Wolf Unleashed (The Royal Heir Series Book 2)

by Jen L. Grey

  "I'll need another one after that." She held the tube out, and I dropped the blood into the casing.

  "Got it." It only took another second to settle the agreement.

  As soon as my phone stopped ringing, Tommy's rang.

  "Someone's persistent." Rose chuckled and capped the tube, laying it on the table. "Good thing this won't take long." She took the wolf pendant and grabbed a piece of long leather from the table. She removed the wolf from the original chain and placed it on the leather. She then pulled out a map of Columbia and held onto the leather dropping the wolf in the center of the page.

  She reached over and took several different types of herbs in the palm of her hand. As she crunched them in her hand she began to chant, preventing us, once again, from hearing the words. Her hand began to smoke, and she closed her eyes.

  After a moment, she opened her palm and rubbed the smoky herbs all over the wolf. As soon as it was coated, it began swaying over the map. "There." She pointed at the spot where the wolf was now hovering. "That's where he is."

  "It's southeast of Columbia." Mason stared at the spot. "In one of the wealthiest neighborhoods."

  "He is a vampire prince." Rose arched an eyebrow and sighed. "I'm assuming the vampires have something to do with this like last time."

  "You're right." My phone began ringing once more. Kassie was definitely going to chew me out.

  "Take this." She handed me both the map and the wolf necklace. "It'll guide you when you're ready for it to. Just put it over the map."

  "Got it. Thank you." We needed a good plan. We’d better hurry before Kassie busts in here.

  Mason took my hand and turned to the door. "Yeah, thanks."

  The three of us walked outside, and as soon as we reached the Suburban, one of the other ones peeled into the spot right beside us. Kassie jumped out of the driver’s seat and leveled her eyes on me. "What the hell are you doing here?"

  "You already know."

  "I told you not to go." Kassie's face was red with rage.

  "You need to remember your place," Tommy growled beside me.

  "Excuse me?" Kassie clenched her hand into a fist. "You couldn't have been talking to me."

  "Yes, Kassie, I am." Tommy stood beside me as Mason moved around to stand on the other side of me.

  I hated that it was turning into a faceoff against the two women who I thought of as my family. "I had to do this."

  "No, no you didn't." Kassie pointed her finger in my face. "I told you not to come here."

  "Kassie ..." Mona's tone was harder than normal; as if in warning.

  "You seem to forget who's in charge." Tommy scowled as he took her head-on. "You serve her. It's not the other way around. You may have raised her, but she's the queen now. Get it through your fucking head. You didn't do this to King Corey."

  Kassie flinched and stumbled as she took a step back. "You don't know ..."

  "He's right." Mona walked around the car and touched Kassie’s arm.

  I hated that this was happening, but Tommy's words made sense. In times like these, I shouldn't have had to sneak off to do what I thought was right. My guards had to trust my judgment even if they didn't agree with my actions.

  "This is why she begged you to be part of the family and retire from being a guard." Mason knew how hard I'd been struggling. I didn't want to disappoint my guardians. "She loves and respects you."

  She took a shaky breath and relaxed her hand. "Okay." She glanced at me and frowned. "They're right. I'm sorry."

  "Now, that’s settled, we know where Alec is being kept." I held the map up and pointed to where the wolf had hovered. "He's here right now."

  "Holy shit." Kassie took a deep breath and sighed. "I know exactly where they are keeping him. That's what I was afraid of."

  "What do you know about this?" My heart began to hammer in my chest.

  "I'd heard rumors of a vampire nest which is similar to a wolf pack. " Kassie took the map from me and pointed out the location to Mona. "You remember that odd guy who kept running his mouth at the bar a couple of years back? He spoke of supernaturals, but he smelled distinctly human."

  "Oh my God. Yes." Mona's mouth dropped open, and she shook her head. "I thought he was crazy."

  "Wait ... Is that near the location where people have been disappearing randomly over the last few years?" Mason leaned into me and wrapped an arm around my waist.

