Four days after Lexia rescued Lucy, the compound was woken by the blast of an explosion. The ground shook violently, rumbling as if an earthquake. The electricity went out, plunging the compound into darkness and chaos erupted.
Grey had come through. Managing to avoid the added security, he and the alpha wolves had rigged the building with enough explosives to blow it, and a good chunk of the surrounding earth, sky high.
That night, Lexia rolled over and snuggled deeper into her duvet. Ignoring the screams and continuous siren, she smiled into the darkness. The end was one step closer.
Chapter 22
Grey and the other alpha wolves moved back a safe distance – Grey the only one in human form – careful to not make a sound, and alert the many hunters patrolling the building. Grey was a little disappointed they’d been unable to get a closer look; he’d have liked to know exactly what it was they were blowing up.
It had been harder than expected to track down explosives, and even harder to lay it undetected, but the wolves had the advantage; this was their home and they knew how to move unseen within it. Looking at the wolves around him, making sure everyone had moved back enough, Grey pressed the detonator.
They’d not moved far enough – the blast knocked Grey from his feet, stunning him. The explosion had taken out far more of the forest then he’d expected. He supposed that was what happened when amateurs messed with explosives.
Groaning, Grey rolled over and shifted. Nudging the wolf laid next to him until he roused, they moved on together finding the others. Retreating deeper into the forest, they ran quickly, aware the area would soon be swarming with angry hunters.
Lincoln stood on the other side of the compound to the wolves when the blast went off. At the time, he’d been contemplating just walking inside the compound and dragging Lexia out kicking and screaming. Of course, Caden had been watching his every move since they’d arrived back in Deadwood, but at that moment, he’d been preoccupied with his phone. Lincoln suspected he was talking to Caleb; he’d overheard them on the phone a few days back.
Decision made, he ran a few feet toward the compound. Caden had already started after him when the forest was lit with the spark of an explosion and the ground shook violently beneath their feet.
“What the hell was that?” Caden asked, climbing back to his feet.
“Wolves,” Lincoln answered, pointing at the distant figures retreating into the forest beyond.
“Please, tell me you weren’t just planning on running in there,” Caden demanded, coming to stand in front of Lincoln.
“Doesn’t matter now, Caden; blasts have drawn them out. I suggest we follow the wolves’ suit and retreat.”
Don’t worry, Lexia. I’ll be coming for you soon…
Chapter 23
Having no nightmares that night, Lexia didn’t wake early. With no electricity, her alarm didn’t go off. The banging on her door woke her. The sounds vibrated through her skull, each pound causing her to cringe.
“All right, all right,” Lexia groaned. She’d already checked the life force behind her door and knew Derrick, Belinda, Marcus, and Alice waited. It was usual for Derrick, Belinda and Marcus to be together, but Alice’s presence confused her.
She stumbled to the door; sleep still muddling her brain. Her room was lit by a dim green light, which was quite disorientating. The second she unlatched the lock, Derrick burst through. He looked as sleep deprived as she felt.
“Thank God. Where have you been?” he demanded, his voice stern, though Lexia detected the undercurrent of concern.
“Here in bed,” Lexia muttered. “Do come in.” Slamming the door, she collapsed into the nearest chair. “What is she doing here?” Lexia asked, pointing a finger toward Alice.
“I have a name, Maura!” Alice spat back.
“No you don’t. You’re not Alice,” Lexia replied.
“Whose fault is that, bitch,” Alice sneered, her eyes narrowing in anger.
“Stop it!” Derrick chided. “I brought her here because she’s your friend and the compound is in chaos. Did you not notice the ground shaking last night?”
“Course I did,” Lexia replied casually, waving them toward the sofa opposite her as they still stood hovering near the door.
“Why the hell you in bed then, boss?” Marcus asked, looking at Lexia as if she’d lost her mind.
Lexia glanced at Alice, still stood near the door, then back at Derrick. “I need to talk to you.”
“Talk then,” he answered annoyed.
