Chapter 2

Sleep had been elusive for Hayden. The call from his brother had brought things to the front of his mind that he fought hard to keep buried. As a result, he had only gotten a couple of hours of sleep before he packed up and headed to the Silver Moon pack to speak with Alpha Tate. It was one of his younger daughters, Jessica, who had run away, stealing her older sister's driver's license to use as her own.

When Hayden arrived at the pack entrance, he was greeted by two guards. He had been told that the guards would be made aware of his arrival and there would be no trouble. Hayden hoped that would be true, but he was often disappointed. He pulled up and rolled down his window to address the guards.

"My name is Hayden Taylor. The Alpha is expecting me," Hayden politely said. 

"Oh, yeah? Is that so?" one guard asked. The werewolf was big and brutish with dark hair. The sneer he wore rubbed Hayden the wrong way, but he kept his cool.

"Yes. That is so. If you have not been notified of my arrival, I recommend you ask your supervisor. As I said, I am expected by Alpha Tate," Hayden said. 

Hayden watched as the other guard mind linked with someone. He watched the man nod silently, his eyes unfocused. Soon the guard's eyes cleared, and he gave Hayden a nod.

"The boss just confirmed it. Alpha Tate is expecting Hayden Taylor and is waiting for you at the pack house. May I see your driver's license to confirm your identity?" the second guard asked as the brute scowled at Hayden.

"Sure! No problem. It's your job," Hayden said as he handed over his license for the wolf to get a quick look.

"Thanks," the second guard said as he handed back the license. "I'll open the gate for you. Enjoy your time here in Silver Moon."

"I'll do my best, but I'm here on business and will be leaving soon," Hayden said as he slipped his license back in his wallet.

The brutish guard stepped back and glared at Hayden as he drove through the gate and toward the pack house. Hayden sighed deeply as he drove. He had enough to worry about with retrieving the Alpha's daughter. He did not need arrogant jerks doing everything they could just to make his day unpleasant.

When Hayden arrived at the park house, he could not help but notice that almost every light in the building was on. It was still dark outside, so lights would be needed, but it was also extremely early in the morning, well before most people woke for work or school. Hayden counted that as a good sign. It meant people were concerned and losing sleep over the girl who had decided life would be more fun without her father.

As Hayden got out of his SUV, the front door of the pack house flew open. Alpha Tate was standing in the doorway, looking haggard and worn. Some Alphas pretended to be worried about the daughters Hayden was sent to retrieve. Alpha Tate was genuinely worried sick about his daughter.

"Alpha Tate," Hayden said, extending his hand to shake the Alpha's. "It is a pleasure to meet you, although I wish it were under better circumstances."

"Likewise, Mr. Taylor," Alpha Tate said with a nod. "If you will come with me, we might have more information that might help you with finding my daughter."

"Of course, Alpha, and please, call me Hayden," Hayden replied with a polite nod.

"Hayden it is," Alpha Tate said as he led him into the house. As he closed the door, he added, "But only if you call me Tate."

"No problem," Hayden said with a smile, hoping to ease the Alpha's nerves.

Hayden followed Tate into the living room where a blonde woman was pacing. She was scowling. She was not just angry; she was furious.

"Hayden, this is my daughter Vanessa. She is the one who discovered that Jessica was not in her room and alerted me that there might be a problem," Tate said.

"Not might be a problem," Vanessa hissed at her father as she picked up her wallet and held it up. "This is a problem. It is a huge problem. Jessica stole my driver's license, and we look so much alike that no one will give it a second glance. She is fifteen, impersonating a twenty-two-year-old. Do I need to list off all the ways she can and will get into trouble?"

"I know what can happen, Vanessa. Why do you think I called Hayden with the hopes he can find her?" Tate asked his daughter as he gestured to Hayden. 

"And I will find her," Hayden assured them. "It is imperative that I find someone her age as quickly as possible. Not only can she get into trouble, but if she seeks companionship, especially with a human, it could not only land the human in jail, but put all werewolves at risk."

"Oh, I hadn't thought of that," Vanessa said as she slid into a chair. "What can I do to help you find her?"

Tate gestured for Hayden to sit. As Hayden sat, he said, "Your father sent quite a bit of information to me last night, but any pictures you have of her with different hair colors or styles would be extremely helpful. A list of places she has visited in the past or has talked about going to would also be helpful."

"OK," Vanessa said with a nod. "There are a lot of pictures like that. Do you mind if I save them on a flash drive? You can have it. I'm not worried about it if it means finding Jessica."

"That's fine," Hayden said as he reached into his pocket and pulled out the flash drive that contained the information he had already been sent. "Use this one. It is specifically for your sister."

