“I appreciate that.” I gave him a curt nod. My wolf paced within me, eager to hunt down the man who’d taken our mate.
Before I could delve deeper into my thoughts, my phone rang, the sound jarring in the tense atmosphere. I cursed as I glanced at the caller ID. Castro, the bastard.
“Castro,” I said tersely, my mind already racing with questions. “What do you want? I haven’t got time for you right now.”
“A little birdie tells me you're missing someone, and I can’t say I’m happy about it. How could you let her be taken, Ty? You were supposed to protect her. Let me go against my nature and give you a little… help. Liam Petrov has taken Liza. He has a vendetta against the Kellers.”
Hearing Liza’s name from his mouth only served to make my anger and fear flare more intensely. How the fuck had Castro discovered so much already? But I couldn’t let my emotions cloud my judgment. I had to focus on getting her back.
“His hatred for you Kellers runs deep,” Castro continued. “He has a lot of reasons to hate you and your family, Ty. Like me, he blames them for the fall of the Wylde pack. It’s worse for him because they killed his father, and essentially kidnapped Liza. Unlike me, he thought she was dead until you pulled your little stunt and put her on national television.”
His words settled on my chest, making it difficult to breathe. As much as I wanted to lash out at Castro for reminding me of my own guilt, this information was invaluable.
“Thank you.” I forced the words out through gritted teeth. “I appreciate your help.” Ugh, thanking him was fucking gross.
He hesitated before continuing. “Just be careful. Liam is dangerous, and he won’t hesitate to use Liza against you.”
“Why are you telling me this? I would have thought you and Liam were on the same side.”
“Because I hate him, Ty.” Castro’s voice was dark with loathing. “Liam may have a right to be angry with your family, but he’s taken it too far. He’s obsessed with revenge, and he knows how to utilize Liza’s full potential. He doesn’t care who he hurts along the way, including Liza.”
“What do you mean, Liam knows how to utilize Liza’s full potential? What does he want from her?”
“Power,” Castro answered bluntly. “Liza is a weapon whether she realizes it or not. Her latent abilities could be used to wreak havoc on anyone who stands in Liam’s way, and he knows it.”
“We need to find her before Liam can use her against us.” I growled. “We can’t let him win.”
“Agreed. Good luck, Ty.” With that, Castro hung up.
I wasn’t sure what he meant when he said Liza was a weapon, but I needed to find out, because as long as Castro knew more than we did, he was a danger to us all—especially Liza. As much as I’d have liked to pick apart Castro’s words for their hidden meanings, my mind was already racing with plans and strategies to save Liza.
“Isaiah, Nico.” I turned to face them. “We need to step up our search. We’re dealing with forces beyond our understanding, and time is running out.”
Castro’s words hung like a black cloud in the air as I paced back and forth with questions and fears racing through my mind. The dim lighting in the room cast eerie shadows on the floor, giving an unsettling atmosphere to our already tense situation.
“Ty,” Isaiah began cautiously. “What if Liam knows about you and Liza being fated?”
The thought chilled me to the bone, and I stopped pacing to turn toward him. “I don’t know. It’s possible, but we can’t be sure.”
“Maybe that’s why he took her,” Nico’s brow furrowed in concern. “He could be using her as leverage against you.”
“Or he could be planning something far worse,” I added, my gut twisting. “If he knows how to use her powers, who’s to say he won’t try to control her? To turn her against us?”
98
LIZA
Iopened my eyes to the cold, unforgiving floor of the bathroom. My body ached from sleeping on such a hard, unyielding surface, but it was better than lying on a bed that felt more like a trap than a place of rest.
I barely registered the female voice outside the door. “Breakfast is ready.”
My stomach growled at the mere mention of food, but I couldn’t bring myself to trust whoever had left it for me.
“There are fresh towels on the bed for you as well.”
I waited until her footsteps faded and the door shut before I got up. My muscles protested, reminding me I was a prisoner here, no matter how soft the bed, or how clean the bathroom. I needed to find a way out, but first, I wanted to see what food they’d left for me.
The smell of bacon wafted through the room as I approached the breakfast tray. It was almost too tempting to resist, but I couldn’t afford to let my guard down. If my captors wanted to poison me, this would be the perfect opportunity.