  "If people were disappearing, wouldn't the cops have looked into it?" They all were freaking me out, and I had no clue why.

  "They tried but failed." Mason shook his head. "Dad kept thinking it sounded weird, but we didn't want to intervene and somehow have the cops on our tail instead."

  "Between the missing people, the area, and it being a place where some of the wealthiest families live, there can only be one explanation." Mona shook her head as she took a deep breath.

  "What am I missing?" Everyone was on edge except for me.

  "The vampire prince has been creating vampires. He's been preparing for this moment for even longer than we’d realized." Kassie leveled her eyes with mine. "He's created an army, and there's no telling what the hell we'll be walking into."

  Chapter Nineteen

  My stomach churned even in wolf form. Normally, running through the woods brought me pleasure and calmed the worries in my mind, but not tonight.

  Tonight we had almost James's entire pack along with the five Chicago shifters, my extra guards, and the rest of my close-knit crew ready for battle.

  Kassie and Mona had begged me not to come, but there was no other choice. They'd taught me how to fight and be strong. I refused to be safely left behind while asking everyone else to risk their lives. Even though Mason would've loved for me to do that very thing, he knew better than to even try to side with them.

  This was war, and I'd fight shoulder to shoulder with my people.

  Are you okay? Mason ran by my side. It's not a bad thing if you stay behind.

  That's what you're going with? That wasn't the problem at all. We might have an inkling of what we're about to find, but we're still going in blind. My nerves have nothing to do with me wanting to go back to the house.

  I know, but you couldn't blame me for trying. Mason huffed.

  You aren't wanting to stay back either. We both want to be the leaders who stand with our people. How can we ask others to do something we're not willing to do?

  I agree. That's the only reason why I'm not hauling your ass back to Dad's house right now. He panted as he ran.

  We're getting close. Kassie linked with our entire group. Remember to stay hidden. We need to scope out the house first.

  Since Kassie and the alpha of everyone here had submitted to me, we could all link together in wolf form. That was an important reason why a royal must meet and take care of each pack in their area. Bonds made our race stronger.

  At her words, we slowed our pace as a huge-ass mansion came into view. It was an all-brick building that had to be at least four stories tall.

  What threw me off was that there was no gate or fence around any of the perimeter. Normally, houses this large had some kind of security fencing to prevent people from getting in.

  The front yard was enormous and completely cleared. The grass seemed to be well maintained, and there was a wide concrete driveway that led up to it. Let's go around so we can see the back.

  Mason and I led the crew around the backside when I heard an all-too-familiar voice.

  "Stop it." Rose's pained voice hit my ears. "Just let me go."

  "No, we were told to keep you close and not let you out of sight." A vampire who had to be only a few inches taller than Rose leaned into her and took a deep whiff. "You've got strong witch blood." He licked his lips. "It wouldn't hurt for me to get a taste."

  "Please, no." Her voice quavered with fear. "You could kill me."

  Shit, we've got to help her. I couldn't let Rose die if I could prevent it.

  Hold still. Kassie growled into the link. We need
some sort of plan or more will wind up getting hurt than just her.

  She hated that witch because of her required payment, and I couldn't blame her.

  What's the plan? I turned around and faced her dark brown wolf.

  Tommy, do you mind going with her? Kassie's voice in the link was a whisper. She hated to ask someone else for help.

  No, of course not. He ran out in front of me and stared down at the group in the back. There are a total of six vampires around the witch. If we're doing this, it could create a diversion.

  He's right. Mona's light wolf pawed at the ground. We can run straight into the house. We should be able to follow his scent.

  We can't smell it, remember. Kassie growled.

  But Rose is here. Mason linked into the conversation. She should be able to undo the spell or whatever is blanketing him.

  And without a cost since we're saving her. I guessed that technicality would cover the cost.

  I'll take my men and go through the front door. James hurried over and pointed his nose in the direction of the front of the house. Then, the other half can go through the back. Hopefully, that will allow us to, at least, take half of them out by surprise.

