he was better than everyone else. Stuck in his old ways. I don’t like how he treats women and the omegas in that pack. Levi and I have been there multiple times since he took over as interim Alpha and each time he doesn’t change. We’ve threatened to replace him, and we tried a few times, but no one wanted to step up because they feared the Beta. I don’t have time to dwell on it because Jason comes rushing into my office. “Jason? What’s going on?” I ask rushing around my desk to him.

  “Willow, we need to get you into your bedroom as soon as possible. Your uncle is here with an army of Vamps. Also, Shay was attacked. One of them got to her when she was on her way back from the hospital. I was able to get her to the hospital, but she’s in critical condition. They stabbed her in the side, and it was about twenty minutes before I found her. Come on. Levi will kill me if anything happens to you. I already must face Ryder when he gets back. I don’t want to face Levi too.” He says. My sister was hurt. They are here. When did they get here? Why wasn’t I informed? I can’t move.

  “S-Shay? Why? Why didn’t anyone inform me of what’s going on?” I ask in a shaky voice. Jason pulls my arm and leads me to the room where I was supposed to go since I can’t shift. It’s supposed to be safer than our offices. I want to be out there fighting with them, but I know I won’t be much help since it’s me they want and…I’m brought back to my phone ringing. I look at it and it’s Levi

  Willow, baby, what’s wrong. Why are you crying?

  You need to get home as soon as you can. I’m sorry Levi. They came out of nowhere. I couldn’t do anything. You need to tell Ryder that Shay is in the hospital and critical condition. He can’t feel how bad it is with how far away you guys are. The Vampires came out of nowhere. Jason and the warriors held them off as much as they could. We have around fifty of our warriors down and they managed to get to Shay. I have been hiding in our room where we discussed since I can’t do anything, but Jason left the mind-link open so I could hear what was going on. I felt Shay go down. Jason managed to get her to the hospital in time, but it’s still critical. Levi, baby, they are still here, and the fight is still going on. They are looking for me. Oh no. They’re in the room. I have got to…AHHH! LEAVE ME ALONE! LEVI!

  I drop my phone and it shatters against the hardwood floor. “Get off of me!” I struggle to get out of the stronghold that is holding me.

  “Now, now. Is that a way to treat family? I just want to talk, but it seems that you want to do things the hard way.” The man says.

  “LET GO OF ME! I don’t know you!” He laughs behind me before he places a cloth to my mouth and the world goes black. My last thoughts were just hoping that Levi got here soon and found me because I have been kidnapped. The last thing that we wanted to happen. Fuck.

  CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE: TRUTHS

  Ugh. My body feels heavy. My eyes were even heavier. I don’t want to wake up because I know I won’t be at home. The images on what happened yesterday never left. I snap my eyes open and wince as the light hits them. I immediately draw my hands to my belly to make sure my babies are still in there and moving. I’m still pregnant and the pups are still moving around.

  “It’s about time you woke up. You’ve been out for a while now.” A voice says from beside me. My gaze snaps to the man across the room. It’s the man that claims to be my uncle.

  “What do you want? You’re not getting my pups. You can get that thought out of your head.” I manage to croak out. My throat is dry and scratchy.

  “You should really watch how you talk to me. Maybe I just want to talk.” He said. I roll my eyes and scoff. Who does he think he is? This is the threat we have been waiting for. I just never thought they’d be able to infiltrate our borders.

  I clear my throat before talking. “You could be a gracious host and offer me something to drink I mean you did drug me, and I don’t know how long I have been here unconscious, so my throat is scratchy.” I smirk. I’m not going to let him see the fear that is running through my body. I’m stronger than that. I have been through a lot, so I know I can make it through this with my pups. I just need to figure out how. He gets up and walks out of the room. I know it’s stupid to try and get out right now. Especially since I don’t know where I am. I try to sit up and my head is a little fuzzy. I shake it slightly and blink a few times and try again. I manage to get sat up and look around the room. I mean, it is better than what my parents kept me in when I woke up. I’m not
in a cell, so that’s good too. I’m in a bedroom. The walls are an off-white color and there is wall to ceiling windows, they don’t open though. Not that I’d try to go out them because once I get the strength to walk over to them, I notice we’re on the third story somewhere in a heavily wooded area. We’re in the middle of nowhere and I don’t know what is going to happen to me or my babies. I just need answers. I want to get home to my mate. There is a TV in the room that is hanging from the wall. A bathroom, and a dresser, and a closet. The bed is a queen size with blood-red sheets and blankets. I’m taking everything in when the door opens.

  “Ah, I see you’re familiarizing yourself with your new home. Well, your home until you give birth.” The man says, handing me a glass of water.

  “What makes you think you’ll be able to keep me here? What do you want with my children? Who are you!” I question. I take the glass from him and take a drink of the cold liquid and it feels amazing on my throat. I was thirstier than I thought. What does he mean it’s my new home until I give birth? That’s three months away! He’s crazy if he thinks he can keep me here that long. I will not allow him to keep me here or have any access to my pups. I need to find out what he knows before I make my plan to escape.

  “Come on, Willow, I know you’re smarter than that. You know you won’t do anything to risk you or your pups’ lives. Besides, I have information you may be interested in. I have all the truths that you are wanting to know.” He said. That piqued my interest. Of course, I’m not going to do anything to risks my pups' lives, but I’m still going to get out of here.

  “You may have my interest now, but don’t mistake that for defeat. I will find a way out of here and you won’t be able to stop me. Levi will find me, and he will take you out.” I say.

  He chuckled and shook his head. “Your mate won’t be able to find you. We’re not anywhere near your home. Shall we begin?” He asks. He takes a seat in the chair that is in the room and I walk to the bed and take a seat. Once I get as comfortable as I can in the situation that I’m in, I give him a slight nod. “As you know, your mother was my sister. Well, half-sister, we have the same father, different mother. I am pure Vampire and your mother was a half-breed. After my father met your grandmother, he left my mother to be with her. She left with me and she wasn’t the best mother. She blamed me for with had happened and in turn, I blamed my father. Once I turned eighteen, I went back to England to confront him. It started off as an argument and turned into a fight. He kicked my ass and I walked away defeated. I worked on getting my strength back and getting stronger. I went back after five years of building my army and strength. This time, I was prepared for the fight. After our falling out, I was determined. Your grandmother had left with my sister and my father was losing his mind slowly. He was easier to take out. That’s how I became the King of the Vampires. I was content up until two years ago, when I found out that there was going to be a powerful being born in my family that would take my throne. That’s where your pups come in. I know you know about your daughter, but did you know about your sons?”