15. Maddox
Maddox
The laughter of all three girls fills the coffee shop, bringing me some semblance of ease.
She’s happy. She’s safe.
But I can’t stop my mind from picturing her pressed against the wall by that doctor, with a knife at her throat and his hand down her pants.
Every time I picture it, I want to kill him all over again. It’s my fault she was taken, and my punishment is having to remind myself of what was done on my watch. She was stolen from our pack, killed, skinned and violated. All because I didn’t properly protect her.
I should have ensured more protection at the house. I should have taken her with us. I should have ensured the panic room was built tamper free.
But I didn’t. And because of mistakes as our pack leader, she was taken.
But at least I could try to make sure I do everything in my power to make sure it doesn’t happen again. Which is why I’m happy to have a chance to speak with the mages.
“You’re sure he can’t be walking around in some sort of invisible suit?” Gage asks Philip again. I don’t blame him, wanting clarity on that. Since Cherry had suggested it, I haven’t been able to stop looking around, wondering if he’s in the room with us at any given time.
“No. Spells don’t work like that,” Philip reassures him. “A car is different, but even that is extremely hard to cast an invisibility spell on. And there aren’t many mages who can do it.”
“Can you?” I ask curiously and he nods. “Yes, my family had that ability, though my brother was far better at it than I am.” Ah, that’s right. His brother Edwin, who died at one of the facilities. That reminds me why he’s so invested in helping; he hates these places as much as we do.
“Has anyone heard from Cody?” Gage asks and it’s Jon who answers this time.
“Yes. He’s still working on getting a facility location from Dr. Jovanek.” Everyone glances at one another, nobody willing to say out loud exactly how he’s extracting that information.
“He’ll let us know when he does,” Jon adds with a nod. “He knows we all want to take down as many of those places as we can.”
I nod. We’d like to help too, though I selfishly hope it happens after we take care of Blaze. I’m not willing to leave Cherry again.
Even now, I can feel the sever of the mate bond like an open wound in my chest. We haven’t had to take anymore of Philip’s potion since we got her back.
Apparently being near her is enough to keep the worst of the pain at bay, but it doesn’t mean I don’t still feel it every moment, though.
It definitely feels best when I’m touching her, like that physical connection tells my body that she’s still here, despite the bond being gone.
“So, any ideas on how to take down Blaze?” I ask, bringing the conversation back to the matter at hand.
“Well your home is safe now. He can’t get in there without triggering at least several of the alarms we’ve set,” Philip explains. “As for killing him. Decapitating him and burning his head is my best guess.”
“Phoenix lore is highly speculative,” Gage agrees with a nod. “I’ve read several references to extinguishing his eternal flame. Whatever the hell that means.”
I frown, my eyes finding my mate as she smiles at her new friends.
Talking about how to kill Blaze also feels like revealing her weaknesses too.
And although it doesn’t seem like Blaze wants to kill her, he’s pretty unhinged and might change his mind.
Not to mention what someone else might want to do if they find out she’s both an omega and a phoenix.
“Well, if that’s the plan, we need to be ready to strike at any time,” Bain says, suddenly joining our conversation as he appears at my side, arms crossed over his chest.
“How do you suggest we do that?” Gage asks. “Carry swords with us everywhere?”
“Yes.”
Everyone’s eyebrows raise in surprise as I look up at him and nod. “Good idea.” Turning back to Gage I ask, “Can you order us some?”
He looks at me in question before conceding. He pulls out his phone, and I know he’ll have swords at our home within two days.
“What if he never reveals himself?” Zack, the other mage, asks.
“He’ll have to eventually,” I tell him. “He won’t be content to just watch her from the shadows forever. Eventually, he’ll make his move. And when he does… we’ll be ready.”