“For the first time ever, I just don’t want to go. I want to stay here and make a home, start a family with Summer and live a simpler life than the one I’m used to.” Connor pushed his empty plate away and popped the top on a can of coke.
“Then bring the business to the mountain. We can find you a suitable office and you can direct things from here.” Garrett said. “You already said Linc wants to buy in so let him and share the responsibility. No one needs to know where you actually operate from, I know that might concern you that it could bring the wrong type of people out here, but it’s manageable.”
“It had crossed my mind to switch HQ and Linc has been running things for a while. Most of the stuff we do are cold cases that the police departments have given up on, runaway teenagers who are now in their twenties and thirties, that sort of thing. This case is the riskiest one I have done in years because of the people involved and this is a culmination of months of hard work for the team.”
“We can talk about it when you get back and in the meantime, Garrett can source out a few offices for you to look at,” Seann added.
Imogen and India joined them, full of chatter about the new babies and he looked around for Summer and saw her coming toward them through the throng of people at the food tables. His breath caught in his throat as she reached down and ruffled a little girl's hair and he wondered again if she might already be pregnant. The thought alone was shocking, he had never been envious of other wolves with mates and families but he found himself picturing a ‘happy ever after’ with Summer.
“Those two babies are adorable,” she said as she took her seat beside him and put her meager plate of food on the table. “Bree looks so much better than she did earlier today.”
“Have they decided on names yet?” Kandis laughed. “When I saw them earlier Bree and Nate were locking heads on what to call them. Nate said that he wasn’t giving his son some ‘airy fairy’ dumbass name, but Bree was digging her heels in.”
“You know she will get her own way in the end, Nate can’t say no to her.” India grinned.
“Where is Addison, I thought she would be here tonight with the other kids?” Summer asked Kandis.
“My mom had her today, she should be here any minute so that I can say goodnight. Mom is going to keep her overnight, you have more than enough to deal with. I hope you know what you are taking on, watching all these babies.” Kandis smiled.
“Hope, Bree and Anjelica will be there too and Nate’s staying home. Piece of cake!”
Connor watched her interaction with the other women in the pack and realized something about his mate, everyone liked her. Imogen, India, Bree and Hope all wanted to get close to her and even Kandis who kept her circle of friends very small gravitated towards Summer. Her sunny disposition was addictive and attracted people like a magnet.
She caught him staring at her and the corners of her lips turned up in a smile and Connor wished he didn’t have to leave her. He would love to close the door on their little cabin and close out the rest of the world with it.
But he couldn’t and wouldn’t do that to Linc. They had been friends for the longest time and he was one of the few wolves he would trust with his life, although that number was increasing rapidly since he came here to the mountain. Linc had been there for him the only time he had his heart bruised and he had wished for the longest time that he had listened to his friend and not gotten involved with her. Linc never could stand Gloria, hated her from the first time he saw her and never changed his opinion. If Connor was really honest with himself he was a little nervous of introducing him to Summer, not that it would sway his decision if he didn’t like her but he knew Linc only had his best interests at heart.
Seann stood up and howled to get everyone’s attention and everyone gradually stopped talking and turned to face their alpha.
“We will set off as soon as you all finish eating. There are two first timers with us tonight, one is Ailsa Green, a brand-new shifter and tonight will be only her second shift and the other is Connor Adair, Garrett’s brother who has recently joined our pack. This is the first time we have had a full pack run since we moved here and I for one can’t wait to feel the earth under my paws as we baptize this mountain as our new permanent home.”
A chorus of howls swept round the pack when Seann finished his speech and Connor felt the same pride that he could see in the other wolves as he glanced around the table. What a pity he hadn’t grown up in a pack like this one, it might have prevented his jaded view of their culture for so many long years.
He stripped off and shifted with the others and hung back as Garrett had asked him to join him and India at the back of the pack while Seann and Imogen led them. He was more excited about this run that any other he could remember. It was like a rite of passage, his initiation into this amazing family and he was ready to embrace it with open arms.
As Seann signaled the start with a piercing mournful howl into the blackening sky, Connor turned to see Summer standing in the doorway of The Den. She looked ethereal in the light of the full moon and he raised his head and howled as he followed the pack into the night.
CHAPTER TWENTY ONE
Summer
Summer was used to watching her father and brother shift and run when she was younger but tonight as she had watched Connor leave with the rest of the pack she felt a prick of envy that she would never experience this part of his life with him.
She was cradling little Cian in her arms and gently put him in his crib and turned on the nightlight. Everly was fast asleep in her bed and on the other side of the large nursery Hope was putting Ethan and Kali to bed too.
“I’m going to stay up here with them and read, I’ll call if any of them wake up,” Anjelica whispered as she settled in a chair in the corner and turned on the soft night light.
Nate had made everyone tea and snacks and she sank into the armchair and took a cup from him. The twins were asleep for the moment in their bassinets beside Bree’s chair and she hoped she would have the chance to hold them again before they all came back from the run.