  I'm going with Elena and Mason. Ella trotted over with Louis and Bruce behind her. Let the other three guards from Elena's crew go with Dad. It'll make the fight more even.

  "Stop, please.'" Rose's voice grew more desperate.

  "You aren't so scary without your bag." The tall vampire chuckled, and he opened his mouth, extending his fangs.

  Guys, let's go with them. Bruce called out to his other Chicago fighters, and our group split into two.

  We have to go now. I dug my paws into the ground and took off as fast as I could toward their little group.

  Dammit, wait up. Mason growled, but soon he managed to catch up with me. You can't run off head-first into battle with no one by your side.

  Both of us were only a few feet away from the vampires when one began to sniff the air.

  A girl took a step out and looked straight at us. "Holy shit. Wolves."

  I leapt straight at the one who had his back still turned away from me, facing Rose. He seemed to be the one who was most interested in a taste. My teeth sunk into his shoulder, and he fell backward on top of me.

  Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Kassie and Mona run into the house, leaving me and the rest of the guards to fight.

  If you get hurt, I'll bring you back to life to kill you myself. Kassie growled through our link.

  Mason leaped on top of the vampire who had me pinned to the ground. The vampire hissed and rolled off of me and onto Mason.

  Mason linked to me. Go, get Rose out of here.

  I jumped to my feet and noticed that Tommy and the others were fighting the other five vampires while Ella and Louis circled the girl who'd seen us.

  "Elena, is that you?" Rose ran over and touched my fur. "Thank God, you're here. The vampire prince, he attacked me in my house tonight while the other coven members were away. He stole my supplies and your blood. We’ve gotta stop them."

  If I could have talked to her, I would've told her to leave and I'd handle it from here. Only I couldn't speak to her in wolf form. I whimpered and pointed to the woods with my head.

  "No, I can't leave." Rose shook her head hard. "He's got other things that are important to me."

  Of course, her leaving would make things that much easier, so she was determined to stay. I whimpered and pawed at her feet, but she glared at me. "No. Besides, if I can get my stuff back, I can help you."

  A loud yelp rang in my ears, and I turned to find the stronger vampire on top of Mason with his hands around Mason’s neck.

  "Go help him." Rose squatted so she was at eye level with me. "That vampire had some of your blood. Hurry."

  I lunged and growled as I bit into the vampire's arm, causing him to lose his grip on Mason, and then steamrolled him off my mate.

  Are you okay? If I hadn't intervened, he would've been dead.

  I'm fine. He's fucking strong. Mason stood back on all fours. Watch out.

  Before I could react, the vampire held me in the air and began laughing uncontrollably. "Holy shit. I hadn't even realized the queen was right under our noses." He pulled me into his chest and held me so tight I lost my breath. "I can get it straight from the tap."

  "Stop." Rose cried out, momentarily distracting the vampire as Mason lunged straight for the throat.

  Blood spewed from where Mason sunk his teeth in, and soon the vampire’s grip loosened on me. I fell to the ground with a thud and Mason jerked his head to the right, ripping out the vampire’s throat.

  The vampire began disintegrating and soon vanished from sight.

  I glanced around at the others, who were still fighting but appeared to be holding their own.

  Let's go check on the other group. I took off toward the house with Mason right on my tail.

  Unfortunately, I heard Rose's footsteps behind us.

  Why won't the witch leave? Mason ran through the back door first.

  I have no clue. Now wasn't the time for her to be here. Still, she being a witch and me a wolf, there wasn't anything I could do about it. She said the vampire prince had something of hers. Who knows?

  We entered a gigantic kitchen. It was even bigger than the one in the house back in NYC. The kitchen had four ovens built into the dark gray cabinetry. There was a huge island in the center, which must have moonlighted as an additional eating area with bar stools.

  For them to not eat real food, they sure have a huge-ass kitchen. Mason sniffed the air.

