Abbey's Protectors [Beckett's Wolf Pack, Triad Mates 4] (Siren Publishing Ménage and More)

by Lynnette Bernard

  Taking the black hair brush from the duffle bag, she quickly brushed her long, sable hair. She couldn’t help but let out a soft moan of pain as she pulled the brush through her hair and secured it in a ponytail at the crown of her head. Looking in the mirror above the small sink, she was startled to see the paleness of her complexion. The bandage that covered her right temple was just another reminder that she needed to keep away from any man—or men. The reminder of her injuries made her more determined than ever to continue with her plans.

  Reaching into the duffle bag, she pulled out her sneakers and quickly put them on, tying them tightly before zipping up the bag and picking it up. She pushed one arm through the straps of the backpack then opened the bathroom door, closed it behind her, and stepped out into the hospital room. She walked toward the door quickly, listening intently to make sure no one was in the hallway. When she was sure there was no one outside the door, she opened it and slipped out of the room.

  It took her only five minutes to make her way through the hospital hallway and down the stairwell to the ground floor. Walking with confidence through the front door of the hospital, she made her way out of the circular entryway to head down the street. From years of experience within her own company, she knew the importance of projecting confidence. No one questioned you when you walked with purpose. With a quick backward glance to make sure that no one was following her, she turned, squared her shoulders, and kept walking.

  * * * *

  Hunter and Clay walked into the private room where they had left their mate resting, stopping when they saw the empty bed. Turning toward each other, the concern that each man felt was clearly displayed on their faces.

  They moved as one toward the small bathroom, standing before the closed door silently. Hunter raised his hand and rapped his knuckles on the door.

  “Abbey?” he called to her. “Are you all right, sweetheart?”

  Clay took a deep breath, desperate to scent their woman. The absence of her sweet fragrance made his stomach clench in fear.

  “Hunter, she’s not in there,” he told him angrily.

  “Where the hell is she?” Hunter’s voice boomed, growling as he yanked open the door to verify what both men instinctively knew already.

  The empty bathroom greeted them. They breathed in deeply, taking in their mate’s scent, knowing she had been in the bathroom not long before.

  Hunter turned and walked over to the small closet and ripped it open, pulling the door off its hinges and throwing it aside. His growls of anger filled the room and joined Clay’s as they saw that Abbey’s duffle bag and backpack were gone.

  The control that both men prided themselves in having that allowed them to be competent and calm police officers flew right out the window. There was no control. There was no calm. There was only panic, anger, and sorrow.

  Their mate had left them.

  Chapter 8

  Abbey sat at the table that faced the large front windows of the room in the small motel she had been staying at for the past week. She faced the computer screen of her laptop and smiled at her two best friends.

  “I said I’m fine,” she told them tiredly, rubbing carefully at her eyes.

  “Abbey, you’re not fine,” Synthia told her firmly, her brown eyes flashing angrily as she viewed her friend through the computer camera. “You look like hell. Where are you? We’re coming to get you right now.”

  “Absolutely not,” Abbey told her calmly. “You need to stay at work and keep things running smoothly just like we planned.”

  “We can see the injury on your temple,” Shelly spoke up softly. “What happened?”

  Abbey sighed and touched her right temple lightly. She really did feel better. Every day for the past few days she had found that she had more and more strength, and the injury at her temple and the pain in her left side really had improved. She just couldn’t understand why she ached so deeply in nearly every muscle of her body—especially in her chest.

  “Peter shot at me,” Abbey told them finally.

  “He what?” Synthia growled.

  Abbey looked at her friend in shock before laughter erupted from her. She wiped at the tears that leaked from her eyes as the humor of her best friend losing complete control was displayed to her across the video call.

  “This is not funny, Abigail!” Synthia snapped. “We need to call the police and have him arrested.”

  Abbey sobered immediately. “Synthia, listen to me.”