Her eyes flickered to Alice a few times while she debated whether to trust her or not. Alice answered before Lexia had made up her mind. “For God’s sake, do you really think I’d say anything?” She crossed her arms and glared at Lexia.
Now that’s a little more like the girl I once knew.
“I’ve no idea what you think. You’ve not exactly been yourself,” Lexia stated.
“Well, Lex, I’ve been turned into a freaking monster and my best friend stood by and watched, so I think I’m entitled to be a little pissed. For the record, I still hate your mother and if you are planning to kill her, I’m all for it, but I’m never going to forgive you for this.” She gestured to herself, the look in her eyes one of utter disgust.
Lexia knew what it was like to hate yourself, to loathe the very blood keeping you alive and she understood Alice’s reaction. She’d never been a forgiving person, except were Lexia had been concerned.
Nodding, Lexia pushed the hurt Alice’s words caused away and answered Marcus. “I was in bed, because for once, I could sleep soundly knowing I was one step closer to finishing this.”
“I knew it! Told you she had something to do with the blast.” Belinda grinned at Marcus, nudging him with her elbow.
“What else have you been hiding?” Derrick muttered, clearly feeling put out by being left in the dark. He leaned against the wall to the side of Lexia, his arms crossed tightly.
“I’m not hiding information, Derrick. I’ve just been preoccupied and Lucy hasn’t allowed me the chance to bring you up to speed.”
“Still, I wish you would let me help you,” Derrick said.
“We all want to help,” added Belinda.
Lexia smiled at Belinda who sat on the sofa. “I get it. I really do but you have to understand something. I’ve spent the last four days wondering what the hell my next step is because it didn’t look like the alpha pack was coming through and seeing you guys only makes me feel worse. I see it in your eyes, the hope, the confidence I’m going to save you, but I’m just a girl. I’ve no clue what I’m doing. I was never the brightest in school. I’ve never been anything but ordinary, yet now I have the fate of so many lives resting on my shoulders. If you haven’t noticed, I’m coming apart. I can’t sleep. I can barely keep food down and the only thing that seems to keep me sane is running until my body can’t run anymore. I’m a mess yet I’m expected to bring down my mother.”
“We’ve never expected those things from you, Lexia,” Marcus said, sounding unusually serious.
Lexia looked at Marcus and Belinda who sat on the sofa, such unexpected friends, yet they’d somehow ended up together. “You may not mean to, but you do, every single one of you.”
“I’m only going to say this one more time. You are not alone. So please let us help you.”
Looking at Derrick, Lexia nodded in answer before getting to her feet and retrieving the papers she’d copied in Lucy’s office. “I found these in Lucy’s office,” she explained, handing the papers to Derrick before sitting back down.
“Who’s Ethan Wake?” he asked, his eyes scanning the information in his hands.
“I asked Sarah to look into the people who’d lost the most when the hunter program was officially terminated. She found out that Ethan bankrolled a fair chunk of the start-up. Despite being promised a big payout, he lost everything when the government closed it down. Now I have to somehow figure out if he’s providing his services again. I’ve no idea what those p
apers mean. I just saw his name and copied the information quickly.”
“Give me a look.” Marcus reached out. He was quiet while he flipped through, his eyes scrunched in concentration. “Now, I’m no expert, but these look like transactions. Large chunks of money like this aren’t easy to hide. He’s laundering money through somewhere.”
“He runs an investment firm. Sarah said it’s nothing like he once had but he comes from old money.”
“Could be his company’s just a front. Either way, I’d say this man’s worth digging deeper into. The question is how?” Marcus added, passing the papers back to Derrick.
“Lincoln,” Alice stated, from near the door.
Lexia felt his name like a shard to the heart. She tried to hide the pain but Derrick saw. “We don’t say his name, Alice,” he scolded.
Her eyes shot across to Lexia’s holding hers for a few seconds before carrying on with her conversation. “He has friends in high places and is on the board of a large investment firm, plus he’d do just about anything for her. Seems stupid to not ask for help.”
