31. Rhone
CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
rhone
Bloom and Maverick were staying at the estate over the weekend, so Harper and I headed back to the tower the next morning to make sure one of us was with the majority of the pack.
Harper ripped open the candy bar I handed her immediately, and we ate it slowly.
She turned the music up louder than usual, and every time I glanced over to try to figure out how she was doing, she looked content.
"I'm fine, Rhone. Stop checking on me." She patted the hand I had resting on her thigh.
"A lot happened yesterday."
"Yeah, it did. But after talking to Neve, I feel like everything is more settled.
I don't know why. Maybe because I called her out for the way she treated me.
Or maybe because I understand her role in everything, now.
" Harper tucked a few strands of her hair behind one of her ears.
"Or maybe because I spent last night tipsy, dancing with my mate, and being told I was perfect. "
My cock throbbed.
Breeding season nearing its peak the way it was meant an uncontrollable, near-constant erection.
"I can make that happen again."
She flashed me a smile. "You're good to me."
The compliment was playful, but still significant. Something within me settled, too.
At some point, being good to her had become my priority.
I slipped my fingers between hers, and she looked back out the window.
Harper was still calm when we got back to the tower, and I dragged her around with me as I did the random shit I needed to for the pack.
She made jokes along the way. Teased me, and the other people we interacted with. Sat on my lap during lunch in the food court, and tugged me into a closet when I asked her if she was up for a quick break in our apartment.
Her good mood was contagious.
When she ordered me to knot her in the closet, I was too horny to refuse. We ended up trapped inside, teasing each other through our mate bond while we were locked together.
It was fun.
Really fucking fun.
We were both grinning when we stumbled out together, my arm around her waist and her cheek pressed to my bicep. She was so fucking cute, all pink hair and red cheeks and those pretty little fangs.
A few days passed similarly, with more trips to the closet, our apartment, and even her old observation room once.
Two days before breeding season hit its peak, my phone rang during breakfast.
Harper was in the middle of telling me a story about her assistant job, but I couldn't really screen calls when Mav was gone. My gaze flicked to the caller ID, and hers followed.
"Answer it." She waved me toward it.
"Finish your story."
She gave me a look. "I can keep telling you about the fish tank later, Rhone."
I reluctantly picked up my phone. "What?"
She rolled her eyes at my lack of a greeting.
I poked a strawberry with my fork and lifted it to her lips.
"We've got someone in the lobby for you. Her name's Neve. She says she's the leader of the Vampire Aid Guild."
Shit.
"I'll be there as soon as possible. Don't let her leave, and don't kill her."
I hung up, and looked at Harper.
"Neve's here?" she asked.
I nodded.
Harper stood up. "Let's go."
"You're staying behind me. If she says anything cruel to you, I'm breaking her nose."
"Reasonable," she drawled.
I stood too, taking her hand. She slid her fingers through mine, and the only thing that gave away her nerves was the tight grip she had on my hand.
I signaled one of the enforcers. He nodded toward the table, letting me know he'd take care of the dishes as we headed out.
"We need her to help us find Holly. Don't say anything to piss her off," Harper murmured as we stepped into the elevator.
"Me not pissing her off seems unlikely."
"That's why I'm warning you."
"If she's desperate enough to show up here, she's choosing a life in prison over letting Holly kill her. She knows she has to tell us, or we won't protect her. Me pissing her off isn't going to change that."
"I don't like that logic, Rhone."
"I'll play nice as long as she does."
Harper sighed, but agreed. Her grip tightened on my hand as the elevator dinged and the doors opened to the lobby.
We stepped out, and found ourselves facing my mate's mother.
As far as mothers-in-law went, I hadn't won the lottery.
I gestured Neve and the pair of enforcers behind her toward a room just off the lobby. It was a stiff, formal office that was rarely used.
Neve went in first, followed by the enforcers that flanked her. I put Harper in front of me, and propelled her inside with a hand on her hip.
She took the desk chair when I guided her toward it, and I remained on my feet at her side, folding my arms over my chest.
