Chapter Eleven
~ Radalf ~
I leaned back against the bench seat and the wood slat wall behind me as I slowly took a sip of my beer. My eyes were pinned on the main door when they weren't scanning the interior of the roadside bar on the edge of town.
I was waiting and I had been waiting for nearly an hour, long enough to order and eat a burger and drink two beers. If the wait stretched out any longer, I'd be ordering beer number three.
Even as I watched the door, my mind was on Ajag and Sy, wondering if they had made it safely across the state line. While I had been assured that it would take time for the men in the SUVs to search the campground, I didn't know if that was the only team searching for Ajag.
Were there more out there?
If so, where were they?
Had they followed Ajag into New Mexico?
Did they even now have Ajag and Sy in their custody?
It wasn't like I could call and ask Ajag if they had reached the campground safely. I had ditched my phone after making a quick call to Ze'ev, warning him about the cell phone being tracked.
My eyes darted to the door when it opened and the light from outside filled the entryway. They narrowed as I scanned the tall man that filled that doorway, blocking out the light until the door closed behind him.
When he looked in my direction, I raised my beer before taking another sip. The man strode across the floor with a confidant air of a man that knew he could easily flatten anyone in the room.
When he slid into the booth seat across from me, I waved down a waitress and ordered another beer. Nothing was said between us until the beer was delivered and set in front of him.
"Elder Ridge recently discovered that another elder was using council resources to search for a man he deemed dangerous to all shifter kind," he started. "When pressed, Elder Payne admitted that the man he was hunting had kidnapped a small child and that it was the elder's desire to find the child and return him to his parents."
"Bullshit," I snapped quietly as I didn't want anyone to overhear us, but I couldn't keep the anger out of my voice. "Sy is Ajag's brother."
At least now I knew who was hunting Ajag.
Elder Payne.
"Why are you running with these guys, Val?"
Golden eyes flickered up to mine. "It was a request of Elder Ridge. He feels that there is more to the story than Elder Payne told him and asked me to go undercover as a council guard. I'm to report to him any news I find."
Fucking peachy.
"Does Elder Ridge know just how long Ajag has been on the run with his brother?" I asked. "Sy was a baby when this shit storm started. They've been moving from place to place, scared out of their minds every second of every day."
I wasn't sure it was my place to mention that part of that time Ajag and Sy had been held prisoner by Brass. I certainly wasn't going to mention how Brass had tortured Ajag.
"I need to talk to him, Rad. There are questions that need answers and I believe Ajag has those answers."
My response was instant. "No."
"Rad—"
I trusted Valko. He was one of maybe four or five people on the planet that I trusted. I knew I could share this information with him and he wouldn't spread it around.
"Have you spoken to Ze'ev, Gunny, or Lu lately?"
"Not for about a year," Val replied. "Why?"
"Have you heard anything about them?"
Val shook his head.
"Ze'ev recently established his own pack. The Southern Pacific Pack. It's registered with the council and everything. Ze'ev is the alpha of the pack. I'm his second-in-command."
Val didn't often show emotion so I was surprised when his eyes widened. "Ze'ev established a pack?"
"Gunny and Lu are there, too, but there's one more member of the pack. Currently, he is just listed as a regular pack member, but in fact, he is Ze'ev's mate."
"Dire wolves don't get mates." Val said it with such conviction that I knew he believed that.
He was wrong.
"See, we all thought that, too, but it's a lie. We don't know who started that lie or why, but dire wolves do get mates. Ze'ev has bitten, knotted, and claimed his mate."
I gave Val a moment to soak in that information. I knew it was a lot. We had all been taught that we didn't get mates, that we had been created to protect the packs.
We had been taught wrong.
"Ajag is my mate."
Val's mouth dropped open, something I had never seen him do, not in all the years I had known the man.
"I haven't claimed him yet because there hasn't been time," I continued, "but I know Ajag is my mate and he knows it, too."
Val's eyebrows lifted nearly to his hairline. "You're serious?"
"This isn't something I would joke about, Val."
"But—"
"You need to wrap your head around this, Val. Ajag is my mate and I won't let anyone hurt him or Sy, not even someone from the shifter council."
I'd fight the Devil himself if it meant keeping them safe.
"Did you get rid of your cell phone like I told you to?"
I nodded. "I got rid of it right after you told me. Why?"
"They are using that to track you, your mate, and everyone that was at that ranch."
"You were one of the men that wanted to search the ranch?"
Val shook his head. "No, I was with another team, but I heard about it from my commander. That's how they found the campground. They tracked you through your cell phone and then traced it to all incoming and outgoing phone calls that you made."
"We need to warn Ze'ev."
"I've already sent him a coded message."
"How many teams are out there?" I asked.
"Four that I know of, but there could be more."
"I don't understand why Elder Payne wants Ajag so badly." It didn't make sense. He was using a lot of council resources to find him. Elder Ridge had a right to be concerned.
"You need to get your mate somewhere safe so we can figure this out."
"Where?"
"We could take him back to the ranch."
My eyebrows lifted. "We?"
Val snorted. "You think I want to stick around with these idiots any longer than I have to?"
"What are they going to do if you up and disappear on them?"
