* * * *
Echo held Rynn’s hand tight as she pulled her into a foyer. A fireplace about the size of the hotel room where Rynn once lived sat in front of her. She could only giggle at the sheer size of it. Two lounge chairs rested next to it and Echo pulled her down into one, while she took the other. Echo didn’t say a word, simply stared at Rynn. Rynn began to feel uncomfortable and looked around. Was she supposed to say something here?
“I wanted to make sure you were all right?” Echo finally asked.
“All right…” All right, with what? Becoming a wolf? Tiago? She needed more than that to understand what she was asking. “…with what?”
Echo looked away, her cheeks tinged pink, then cleared her throat. “Mating with Briggs.”
Rynn blushed.
Echo continued, looking anywhere but at Rynn. “Alphas can be rough at times and with Tiago’s interest in you, I’m sure Briggs felt threatened. It can be scary when you are forced into submission.”
“Forced into what?” Rynn gasped.
Echo glanced at her, eyes soft. She reached for Rynn’s hand and squeezed tight.
“You can open up about this. You don’t need to keep it in. It’s better if you talk about it…”
Rynn let her drone on for a while longer before she had enough. “Excuse me, Echo. I have no idea what you are talking about. Briggs never forced me into anything.”
Echo’s eyes widened with surprise. “He didn’t?”
“No.” Rynn sighed, not wanting to have this conversation at all, especially with a virtual stranger. “He was actually very sweet.”
“Well then,” Echo smiled, disbelieving. “I am glad to hear that.” The incredulity was clear on her face.
Rynn finally understood what everyone must have thought happened. They thought she’d refused Briggs. Then because of Tiago’s reaction, Briggs forced her to mate with him. He used his Alpha powers to make her bow down to him.
Just the thought made Rynn burst out in laughter. “Force me.”
She laughed harder, her stomach gripped as tears ran down her cheeks. After what she’d been through, even the implication that she would let her mate do something like that was absurd. “Submission…oh, that’s classic.”
Echo’s blush turned scarlet red in embarrassment. She stood and smoothed her clothes. “Okay, so you are all right then. That’s good. I guess…I guess we should get back.” With that, she turned on her heels and scampered off.
Rynn felt horrible for laughing in her face. She jumped up from her chair and ran after her. “Listen, sorry for laughing.” She grabbed Echo’s arm, forced her to stop. “It was really nice of you to make sure that I was okay.”
Echo smiled sweetly. “You’re new to all this and I can only imagine how rough that might be.”
“Especially when everyone hates you,” Rynn grumbled.
“Don’t worry about the others. You’re not missing anything by not talking to them.
The other females are spoiled rotten, conceited and brainless.”
Rynn’s smile blossomed. Echo appeared not to think very highly of them. So far, she had Isla and now Echo on her side. That was better than having no one. Of course, she had Briggs too, but it just wasn’t the same. “You know, that does make me feel better.”
Echo laughed, linked arms with Rynn and started back toward the Grand Hall. “Just keep your head up, they’ll leave you alone.” She gave a forgiving grin. “Eventually.”
As they entered through the doors to the hall, Rynn wasn’t surprised to see Briggs waiting by the door for her. He gave her an intrigued glance. “All good, darlin’?”
“Yep, just dandy.” She smiled at Echo. “Thanks again.”
Echo returned the smile, nodded, and headed in the direction of her table.
Briggs took Rynn’s hand and led her back over to their own table with Valor, where food waited on big white plate—chicken cordon bleu, fancy baked potato and crisp summer veggies.
Rynn’s stomach growled, hungry and happy. “Yummy, yummy, yummy,” she said, excited as she took her seat.
Briggs chuckled and pushed her chair in. “You and food.”
So she loved to eat. It was the reason she wasn’t a stick pole and a little curvy. She appreciated food like girls love clothes. Besides, this food was expensive. It’d been a long time since she’d eaten at a posh restaurant and it smelled divine. “Look at this…num num num.”
Briggs sat next to her, shook his head in laughter, then began to cut into his chicken.
Rynn picked up her cutlery, cut into the meat, when she was suddenly blasted from the front.
Wind breezed past and her head screamed in pain as it smashed against the floor. Or was that the sound that erupted from her throat?
Briggs was there instantly and pulled her up. Dazed, she looked around to discover Valor had attacked her.
