Pops walks out of the room with his phone clutched to his ear once it rings. “Doesn’t S.O.S mean shit on the shingles?” Bolt asks. “That’s what Mom used to call the biscuits, gravy and sausage mix she used to feed us on the weekends.” I see the corner of his lip lift, his tell sign when he’s in a joking mood. We could all use a few jokes to ease the tension in the room right now, that’s for damn sure.
My face breaks out into a smirk, he knows what it means; he’s lightening things up for me, he knows how upset I am right now. And I appreciate it more than words can express. “You know it means ‘save our souls’.” I continue keeping up the banter.
“Actually,” Kane butts in, “it’s not an actual acronym for anything. But the ships out at sea use it if they’re in trouble. It has also been referenced as ‘save our ship’.”
“In other words, Pops thinks we’re up shit creek without a paddle.” And I can’t help but agree with his observations. We’re in deep shit, and we need a paddle the size of Mount Rushmore to dig our way out of this nightmare of epic proportions.
191
Glory
Another day where my eyes stay glued to the auction site. My body shudders as the camera picks up the women in small cages, smaller than a tiny animal should be subjected to. Maritsa’s balled up in the cage; there’s barely any room for her to switch positions. I can tell by the look on her face that she’s in pain. My heart breaks once again for the fact that she’s been victimized by my brethren. Being a shifter is a gift, one that is sacred and should be treasured. We have better senses and are stronger than that of an actual human. But we shouldn’t use it to our advantage over those who are physically weaker. We are their protectors; we are meant to look after them and save them from anything supernatural.
Feeling shame for the wrongdoings of others weighs heavily on my chest. For those who grow impatient for their mate to find them, the feeling of loneliness becomes overwhelming; I get that, but that doesn’t give anyone the right to snatch someone walking the streets. If you grow tired and restless, find yourself a compatible mate. They may not be who the higher powers intend for you, but they’d ease that ache in your chest. But in my personal opinion, some shifters are evil and don’t deserve the peace a mate can bring to you. Noticing movement on my monitor; I watch as guards enter the room lined with cages. Both men and women are inside of them; we haven’t heard of men coming up missing, but clear as day, I can see several.
Opening up my mating link to Blaze, I inform him, “Women aren’t the only victims, my love.”
“Explain, mate. The only missing persons reports we have are that of missing young human females.”
“Tell Decoder to show you the site. They have a live, streaming feed of the caged room these individuals are being held in. There are men, Blaze, I’m watching it now and have seen them myself.”
“Fuck, I’ll get Decoder to bring it to me now. Thanks for the heads up, love, but you shouldn’t keep watching this.”
“I know, Blaze. But it’s like a train wreck in the making. You know you shouldn’t be watching, but can’t tear your eyes away from it. Tell Dakota, we need to keep this page streaming from our ends. I have a feeling there’s something big fixing to happen. They’re feeding them and one by one taking them away for periods of time. The ones I’ve seen come back are clean and in fresh clothes.”
“Love, I appreciate the intel, but please stop watching. I worry for your mental well-being. Maritsa is important to your closest friend. And by God, don’t let Decoder hear you calling him by his given name. He complains to me about it all the damn time. He’s a man now, not a child.”
“He was a child whose knees I bandaged when he fell and scraped them. He’ll get over it. You call him Decoder, and I will too in front of the brothers, but to me, he’ll always be my little buddy and shadow, Dakota.”
“Pops has just walked back in the room. I need to speak with him. Love you, Glory girl.”
“Love you too, Blaze of fire.”
As my link to him severs, my eyes scan back over to my laptop. “Jesus all mighty,” leaves my mouth in a whoosh of air. Maritsa is being dragged from the room; she’s stumbling all over the place. They must’ve drugged her food; she’s barely holding herself upright. Calling upon my ancestors, I beg for mercy and guidance for not only myself, but for all of us as we search to find these missing individuals. We are desperately in need of all the assistance and intervention we can get. As I zoom in on the screen, my mouth opens wide. “Is that?” Oh fuck, no… please no.
Blaze
“Pops, what was Jake able to tell you?” I ask as soon as he takes a seat at my desk. I’m still letting that one go, even though I want to snatch him up and take back my position.
“He wants us to have Decoder send him everything he has. They’ve had no files of missing people enter their department. No red flags, nothing. He needs
