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Mary glanced at Fergus, wondering what his formal response would be. Instead, he smiled and moved swiftly in Warren’s direction. He took Warren’s outstretched hand in a typical handshake, but slung his free arm around his shoulders and offered up a bro-hug, their clasped hands between. “Thanks for getting my ass out of the Graveyard.” Yup, much less formal than Warren.
Mary couldn’t see Fergus’s face, but the sudden sheen in Warren’s eyes told her more about the relationship between the two alphas than anything else could have.
Warren finally pushed away. “All right, you ugly bastard, come into the compound. We’ve got a lot to discuss and not much time.”
Fergus pivoted toward Mary and held his hand out to her. She joined him swiftly, but at the same time glanced at the warriors nearest her. They each remained on guard, and she could feel their high level of tension. Sydon’s actions had definitely stirred up the wolf community.
As she moved through the massive doorway, she saw that the same pavers on the front walk continued into a large, two story foyer. No ornaments were there, no paintings or even a table. In that moment, she felt the absence of a woman not just in Warren’s house, but in his life and in his pack as well. It seemed to her that the entire structure was waiting for the right woman to arrive.
The house proper was two-story with a broad curved staircase off to the left. She supposed Warren’s private rooms were up there.
A bank of windows covered the back of the house so that she could see the bonfire and the pines in the distance.
Warren led them down a hall to the right of the foyer and into a smaller room with a leather-topped table in the center. “I’ve been in continuous contact with the Gordion Pack wolves but we’ve got to move fast. Sydon’s just issued orders to kill the men he’s holding in the dungeon prison.”
Mary felt a wave of wolf-energy blast from Fergus’s body. “What the fuck is he doing? A mass execution could ignite another all-pack war in Savage.”
She knew this was Fergus’s biggest concern, that all the packs would suddenly start attacking each other, igniting a full-scale conflict throughout Savage.
~ ~ ~
Fergus paced Warren’s strategy room. After he’d walked off some of his rage, he returned to the table. Warren was spreading out a broad map that he soon realized was a detailed and very professional rendering of Fergus’s compound. “Holy fuck, I had no idea you had something like this.”
“I confess that I have one of each of the fifteen main compounds, including my own. I wanted to get one of Sydon’s house, but no spy I’ve ever sent out to investigate has come back with useful information. Sydon conducts his rogue pack business entirely in secret.”
Fergus moved to the side and as Warren weighted each corner, Fergus examined the map. The scale was perfect, every room detailed.
Warren slapped his hand over the belowground, third level area on the east that served as a series of several large dungeon jail cells. “He’s keeping your men here.”
Fergus knew every inch of his pack’s compound, including a few secret passages not on the map.
“There’s only one entrance to the row of dungeon cells,” Fergus said. “It’s along this corridor that leads back to the central stairwell.” He used two fingers to trace the path as he spoke. “Even if we could get a team down there, we’d be trapped between Sydon’s guards working this area and the ones sure to follow us in.”
Next, he ran his fingers along the edge of the ground floor, on the same side of the compound as the cells. “However, what you probably don’t know is that there’s a door here that leads down two flights of stairs and into a hidden hall that runs the entire length of this wall behind the dungeon area.”
Warren smiled. “A secret passage. I like it.”
“But even with that advantage, this would be a difficult rescue.”
Mary, who stood at the foot of the table, said, “I could use my dreamglide and scout everything for you. And I can keep scouting the whole time. I’d be able to see where the guards come from, let you know when they arrive, and how many in each team. Would that help?”
Warren, who was at least ten feet away from her, took another step backward. Fergus had seen him do this before and he understood. Alpha-mate hunting during the peak of a cycle was like a series of knives in a man’s hide. Despite the fact that Mary now carried Fergus’s mark, she would still be highly attractive to an alpha.
He contacted Mary telepathically. I need to do something right now for Warren’s sake. Will you allow it?
Of course, but what?
He headed in her direction, but he was smiling. A kiss should work.
Wasn’t the mark enough?
He’s near the peak of his annual cycle. You know about that, right?
I do. So, I guess you’d better kiss me because I can sense his distress as well. Her beautiful full lips curved as he descended on her.
He took her in his arms, surrounded her fully, then pulled her close. He rubbed her face with each cheek in turn, releasing more of his wolf scent. Finally, he kissed her.
Fergus, my God. That scent. You could probably throw me on my back right now and do whatever you wanted, and I wouldn’t raise a whisper in protest.
