by Morgan Wylie
Calm yourself, love, Rylen finally opened his thread of communication with Alana. I can sense you. It’s vitally important right now that you calm yourself in order to maintain the facade of Gracie. Can you do that?
No response. Rylen’s heart rate picked up, but he quickly regained control, more aware of his surroundings than usual.
I’m here. Hard time… holding on to it. So tired, Rylen.
It’s all right, love. Rest now. I’m coming for you. Rylen’s face pinched with a pained expression. His mate was fading from existence, and he wasn’t there to be with her, to hold her, or help her through it while they still had to find out the key to grounding her to this existence.
With that, Gracie faded from sight, and Alana was left sitting huddled on the cell floor, shivering just as the image of Gracie had been. The charade was over. Her cover blown. Mai’s brother in jeopardy of losing his life for false information.
“Interesting,” Black Widow said slowly as the image of the cell and Alana winked out and the image of her face appeared back in the mirror. She held her hands steepled in front of her face, expression intense and pensive. Her black eyes bored into Mai, testing her innocence in the deceit… or possibly deciding her fate along with her brother’s.
Mai couldn’t tell, but she wasn’t about to cow in front of their leader. She stood still and awaited the verdict. After all, it wasn’t her treachery that caused this, but she would bear the burden of the consequences for what she brought upon the Lair by her omission of involvement.
Black Widow turned back to look at Mai’s brother behind her and then faced forward again though she had angled herself strangely in the corner of the screen. How she was able to remain at that angle, Mai would never know—or at least she hoped she wouldn’t, but if she could take her brother’s place, she would.
Black Widow tilted her head in thought. “This turn of events is unexpected, and yet, surprisingly informative.” She paused and moved her body back to the center of the mirror. Mai watched with expressionless revulsion as she saw two tiny spiders crawl up the outside of one of Black Widow’s arms only to bury itself into her nest of hair. “Yes, very informative indeed. I was unaware Rylen’s pet had progressed that far with her magic. Impressive. Perhaps, this is not a failure after all. This could be used… yes, yes, this could be used, indeed,” Black Widow tittered as if unaware she still held an audience with Mai. Jerkily, her head swiveled back to face Mai full on in the mirror, the sight unsettling. “For now, our… understanding remains the same. Stay in touch, dearie,” she crooned, and then with no further words, her image blacked out. The mirror wavered then went back to normal, just a plain hotel mirror.
Mai sighed, expelling the breath she didn’t intend to hold but had, relieved that it hadn’t gone worse. Quickly, she covered the red stone, wrapping it back in the fabric and tucking it into her satchel. She sat back on the bed and turned to await Rylen’s direction.
“That was… enlightening,” Mather said as he got off the floor, dusting off his pants.
“She’s behind it”—Rylen turned to Mather, his eyes slightly aglow with the green of his magic and his beast—“she’s behind it all.” He clenched his teeth and fisted his hands at his sides. Rylen began pacing like a caged animal in the small hotel room.
He stopped abruptly and his stare bore down on Mai. Through gritted teeth he asked, “How long has she known about Gracie?” It wouldn’t be hard to imagine smoke coming out of his nostrils, he was so livid.
Mai flinched only slightly. “As far as I know, only since the auction job the other night.”
Mather growled, his eyes beginning to glow, as well.
“I didn’t tell her. You have my word, Rylen. I was very careful to steer information away from Gracie. She knew something, though, and then the other night, it was confirmed she knew more than I had ever told her.”
Rylen studied Mai’s eyes, seeking the answers he was looking for. Once he saw the truth in her words, he stepped back from her and turned away. Both his and Mather’s beasts backed down for the moment, allowing them all a little more breathing room to think.
“Those damn pesky spiders!” Mather beat his fist on the wall. “If only we had caught on earlier.”
“It would have been too late. The damage had already been done.” Frustrated and tired, Rylen inhaled deeply and set his shoulders. “Let’s deal with this shit.” Rylen sat on the edge of the bed and looked from Mather to Mai.