  Kassie? We needed to figure out where our help was needed the most.

  We're fine. Kassie paused for a minute. Just find the stupid prince, and let's get the hell out of here.

  I slowly trotted over to the hallway and took a deep breath. The prince's scent led to the right side of the hallway. This way.

  "I'm going with you two." Rose hurried behind us and managed not to make a sound.

  James, are you okay? I needed to check on everyone before we continued tracking the prince. Have you found Alec?

  No, we haven't found him yet, but we're doing okay.

  I headed down the hallway, following the faint scent, and found ourselves at a staircase that came into view on my left. It led downward. Let's check this out.

  The three of us headed down the stairs. The closer we got to the bottom, the creepier it became. The walls turned into concrete, and the heavy metallic scent of blood was overwhelming.

  Can you connect to Alec? I had tried earlier but wasn't sure if Mason had any luck.

  No, I still can't. He must be in human form.

  Rose tiptoed behind us, and soon we hit solid ground, stepping into one huge-ass room to find Alec lying in the middle of the floor, unconscious. He had cuts down his arms and the wounds were crusted over with scabs.

  I scanned the room, and for the moment, it appeared that only the four of us were down here. I connected to our group. We found him.

  Oh thank God. Ella was the first to respond. Please tell me he's okay.

  Mason hurried over to him and sniffed him from head to toe. His heartbeat is still strong, and most of his wounds smell like they aren't fresh.

  Blood coated his normally brown hair and the stench of piss clung to the air. He was shirtless but still wore the same slacks from the night he had been taken.

  Get him out of here. James connected to the link. We'll hold everyone down if you can get him out.

  Does anyone know where the vampire prince is? Tommy cut into the link. I haven't seen him anywhere.

  We haven't either. Mona's voice filled with concern.

  "Well, well, well ..." An all-too-familiar voice purred from behind me. "What do we have here?"

  Apparently, we just found him. I slowly turned around and bared my teeth at him.

  "I feel so special. Not only is Rose here, but the queen and future king as well." Nicholas stepped into the room from a door that mus
t lead to a garage. "It's funny. I'd planned on attacking tonight, but you beat me to the draw. I'm kind of impressed."

  The fact that I impressed him rubbed me the wrong way. I wanted to be different from him.

  "I will say I'm a little disappointed that I can't hear your rebuttals, but the time will come eventually." He began to pace around the room with a cocky swagger. "You see, I tried working with you. I even tried being a team player, but you refused." He closed the distance to Alec, making both Mason and me growl.

  "As fun as this is, I have a feeling that you aren’t visiting due to a change of heart." His blue eyes turned frigid. "Especially when you're killing off my clan members … so, it's only fair that I be less forgiving."

  He arched an eyebrow and grinned as if he didn't have a care in the world. That’s when I realized how dangerous the bastard truly was and that we might have fallen into a carefully constructed trap.

  Chapter Twenty

  Mason growled beside me, but Nicholas didn't even flinch.

  "How about this?" The vampire prince moved so fast it was as if he appeared out of thin air over Alec. "Royal Mate, you are more than welcome to take your pack member as long as she stays." He pointed at me.

  Hell no! Mason bared his teeth at the vampire.

  But it'll get Alec to safety.

  There is no way in hell, Elena. Mason's voice was filled with anger. You're more important to me than anyone else. If someone dies, it's going to be him, not you.

  Even though I knew it, I hadn't expected him to say it so blatantly. Kassie? Mona? Tommy? Maybe we could figure something out that would work to our advantage.

  Where the hell are you? Kassie growled through the connection.

  We're down in the basement. I need one of you to run down here so you can get Alec. He's offering to give him to us if Mason leaves. This was the best way I could figure out. If Mason acts like he's leaving and gives Alec to one of you, he'd be able to stay.

  On it. Tommy's deep, calm voice gave me comfort through the link. I've found the stairs. I'll be there in seconds.

  If anything happens, I'm staying here with you. Mason slowly advanced toward Alec.