Chapter 18 Reign
REIGN
I had trained and trained and trained. I worked hard and got as much done as I could in the time we had.
But at the end of the day, we had to move forward.
I had killed a few animals: a squirrel, a couple of rabbits, but never again had I shot at a deer.
I’d had a few run past me, but try as I did, I wasn’t able to pull the trigger.
I’d told myself repeatedly that it was because the deer was innocent and not that I wasn’t strong enough to do this. Once I let self-doubt seep in, I was done for, and the people I cared most about were in danger. Not gonna happen on my watch.
What I needed was to get out of my head and stay there, because whether I liked it or not, today was the day.
I had one chance to do this. One. We opted to strike preemptively, to get him before he could get near us.
If we were in control of when and where everything went down, then we had our best chance.
I hated that my mate was gone, that I was alone, that I had to do this without him. All I wanted was a hug… to feel safe in his arms and have him tell me everything would be okay. But the time for that was gone. I couldn’t scent him at all. So it was me, and that was it.
Except it wasn’t only me. The guys were set up strategically. They would be there if I needed them. Or, more likely, when I needed them.
I showered, scrubbing myself with soap that shifters swore removed their scent. It felt like betrayal, washing away my mate. But I did it, and then I put on the uniform they got for me.
It was the first time I opened the bag, wanting it to smell as human as possible and not let Ezra’s scent seep inside. I got dressed quickly. It was go time.
On my way to Calloway, I picked up a new gun that was waiting for me from a sketchier-than-sketchy pawn shop my mates had arranged for. It was human-owned, and as far as any of my brothers-in-law could tell, they hadn’t seen a shifter in that shop in a while.
Please, let that still be true.
When I walked in to get it, I noticed a toolbox on the counter, not wanting to look suspicious to other customers that might come in. Or maybe I was drawn to it and looking for an excuse. It was difficult to determine which.
I opened it up. It was filled with all different kinds of tools. I had no idea what most of them were for, but it looked like the kind of kit you would have to do general maintenance. It was definitely not a car kit.
“You here for the item?” He smirked. He apparently knew exactly who I was.
I nodded. “I think I’m taking this too.”
“Ah, that’s special.” He winked.
What the heck did that mean?
“Special? How so?”
He opened it up, then took out some tools to reveal a false bottom.
“What do you think? Your item would fit in there nicely.” He was a salesman… a sketchy one at that. But also, he was right.
“I think it’s perfect.”
Luke laid the toolbox out for us. Luke and I had never been good friends before, but I would accept his offer. I placed the gun inside, put everything back, and off to the building I went.
It was no surprise that security stopped me when I walked in.
“Why are you here?”
I held up my toolbox. “Why do you think?”
“No, I need more than that.”
I tried to convince myself he was just doing his job, but his sneer shouted that he loved being the alphahole in charge.
“There’s an issue on the third floor. I’m here to troubleshoot. If it’s something easy, I’ll fix it. If not, I’ll have my crew here within an hour.”
The lies just fell from my lips with ease.
“Hold on.”
He went behind the counter and opened a book. A book. Who still used books? Wasn’t that what computers were for? He flipped and he flipped and he flipped, eventually slamming it shut.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
Just then, his phone rang. It was exactly what I needed, because when he picked it up, it was someone bitching on the third floor.
“Fine, but I need to search both you and your toolbox.”
“Fine by me.” It wasn’t fine, the mere thought of his hands touching me had me wanting to puke, but I needed to play along if I had any hope of getting up there.
He patted me down. I was a little nervous he’d catch the Airtag, but if he did, what of it? I’d claim it was my boss keeping track of us, which in this day and age, wasn’t outside the realm of possibility.
I took the stairs two at a time. The elevators were still running, but getting an elevator when I had no idea what exactly they did to the third floor didn’t feel like the safest option.
When I reached it, I looked down the hallway. Room 304. I needed to get to 304. It wasn’t hard to find, but reaching up and knocking—that was hard.
Calloway opened the door.
“Heard there’s a problem.”
“Come on in.” He stepped aside, and when I did, he shut the door.
I didn’t think he’d have the balls.
“Reign.”
Fuck.
He knew who I was. All I needed to do was get in position—open up the toolbox. Once I did, it’d be okay. In hindsight, I should have done it in the elevator. But if I did, and they had cameras like the stairwell did, it’d be over before I started.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Your father is an interesting man.”
My stomach dropped. “What?”
“You didn’t think I knew who you were, did you?”
“No, sir, I’m just… with maintenance bullshit.”
“Your father gave me your picture. I know exactly who you are. He said, you were coming, too.”
Jesus fucking Christ. I didn’t even know my father had been aware enough to know that I was coming now—or maybe he meant coming in general. It didn’t matter. My father sold my ass out again.
“My father? How would you even know him?”
I needed a plan, and right now, Calloway was in my way.
“Your father, he didn’t like that you ruined his plans and he couldn’t fulfill his promise. So instead, he came to me. He’s smarter than the rest of you losers.”
“Who are you calling a loser? You just got out of jail, huh?”
“See? You do know who I am. The question is, what do I do with you?”
He took a step closer, and I took a step back. Eventually, I was going to run out of step-backs.
“My father wouldn’t do that.”
Although, even as I said it, I knew that was a lie. Apparently, my father cared about himself above everything.
“Oh, he doesn’t care what I do with you. He only cares about what I can do for him. And just so you know, I have a lot of things planned for you. I normally don’t kill humans, but I think I’ll make an exception. I’ll just take my time with you. It’ll be more fun that way.”
He was insane. He wasn’t just sick and cruel—he was full-on insane.
I took one more step back when the fire alarm started going off and the sprinklers shot water everywhere. It was the only chance I had.
I threw the toolbox at him and bolted toward the door, managing to make it only two steps before he caught the box and hurled it back at me.
Calloway was latent. That was the catalyst for all of it, but as he came toward me, he looked anything but human.
“Please.” My back hit the wall, and I crumbled to the ground.
He slapped me and laughed as if it were the funniest thing he’d ever seen. “I’m going to have so much fun with you. You are like a reward.”
The hotel door busted open, and a feeling of safety enveloped me.
They were here. My mate was here. My family was here. Everything was going to be okay.