“No. We are not getting him involved,” Lexia answered sharply, glancing back at Alice.
“Why? You left him, Lexi–”
Lexia cut Alice off. Standing, she stepped toward Alice and towered over her. “You’re right, I left him so he’d be safe. I am not dragging him back into this hell.”
Alice stood taller, sneering in Lexia’s face. “He’s already in Hell, Lexia. You left him. He might be safe, but it would have been kinder to kill him.”
Anger shot through Lexia. Her blood sizzled to life. The urge to lash out was almost impossible to ignore. Derrick pushed off the wall, putting himself between them, but Lexia knocked him out of the way. “Stay out of this, Derrick. This is between me and Alice.”
“Come on, girls. No fighting,” Marcus added.
Lexia’s fists clenched, her jaw ridged with tension. As she was about to release some of her rage, she heard the scrap of paper being slid under her door behind them. Diving for the paper, the green back-up lights suddenly went off, plunging them into total darkness for a mere second before the lamp in the corner of the room switched on.
“Looks like they fixed the power,” Belinda said.
Lexia didn’t hear her. She’d switched the main light on, flooding the room with light as she read the words on the note passed under the door.
“Shit,” she muttered, turning back around.
“What is it, boss?” Marcus asked, walking over.
“A warning. Lucy’s put together a team to take down the alpha pack, and selected me as the leader.”
“Well, at least we’ll have more time outside the compound,” Belinda added.
Lexia was already shaking her head before Belinda had finished speaking. “Not one of my unit’s names is on this list. If I see a wolf, I’ll have to attack. Otherwise, we’re all dead.”
No one had time to comment. A sharp knock at the door made Lexia jump. She’d been too preoccupied to notice her mother’s energy approaching.
“It’s Lucy,” she mouthed, indicating for them to hide in her bathroom.
Stuffing the note in her back pocket, she opened the door. “Mother, how nice of you to stop by,” Lexia said with a fake smile.
The lights chose that moment to flash off, then flickered, threatening to immerse them into darkness again. “We seem to have a problem with the lights,” Lexia stated, hiding her smile when irritation crossed Lucy’s face.
Lucy ground her teeth as she spoke, each word forced to be calm. “I want them dead, Maura,” she screeched. “Bring me their heads.” Lucy’s eyes filled with blood lust; the wildness frightening Lexia. The alpha pack may have pushed Lucy over the edge.
“By them you mean the alpha pack?” Lexia asked calmly.
Surprise replaced her anger. “They are all alphas?”
Lexia allowed her smile to show, her eyes holding a delighted, wicked gleam. “Yes, Mother. I did warn you. The shifters are a proud, loyal race. It was only a matter of time before they joined together.”
“I don’t care,” Lucy snapped hysterically. “There are ten of them and hundreds of us. I’ve selected fifteen of my best men and tasked them to help you destroy the beasts. You are to set out immediately. We are at our most vulnerable right now. They need to die.”
The lights went out. Lexia counted to five in her head before they flickered back on. Lucy let out a frustrated breath. “I’m very busy, Maura. The team will be waiting for you in the cargo hold.”
“I have no need for them, Mother. If we are to catch them, I’m best to go alone,” Lexia told her, hoping she’d somehow manage to talk her way out of the predicament.
Her eyes narrowed. Lucy stared, her look one of utter fury. “You will not argue with me on this matter, Maura. This is not up for discussion. Please do not take my leniency over the past few weeks as a sign I am going soft. I want their heads on sticks, Maura, and you will use my men to help you.”
Damn it. I need to find a way to warn them. Taking one last shot to sway Lucy, Lexia took a breath and spoke as calmly as possible. “At least allow me to scope the land first. The reason the wolves succeeded in destroying that building was because they move unheard. Your hunters do not. I can read the land. Allow me to go out alone and find where they are hiding. Then we can attack.” Lexia held her breath as Lucy deliberated.
After what felt like an eternity, she answered, “Very well.” Her response was curt as she turned on her heel.
