Chapter 17
Hayden
I pull the car up outside Daisy’s apartment building.
I have to feed a fucking cat.
Nobody pays attention to me when I walk into the apartment building. They never do when I’m in my Third Form. It’s perfect for blending in, and it’s a breeze to keep it up right now.
Finding my mate. Claiming her. I feel more energized than ever, despite tangling with vampires yesterday. I’m not even angry that I got bitten.
I find Daisy’s apartment, push my key into the door, and realize it’s unlocked. I open the door and freeze when I hear a noise. There’s someone inside.
“Daisy? Daisy is that you!?” a woman calls out, running towards the door. The instant she sees me, she stops and her eyes widen with fear. “Who the fuck are you!?”
“Uh, I’m a friend of Ansley’s,” I say hurriedly. “She asked me to feed Caddo.”
“Oh, I just talked to Ansley. She didn’t mention that,” the woman replies cautiously.
“I’ll wait right here while you call her. No, I’ll wait in the hallway. I’ll close the door.” I take a step back, pull the door closed, and wait.
This is fucking awkward. I wish Ansley had mentioned there could be someone here. Judging by the age and similarity around the eyes and lips, I’m guessing that’s Daisy’s mother.
The door cracks, then opens. She doesn’t look scared anymore. She actually looks rather relieved.
“Hayden, I’m sorry,” she says. “I talked with Ansley. Caddo is okay. No need to stop by and feed him. I’m taking him home with me today, until Daisy comes back.”
“I apologize for the intrusion,” I nod my head to her, then turn away.
“Ansley’s a good kid,” she warns. “Don’t hurt her.”
“I won’t,” I reply, trying to let her hear the truth in my voice. “She’s safe with me.”
The cat is fine. I didn’t even have to stop by.
One less thing on my plate. But everyone knows Daisy is missing.
That’s not good. I’m sure some cop is eating a donut right now, days if not hours away from putting some of the pieces together.
There are too many missing people, even in a city like Chicago.
My next stop is The Den. As soon as I get close, I can sense my brothers. All of them. I tense up a little because of Jaxton. We don’t have bad blood or anything. He’s my brother and I love him. He’s just never been the same since the Crimson Templars killed the she-wolf he loved.
It wasn’t a mate bond. Not like the one I share with Ansley.
It was a different kind of connection. A very human connection, driven by feelings rather than instinct.
That doesn’t mean it wasn’t real, and it doesn’t lessen the pain he feels from losing her.
He was already becoming an Alpha. Once they were wed, he would have left us and formed his own pack.
I push the doors open and step inside. My brothers are all seated at a table.
None of them are seriously wounded, but they look like they’ve been in a fight.
Remy has some bite marks on his arm. Storm has a gash on his jaw.
Wyatt has some bite marks along his shoulder.
Jaxton… it doesn’t look like any of the blood on him is his.
“How many vampires were there?” I ask, taking my seat at the head of the table, reaching for the bottle in the center.
“Four. All young makers. They ambushed us while we were rescuing the survivors,” Remy says. “I figured they would have moved on, but I guess they thought you might come back. They definitely weren’t expecting a pack.”
“Should I call Morgan?” I ask, looking around at the visible wounds.
“We’re fine,” Jaxton grunts, taking a pull from his cigar and exhaling the smoke. “But we need to find the rest of the vampires. Quickly.”
“Agreed.”
“And you need to tell us what the fuck is going on with you,” Jaxton continues. “Remy said you’ve found your mate? Didn’t think that was worth sharing with everyone?”
I look around the table. I can tell from the look on their faces that they’ve already been brought up to speed. Part of it, at least.
“Her name is Ansley,” I say, noticing Remy tense up. “She’s my mate, yes. I’m sure Remy told everyone that I don’t know what she is, other than a Scion. I don’t know how it is possible, but it’s everything our father described. I knew she was meant for me, and she knows it too.”
“It goes against everything we were taught,” Wyatt says.
“But there are some older texts. Most of them have been lost, but I’ve got a few of the old scrolls from our scholars.
One of them mentions a time when wolves lived with other Scions.
It’s possible some of them fell in love.
Possible that some of them even felt the mating bond. ”
“Possibilities don’t give us the answer. There’s no way to separate fiction from facts with those old scrolls,” I gripe. “Some could be accurate. Some could be legend. Some could be campfire tales.”
