Chapter 47
KELLAN
The streets turned into my own personal racetrack once more as I focused on weaving in and out of traffic. Finley remained silent and tense in the passenger seat, clutching the prototype weapon that neither of us had a clue how to use. But we’d figure it out.
Hang on, Shortcake. We’re coming for you, baby.
Finley dialed Hunter and Slade again, but both went straight to voicemail. “They have to be okay,” he said. “I refuse to accept any other option.”
“They’re tough,” I said through gritted teeth, which didn’t hide the shake in my tone. “Slade and Talon could have shifted mid-air and saved them. Their phones were destroyed, but they weren’t.”
Our quintet was too goddess-blessed to be torn apart forever. What Emme did might have felt like she’d ripped through a house made of wet paper, but we could fix it.
Provided we all survived.
No way would the goddess let this be the end of us.
Drifting around a corner, I almost side-swiped a fucking moron who pulled out without checking the road. He flipped me off, but I was already gone, forgetting his existence.
Finley clutched the weapon with one hand and the edge of his seat with the other, looking slightly green. “I never question why you win all the track days,” he murmured. “Unlike family game days, where I know you cheat like the asshole you are.”
I snorted, surprised to feel even an iota of amusement on a day like today. “I never lose when it’s important.”
I took another corner too fast and slightly overcorrected, but it was nothing to get us back on track. When Warrick and Cora’s house came into view, I screeched to a halt out the front, and we were out of the car in a second.
At the front door, which was still barred by thick magic, we both examined the weapon.
The enforcers weren’t anywhere to be seen, but I could feel their energy around the back of the house, followed by heavy thuds of what sounded like metal on wood.
They were doing their thing, and we had to do ours.
“This looks like a piece of tech they brought home a few years ago,” I said, recognizing Hunter and Slade’s work. I tried to keep up with Reeves Industries as much as I could. “It has a similar control panel. Do you remember the robot Slade brought home for security?”
Finley nodded as I opened the panel to examine the internal components. “The one he trashed after it fucked up his commands.”
“Yep, that’s the one. It looks like this works off the same basic power concept.”
Finley took the full weight of the prototype so I could fiddle with the switches, and relief hit when it whirred softly to life.
“My bear doesn’t like it,” Finley grumbled, his face paling.
“There’s an element of magic attached to this device.
” I could feel it too, the whir settling uneasily within my poor, grieving wolf.
“What do we do now?” Finley asked, his muscles bunching as he struggled to hold the device wreaking havoc with our beasts. He wasn’t the only one fighting an urge to smash it to the ground.
I pressed another familiar button and there was a pop as the front opened to reveal an emerging half circle, like a satellite dish, on the nose of it.
“I think if we press that to the door,” I said, noting the design, “and I initiate the energy, it should blast through the shield.”
Finley turned to the door. “Okay, let’s do this and save our mate.”
We moved slowly, and when the dish was flush with the wood, a pop sealed it instantly. Finley tugged on it once, but it was stuck tight. “It suctioned right on,” I said, nudging him to release it.
“Well, then, crank it all the way up and we’ll hide behind the car,” Finley said as he opened his hands and stepped back, leaving it against the door.
Hoping my basic knowledge and guesswork was right, I cranked the dials for power and hit the countdown to initiate. Twenty flashed up in red numbers, and then immediately dropped to nineteen.
Finley dragged me down the steps and behind my car, where we pulled on the vests, in anticipation of racing into the house. That and the Tasers were all we had, and I hoped it would be enough.
I silently counted in my head as that clock made its way down to zero. Finley started to mutter under his breath: “This better not be like those stupid-as-fuck movies where they try to set off explosives and then nothing happens, so they have to go and check, only to get themselves blown up.”
“Yeah, fuck that noise.” But I’d totally check for Emme.
We were out here without a damn clue, hoping this crazy plan worked. There was a reason that device was a prototype and not in production yet. It no doubt had some real kinks. And not the fun kind.
The whir of the prototype got louder. I could feel vibrations from here as the hairs on my arms lifted. “Something is definitely happening,” I whispered, bracing myself behind my car… right as the front door opened.
Lifting from my half crouch, I blinked stupidly at the doorway where my mate stood, staring at two of her alphas hiding behind a Bugatti like weak-ass fucks. She was covered in blood as she stumbled forward, and we were running toward her as fast as our legs could move.