  Synthia was actually pulling at her long blonde hair and her brown eyes were flashing with anger. Shelly was equally agitated. She was rubbing at her face and her blue eyes were filling with tears. Synthia reached out and gently petted her sister’s dark brown hair, pushing it gently so that it hung behind her shoulders to the bottom of her back and allowed her to caress her shoulder to try to soothe her.

  “Abbey, I don’t know what you think you could possibly say that would stop me from wanting to rip Peter’s throat out with my bare hands,” Synthia told her, her eyes flashing with the anger that was consuming her.

  Abbey sighed heavily. The thoughts and memories that had been filling her head for the past week had twisted her into knots. She needed to tell the two women she considered her sisters everything she had experienced and felt.

  “I have to tell you both something, but I don’t want you to say anything until I’ve finished. Okay?” She looked at both of them as they crowded together so she could see them both on the computer screen.

  “Okay, Abbey,” Shelly answered quietly. “We’ll be quiet. We’re just worried about you.”

  “I know, Shelly,” Abbey told her, smiling. “Just listen.”

  Both women nodded and waited.

  “I had packed my car and was ready to leave but the car wouldn’t start. I knew Peter had sabotaged it. I knew I was going to have to hike it out of there. When I was grabbing some supplies I would need, I saw that Peter had a gun. I didn’t wait around to see if he was coming for me. I just ran. I ran through the back property, and I was able to get to the cave I told both of you about,” she told them. When they remained silent, she continued. “He was shooting blindly and he grazed my temple. I hid in the cave, and I waited for a long time to make sure Peter wasn’t outside of it looking for me. I fell asleep and had a dream that my dad came to see me. He brought a woman with him who was really beautiful. She told me that I was going to meet two men who were destined to be my mates.”

  “What?” Synthia asked, gasping softly.

  “That’s what she said,” Abbey told her, shrugging. “She said they were part of a very special group of people that were gifted with the ability to shift into wolves.” She saw the two sisters look at each other and worried that they were going to think she had lost her mind. “The woman told me that the men would protect me. She said they were going to love me, and we would have children that would belong to all three of us. She said that each man would contribute DNA to create every child.”

  “Abbey,” Synthia whispered.

  “I know. Crazy, huh?”

  “Yeah,” Shelly agreed, her voice barely above a whisper as her eyes widened with shock.

  “She said I would recognize the men by their scent, and I would come to love them very quickly. She said I would also start to have visions about what our future would be like.” She waited for either of her friends to say something, but they both remained silent, looking at her intently across the video connection.

  “Have you had any of those visions?” Synthia finally asked, pulling her sister closer to her as she waited for the answer.

  Abbey nodded. “I’ve had dreams about the men holding our son and baby daughter. But the thing is—I’ve met the men I saw in my dreams. They were the police officers that found me and took me to the hospital.”

  “Do you know their names?” Shelly asked.

  “Hunter Stewart and Clay Forest,” Abbey told them without hesitation. “But it was just a dream, guys. In it my dad said to say hello to both
of you, and the beautiful woman told me I could trust you with everything she said to me. It was a nice dream, I’ll give you that, but it was still a dream.”

  Synthia smiled sadly. “I’m glad your dad said hello to us. We both miss him a lot,” she told Abbey softly. “And the beautiful lady is right. You can trust me and Shelly with the secrets she shared with you. We will guard them and you with our lives. You know that, honey.”

  “What I know is that everything that I dreamed was because of my head injury. The two men were very kind to me and took care of me. I’m sure I just associated the dream with them because they protected me. I’ve always trusted my father, and I’ve always trusted both of you. I probably was thinking about you guys because I knew that you’re all I have left as part of my family. I know that I can trust both of you without worry. None of what that beautiful woman told me is possible. You both know that.”

  The sisters were silent for a moment. Abbey could see the tension in her friends and worried about their reactions.

  “But what if it is possible, Abbey?” Shelly asked her softly.

