25

Randall's POV

La Crosse Pack House

I looked at the broken girl standing at the doorway and my heart just fell. Every dream, every good experience had been taken from her and she had suffered for years, three of them not knowing what happened to her own son.

"Please, sit and eat," I said softly. I was glad I'd spent so much time in my division, I'd learned from the best how to work with people who had come out of the harshest situations. "None of us will hurt you."

She nervously came into the room, taking a place across the table from me. I let her take some food and eat, while I focused on my own plate and what we needed to do. "

How is she doing,"

I linked with my brother.

"

Better, she slept for a few hours and she's talking a little."

"Does she know who you are or that you are mates?"

"No, and I'm the one who should break it to her."

I grabbed an empty plate next to me, and filled it with biscuits, gravy and sausage. I held it over the table. "Tania? Would you mind putting this down on the floor for my brother?"

She reached out, hesitant, but she took it from me. "Snacks is your brother?"

I held back a laugh as she lowered the food down to the floor and ignored my brother's cursing over the link. "Snack's real name is Bobby, Bobby Meechum. He's my little brother, he came up here with me from Texas."

"I call him Snacks because he helped me find the food last night, and he ate almost a whole bag of cheese curds by himself. I don't think they have cheese that squeaks when you eat it down south." She ate with her left hand while her right maintained contact with him as he wolfed down his breakfast. "He's a nice puppy, he helped me sleep."

"He's good for that," I said. "He will stay with you as long as you'll have him. No one will harm you while he is by your side, I can assure you."

"I know, as soon as I touched him, it was like I knew I was safe with him." He looked up from his clean plate, his tongue hanging out the side and the love clear in his eyes. "He's such a good boy, aren't you Snacks."

"

See, she likes me,"

he sent.

"

Who doesn't like puppies,"

I sent back. "Tania, I need to ask you to do something that I know is not going to be easy for you but is very important. I'd like to get your statement on what has happened to you since the day you were taken."

"Surely it can wait, she's not ready," Luna Teri said.

"Right now, her sister is out risking her life to get her son back," I said. "The longer she is out there, taking the search and the revenge upon her alone, the more vulnerable she is. The Council and the Packs will kill her if they find her before we do." I looked over at Tania. "Please, she's my mate. I know she's not had an easy time of it, but I'm here now, and so is this Pack. We need to know, so we can help your sister, and so we can make sure EVERYONE who was involved in your treatment is brought to justice."

"She didn't tell me where she was going or who the Alpha was," Tania said as she started to cry. "I DON'T KNOW!"

Bobby put his head in her lap and Teri got out of her chair and hugged her as she cried. I looked over at Alpha Clark. "Alpha, may I talk to you in private for a few minutes?"

"Let's go to my office." We left the crying women alone and I followed him upstairs. He sat behind his desk as I took the chair in front of it. "I can't just sit here and listen to what happened to her, my wolf is going nuts that I couldn't protect her. Now that we know Beta Todd was involved, it makes me even more certain that he was involved in the Alpha pair's death."

"Even more reason to get the statement. Let me do it, with Bobby and Teri there. I'll conduct the interview and videotape it so we have evidence to take to the Council when this all blows up."

"What can I do?"

"There can't be that many Alphas who had males born to their families in that time. Ask you mate to ask Tania how long it was between when she was taken and when she became pregnant."

He looked off, and a minute later we had our answer. In the meantime, we pulled up a pregnancy calculator on the Internet. Now that we knew approximately the conception date in early September, we took from 34 to 42 weeks gestation and got a range of values. "So that's a narrow range to start with, and we can throw out any Alpha with older male heirs. Not much of a point in kidnapping and raping a girl if you already have your successor," I said.

"I'm going to fucking kill him," he said as he looked at the Council secure website. Every Pack Alpha and their family was listed there, with links to family photographs taken at the annual Council Summit.

I looked at the photograph he was staring at. He was standing behind her, a toddler boy in her lap, smiles on their faces. "Alpha Justin Heranus and Luna Rhoda of the Copper Mountain Pack in Colorado. Son Phillip, DOB 5/20/2016," I read. "Damn. His face and eyes look just like her."