What the heck?
Without even meeting her gaze, Valor jumped to his feet from where he’d fallen beside Rynn and went back to her plate. He bent over and inhaled deeply. He glanced at Briggs, his look severe as he beckoned him over.
Everyone in the room was on their feet too. They looked as lost as Rynn felt.
Briggs kept Rynn’s hand in his as he leaned over the plate and took a good sniff.
Tension filled him, his body snapped up as he stared at Valor.
The silence was thick, but the look between them spoke volumes. Something was very wrong.
“What is it?” Rynn asked quietly, impatience getting the best of her.
Briggs turned and looked down at her, his eyes burned with rage.
“Darlin’, someone just tried to poison you.”
He stomach clenched in fear. For herself and Briggs. The anger emanating from his body spoke volumes.
Whoever had done this would die.
Rynn sat twiddling her thumbs while Briggs and Valor not only questioned the Alphas and mates, but all the staff at the resort. They discovered…zilch.
She was kissing her lucky paws that Valor had sat with them at the table. If he hadn’t, Rynn suspected she’d be dust in the wind. As Patriarch, he was gifted with a stronger ability to scent. He even said the smell of the poison was very faint. Briggs scent was strong, not like Valor’s, but he could still smell a chemical once he got close. Rynn smelled diddly-squat.
Now, back at Valor’s ranch, they stood in the main foyer, still discussing the matter.
“You’re so convinced that it was meant for me,” Rynn said to Briggs.
That was the only reason she wasn’t freaking out. Who’d want to kill her? No one, well except maybe Nera. Still, Rynn didn’t believe she’d act on it in front of everyone.
It’d be too obvious.
“What if it wasn’t meant for me, though? What if the plate was set at the wrong place? Maybe Valor was the target. Isn’t that more likely?”
Briggs pondered that, his brows furrowed. “Would make more sense,” he agreed.
“Yes, some of the women here have taken a dislike to you, as we have seen with Nera, but I cannot believe it would result in an attempt on your life.”
Yep, great minds do think alike!
Valor sighed and leaned against the wall. “I must agree.” He arched an equivocal brow. “But as we saw tonight, it is highly unlikely I would eat it without scenting it first.”
“Maybe whoever did it didn’t know that,” Rynn suggested.
“That is a possibility.” Valor rubbed his face. “In any case, we have to be cautious.
Do not eat anything until I have examined it. All right?”
Rynn chortled. “I have no problem with that.” A thought occurred to her. “Do you have any enemies?”
Valor laughed and Briggs followed suit.
She smiled. “I take that as a yes, then?”
“Not enemies as such,” Valor responded. “Just some wolves that are unhappy with my decisions. But never has anyone taken steps to finish me off—especially in this regard.”
“It is very cowardly.” Briggs admonished.
Cowardly? It seemed pretty bold to her. “Why do you say that?”
“As wolves we are upfront about our dislikes,” Briggs answered. “It’s settled with a challenge or a fight. It’s hard to imagine an Alpha resorting to such a secretive way of death. I’ve never heard of such a thing before.” He glanced to Valor. “You?”
Valor shook his head, evidently just as mystified. “No. Alphas are proud. To kill without declaring it is simply unheard of.”
“So, it’s probably not an Alpha then,” Rynn offered. “Could it be your normal everyday wolf?” The statement sounded wrong, but she wasn’t up to date in her wolf terminology.
“Could be, yes,” Valor answered, “but the wolves who work at the resort are members of my pack. They would never commit this. They’d have no reason to.”
They were basically right where they started—at square one. It wasn’t a place she enjoyed. What had she gotten herself into? Abductions and attempted murders! What happened to waking up and having Sunday morning tea? She might be afraid but with two powerful Alphas standing looking down at her, she didn’t need to worry. She was safe. “Well that leaves us at a dead end to this mystery.”
“Indeed.” Briggs sighed heavily.
Valor pushed off the wall. “This will have to wait until later. Hendrix will be expecting us soon. They left on the first flight out.”
Rynn watched as Valor headed down the hallway, then looked at Briggs. “I’m hoping this is out of the ordinary too?”
Briggs chuckled, placed his hand on her lower back and ushered down the hall.
“Very.” They caught up with Valor, where he stood before the wooden door at the end of the hall.
