Astrid Cielo (17 page)

It
was unfair that they'd been taken from her so soon, just when she'd started to
trust, started to believe that maybe her mating, though unconventional, would
not end like her parents.
 
There would be
fights she was sure, disagreements among the three of them, all relationships
suffered its little bumps in the overall bliss.
 
But there wouldn't have been hatred, barely disguised loathing and a
sense of never escaping, not like her parents.
 
She was sure of that now, but it didn't matter.
 

Did
anything really matter anymore?

She
dismissed it at first, thinking her nausea was returning, but when the
butterfly feeling returned to her stomach she knew.
 
Her son mattered and come hell or high water
she was breaking free of her prison and ripping out the throat of her captor.

Aspen
allowed her body to relax, her need for sleep pressing more heavily.
 
She'd battle soon enough.

"So,
what's the motive for stealing a shifter?"

Xavier
sighed at the not-so-stupid question posed by Daphne.
 
Then she was there in his face her green eyes
sparking like flames.

"What
do you know?"

"Daphne,
give him-"

"No,
they both know something and they're not saying.
 
This is-"

Xavier
stood, and even though he outweighed the small redhead by at least a hundred
pounds and stood over her at least a foot she stood her ground.

"All
I know is what I discovered when I hacked the Council’s website."

Wesley
stood and placed a hand on Daphne's shoulder.

"Calm
down,
Daph
, he wouldn't hurt Aspen, not in a million
years."

Daphne
turned and walked to the couch.
 
They'd
all gathered in Caleb's living room and his mind was divided.
 
Between Aspen being taken, this group trying
to talk about finding Aspen and Sky finding out the truth, his wolf and his
mind couldn't focus.

"I
tried to stop them, but he shot me," Zackary said and he buried his face
in his hands.

"Skylar
and Xavier were also incapacitated, Zackary.
 
Let's get some people out looking for her," Caleb said when Miranda
walked into the room with snacks.
 

"I've
already got them looking, Alpha," Zackary said.

Miranda
sat beside Zackary and placed her arms around him.
 
"I'll call Essence to come take you
home.
 
You'll need to sleep off whatever
they shot you with."

Zackary
looked up from his hands and shook his head.

"I'm
okay, just a little disappointed in myself for not saving her."

Miranda's
lips pressed into a thin line.

"It's
too late, I've already called her and she'll be here any minute-"

"But-"

"Don't
but me Zackary.
 
I said you needed rest
and that's exactly what you're going to get.
 
Now, tell Daphne and Wesley everything one more time and be ready to go
when Essence gets here."

Zackary
opened his mouth but nothing came out, then he looked to Caleb.
 
Caleb held his hands up in an "I
surrender."

"You
heard your alpha female, Zackary, besides you've already started the hardest
part of any search and rescue, the search.
 
Get some rest."

Zackary
finally nodded and Daphne motioned for him to join him.

"Now,
tell me what you found out," Wesley said.

Xavier
turned and told the whole sordid tale.
 
How Skylar's mother, a human, was murdered by a male who fathered
twins.
 
About five months ago now, Skylar
was given a case for murders that reminisced those that were happening now in
Pinewood Creek.
 

"How
did this even happen?
 
How did the
Council manage to miss that there were two killers?"

Valid
questions really, but Xavier knew the undercurrent was why didn't Skylar pick
up on it.
 
He tamped the rage at the bear
shifter down and tried to answer.

"Skylar's
always found his job difficult.
 
Not the
hunting or the solving of cases, but what comes after.
 
The execution.
 
He doesn't think that I know, but each time
he executes a shifter he takes at least a week where he wanders, unsure of
himself.
 
I honestly thought there would
come a day when he didn't come back to me.
 
I thought this last time was it, when he'd found Aspen, but now I know we
both gained something irreplaceable."

Wesley
frowned.
 
"
I'm
still not understanding
how-"

"I
didn't want to know their names, my assignments.
 
I chose not to know their names and in this
last case it cost me my mate."

Xavier
stood and Skylar walked to him then cupped his face before sealing his lips
over Xavier's.
 
Xavier closed his eyes
while Skylar took control of the kiss, pressing his tongue into his mouth
leaving no place untouched.
 
It was the
first time he'd openly in public showed any kind of affection, except to calm
him when they'd first arrived.
 
But this
wasn't just merely a kiss, but a claiming.
 
And it was a long time coming in Xavier's opinion.

Not
one to allow himself to be dominated for long, Xavier cupped Skylar's cheek and
deepened the kiss using his teeth to tease Sky's bottom lip.
 
Sky's bottom lip was just a bit fuller than
his top lip and begged to be licked, tasted and nipped.
 
Xavier took full advantage and tasted his
mate.

He
and Sky separated both panting heavily.
 
Their wolves weren't completely calm, but it was as good as it was going
to get.

"I'm
sorry," Sky whispered.

Even
though Xavier knew what Skylar felt sorry for, still he heard himself say,
"For what?"

Sky
sighed and Xavier gave his jaw a gentle bite.
 
"It doesn't matter, Sky.
 
Let's find our mate."

Skylar
nodded and released his hold on Xavier.

Wesley's
eyes were large, but he didn't say anything, instead he shook his head and got
back to business.

"So,
I'm with Daphne.
 
All the
vics
have been human females.
 
I mean, Charisma hit a little close to home,
but why Aspen?"