“Emme!” Finley shouted. “Get away from the door!”
With his shout, she noticed the prototype, but thankfully I got there in time to shut the power off before any of us exploded. The whir and vibrations eased immediately, and everything felt calmer as we all stared.
Emme’s eyes were wide and very blue as she took us in, like she couldn’t believe we were here. When the first tear slipped down her cheek, all three of us crashed together, until Finley and I wore as much blood as she did. Blood that thankfully, my wolf could scent, was not hers.
“Darlin’,” Finley crooned, as I choked out, “Shortcake.”
Emme sobbed against my chest, and I might have shed a few tears myself.
Having her in my arms like this, safe and whole, was everything I’d been praying for. It was overwhelming in the best damn ways.
When Emme pulled back, as if she needed to see us once more, I had to ask, “Is Jewels…? Do we need to get away from the house?”
She shook her head, her lips trembling. “She’s dead. She overestimated her own strength… and underestimated my ability to use wolf and magic together.”
Finley was practically beaming at her as he cupped her face. “Here we were trying to save the day,” he said, “and you, our perfect mate, destroyed her all on her own. Not that I ever expected anything less, but fuck I feel useless.”
A small snort escaped her, and it was the cutest sound I’d heard in a long time.
“Do you want me to go back inside so you two can bust in and rescue me?” she asked. “‘Cause I’m happy to do that.”
Nudging her playfully, I forced a teasing tone. “Could you, pretty mate? We’re all hyped up with nowhere to go.”
She squinted at me, and there was no bond for her to read, but she somehow knew what I really sought. “You want to check on the witch, don’t you?”
“Confirmation would be good for my beast,” I admitted. “But I suspect the enforcers are inside now too, so they’ll be upstairs.”
Emme nuzzled against my throat, and then Finley’s. “You both smell amazing,” she whispered. “Like home and mates.” When she choked out more sobs, I rocked her back and forth in my arms. “I’m so fucking sorry I had to break the bond, but she would have murdered us all. I couldn’t risk you dying.”
She reached up as if to rub her bites, but her skin was smooth and unblemished.
Breaking the bond had stripped it all away. Her face crumbled as she felt the unmarked skin.
I cupped her pretty face and drew her closer, my lips pressing against hers. Her sweet taste filled my mouth, and my wolf eased up on his relentless howling. “We will fix it,” I assured her. “Whatever it takes.”
Finley kissed her too, and Emme melted into his bear hug, letting herself collapse momentarily. “I was worried that your bear would think I’d abandoned him again,” she whispered.
Finley’s hold tightened as if he would never let her go.
“We understood why you made the choice. Don’t get me wrong, I’m still pissed you sacrificed yourself for us, but since we would do the same for you, I won’t hold any anger.
You’re so precious to us, Emmeline. We honestly couldn’t live without you, so even if she did kill you and we then killed her, we’d all follow you. I meant that when I said it.”
Emme shook her head, her breaths rattling harder. “The thought of you dying is enough to send me into the sort of spiraling panic attack that not even Dr. Karen could get me out of.”
Finley bopped her on the nose. “Same, Ice.”
A reluctant smile crossed her face, then she straightened her spine, showing the grit and emotional strength that had gotten her through many hard years.
“Okay, let’s check on the witch and enforcers.
Oh, and I forgot to mention Cora and Warrick too.
They got hurt in the fight, but were stable when I stumbled down here.
We should call some healers for them since they did try and save me—after they led me into the witch’s trap of course. ”
With that revelation, I debated whether we should burn their fucking house down with them in it.
Finley and I both growled, the menacing sounds filling the street. Emme’s smile was more like a beam as she patted our chests. “We can rage about them later, when I’ve told you the whole story. For now, let’s check on Jewels. You’ve got me paranoid, even though I held her dead heart in my hands.”
“Explains the blood,” I said with a low chuckle. “Our violent little mate. I kinda like this side of you.” I kinda loved all fucking sides of her.
Emme tried to hide her smile. Tried and failed. “At least checking on her will kill some time until the rest of our pack returns.”
Finley froze, and I forced myself to breathe normally. There was no point in breaking her heart until we got an update from Casey. For now, there was still hope they’d all survived.