TABITHA POV I sigh as the last of my face soap rinses from my skin. I grab my hand towel and blot the remaining moisture from my skin on autopilot. My mind is a thousand miles away flying high in the air with Mariah, Benji, and Lewis. I can't help but be concerned for them, but I know they have to go. "You have been in here a long time. Are you okay," Stanley asks as he comes in and leans against the bathroom counter. "I'm just worried. So much can happen and so much has happened... I just wish we could live our lives. Death has been so constant it's becoming normal," I whisper and he tucks a piece of my damp hair behind my ear. "They will be okay," Stanley says as he looks over my face with his gentle gaze. I nod and bite my lip. My emotions surge once more and tears build in my eyes. Pregnancy hormones mixed with my compassionate nature have turned me into such a crybaby. "Come here," Stanley whispers and I move into his embrace happily. I curl my arms under myself and he wr
CARMEN POV I pull at the dry piece of skin next to my fingernail nervously as we all wait for the trio to pull into the driveway. It took a little longer than Mariah predicted to find her assassin friend and the whole pack has been worried. If it weren't for Lewis keeping everyone posted on what was happening I think Daniel would have sent everyone on a search. "Stop that," Mike whispers and I look up to find his brown eyes watching me. I bite my lip and still my fingers instantly which makes him smile. "They are okay. The plan worked. Our assassin has been hired and he is hunting Nick this very second," Mike whispers and I nod even though I haven't been able to shake the nagging feeling of being a burden. Mike slowly takes my hand in his and my heart flutters a little before he looks away again. Benji's silver car rounds the last bend and we all sigh in relief at the same time. When they get stopped and Mariah steps out Samantha basically tackles her. "I
MIKE POV "It's been two days. Shouldn't we have heard something," I ask and Mariah shakes her head. She kisses Trevor's cheek and hands him to Lewis before walking toward me. She grabs my arm and drags me to a corner. Irritation is rolling off of her in waves, but I don't care. This is about Carmen's safety. "I've told you. The first day or two you learn about your target. You trace their whereabouts. Garrett likes to plan things out completely before making a move. That's why his kills are clean. He stays off the map and he doesn't associate with anyone he deems unworthy. He will get the job done. If Nick has hired someone I am assuming it will be someone cheap. Someone that will have to search for a few weeks using the back channels. Carmen only having cash was a good thing. She had a prepaid phone and no social media accounts. I have searched for her using my ways just to check and I couldn't find a photo of her anywhere near Wyoming," Mariah says and I nod. "Fine, bu
Two days before Mike and Carmen's lunch date. "What would you like to drink today," the middle-aged waitress asks as she beams down at the young man eyeing the menu. She hasn't seen him before, but from the looks of it, he needs a good meal. His cheekbones are too sharp for his young face and his willowy frame is lost in his baggy clothes. "Just water, please... I am... I was actually wondering if you could help me with something," he says as he looks up and sets the menu aside. He pulls out a small photograph of a smiling young girl and holds it up. "My kid sister ran off after getting into a fight with our parents. The bus ticket she purchased was for this town. I was wondering if you might have seen her around recently. We need to find her before she gets herself hurt," the young man says and the waitress looks closely at the image for a second before nodding. "I sure have. She came in about a month ago asking if we were hiring. Quite a few of my regulars were wor
STANLEY POV I smile as I watch Mike and Carmen send each other glances while Mike drives. The romance between them is blossoming and I think Mike is going about it the right way. He isn't rushing her and he is letting her control all contact. Anytime she gets excited or laughs she touches him and I can see how happy that makes him. She is completely comfort around us now. She is a part of our family. Mike pulls into the parking lot and I unclip my seatbelt. "It won't take long. I just need to speak with him and see his resume," I say, and Tabitha folds her arms. "And why can't I know what he is being hired for again," She says with one of her elegant eyebrows raised. I grin and kiss her cheek. "Sometimes a man needs to hire a random guy to do something nice for a special lady," I reply, and Carmen giggles as Tabitha gives me a fake pout. "Fine. And this guy isn't a shifter? Nothing fishy about him," Tabitha asks and I shake my head as I open my door. "Tiny human
THIRD POV As Mike bends down to confirm what his ears already know a blood-curdling scream vibrates the room around him. He turns around quickly and manages to grab Tabitha before she can touch her dead mate. The blood is still oozing from Stanley's chest, but his heart is no longer beating. As Tabitha screams and sobs in Mike's arms Mike looks back at the knife buried in his friend's chest. It's clear the metal is pure silver and long enough to pierce through someone's heart. A weapon that normally belongs to hunters. "Tabitha, I have to call Dan. Just close your eyes and hang onto me okay," Mike whispers as he tries to reposition. Tabitha doesn't even hear the request. Her pain is drowning her. She feels as if her soul is being torn into two pieces. The smell of blood is so thick in the air she can taste the iron on her tongue. "Dan... Dan get everyone and get them up to the office... Stan... Stan's gone. The guy... The human he had coming in to talk to him killed him. C
TABITHA POV My shock is the only thing keeping me from crumbling at this point. I still can't believe that my mate is dead. Gone from this world before we even celebrated an anniversary.I keep waiting for our alarm to go off signaling all of this was just a horrible nightmare, but my child's heartbeat is drumming away, and everyone around me is going through different stages of grief. "Drink this," Sam whispers as she presses a glass into my hands. She wraps my fingers around it and guides the cup to my lips as she realizes I can't even focus on the simple task. Benji and Lewis eye me cautiously before doing a lap around the room again. "We will survive this," Mariah whispers as she watches Sam and me with a sad look. I want to scream at her, but instead, I work the water down my throat as if it is made of fiberglass. The tears I shed at the firm have long since dried on my face and my skin feels almost sticky. "I pray the guys find her before Nick can kill her," Sam
MIKE POV As I push my legs faster and force my nose past its limits I feel a tiny bit of shame prick its way into my mind. Finley and Daniel are grieving the loss of their brother. Tabitha is now a widow. Stanley will never meet his pup... And I don't care. I know that makes me an awful friend. I know that makes me a bad pack mate. But I still don't care. My mind is on one person. A person that is still alive and still needs me. Carmen is all that matters and she has been taken! Kidnapped and probably dragged back to the man she escaped. The man who left inch-wide claw marks down her back. The shifter who can kill her with one simple punch, but prefers to torture and abuse her. Daniel barks and I slow down to allow him to catch up with me. He gets to my side and shifts which makes the entire search party come to a halt. "We need to search abandoned places. The council will have all the commercial forms of transportation covered. He won't be able to move her by plane or bus.