My knees buckled, and I sagged against the wall, my legs too weak to support me.
He paused for a moment, as if savoring the torment he was inflicting upon me. “I’m giving you the choice to come to me, Liza. That being said, if you refuse, I won’t hesitate to activate you. And I’m sure you are aware what that means.”
The dormant power within me stirred restlessly. If Castro activated me, I would become a weapon of destruction capable of annihilating everything I loved.
I clutched the phone in my hand, Castro’s ultimatum bearing down on me. The threat of Sabrina’s death hung in the air, and beneath it all was the unspoken menace…
He would take me against my will if necessary.
“Two days,” Castro drawled. “I’ll text you an address. If you don’t show up, Sabrina is dead, and your pack will share her fate.”
“Fine.” I tried to remain steady. “Just… just don’t hurt her.”
“Tick tock, Liza.” With those chilling words, he ended the call.
120
TY
We gathered in my office to discuss our next steps. Uncertainty pressed down on us like a heavy cloud. My eyes darted around the room, taking in the faces: Liza, Hiram, Sven, Liam. They were all focused and determined, but something was off.
“Everyone’s here.” I turned to face them. “Let’s get down to business.”
“First off,” Hiram said gleefully. “Benny’s gone underground. That leaves Sven here with the opportunity to take over his territory.”
Sven was leaning against the wall, his hands tucked in his pockets. Despite the heavy atmosphere, Sven’s self-assured expression was obvious. “I’ll have control of Benny’s territory soon.”
“Good,” I said tersely, my mind racing with the potential implications of this development. Gaining control of Benny’s territory was a significant advantage for us, but it also raised the question that had been gnawing since our meeting began. “What will Castro do now?
“Anyone got any ideas?” Liam asked, rubbing the back of his neck as he paced around the room, searching for a spark of inspiration, or a nugget of information that might lead us to our next move.
I looked over at Liza, who was usually full of energy and ideas, but she was withdrawn. There was an eerie calmness about her that set me on edge. It was like she was holding back a storm within herself. The sensation nagged, but I couldn’t quite put my finger on it.
“Without Benny, Castro’s options are limited,” Hiram said, scratching his beard thoughtfully. “He’s gonna be desperate, and desperate men are unpredictable.”
“Unpredictable, yes,” I said, my nostrils flaring as I took in the scent of unease wafting through the room. “Not invincible. We need to find him before he finds another way to strengthen his position.”
“Perhaps we should gather more intel on his connections and resources,” Hiram said. “That way, we can cut him off before he has a chance to strike.”
“Good idea,” Sven said. “If we can weaken more of his support, we can make it easier to bring him down.”
As the conversation carried on, I continued to steal glances at Liza, trying to gauge her emotions. Her blank expression and lack of input only intensified my concern. I knew her well enough to be sure that something was definitely bothering her.
The scent of unease lingered in the air, making my wolf pace restlessly within me. Liza’s forced calmness bothered me.
“Listen.” Liam leaned forward and placed his palms on the table. “We should take the fight to Castro.”
“Easy for you to say,” Hiram said. “But we haven’t seen a single sign of him since that day outside my restaurant.”
“True,” Liam said. “Now that Benny’s gone, one of the other bosses Castro managed to wrangle in might be hiding him.”
“Taking the fight to him would be reckless,” Sven said with a shake of his head. “We need more information before we make any moves.”
My attention kept drifting back to Liza. Waves of tension emanated from her, making it hard to ignore her unease.
The door suddenly burst open, and Isaiah strode into the room, commanding everyone’s attention. “I’ve got news. Castro has no one else in his corner.”
“Are you serious?” Hiram exclaimed. “No one’s backing Castro anymore?”