“Same with human history,” Wyatt admits. “They write things down. The parts they like become gospel. The rest gets tossed in a fire. Our kind was the same way as new Alphas emerged with new visions for how our kind should live.”
“Well, Scion… mate… whatever she is, we’ve got bigger problems to deal with at the moment,” Storm says. “I’m happy for you, brother. Truly. It could mean there is a future for our pack. But right now, we need to track down some vampires.”
“What do we have on them?” I question, leaning back in my chair.
“We know the area they’re in, based on the location of the blood bank, and where the majority of the victims were taken from.
There are likely more nests with older vampires.
A bunch of young makers wouldn’t have the restraint to maintain a blood bank unless they were scared of what would happen if they drained every single human dry,” Remy says.
“It could be one very old vampire pulling the strings. That’s where I’m leaning, based on what we know. ”
“What about your mate? Ansley?” Wyatt asks. “If she was able to lead you to the last nest, do you think she could do it again? I’ve never heard of a Scion with that kind power before, but if she can help…”
“She wasn’t tracking the vampires. She had some sort of vision that told her where her best friend was being held,” I answer.
“Whatever power she may have has never been developed or trained. She was raised by humans, not Scions. I looked into her family history, but there was nothing about her father. My guess is that it came from him.”
“Scions breeding with humans. Wolves mating with Scions,” Storm sighs. “Just when I thought the world couldn’t get more fucked up.”
“It can always get worse, brother. Trust me,” Jaxton growls.
“We’ll do what we can during the daylight, then we’ll do a more thorough search once the sun goes down,” I say. “Two groups, just to be safe, but let’s stay in close contact. Remy, you’re with me.”
“Guess that means the two of you are stuck with me,” Jaxton chuckles, puffing his cigar as he looks at Storm and Wyatt. “Wyatt, you’re driving.”
All of us can maintain our Third Form except for Jaxton.
He’ll have to ride in the back of an SUV and stay hidden unless there’s an issue.
Luckily, I know Wyatt and Storm will be safe with him if there is any trouble.
He’s almost as strong as I am. Not that Wyatt and Storm can’t hold their own against a few vampires, unless it’s an older maker.
We go over the plan a few more times, then we split off into two groups. Jaxton, Wyatt, and Storm head towards the SUVs. Remy follows me to my car. He seems tense, like there’s something bothering him other than vampires.
“Are you okay, brother?” I ask as I get into the car. “Something on your mind?”
“Nothing that we need to discuss,” he replies. “We just need to find these fucking vampires.”
Whatever is bothering Remy, he doesn’t want to talk about it. That much is clear. I could push him. As Alpha, I could demand an answer. But that never ends well. It’s not leadership, and I’m barely a leader these days anyway.
“I’ve been thinking about how things happened with Ansley,” I say, hoping discussing my mate will be an easier topic than whatever burden he’s carrying. “If it’s possible for me to find a mate, then maybe it’s possible for everyone. You might find yours one day too, Remy.”
It doesn’t seem to change his demeanor. If anything, it just makes him more tense. “Maybe, Hayden,” he says, glancing out the window. “Or maybe she’s unique. No way to know. It’s not like there’s an abundance of Scions left in the world.”
She feels unique. Like she was made for me, whatever she is.
I can still taste her on my tongue. Still feel the radiating pleasure from the intimate time we’ve spent together.
It feels like she did more to heal me than Morgan did, and in some ways, she did.
The scars on my soul are much worse than any that could ever be inflicted on my body.
But it still feels like there’s something missing.
I didn’t knot when we mated for the first time.
That’s supposed to be a sign that the initial mating ritual is complete.
It doesn’t guarantee children, but it wasn’t uncommon for a she-wolf to be with child afterwards.
My instincts still scream for me to breed my mate.
That the mating ritual, as incredible as it was, still isn’t finished.
I hope there’s nothing wrong with me. I should have found my mate long ago. Or found a she-wolf to love, if I never felt the pull towards my mate. Maybe it just takes longer because Ansley’s a Scion. What is happening between us is something believed to be impossible. I just need to give it time.
Once we get closer to the cathedral, Remy opens his laptop.
“Okay, so from the perimeter of the cathedral, we can lay out the best direction to follow based on where the missing people have been taken from. We should go that way,” Remy says, pointing ahead. “I’ll let the others know which route they should take.”