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“Grady,” Niko said. “Aspen’s tech buddy who’s been working to uncover details about the attack on my father. Apparently, he dug up something substantial and they were here to give report.”
“Oh, really?” Keen interest sharpened Boone’s words. “What did he have to say?”
“Not sure. He left something he needed at his house. We’ll meet up again later and I’ll get the information then. I’ve got other priorities right now. Is Zee okay? What do you mean she’s headed here? I told her I’d meet up with her by noon.”
“Yeah. About that. Hannah was here, Boone. Things got... heated.”
Alarm stiffened every muscle in his body, the hot prick of his claws pressing against his skin as the beasts inside demanded release. “If she hurt Zee... ”
“Hurt Zee?” A sharp bark of laughter echoed over the phone. “Trust me, buddy. It’s not Zee you need to be worried about. That woman of yours is a hellcat. I can’t decide if I’m jealous of you or terrified for you.”
Some of the tension within him relaxed. He’d always known Zee had a well of great strength buried within her, waiting. That strength had kept her sane over the past decade, keeping her steady away from family and pack. But it was pushing to the fore now. He’d seen it, but apparently she was showing it to others as well now.
Sinking back against the wall, he shoved one hand into a pocket. “Why don’t you tell me what happened?”
Boone proceeded to do just that.
In great detail.
He didn’t know at what point his vision started to go red, but he knew exactly when it cleared back to sharp, crystalline clarity—when Boone told him about Zee seeing a child beaten to death in front of her.
“They retaliated by beating him to death in front of the entire pack—including the kids. I was nine.”
“Her voice, man,” Boone said, pausing a minute to look away, his jaw tight with fury. “I can’t explain it. But... that’s going to stick with me forever.”
Aspen came over and gently tugged the phone from his hand, giving him a patient look when he glared at her. “I just want to put it on speaker, Prime, and lay it on the table. It won’t do you any good if you smash it to pieces.”
Spoken in a soft, non-confrontational tone, the words pierced through his rage enough so he could think clearly. Nodding, he released the phone to pace while Boone continued.
With each passing moment, it got worse.
When Boone finally stopping speaking, Niko’s eyes were burning, his gums and hands pulsed with the vicious control he was exerting not to shift into the beast that was his other half.
He wanted that shift, desperately. Wanted to shift and run down every last soul who had ever hurt the woman he loved.
Cages. Royal had put his packmates, even the children, in cages.
“Who are they, Boone? Find them for me. Get me names.”
“A lot of them are probably already dead. I imagine we took out some when we went in with your father. Phoenix would have killed anybody who had hurt her once he was made alpha,” Boone said, not bothering to ask why. “But if there are others still alive, I’ll find out.”
“Thank you.” A blood vessel pulsed near his temple, the beats an oddly soothing rhythm. Royal had forced her from wolf to human, enough times that it would have left her traumatized. No wonder Phoenix had been ready to all but crawl to save Zee from anything that might remind her of that. “Where is Zee now?”
“Heading your way. That’s the other reason I called. She wouldn’t stay put, and after the power display she showed, I wasn’t about to try and make her stay. In the mood she was in, nothing I said or did would have made it happen unless I used force. And that wasn’t going to happen. She would have shredded me. Whatever she was doing up in Cape Cod, she wasn’t just sitting around. That woman of yours has claws and she knows how to use them.” There was nothing but pure respect in the man’s voice now—no, that wasn’t right. There was a fine thread of rage, underscoring his words, controlled, but present.
Whether it was for Zee or because he’d already realized who Zee was to his Prime, Niko didn’t know. Neither did he particularly care. He recognized the loyalty in his second-in-command’s voice and appreciated it.
“Again, thank you. Who is watching over her?”
“Her brothers for now. I didn’t think you’d tolerate anybody else—I know she won’t. And for fuck’s sake—don’t thank me again,” Boone said, a growl thrumming in his voice. “This is my job.”
The irritation elicited a faint smile that was forgotten a second after it formed.
“What about Hannah?” He didn’t bother to hide his anger. Things had ended between them several years ago and they’d only been bedmates for less than two weeks. Hannah had been... possessive. The word needy didn’t really fit a woman as strong and dominant as the lieutenant, but she’d wanted things he couldn’t give. Or rather, he hadn’t been able to give them at the time. Even if he had been able, he wouldn’t have chosen her. Under his anger, hurt and frustration, he’d always been Zee’s.
But the well-being of his packmates was still his concern. To be so thoroughly cut off at the legs by somebody his pack had thought was weak would humiliate a woman as strong and proud as Hannah. That she’d been wrong wouldn’t lessen the humiliation and while Hannah’s errors were something she’d have to deal with, she was still one of his.
“Upset,” Boone said with a heavy sigh. “Angry with herself more than anything. You know how she loves kids and realizing that she’d been wrong about Zee, and then to learn about what happened to Zee as a child... ”