"Are you trying to scare her by being all gigantic?" Harper asked.
"Of course I am."
"It'll probably work."
"Of course it will. She only associates with vampires."
"Things have escalated with Holly. She found out about Velour, and turned a handful of humans from my Guild," Neve said, without pausing. "She's planning to attack your tower in two days. When your breeding season peaks."
Every werewolf in the room went still. Including me.
"I want to take your deal. I can tell you where they are." Her gaze flicked to Harper. "I want protection from the founding families, and frequent, guaranteed visits from my daughter in exchange."
"Absolutely not," I said bluntly. "You can have the protection, but Harper's not going near you unless she wants to."
"I will not die alone in prison," Neve said sharply.
"There will be other prisoners. You'll never be alone," I agreed.
"I can visit once a year," Harper said. "On a day that I choose. For as long as I choose to stay, even if it's only a minute."
Neve turned her harsh gaze to Harper. "That's not nearly enough."
"It's that or nothing,"
"I don't have to tell you anything," Neve snapped.
"You don't," Harper agreed. "But the wolves aren't going to let you go. You can take what we're offering, or you can go to prison without it."
Neve huffed.
A moment of silence passed.
She finally leaned back in her chair.
"Alright. Fine." She pulled her phone out of her bag and hit a few buttons. Phones around the room vibrated as she shared the location with all of us.
"If this is a trap, you'll die slowly and painfully," I warned.
"It's not." She slouched a little, looking tired as she stared at Harper. "For the record, I never wanted this to happen. I always did what I could to keep all of the Guild's humans alive."
"I know. We'll figure out a way to keep it going without you," Harper said.
Neve looked at me, and I dipped my head.
Maverick and I had already discussed ideas as far as the Guild went. There was a plan. A loose one, at least.
"Put her in one of the cells," I told the enforcers. "Get every detail she knows. After we have Holly and the rest of her turned vampires in custody, we'll bring the police in."
They nodded, and she stood.
After she held Harper's gaze for a moment, she walked out of the room.
Harper let out a long breath when the door shut behind her mother. I sat on the edge of the desk, watching her.
"You need to get going," she said quietly. "You'll take a big team, right?"
"Yes. You're not going to ask if you can come?"
She gave me a small smile. "I know the answer, and I don't want to watch anyone else die."
I took her hand. She rolled the desk chair closer, and I lifted her fingers to my lips, kissing her knuckles lightly. "Think of something to do so you don't spiral."
"I would never spiral."
I lifted an eyebrow, and she sighed. "I'll go to the gym and walk on a treadmill while I watch a TV show or something. I've never devolved there."
"You just end up laying on the floor half the time."
"I don't exactly have great stamina."
"I'm uniquely qualified to disagree with you on the stamina front.
" I kissed her knuckles again before I released her hand.
"It'll take me time to let Maverick know what's going on and get my team ready.
I probably won't be back for a few hours, depending on where they are in the city and how the raid goes. "
"I can entertain myself. Don't worry about me. Just be careful, and don't die."
"I'm always going to worry about you, but I'm hard to kill. Be safe."
"I will." She grabbed my shirt, tugging me down for a quick kiss. I deepened it, taking my time with her before she pulled away. "Just be careful."
"You already said that."
"I'll say it as many times as I have to." She grabbed my shoulders and attempted to shake me. "Be careful."
"I will."
I walked her to the elevator before going back to the group of enforcers waiting in the lobby. I'd known Jones and Reese, who had been with us in the office, would make a few calls. In another five minutes, my main team would be ready.
"Has anyone gotten the info from Wes and Elise?" I asked.
"There are twenty turned vamps. Mostly men in their twenties, but a few women too."
Grimaces went around the room.
We all knew the statistics. The number of them who would be stable after the transition was low.
Very low.
Regardless, we needed to get them off the streets and take Holly Valenti down before she became even more of a problem.
"I'm going to call Maverick, but we need to be on the road in ten. Warner, you're the lead. Mav will meet us there and take over if possible, but we can't afford to wait. Holly could move the vampires."
