by Morgan Wylie
“I swear to any god that will listen, Mather, if you don’t touch me…” Mather’s thumb ran straight down her slit, coating it with her feminine juices. Poppy sighed contentedly.
“Like that?” he rumbled under his breath, his voice gritty with his wolf near the surface.
“Yes, but more, Mather.” Poppy’s head strained back against the pillow, her body singing to every touch and movement of his body.
“What more do you want, Little Red?”
“I want you inside me… now!” Poppy growled, rivaling any female wolf he had ever known, eliciting a small chuckle from within Mather’s chest. “Oh, do that again, Mat. It reached into the very core of my body and lights something on fire inside me.” Poppy smiled wistfully, drunk on the intoxication of this man.
Mather smiled and tenderly brushed a lock of curls off her forehead and brushed them off to the side so he could see her eyes. He moved up over her further until his weight covered her body and he could feel every inch of her against his skin. It was heaven, and he wanted to stay there as long as he could, looking down, studying her face, every freckle that dotted her pale and creamy skin. Until he realized what he was doing. This was not supposed to be a tender encapsulation moment drawing him closer to her. This was supposed to be a get-her-out-his-system fuck. He stilled, and she noticed. Poppy looked up at him with her beautiful emerald green eyes, reflecting no judgment but perhaps disappointment, and he realized he never wanted to be the cause of that look of hurt again.
“You’re back, huh?” she asked, referring to the wolf no longer being in control; the man had taken over and ruined their fun. They stared at each other for a moment that was long enough to turn awkward, and yet, somehow, it didn’t get that far. Their bodies remained pressed together, skin on skin, relaxed as if they had been there before and would always belong there. It was just on the edge of awkwardness when a sound came from the top of the stairs.
“Poppy? You down there?” Lola called from just inside the doorway at the landing. Mather could hear her sniffing. “Oops. Sorry. Come up when you’re ready, both of you. We’re ready in Headquarters when you are.” Then the door shut.
Poppy’s resulting sigh was accompanied by an exhausted laugh. “Perfect timing, she has.”
“Poppy… I…” Mather stuttered, lost for words for maybe the first time with a woman.
“Get off me, you big oaf. I’m wanted upstairs.” She pushed gently against his chest. The irony of her words was not lost on him. Wanted. Something struck deep in his gut, telling him that letting her walk away from him was wrong on a base level. He just couldn’t seem to get his mind, his wolf, his body, and most of all, his heart working together in agreement. It was only the second time that he had experienced that. The first time was when he was with the woman he couldn’t protect, not even from herself.
Mather moved away from her and sat still against the cell wall as he watched her hurriedly put her clothes back on until she got to her shirt which was destroyed. She took his off the floor and put it on, not bothering to ask, and he let her go.
Just before she started her ascent up the staircase, she turned back to look at him. He couldn’t decipher what he saw in her eyes, but it came close to disappointment laced with hope. She couldn’t possibly still want him after that, could she?
Chapter Twenty-Five
Meeting in Headquarters was always a cramped occasion, even more so with Lucius, Mather, Lola, and Enock all standing up in front of the largest computer screen while Poppy showed them the approximate area of Seattle Peter had designated. Unfortunately, it was a bit bigger than they had originally thought.
As they were surveying the map, that was also spread out over the desk, there was a knock at the door. Mather jumped up to answer it, content with allowing the others to continue poring over the same square inches of information they had been studying for the last hour. To his surprise, Gracie stood there with her guard several feet behind. She looked paler than usual but in her normal state—her eyes were their usual beautiful, bright clear blue.
“Everything ok, little one?” Mather asked tenderly, reaching out, stroking her hair then tugging it at the end like a big brother.
“As far as I know.” She made a scrunched up face and tapped her head with her forefinger. “But that’s not too much right now. Nothing I’m trying is cooperating. It’s so frustrating… but I do have something to tell Enock. Is he in there?” she asked, ducking her head under Mather’s outstretched arm.
Mather chuckled. “Come on in, then.”