Clark sent to a few people, and the room soon filled with his senior staff. He filled them all in on what we had learned. The mood was tense, and I had to be the one to defuse it. "Before we load up and head west, I'd like to point out that we don't have any proof yet. We don't have DNA evidence, we haven't even gotten an identification out of Tania yet. Let me do my job and build the case so none of these people get away with it."

"We can't just roll in there," his Beta said. "It would be an act of war. We have to get the Council involved. We lay out the facts, they arrest him and hold the trial, and we get our justice."

"I want his blood in my teeth," Alpha Clark raged as he stood from his desk.

"It's not what is best for the Pack," I said. "Tania needs her family around her to recover, and it would crush her if you were hurt or killed on her account."

He sat down, clenching his fists as he pushed his wolf down. "Go back downstairs and see if Tania will agree to interview with you. Meanwhile, I'll call the Council and ask them to fly a team out here immediately. I want all the information we have gathered on Alpha Todd and Alpha Justin in this room by five."

"I'll have it ready," I said.

"Beta, have your men put together information on the Copper Mountain and Tomah Packs in case we have to go in there and grab the Alphas ourselves. I don't mind getting the Council involved, but if we have to we'll take our own action."

"Yes Alpha."

Before I left, I found a photo of Alpha Justin and printed it out along with photos of five other Alphas of similar age and features. Placing them in an envelope, I went downstairs, where the girls weren't there. "

Where did you guys go,"

I sent to Bobby.

"

Luna's sitting room on the main floor,"

he sent back. I followed their scents to a door, hearing their voices inside I knocked softly. "It's Randall," I said. "May I come in?"

"Enter," the Luna said. They were sitting on a couch in the small room, which had needlepoints and photos on the walls and high-backed chairs flanking the couch. It was clearly a female space by the decorations, used by the Luna to entertain other females when her mate was dealing with Pack matters alone. "Tania has agreed to talk to you about her experience, but she doesn't want anyone else in the room with us," she said.

"Thank you, Tania. We can keep this just to us, but I do need to record the interview for use in a trial. I'll also ask you to make a short statement and sign it, identifying who did this to you. I was just speaking with Alpha Clark, and he's going to bring the evidence to the Council so we can get justice."

"Talia says the council is not to be trusted. They are after her."

"The Council cannot ignore this, we won't let them. The trial of an Alpha has a jury made up of other Alphas. I'd rather you not worry about that, I just want to find out what happened. I'll make this as easy as I can for you."

"All right." I asked her to sit up on the couch, with Snacks laying with his head in her lap, and moved Teri to the chair next to her. Placing my phone on a stand on the coffee table, I adjusted it until it just showed her from the chest up. There were no clues as to where she was located, and you couldn't see Bobby's head. Her hands were both in his fur, nervously petting him to stay calm. I started the video, then sat back with my notebook. After stating my name and the date, I smiled at her and started slow. "Can you tell me your name, birth date and family?"

"Tania Stillwater, born June 18

th

, 2000, formerly of the Tomah Pack. My parents are, I mean were, Johann and Rosa Stillwater, Alphas of the Pack. I have an older sister, Talia."

"So, you were Alpha blood but not the Alpha heir."

"No, my sister was, she had faith that the Goddess would give her a strong mate to lead with her. It didn't quite go that way."

"I see. Can you tell me about the last few days you were at the Tomah Pack?"

She closed her eyes for a moment, then started. "Mom and Dad had a meeting with the surrounding Alphas, it was being hosted by the La Crosse Pack. I didn't want to go, one of my friends was having her birthday party. Talia had to go, she was sixteen and it was time to start looking for her mate. You know, all these Alpha get-togethers are chances for high-ranking wolves to look for their mates," she said as her eyes rolled. "We were down at the beach, playing on the rope swing. I had just gotten out of the water and was drying off when I got a link from Beta Todd that my parents were on the phone."

"Beta Todd Aldrige?"

"Yes. He told me to shift and run up to the road, he was waiting in his SUV with the passenger door open. I jumped in and shifted, but instead of handing me the phone, he injected me with something."

"What's the next thing you remember?"

"I woke up in a basement, chained by my neck to a post." She described the basement, the conditions, and the Alpha who raped her and left her pregnant.