Connor had left his phone with her and as she fumbled in her bag for a tissue she saw that he had dozens of missed calls. He had the volume turned down.
She scrolled through quickly knowing it must be important and it looked like this person had been calling every minute or so for the last hour and a half, what the hell was going on? She didn’t want to be nosey but this wasn’t someone calling for a chat.
“What’s wrong?” Bree said shrewdly.
“Someone has been trying to call Connor every minute, it must be important but I don’t want to go through his phone.”
“No secrets between a mated couple, Summer. You should call the person back in case we need to send someone out to get him,” Nate added as he scooped his son into his arms when he began to fuss.
She opened his phone and read the first few messages, but they all said much the same thing, the people Connor and Linc were after were coming for him, and her.
‘They know where you are Connor and they know about Summer.’
‘Location compromised, guard those closest to you.’
‘Pettigrew knows everything, we have a mole.’
‘Let me know you’re okay, getting worried.’
‘Get the girl to a safe place.’
Summer passed the phone to Nate and he cursed as he read through the messages.
“Thank god Jay is on duty tonight. I will call him. Summer, can you call this person back and tell him Connor hasn’t received his messages yet and Bree will send someone to head them off and bring him back here.” Nate took charge and Summer was glad she wasn’t alone.
“Wait, let me try something first!” Summer suddenly remembered.
She closed her eyes and concentrated as she reached out to Imogen and surprised herself when she connected with her first try. She quickly relayed a message to pass onto Connor and Imogen replied that they would all come back to The Den as quickly as poss
ible.
Summer hit the screen and the phone barely rang before it answered.
“Connor, where the hell have you been?”
“This is Summer, Connor isn’t here right now.”
“Summer, my name is Lincoln McCarthy and I work with Connor. I don’t want to scare you, but there are some really nasty people heading your way. I can’t stress enough how much danger you are in right now. I don’t know how much Connor has told you, but these are not people you can reason with. I have a team on the way, ETA about thirty minutes.”
“Men? She left the question hanging in the air and knowing she was taking a huge risk if Linc didn’t know what Connor was. Connor hadn’t mentioned if Linc was a wolf or a human.”
“Yes, just men, but armed to the teeth and they will kill anyone who gets in their way.”
“Thanks, I will keep you informed Linc.” Summer’s voice was a little shaky.
“Imogen got the message and Linc has a team on their way, I have sent you the number if you could pass it on to Jay to coordinate. These men are armed and he says they will kill anyone in their path.”
“I have called three of Jays guys back from patrolling the town to help watch over The Den and had the cabins closest to yours evacuate, Summer. That’s probably the first place they will look for you.” Hope said as she closed her phone.
“Bree, we need to take the babies upstairs and you, Hope and Anjelica stay there with them. Barricade the door with whatever furniture is available.” Nate said as he lifted a bassinet in each hand and took the stairs two at a time.
Summer knew that normally the Donovan sisters would protest at being told to hunker down and hide but Bree’s fear for her children overrode her normal argument and Hope was the size of a house. Neither of them would be able to shift to protect themselves.
Roisin came barreling in through the front door making Summer jump. Jay had obviously filled her in and she was here to help.
“We need to lock every window and door until the pack gets back here. Let’s make this as difficult as possible for them to reach you.”
Summer helped her secure the ground floor and then followed her upstairs to check all the windows were locked there too. They told Anjelica to stay put and she just nodded but Summer saw the fear in her eyes.
Nate came downstairs with them and turned out the lights and opened the curtains to give them an advantage over the people looking for Summer. She had been blessed with her father’s speed and strength and had perfectly sharp eyesight too. Unfortunately, she didn’t have his ability to shift but she did have other skills and needed to call on them now.
She wanted to call up a spell to repel anyone from coming too close to The Den but spells like that drained her energy quickly and she would need to keep her strength if she needed to escape or to fight.
“Summer, do you know how to use this?” Roisin handed her a pistol.
“It’s been a while, but yes.”
She felt the weight in her hand and exposed the chamber to check if it was loaded. Satisfied that she was familiar enough with it she engaged the safety and put it on the table beside her and turned to look out the window. No human eyes would see her in the dark but a shifter would.
A slow burning anger began to rise from the pit of her stomach and despite her best efforts she couldn’t quell it. She was tired of being a target for people who wanted to use or abuse her, kidnapped twice by a madman who wanted to use her powers for his own and now these men would use her to draw Connor out and kill him. No-one was going to hurt Connor, not while she had breath left in her body, she was nobody’s damn victim.
Her fingertips were tingling and she could feel a surge of raw energy radiate down both arms. The feeling was foreign to her but it didn’t frighten her at all, her anger quashed any fear she may have had.
She held out her palms in front of her and watched as the raging heat formed into a small blue flame. She closed her hand to extinguish it and then conjured it again and a smile spread across her face as the blue flame appeared again and again. She concentrated on the flame and willed it to grow until she had a ball of blue flame in her hand the size of a tennis ball.
