Chapter 91 Ty
TY
Iwas poring over yet another stack of papers that needed my attention when my phone rang. My instincts were suddenly on high alert, and I felt a strong sense of urgency.
I snatched it up. “What?” I snarled vigorously.
“Ty, it’s Rick,” the voice on the other end was panicked, and my stomach immediately sank. “Liza’s SUV was hijacked, and the guards who were accompanying her were attacked by several masked men.”
My blood ran cold. “What the fuck happened? Tell me,” I roared, fear and anger threatening to choke me.
“Sir, they came out of nowhere. We’re twenty-four clicks northeast of the estate. They boxed in the vehicles. We tried to fight them off, but…” His words caught in his throat.
“Enough. I’m on my way.” I didn’t wait for him to finish, slamming the phone down and grabbing my keys with trembling hands.
My chest was tight, I couldn’t breathe, so upset and pissed at myself because I should have said no when Liza asked to see Sabrina.
I shouldn’t have let her go, no matter how pitiful she looked or how much she needed a break from the mundane life within the estate.
Yet again, I’d failed my mate. This was my fucking fault.
I’d never forgive myself if something happened to her.
Racing down the steps, my mind swirled with images of what I might find when I reached her.
My wolf paced and huffed inside me, just as frantic as I was.
The drive to Sabrina’s house was one I knew well, but now it seemed like the longest, most arduous journey of my life.
I sped out of the gates, barely registering the raindrops beginning to pelt against the windshield.
I pressed my foot down hard on the throttle, the engine screaming, and pushed the car to its limits. The heavens suddenly opened up, and the rain began to pour down, beating against the roof of my car with such intensity that it was impossible to see more than a few feet in front of me.
It had been threatening all day, and only now it decided to start?
“Son of a bitch.”
The large amount of surface water meant the roads were dangerously slick, and I had to slow down if I didn’t want to risk hydroplaning. I’d be no use to Liza dead.
Traffic slowed to an almost complete stop as visibility worsened.
With the windshield wipers rendered useless by the deluge, drivers were left to strain their eyes and peer through their windshields to make out the road ahead.
My fury surged, and I considered driving over the middle of the road.
Just as that thought crossed my mind, an ambulance raced by in the median, its siren cutting through the sound of the pounding rain.
I prayed to the gods that the ambulance wasn’t heading to Liza.
My hands tightened on the wheel. The minutes ticked by like hours, each second a painful reminder of my helplessness. “Fuck!” I navigated the congested road, my rage only growing as the traffic refused to let up.
I blamed myself for whatever trouble Liza had found herself in. If I had insisted she stay home, none of this would have happened. The weight of that guilt threatened to crush me. All I wanted was to keep her safe, to protect her at all costs. But now, because of my mistake, she was in danger.
“Come on, come on!” I yelled, willing the car in front to move faster.
My wolf snarled inside me, just as desperate to reach our mate.
With the rain still pouring down and making visibility difficult, there was nothing else I could do but inch forward painfully slowly, and hope that I would make it to her in time.
Finally, after what felt like an eternity, the traffic cleared, and I raced ahead, my heart pounding against my ribcage. The rain lightened to a drizzle. It was like the heavens themselves were granting me a small reprieve. It wouldn’t last long, but it allowed me to increase my speed.
The closer I got to the location Rick had given me, the more my stomach churned with a mounting sense of apprehension and fear. What if I was too late? What if those bastards had already taken her, or worse?
But as much as fear gripped my very soul, I couldn’t.
No, I wouldn’t allow myself to think like that.
Liza was strong, and I had to believe that she was still fighting.
I’d watched the security feed. I’d seen the way she’d fought that traitorous asshole.
If she could just hold on, I was on my way, if she just kept fighting…
“Please let her be okay,” I muttered into the damp air, my eyes darting along the wooded road, scouring for any sign of her or the attackers. My wolf echoed my plea, our bond with Liza pulling us forward like a magnet.
Suddenly, the scene came into view, and my heart stopped. The rain had slowed to a drizzle, but it did nothing to lessen the impact of what lay before me.
“Damn it,” I cursed under my breath as I slammed the brakes and skidded to a stop.
The chaotic scene before me was like something out of a nightmare.
