“Don’t think like that. We have something they want. Viola is a businesswoman. The first rule of business is if you have leverage, you use it-you don’t get rid of it. They are alive. Never think differently.”
I fed off his confidence. He sounded like he truly did believe it. I hugged his arm, clinging to him and his hope, praying it would rub off on me. All I could do was hope that what he was saying was true. I also had to wish things would go the way we wanted. One thing I would never tell Nico was that if it came down to me or my parents and Abi, I’d sacrifice myself every time.
NICO
Maddy had another bad night. Her bad dreams had woken her up three times. She was taking a nap upstairs, completely exhausted from lack of sleep after so much disruption. It seemed like the nightmares were getting worse every day as we got closer to the full moon. I’m sure the kidnapping attempt hadn’t helped, either. I was worried about how things would be in the days before the full moon. Hopefully, she and her wolf could figure things out so she could shift before they both became too distraught and exhausted to do anything, much less fight, run, and whatever else we would need to do.
Dad and the guys were coming over for a meeting that morning, and Luis was going to give us an update on the reconnaissance of the locations we thought Maddy’s family was being held. They were in different locations, in completely different states. I didn’t have high hopes that things would be simple. We’d managed to score a win when we’d identified the locations. I had no doubt the royals wouldn’t be that lax on anything else.
“Do you want the bad news?” Luis asked as we all settled in.
“Not even going to pretend there’s some good news?” Dad asked.
Luis shrugged. “I’m a pragmatist.”
“Okay,” I said. “Let’s have it.”
Luis opened a tablet and swiped until he found what he was looking for. He turned it around and showed us a picture of an abandoned house. “We’re pretty sure this is where Maddy’s parents are being held.”
Sebastian squinted at the screen. “It doesn’t look bad. What’s the big deal here? Can’t we just do a smash and grab? Go in the dead of night and pull a Seal Team Six sort of thing?”
Luis shook his head. “We thought about that. I checked some street cameras around the area. Found some nasty stuff.” He started pointing at different areas of the picture as he spoke. “Multiple people inside the house. I paid a local investigator to take some pics. From the images he sent, it’s safe to assume they’re all armed. There are cameras all around the location, so they’d see us coming. We wouldn’t have the element of surprise. Good news is they look like a closed circuit, so only the guys inside can access the feed. My guy is also pretty sure the apartment building next door has two different guys on elevated floors. If those guys have scoped rifles, we’re dead before we even get to the door.”
“Well, shit,” Felipe muttered.
“Exactly.” Luis swiped the screen again and showed another building. “It’s pretty much the same thing. You want me to be honest?” he asked, looking me dead in the eye.
I nodded. “I wouldn’t have you here if I didn’t want you to be.”
“There’s no way we get them out without several of us getting injured or killed.”
Dad raised an eyebrow. “Pragmatist?”
Luis grinned back and nodded. “Yup. Look, I think that’s why they separated them. The royals were worried we’d go for a rescue operation. By separating them, we’d either need to choose one to go after or split our people into two teams. In the first option, they have a heads up and can move Abi or the parents. The second option is that our teams are too small or weak to actually get them, and it’s a bloodbath.”
I sank back into the couch and put my face in my hands. Both safe houses seemed to be in residential areas, which meant that not only were the royals there, but if something big happened, the neighbors who lived nearby would call the cops. Then we’d have to deal with that, along with not getting our brains blown out by a sniper or guard. It was a chess game, and they’d set up the board perfectly.
“Fuck,” I hissed. “Those sons of bitches are smart.”
I’d been hoping to come up with some sort of leg up on them, some way to outsmart them, but that was looking like childish wishful thinking. It shouldn’t have been surprising. They’d been planning, scheming, and murdering for centuries. They had more experience at this than anyone. I should have known better.
A decision needed to be made, and I was the one who had to make it. We’d need to wait. Maybe something else would happen to give us the advantage we needed. “All right, no one makes a move on any of these houses. Not without my express order. Understood?”
They all nodded, but Sebastian was slower to respond than the others. I could see him chewing at the inside of his cheek, his brow furrowed in concentration. He hadn’t been the same since Abi had been taken. It seemed like he almost blamed himself. Maddy had filled me in on their fling, and I wondered if he thought the kidnapping could have been prevented if he’d actually pursued Abi instead of having a weekend of debauchery and then going about his life. Sebastian had never been the type to stew in guilt. Usually, he let things slide off his back. Abi being taken had really messed him up. It made me wonder if there wasn’t some part of him that actually did want something more with her.
“Sebastian? Are we good here?” I asked. I didn’t need him going off half-cocked and trying to be a one-man rescue team. It would only get him killed.
He stared at me, then nodded again. “I got you.”
“Okay,” I said. “I guess we’re done here for now. Anyone hears, sees, or finds out anything, let me know as soon as you do.”
Sebastian hung around when everyone had left. I thought he knew I needed some company. I used to enjoy my alone time, but since mating with Maddy, I’d become uncomfortable being by myself. It was almost like my pack instinct was heightened. Clearly, Sebastian also didn’t want to be alone. I wasn’t sure if it was because he felt bad about Abi or if he was simply lonely. That had never been something I’d considered. Sebastian was always so outgoing and fun-loving, but that didn’t mean he didn’t have issues. If we did get Abi back, I wondered what might happen between the two of them.
I was making breakfast burritos when Maddy came down the stairs. She wiped at her eyes, smiling when she saw Sebastian. The problem was, I knew it was not a true smile. I could see it. She was trying, but it didn’t look genuine. There was still some anger toward him lurking under the surface.
Apparently, Sebastian could sense it too, because he headed to the front door. “Hey, guys, I need to get going. See you later.”
He strode out the door, and Maddy came into the kitchen to brew herself a cup of coffee. I really wanted to build that bridge between them. Having one of my best friends and the woman I loved at odds with each other was exhausting. Something needed to be said. I finished wrapping the burritos and plated them, then slid one over to Maddy.
We ate in silence for a few minutes before I decided to broach the subject. “So, you and Sebastian?”
Maddy swallowed and glanced warily at me. “What about us?”
More Kickass Werewolf Reads
Dive into our collection of free werewolf romance novels—where fierce Alphas, daring heroines, and heart-stopping twists await. Every story burns with forbidden desire, loyalty, and destiny. Don’t wait—here’s a world where love bites hard and nothing is stronger than the call of the mate.
Leave a Reply