“She’s not going to kill my brother yet, that buys us a little time, right?” Mai asked, her eyes lit with a shimmer of hope.
“Yes, but how much, I’m not sure. I can’t figure out what she wants. What’s her end game?” Rylen raked his hands through his hair in frustration.
“You keep doing that, you’re going to end up bald, brother,” Mather pointed out, intentionally distracting his friend.
“Ha!” Rylen barked but lowered his hands from the death grip he had on his short locks. “Maybe I should grow it out like yours and E’s?” The distraction was just what Rylen needed, and his beast calmed down enough for them to all think clearly.
“Okay, we have two directions to take: Save Alana and Save Mai’s brother. We’re going to need a plan and to split up. Unfortunately, we don’t know where either one is located. Yet.”
Mather pulled his phone out of his jeans pocket and glanced at the screen. “Let’s head back to the Lair. One of Lola’s scouts found something.”
Chapter Twenty-One
“Boss, this is Peter; he’s one of our street scouts. He has news that might be helpful,” Enock greeted Rylen and Mather by the elevator while Mai passed them and headed straight to Headquarters to see what Poppy had found out.
“Peter, what can you tell me?” Rylen skipped pleasantries and got straight to business.
“Sir, I was patrolling the sector northwest of the Seattle Center near Kinnear Park and saw a girl who matched the description Lola had given us to be on the lookout for. She was alone and went into a dark section that no girl alone—supernatural or not—should go into by herself. I saw her get out of a black van, all black, you know, like those kinds that look like they were made to kidnap someone? Well, she was blindfolded and escorted by a couple of big guys who had marks on their neck right about here.” He indicated a spot just above his collar.
Rylen nodded. “Go on.”
“I can show you where I was on a map, but there weren’t too many defining landmarks to go by. But I think I could get you to the area again. It was weird, though like there were no other buildings in sight other than a small electrical supply shed. It wasn’t big enough to hold more than two people in it, though. It was dark, so I didn’t actually see them go inside it. To keep my cover, I was hiding a couple blocks away where there were some abandoned buildings near the industrial area. I have were-abilities but have never shifted, so my eyesight is impeccable.”
“How did you come to be in that area?” Mather asked, his arms crossed over his chest, slightly suspicious.
“I patrol those areas with a couple others regularly, but this was the first time we’d actually seen anyone. They’re real sneaky or don’t go out much.”
“Probably both,” Enock huffed, putting his hands in his pockets, and leaned against the wall, watching Rylen watch Peter.
“Well done, Peter. Thank you.” Rylen clapped him on the back and went to move into the Throne Room. “I need to think.”
Mather followed him while Enock escorted Peter to the kitchen for a meal before he headed back out. The scouts sometimes ended up living on the streets while searching for something, and some were already living there by choice and had elected to work for the Lair on a case-by-case basis. It was Lola’s networking baby. She had gained their respect; most were supernaturals like Peter, but some were humans who would take on random jobs. They were paid well or fed, whatever their desired payment was.
Rylen frowned and strode toward the Throne Room. His thinking usually involved some fa
cet of meditation fused with magic. It helped his thoughts come together and to see things that perhaps he had missed before. Hopefully, Lucius had some success with the prisoner in the dungeon suites. He remembered the first night Alana stayed at the Lair and his making her stay down there. He still couldn’t believe he did that, knowing who she was now, but he hadn’t known that then. He chuckled to himself at how stubborn she was and her willingness to stay down there, how she made friends with Enock and somehow endeared him to her that first night. His heart hurt, thinking of his mate, shivering on a cold floor. He would make whoever did this to her pay, even if it was her own father.
“I’m going inside to meditate and clear my head.” He gestured toward the double doors to the Throne Room. When Lucius is done with the prisoner, send him in,” Rylen instructed before heading inside.
“Will do.” Mather stood guard outside the Throne Room to give Rylen the privacy he required and waited for Lucius.
