by Sydney Addae
“Let me know what time you set up the meeting. In the main conference room?” Angus asked not bothering to argue, which underscored how ridiculous Silas’ comment was.
“Yes, I’ll let you know.” He disengaged and looked at Jasmine on the sofa asleep for several minutes. She’d been his rock, his heart and he wanted to give her the world even though she never asked for more. Their initial mating had been rocky. Even now, after all these years, he cringed at his arrogance when they met. He’d thought all humans unworthy and wanted nothing to do with any of them. He’d cavalierly ordered the death of Tyrone, her son from her previous mating or marriage to a full blood. Tyrone had been in a full-blood hospital dying from a wound suffered in the military when Silas discovered half-breeds existed in his world and his life had never been the same since then.
Not that she’d known anything about the Wolf Nation at the time. He smiled in memory of his Sweet Bitch’s reaction once she learned her twins had kept the news from her. He wouldn’t say she was dramatic, but she’d made sure they all knew and felt her displeasure. Once she emitted those breeding pheromones he had to have her and didn’t stop until she carried his first and only litter.
Love, that elusive emotion that both built and sank kingdoms, burrowed so deep in him for her, he now understood why mates didn’t live if the other died. How could he live without his heart? Not only did she hold his, she was his heart in every meaning of the word.
“Stop thinking so hard,” Jasmine muttered without looking at him.
He chuckled. “I’m not.” He contacted Cain. “Has everyone checked in?”
“No, Sir. There’s a team of four we haven’t been able to reach, in fact there’s nothing from them,” Cain said in a sober tone. “I contacted Crall, he doesn’t know of any jobs or missions they were on. I’m waiting to hear from Miller. He’s doing some research.” Cain paused. “Sir, I don’t know what happened, or where they are. I suspect these are the men who reached out to you. For some reason, they did not follow the chain of command to contact me or any of the others.”
“Maybe they couldn’t,” Silas said, angry and sad over the loss.
“If that’s the case, we need to know why. It’s not like them or any Knight to leave home base and us not be aware of it,” Cain said.
“Be prepared for a meeting in 30 minutes. I want answers if I have to wake the entire Joint Chiefs,” Silas said, in a low growl.
“Yes, Sir, we are at your disposal.” Cain disconnected.
Silas ran his hand through his hair, stood and walked to the window. Anger and grief battled within. Outside the sun peeked over the horizon, bathing the morning in shades of yellow and orange. The mountain peaks sparkled as if they’d been kissed.
He stopped and shook his head. Where the hell had that come from? Sparkled? Kissed? He needed to stay out of Jasmine’s head when she read those romance books.
“You like them,” she said. The smile in her voice tugged at him.
“No. I love you, which means I tolerate most things you like in addition to me and the pups.” He waited for her to challenge him and call them “kids” or “children” as she often did. When she snickered, he turned to look at her, “Knights are missing.”
Her shoulders tensed. “How many?”
“Four. Cain confirmed it.”
She pushed up from the sofa, brushed her hair back and looked at him.
Goddess, after all this time, her unfettered beauty still took his breath away. “Conference call in 25 minutes. I need to set up a few things, can you let the twins, David, Jacques, Angus, Asia and Hawke know, please?”
“Sure.” She stood, stretched and walked out his office. A few minutes later she contacted him. “It’s done. I’ve ordered coffee and food for the conference room. Anything I can get you?”
“No. I just talked to Crall and Miller. No one knows what’s happening, I’m going to have Lyle listen in on this as well. I may need to bring in a few more Alphas after we learn something.”
“Okay, see you in a bit. I’m going to change.”
Silas exhaled and ran his hand through his jet-black hair. What happened to those full-bloods? Why hadn’t they gone through proper channels? And why couldn’t he save them?” He sat seeking echoes of the SOS calls, pulling threads until he pinpointed a general area where the call originated. Comprised of hundreds of square miles, the vicinity was too vast, after the meeting he would try to get closer.
According to the wall clock, the meeting started in five minutes. He stood slowly and left his office. His thoughts simmered on how he failed his men. Entering the room, he appreciated the somber mood. Four of theirs had fallen. He sat and explained what happened. Hawke and Asia sat across from him. She took Hawke’s hand when Silas explained the SOS call and his inability to find them. Jasmine sat next to him and held his hand beneath the table.
“Cain and Abel have no idea who sent them?” Tyrese, Jasmine’s son asked.
“No, we don’t,” Abel answered. “None of our team was notified of the assignment, if that’s what it was. General Crall, have you learned anything?”
General Crall, a half-breed high-ranking officer and liaison for the Knights sat forward, clearing his throat. “The new President was briefed by the Joint Chiefs three days ago. I urged them to wait before explaining the Knights and by extension the Nation, but... they believed it best to brief him.”
Jasmine’s hand tightened on Silas’ as he processed Crall’s comments. Silas rarely paid attention to human politics or politicians because they changed all the time. “New?”
“Yes Sir. I think he’s fascinated by the idea of having a separate group in the country,” General Crall said.
Silas frowned. “Fascinated? Why?”
“I don’t know, Sir,” General Crall said and lapsed into silence.
