18. Finley
Finley
Two weeks had gone by since our trip to New York.
Life fell into a routine of working with the pack and planning our next move as Ayla and I watched the cracks begin to form in the Dark Ring.
Zander’s office was covered in maps, flow charts of how people were connected, and a list of names with four crossed out.
It was our hub of operations and where they would find me if I wasn’t out working with the pack.
After dinner, while the guys were relaxing watching tv, reading, or Derven’s newest hobby, whittling, I slipped away to get some work done since we had a rule I wasn’t allowed to work all night anymore.
Nine o’clock was my cut-off, then I was locked out of the office and attached to one of my men for the rest of the evening.
A knock sounded before Zander entered, an odd look on his face, his cellphone in his hand. “It’s my mother.”
Slowly I stood and walked over to him, taking the offered phone and raising it to my ear. “Morwyn.”
“I have her. I’m sending people I trust to pick you up and only you to deal with this matter. No matter what they say, my son is not allowed to come to this exchange. Do you understand me?” Morwyn ordered.
My brows shot up at her tone and the snark of her words.
“Morwyn, I understand you perfectly well but let me explain one thing to you. While you might be used to people falling over themselves to do your bidding, I am not that person. We are in this together, you and I. If you fuck me over, you kill us both, simple as that. I will share with my mate your request, but I guarantee it’s not going to fly.
There will be one or two of them that will come with me, or I’m not coming at all. ”
Silence echoed from the other end of the line, but I could still hear breathing, so I knew she didn’t hang up. “Two, you can bring two as long as one of them is not my son. He already is beginning to hate me and I won’t give him more fuel to fan that fame.”
“Now, those are terms that I can work with,” I said. “Who should I be expecting to pick me up?”
“Peter and one other, a woman named Tabitha,” Morwyn responded.
My blood ran cold hearing that name. “How long has Tabitha been working with you?”
“Since they betrayed her and made her sell you out to the Dark Ring,” Morwyn explained. “When the end of that mission went all to hell, she fled. Somehow she found out that you and I are working together and threw in her lot with me.”
Nothing about this sat right in my brain, but I knew how skilled Tabitha was and if she wanted to play double agent, she sure as hell could. Who knows, maybe she could have been a double agent all this time. “How soon should I be expecting them?”
“In about an hour. If you have more questions, ask Peter.” With that ending remark, she hung up the phone.
Dropping the phone from my ear, I saw that she called from a number within the Senate building.
Was it secure? Did anyone listen to what she’d just told me?
Could everything about this be another trap?
No, not with the contract we had together.
It assured that she couldn’t act against me or change her mind about the deal we made.
If that were to happen, it would kill us both, and I was still very much alive.
“What the hell was that, little dove?” Zander demanded.
Buying myself some time, I wandered out of the office and up to the second-floor living room. “Could everyone gather for a moment? I have some news.”
“Why aren’t you answering me, Finley?” Zander barked, his irritation and fear swirling in him like a vortex.
I took his hand and interlaced our fingers, giving it a squeeze. “It’s going to be fine. I just don’t want to have to explain this twice when I can just do it once.”
The other alphas and the twins were already in the living room watching basketball, so we just had to wait for the other three to wander in. It didn’t take long as they all took a seat on the couch, watching me with warry expressions.
“Morwyn called to let me know that she has Delilah,” I announced.
This information had everyone taking over each other, trying to get a word in until I let out a shrill whistle. “Stop.”
I’d been trying to respect them better and not use my magic to end the squabbles that seemed to pop up every so often as we adjusted to living together with nine people in the house. Eventually, they quieted down, and I could explain what I knew, which wasn’t all that much.
“In about an hour, Peter is coming to pick me up. I’m allowed to bring two of you with me to this secret location she has them. The one and only stipulation that she would not budge on was…” I paused to look at Zander. “You can’t come.”
“The fuck kind of rule is that?” he demanded. “If I want to go with you, I damn well will. Who does she think she is telling you not to allow me to go?”