After only ten minutes, Rylen called for Mather. He peeked his head inside the doors of the Throne Room. “Boss?”
“I need the stone Mai had. I have an idea that might enable me to use it to find Alana or maybe even Black Widow.” Rylen was seated sideways in his “throne of uncomfortability,” his legs dangling off the arm to the side. He usually didn’t sit there for long, but today, it must be serving his purpose, or he would be pacing instead of sitting.
“You got it—be right back,” Mather replied as he ducked back out into the hallway.
Instead of using the intercom system, which would inform everyone of what was going on, he marched down the other hall toward Headquarters, Mai’s last known destination. She was probably still there with Poppy. Every step he took brought him closer and closer to his little red flower. Since when had he started to refer to Poppy as his, he didn’t know. It just seemed to flow out of him. And damn it all, it felt natural and raw and intimate all at the same time. A growl erupted from Mather’s throat, unbidden, which only irritated him more. His wolf was definitely letting him know how he felt. Traitor, Mather mentally scolded his wolf. Even though they were one and the same, it often felt like they were two beings sharing the same body—and that might be the case—but it had never been scientifically explored, and no shifter would be willing to put themselves or their animal through experiments like that.
Reaching his destination, he raised his hand to knock when he heard voices through the door. It was wrong of him to eavesdrop, but neither of the girls inside the room would know he was there as their senses weren’t that strong. He could hear Mai’s and Poppy’s voices as they heatedly discussed something.
“He’s so stubborn, but if he can’t commit, then I don’t want him,” Poppy’s voice was strained with passion and hurt. Him. They were talking about him, and he had put that sound of hurt into her voice.
“He is stubborn, but there’s no one more loyal. I think he’s afraid,” Mai stated.
“He’ll come around, be patient, girl.” A third voice chimed in with a hint of scheming. Lola. And now he was busted. If he had used more senses than just his hearing, he would have noticed her scent crossing the threshold of the door. She knew he was there.
Mather knocked on the door, startling the other two girls.
“Come in,” Poppy welcomed.
Mather turned the handle and peeked his head in. “Sorry to interrupt your hard work,” he started, noticing Lola’s raised eyebrow and slight knowing smirk at his choice of words. “Mai, Rylen wants the stone. He has an idea on how to use it to find Alana or… well, he wants to try something.” He didn’t know if Mai had said anything to the other girls—knowing her, probably not, and that was her or Rylen’s story to share.
“I have it with me.” Mai waved to the girls and passed him out the door. Mather lingered awkwardly for a moment as his wolf panted, straining within him to be close to Poppy but held back by the large burly lumberjack of a man.
“Did you need anything else, Mather?” Poppy asked, her eyes bright with hope yet hesitant of the impending rejection.
He cleared his throat and stroked his beard absentmindedly. “No, not right now. Thank you.”
“In a little while, we’ll have some information regarding the searches we’ve done and the new location information Peter gave us before he left,” Lola added, trying to dispel the awkwardness or maybe just trying to keep him talking.
“Good,” he responded gruffly. He paused then simply turned and walked out, closing the door behind him.
“See? What the hell was that?” Poppy asked, forgetting or not caring that he could probably still hear her.
Lola laughed. “That, my friend, is one whipped pup who doesn’t know what to do with himself.”
Whipped pup my ass! Mather frowned, but before he walked away he heard Poppy’s voice one last time.
“No, he knows exactly what to do with himself. He’s afraid of something and won’t let himself,” Poppy said with great clarity and insight and, again, with sadness from the fact. “I just might not be around when he gets his tail untucked and decides to make a move.”
Angry but confused at why, Mather stalked off in a huff back toward the Throne Room. Surprisingly, he found Mai still waiting outside the doors. She held the stone out to him, still covered in the fabric. Mather took it in his hands, ready to open the door. She placed her hand on his arm, halting him, her eyes gazing into his, willing him to understand.
