by Lauren Dawes
“I have to go, Doc.”
The male looked at him like he’d grown a second head. “Go? But where? Your mother… What…?”
He put his hands up in front of him, motioning him to stop. “I’m sorry. I’ve spent enough time worrying about her. I have to focus on the females who want to live. Thanks for coming.”
Jett walked from the room, feeling like he was floating. Leaving the doctor to tidy up the mess was a low blow, but he couldn’t stand to be in that room any longer. Pushing out of the door, he found Katya sitting stock-still in the passenger seat. He tapped on the window, indicating he wanted her to roll it down.
“Where are your bags?” he asked.
“Just inside my bedroom,” she replied, reaching for the handle. “I’ll get them.”
“Nah, I got it,” he told her, stepping back inside and walking to the room Kat had shared with Mila. Picking up the two bags, he hightailed it outside and opened up the trunk.
“Did you remember Luce’s unicorn?” he asked.
“Of course.”
Katya was looking back at the only home she’d ever known when he got into the car.
“What’s going on, Jett, and don’t tell me it’s nothing.”
He stiffened, but he forced his fingers—that were trying to strangle the steering wheel—to relax. “Females are being snatched. We don’t know who’s doing it. We don’t know why.”
Kat clutched the two sides of her jacket together at her throat. “Luce?” she whispered hoarsely.
“I don’t know.” He slammed his hands into the wheel once. Twice. And a third time.
Katya was staring at him, wide-eyed. Terrified. She turned her head to look out the window.
“What’s going to happen with Mom?”
Honestly, he hoped she died from this episode of drugging. It wasn’t fair to think that way, but there was nothing he could do about it. Their mother hadn’t just ruined her life, she’d ruined all of theirs too when she decided to bring Richard and his drug habit into their home.
“I don’t know, Kat. I just hope this is a fucking wake-up call, and she gets her shit together enough, if not for her sake, then for Luce’s.”
21
Drake growled down low in his throat as he watched Neve strip off her clothes for him. Her body was curvy, yet strength radiated from the set of her shoulders and the shape of her arms. She was built for him. He pictured himself spearing apart her legs and claiming her as his own. Of course since this was his dream, he did exactly that, pushing his broad shoulders between her thighs and opening her wider for him. Her sex was glistening as she panted—writhed—for him, and he was more than ready to give her what she needed.
Palming himself, he pumped once, twice, then brought himself into her soft folds, letting out a hiss when she shifted her hips to take him inside her. He drove himself to the hilt, gritting his teeth as all that warmth and wetness enveloped him.
Heaven.
He was in fucking heaven.
He began slowly, moving at a languid pace that Neve seemed to enjoy, if the sounds of her soft panting was anything to go by. In. Out. Advance. Retreat. He dropped his forehead to hers, staring into those green eyes and deciding he’d actually enjoy getting lost in there.
Lost in her.
Just lost.
Someone thumping on his bedroom door kicked his REM cycle out on its ass, and he was more than willing to give the person on the other side of the door a piece of his mind. He got himself into a sitting position and looked down, his erection punching out from the front of his hips, tenting his boxer shorts like it didn’t give a damn it was only a dream.
The knocking came again, and Drake slipped from the bed, cursing whoever it was. As he yanked open the thing, he found Jett standing there, the male’s blue eyes hollow, the bags under them looking like they were set up for the long haul.
“What’s wrong?”
“I need to talk to you,” Jett croaked.
The fact the guy didn’t make a crack about Drake throwing wood told him a lot about his mental state.
“Let me put some clothes on,” he replied. “I’ll meet you down in the rec room.” Shutting the door, he found a pair of sweats on the floor and shoved his legs into them. His dick, thankfully, had picked up on Jett’s vibe and calmed the fuck down. Pulling a sweatshirt over his head, he opened up the door and walked down the stairs.
He found Jett pacing between the couches and the foosball table, agitation radiating from his body.
“If you keep doing that, you’ll wear a hole in the floor,” Drake drawled, folding his arms and leaning against the wall. Jett barely glanced in his direction—just kept his head down and eyes plastered to where his feet were striking the hardwood.
He inhaled deeply and got a whole lot of guilt, anxiety, and barely contained anger.
Drake straightened, his senses on high alert. “Jett, man, what’s going on?”
The other male looked at him briefly, but didn’t stop pacing. It was almost as if he couldn’t stop moving. Oh, yeah, Drake knew where his boy’s head was at.
“Tell me, goddamn it.” It was a demand, and he expected obedience from his cat.
“Remember my sister? The one who came here over the weekend?”
Drake saw Jett pumping his hands into fists, one of the tells that his pyrokinesis ability was close to the surface, his emotions running like jet fuel in his veins. “Yeah.” How could he forget those blue eyes that were so much older than the ten-year-old girl they belonged to? “Is she all right?”
Jett stopped dead and shook his head. Swallowed. Hard. “She’s gone missing.”
Just a few words, but Drake felt like his whole world was shifting into some alternate universe. He looked down, expecting to see the floor opening up beneath his feet, but everything was as it should be. It was just his own inner world that had fractured.