Multiple black SUVs were parked haphazardly on either side of the road, their headlights casting eerie shadows.
Four men lay on the ground, tied up and writhing in pain.
“Alpha Keller!” one of my team members shouted, running toward me.
“What the hell happened?” I demanded, not waiting for them to reach me. I sprinted over to the nearest SUV, searching for some sign of Liza. Where the fuck was she? If they’d taken her…
It was only when I walked around the car and saw a familiar figure huddled in the backseat that the iron band squeezing my chest loosened. She was wrapped up in a blanket to shield her from the cold. Her gaze was unfocused as she stared off into some unseen void. She looked like she was in shock.
“Liza,” I called to her, checking her over for injuries and trying to keep the panic from my voice. But she didn’t respond, just continued to stare blankly ahead.
“Boss,” one of the guards said, moving to my side. I turned to look at him and recognized fear in his eyes, which wasn’t exactly comforting. “You won’t believe what happened.”
“Spit it out.” My patience wore thin. I needed answers, and I needed them now.
“Delta team tried to intercept, but they boxed us in from all sides and we were overwhelmed when the aggressors used tasers to incapacitate. They were just about to make a grab for Mrs. Keller when, according to Jamie, who was still in the SUV with Liza, he said they grabbed her and pulled her out of the vehicle. Her powers went into overdrive. She threw the aggressors high into the air, and they crashed into the trees. They’re all pretty banged up, a few of them have injuries that probably require medical attention. ”
I glanced around at the rest of my security team, noting the way they all seemed to be avoiding looking at Liza.
Their expressions were mixtures of fear and uncertainty.
We’d tried to keep her abilities under wraps, but it was becoming harder to hide.
And now my security team had witnessed just how powerful Liza truly was.
“Listen up!” I barked, calling them all to attention, using my dominance over them. “I want every single one of you to understand something. You are not to whisper a word about what happened here this afternoon to anyone. Not a damn soul. Do I make myself clear?”
They all nodded quickly in agreement, and I turned my attention back to Liza. She still hadn’t moved, her eyes glassy. I couldn’t stand it any longer. I needed her to snap out of this stupor.
“Get these men to the holding cells,” I ordered the guards, gesturing toward the battered kidnappers.
They hurried to comply, and I gently lifted Liza up, carrying her from the guard’s truck and into my car.
I touched her face, trying to coax her back to reality, and I whispered soothing words into her ear.
“It’s over now, baby,” I told her softly. “I’m here now. You don’t have to do anything, just lean on me, okay?”
I fastened her seatbelt and knelt on the pavement, looking deeply into her eyes. Desperate for a connection, I leaned in and kissed her softly on the mouth. It appeared to work because she finally snapped out of her daze.
“Ty?” she groaned, her voice strained as if she’d been screaming, and looked around her as if she didn’t know where she was. “What... what happened?”
“You really don’t remember?” My stomach twisted.
She shook her head, clearly disoriented, which only added another layer of worry. I needed to get her home where she could rest and recover.
“Let’s get you back to the house,” I said, starting the engine and pulling away from the scene.
While I drove, I tried to piece together the events of the day, my mind racing with questions. Who were those men? Had Maximus sent them, or were they simply trying to earn a buck? And what would this mean for Liza’s safety moving forward?
I couldn’t get us home fast enough. The rain had stopped, but I ran red lights and blew through stop signs with my emergency lights on.
Each second felt like an eternity, and I silently dared anybody to try and get in my way.
Liza needed to be somewhere safe where we could figure out what the fuck had happened.
When I sped down our driveway, I felt a fleeting sense of relief.
We were almost there. I parked in front of the main entrance, turned off the engine, and unbuckled my seatbelt before carefully lifting Liza into my arms. She was still so fragile and disoriented, and it killed me to see her like that.
My parents waited for us just inside the door, their worry oozing off them. The moment we entered, Mother stopped pacing and rushed to Liza’s side.
She took in Liza’s pale face and distant expression, and immediately held her arms out. “Ty, give her to me.” There was a gentle authority in her command.
“Mother, I...” I hesitated, unsure of what to do. My instincts screamed at me to keep Liza close, to protect her with everything I had, but my mother’s unwavering gaze told me to trust her.