STANLEY POVAt this point, all any of us are feeling is despair. There is absolutely nothing to go off of. Our mates are just gone.When Samantha and Angelica were taken seven months ago, finding them had been simple, Adam hadn't accounted for the fact we were shifters, and he left clear trails. Both natural and digital, but this kidnapper is different. He is organized and aware of our limitations."We should go through the names of all known Layne pack members. As we go down the list, we should only mark off the ones we confirmed to be dead. Then we locate the whereabouts of the ones we have left," Fin says, and I nod to show I like the simple plan.I look over at the other males, and the dagger in my heart twists. Benji and Dan look as if someone has sucked their souls from their bodies. Their eyes are completely lifeless, and their skin is a sickly gray color. I know I don't look much better, but their mates are pregnant. We are running out of time."Get started, Fin," I whisper wi
TABITHA POV "Knock knock," our kidnapper sings as the steel door finally creaks open. Mariah had me lie down about twenty minutes ago to ensure I was in position and to get my heart rate consistent. I didn't think it was necessary, but after about fifteen minutes, I could hear the difference myself. Laying down had allowed me to think and become more comfortable with our plan. He has to come into the room to retrieve me, so we will have ample amount of time to execute him, and I shouldn't have to do it all myself either. If my bear can restrain him, Mariah can end his life. This sound be easy. I continue my practiced breathing as my soft snore blows past my lips. "YOU DRUGGED THE FOOD, YOU SON OF A BITCH," Mariah screams, and I snore again. She sounds furious and very convincing. We are lucky that this is all right up her alley because I don't think Samantha and I would have come up with this on our own. "Will my daughter be okay? What did you give her," Samantha cries, and my h
STANLEY POV We finally found it. It took us an hour, but we finally located the rat's tunnel. "This fucker has been at this longer than nine months," Benji snarls, and Dan grunts as we maneuver down the narrow path in a single file line. "This area doesn't have cameras, so the software couldn't spot him. He has probably been here since killing Hazel Layne," I mumble, and Dan looks over his shoulder at me. I nod, and he looks forward. "We always knew it was someone who they wronged," Dan mumbles back, and we fall silent. Each one of us is straining our ears in hopes of hearing our mate, but so far, we haven't heard anything. After another hundred yards of twists and turns, we reach a door. Benji pushes it open cautiously, and when he does, the scent of blood tainted with silver slaps us in the face. Thick puddles of dried and drying blood are on the floor under a chair, and in the pools are clumps of long hair. "Fuck. He is a savage," I growl as Dan scents the hair. "I
STANLEY POV The normal scents of our packmates mixed with blood is making the hairs on my body stand. I don't smell anyone else blood besides David, but that doesn't mean she didn't use her buddy's chemical mixture. "Guys," Dan calls, and my eyes snap to him. He looks at me, and a shiver runs down my spine. "I can't walk in silence. I have to hear my pack. My wolf is going crazy," he explains, and I nod while studying the wild look in his eyes. "Alpha," Lewis yells, and Dan jerks toward his title. Lewis comes stumbling into the living room, looking drugged, and I move toward him quickly. I wrap my arm around his waist, and he throws his arm over my shoulders. He gives a thankful nod before looking at Dan. "Where is she," Dan growls, and Lewis shakes his head. "Gone. She drugged us. The dose didn't put me all the way under. It just made me really wobbly. She tried to convince David to leave with her, but he refused. He said he would never betray his family. She started
TABITHA POV "Are you sure," I ask as Stanley walks me toward the house while holding my arm. He is acting like I am eighty-three years old and can't walk on my own, but I secretly love it. I feel dainty and protected for the first time in my life. "Yes. Lewis was conscious when she killed David. He heard almost everything. Gary Farce was her uncle, and his daughter was her cousin. That's all we know right now. She is awake, so we should get the whole story. Try to see past the friend we all trust. She will try to use her tears. She tried that on her mate, and he received a knife to the chest. I don't know how much of her friendship was fake, but she fooled everyone. Samantha is an absolute mess. She still won't accept that she did it,' Stanley says, and I begin to feel nauseous just thinking about hurting my mate. "I can't believe she killed him," I whisper, and Stanley sighs before nodding. His eyebrows furrow and his beautiful lips begin to frown. The pain in his e
STANLEY POV "All of us thought Hazel was guilty. Should Lauren really be blamed? One wrong after living in the Layne pack isn't abnormal. The pack suffered severe abuse," I say, and the official turns toward me with a stern look in his wise eyes. "I am here to judge—fairly judge. Your pack cares for Lauren. You know her and love her, but I do not. I see a woman who helped another woman be murdered. I see a woman who could have confessed her crimes to save her pack members when her uncle came threatening her. Especially since she found out the woman she had murdered was innocent! I see a woman who chose to save herself over everyone else. Your mates were lucky you found them. If you hadn't...Lauren would have gotten away with it all. Hazell Layne deserves justice. She was marked as a criminal before the council obtained the copies of her diaries. I read her personal accounts of what happened to her while in captivity, and if you all refuse to bring one of her killers to justice, t