“What do you mean?” He had to ask. He had to clarify, because the truth couldn’t be a reality.
“My sister Katya called me right after the school called her. Luce didn’t make it to class this morning.”
“Could she have gone off with some friends?”
“She doesn’t have any. Our…personal circumstances are well-known in the school community. There isn’t a parent who wants their kid to be friends with her.”
“Fucking hell,” Drake replied. Not exactly helpful, but the sentiment was fitting. “Okay, we have a pretty good window that tells us when she went missing.” He glanced at his phone. “She can’t have been gone for more than two or three hours. That works in our favor.”
Drake could tell that Jett wasn’t tracking the conversation at all. His eyes had gotten that haunted look in them, and he was clearly running through different scenarios in his head. Lord help him when he got to the one where his little sister was tortured, raped, or killed. That kind of thought process could send a male over the edge. After all, Drake had first-hand experience with that.
“Hey, Jett?” When the guy’s focus didn’t change, he walked up to him and touched him on the shoulder. Jett raised his head with a hiss, his fangs on display, his eyes glittering with red light. “We’ll get her back. Trust me on this.” When the guy remained mute, he said, “Where’s your other sister?”
“Mila lives with her boyfriend, so she’s safe.”
“You sure about that?”
A nod. “The guy is human.”
“You’ve met him?”
“No, but you can bet your ass I’ll be paying him a visit later.”
“And Katya? Where is she?”
Jett did look at him this time. “I was going to put her in one of the guest rooms. I hope that’s okay. I didn’t…” His voice cracked. “I can’t lose her as well.”
Drake squeezed his shoulder. “Of course. Of course it’s all right.” He pulled the male into an embrace that ended with a thump on the back. “We’re family. We’ll handle this together.”
Drake’s phone rang, and he looked down a
t the number on the screen. It was the Black Claw Leo. To Jett he said, “I have to take this.”
Heading out of the room, he turned toward the kitchen. “Greg, how are you?” he asked when he answered the call. He walked over to the fridge and pulled out some juice. He glared at his hand as a fine tremor shook the carton. Clearly, Jett’s news was still working its way through his adrenal glands. “I was just getting some breakfast, then I’ll head over.”
“Fine, but you should know there’s been a development.”
He was reaching up to grab a glass when he paused. “Is something wrong? Is Neve—”
“Neve is fine. I’m sorry. I should’ve thought about that before I called.”
Drake let out a breath with confirmation that his girl was okay. “So what can I do for you?”
As he poured his juice, he listened as his Leo said, “I’m going away for a few days—a week, at the most.”
“Where are you going?”
“Just over to New York for a business meeting,” he replied. “A human business meeting, but my mate is coming with me—making a vacation out of it.”
“And Neve?”
“Normally, she’d come with us, but she’s refusing to leave in case Katie shows up.”
He bit back the protective growl bubbling up his throat. “It’s not safe for her to be left alone.”
“Which is why I called. I know this is highly unusual, but I figured we were already breaking molds, so why not one more?”
“You want her to come and stay with me,” he surmised.
“I can’t expect you to just stay at my house for a week while I attend to these meetings. You obviously still have work to do, and we can’t draw any more attention to what we’re doing.”
While a part of him was all up for having Neve a little closer, he also thought it was the worst idea on the planet. Ever. With his blooded mate under the same roof as him, he was liable to turn into an overprotective asshole who would tear out the throat of anyone who even looked at her.
Not to mention the need to get inside her at every opportunity.
“What does she have to say about it?” he asked carefully.
“She told me she hated it when she had to negotiate with me because I always get exactly what I want while she’s left with nothing.”
Drake had to laugh. “When do you leave?”
“Midday, actually. My business partner called an hour ago and told me of a change in the meeting times.”
“I’ll come and collect her,” he replied, figuring he’d let the male know about Luce’s disappearance in person. “See you in an hour.”
He ended the call and slipped the phone back into his pocket. Stalking from the kitchen, he ran into Jett coming through the front door. He had a bag in each hand and a look of concentration on his face. Behind him, a female stepped into the house. When she saw him, though, the color drained from her face.
Jett looked anxiously between them, like Drake was some kind of wild beast that would maul his sister or something. Instead, he said, “I’m Drake. You must be Katya.”
Katya’s eyes darted to Jett before bouncing back to him. “Hello.” She cleared her throat. “Th-thank you for allowing me to stay.”
“Jett is family, which makes you family. You’re welcome here for as long as you need.” His eyes darted to Jett. “Make sure she understands all the rules.”
“Yes, boss,” he replied, dropping his gaze to the floor. “Come on, Kat.”
They took off up the stairs, and Drake stared after them. He felt like this was the start of some kind of colossal change in his universe, but he couldn’t put his finger on the why. Turning back, he grabbed the keys to his Escalade from a dish by the door and stepped outside. Inhaling deeply, he recognized that crispness of the breeze. Winter was well on its way.
Hooray for fucking snow.
