Chapter 38
Ian squinted into the waning sun, watching the helicopter set down. Feeling a hand on his back, he looked over his shoulder, finding Colton standing behind him. “Is everything ready?” he shouted over the noise of the rotating blades.
Leaning in, Colton cupped his hand around his mouth. “Yes, Mac’s standing by and Jackson’s been told what happened.”
Nodding, Ian’s focus turned back to the chopper, now on the ground. As soon as Robert opened the passenger door, he saw Cody descending with Fionn in his arms, walking toward him. Grabbing the gurney, he glanced at Colton and shouted, “Let’s go.”
Taking Fionn from Cody, Ian laid him down, then began his assessment while Colton strapped the white dragon in.
“Pulse thready, shallow respiration, he’s not reacting to pain.
” Grabbing one side of the gurney, Ian gave Colton a nod, and they began rolling it toward the pack house with Cody following.
Waiting on the front porch, Jackson saw the grim look on Ian’s face as he rushed Fionn inside to the hospital. Grabbing his brother’s arm as Cody passed by him, he said, “Just a minute, bro. What the fuck happened and where are Hunter and Dylon?”
“We were ambushed…look, I have to give this to Ian,” Cody said, holding up the hypodermic needle. “Fionn was injected with something and he’s barely hanging on.”
Releasing his brother’s arm, Jackson said, “Go, I’ll be right there.” After Cody entered the house, he headed over to Robert who was waiting near the helicopter. “Did you see Hunter and Dylon? Are they okay?”
“Dylon is, but I don’t know about Hunter. Just before I got here, Dylon sent me a message, asking to be picked up as soon as I delivered Cody and Fionn,” Robert said. “He didn’t mention Hunter.”
“Go get him,” Jackson ordered, before turning around and jogging back to the house.
Once the noise of the helicopter faded, Jackson reached for his phone and turned it on.
Groaning as it lit up with numerous messages and voice mails, he ignored them, tapping in a call to Dylon.
Waiting for an answer, he scrolled through his messages, getting the gist of what happened at the courthouse.
“Is Fionn okay?” Dylon asked, when he answered.
“Fionn’s with Ian. Where’s Hunter?”
“Don’t know. When I went back to get him, I found his clothes along with the tracker I put on him, but no sign of him.”
“Who’s behind this? Fionn’s uncle?” asked Jackson.
“That’s my guess,” Dylon said. “He had an army of wolf shifters who attacked us.”
“Any idea who they are?”
“No. I didn’t recognize any of them. Everything was cleaned up when I got back to the courthouse…no one was around…not even security. The whole thing is weird because I left a pile of dead shifters in the hallway before I escaped with Cody and Fionn, but they were gone, too, except for one.”
“They left one behind?”
“I don’t think it was intentional. During the battle, Hunter yelled at me to save Fionn who was still in the elevator and when I got to him a wolf was standing over him with a needle in his hand.
I broke his neck and left him there when I got off in the garage with Fionn and Cody.
It was by only chance I decided to check the elevator.
I’m bringing him back. I also sent a photo of him to Zane, asking him to find out who he is. ”
“Robert’s on his way to you. Where are you now?”
“Back where he left me, on the roof. I disabled the elevator so no one can get to me.”
“Do you think Fionn’s uncle has Hunter?”
“That’s my guess. Cody told me he saw one of the attackers give Hunter a shot…probably the same stuff they used on Fionn. Does Ian know what it is?”
“Don’t know yet. Cody just took the needle down to him. What’s your best guess…will Fionn’s uncle kill Hunter?”
“Have no idea…but seeing how the shifters only gave shots to Hunter and Fionn, I’m guessing the uncle wanted both of them…alive.”
“Wanted them for what?”
“For Fionn’s power.”
“Not for his father’s hoard? Isn’t that what his uncle was upset about when he confronted the judge after the last hearing?”
“Yeah, but after what happened today, I’m pretty sure that was a red herring…a carefully constructed diversion,” Dylon said.
“So you believe his uncle knows about Fionn’s white dragon?”
“Yup…that’s the real reason he wanted custody. Somehow he found out about Fionn’s white dragon and figures that’s the ultimate prize.”
“Why did he want Hunter? Does he know about his power?”
“No. When Fionn’s uncle approached us outside the courtroom, he was surprised to learn who Hunter was.”
“Fuck…”
“Hey, gotta go. Robert’s about to land. Do me a favor and see if Zane got the picture I sent him, okay?”
“Will do. Be safe.”
“Yup. Bye.”
Pocketing his phone, Jackson headed inside to see Zane.
~/~/~/~/~
Working feverishly, Ian tried to prevent Fionn from crashing.
