Loch & Key (Miracle: Salvation Isle #7)

3. CHAPTER 3

CHAPTER 3

“We need all hands on deck,” a voice called out over the mass of bodies gathered around Yosi and Kylo’s mansion after they’d sounded the alarm. There were more that would come, but since some of them were out swimming in the ocean, it might take them longer to arrive.

Nessim hated cutting his time with a patient short, but he was often needed out on assignment as they found more captives. He wasn’t the only therapist, but Nessim was someone people trusted instantly. His calm yet friendly demeanor seemed to draw those to him who had just gone through something traumatic.

As a psychologist, it was a helpful tool. As a person who sometimes needed space, it became a nuisance. It wasn’t his nature to turn anyone in need away, but it often meant little time to rest and recharge his batteries.

Karim came right up to him as Nessim walked into the clearing. “Come, we’re on the first helicopter.”

The Great White Shark Shifter didn’t wait to see if he followed because Karim already knew he would. They were the last two in the packed helicopter. Once his headset was in place, Karim gave the men and women there the rundown of what was happening.

“We’ll be meeting up with Saber’s unit at the airfield. We have five minutes to load up and lift off. This is a code red with an estimate of at least two thousand prisoners and anyone still on the ground who got away but might be injured.” Karim’s tone was solemn, as if he wasn’t holding out much hope of rescuing those that had been taken. He’d even reached out to hold his mate’s, Braydon’s, hand as he gave them as much information as he currently knew.

“Hopefully, we’ll have more for you by the time we land at the sight of the attack, but I must warn you: Three countries were infiltrated at the same time.” That's not good.

“When did it happen?” Cayman Dahl, a Manta Ray shifter, asked.

“We were informed less than thirty minutes ago,” Braydon told them as Karim was suddenly talking to either Saber or Chadwick based on the way he kept saying, ‘Yes, sir.’

“ETA four minutes,” the pilot informed them even as they felt the helicopter descending.

Nessim was lucky as he wasn’t expected to fight, so he had no gear to bring with him. No. Where they needed him the most was coaxing the victims to trust Saber’s men, and then load up like cattle on the many planes that would be headed to the site a few hours behind them.

“Do we know where they were taken?” Ruslan asked. He would eventually take to the water. As a megalodon, he was much faster and deadly in the water when traveling shorter distances. They would need to traverse half the world, but it was quicker for them to fly.

“No.” Karim held up a hand when several of them started peppering him with questions. “Look, Saber will fill you in, but the short story is we got lucky that an Albatross Shifter witnessed it. He was flying but found survivors in hiding who had a phone.”

“Thirty seconds,” the pilot called out. Everyone held their gear and jumped out the moment the skids hit the ground. Then they were running for the plane that was waiting for them. They hadn’t even gotten to the steps of the aircraft, and the helicopter was already back in the air to get another round of fighters from the island.

“Load up,” Saber called out from the tarmac next to the stairs. “Don’t bother storing your gear. Just take it onboard with you for easy access in case we fly into a dangerous situation.”

That didn’t make Nessim feel remotely safe to climb aboard. Not that he ever had when on a mission for the Council, but this time, Saber’s words had gotten to him more than usual.

Their Chief Council had always tried to warn his team to be wary and cautious even as they headed into battle, yet this time it seemed even more dire. Nessim had never imagined that was even possible. Saber might have been relentless in his quest to rid the world of those who sought to do others harm, but that hadn’t made him stupid. No matter who their foe had been, Saber made certain those who backed him were as safe as possible.

Just as they had been warned, five minutes after they’d vacated the helicopter, the plane's door was closed, and it was taxiing down the runway. The sensation of being completely out of his element slammed into him once again in less than an hour.

He was a sea monster, the Loch Ness monster if one was to be specific, so flying in the air wasn’t something his animal was comfortable with. Who was he kidding? His stomach clenched with the need to throw the hell up, and he wanted nothing more than to open that damn door and leap into the sea below.

Salt water might not have been his preferred means, but it was far better than being in the air as far as he was concerned. Gripping the armrests in his hands hard enough for them to creak, Nessim willed the plane to level off. It was no guarantee, but that often helped Nessim find his balance once more.

He hoped.

Clenching his eyes tightly, Nessim willed the sensation of plummeting to the earth from his mind. Mostly. Well… He wished it was that easy, but the fact was, it wasn’t.

“Okay, listen up.” Saber’s tone and words helped to stymie the nausea more than any wishing could have. “We have word from the troops that were closer about what happened.”

Nessim straightened a bit as he listened. He might not need to know how to fight, but the more knowledge he had about any situation, the better those he counseled would find their way out of their misery and pain. Hopefully.

“There are three hundred who had hidden. Another hundred who were left for dead but still survived.” Saber’s words were like a knife through Nessim’s heart.

He hated that there were so many people whose lives had been destroyed. He honestly wasn’t certain if it would have been better to have died or to live as a slave. When he’d first learned humans and some shifters were kidnapping a huge number of shifters, Nessim had thought it would have been better to at least survive.

After talking to many of them, especially the children, he wasn’t so certain.

Saber’s gaze landed on Nessim after he’d informed everyone of the latest information they had twenty minutes before landing. “I know this is a lot to ask of you, but we have to help these people who have lost so much.”

Nessim knew that. “I will do everything I can,” he promised Saber.

The Chief Council smiled at him briefly. “You always have. I know you will do so again now.”

The thing was, Nessim knew there was no way he could truly help. “I will do all I can, but if we are talking the numbers I’ve been hearing, I’m going to need more therapists than just me.”

Hell, at that point, they could have nearly a hundred and it might not be enough. Sure, he knew without having to ask that Saber didn’t believe he could save all two thousand. But there were still hundreds left behind. Alone, those types of numbers would definitely take more than one.

“I promise there are others like you headed this way.” Even though Saber said the words, it was obvious he was hesitating. Sure enough, he confirmed that a minute later. “I can’t deny it will take nearly another day before they arrive. But if you could at least assure them they are safe and maybe ask where they would like to live, it would be appreciated.”

Nessim already knew Saber preferred that all those who had been imprisoned stay in either Miracle or Sanctuary, but not all of them were willing to do so. Many wanted to return home or find another group of the same shifters to live with.

The first of the survivors who had to watch their loved ones caged and taken away had Nessim’s heart breaking. He hated every damn minute of listening to their tales of woe. Not because they were complaining, but because their stories were so devastating to listen to. The problem was, which was worse?

As a therapist, he damn well knew listening to each of their woes was far better than not. That said, it wasn’t easy to listen as they spoke about the horrors they’d witnessed. Everything from watching their parents being killed, to seeing so many of their kind being caged and hauled off onto a cargo ship.

None of it had been easy. Nor was he entirely certain he was up for the challenge before him, but Nessim wasn’t about to back down from it. The only thing he truly knew was that he was going to do everything in his power to help those who needed him.