TABITHA POV The smell of silver is thick in the air, and it makes my heart sink as I quietly step into the room my mother is staying in. The officials left yesterday after spending twenty-four hours with her, and they told us she needed at least two more days in bed. "Doing okay, mom," I ask softly as I spot her looking at me. She nods and pats the bed beside her, and I move to sit down. Sadness and anger grip my very soul as I look at the purple bruising all over my mother's face. I wish I could resurrect Gary Farce and put him through all the pain he caused us. Mariah killed him too fast, in my opinion. "Where is Andrew," she whispers, and I grin. "He called a few minutes ago. He is heading this way with all his stuff. Daniel sent half the pack to go pick up our stuff too. Samantha has been raising hell about the work on the mega house, and the timeline has been moved up. They want everyone under the same roof for safety reasons, and I agreed. I gave the okay for them
STANLEY POV I decide to move toward Tabitha as my brother and Sam come into the kitchen looking worn out. I want to be close to her just in case they say something upsetting. The past week has been full of high emotions, and I'm unsure how Tabitha feels. She seems strong and almost unaffected, but at any time, that might change. "Evening. Has Andrew arrived yet," Daniel asks, and I shake my head? "No, but he should be getting here soon. The guys got back from Tabitha's a little while ago. Benji and Mariah are spending time with Trevor. Finley is still explaining things to mom. She was talking about coming down, but Finley explained that we should focus on bonding within our pack," I relay, and he nods before sighing. Samantha moves to a stool to sit down, and Daniel opens the fridge. Tabitha gives her cousin a small smile, and I wrap my arm over her shoulders when Sam fails to return the gesture. I know Sam is grieving the loss of her friend, but Tabitha's kindness should
TABITHA POV I take a few more deep breaths before leaning forward to apply my mascara. I have been feeling anxious since Hurst did the ultrasound to measure our baby. He said everything looked good and sealed the gender in a small envelope before passing it to Stanley. Waiting three days to know what was written on that tiny piece of paper has been torturous. I finish my makeup and head out of the bathroom to find Stanley wearing a shirt that has one side pink and the other one blue. I instantly smile and cross my arms. Compared to my simple white dress he looks extremely colorful. "You look adorable," I say with a grin, and he does a twirl with his arms held out wide. "I am so excited to know," Stan says and I nod while biting my lip so I don't laugh. He sees the humor on my face though and walks towards me smirking. "Am I amusing you, Tabitha," he asks while pulling me to him and I can't help but giggle a little. "A little," I admit and he kisses my lips. "G
MIKE POV "I don't regret having sex with you. This has been the best day of my life! I messed it up by taking it too far. I can't even properly explain what I did wrong," I say and her tear-streaked face looks puzzled for a brief second. I know she is thinking back to what happened and what she felt when I marked her. I can't believe I lost control of myself. I took away her choice, plus I hurt her. I vowed to never do either of those things and I failed her. Suddenly Carmen begins to laugh while tears continue to cascade from her eyes. I instantly get even more worried. I can't believe I have broken her this completely. "You chose me as your life partner. You marked me," she says happily after a few tense moments and I stare at her utterly bewildered. She wipes her face completely disregarding her makeup. She ends up looking like she has bruised eyes, but I don't care. "Yes. I... Aren't you upset," I ask cautiously and she shakes her head? "Of course not. T
CARMEN POV rated R The grip Mike's hands have on my hips feels so good. It's like he is anchoring me to the floor because he knows I might float away. I am so blown away by the fact Mike hasn't been with anyone. It makes me feel less anxious about what we are about to share. Mike's hands leave my hips and slide up my stomach to my breasts. When his hand squeezes my B-cup breasts my loins begin to blaze with desire.I moan into his mouth when he squeezes my breast a second time and he takes that as a sign because, in the next second, he scoops me up. He walks to his bed and lays me down so gently my heart melts. I keep my eyes on him as he steps back from me and I giggle when I see him removing his clothes as if he is in a race. But my giggle doesn't last for long as his thick muscular body comes into view. I know my mouth is hanging open as I look him over but I don't care. He is practically scrumptious. His creamy skin is flawless and the V-line above his impressive package i