Lexia wasn’t sure what possessed her to speak next. Maybe because she could feel the end near, maybe because she’d had enough of fearing her mother’s wrath. “Why are you so obsessed with them, Mother?”
The lights went out. When they came back on Lucy had paused but not turned around. “They jeopardize our mission,” she answered, carrying on her path.
“It’s more than that though, isn’t it? You’re hell bent on killing every last one of them. Man, woman or child. What did they do? Who pushed you so far to twist your vision?”
Lucy turned, her body ridged. Her steps were slow and deliberate as she walked back, her eyes hard, the set of her mouth, irritated and angry. Lexia suppressed her irrational fear. Lucy couldn’t kill her. Lucy needed her, and yet as Lucy stood within inches of her, she wasn’t sure.
Her mouth relaxed forming into a sweet smile. Lexia’s stomach dropped, her heart finding its way into her throat. She knew that look. She was going to pay for pushing Lucy too far.
“Your animal’s parents.”
Lexia’s horrified gasp slipped from her mouth. “Lincoln’s parents?”
Smiling at Lexia’s ruffled expression, Lucy continued, “They destroyed every piece of information I had on you, every piece of research I’d ever done. Burnt everything to the ground including the others.”
“Others?” Lexia asked quietly, not really sure she wanted to know the answer.
“Oh, darling, did you really think you were the only one? My sweet, stupid Maura, you are not as special as you first thought. At one time, you had five equally talented brothers and sisters.”
“But you carried me.”
“Yes. Simply part of the experiment, nurture versus nature.”
Lucy took a step back, preparing to walk away, her smile smug.
“You killed them,” Lexia whispered.
“They had to pay. In the end, Maura, these shifters you think so highly of are just animals, and animals do not like to be caged. I knew the rough location of their pack. All I had to do was simply wait for them to cross my path.”
Lucy marched away.
“She was pregnant,” Lexia said to Lucy’s retreating back.
Lucy’s laugh bounced off the walls, making Lexia want to snap her neck. “Oh, I know. She begged me to spare the baby. It made the kill all the sweeter.” Lucy left while Lexia stood trembling, the warring emotions inside of her too much to comprehend. Her knees gave out as the first tear rolled down her cheek.
She didn’t see the dull grey concrete walls around her anymore. She was in a bedroom, decorated for a baby girl. She was walking through the home of her mate’s family. “Lincoln,” she sobbed. Her heart gushing pain, her mind cracking. She’d never wanted him more than she did at that moment, to feel his strong arms lift her from the floor, to hold her broken pieces together.
“Lexia,” Derrick soothed, lifting her up into his arms and carrying her back inside her room.
Lexia looked at Derrick through tear-filled eyes. “Did you hear?” she asked on a broken sob.
He nodded.
“How does one person destroy so many lives and get away with it?” she asked in disbelief.
“She’s not going to get away with it. We are going to make her pay.”
Lexia shook her head sadly, curling her feet under her when he placed her on the bed. “But how many more die before then? I could walk out there now and kill her. She’d have no chance against me. I’d snap her neck in minutes.”
“If you kill Lucy now, we’ll never find out who helps her. There is more than just Lucy running this show,” Derrick reminded her, pity in his eyes.
“I’m just so tired. I want it to end,” Lexia admitted.
“Stop complaining and get up,” Alice told her harshly.
Lexia couldn’t help laughing through her tears. Her eyes sought Alice. “Hell of a pep talk, Alice.”
“I’ve never given pep talks. We are all freaking tired but you are the only one who can end this. So stop crying, pull yourself together and go warn the wolves before more die.”
“Alice!” Derrick growled.
“It’s fine. She’s right. I need to warn them and I’ll take these papers to Grey. He can find…Lincoln. He’ll find out what this Ethan Wake knows.” She didn’t want to involve Lincoln, but she couldn’t help thinking Alice was right. Lincoln was in hell. Every day they were apart was hell. She might as well give him something to cling to.
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