Barking orders at Colton to intubate their patient, his mind quickly sorted through what might have been injected to cause the symptoms the dragon had.
Once the ventilator was connected to Fionn and was breathing for him, Ian paused, pleased to see some color back in his face.
Looking up at Colton, Ian asked, “Where’s Mac? ”
“Cody brought back the needle used on Fionn and Mac took it to the lab to analyze. He should be back shortly.”
“It’s an overdose,” Ian muttered.
“Overdose? Are you sure?” asked Colton. “Cody said the attackers were trying to seize Hunter and Fionn…why try to kill them if they just wanted to kidnap them? Oh shit, what about Hunter? He was injected with something too.”
“Whatever was used might react differently in dragons than in wolf shifters and if I had to hazard a guess, I believe some kind of barbiturate was used. It would explain Fionn’s reaction to it since it’s easy to overdose a dragon on those drugs.”
“But wolves tolerate it quite well,” Colton said.
“Yes, they do. And since they were attacked by wolf shifters…”
“I have it,” Mac said, hurrying into the triage room. “It was a combination of a fast-acting sedative and phenobarbital.”
“Colton…”
“I’m on it.” First removing the tube from Fionn’s throat, Colton then held his breath, calling on Archangel Raphael to help him.
Reaching out his fingers, he touched Fionn’s chest. Power surged through his body and exited through his fingers, while a blinding green light filled the room.
When the light and tingling in his fingers finally faded. Colton removed his hands…and waited.
~/~/~/~/~
At the bottom of the stairs, Jackson turned toward Zane’s computer lab, hoping his brother would have some news about the attackers.
He’d have to tell his cousins about their brother being taken—and still missing—but at least he hoped to have some information as to Hunter’s whereabouts.
Giving a quick rap before entering, Jackson wasn’t surprised to see David sitting next to his mate.
“Hello Alpha,” David said, glancing up. “We’re looking for the man.”
“And…any luck?”
“Maybe,” mumbled Zane, staring intently at his screen. “Ahh, there you are, fucker.” Taking a series of screen shots first, he then clicked the print button. Looking up at his brother, he said, “The man is a member of a pack advertising itself as having soldiers…for hire.”
“Mercenaries,” Jackson clarified.
“Yes. Their home base is located in the mountains of Motuo,” Zane said.
“Never heard of it,” replied Jackson.
“Hardly surprising,” Zane said. “It’s hidden in the Tibetan Autonomous Region of China…perfect place for them since it’s inaccessible except by hiking an overland route that goes through the Himalaya Mountains.”
“Is the pack registered with the High Council?” asked Jackson.
“No. It’s made up of convicted wolf shifter criminals along with some rogue wolves, which explains why they picked one of the remotest places on earth. They keep out of view and only advertise their services on the dark web.”
“Do you know how many are in the pack?” asked Jackson.
“From what they say, about three hundred…give or take. But I think that’s bullshit based on the satellite photos I found of their compound.”
“Why is that?”
“Not enough structures for one, and the other is it’s a fairly new pack located somewhere that’s hard to find…
it’s unlikely they’d have built up that kind of strength this soon.
Also, they’re really isolated…no roads within miles so you need a guide.
And since the humans living in Motuo are kinda hostile to outsiders, they’re not likely to act as guides. ”
“How many days would it take for a bunch of their pack members to get to a place with an airport?” asked Jackson.
“At least four days,” Zane replied.
Jackson was now convinced it was a planned attack. “Any idea who hired this dude?”
“Not yet…I’m searching for that now but it’s gonna take some time,” Zane said, handing Jackson the documents he printed out. “Right now, I’m searching to see who else hired them. Once I find that, it will help me track down who the pack uses to process payments for their services.”
Glancing at what his brother had printed, Jackson said, “Send me this in an email, will you?”
“Should I also send it to Dylon?” asked Zane.
“Yeah,” Jackson replied. “I’ll let you get on with your search.” Then he shut the computer lab door behind him and headed to see Fionn.
~/~/~/~/~
Feeling the power surge through his body, Fionn saw the green flash of light and was certain he was in danger—until he heard Ian’s voice.
Where am I? Still too weak to open his eyes, he lay there, concentrating on his surroundings.
Where’s my mate? Fear settled in his chest as memories of what happened came back to him as the drug left his body.
“Fionn?” called Colton. “Can you open your eyes?”
Struggling to open them, Fionn managed to finally raise them a sliver, until the light blinded him. Closing them, he said, “Light,” his voice raspy from the tube recently inserted down his throat.
Understanding instantly, Mac flipped the bright overhead light off, leaving only the soft glow of indirect lighting on.
Trying again and feeling stronger, Fionn raised his lids, staring at Colton. “Where’s Hunter? I want him.”