  “But it’s not,” Abbey told her without hesitation.

  Once again, the sisters looked at each other before turning back to face her. She watched them silently, her brows furrowed in confusion at the way her friends were reacting.

  “I have to go,” she spoke up suddenly. “I really don’t feel well, and I need to sleep for a while.”

  “In what way are you not feeling well?” Synthia asked her gently.

  “I just feel achy. My chest hurts.” Abbey rubbed at her eyes tiredly. “I don’t know. Maybe I’m coming down with something.”

  “Maybe you’re missing your mates,” Shelly offered softly.

  “Yeah, right,” Abbey snorted. “I’m going to sign off now. You both need to keep safe. Don’t interact with Peter. Stay away from him. I’m not kidding. Just follow our plan and keep the company running smoothly. We’ve already put into place all the necessary legal documents to keep Peter’s grimy hands off the business and off of me. Taking this time away is the best decision I’ve made in a long time.”

  “I think you’re right, Abbey,” Synthia offered. “If you had listened to me and Shelly, you would have stayed here to weather the storm and be right in the middle of the wrath of Peter. Plus, you wouldn’t have found your mates.”

  Abbey snorted. “Synthia, I didn’t find my mates. What I found was a really great hallucination that was the result of head trauma and painkillers.”

  “I don’t think so,” Shelly spoke up. “I think you’ve been blessed with the gift of finding the men who will be yours to love for the rest of your life. No one can ever forbid you to be with them.”

  Abbey laughed softly. “You both have some serious fantasies about happily ever afters. You know that doesn’t happen in real life. We’ve been fed that crap from the time we were little. There is no perfect man, or men, for any of us.”

  “I think you’re wrong, Abbey,” Synthia told her gently. “I think you’ve found yours.”

  “No, I haven’t,” Abbey insisted. “Now you two better keep safe. Remember, you both have complete control until I’m back. Peter won’t be able to interfere with your work or the running of the office. I’ll keep in touch through e-mails. I’m going to keep myself scarce until my lawyer can get everything settled. I contacted him this morning. He filed the divorce papers five days ago. He’s also filed the revised will that I had him draw up last week.”

  “Okay. We’ll keep an eye on things here. Please e-mail us when you can do another video chat,” Shelly requested gently.

  “I will,” Abbey promised.

  “Where are you going?” Synthia asked her.

  “Not sure yet. I’ll let you know as soon as I do.”

  “Okay, Abbey,” Synthia responded. “I know I won’t be able to persuade you from doing what you think you have to do. Just keep yourself open to what the beautiful lady told you, honey. You never know. Your dad might have brought her to you to help guide you.”

  “Maybe,” Abbey said softly, shrugging. “Take care of yourselves. E-mail me if you have any problems. I won’t be able to answer you for a while. I’m leaving in the morning and putting some more distance between me and the men who found me. I don’t want them to be involved in any trouble that Peter might bring my way.”

  Synthia shook her head and pursed her lips in frustration. “You’re a stubborn woman, Abigail Tyler.”

  “Yeah, that’s what’s made me successful and has kept me alive. Bye, guys. I’ll try to call you later tonight but don’t worry if you don’t hear from me.”

  She closed out the video chat and signed off before either woman could speak. She wasn’t kidding when she said that she didn’t feel well. She pushed her fist against the center of her chest. She ached terribly. She felt as if her skin was humming, and her hands were visibly shaking. She didn’t know what was wrong with her, but she could only risk one more night in the small hotel. She had to keep moving. Feeling sick was not a good reason to stay where she was. It was just too dangerous to do so.

  She closed down her laptop and snapped the lid shut. Standing, she straightened the clothes she had laundered just that morning. She had a supply of water and some nonperishable food. She had a good amount of money left and saw no problem being able to take care of herself until all the legalities of her divorce were complete, and she could go back to her home and her company.