Caleb
turned from his conversation with Miranda.

"Charisma?"

"Yeah,
we identified the female as Charisma Shields.
 
She's a hostess and waitress at Havens.
 
I knew she looked familiar, but...anyways, our biggest question is why
Aspen."

Skylar
ran his hand through his tawny hair and sighed.
 
"Because he wants revenge."

Daphne
twirled away from Zackary.
 
"Excuse
me?"

Skylar
looked to the sky as though for guidance and Xavier placed a hand on his
shoulder.

"Shawn
McLemore had a twin that I executed four to five months ago.
 
He wants revenge and he plans on using Aspen
for that.
 
I don't think we have much
time.
 
All evidence suggests that he
kills the
vics
within
forty-eight hours, but those are usually human.
 
He and his brother liked to injure them somewhat then let them loose in
the woods for a chase."

Wesley
stood.
 
"But his motives are
different in this case."

Daphne
gasped.
 
"That's right, before it
was about his sadistic love for murder and torture," she swallowed her
face paling, "and rape.
 
But this
time it's revenge.
 
The other rules
almost don't apply.
 
Aspen's a shifter,
so she won't go down without a fight."

Xavier
growled at the thought of his mate in danger.
 
He didn't want to lose her, but this talking about her as though she
were just another victim was starting to get to him.
 
Part of him understood the need for planning,
but another, possibly greater part, wanted action.
 
He wanted his mate in his arms.

A
knock at the door pulled him somewhat from his thoughts.
 
This could be the news they were waiting
on.
 
Essence walked in and smiled at
Xavier and Skylar.
 
It never reached her
red rimmed eyes.
 

"Zackary?"

"I'm
alright, sis."

Essence
nodded and her whole demeanor changed.
 
She walked to Zackary and started looking him over, her questions coming
in rapid fire.
 
"Are you dizzy?
 
Did you hit your head?
 
Do you have a headache?"

Zackary
clasped her shoulders and stared her into the eye.
 
"I'm fine, sis.
 
Miranda has ordered me to rest."

Essence
smiled a real smile and nodded.

"Thank
you Miranda."
 
Essence turned to
leave and ran into Wesley.
 
She looked up
and gasped.

"Mine,"
Wesley whispered and cupped her cheek.

Essence
jerked from his contact and Zackary growled.
 
Caleb placed a hand on Zackary's shoulder and brought the young male's
attention from Wesley and Essence's interaction.
 

"He
won't hurt her."

Zackary's
nod was stiff, and his whole body tensed ready for action.

Xavier
was certain that Essence would pass out, her whole face had washed out and her
breathing was erratic.
 
Unlike Aspen's
look of wonder before uncertainty and anger clouded her eyes, Essence’s
screamed fear and it put his wolf on edge.
 
Sure he didn't know Essence well, but getting to know Aspen, this pride
and Gunnar he knew he'd protect this woman as fiercely as he had his sisters.

Caleb
stepped up and placed a hand on Wesley's shoulder breaking whatever spell had
kept him focused on Essence.
 
"Wesley, we've
gotta
find Aspen."

Wesley
took a deep breath, nodded and released his hold on Essence.
 
Essence stood for a second her eyes never
leaving Wesley, then she was gone running through the door with Zackary
following.
 
Weird, but Xavier didn't have
time to dwell on that, Aspen was in trouble.

"Where
do we even start?"

A
male ran into the house his lack of clothing made it clear he'd just shifted.
 
"We've found something Alpha."

"Why
does that seem too easy?"
 
Daphne
asked.

Xavier’s
hands clenched.
 
It was easy and he knew
why, but Skylar voiced it.
 
"He
wants me to hunt him."

***

Wesley
shook his head again and reminded his bear one more time that he had a job to
do.
 
He had a killer to catch, and if he
allowed himself to place Essence in Aspen's position his beast nearly took
control.
 
They followed the young pride
member into the night, the moon barely casting any light.
 
The deeper into the forest they went the more
worried his bear became about leaving Essence.
 

There
is danger.

Aspen
needs to be found and Essence is safe with her pride.

But...

Wesley
growled.

"Calm
down, Wesley, Essence is well protected.
 
I've got all the pride on alert."

Wesley
looked over at Caleb, his glowing eyes almost eerie.
 
Bears were normally alone when they hunted,
so having so many shifters was different.
 

"I'm
trying, but she was so scared."

Caleb
nodded.
 
"Essence has some issues
that she needs to work through.
 
I
thought she'd worked through lots of them the past few months, but she's got a
ways to go."

"So,
you going
to let me in on her problems?"

Caleb
smiled his white teeth shining in the darkness.
 
How predatory.
 
"It's
something she'll have to tell you."

Wesley
nodded and then shook his head.
 

"Oh
and by the way, Wesley.
 
If you hurt her
then-"

"Yeah,
yeah you'll have to kill me."

Caleb
clapped him on the shoulder and made his way to the front of the line.
 

"Are
we ever going to get there?"
 
Daphne
said.

"It's
only a few more yards, Miss," a male cougar said.

Daphne
growled and Wesley shook his head.

"Play
nice,
Daph
."

Soon
Wesley and Daphne were running to the front of the group at the sound of growls
both feline and wolf.

"Elias?"
Daphne said coming to a stop.

"What's
going on here, Daphne?"

"We're
looking for a missing female, a cougar."