“Are you suggesting the new President had something to do with the disappearance of four Knights?” The idea was so beyond the scope of anything he’d ever imagined, he needed to hear Crall say it.
“It’s possible,” Crall said. “And would explain why no one’s talking. No one wants us to know how far up this goes in case you decide to retaliate.”
Silas released a long breath and looked at Jasmine. “Do you think, new or not, he’d be crazy enough to send my people to their deaths?”
“Crazy isn’t the word I’d use,” Jasmine said in a soothing tone. “Maybe he wanted to run some kind of tests to verify their authenticity and things got out of control.”
He agreed that could be the case. “But why couldn’t I locate them? And why couldn’t they link with Cain or Abel, or their Alpha’s?”
“Maybe they’ve developed something that stops that. Maybe that was the test to see if they could isolate us,” she said in a cool voice. Her eyes grew lighter as she looked across the table at Asia.
Sensing her anger rising, Silas squeezed her hand, hard. “Calm down, we don’t know anything for sure yet.” Jasmine blinked and nodded.
“Hawke, what would stop me from locating them? Have you heard of any devices that would accomplish that?” Silas asked.
Hawke shook his head slowly. “As the top Alpha, I can’t imagine anyone creating something that could block that visceral link between you and the pack. If they have something we need to counteract it before the pack is separated from all Alphas.”
The idea of pack members unable to connect to their Alphas sent a shock wave through everyone listening at the meeting. It was unheard of. As wolves, their very nature depended on the pack structure.
“Find out whatever you can,” Silas told Hawke. “This takes priority over everything.”
“Yes, Sir,” Hawke said.
“Generals, knock on every door until I get a fucking answer. I want to know what the fuck happened and how. If they won’t talk to you, tell them I’m coming to Washington and they damn well don’t want that.”
“Yes, Sir,” Generals Crall and Miller said.
“Abel, Cain, lock down
the Knights. Bring them to Compound. They’re grounded until further notice.”
“Yes, Sir,” Cain said hesitantly.
“You have something to say, Cain?” Silas asked in a hard tone. He wasn’t in the mood to be questioned.
“Having all the Knights in one location may be seen as a sign of aggression, Sir. What if we gave them vacation time, allowed them to return home until further notice but ready for immediate deployment.”
Silas thought about it. A part of him wanted to show Washington he’d kick their asses for what they’d done but Cain was right. His main duty to the Goddess was to keep the Wolf Nation a secret not start a war. “Sounds good, give the order. I want them cleared out within 48 hours. If they receive instructions for an assignment they must clear it through me.”
“Yes, Sir. That should stop anyone from tampering with the assignment desk,” Cain said nodding.
Silas clamped down on his beast who wanted to attack their enemies. “We need the bodies of our fallen. An extraction team will go and bring them home.”
No one spoke.
“Do you know where they are?” Jasmine asked the question that had to be on everyone’s mind.
“I know the general area.” He looked at the monitor into the gazes of his Alphas, his Generals and then his team seated at the conference table. “We’ll find our pack-mates and bring them home for a proper burial if I have to go find them myself. They served honorably. I set the Knights in motion and refuse to allow this travesty to go unchallenged or without retribution.”
He looked at Jacques. “Contact Jodello, put him on standby in case I decide to go that route.” Once when the Joint Chiefs had lied and used his son, Tyrese, as bait for a small country, Silas had Jodello shake the economic centers of several countries by moving massive amounts of gold and monies around. It hadn’t taken the President long to contact him and smooth things over. He hoped this new President would come to understand the value of having a peaceable relationship with the Wolf Nation.
“Yes, Sir,” Jacques said.
“I’ve alerted all the Knights, Sir,” Cain said. “They are in the process of packing for a long holiday. They are saddened by the loss of their pack-mates and many have volunteered to go search for them.”
“I’m not surprised,” Silas said glancing at Jasmine who remained quiet by his side. “I will call them when I’m ready.” He spoke of a few more matters to the Alphas and Generals and dismissed them.
Silence reigned in the conference room.
“I will take two, Ethan and Damian,” Angus said. “No one tracks better than Ethan, we’ll find them and return quickly. In and out.”
Silas remained silent. He thought over everything regarding the distress call, the men sounded weak, afraid. As if something abnormal was happening. First off, Knights didn’t respond that way. None of the men he and Cain trained would call him in fear, they’d die fighting. Unless... he couldn’t think of what would make them call out to him in that manner.
“Silas?” Angus said.
He looked at Angus. “I’ll let you know.”
“I thought time was of the essence?” Tyrese said. “I should go as back-up.”
“Back-up?” Angus stared at Tyrese and smirked. “I need back-up?”
“Not really but, I just think four rounds the team better,” Tyrese said.
Jasmine pushed back from the table. “Is there anything else, Silas?”
“Hmm?” he looked at her as she stood.
“You’ve given assignments to Jacques, Hawke, Cain, Abel and have everyone else on hold. Is there a reason to remain here? In the conference room?” she held his gaze.
“No. Hawke let me know what you discover.” He looked at Jacques. “Contact Jodello. He knows what to do.”
“I’m on it,” Jacques said as he left the room.