Vanessa took it from him and picked up a laptop from the coffee table. While she went to work with the photos, Hayden needed to find out more about where Jessica might have gone.

"Tate, does Jessica have siblings besides Vanessa?" Hayden asked.

"I have five girls. Vanessa is the oldest, and Jessica is the youngest. I love them with all my heart, but my girls are responsible for most of my gray hair," Tate said.

"And Mom is responsible for the rest of it," Vanessa said, cracking a joke to ease the tension.

"I'm sorry, but I need to speak to all of them and your mate. Jessica might have said something that didn't mean much at the time, but it is the key to finding her," Hayden explained.

"I'll wake them up and tell them to come down and talk to you," Tate said. His eyes lost focus as he mind linked with his family. Tate's eyes came back into focus, and he said, "They will be down as quickly as they can. Please forgive my Luna; she has been crying since we discovered that Jessica left."

"I understand, and if she needs to cry, I want her to. This is a terrifying situation, and I don't judge anyone for what they do to cope. That includes making jokes and trying to find reasons to laugh," Hayden said with a hint of a smile at Vanessa.

"Thank you for that. I knew you were the right person to call," Tate said with a sigh.

Voices and footsteps could be heard as several people came down the stairs. Hayden could pick out at least three voices arguing as they descended the staircase. It made him want to yell at them to stop and focus on Jessica, but that would not solve anything. When the group reached the living room, the three daughters came to a screeching halt at the sight of Hayden. 

Hayden understood the response. He was 6'5" with long blonde hair he kept tied into a messy bun. His well-muscled frame was adorned with tattoos, making people take notice of him. Still somehow, he had learned to blend in and go virtually unnoticed when needed.

"Girls, this is Hayden. He is here to help us find Jessica," Tate said. "Hayden, these are my daughters, Charlotte, Misty, and Sarah. Behind them is my beautiful Luna, Meka."

"It is a pleasure to meet all of you," Hayden said. "Will all of you sit so we can talk? I need to know what Jessica might have said that could give me a clue about where to start looking for her."

"Like Jess saying she was going to Springfield?" Misty asked.

"When did she say that?" Tate asked.

"Yesterday? I don't know. Maybe the day before," Misty whined. 

"Why didn't you tell one of us as soon as we discovered your sister was gone?" Meka asked.

"I don't know," Misty shrugged. "You know how Jess is. She is always talking about things she is going to do and none of them ever happen. I didn't even think of her actually doing it."

"She told me she wanted to go to a club called, what was it? Hardline? I think that was it," Sarah said. "I brushed it off because she is only fifteen. There's no way she could get in."

"She stole my driver's license," Vanessa said flatly as she unplugged the flash drive from her laptop and gave it to Hayden. "With that, she can go pretty much anywhere she wants."

"I think I'm going to be sick," Charlotte muttered as she buried her face in her hands. "She told me she was going for a walk and I didn't think anything about it. That's why I told Dad not to worry so much when he told us she was missing."

Hayden sighed and kept his voice level so as not to show his anger and frustration at her sisters. They were children, like Jessica. That meant their judgment was not as it should be.

"Ladies, I understand wanting to protect your sister, but by not telling everything you knew, that has prevented me from already finding her. She would already have been on her way home if your father had been able to give me this information last night, when he first contacted me. Now, I am hours behind her, and I can only hope that she hasn't gotten herself into too much trouble," Hayden said, careful not to yell yet still conveying his displeasure at their actions. 

"I apologize for my daughters, Hayden. Sometimes their loyalties to one another override their common sense," Meka said as she glared at her middle daughters.

"That is something I will leave all of you to work out," Hayden said as he rose to his feet. "I need to get to Springfield and start looking for Jessica. Hardline doesn't open for hours, so with some luck, I will find her before she can get into even more trouble."

"I'll walk you out, Hayden," Tate said as he glared at his middle daughters. Tate walked Hayden outside to his SUV and sighed. "I'm sorry for that. As their mother said, the girls are loyal to each other to a fault. If I had known, I would have told you. Please forgive them, and please find Jessica."

"I will find Jessica. I can't tell you when, but I will find her and bring her back to you. It might be in chains, but I will deliver her," Hayden said, not hiding his irritation.

"Do whatever you feel is necessary. If you put her in chains, it might be the lesson she needs never to do this again," Tate told him with a sharp nod.

Haydon said nothing else as Tate turned and went back inside the house. He paused for a moment to listen as the Alpha loudly scolded his three middle daughters. Hayden normally hated yelling, but in this case, it was from a man who loved his family dearly and was frightened for one of them. Hayden got in his vehicle and started the engine. He would look at the photographs he had been given later. Right now, he needed to get to Springfield as quickly as possible.