"Tania, I'm going to lay out some pictures for you. If you recognize the man who held you captive, let me know." The photos in the envelope had been shuffled around; I showed each to the camera before I handed it to her. She shook her head no three times before I handed her the next photo.

"It's him," she whispered. She was shaking and started crying.

I took the photograph back from her and set it aside. "I need you to look at the other photographs, just to make sure." She told me no to the rest. I collected the photographs with Alpha Justin on top. "The photo lineup identified Alpha Justin Heranus as the kidnapper."

We continued on through the injections and rapes, which took a while to get through and we had to suspend the interview twice when she broke down. During one of the breaks, there was a knock on the door. It was Alpha Clark, with more photos. "These are photos of the senior leadership of the Copper Mountain Pack," he said. "Teri told me she identified Justin."

"She did," I said. "Can you have the kitchen send in some drinks and snacks? We may be here a while."

"

I have to go into the woods or shift and use the bathroom,"

Bobby said.

"I think it's a good time for a break," I said. "We're getting some food and drink brought in, but if you need to use the bathroom you can." Teri walked Tania out, they were both still crying, while I walked to the front door and let Bobby out to run.

Ten minutes later, I had a muffin and a coffee in hand, and we started the interview again. She told of her baby being taken, being starved, then a new man showing up and taking her wolf. "I think he was supposed to kill me, but he took my wolf instead," she cried. "He knocked me out and that's when I was sent to the slave auctions."

"Slave auction?" Shit. We'd been looking for these people for years but had never found them. "Can I show you some pictures and see if this man who took your wolf is one of them?"

She nodded. I did the same exercise, except all the men were senior leaders in the Copper Mountain pack. "That's him," she said when the Beta's picture showed up. "He took my wolf from me."

Ch. 22

Talia's POV

Copper Mountain, Colorado

I had left my motorcycle at the LaCrosse Regional Airport. Marcy and I had driven her Mercedes sedan straight through to Denver and its coven.

The unique nature of Alpha Justin's pack was also its weakness. Most Packs were insular, living and working inside the Pack borders. The Copper Mountain Pack lived in a gated community in a remote canyon, but almost all of them worked at the sprawling resort fifteen miles to the northeast. The familiars had been monitoring the Pack for a few days now and noted how the majority of the Pack left during weekdays for work, including the Alpha.

I had left Marcy behind in the Denver coven house; this would have to be done in daylight. The late summer day in the mountains started early and ended at almost nine at night. During the night, there were too many warriors around for me to handle, and I couldn't involve the Coven in this.

I thought about my plan as I drove out of the Wal-Mart parking lot and headed for their homes. It was simple and bold; I was going to go in, grab my nephew and the Luna, and get out again. I even bought a toddler car seat at Wal-Mart and put it in the back.

Once he was safe, I could go back and take care of the Alpha.

I checked my weapons as I turned down the road towards the entrance to their homes. I had my Glock in a shoulder holster under the blue blazer I was wearing with a white blouse top and grey slacks. Throwing knives were sewn into the sleeves and lining of the blazer. The right pocket contained several autoinjectors filled with wolfsbane-laced sedatives, while the left pocket held two autoinjectors filled with high doses of wolfsbane. I stopped just before the fence and the gatehouse, getting out of the car as the werewolf sentry came out of the shack. "Hi, I'm here to see Luna Rhoda, my name is Amanda King," I said with a smile as I walked up to him.

He took a good sniff, raising his eyebrow. "I wasn't notified, I'll have to check." As soon as he turned, my hand left my pocket and the autoinjector pushed the fast-acting sedative into his system. His knees buckled, he probably tried to call for help over the link, but the wolfsbane would prevent that. I caught him as he started to crumple and dragged him back to the shack, setting him in the chair. I opened the gate then turned off the breaker, making sure it couldn't be reclosed.

Getting back in the car, I drove straight to the Alpha home and parked in the driveway. I patted my jacket as I walked to the door and palmed another autoinjector, readying it in my left hand. Knocking, I could hear someone approaching before it opened. "Can I help you," an older wolf asked me.