Jasmine extended her hand to him. Silas took it and they walked out together in silence.
CHAPTER THREE
JASMINE STOPPED IN front of the elevator, pressed the button and waited. They had a lot to discuss, Silas wasn’t sure what direction to search for the missing Knights. When the elevator passed the floor of their living quarters, he looked at her.
“We need the Goddess. Maybe she’ll answer,” Jasmine said and walked out when the doors opened.
“I planned to talk to her once everything was in place,” he said to Jasmine’s back. She continued down the hall to the prayer room.
“We’re here now,” she said and placed her palm on the security panel. The door slid open and she entered. He stood in the corridor watching the door close behind her.
“Stubborn woman,” he muttered and followed. Inside she had removed her clothes and shoes and was putting on a long white ceremonial dress. The dress meant serious business, because she didn’t do that all the time.
He washed, disrobed and dressed in his ceremonial white pants and robe.
Dressed he took her hand and together they lit the candles and incense before stepping into the sacred circle. Still holding hands, Silas made the plea for an audience, gave thanksgiving and worshiped the Goddess with praise for her loving kindness.
They waited to see if their petition would be answered. One moment he knelt next to Jasmine in their prayer room, the next he stared into a clear body of water. Jasmine’s nose was less than an inch from her reflection.
“Greetings La Patron, Alpha of the Wolves and your mate Jasmine. Rise and come forward. It is good to see you.” The soft, whispery voice flowed through Silas, touching every part of his being. No matter how often he had been in the Goddess’ presence, he remained in awe of her power and grace. He and Jasmine moved toward a bright light and stopped midway, with heads bowed.
“Thank you for your time,” Silas said and explained what happened with the four wolves.
“What do you think of this Jasmine?” the Goddess asked.
Pleased the Goddess included his mate in the conversation, Silas waited to hear Jasmine’s words.
“I’m afraid.”
Startled, Silas looked at Jasmine. He never picked up fear from her.
“Why afraid?” the Goddess asked.
“The way this happened, it’s dark and I think it’s a trap of some kind for Silas.”
Stunned, he couldn’t utter a word if he wanted.
“You are wise to be concerned. There is darkness afoot. Alpha Wolf do you sense a trap?”
He had wondered at the Knights communicating fear, something he doubted they’d ever do. “I agree with my mate that there is reason for suspicion.”
“Your desire to know the location of the missing wolves is granted. Remember, pack cares for pack, find our wolves and bring them home.”
“Thank you, Goddess,” he said gratitude filling his heart as connections were made in his mind.
“Your mate is your match, and chosen to rule alongside you for a reason. Cherish her counsel, she will see things you miss.”
The next moment the prayer circle came in focus. It took a moment to regain his balance and center himself.
“You got it?” Jasmine asked, watching him.
He sought the echoes of the SOS call and this time he locked down on a location but didn’t see the men. “Yeah, I know where they were, not where they are.”
She nodded and pushed against the floor to stand. He grabbed her hand.
“Wait. Let’s talk. I didn’t know you were afraid.” He stroked the side of her face with his finger-tip.
“Have you examined those calls? I mean really examined them?” She asked.
“Before the meeting, after you left me in my office, I went back over them. Knights wouldn’t call out in fear. They’d die before letting me or Cain know they were afraid to die.”
She nodded. “Which means?”
“Either someone made them do it, which is unlikely or someone discovered a way to contact me through the link I have with the pack.” He cursed as that unpleasant reality sunk in.
“Or someone’s ho
lding them and contacted you without using your pack at all,” she said.
That grabbed his attention. “I don’t sense their wolves or their life force.”
“If they can send a fake SOS, chances are they can mask a wolf’s life force,” she said. “This isn’t the Liege, Silas. This is the U.S. government with millions of research dollars at their disposal. They’ve finally grown bold enough to open those back rooms where they’ve been building stuff for years and are running tests on our people. They have weapons we don’t know about.”
Silas stared at her for a few moments, shook his head and then closed his eyes. For years he and his Generals had been playing a cat and mouse game with the military. There’s always been a faction that promoted building weapons to use again the Wolf Nation. Normally, that talk was squashed by the Joint Chiefs, at least publicly. What if they’d continued creating offensive weapons?
Obviously, they had, the lying bastards.
The knowledge that a single Alpha could activate millions of wolves to do his bidding in an instant scared a lot of higher ups. But if they could separate them, fix it so the links didn’t work, that would render that particular threat ineffective.
Brilliant. And dark as the Goddess said. It would be catastrophic for the Nation.
“Sweet Bitch, I hadn’t seen it that way. I was blinded by anger, and let my emotions clouded my reason. What you’re saying makes a lot of sense. They’ve always played a deep game with us.” He paused. “But to use our Knights?”
“How else will they know if it worked?” she asked. “I agree someone has to bring them home. Not just for the reasons you mentioned but to discover what the military developed and make them think it doesn’t work.”
He frowned. “Why not destroy it?”
“It’s impossible to really destroy information these days. But if we can make them believe the project failed, they’ll move on, or try to improve it. That’ll buy us time to counteract whatever they’re doing,” she said.