Val shrugged. "Who the fuck cares? I was just with them to get information. I'm not a regular member of their teams."
I wasn't sure it was that easy, but I wasn't going to argue with Val. "Until we reach Ajag and Sy, I only have my bike. You'll have to ride bitch."
Val's eyes narrowed menacingly.
"You got a better way to get there?" I asked.
"I could steal a car."
Wouldn't be the first time he'd done that. Hell, it wouldn't be the first time any of us had done that. Being a law abiding citizen meant nothing when your life was in danger.
"Is there someplace around here you can pick up a bike?"
I seriously doubted he'd want to buy a car.
"Not here, but maybe down the road a bit."
"We're headed south," I pointed out. "Any bike shops south?"
Val shrugged his massive shoulders. "Got me. I tend to stick to Texas, not Colorado."
"We'll keep an eye out." I tossed back the remainder of my beer and then slammed the bottle down on the table. "Let's get out of here."
I wanted to be gone and on the road before Val's buddies figured out what was going on. I also wanted to get to Ajag and Sy as quickly as I could. While I felt that they would be relatively safe across the border, I couldn't be totally positive.
I tossed a few bills on the table to cover the bill and then headed for the door. I could hear Val's heavy footsteps behind me. When I reached my bike, I swung my leg over it and sat down. I turned on the engine and gave it a couple of revs before grinning as I looked at Val.
"Climb on, bitch."
"Fuck you, man," Val grumbled as he climbed onto the bike behind me.
As soon as he was settled, I weaved my way into traffic and started down the road. At this point, my aim was to get us out of town without being caught. I'm sure Val's buddies would become suspicious soon. We needed to be out of town before that happened.
It didn't take us too long to get out of town. I stayed to the back roads for the most part. They tended to have fewer cameras. I knew once I got on the highway there would be a lot more chances of us being spotted.
When we drove through our third town, Val patted my shoulder and then pointed to a red brick building just ahead of us. I was expecting a motorcycle shop, not a bar.
Once I stopped and turned off the engine, I glanced over my shoulder to Val. "Why are we stopping here?"
Val pointed to the row of bikes parked in front of the bar. "Takes too long to buy one for a dealership. Besides, they are all probably closed this time of night. Easier to buy a bike from a biker."
Maybe, but I didn't know a single biker that would willingly give up their ride, not even for money.
"We passed an anchor store a couple of miles back. Why don't you go buy a couple of disposable phones while I find a ride? Get one we can toss as soon as we use it because we need to talk to Ze'ev."
I nodded and waited for Val to climb off the bike. Once he did, I started the engine again and drove back into traffic. It didn't take me more than thirty minutes to buy some disposable cell phones. I grabbed several just in case we needed them.
By the time I got back to the bar, Val was sitting on a silver motorcycle out front. I glanced at the bike, giving it a good once over. It wasn't as nice as Val's usual ride, but it would do.
"How much did that set you back?" I asked.
Val snorted. "Damn fool lost it in three pool games."
I grinned and raised my fist, bumping it with Val's. "Did you get the title?"
"Do you think I'm an idiot?" Val asked. "Of course I got the damn title. I also got a bill of sale. He lost fifteen thousand dollars betting with me because he thought his balls were bigger than mine. I traded him straight across for the bike."
I chuckled as I shook my head.
A few minutes later we were back on the road heading for the state border, and hopefully Ajag and Sy. With the darkness overhead, I felt it was giving us an added aid so we quickly hit the highway and sped through the night.
It only took us a couple of hours to cross the border and reach the small town of Raton. We hadn't exactly been driving the posted speed limit. I slowed as we approached the first campground, hoping this was the one Ajag and Sy had stopped at. I was ready to be off my motorcycle for awhile.
I slowly drove through the campground looking for Ajag. When I spotted the black Jeep parked in one of the spots, my heart skipped a beat.
I stopped in front of it and parked my bike. I turned off the engine, climbed off the bike, and then hurried to the driver's side window.
I paused for a moment to take in Ajag's sweet face. His eyes were closed and it was obvious he was sleeping, but there was still rigidness to his face that made me wonder if he was having a nightmare.
I gently rapped my knuckles on the window. I needed to wake Ajag up, but I didn't want to startle him. Ajag jerked and his eyes snapped open.
I didn't like the fear that filled them.
I pointed to the lock. As soon as Ajag flipped the switch, I pulled the door open and stepped as close as I could get. "Are you okay? Did you have any trouble getting here?"
Ajag shook his head. "I'm fine."
"Sy?" I glanced into the backseat where the little boy was sleeping.
"I think he knows something is going on," Ajag replied as he glanced over his shoulder at his brother. "He's been a little quieter than he has been for awhile."
"He probably feels the tension in the air."
That was my bet.
Sy was pretty smart for a child his age and he'd already been through more than an adult should. I doubt he had any problem understanding that things were bad even if he didn't know exactly why.
Ajag suddenly stiffened, his eyes going beyond me. "Who is that?"
"That's Val...Well, Valko. I'm sure you've heard us mention him a time or two. He's a friend. He's here to help us."
Val was here to help us, but he was also here for information.
I wasn't sure how to break that to Ajag.