“She’s your mother, Zander, and what she wants most in the world right now is to be able to still look you in the face.
Your mother is convinced that you will turn against her the deeper into this mess you get and she doesn’t want to risk that,” I reasoned, knowing he wasn’t going to hear me, not yet.
After he had some time to cool off, he would but not right away.
Zander shoved off the couch to his feet and started to pace. “So, who are you going to take since I’m clearly not invited.”
“My plan was to take Derven and Rath. They know the system the best. If she’s lying to us, they will be able to tell.
No one else has that kind of inside information and Delilah is a conniving bitch who knows just how to manipulate people,” I shared, trying to explain my logic the best I could so they wouldn’t be upset with me.
None of them looked thrilled, while Derven and Rath looked equally unsettled by the whole idea. “I won’t force you to go if that’s not what you want to do.”
The two men looked at each other, then turned to me.
“Nin mel, of course, we will go with you, but you have to understand that if she tells you anything about the men we were in their clutches… it’s not the men you are mated to.
There were many things we did to survive and not one am I proud of,” Rath expressed, wringing his hands, refusing to look at me.
Sitting on the ottoman before him, I placed my hands on his knees.
“Rath, there is nothing you could say to me that I won’t understand.
I’m an assassin. I kill people for a living.
Did they deserve to die? I don’t know, but I was given a file and sent on my way to do my job.
What you and Derven survived, though, no one would blame you for doing what was needed.
I’ve seen the other side of this, watched what they forced you to do for the sake of entertainment.
All I care about is your health and well-being now.
Don’t force yourself to do this if you’re not up for it.
” I turned to Derven, who was sitting next to Rath.
“Either of you, just say the word, and I’ll make a new plan. ”
“Give me a moment to think it over,” Rath requested.
Derven gripped Rath’s thigh in a reassuring gesture. “I will go with you. That way, at least you have one of us if Rath chooses not to be involved in this.”
My gaze then landed on Elias. “If Rath stays, will you come?”
“Without hesitation, my heart,” Elias answered. “I will be more than happy to help you do what is necessary to get the information we need.”
“That settles it then, Rath will stay, and Elias will go. Unless by the time we are ready to leave, you make the choice to come, but I feel like it might be best for you to leave this to others,” suggested. “I’m going to change and gather a few things I might need.”
Jogging up the stairs to my shared room with Zander and whoever else landed in the bed at night with us, I changed out of my comfortable house clothes and slipped on black jeans and a black T-shirt.
It was the best color to avoid showing blood stains and I felt like that was going to be a concern.
Typing in the code for the safe we’d installed for my weapons, I grabbed my case of syringes and two knives.
Delilah was human, and we really wanted to get information from her, so I didn’t think a gun would be needed.
Besides, these weapons weren’t for her. They were for Tabitha.
I wasn’t going anywhere with that bitch until I knew the truth.
Screw me once, shame on you, screw me twice, shame on me, because there was never going to be a third time.
I exited the room and found Rath sitting on the end of the bed, looking forlorn. Walking over to him, I climbed right into his lap, straddling his legs as I wrapped my arms around his neck. “Whatever it is that has you feeling this shame, there is no need for it,” I murmured.
“Nin mel, how I wish I could tell myself that and believe it,” he sighed.
“Every day, I try to remind myself that I am free and will never have to live like that again now that I have my family. I’ve never told you this before, but the nights I don’t spend in your bed, I have nightmares.
Flashes of the past torment me and I don’t know how to get them to stop. ”
Hearing the brokenness in his voice had me gripping him tighter. “I’m so sorry you have to deal with this kind of torment. It breaks my heart to know it still haunts you, and no matter what, if it becomes too much, you come find me, and you will always have a place to sleep in peace.”
“There are no words for how blessed I feel to have you as my mate, Finley. I love you more than words could ever express, and I’m beyond grateful you do not see this as weakness in me for not being able to face Delilah.” Rath breathed into my neck, where he rested his head.