All eyes turned to Gracie, watching her bounce into the room.
“Someone’s got some pep in her step,” said Poppy with a smile.
Gracie paused, taking note of Poppy’s clothes, staring at her shirt with confusion until she looked back at Mather, creating more awkwardness when she winked at him. Mather looked to the ceiling in exasperation and Gracie moved on. She took in the room around them. “I don’t ever come in here, it’s kind of intimidating with all the screens and electronics.” Everyone was staring at her, waiting for what she might have to say to them. Seeing them all look at her reminded her why she was there. “Oh, right. I’m sorry, I don’t have anything for you regarding any of this”—she gestured toward the map—“at least not yet. But I do have something to tell Enock.”
Enock perked up with interest. “Oh, really? Do tell,” he said, jumping away playfully from the others and moving closer to her. Amazed at his fast movements for someone as large as Enock was, Gracie’s eyes got big as did her smile. “What’s the news? Do you see fame and fortune in my future? Or world traveling? Or perhaps a Bermuda beach vacation?”
Gracie giggled. “No. No. No. But I did come to tell you that she’s waiting for you.”
“Who’s waiting for me?” Enock, suddenly confused, ticked his head in her direction.
“The girl. She’s waiting for you, and you should go. You’ll see.” Gracie smiled then spun away from him and headed toward the door.
“What? Where is she waiting? How do I find her? Who is she?” Enock rattled off as he watched Gracie’s head of blonde hair reach the hallway.
She did look back, but only briefly enough to catch Lucius’ eye. He watched her move to stand next to her guard, and he gave her a short nod, appreciating that she actually was trying to use the guard instead of evading him.
Mather shut the door behind her then looked at Enock. “What the hell was that about, E?”
Dumbfounded, Enock shook his head. “No idea.” But just then, his cell phone rang in his pocket. He reached in and pulled it out, reading the caller display with a frown. “It’s my contact at Triumph.” He answered the call, “Enock, here. Yes. Yes. Hmm. No idea. Ok, on my way.”
The shifters would have heard most the other side of the conversation with their sensitive hearing, but for Poppy’s benefit, Enock expounded on it. “Apparently, there is a young lady at Triumph who claims to have information about where Alana is. She has been there before and sought out someone who knew those of us here at the Lair.”
“I think Gracie’s timing is getting better,” Mather observed.
“Yeah, it’s too bad the details aren’t increasing,” Enock grumbled with a frown.
“Did the vamp give you information on the girl?” Lucius asked, being the one shifter in the room whose hearing wasn’t as good as Mather’s.
“Not much. He thinks she’s human, so he didn’t say too much.”
“Human?” Poppy scrunched up her face in confusion. “What’s she doing in that joint, alone? Tell her to stay away from there, Enock. I mean, I know humans go there, but it’s still a seedy place.”
“I don’t even know her yet. She might be one of their willing donors for all we know.” Enock frowned. “Do you all need me here right now? Otherwise, I’ll go check this out.” He looked from Mather to Lucius.
“Go ahead,” Lucius indicated. “Rylen hasn’t called.”
“Yeah, we’ll let you know if something c
hanges,” added Mather.
Enock turned and swept toward the door. Had he had a cape on, it would have billowed out around him with dramatic flair, leaving the rest of them chuckling in his wake.
“I have rounds,” Lucius announced. He stopped and stared silently in Mather’s eyes for only a second then he, too, turned and left Headquarters.
The silence he left in the room was deafening. Mather stood awkwardly against the rail separating the theater seating from the computers at the front. He had taken a few extra minutes on his way back up from the dungeon to grab a new shirt for himself. Poppy, however, didn’t. She stood there wearing his shirt, hair still slightly disheveled, the scent of earlier desire still lingering on her skin, and it was driving him crazy. Poppy stared at him, a pale blush emerging on her cheeks, for only a fraction of a second before she turned to her work and focused in on it once more—their time in the basement becoming a part of the past.
“Do you need me to help you with that?” Mather asked out of awkward obligation.
