Where the hell had they hidden them? I mean, fuck, it couldn’t have been far, right? My biggest fear, though? That they were already dead. Something that Narcissa would no doubt be blamed for, if that was the case. I wasn’t okay with that. I really wasn’t okay with the idea of her blaming herself either, which I knew she would do anyway. She didn’t deserve to live with that guilt when the assholes responsible had made the choice to act like that, not her.
My mate had always taken the blame for shit like that though, especially when it came to her responsibilities as Queen. She shouldered it all on her own, and it drove me up the goddamn wall. I wanted her to feel like she could lean on us. Trust us.
I mean, it had been getting better for sure, but I wanted to know that I was helping her life, not stressing her out more by making her feel like she had someone extra to worry about. Despite what some assholes would claim, Narc was a good leader that was not only appreciated, but respected. Not always loved, but I didn’t think that was what she was after anyway.
The people that truly drove me crazy? The assholes that tried to take advantage of her goodness. It was unavoidable, of course, but it didn’t make me hate it—or them—any less.
Thunder cracked in the sky as I reached the crowded, late-night Bourbon street. I shifted easily behind Declan’s bar and brushed off my damp clothes before I turned the corner and approached the somewhat busy establishment.
Immediately, heads turned towards me, most of their gazes shooting down with the exception of some other alphas and upper-hierarchy shifters. My main focus landed on a table near the door, off to the side, where Draco, Mila, and Lucas sat. The music around me seemed quieter than a moment before, but I ignored it, walking up to them and offering a frustrated look before I gave them news they would no doubt find upsetting.
“What’s going on?” Mila asked sharply, her eyes narrowing on my expression. My wolf growled at her demanding words but I brushed it off, knowing that I didn’t have time to waste on a dominance battle with Narc’s friend. Not right now.
Plus, I begrudgingly respected the woman, in some ways more so than Lucas. The latter was a fantastic alpha, especially for the assholes within his particular pack. He managed to keep them mostly contained, which was a hard feat on its own.
With that being said, Mila had more raw power than Lucas. Yet, as far as I was aware, she’d never challenged him in any way for pack hierarchy. In a way, I respected that because I didn’t buy into all that shit to begin with, which was why I tried to not find it frustrating when I felt like she was demanding answers. My wolf found it annoying, but he seemed to begrudgingly accept anyone that had Narc’s best interests at heart. Even if that included fucking Draco as well. Bastard.
Although, now that he was mated, it made me feel better. No one fucked around with mating bonds—that was just asking for chaos—and I really could see how much the two of them seemed to fit together. Which was good, because I’d been close to killing him before.
“Narc said she would meet us here if she didn’t find anything,” Lucas provided.
I inhaled sharply. “Yes, well, she was taken into the fucking Demonic realm. Presumably by force.” I mean, I didn’t know that for a fact... but I essentially did. Right? Whatever, it would have to fucking work for now.
Around me, others quieted as I mentally chastised myself for nearly letting out a threatening growl at people paying attention to information regarding Narcissa. This possessiveness I felt for her could not be healthy, right? Oh fucking well. I had bigger issues to deal with for sure.
“She was following misleading information and must have walked into a goddamn trap,” I hissed, thinking about her grandmother’s words regarding Narc’s mother. “She is being retrieved, but until then we need to double our efforts.”
“Who set up the trap?” Mila demanded, standing up.
I lowered my voice. “We suspect her mother.” I wasn't one hundred percent positive it had been her mother, but that was the general consensus that we had come to from her grandmother’s statements. I probably should have felt bad, but the woman was an asshole, so I didn’t. She had made my baby feel bad for most of her life, as it stood.
“We have searched everywhere in the city.” A feminine voice had me turning to find the woman that was supposedly Declan’s cousin. What was her name again? I honestly couldn’t tell you. She seemed a bit nervous, almost flighty, as she sat between Lucas and Mila. I think she may have been scared of me... but there was nothing I could do about that.
“Then we need to look outside the city. I need a list of places to search—alphas, do that now. I want everyone searching tonight. Preferably in the next hour. Pull in all your forces. Nero and Asmodeus will be… preoccupied for a bit.” Suffering, hopefully.
“Zachariah?” Draco asked, looking a bit amused.
I offered a sharp nod and turned towards the door as everyone began to spread out, the bar shaping from a place of relaxation into a headquarters real fucking quick. I leaned against the large entrance door, watching the street and attempting to avoid any unwanted supes or humans entering. It wasn’t usually a problem, but you never knew with the nighttime crowd around here.
The conversations behind me turned serious and quiet as I scanned the rain that was falling far heavier than before, leaving a misty, almost eerie look to the roads. I shook my head as I tried to imagine life as a human, like the ones that lined the block. So simple and easy. So terribly ignorant of everything going on around them. I guess in some ways ignorance was truly bliss, right? I mean, children experience that same level of naive wonder. Well, most do. My entire life had been pain-filled until Narcissa. Until I had seen her in that school hallway that one rainy, muggy, fall afternoon.
Narc became an angelic, heaven-sent temptation that I’d never expected.
Absently, I ran a finger over the scars along my arm, shaking my head and wondering what the hell she saw in me. Don’t get me wrong, I was happy for whatever it was, but shit. Sometimes I felt like I’d been given the largest blessing in the world that I didn’t deserve. Closing my eyes, I smoothed a hand over my face, feeling exhausted as memories of my life back in New Mexico flooded in through a splash of subconscious sadness.
“Shut up, boy,” my father growled, his hand hitting the back of my head as I winced and leaned further back against the stone bench that sat in front of our run-down trailer.
I should have expected the hit, but it still hurt. I knew he was nervous about another pack coming to visit us, but for the past few days he had been taking it out on me as well as my mother.
Now that I was fourteen, I could take more of a hit for sure, but my mother always hit me later if I tried to stand up for her in a fight. Something I would never understand. I think the two of them enjoyed hurting one another. It was sick and scary.
I wasn’t positive if I would ever find someone I liked or trusted enough to be with, but if I did, I could never imagine hurting her like they hurt each other. I just didn’t have it in me. Not that I didn’t have violent thoughts, but it could never be towards someone that I loved. It made me sick to my stomach.
The rumble of a motorcycle sounded as our pack gathered in front of our house. I found myself sinking back into the crowd, knowing it would anger my father but not caring. I had no need to meet others like him. I had met enough men like him for a fucking lifetime.