Rynn groaned. “I forgot about this part. We have to go through there again, don’t we?”
Sure, it looked like a normal door, but it definitely wasn’t. It was a portal. A teleport within the
Earthworld
as Briggs called it. Earth to human folk.
Briggs had said it was given to all of the superior supernaturals and with Valor being the Patriarch, he fell into that category. As he once told her, it was a gift from the leaders of the Otherworld to ensure, if Valor needed it, he could travel quickly within the world and allowed him access to their realm.
Rynn still hadn’t totally grasped all the magical stuff, but really, she shifted into a four legged creature. It was a bit hard not to accept magic after everything she’d experienced for herself. The portal was about as fun as getting a tooth pulled.
“Let’s get this show on the road,” Dante, Valor’s son, called as he trotted down the stairs to join them. He had the whole ‘slay me dragon’ thing going on. A tough guy with a body of muscles, a charming face, and a smile that was sweeter than sugar. His wolfish charms were hard to miss. A drop dead gorgeous man, but player-type gorgeous, which had never been Rynn’s type. Fun to look at and that was about it.
With the possible attempt on Valor’s life, Dante had gone into combat mode and demanded that he join them. Valor didn’t object. Having another set of arms and a strong nose could help. Dante was released from his normal duties, which was the business end of the resort.
Rynn remembered when she was curious to know why Dante wasn’t Valor’s Beta, since Briggs and he were the same age. Briggs had given her a simple answer—Dante would kill for the power of Alpha, which didn’t make him a very ideal candidate.
Valor opened the door and stepped through with Dante close behind. Briggs pulled Rynn through the door, and instantly, her body squeezed with pressure. Breathing and sight were impossible. There was no sound or light, just a feeling of non-existence. A very uncomfortable non-existence.
The good thing was, it didn’t last long.
Within seconds, the pressure faded. When her feet connected with hard ground, Rynn let out a very deep breath. “Urgh,” she groaned and rested her hands on her knees while she waited for the world to stop spinning.
Briggs held onto her around the waist, rubbed her back in slow circular movements.
“Couple deep breaths, love.”
It took a few minutes while she took his advice but the world became steady once again. She opened her eyes, green grass rested below her feet. She slowly raised her head to see a classic homestead with cattle grazing the fields.
“Better?” Briggs asked.
She looked at him, her mouth in a pout. “I really hate that. Flying wasn’t my favorite thing to do either, but I’d take airsickness over that any day.”
Briggs chuckled, kept her hand in his as they followed behind Valor and Dante across the yard to the house.
Steps away from the stairs, Hendrix marched out the front door and plowed down the steps. “Thank you for keeping your word, Valor.”
“Of course.”
Behind Hendrix stood his mate—a dainty gal with short honey-hair, kind hazel eyes—she’d make the perfect kindergarten teacher.
“Sayer just called,” she told Hendrix. “His flight has landed and he will be here shortly.” She smiled at Rynn. “We didn’t get a chance to meet earlier, I wasn’t up to travelling…” Her gaze filled with sadness, “…with Kali missing.” She sighed, trying to hold back tears and held out her hand to Rynn. “I am Danika.”
Rynn shook her hand. “Nice to meet you, I’m Rynn.”
Danika smiled, even if it did look a bit forced. Rynn suspected that had to do more with her daughter missing than Rynn being half-blood. Danika didn’t look like she hated her—maybe due to the fact that she was helping to locate her daughter? If it wasn’t for that would she have been as nice? Something in Rynn said no, as she recalled the little flinch Danika made when she touched Rynn’s skin. She hoped that it was just her imagining things.
“Come this way,” Hendrix said, and headed over toward the barn that sat just behind the house.
The stench of manure weighed heavy in the air. “It stinks,” Rynn complained and put her hand over her nose.
Briggs wrinkled his nose too. “Just be glad you’re not in wolf form, darlin’. Imagine the smell then?”
She shuddered at the thought. A country girl she was not.
Yuck!
“We will take these to follow the same path as we did before,” Hendrix said, approaching ten dune buggies. “I don’t want to waste any time or ignore the path she took, in case one of you…” he glanced at Rynn and Briggs, “…miraculously picks up on something that neither I nor Valor do.”
