“Gentlemen, I must say I’m surprised that you’re all here,” I said.“Sire Ryder, you did claim that there will be no bonding session between yourself and Miss Ava,” Elder Cliff said.“Which is total bullshit,” Anthony said.“Ryder’s right, there can be no bonding session,” Felix said.I had told him everything that had happened, he was my brother after all and we used to share everything. Even Abeloth was calmer and his bloodlust wasn’t as active since we’d found Felix.“Who the hell is he? This is a private matter,” Anthony said.“This is Felix Sherwood,” I introduced him.“That still doesn’t explain his presence,” Anthony said rudely.“I studied supernatural law,” Felix said and sat down on a chair making himself comfortable.“As I was saying, the bonding can’t proceed because Ava’s human, a fact you omitted from the Elders,” I said to Anthony.“Is this true?” Elder Victor asked him.“What does that matter? He impregnated her, she’s carrying his heir,” Anthony said.“This isn’t real
“Lord Typhon,” I said and bowed my head as I stood in the dank cave.“Sire Ryder,” Typhon said, his voice echoing off the walls.“You summoned?” I asked as Abeloth separated and bowed his head as well.“This woman’s turning ceremony will not be permitted,” Typhon said.“Why not?” I asked him.“Because she is not worthy of your mark, when the time comes you will be glad that she doesn’t bear your mark,” Typhon said.“Forgive my insolence Typhon, but she carries my heir,” I said.“She carries your child, not your heir,” he said.“I don’t understand,” I said to him.“You will, this girl has only half dragonkin blood, she will not be fit to rule in your stead, she will not be as mighty as your true heir,” he said.“You wish for me to not claim this child?” I asked him.“Yes,” he hissed.“You don’t approve of me with Ava?” I asked him.“You have needs halfling, fulfill them at your own risk, but your heir will be borne by another woman,” he said.“What?” I asked him.“It is not the time fo
“You know that legally you can have sex with your wife,” Abeloth said.“Piss off.”“Sex is sex halfling, you heard what Typhon said, fulfill your needs,” he said with a laughI ignored Abeloth as I parked the SUV across the street from the warehouse. It looked deserted but I knew better. Inside people would be training, Wentworth would be in his office, working on gathering intelligence for whatever assignment they were busy with.“Time for the big reveal,” Felix said as we climbed out.We took the back entrance and I punched in my code as Felix just grinned. I could hear the grunts from the training floor and the yelling of their new trainer. I hadn’t met him yet but I knew Wentworth wouldn’t just choose anyone.“Come in,” Wentworth said when I knocked on his office door.“You look old Wentworth,” I said and stopped in front of his desk.“And you look flabby,” he said without looking up.“I brought you a gift,” I said and he looked up.“How?” he asked as his chair fell over backwards
I woke up to the incessant ringing of my phone and I groaned as I opened my eyes to the blinding sunlight shining through the open curtains. I could hear my phone but I couldn’t find it. I was still wearing my jeans but I had no idea where my shirt was.“Grey,” I answered the phone I’d found under the pillow on the couch.“Where the hell have you been?” Ava yelled over the phone.“What time is it?” I asked her.“It’s past eight,” she said and that sobered me up instantly.“Shit, sorry,” I said.“Where are you?” she asked me.“Chicago with Felix,” I said as the bedroom door opened and a naked woman walked out as another woman started giggling in the background.“Is that a woman?” Ava asked angrily.“It’s not what you think,” I said.“Hi Ryder,” the woman said as she started picking up her clothes and Ava put the phone down in my ear.“This is just fucking great,” I murmured.“Aah Felix,” the woman moaned from the bedroom.“Felix! We need to go!” I yelled as I stood up from the couch an
The next two weeks had us frustrated as hell. I tried to be nicer to Ava and the harder I tried the more pissed off Felix seemed to be, but I put it down to us not really getting anywhere with the case. There weren’t many missing people from lairs, covens and packs.We had contacted the high Council and they granted us permission to access all files from packs, lairs and covens. We were actively working the case and Felix’s account of his own abduction and torture had sealed the deal for us.We all ate lunch together every afternoon and I went with her to doctor’s appointments and Felix drank more, during training he went after me harder, more ferociously and a few times we hurt each other badly.“Remember what I told you about Johnathan’s case?” I asked him.“Yeah, they thought she’d left,” Felix said.“So … maybe we shouldn’t be looking at missing members, but members that left,” I said.“Do you have any idea how many people leave and transfer?” he asked me.“I know, but … we can cr
After another eight days we had two names left on our list. Two people that nobody knew where they were. I got Tank on missing persons reports, prison systems and people that had changed their names. Nothing came up and then Tank came up with a brilliant idea.Between him and Timothy they wrote a hacking program and with that they scoured every camera owned by the government, traffic cameras and facial recognition software. It took another thirteen days before we had a lead on one of the names.Her name was Chelsea Connors, dragonkin daughter to a warrior, she had a troubled past and nobody really worried when she skipped town. They all thought that she had ran away so Felix and I packed a go bag and started making plans.Tank had found her in Columbia Falls, Montana. A traffic camera had picked her up speeding just outside of the town borders. He had then hacked the sheriff’s department and her drivers license identified her as Maggie O’Neal.“Grey.” I answered my ringing phone.“Sir
Felix helped Maggie into her car and I followed him in the truck. Maggie had been coherent enough to give him her address and I looked at the single story house in the quiet neighbourhood. Felix rummaged in her handbag for her keys while I picked Chloe up.Upstairs were two bedrooms and I put Chloe down on the bed in the plain room. The other one was obviously Maggie’s room. I heard soft murmurs as Felix put her to bed and I headed back downstairs.“What are you doing?” Felix asked me.“Perfect opportunity to find out whatever we can,” I said.“Good thinking,” he said as I went through her mail.She had a laptop on the coffee table and the screen came alive when Felix moved the mouse. Her social media accounts were in Maggie’s name, all her friends seemed to be from Montana in general and there were loads of photos of herself with various friends.“If you’re hiding you don’t advertise your life on social media,” I said as Felix sighed.Her email and Instagram was the same thing. There
We’d been driving for almost six hours when Felix slowed down and took the exit for Malta. I glanced at him and he gave me a lopsided smile. “I’m hungry.”“Make it quick, we’ve still got about twenty hours ahead of us,” I said.He pulled into a gas station and filled the SUV’s tank up. I stood outside and stretched my arms above my head as he spoke to a woman at the other pump. She was pointing him in another direction as he nodded his head.“There’s a convenience store back that way,” Felix said.“For what?” I asked him.“Snacks for the road, listening to you snore isn’t as compelling as you think,” he said as I smiled.“Please, you probably stare at me while I sleep and drool a little,” I said.“Asshole.”“Let’s just eat first, I need real food,” I said.We stopped at an American restaurant and ate our fill. We’d barely been there an hour before we headed to the grocery store. Inside the store Felix grabbed a trolley and headed directly to the snacks aisle.I froze in my tracks as F