  Walking over to the bed, she lay down on it tiredly and pulled the light spread over her body, not even bothering to remove her clothing or sneakers. She was actually thankful for the black sweatpants and heavy, maroon sweatshirt she was wearing.

  It was cool in the room despite the early August heat thanks to the air conditioner, but that didn’t ease her discomfort. She felt as if she had a fever. Chills were wracking her body, and she was grateful for the warmth when she cuddled beneath the blanket and burrowed into the pillow. Closing her eyes, she tried to concentrate on breathing even, deep breaths to try to calm her racing heart. She was just so incredibly tired.

  She drew her knees up toward her chest as she lay on her right side. It helped the pain lessen some, but the ache in her chest and in her stomach was still there, and she couldn’t prevent the whimpers of pain that left her. She started to shake and pulled herself deeper into a ball as she tried to tighten her muscles and hug herself. It didn’t help. The only thing she could think of that would help her was the memory of the two men who had saved her. Their strength had soothed her. The dreams of them had made her happy.

  She twisted and turned on the bed as she struggled with her thoughts and desires. She couldn’t need them. She didn’t want to need them.

  As she succumbed to slumber, she saw the two men who consumed her waking thoughts and appeared to her every night as she slept. She sighed softly as Hunter and Clay stepped toward her and surrounded her with their arms. She fell into the deep dream that repeated in her mind night after night, sighing as the feelings of safety and love surrounded her.

  * * * *

  Hunter slammed his hand against the dashboard of Clay’s truck. “Where the hell is she?” he demanded, turning to face his triad partner as Clay drove them down the side streets of the small town about ten miles from the hospital.

  They had been looking for their mate from the moment she had left the hospital without any luck. Abbey had simply vanished. There was no way they would ever find her again. And that fact was tearing them apart from the inside out. The urge to mate and to claim her was all-consuming. They were nearly crazy with the mating fever. Drew had told them it would continue to escalate and test their control until they were able to claim their mate. Since they hadn’t been successful in finding Abbey, their emotions were out of control, their tempers were on a hair-trigger, and they weren’t of much use to anyone.

  Because of that, they had removed themselves from active duty on the police force. There was no way they could possibly do their job when t
hey could barely control their need to shift. The anger that boiled within them at the loss of their mate was so intense, no one would be safe with them.

  Drew had told them that that the need to claim their mate would eventually give way to something that was beyond a mating urge. It would turn into more of a mating rage. That fact concerned them more than anything else. It put them in the position of being a definite danger to others. That was not acceptable. They had discussed it with their alpha, and Jace was ready to put them in quarantine if the mating rage took hold. It was as much for their safety as for the safety of the pack.

  “Hunter, I have a feeling that everything is going to work out,” Clay told him as calmly as he could manage despite the way his wolf was snapping and growling within him.

  “I don’t know, Clay. I don’t feel that way. I just feel anger.” Hunter looked at his partner and saw the way he was clutching the steering wheel. “My heart aches for her,” he admitted softly. “I don’t know what to do about it.”

  “There’s nothing we can do. Only finding her will help.”

  Hunter nodded, facing forward and scanning the street once again. Maybe by some miracle they would be guided to find Abbey. He had to believe that they would be united again. Saying a quick prayer to the Fates to help them find their woman helped to calm him just slightly. Nothing would completely relieve the mating urge until they were able to hold their mate in their arms and claim her.

  “Pull into that diner over there,” he told Clay gruffly, pointing toward the right. “Let’s get something to eat.”

  Clay nodded and pulled his truck into the parking lot of the local diner and parked at the edge of the lot facing the exit. The diner looked clean enough. He hoped their food would be good—if they could even taste it. The anger he was feeling was superseding anything else, and he doubted they would even be able to enjoy the meal. But they needed to eat. Their bodies were running on pure adrenaline as the mating urge sank its claws into them. They needed to eat and relax. Well, relaxing wasn’t a possibility, but eating was.