“He’s not here right now,” Ian said, moving over to the right side of Fionn. “How do you feel?”
Now much better than he’d been before, Fionn checked on his dragon, finding him groggy. “What happened to me?”
“Do you remember anything before waking up here?” asked Ian.
Frowning, Fionn said, “We were attacked…in the elevator.”
“Yes, well, one of the attackers injected you…”
“I remember…a wolf broke through and charged at me. Then…I don’t remember anything.”
“The wolf injected you with some drugs and you passed out,” Ian said.
“Where’s Hunter?” Fionn asked again.
“I don’t know,” Ian replied. “Cody brought you here.”
“Where’s Cody?” Fionn asked, getting agitated.
“Out in the hallway,” said Colton.
“I want to talk to him…now!”
“Okay, but give me a minute to check him over, Fionn,” Ian said. “Since you two arrived, we’ve been focused on you.”
Nodding, Fionn wasn’t happy about waiting but he wasn’t going to let Cody suffer if he needed attention.
~/~/~/~/~
Leaving Colton and Mac to monitor Fionn, Ian headed for the nurse’s station where he found Cody leaning against the wall next to Jackson. Assessing the many bites and cuts on Cody, Ian said, “C’mon, you’re next,” leading the two brothers to an examination room.
Once there, Ian pointed to an examination table and Cody hoisted himself up on it. “Ian, I’m fine,” he said. “Once Dylon arrives, we’ll shift…and all of this’ll be healed.”
Ignoring Cody’s protest, Ian gathered up some instruments and said, “Take off your shirt, please.”
Looking to Jackson for some support but finding none, Cody sighed, and did as Ian ordered. Wincing in pain as he wrestled his blood-soaked shirt off, Cody looked down at his chest, expecting to see nothing but a few scratches.
“Holy shit, Cody!” Jackson gasped, staring at a dozen, deep, bloody gashes crisscrossing his brother’s chest.
“You better lie down,” Ian said, helping his patient.
Shocked at the sight of his wounds, Cody swung his feet up, wondering what damage Dylon had sustained, considering his mate fought three times as many attackers as he did. Closing his eyes, he called to his mate using their link. Babe, are you all right?
I’m fine…I’ll be landing in a few minutes. How are you?
I’m with Ian right now but…
I know babe, we’ll shift as soon as I get there.
Are you sure you aren’t hurt?
No babe, really, I’m okay. We’ve landed.
I’ll wait for you.
Opening his eyes, Cody said, “Dylon’s arrived and is coming here.”
“Good,” Ian said, wiping some antiseptic on Cody’s wounds. “After you two have shifted, Fionn wants to talk to you.”
“Does he know about Hunter?” asked Jackson.
Stopping, Ian stared at Jackson. “Know what about Hunter?”
“Oh shit, then Dylon didn’t find him?” asked Cody.
“No,” said Jackson. “When he arrived back at the courthouse, the place was wiped clean except for Hunter’s clothes.”
“Shit,” murmured Cody. “The tracking device was embedded in Hunter’s jacket, so now we have no freakin’ idea where Hunter is.”
“That’s correct,” Jackson replied.
“Fionn doesn’t know anything about this,” Ian said.
“How is he?” asked Jackson.
“He received a lethal dose of phenobarbital,” said Ian, “but Colton used Raphael’s Power on him. However, he’s very concerned about his mate.”
“Of course, he is,” Jackson said. “Fuck, I’d hoped to have more information but Fionn deserves to know what’s happening.” Turning to Cody he said, “Once you and Dylon have shifted, I want you both in with me when I tell him what we know so far.”
“Hey, Ian,” said Dylon, sticking his head in the door. “I have a dead wolf here, where do you want him?”
“Come with me.” Ian hustled out of the room with Dylon trailing behind him.
Searching his brother’s face, Cody asked his brother the previously unspoken question. “Do you think Hunter’s dead?”
“I don’t know…I hope not.”
Then Cody asked Jackson, “Do any of our cousins know Hunter is missing?”
“No, not yet…I wanted to talk to Dylon to see what he thought about the information Zane found about the dead wolf before I drop that bombshell on them.”
“Yeah, that makes sense. If you want…Dylon and I will be there when you do it.”
“Thanks, I’ll take you up on that offer.” Jackson said, smiling grimly at his brother as Dylon and Ian reentered the room.
“C’mon babe, time to shift,” Dylon said, helping Cody get off the examining table. “We’ll be right back.”
“No, do it here,” Ian said. “Jackson and I will be right outside the door.”
“Perfect. See you in a few,” Dylon said, before shutting the door behind them. Then turning to his mate, he said, “Ready, babe?”