Chapter 15
FIFTEEN
JADE
I was in the sunroom where Jewel had fucked me that morning, Casey sitting on a bench and icing his shoulder. He’d gotten shoved in the riot. I’d felt bad about it before I realized it was Jewel’s fault. I was gonna tear him a new one when I saw him again.
If I saw him again.
We were both quiet, tension making the air heavy.
I kept trying to sit still, but I was full of a restless energy that needed movement.
I was currently pacing, and I pulled my phone out of my pocket to check it for the millionth time.
Jewel was wearing his tracker bracelet, so I knew where he was.
Across the tracks in the Gritch district, at Hugo’s place.
The stage had been obscured by smoke, so I didn’t know if Hugo ran with Jewel. I was itching to go to Hugo’s and see if Jewel was okay but I needed to speak to Laurel first.
She’d gone to the Institute after the riot to try and repeal the arrest warrant for Jewel. If she was successful, I wanted to know right away.
I chewed on a nail and scrolled through the news, terrified I’d see that he’d been caught.
The news was the same as it had been for hours. As well as trying to arrest him, the Institute had brought a calculated and crushing blow against Jewel.
Feral Heir Evades Arrest—Gold Pack Safety Risk Still at Large.
Jewel’s arrest warrant and the Institute's public statement were, so far, legal and justified. A clean play against him. But they’d played dirty too.
In a gross violation of his privacy, someone had managed to capture pictures of the night that I’d sex baited him.
Despite being taken from a distance through his window, the images captured what they needed to.
His agonizing distress and rage as he tore apart what was supposed to be his safest space—his nest.
It was enough to make anyone who otherwise would have defended him hesitate.
I should have seen this coming. This was Valentino’s play—get the Institute to act.
I had been so close to connecting the dots, but now it was too late. At least he hadn’t been caught yet. I was sure that would be everywhere if they’d gotten him.
The door clicked, and Laurel stepped inside, her face grim.
I rushed over to her. “Well?”
Laurel shook her head. In two steps, she was flinging her arms around me and holding me tightly. She was much taller than me now, but otherwise the hug felt like it always had.
Her alphas, Finch, Kaos, and Ocean, followed her inside.
Finch’s expression was positively murderous, apparently too angry to even start jotting down plans in his notebook.
“No luck?” I asked.
Finch shook his head. “The Institute declared emergency autonomy over Jewel. If they arrest him, they’ll force him to bond a pack.”
I stared at him.
“What?” Casey stood and looked between us. “They can’t do that.”
“Legally, they can.” Finch’s voice was grim.
Laurel stepped back, tucking her hair behind her ear. On the surface, she looked completely calm, but there were slight tells. The stiffness of her posture and the slight narrowing of her eyes.
“We’ve got a lawyer, and we’re going to file a lawsuit against the Institute. This is a human rights violation, and we’re not going to let them get away with it. They came after the wrong family.”
“Okay, but what if they catch him in the meantime?”
Laurel pulled out her phone and typed something. Make sure they don’t.
She deleted it.
“This is all we can do right now,” Laurel said out loud. “I’m very close to Jewel, and everyone knows it. I bet the Institute thinks I’m helping him hide. I’m not, but if they find any evidence I might be, it could ruin our case.”
She held my eyes, giving me an intense look.
“Roger that,” I said, tapping my forehead. I got it. Laurel and her pack would handle things the legal way, and I would make sure Jewel didn’t get caught in the meantime.
“We don’t have long,” Laurel said, typing on her phone again. They’re following me. Don’t involve us unless you have to. Keep him safe.
I nodded at her, and she gave me another squeeze before she and her alphas left the room.
I nodded at Casey to indicate he should follow me and made my way to the fountain out front.
He sat down next to me on the smooth stone. “Do you know where he is?” he asked quietly.
I nodded. “Got him tracked. He’s at Hugo’s. I’m going there now.”
“We’re going there now,” he said, his voice firm.
I shook my head. “I know you care about him, peaches, but this isn’t safe. Not only could we get into a ton of trouble with the authorities for helping him, there are people who want him dead too. You go home, okay?”
“No. Sorry, Miss Jade, but I can’t do that. Jewel needs me right now. I want to help. I need to help.”
“Casey…”
“Could you stand going home right now? Doing nothing except waiting for news?” His big brown eyes held mine, and I sighed.
No, I definitely couldn’t. That would be torture. Plus, it wasn’t a secret that he knew Jewel. What if our enemies decided he might know something about where Jewel was hiding?
“Okay, you can come.”