"Hi, I'm Amanda King, the Luna is expecting me," I said as I started walking in past the flustered maid.

"I'm sorry, Ma'am, but..." She stopped talking as the injection went into her neck. I caught her and moved her to a chair, closing the door behind me. I expanded my senses, no one else was nearby, but I could hear voices out back.

I moved through the house, seeing Luna Rhoda sitting on the back patio, watching Phillip play in his sandbox. I opened the door and walked out, the autoinjector from the right pocket in my hand. As she turned around to see who was coming, I plunged the needle into her neck and covered her mouth.

The sedative and wolfsbane coursed through her body as she struggled to escape me, but that wasn't happening. She went limp in moments, and with her link blocked she couldn't raise help. I really wanted to take her wolf away, but that would break the link and bring the Pack running. I couldn't afford that yet, but it was going to happen.

"Mommy?" The little boy had noticed his Mom passing out and had gotten out of his sandbox and come over. He pulled on her shorts, looking up at her with worry in his eyes.

"Mommy is not feeling good, Phillip, but we're going to take her to the doctor," I said.

"Who are you?"

"I'm your Mommy's sister," I said. "Come on, you can open the doors for me. You'll be a big helper if you can do that."

"Okay. Momma wake up?"

"She will later, honey. Come on." I put an Ace and King of Hearts on the table by her chair, then I picked Rhoda up in my arms. I smiled at my nephew as he opened the door to the house. "Can you get the front door? My car is outside." He ran ahead to hold the door open, and I brought her out. "Run ahead and open the back door of the car for me, then get into the carseat," I told him.

He opened the back passenger-side door before climbing in, and was sitting in the chair as I set her in the seat and buckled her in. I pulled out a pair of handcuffs, locking her hands together then attaching the cuffs to a chain I'd installed below the seat. It would let her have some motion, but not enough to reach the door or show the handcuffs to anyone else, not that the tinted windows would allow it.

As soon as she was in place, I closed the door and went around to his side. After buckling him in, I opened a pack of Cheddar Goldfish and handed them to him, then moved the sippy cup I'd prepared with water into his holder. "Thank you," he said as he grabbed some of the crackers.

"You're welcome. I need you to be a good boy for me while we drive to get Mommy help," I said. I closed the door and hopped in, driving back down the road and out the gate. I didn't relax when I got to the main road; I turned south, following Highway 91 through the mountains. I didn't know how long it would be before the alarm was raised and the Luna and her son were discovered missing.

It wasn't as long as I had hoped. We were fifteen miles south of the Pack territory when Phillip's voice came from the backseat. "Daddy wants to know where I am," he said.

Well, it was time to let the cat out of the bag. "Tell him Amanda Keller is driving you and Mom to the doctor because she's not feeling good." He closed his eyes as he linked back with his father.

I pulled over to the side of the road, taking the needle from the door as I got out. It was a much smaller dose, no wolfsbane, just enough to knock him out for a few hours while I took care of things. I opened his door, plunging the needle into his arm before her could react.

"That hurt," he said as he looked at me with tears in his eyes.

"I know, I'm sorry. I'll kiss it and make it better." I leaned down and kissed his arm, then his forehead as it slumped to the side. I closed the door carefully then got back in and got on the road.

A half hour later, I arrived at the Leadville-Lake County airport where the six-passenger twin-turboprop plane was waiting for me. The human pilot had a flight plan filed and the door open, the engines idling. He was being paid well for his discretion, and I'd used him before. I parked next to the charter plane on the tarmac, then got Phillip out and carried him to it. I handed him and his car seat to the waiting pilot at the door, then went back and got the sleeping Rhoda and buckled her into the leather seat.

When both were secured, I drove the Mercedes back to the lot, leaving the keys in the console. I called Marcy as I walked back in the noontime sun, letting her know the mission was a success and I was getting on board. She told me the Pack was going nuts looking for the Alpha's family. I just smiled, it was time he experienced some of what MY family had gone through before I killed him.

I got back on board the plane and told the pilot to depart. He closed and secured the door, then a few minutes later we were up in the air and headed for La Crosse.

I couldn't give Tania back the four years she had lost, but her son would be in her arms by dinnertime.