The shouts of alarm earlier had died down, and mostly moans and cries of pain could be heard. Glancing around, Ransom saw the three wolves snarling and yapping as they corralled the remaining men who were still standing into a circle.
“I’ll take care of them.” Daric appeared next to the men and waved his hand. Chains and ropes appeared around their wrists, ankles, and torsos, forcing them all down on the ground.
The three wolves began to shift, so Ransom’s wolf followed suit. As his limbs shortened and his fur receded, he glanced at the other Lycans. He recognized Cliff Forrest’s massive body as he towered over everyone else, as well as Arch Jones’s tall and lean form. The third man, however, was unfamiliar to him. He was shorter, but easily one of the bulkiest men Ransom had seen. He cursed in what sounded like French as he nursed the bullet wound in his shoulder.
“Feet pue tan! Mika’s going to kill me,” the man groused.
“Are you all right, Ransom?” Daric asked.
“Yeah,” he said. “I—whoa!” Clothes suddenly appeared on his body as Daric waved his hand. “Thanks.” He’d only seen Cross do that, so he was disoriented for a moment. “But how did you—”
“I was able to track you, thanks to the coin,” he said. “We—”
A loud cry made them all freeze.
The pups!
Ransom was closest to the vehicle, so he dashed toward it, hopping inside. The back of the van was small, so he easily spotted the two children lying on the ground, both wailing and bawling in distress.
Having no experience with kids at all, Ransom didn’t know what to do, so he crawled low and hefted them both into his arms.
Cross’s head popped into the van. “Are they—oh good.” He looked relieved as he saw the pups in Ransom’s arms. “Need a hand?”
He handed Cross one of the pups, then carefully crawled out from the back of the van. As a cool night breeze blew by, he was struck by a strange scent. Cardamom, with just a hint of honey, mixed with rain and musk. His wolf immediately perked up and scratched at him.
The pup in his arms had stopped bawling, so he looked down. Mismatched eyes looked up at him curiously. A small hand reached up to touch his face, and he felt a strange stirring in his chest. “Hello, little one,” he said, brushing the tears away from the child’s face. “Don’t worry. You’re safe now.” He didn’t know why he said it, only that he had to say it.
Someone clearing their throat made him start. When he turned his head, he saw Cross looking at him strangely. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing,” he said quickly. “Dad and the others’ll take care of cleanup. They’ll take care of your bike too. Why don’t I bring us and the pups back to The Enclave? I’m sure everyone will be happy to see them.”
Seeing as the Guardian Initiative team seemed to have everything in hand, he nodded. Cross grabbed onto him and the child, then he closed his eyes as he felt that familiar feeling wrap around in him.
His feet landed on solid, carpeted ground, and when he opened his eyes, he found himself in an unfamiliar apartment. It was plush and tastefully decorated, but everything about it screamed luxury.
“Kier!” Julianna, who had been sitting on one of the leather couches, bounded up and dashed to Cross, taking the infant from his arms and peppered his little face with kisses. “Oh, my God, my baby.” Tears streaked down her cheeks as she looked up at Cross. “Duncan? And Papa?”
“They’re fine,” Cross said. “They’re both still back there, helping with the cleanup.”
Julianna looked relieved. “Thank God.”
Ransom frowned. Why wasn’t Julianna as concerned for her other son? “Um, your other boy’s fine too,” he reminded her, nodding at the child in his arms.
“Oh!” Julianna exclaimed. “Yes, I’m so glad they’re both fine. Isabelle will be so relieved. Mama and Sabrina are with her in the guest room now, trying to calm her down.”
Isabelle?
“Thank you so much, Ransom, for rescuing the pups.” She squeezed his arm. “Let me take him so I can show—Isabelle!”
Slowly, Ransom turned around. Isabelle was rushing out of the hallway behind him when she suddenly stopped. Her eyes darted to the child in his arms, then to briefly meet Ransom’s gaze before quickly looking away. The boy squirmed, his hands reaching out to Isabelle as he let out a squeal. Her face white as a sheet, she strode forward and took the child from him.
“Oh, Evan,” she cried as she held the boy against her chest. “Evan, I’m so happy you’re safe.”
The ground seemed to shift under him as he staggered back. A pounding throb behind his eyes made the edges of his vision blur, and he suddenly found it hard to breathe. This pup … was Isabelle’s.
The room filled with more people. The Alpha. Lupa. Frankie Anderson. All of them talking at once, too loud. They were thanking him, hugging the children, asking for explanations. The cacophony around him was too much, and he wanted to scream at them to shut the hell up while he tried to think.
“You must be Ransom,” somebody said all of a sudden. “Thank you for saving my grandchildren.”
As if he wasn’t feeling disoriented enough, the new presence in the room made the world shift again. He didn’t need to know who this was. He’d seen his picture countless of times. Looked into those emerald green eyes on his screen for so long, it had burned into his brain. The pure, dominant power from him marked him as an Alpha, even if he wasn’t technically a ruling one.
“I’m Grant Anderson.” He extended his hand. “I’m honored to meet you.”
He stared at the palm, unblinking. Finally, he was face-to-face with the man who was the cause of his misery.