No one questioned it.
I was in charge, but I only communicated with one person in a situation like this unless it was absolutely necessary.
I was there as a weapon.
Detaching long enough to do my job was going to be a challenge, considering everything that had been going on with Harper, but I'd figure it out.
I spent the drive disassociating.
Thanks to the location, Maverick was able to meet us there.
"Ready?" he asked all of us through the pack link, though he looked at me.
Nods went around the group.
Mine was last.
"Let's end this," I said.
When we reached the old, shitty warehouse, Mav and I were at the head of the group, leading our team in quietly through a side door.
Neve had given us the code, but we had the gear to break the damn thing down if we needed to.
Half of us had shifted, including me. The other half, including Maverick, wore clothing that was stretchy enough for them to shift at any time.
The warehouse's interior was wide and open, with random pieces of machinery covered in tarps seemingly at random.
Light streamed in through gothic windows a long way above our heads.
It danced over the group of newly turned vampires who were lounging on camping mattresses throughout part of the space, chatting lazily.
They wouldn't be feeling the effects of their transformation the way Harper did. Not yet.
That would come, though.
As soon as we were in position, Maverick hit the button to blast the bullhorn.
Every vampire in the room flinched and covered their ears. They were so fucking new, and so fucking stupid.
They'd offered themselves up on a fucking platter, according to Neve. They'd chosen this.
Statistically, all of them would regret it, and pay with their lives.
"Hands in the air," Maverick barked through the megaphone.
Twenty sets of hands rose.
"Where's Holly?"
A few of the vampires exchanged uncertain looks.
"If you want to survive this, someone had better speak right fucking now," Mav said bluntly.
"There's an apartment in the loft," one of the men called out, gesturing over his shoulder to a set of metal stairs. When he pointed them out, they were obvious.
There was a single metal door a few yards to the side of them. The large, roll-up doors stretched off a few feet to the other side.
"She should be—"
There was a quiet creak as a rusty door opened, and a disheveled blonde woman appeared on the small platform at the top of the stairs. She was too far for me to gauge her expression, but her face was red like she'd been crying.
I'd fought more than enough vampires to know exactly what her move would be.
I launched toward her, covering the distance between me and the stairs at a sprint.
Some of the turned vamps shouted or screamed, but I'd disassociated too deeply to give a shit.
I was there to end a threat. Nothing else.
I reached the door when Holly did, and slammed her into it. The vampire and the metal both went flying, the door crashing loudly against a wall and the woman rolling smoothly as she hit the ground.
She didn't have time to get to her feet before I reached her, shifting back to pin her to the cement beneath me.
She didn't fight.
Her cold, red eyes were swollen and dark.
"Is this everyone you turned?" I demanded, though I knew she wouldn't tell me the answer.
Neve had no way of being sure. None of us would. Not until a few weeks had gone by and there were either devolved vampires on the loose or the city was finally at peace again.
"You'll never know," she said coolly. "Take me back to your tower. Interrogate me. I dare you."
I tore her throat out.
I didn't need to interrogate her. Neve had told us enough. What we didn't know didn't fucking matter. If something went wrong because of it, we'd deal with the consequences.
The woman was too much of a threat to take back to the tower.
I stepped away when she was dead, and two of the enforcers came jogging out.
"Get the body back to the tower," I told them, striding back toward the door that led into the warehouse.
"Yes sir," Liz called over her shoulder.
I flipped her off, and heard her laugh.
It didn't budge the harsh look I wore.
I wasn't me. Not at the moment. Getting back to that would take time.
I would get back, though. For Harper.
None of the turned vampires had run, and they all looked horrified as I reentered the warehouse. It worked in our favor. None of them fought.
Maverick slapped me on the back and sent someone to grab me a pair of shorts.
Our enforcers were in the process of getting all of them into the back of our transport van. They weren't a real risk yet, but they could become that easily.
Mav and I drove the van, just to keep an eye on them, but the drive home was laid-back.
The drama was finally over.