“I promise you won’t regret this, Miss Jade.”
I smiled at him, feeling a bit guilty. The truth was, I think I maybe needed Casey to stay as well. I could use his calm, steadfast energy in the shitstorm I was about to walk into. I’d just have to make sure I kept him safe.
?
Half an hour later, we stepped off a bus on the other side of the tracks. We’d left behind the clean streets of New Oxford’s shiny city center and were now deep in the Gritch district.
I kept a firm grip on the pepper spray in my pocket, but with Casey at my side, we didn’t attract much attention.
“Almost there,” I told him as we rounded another corner and arrived at a shabby pub. The “o” in the neon open sign was broken, and someone had scribbled “is” next to the rest of the letters.
Yeah, I snickered.
Sue me.
There were a couple of older guys smoking by the door, adding to the piles of cigarette butts littering the pavement at their feet. I felt Casey step closer to me as their beady eyes swung our way, but they didn’t do anything more than leer as I led Casey to the alley at the side of the building.
We stopped in front of a battered metal door.
I didn’t know why Hugo had chosen this place as his apartment, but whatever. At least people minded their own business around here.
I knocked, then stuck my hands in my pockets and waited. Hugo opened the door, peering out at us with amber eyes. “Thank fuck,” he said, ushering us inside.
“Are you guys okay?” Casey asked as we started up the stairs.
Hugo snorted. “Debatable. Physically, yes.”
I set my bag down on the table. Where was Jewel? “Right. You packed? We need to move.”
“So…there might be a bit of a problem with that.”
“What do you mean?”
Hugo scratched the back of his neck. “Jewel’s… well, you’ll see.”
That didn’t sound good. I frowned, tuning into Jewel in the bond. He didn’t seem off… a bit stressed, maybe, but so were we all.
“He’s through there.” Hugo pointed at a closed door.
Casey and I exchanged a glance and walked over to it. I knocked.
“Jewel?” Casey called out. “It’s Jade and Casey. Can we come in?”
There wasn’t any response. He pushed the door open slowly. “Jewel?”
It was dark inside, the curtains pulled over the windows and the lights off. As my eyes adjusted to the gloom, I made out a figure sitting hunched on the bed.
Casey took a hesitant step inside. “Jewel?”
Jewel’s head snapped up, and his eyes glinted in the light from the living room. He crawled to the edge of the bed, his movements tense.
Casey approached, and Jewel’s head cocked to the side. He still hadn’t said anything, which was really fucking weird. This was Jewel, after all.
I jumped as Jewel suddenly slid off the bed and circled around us. A low growl was building in the back of his throat as he stood between us and the door.
“Not funny, Jewel,” I snapped at him.
Casey’s large hand caught my arm. “Shh,” he said, studying Jewel intently.
Jewel raised his hands and snapped his teeth, lunging at us. Casey tugged me back. Jewel circled and kept herding us back until Casey sat down on the bed. I followed.
When we were both settled in the middle of the mattress, Jewel gave a happy chirp and practically pounced on us. He fussed over the bedding, tugging blankets and pillows around us.
“What the fuck?” I whispered to Casey.
Casey glanced at me. “He’s in a drop.”
“A what?”
“An omega drop. He’s nothing but instinct. It usually only happens right before a heat, but sometimes if they’re really unbalanced and something traumatic happens…”
Jewel, apparently satisfied with the wall of bedding he’d weaved around us, gave a huff. Then he clambered right onto our laps.
“Ow!” I hissed as his bony elbow dug into my tit. The smile on his face looked maddeningly smug as he got comfortable. “Right. So, this lasts how long, exactly?”
“He’ll probably sleep it off,” Casey said. “But…”
Jewel wasn’t settling. He kept huffing and shifting slightly, aiming dark looks at the door.
“But what?” I asked.
“Well. We might need Hugo…”
?
CASEY
Jewel wasn’t letting us leave the nest, and Hugo wasn’t answering his phone. Jade started throwing a few pillows at the door—which Jewel was not happy about.
Hugo finally poked his head into the room. “You guys okay in here?”
Jewel straightened, staring at him intensely, a low whine building in his throat.
“I think we need you in here?” I told him.
He blinked at us. “Me?”
“No, the other alpha Jewel actually likes,” Jade grumbled. “Yes, you. Get your ass over here.”
Hugo swallowed.
“He kind of needs your soothing,” I tell him. “If he’s gonna settle. And he’s gotta sleep this off, so…”
Hugo sighed and stepped inside, closing the door behind him. He eyed the bed warily. “I’m not really the soothing type.”