Poppy’s eyes looked up at him without moving her head. Obviously irritated, she looked back at the map in front of her. Sighing, her shoulders lost some of their rigidity. “Fine… yes, thanks, I mean.”
Mather moved closer to the desk and leaned against it with one hand as he surveyed what she was doing. She had some contraption centered on a specific location on the map with an orange light blinking on and off. Poppy had drawn several circles near the center of the contraption and seemed to be focusing on another.
“What does that thing do?” He pointed to the small machine that looked like a miniature gallows made of wood and bound with leather, leaving a longer piece of jute rope hanging down dangling toward the map.
“It’s a modified version of scrying, you know like the witches can do,” Poppy explained, “but I modified it with my computer eccentricities and it can scry for someone using an article of theirs.” Her lips pursed to the side as she studied the thing with confusion. “It either isn’t working properly or she’s moving often.”
Mather bent in to get a closer look, and the machine beeped, the orange blinking light suddenly turning green. “What’s it doing?”
“It picked up something… watch,” Poppy said with a smile. “It works in conjunction with the GPS Alana has with her—or now has in her bloodstream—anyway, it’s feeding off several factors, which should give us something pretty clear any minute now.” Eyes wide with anticipation, she stood up from her seat and bent over the desk right next to Mather, their shoulders touching as they waited to see what information the machine would enlighten them with to find their leader’s mate. They were so close to knowing something that would be useful for helping. The machine sputtered and the rope began to pull toward the map on its own—well, its own mixed with Poppy’s unique magic.
“See how the end of the rope is dipped in a dye?” Mather nodded as she pointed to the rope. He hadn’t noticed it before, but the tip of the rope had a dark color that was unnatural to the jute’s natural state. She went on, “Once it is pulled all the way to the map, it will draw more circles similar to these. These already there were tests to see if I could keep it in the same general area.”
“Wow,” Mather said, genuinely impressed. “That’s amazing, Poppy. You are amazing.” He swallowed loudly, his Adam's apple bobbing up and down with difficulty.
She looked up at him, a question in her eyes. Not seeing what she was looking for, she simply smiled and said, “Thanks.” Poppy turned back to watch the machine as it moved slowly from where it was located. “Now, I have to concentrate and let my magic infuse it with energy to do what it’s supposed to do.” She scrunched her face and closed her eyes, shutting out the big bad distraction who was too close at the moment. Once able to concentrate, her eyes relaxed, and she let out the slightest muttering sound, almost like a hum. Channeling her energy, she let it flow to the machine. She reached out her hand and barely touched the top of it for a closer connection. A tiny orange spark ignited, then she removed her hand, the machine whirring to greater life. It moved in a slow circle, similar to a cat looking for a place to rest. When it stopped, the rope swung slowly, seeking its target. The rope swung faster and swiveled out in an arc until the swinging tightened into a smaller circular shape. Shortly after, the rope lengthened until it could touch the map with the colored tip, drawing a slight cylindrical line around a specific area. It was just outside the area Peter directed them to yet still inside the other test circles she had done based on the GPS when it appeared to be moving.
“I think it worked!” Poppy announced excitedly, her hands shooting to fold at her mouth. Slowly moving forward, daring to hope it really worked, she peered over the top of the machine at the location it circled. Poppy must have released her magic from the contraption as the blinking light turned off and all movement it had moments before shut down.
“So that’s where she is?” Mather asked with full confidence in her capabilities even if she was downplaying her accuracy rate.
“Maybe, but it’s as good a shot as any we’ve had so far.” Poppy smiled, her eyes twinkling with pride at what she had accomplished.
In turn, she made Mather smile. He couldn’t help but smile in her presence as her bright green eyes lit up the room like the Fourth of July. He reached for her before he could acknowledge what his body was doing, and he gripped her waist and swung her around with glee. “You did it! You really did it!”
Poppy’s eyes were wide with surprise at his reaction, and she giggled at being swung like a child through the air. “I had help, Mat. It wasn’t all me, you know.”