MIKE POV pg13 Another loud thud rips through the air from the tack room and Boyd growls under his breath. "I fucking hate him. He is throwing a fit and making the horses skittish," Boyd grumbles extremely low and I nod before leaning my fork against the wall and removing my gloves. I nod toward the stall door and Boyd copies me by taking off his gloves."Now," he asks and I nod. I am tired of the tension this wolf brings to the pack. We are slowly letting our raised fur go down and this guy is ruining our progress. He hates ranch life, but we didn't ask for the council to send him. We step out of the stall and spot a broken shovel in the middle of the walkway. "Killian," I snap, and the asshole comes stomping out of the tackle room. "What," he barks back and Boyd steps to my side. He runs his eyes over our united front for a second before losing the tension in his shoulders."What the hell are you doing," I ask looking toward the broken equipment and back to him. He
CARMEN POV "You look so mature now," Tabitha whispers as Sam continues to line my lips with a steady hand. They haven't let me peek in the mirror at their work yet but the way Sam keeps pausing to stare at me has me guessing I look good. When they pulled me into Sam's bathroom I didn't really know what the plan was, but they got to work like they rehearsed this plan daily.Tabitha grabbed manicure items and got to work on my fingernails. Sam began exfoliating my face. Mariah was put in charge of my hair and I have been pleasantly surprised at how gentle her hands can be. Forty-five minutes later and my hands look elegant, my face has makeup on it, and Mariah has started to put the hot tools away. "You are going to knock his socks off, Carmen," Sam says with a mischievous smirk that makes me feel a little shy. "Your hair is so thick! I am jealous," Mariah says from behind me and I giggle a little. "Don't be jealous of me. I am a broken, weak human girl. You three are gorge
RATED R TABITHA POV "There you are," Stan says as he opens our bathroom door to find me washing my face. I give him a smile and try to hide my pity for his new state. My poor mate can't find me by smell any longer and that hurts. He has to strain his weak ears or spot me with dull eyes to know where I am. While I can still pinpoint him by sniffing the air. I know if I were unable to smell his alluring scent I would be devastated. "Sorry, I figured you knew," I reply and he brushes it off with a wave of his hand while continuing toward me. "As long as I found you I don't care," he whispers before pulling me toward him by my hips. I smile and drape my arms around his neck. "Oh really," I whisper back playfully, and he smirks before kissing my jaw. "Yes really," he mumbles before continuing down my neck. My lady regions flare to life as his tongue and warm breath dance along my flesh. Every night, since he gave me the okay has been like this for us. Constant touching and sex t
CARMEN POV I gasp as Mike's hot breath fans my neck and his hands grab my waist from behind. Tingles erupt in places I thought were dead and he chuckles before pecking my cheek. "Morning, cutie," he says cheerfully and I manage to swallow down the extra saliva in my mouth so I can answer him. "Morning," I reply and he shoots me a wink before taking his coat off. The slightly warmer weather has been keeping Mike in his long sleeve shirts rather than his coat and my feminine needs have definitely noticed how tight the fabric wraps around his biceps. As Mike walks away from the coat rack to begin shoveling out the stalls my eyes zero in on his thick thighs and cute butt. My heart rate increases and my ears begin to get hot. How can that man be into me? He belongs in calendars hanging able high school girls' beds. "Better wipe that drool from your chin," Finley whispers as he walks past me, and I jump before doing just that. My face burns scarlet red and I disappear
STANLEY POV I breathe deeply so the faint scent of roses can waft up my new human nose and I smile. Her warm body feels so good pressed into my cold one. I missed her and I know she missed me. I wish I could still hear our pup inside her, but I will take what I can get. I kiss the top of her head and she shifts a little in her sleep. It feels strange to be so calm, but I have nothing to stress about now. I only want to think about my mate and our family. I am done worrying and working in town. Every minute of the rest of my life will be spent on this land with my mate. I don't want to waste a moment on anything that isn't truly important ever again. And the only important things are my loved ones. I smile again as I give Tabitha a weak squeeze. Before the Mother Luna left she made a promise to our pack. A promise of protection from any more outside forces. She said the shifter world owes us a great debt due to how many threats we have eliminated, starting with Graham Layne.
As the pack sat and waited anxiously for The Luna to arrive, Daniel and Forest continued to act strange. They seemed to be as excited as children the night before Christmas. Tabitha and Sam weren't at all pleased with their behavior. The pack was still in mourning and would be for a while, but they seemed overjoyed to have a visitor dropping in during this difficult time. Mike and Carmen didn't seem to mind the lighter mood. It seems they were experiencing their first few moments as a couple since Mike had yet to release Carmen's hand. Carmen didn't mind the contact with the muscular cowboy. In fact, she was loving it. Darcy and Killian didn't sit on the couches with the pack which really rubbed Finley the wrong way. His eyebrows were pulled down over his warm chocolate eyes making them look dark and gloomy. His hands were curled into tight fists and his clenched jaw was making the young shifter look more severe. After an hour of uncomfortable silence and scattered conver