Unlikely, but Rynn could understand why he wanted to follow the same route. She guessed it could happen, stranger things have occurred, but she doubted that she was going to be any help here. All she smelled was cow crap—that was about it.
Briggs’ eyes lit up with excitement. “My my,” he purred, and ran his hand along the chrome roll bars.
Rynn couldn’t deny her own little flicker of interest. These were going to be fun—
really fun. She suddenly felt a great need for speed. Alphas didn’t have portals of their own, which meant they’d have to travel the old-fashioned way. Of course, they ran faster as wolves, but not quick enough. And Rynn was glad for that, her heart couldn’t take a run that long nor could her legs. Who had time to exercise? She never did.
Briggs didn’t hesitate, jumped in and patted the seat beside him. “Whatcha waitin’
for, love?” He beamed in anticipation of the thrill ahead.
Rynn giggled, then opened the door. Unlike Briggs, she wasn’t capable of doing a Dukes of Hazard move into the dune buggy. The result would be too embarrassing. She entered the car like a normal person. Just as she sat down, Sayer, Echo and a few of their pack members exited a car that had just pulled into the driveway.
Echo, as nice as before, gave Rynn a little wave and she returned it.
Hendrix approached Briggs and Rynn and handed them a tee shirt. “This is her scent,” he said. “Please, keep this in your memory to follow.”
Briggs nodded, raised the shirt to his nose and inhaled deeply. He handed the shirt to Rynn. She felt ridiculous sniffing the thing. Nonetheless, she did. The young girl smelled of peaches and cream combined with youth. After a final sniff, she handed the shirt back to Hendrix and he headed over to the others.
“Do you catch the trail?” Briggs asked.
She lifted her nose and inhaled deeply. “Not really.” There were too many scents to concentrate on a specific one. Manure overwhelmed everything else.
Briggs grabbed her hand, gave her a soft smile. “Close your eyes. Relax. Let your senses become stronger. Focus on the scent of the girl alone.”
Rynn considered this another lesson. She hadn’t really known her scent improved as a human now. Judging by the intensity in his gaze, she’d obviously been wrong. She took the hint and listened to him. He hadn’t steered her wrong yet. She took a deep breath as she closed her eyes. The others were all talking around her—hums of words spoken.
Focusing away from them, she inhaled again and moved her head from side to side.
Surprise hit her. A faint trail of the sweet peach scent did linger in the air. Her eyes snapped open. She pointed toward the forest to the right side of the house. “It’s over that way.”
Briggs nodded approvingly. “Right you are.” He leaned forward and gave her a proud kiss, which she happily accepted.
“Time is precious,” Valor said, interrupting their kiss, “Let’s head out.”
Rynn pulled back, to find a sexy grin across Briggs’ face. The scent of something strong swirled around her. It was thick in the air, but she couldn’t make sense of it.
Before she could voice a question on it, Briggs winked at her. “Hold on tight, darlin’.” Briggs laughed.
Then, they were off.
Rynn raised her hands and screamed with excitement as they rushed through the forest. The dune buggy was quick and bumpy, felt more like an amusement ride than anything else. Their laughter was loud. With Briggs driving like a mad man, it just made it even more fun.
The journey was long but with as much fun they were having, Rynn could have stayed out here forever. Briggs took every chance to hit a jump that allowed them to catch air. The view of trees, nature and undisturbed wilderness was fulfilling.
Kali’s scent stayed with her the entire time. Very faint, but there.
By the time the scent vanished, darkness filled the sky. The quarter moon was bright as stars decorated the skies above. Briggs eased on the accelerator and Rynn glanced at him. “Her scent…it’s gone.”
“Right you are.” He nodded and brought the dune buggy to a halt.
She glanced around them, taken aback. The large lake, the mountains in the distance, a forest off to the left…she had to be mistaken. She looked back at Briggs with wide eyes. “I know this place.”
“You do?” Briggs appeared shocked too.
She nodded, unlocked the seat belt, opened the door and jumped out. “This is Medicine Lake. We’re in Plymouth—my hometown.”
If Briggs was shocked before, now it was undeniable. His expression filled with questions. “That is some coincidence.”
“I’d say.” She glanced around only to find they were alone. With the understanding that her senses were heightened now, she listened hard. She could hear roars of engines, but they sounded quite a distance away. “Where are the others?”