He stopped swinging her and brought her down slowly directly in front of him. Her chest pressed up against his as her arms braced herself but rested against his chest. His wolf rumbled with pleasure at feeling her contact. She heard the wolf’s pleasure, and her face became serious, her eyes wanting. Mather peered straight into her soul. “Poppy, you did this. Yes, we all have our parts to play, but you alone made this possible.” His eyes never left hers, but he pointed toward her little machine. It was true, her magic enabled that machine to work how she intended it to. His head dipped down to hers, his eyes gathering every detail across her face: her wild and fiery red curly hair and how when she wore it up like she did, tendrils breaking free to lay haphazardly across her forehead, the milky white of her skin graced with adorable freckles—kissed by the sun as his grandmother used to say—scattered about, her narrow and slightly upturned nose that bridged the gap between her eyes of emerald, and her luscious ruby lips. His head dipped lower, his mouth on a suicide mission, never to return…
At her inhale, Mather closed his eyes and touched his forehead to hers tenderly. “I’m sorry.” He pulled away but didn’t step back. He needed her to know it was his issue. “We need to inform Rylen and get a team on this right away.”
Disappointed once more, Poppy pulled away, replacing her longing with a mask of determination and business. She swallowed and nodded, not yet able to use her words for fear she’d say something he wasn’t ready to hear. Her patience and her heart were wearing thin.
Possibly sensing her unease, Mather continued. “I’ll try to get a hold of Rylen. Can you come up with the plans needed and the equipment for this area and type of rescue?” He paused, waiting to make sure she was with him.
Her shoulders went back and her chin raised. “Of course.” Even in her ability to focus on the task at hand, a sheen of emotion filled her eyes.
He nodded and left, giving her the space she needed to privately fall apart. He sighed with frustration. Why did he keep hurting her when all he was trying to do was avoid the hurt he would eventually bring her? Closing the door, he leaned against it, gathering his own scattered emotions and thoughts. Enclosing his head with his hands then running them from the back of his head, down his face, ending at the tip of his beard, he exhaled fully. His heart was heavy, but he breathed in renewed purpose and duty. Rylen needed him to help save his mate. Just as
he pushed off, he heard Poppy throw something to the ground, creating a loud crash, and yell a blue streak he didn’t know she was capable of uttering. Good. If she was mad at him, maybe he hadn’t hurt her as much as he thought. He just needed to stay away and let her cool off.
If only he understood.
Chapter Twenty-Six
Mather stood at the front center of the Throne Room, instructing the team that would go with him to the location Poppy had pinpointed on the map. Standing beside him, Lucius stared at the map, a scowl firmly in place and his arms folded across his chest. Fifteen other team members—shifters, vampires, and magic users alike—listened intently. Everyone was dressed in black to blend in with the night the best way possible. Armed with various weapons, the vampires and magic users were ready to roll. The shifters gathered into smaller teams and picked up man-made weapons specific to their special abilities, ready to fight. Mather finished prepping the team with the layout of the where they believed the compound to be. Unsure of the exact entrance or layout, they were going in somewhat blind except for the general location. All eyes were valuable. All ears and tracking talents were vital. Mather would utilize the team to their greatest strengths. Tonight would be a success no matter the cost.
Both doors to the room flung open. Poppy’s eyes were ablaze as she sought Mather out. As soon as her eyes found him, she bee-lined straight for him. Mather’s heart beat faster, the anticipation of seeing her search for him and the anxiety of whatever possible danger caused her to fly in like a bat out of hell had his stomach in knots.
“Sir,” she addressed him formally in front of the rest of the team, “I just got an encrypted message from the exact location we are heading to.”
“We,” Mather began, circling toward the team with his forefinger, “not we,” he pointed at her then the team. “I need you here.”
“Yes, we. I’m going.” Poppy had already made up her mind. “I found the location. I will have the tracking device that I’ve keyed into a GPS locator that I will man.” She stared hard into his face. “I’m going whether you like it or not.”