Chapter 121 Maddy
MADDY
Istared in stunned silence at the TV screen in the living room. Donatello had texted me to put on the news. Nico must have received the same message. Sinthy glared at the screen, and Gabriella had her face buried in her hands, a deep growl resonating from her throat.
This was bad, but not the worst that could have happened.
Nico burst through the front door with Luis, Sebastian, and Felipe hot on his heels. “Maddy? Maddy? Have you seen the news?” His voice had a barely contained tremor to it.
“Yes, calm down, Nico. It’s gonna be all right.”
“How is it gonna be all right?” he said, gesturing to the TV. “She told everyone where to find you.”
I was surprisingly calm, given the circumstances. I shook my head. “No. She said my name and that I lived in Florida. She didn’t say Clearidge. She didn’t give an address or anything like that. It’ll take time for them to figure it out.”
“Maddy,” Gabriella said sadly. “We’re living in the age of the internet. People will figure it out in a day. A few web searches, and it’s done.”
I shook my head. “They’ll find my old address, the bar’s address, but there’s nothing that links me here to Nico’s house. DMV? IRS? As far as they know, I still live at my old address.”
Gabriella nodded hesitantly.
“Plus, there has to be a bunch of other women with my name. That may muddy the waters a bit.”
“Not many women, but there should be some,” Sinthy admitted. “It may take a little while for them to narrow it down.”
My lips peeled back into a snarl. The thought that other Maddison Suttons all over Florida were now in danger didn’t sit well with me.
God only knew how many were now in danger because of what Viola had said.
I almost wished she had been more precise in her revelation.
If I had to guess, that was exactly why she’d done it.
Viola knew what would happen, and she just didn’t give a fuck.
The bitch probably thought she could smoke me out by threatening so many innocent people.
We’d never be able to live with ourselves if someone got hurt because of me.
It was a sick game played by a sick woman.
Nico's rage was all-encompassing. It flowed off him in waves. His newfound power forced his will on all of his pack. When he cursed, the three other men winced almost in pain as the anger washed over them. Sebastian even let out a tiny whimper and lowered his head in submission.
“Nico?” I went to him and put my hands on his face. “Calm down. You’re angry and can’t think straight. You’re making everyone uncomfortable.”
His glower faded as he looked around in surprise. He saw his friends cowering in the corner and realized what was happening. With a sigh, his shoulders relaxed, and almost immediately, the red blanket of anger that had been on him lifted. Everyone else looked relieved.
“I’m sorry,” Nico said, looking embarrassed.
“It’s fine, bro,” Felipe said. “You’re mate’s in danger, and you’re the alpha. We get it.”
“What do we do now?” Luis asked.
Nico shook his head and said exactly what I was thinking. “We wait. There’s nothing else we can do.”
“We have time, but not a lot,” I said. “I’m worried about the people in town. Someone will eventually put two and two together. Someone will remember me and that I shut the bar down before moving up to the pack lands. It won’t be immediate, but it’ll be soon.”
“No one is getting close to you,” Nico snapped. “They can come, and they can try, and they’ll run into a fucking buzzsaw. That’s a goddamned promise. I don’t want to hurt humans, but if a single one of them tries to come for you, I’ll burn their world down to stop them.”
A tingle of fear shot up my arms. He was serious, and I was terrified for anyone who even thought they could come onto his land and hurt someone he loved. There was no doubt in my mind that things would end poorly for whatever misguided soul crossed that line.
Sebastian and Felipe took to monitoring the news online, giving us updates as we attempted to come up with a plan. By that evening, things had gotten worse.
“It’s bad, guys,” Sebastian said, looking up from his laptop.
“I’m on some anti-shifter forums, and there are lists being exchanged of any woman named Maddison Sutton.
Addresses, emails, phone numbers, and places of work.
They aren’t even worrying about whether they live in Florida or not.
Hell, most of these women are human. It’s open season on anyone with your name.
I’ve got a Maddison Sutton in Montana, for Christ’s sake.
