Donna took a breath. This was worse than she’d thought. “There is nothing going on between us except a working relationship. I promise you he’s not here or in a love nest. But I know where he is.”
“Where?” LV asked.
“Yeah, where?” Maria Antonella relaxed a tiny bit.
Donna gestured toward the kitchen. “Why don’t you come in and sit down so I can explain?”
Thankfully, they seemed amenable to that. Donna led them in, then let them pick their seats before choosing one herself. Pierce brought LV’s coffee over with another for Donna, which she was definitely about to need. He returned a second later with sugar, creamer, and spoons.
Donna let LV fix her coffee first, then helped herself to the cream and sugar as she selected her words carefully. “I wish we were meeting under different circumstances. I also wish I had something different to tell you than what I’m about to.”
She looked up at the women, making careful eye contact. “Rico has been kidnapped by the fae. He’s being held at their stronghold. I highly suspect King Dredward is behind this.”
The color drained from both women’s faces. Maria Antonella let out a little gasp and crossed herself. “How did this happen? How do you know this?”
“It happened because I took in a young girl who’s half fae, half vampire and—”
“Dhamfir,” LV whispered.
Donna nodded. “Yes. I gave her sanctuary. The fae were treating her terribly. But King Dredward wants her back, so he had Rico kidnapped to use as leverage. I know this because the fae sent us a video. The girl, Rixaline, recognized the holding cell as the dungeons in the stronghold. We have forty-eight hours to rescue him.”
Charlie walked into the kitchen, now in a gray knit tracksuit. She stopped when she saw the two women.
Maria Antonella’s lips were firmly pressed together, maybe to stop them from quivering. “Show us the video.”
Donna glanced at her admin. “Charlie, this is Louisa Valentina Medina, the alpha of the New Jersey pack, and the alpha-elect, Maria Antonella Medina. They are Rico’s grandmother and mother. Ladies, Charlie is my very capable admin.”
“Call me Toni,” Maria Antonella muttered. “And you can call my mother LV.” She shook her head as she looked at Donna. “I’m sorry for what I accused you of.”
“Don’t give it another thought. I’m a mother. I would probably act the same way if my son went missing. We’re all stressed right now,” Donna answered. She looked at Charlie again. “Can you play the video on the television like you did before? Our guests need to see it.”
“Of course.”
She went into the living room. Donna stood. “Ladies, if you’d like to follow Charlie, she’ll set it to play in there.”
A few minutes later, a stone-faced LV stared at the frozen image of her grandson on the screen. Toni had tears streaming down her face even as her hands were clenched in fists at her sides.
LV finally turned away from the television to look at Donna. “Have you already made a plan to get him back?”
“We’re in the early stages of doing that now. We only just got this video within the hour. But we’re working on a strategy. I hope you’ll join us.”
She nodded. “Your financial abilities exceed anything the wolves can offer, but we are greater in number. And the sunlight doesn’t affect us.”
“I welcome whatever help you’re willing to give. For a long time, your grandson was the only hope I had of escaping my terrible life. I owe him.” Donna held her hand out. “Thank you.”
LV shook her hand, then inhaled deeply. “We have a lot to do and a short time to do it.”
The sound of rapid footsteps was followed by Temo returning. He glanced at the two women, then Donna. “Boss.”
Donna introduced him. “Ladies, please meet Temo Danielson, my very skilled head of security. Temo, this is LV Medina, alpha of the New Jersey werewolves, and Toni Medina, alpha-elect. They’re Rico’s grandmother and mother, and they’re joining with us to rescue him.”
“A pleasure to meet you both.” Temo smiled and nodded, rubbing his hands together. “This is very good.”
Donna clapped her hands. “Let’s get to work.”
They all settled in at the dining room table, Temo at one end, Charlie and Donna at the other, LV and Toni in the middle. Pierce got more coffees and a few glasses of water. When that was done, he took a seat across from the alphas.
Donna put her hand on his arm as she looked at LV and Toni. “I’m sorry, I failed to introduce my assistant and my attorney, Pierce Harrison.”
Toni nodded, and the hint of a sly smile bent her mouth. “I heard about you. You’re the one who saved her from the council. Rico told us about that.”
Pierce tipped his head in acknowledgment. “That was me. But his testimony was pivotal. I like Rico very much. I wish there was more I could do personally to help with this situation.”
A knock at the door interrupted them. Charlie got to her feet. “That’s probably Jerabeth. I’ll get it.”
A moment later, the two women returned to the dining room, introductions were made, and another seat at the table was filled.
As the conversation turned toward the best time to launch the rescue, movement caught Donna’s eye. She turned to see Rixaline hovering at the end of the hall, a sheet of paper in her hands. She motioned to the girl. “Come in.”
Then she held her hand out in Rixaline’s direction and spoke to the werewolves. “This is Rixaline, the dhamfir I told you about. She’s the key to our plan because she knows how to get to the fae stronghold.”
LV shook her head. “King Dredward is supposed to be impossible to find.”
“Nothing is impossible for Rixaline to find. That’s why the fae want her back so badly. Plus, she was held at that stronghold, so she knows it better than anyone.” Donna looked up at the girl, who now stood timidly beside her. “You drew the map?”
She nodded and held the paper out. She swallowed as she stuck near Donna.
“Thank you so much.” Was it the presence of the wolves that frightened Rix? Donna wasn’t sure, but something had the teenager on edge. She took the map and laid it flat on the table. “You did a good job.”
“Charlie gave me the colored pencils,” Rixaline said quietly.
“Smart choice.” It was actually a pretty decent rendering with trees in green, paths in gray, water in blue. The fortress was a dark purple square with a small rectangle just in front of it. That rectangle was labeled as a gate. “The stronghold is in a forest?”
Rixaline nodded. “Yes.” She tapped a small brown square near the top of the map. “There’s a castle here, but the fae call it the folly because it’s just for show. That’s not where the fae are. They’re in the big purple square. Although the stronghold isn’t really a square. I don’t know the real shape.”
Donna looked closer as everyone else did the same.
“A castle that’s just for show?” Pierce leaned over her shoulder to see the map. “Wait a minute. Those paths look familiar. In fact, this all looks very much like the Ramble in Central Park.” He straightened to see Rixaline better. “Are you telling me the fae stronghold is in the middle of Manhattan?”