Unlocking the SUV, he slid into all that leather and started the engine. It prowled down the drive, eating up the distance between him and Neve. Twenty minutes later, he was easing off the gas and turning down the long drive of the Leo’s estate, passing through the security gates and precautions with ease. When he pulled up at the front, he sucked in a breath then let it out. The next seven days were going to be a exercise in fucking restraint.
Rose met him at the door, ushering him inside with soft-spoken words. He glanced around, hoping to catch a glimpse of Neve, but she was nowhere to be found. She was probably protesting somewhere.
“Greg is in his office,” Rose told him. “You remember the way?”
“Yes, ma’am,” he replied, walking down the hall before knocking on the door softly.
“Enter,” Greg called, and Drake pushed into the room. His cat marched forward in his mind as it caught the scent of Neve, and he drank her in. Dressed in dark jeans and a bulky cream cable-knit sweater, she stared at him with disinterest.
“Thank you for coming,” Greg said, breaking the tension.
“Of course. I’m here to serve you in any way I can.” To Neve, he said, “Are you ready to go?”
She stood up. “Yeah, I am, but I don’t appreciate this new level of babysitting. I can look after myself in the house, Dad.”
“And what about food? You’ll have to leave at some stage.”
“I’ll order in.”
“There’s only one place in town that delivers, and you hate Indian food.”
She crossed her arms. “Ever heard of Uber Eats?” At her father’s flat stare, she muttered, “Jesus. You know I can protect myself, right? I’ve been training with Roman and Taylor for nearly two years now. I know how to use a gun, and I know where to hit a guy where it hurts.”
Drake bit back the snarl at the mention of the two other males. He sure as shit knew where to hit a guy where it hurt, too. “Where’s your bag?” he asked gruffly, giving her an out and distracting himself while he was at it. Rage simmered in his blood, his protective instincts flaring white hot and volatile.
“I’ll go and get it,” she replied in a huff, leaving the room.
“She’s going to be in a foul mood for a few days.”
Beating back his anger, he turned back to the Leo. “I can handle her, sir. Don’t worry.”
“You have my number, so if you have any trouble with her, just call me and I’ll lay down the law.”
“We’ll be fine.” He looked around the office. “How did you go with the pride-wide email? Did you send one?”
“Yes, I sent it out last night after you texted me the dummy number. You should be getting texts through by this evening and then again at eight a.m. Twelve-hour check-ins along with a curfew of seven p.m.”
Drake nodded, satisfied his Leo was doing everything right. “Fine.” He cleared his throat. “Look, there’s been a development with the abductions.”
Greg’s expression shifted from concerned father to concerned Leo. “Yes?”
“Another female has been confirmed as missing.”
The Leo eased back in his chair, the leather creaking with the movement.
“Who?”
“Luce Harrison. She’s Jett’s ten-year-old sister.”
“Jesus.” Greg glowered at the blotter. “When did this happen?”
“Sometime this morning. She was sent to school but didn’t arrive.”
“And she couldn’t be at a friend’s house?”
“Jett’s family is shunned.”
“The drugs,” the Leo murmured, and Drake nodded, unsurprised that his Leo knew about it.
Greg raised his gaze slowly to meet Drake’s. “I should cancel this meeting in New York. My pride needs me.”
“I think cowing to these bastards will be seen as a sign of weakness. Besides, no demands have been made. We don’t even know who’s behind this.”
Greg slammed his fist onto the blotter so violently, the phone fell out of its cradle and his jaguar letter opener rolled off the desktop. “I want these bastards found and strung up by their balls.”
“Understood, sir,
” Drake replied, seeing the cool return to the Leo. Out in the hall, Neve descended the stairs, loudly dragging a bag with her. “I guess that’s my cue.”
Greg stood up, straightened his jacket, and offered Drake his hand. “Thank you, Drake.”
He bobbed his head. “I’ll look after her as if she were my own.”
And according to his cat, she already was.
22
Neve slammed the car door and dragged her seat belt into place, restlessly tapping her fingers against her knee. She’d overheard the conversation between him and her dad, and she wasn’t going to rest until she got some information. The question was whether she was going to get her answers now, or if Drake would make her sweat, if he told her at all.
“Are you going to tell me about the latest missing female?” Neve asked, making Drake’s mouth thin, his jaw muscle flexing like he was grinding his teeth. “Well?”
“We’re not talking about this.” Drake’s voice was a slow drawl deceptively edged with danger.
She huffed and twisted her body around to face him. “You talked about it with my father.”
“He’s the Leo of his pride. He needs to know.”
She bit the inside of her cheek, tempering her next words. “And my gender is the target of these attacks.”
He glared at her before turning his attention to the road once more. “How did you sleep last night?” he demanded.
She blinked at him, jarred by the change of subject, but her brain was already one step ahead. Her body flushed with heat as she recalled the dream she’d had of him, the dream where they’d been a lot less clothed and a lot more intimate. When she’d woken from the fantasy, she’d pinned the reason for dreaming about him on the fact they’d gone for a run together, that after they’d shifted back, she’d gotten a good look at his body.