There are hundreds, maybe thousands, of women in danger. This is bullshit.”
“Show me,” I said.
Sebastian turned his laptop to face me, and I saw three different windows open on different websites.
Streams and streams of comments, posts, and pictures scrolled by.
It was a disaster. Innocent people all over the country would have to run for their lives.
It was playing out exactly how Viola wanted it.
My apprehension flared, and I was unable to pull my eyes away from the screen. I refreshed and scrolled and bounced between windows. My knee bounced with anxious energy. How could I fix this? I hadn’t understood how fast this was going to happen.
Nico slammed the laptop shut. “Enough. You’re gonna freak yourself out if you haven’t already.”
I straightened and rolled my shoulder. “I only want to see what’s happening.”
“No, you’re doomscrolling. It’s only making you more worried and upset.”
“But these women— ”
“Are in danger,” Nico finished. “As of right now, there’s nothing we can do. All we can do is hope the authorities will do what they can for them. How can we help a woman in Maine or Colorado with your name? We can’t.”
I chewed my lip. I hated it, but he was right. “This is my fault.”
He narrowed his eyes. “No. Don’t even let that thought slip into your head. It’s Viola’s fault. Never forget that.”
“I keep thinking that if I go to Viola, it’ll all be over. I’m stronger than I was. Maybe if I give her what she wants, I can take her down,” I said, trying to convince not only Nico but myself.
“Enough,” Nico murmured. “We aren’t going there, and you know it.”
Before the argument could go any further, my phone rang. I was surprised to see Abi’s name on the ID.
“Abi?” I said when I answered.
“Oh my God, Maddy, I saw the news. Are you okay?”
“I’m… fine, I guess.”
“You’d better not be doing that thing you do. You aren’t gonna go be some martyr, are you?”
Was I that easy to read? “Are you reading my mind right now?”
“No, but I know you’re selfless. The first thing I thought when the report came on was: Maddy is going to want to sacrifice herself. Let me guess. You’re obsessing about all the women those people might attack because they think she’s you?”
“I know, I know. Nico’s already talked to me about it.”
“Good. Are you listening to him?”
“Abi, I promise, okay? I’m not going to give myself up for the greater good or whatever.”
The words made me sound selfish. They were right, but I couldn’t help but think I was doing something wrong by not following my instincts. When I mentioned this to Abi, she laughed.
“Yeah, that sounds like you. Except I’d rather you be selfish than dead.”
Wanting to get my mind off everything, I changed the subject. “How’s life in paradise?”
Abi gave a dramatic sigh. “Oh, it’s so rough.
Sun, sand, endless cocktails, and food. It really is a burden to live life like a billionaire.
But seriously, I think it’s doing me good.
I’ve been doing a lot of thinking. Plus, this Donatello guy isn’t so bad to look at, either.
I saw him swimming the other day in a speedo and… damn.”
I laughed. Long and hard. Even as I tried to catch my breath, I realized it was the first time I’d done it in quite some time.
Abi and I talked for another twenty minutes before we ended the call.
I felt immensely better. For one, it allowed me to talk through some things and get my head right.
For another, it was the first time in weeks that it felt like I was actually talking to my friend.
I thought Abi really was getting back to herself.
That alone lifted my spirits more than anything.
Nico was still sitting with his friends, discussing plans, when I got his attention.
“I need to go for a run.” My wolf was desperate to get out.
He stood and smiled. “I’ll join you. I need it.”
We sprinted through the woods behind the house.
The wind and the smells of the forest were calming balm to my mind.
Though, as we ran, I couldn’t get the feeling that something was off out of my mind.
Like a thought or feeling was brewing just beneath the surface.
My body was warmer than usual. Not a fever or sickness, but a deeper warmth.
It seemed to radiate from within my belly.
It was strange, but I was able to put it out of my mind.
It had to be my nerves. With everything going on, it wasn’t surprising.
It would probably go away in a day or two.