“I don’t know what it will do combined with another’s magic, especially one as powerful as Rylen. Watch him and do what is necessary if it seems like it’s going wrong.”
Mather nodded, “I understand. I won’t let him kill himself again, at least not on my watch.”
“Good.” She paused. “I can see you have feelings for her. Don’t wait too long, Mather. You deserve a shot at happiness, too.” With that, she lifted her hand and walked away, leaving him with her words.
Deserve? Nah, no one deserves someone as good as Poppy. I can’t risk her.
Mather pushed the doors open to find his brother, Luc, standing—actually practically kneeling—before Rylen’s throne. Lucius looked a little worse for wear with smeared blood splatters across his neck and face, and he could only assume on his clothing as well though any blood was disguised within the black fabric. His brother—the assassin interrogator. That shit was going to get old soon enough. It had hardened Luc beyond anything he had seen, but Luc insisted that it was his service to Rylen so he wouldn’t have to do it. They had both made sacrifices and commitments beyond anything they normally would have to be at Rylen’s side, but it did not go without its scars.
Luc didn’t turn at Mat’s entrance; he knew who was approaching. They had a bond similar to a mating bond, but as brothers, it was much less intimate and more practical. They had always been together, and it was as much a part of them as they were to each other.
Brother. Are you well? Mather asked, his face bunched as he assessed Luc for physical damage.
Without answering, Luc turned his head slightly in Mather’s direction and nodded once, but that nod spoke volumes to Mather. It had either been harder than they had hoped and Luc had to kill the prisoner or he wasn’t able to get anything out of him—that was the worst because then all of it was for nothing except further torment on Luc’s soul.
“We didn’t get much,” Rylen began to answer Mather’s unasked question, “but Luc was able to confirm the accuracy of Peter’s information regarding Alana’s whereabouts.” He sighed.
“But…” Mather led, knowing there was more coming.
“But, that was about it. The prisoner was magically bound from talking. In fact, Luc didn’t get to play much. He unknowingly initiated a self-destruct that slowly killed our guy.” Rylen looked up at the ceiling with disgust. “They killed their own people for fear of talking.”
“Who’re the bad guys now?” Mather asked sarcastically while rolling his eyes.
“The place we had followed him to and taken him captive from w
as a front. It was where they were told to meet up after being anywhere public to make sure they weren’t being followed—and then hours later, they were able to go back to their hideout. They are playing very close to the vest right now.”
“As they should,” Mather agreed. Luc was suspiciously quiet for it being just the three of them. Mather eyed Luc once more then presented Rylen with the fabric-wrapped stone. “Mai gave me the stone and warned you to be careful”—Mather smiled—“seems she’s back to good old Mai, now.”
Rylen also smiled, relieved. “It does, though she might need to keep up some appearances in case there are still spies around, so be prepared,” Rylen advised.
“Let’s see if I can make this fucker do what I think it might,” Rylen sneered at the stone as he unwrapped it methodically from the fabric.
Standing up, Lucius gently cleared his throat, reminding Rylen he was still present and wished to be dismissed. It was all Rylen could do to hold back from rolling his eyes. Luc could be so duty-bound sometimes that he didn’t take advantage of the times when he could relax.
“Luc, go get cleaned up. Do I need to send someone down to the basement to clean?” Rylen inquired.
“No.” Meaning Luc had already taken care of it. He got up and purposefully walked out of the Throne Room.
“He ok?” Mather asked, concern etched on his face for his brother.
“Honestly, I’m not sure.” Rylen, too, watched the door after Luc had left. “He didn’t even have to do much, but something’s not right with him—hasn’t been for a couple days now.” Thoughtful, Rylen looked to Mather. “Any ideas? Or ways to reach him if he’s not sharing?”
Mather shook his head and tugged lightly on his beard, deep in thought. “I’ll talk to him later, see if I can get anything else, but your shot is about as good as mine.” He shrugged, then moved on to the task at hand. “Light that baby up and see who you can surprise on the other end!”