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“We’ll all die sooner or later.” He regretted his flip response the instant it left his mouth. “I’m sorry. Believe me, baby, you don’t want to know what I saw. But what I said to him was the absolute truth—if he doesn’t get his act together, he’s headed for a brutal and abrupt end.”
“Gods!” Taking his hand, she brought it to her face. “I don’t know how you cope with being able to see the future. That’s one so-called gift I’d never wish for, ever. I’m here for you, though, however I can be. I’ll help keep an eye on him when I can.”
He kissed her forehead. “Thanks, baby. What I see isn’t written in stone, thank God. Events can change, because the choices people make constantly change.”
“Well, I hope his choices change, and soon.”
“Me, too.” He sighed. “I’ve got to get to this meeting. Can I come to your quarters afterward so we can talk?”
“Of course.” She wrapped him in a hug, holding tight for a minute before letting go. “My door is always open to you. You’re my mate.”
That went a long way toward warming the place that had gone cold in his heart after the vision. After giving her another lingering kiss, he slid from the bed and put on the jeans and black T-shirt John had sent with Micah, then pulled on his boots. Feeling more human, he walked out, holding Calla’s hand.
“You were supposed to wait for my clearance,” Viktor admonished as Nick approached.
“Sorry. Things to do, people to see.”
Whatever else the doctor might have said was lost as Nick hurried out of the infirmary. In the corridor, he turned and gave his mate another quick kiss. “See you soon.”
“Not if I see you first.”
With a short laugh, he left her, reluctantly. He’d rather be anywhere in the world with his mate than working, but he figured most newly mated guys felt that way. It might sound cliché, but she really was the bright spot in his darkness and he didn’t want to be away from her long enough even to hold a simple meeting.
Forcing his mind to the task at hand, he made his way to the meeting. The guys were restless when he walked in, and met him with a chorus of greetings. He caught some good-natured shit about his run-in with the basilisk, which he knew by now meant they counted him one of them. After almost a year and a half leading the team, their complete acceptance meant more than they knew.
Unbidden, thoughts of Damien and his incessant phone calls infiltrated his brain. His brother hadn’t given up trying to reestablish a relationship with him, and it was wearing Nick the fuck out. He didn’t know what to say to the asshole past hello, and didn’t care to try.
Selene would be disappointed in him. God, that hurt. His daughter held out such hope that her father and uncle would reunite. When hell freezes over.
“John,” he said, getting started. The team looked to the big man, some of them wearing curious expressions that indicated they were still getting used to his real name. “Were you able to speak with the basilisk?”
John stood and came forward to lean against the wall near the front of the room. “Yeah. Her name is Sasha. Her story is she was abducted from her nest a few days ago and held captive in a dark cell underground. She was tortured and starved, bound by a tight collar around her neck to keep her from shifting. Her bruises and physical condition support that claim.”
“Christ,” someone muttered.
“Can she identify who took her?” Nick asked.
“Humans in cammo pants and carrying assault weapons.”
“Hunters,” Jax said, hate filling his eyes.
“They weren’t the ones calling the shots, though, according to Sasha,” John continued. “That would be the mysterious vampire everyone was bowing and scraping to, trying to please.”
Nick leaned against the edge of the table with one hip. “Did she get a description?”
“Pale complexion, longish dark hair. No name.”
“Wow, that really narrows it down,” Aric drawled sarcastically, rolling his eyes. “I don’t know a single fuckin’ vampire who fits that description.”
Nick shot the redhead a glare, and the wolf shut up. Miraculously.
“Did she catch any talk among them about their agenda?”
“Now, that she did manage,” John confirmed. “Seeing as how they all thought we’d kill her when we got to the scene, their lips were pretty loose. It’s pretty much what we thought—letting loose a basilisk in the city, one who had been tortured and starved, was a lure for us. Only it was supposed to be an ambush, so something obviously went wrong.”
“Could’ve changed their minds at the last minute,” Micah suggested.
“After going to all that trouble to set it up?” Ryon, healed and out of the infirmary as well, shook his head. “Don’t think so.”