“What the hell is that? Roisin said in wonder. “I didn’t know you could do that”
“Neither did I,” Summer grinned. “I think it’s a form of pyrokinesis. My mom would light the fire in the grate with a snap of her fingers but the flame was red. This feels more like a ball of energy, rather than fire.”
“Is it dangerous?” Roisin ventured.
“I guess we will soon find out,” Summer said smugly and Roisin glanced at Nate and raised her eyebrows.
The long stretch of silence was oppressive and Summer wished she could hear the howling of wolves to reassure her but the only sound was an owl hooting somewhere in the trees at the back of the house.
“Someone is here.” Nate whispered.
Summer stared out at the blackness of the courtyard looking for any movement. Despite the full moon the sky was overcast and there was little light to be had. Something moved in her peripheral vision and she saw it was one of the younger guards on duty tonight. He stepped back into the shadows of Garrett and India’s house across the courtyard. He was letting them know he was here.
She wanted to reach out to Imogen again but she didn’t want to distract her when she knew they would be running full speed to get home again. She turned from the window to say something to Roisin when a barrage hit the window and she rolled onto the floor for cover. The rat a-tat-tat kept on coming but the windows held fast. They were bullet proof!
“Nate, are the windows upstairs bullet proof too?”
“The entire house is.” Roisin said from the floor. “Seann wanted it to be a safe house.”
Summer crept to the side of the window and peeked out. She counted eleven men firing steadily on the house. Her rage began to grow until she thought she might explode.
“We are sitting ducks here. If they fire on the door enough there will be nothing left of it and it will take them moments to round us up. I am going to go out there, it’s me they want.”
“No, Summer. The pack will be here any moment and will be more than a match for these goons.”
“People will get killed and I am not going to be responsible for that, Nate. I couldn’t live with myself if that happened. The pack could still be miles away.”
She walked to the heavy front door and unlocked it and called out to let them know she was coming out.
“Lower your weapons, I am Summer Blackwood and I am unarmed. It’s me you want so please leave these people in peace.”
The door swung open and she walked out onto the porch and down the steps. She held up her hands to show that they were empty. The goon in front grinned broadly and gestured to two of his men to grab her. They met her and took an arm each and brought her in front of him, clearly unthreatened by her size and stature. He looked her up and down before dismissing her.
“This should be enough to bring Adair out into the open. Put her in the car and burn this place to the ground, kill anyone who gets in the way.”
“No please, there are children in there,” Summer said horrified.
The sharp sting of his hand on her face caught her off guard and she gasped.
“You shouldn't have done that,” she said as she wiped the trickle of blood from the corner of her mouth.
“And why’s that?” he grabbed her hair and yanked her closer to him. She could smell his breath and it was foul, like him and the rest of his gang. The heat was still building inside her and her fury was rising to meet it.
“Because of them,” she nodded to the five wolves that had come into the clearing and formed a semi-circle around them. Connor, India and Garrett on the left and Imogen and Seann on the right. They were the fastest by far, but the others wouldn’t be too far behind. “I suspect in a few moments there will be a couple of hundred more and you will have nowhere to run to.”
“My men will cut you down
before any of your dogs have a chance to move. Would be a shame to riddle that pretty face with bullets but it wouldn’t be the first time so don’t push your luck goldilocks. Shoot the dumb animals first and then raise this shithole to the ground, I want to go home.”
Kandis and Liam joined the group and Summer felt lightheaded as her rage increased at the total disregard for life and these men who wouldn’t think twice about burning a house full of innocent kids.
She raised both hands in the air just and began to chant just as Connor charged the leader. She opened her mouth to stop him when shots rang out and he howled in pain and lay still on the ground. She couldn’t believe she had watched him being shot for the second time.
In a flurry of fur and claws the other wolves attacked and several of them went down. More men appeared and Summer knew she would only have one shot to try and save them. The wolves could survive this but the men would not.
She wanted desperately to go to Connor but she needed to do this first. As two blue balls of energy appeared on her palms she raised her hands and blasted them toward the armed men again and again and watched as they fell one by one. Their hearts would have stopped instantly.
The wolves arriving were still rounding up the other men they found on the road and in the woods but they had the situation under control. Jay was there now and he would make sure none of them got away alive. It all seemed to be over before it had even begun.
She gasped as she fell to her knees. She didn’t have an ounce of strength left.
She tried to crawl to Connor who was still lying where he had fallen but she didn’t have the energy to drag herself there. She could sense that he was still breathing but his pulse was thready and weak.
“Someone help him, he will die if he doesn’t get help.” she gasped.
The other wolves were dazed but alive and she fought to keep her eyes open as she tried to find a source of energy she could borrow from.
“Take some from me.” Imogen was beside her and India quickly joined them.
Children of the Moon: Book Six Page 15