I grimaced, knowing she was correct. Caleb would do what he thought was right, and it might cost the Navarre Pack and Jess their lives.
“You know where they are?” I asked again.
“Yes,” she hissed angrily. “And we’re wasting time.”
“How do I know I can trust you?” I glared at her, remembering the hitch in Jess’ voice when she realized her mom had taken off.
“Because I am her mother and I will kill the fucking devil himself to save her,” she snarled, her eyes glittering dangerously as I blocked her way. “Now, you either help me or get the hell out of my way.”
I stared at her for a heartbeat, not allowing a flicker of admiration to show as I barked, “Dylan, you’re coming with us.”
Chapter Twenty-One
Jess
The cold barrel pressed tightly against my head as the hand at my back shoved me roughly forward. We moved in an awkward shuffle, Caleb’s eyes tracking every movement looking for an opening to attack the guy. I wanted to tell him not to bother. I knew the guy holding me wouldn’t kill me. Knock me out, maybe, but my fucking ovaries were too valuable to just kill me.
We walked back to the corral, ushered in with sharp jabs, stumbling to a stop in front of Nicholas Hanley himself. The icy wind cut through my insufficient jacket and I shuddered from the cold.
A quick glance around revealed four other men besides the Alpha and I wondered if they had more men hidden out of sight.
“Finally,” he muttered in satisfaction, avarice gleaming in his eyes as he studied us. “I can take the Navarre Pack and add a new female to the rotation.”
I almost gagged when I realized what he meant and Caleb let out vicious growl. “What a perv,” I spit at the Hanley Alpha, not even willing to consider acknowledging him as my uncle in my thoughts. “I’ll enjoy watching you die.”
He roared with laughter, eyeing me with a disturbing eagerness when he finally calmed. “I always enjoy the fighters,” he told me and Caleb struggled against the guy holding him. A click as the guy behind me cocked the gun against my head froze him though.
“Go ahead and rip his throat out, Caleb,” I urged, my gaze locked in a battle of wills with the Hanley Alpha. “He said it himself, he likes the fighters, he’s not going to kill me. Not until he gets a taste.”
“So true,” the Hanley Alpha sang. “Maybe our young Alpha would like to watch me have a taste.”
I jerked back, knocking my head into the gun as I let out a growl. Caleb twisted, hate burning in his gaze as he fought. “You’ll never have the Navarre Pack if you do,” he swore, his voice promising retribution. “I’ll make sure of it and I’ll kill her before I let you get your filthy hands on her.” Violence throbbed in the air and for a second I could almost see Caleb’s wolf under his skin as it fought for dominance. I knew Caleb would do what he promised and so did the Hanley Alpha.
“I want the Navarre Pack,” Hanley demanded, his hand out like he expected Caleb to hand it to him on a platter. “Give it to me and I’ll release you.”
“You want it?” Caleb asked, chest heaving as he strained against the two men holding him. “You’ll have to take it,” he spat, throwing down a challenge of his own. “Unless you’re too weak?”
The taunt worked as the guy behind me moved restlessly. There weren’t many men here but they all chose to be there, I knew that from the lust in their eyes, their need to see blood, to take what wasn’t theirs. If the Hanley Alpha backed down and didn’t accept Caleb’s implied challenge, someone else would.
Hanley eyed the other men, coming to the same conclusion as he jerked his head up and down. “You think you can beat me, pup?” He sneered, leaning in to look at Caleb’s battered face. “You’re welcome to try,” he roared, lifting his arms up into the air and the other men cheered as I met Caleb’s eyes. He lifted his shoulders slightly, his expression telling me he was buying us time, but how much time we didn’t know.
We’re not at the compound, I sent over the Pack bond and my link to Dom gave a little pulse. Dom? I questioned but the sudden surge in our connection had already disappeared. Cold fear crept through me as I wondered if our bond would ever be the same again.
We know, Trent answered, sounding unhappy. We made it to the compound, only to find a few women and children, and men too old or too young to fight. I felt a hint of his apprehension. They didn’t seem eager to fight us either, more like relieved to see us, he added, his voice carefully neutral.