Layla winced at the loud jackhammering in her head as she rolled over. Something cold and hard dug into her back, making her more uncomfortable. Why was her body hurting so much? And what was that smell? She slowly opened her eyes, only to close them again. The light above her was blinding, and it made the headache worse. Her limbs felt so heavy that she couldn’t lift her arm to cover her nose. It smelled like crap in the room. ‘Miss Layla?’ The voice in her head sounded louder than the pounding. Her eyes opened and widened as everything came back to her. She’d been caught! And somehow, she could hear Faith’s voice. She sat up slowly, wincing as her muscles refused to move like she’d been comatose for months. But once she was upright, she had to suck in a breath as she looked around her. She was in a cage. A metal cage used for wild animals and not high enough for her to stand. There were several similar cages around her in the large, cold room that looked like a warehouse, and
Jax bounced his leg as he watched the unconscious man chained to the chair. He hadn’t even fucking touched him; Ambrose passed out like the coward he was before he’d brought him down to the basement. Everything was taking too long. Layla had been gone for hours and he was no closer to finding the truth. What business did a man like that have with an organisation like the Hunters? What did they offer him for him to risk his life? Miss Roberts did the same in a bid to join them, but he never had the chance to get answers from her before the Hunters whisked her away. He heard the sound of the door opening and threw one last look at Ambrose before he left the interrogation room. The door slid closed behind him just as Dylan came down the steps with Gavin, their faces sombre. They’d left their emotions wide open. He could sense their sadness without them having to open their mouths. He could feel their resignation. They thought Layla was gone for good. He growled and turned away fro
Layla jolted out of her position when a loud scraping sound echoed in the warehouse. The tension around her rose to overwhelming levels, and a few whimpers came from the cages around her. She pushed to her knees and remembered not to move off the small mat. Around her, the other wolves had withdrawn into themselves, hugging their knees tighter. Only when she caught the familiar scent did she understand what was happening. Somewhere in the warehouse, the Hunters had opened a door. The air shifted as fresher air came in from the other side of the doors, and heavy boots echoed in the room. Her body was taut with tension, but it rose even higher when she heard the dragging sounds and the moans. They were dragging someone else into the room! She blinked and tried to focus, but her head was still swimming because of whatever drug they used to knock her out. Whoever they brought smelled familiar. ‘Don’t bring attention to yourself, or you’ll be next.’ She didn’t look back at Faith wh
Jax barely cleaned the blood off before rushing to the empty lobby with Dylan and Gavin on his heels. Dylan gave him the fresh clothes, but that was pointless as far as he was concerned. He didn’t need them for long. “Alpha Chase is coming over to help,” Dylan said. “This needs all of us, Jax. You can’t find her by yourself.” Chase was bound to Layla through the blood oath he’d made to protect her, so he wasn’t surprised by that news. But all the other Alphas knew to stay away. They’d never fucked with the Hunters, and now wasn’t the time to start. Something had changed. “He can help you with the pack while I’m gone. You’d stand a better chance if he brought the rest of his pack to our territory,” he growled as he switched on the computer at the front desk. Outside, red and blue lights were flashing. The human emergency services responded to the fake call and secured the area, but it would take time until someone gave the hotel the all-clear. Even then, his doors would remain shu
He looked as terrifying as the day he blew Amber’s brains out, even more so because of the smirk on his scarred face that looked unnatural. His hair was still in a military buzz cut, and his brown eyes were just as dead as the Hunters who led her into the room. On her knees, his size was intimidating. His arms were massive, his muscles bulging, and his black vest top looked too small. She usually liked tattoos, especially Jax's, but this man's sleeve tattoos seemed too severe. Almost as if their message was as full of hate as he was. “I apologise for bringing you out so late,” he said as he walked forward. “I normally like to greet my guests straight away, but you were sleeping so soundly, I didn’t want to disturb you.” She shuffled back until he stopped, a grin on his face that showed how excited he was with the situation. “Look at you. You act like a meek little lamb; it’s easy to see why anyone would be taken in by the fake innocence,” the man said with a chuckle. “Who are
The Hunters had access to weapons that could seriously injure him, but all Jax could see were handmade traps or antiquated weapons. He’d easily overpowered the kid and tied him up on one of the pillars that separated the lounge from the dining area. A rookie. Not important enough to the Hunters to know all the details, but the details of any missions he went on the past few weeks would help.If the kid talked. He threw an old crossbow across the lounge and looked back at the Hunter. His blood was pouring out of all the places he had clawed him. He would bleed out if he didn’t get help, but the kid’s lips remained sealed. Maybe it was part of their training. He’d have thought facing death would change his mind.“Do you even know what you’re fighting for?” he growled as he stalked the kid. He picked up the knife the kid threw at him after his gun ran out of silver bullets. It was wider than a butcher’s knife and a little rusty. The same strange smell came from it, the same one on th
Layla drifted in and out of consciousness as they dragged her back down the hallways. Sunlight filtered through some skylights, so she guessed it was very late in the morning. It had been hours since they strapped her down and started butchering her. She didn’t know how long exactly since she passed out often. The fuckers hadn’t bothered to use any anaesthetic. The pain was excruciating, and the scent of her blood was overpowering. Now she understood why her wolf wasn’t coming to her aid when they were in so much danger, but she’d assumed she could still heal, even if it happened slowly. Her other senses seemed intact, even if her head was muddled. So why wasn’t she recovering? She’d just closed her eyes again, ignoring the pain from her knees scraping on the concrete floor, when something forced her to open them again. It took all her strength to lift her head, and the huge guards standing outside the restricted door loomed ahead, standing at attention with a hand on their weapons.
Jax stood perfectly still behind some trees at the back of Irvine’s house. It was almost noon but there was no sign of them. Some of Irvine’s neighbours left for work, while others seemed elderly and content to potter around their little houses all day. He could sense them without moving from his spot. It was something he had always been able to do. He’d taught Layla how to control and focus her senses, but everything seemed to have gone into overdrive. He could sense things that should have been too far for him. He could smell them, hear them from miles away. And somehow, he could form a complete mental picture of his surroundings, almost as if he could see it. It was because of his bond with Layla. His red wolf. Before all that shit started, he’d been excited to learn what his mate could do as she discovered herself. He never coveted her gifts, but now this link was the only thing keeping him sane. It meant she was still alive. But for how long? They wanted Layla for a reas