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“Of course, I fucking heard them. But if we blow our cover now, then they’re all as good as dead.”
Mason shrugged him off and shook his head.
“We’ll get the children back, but Cyrus is surely expecting us. What we need right now is a plan.”
“Well, what do you suggest?”
Derek shot another look at Cyrus’s base, stroking his chin in a manner of deep thought.
“All right,” he began, facing his men. “The best way to do this is to infiltrate the base. We’ll split into teams of two and find an opening on either side. You all have your silver daggers, right?None of you are to shift unless spotted. The more rogues we can take out silently, the better.”
Derek glanced around, confirming all the shifters had their backpacks with a change of clothes for the inevitable shift to wolf and then back to human. Mason ran his gloved finger along the sharp edge of his knife and then gave the nod of approval.
“Mason, you’re with me. Everyone, move out. We’ll meet in the courtyard in five minutes.”
The alpha slipped quietly down the hill with his beta following along behind him. He remained covered by a low stone wall surrounding the mansion, dropping to the ground and holding his breath whenever a rogue passed by on the other side.
Derek wished they could take them fully by surprise. While Cyrus was certainly expecting them at any moment, the pack leader would have to make do with the cards he was dealt.
He pressed himself against the wall, peering his head around the corner ever so slightly. Spotting an archway into the property, he waited for the nearby rogue patrol to pass. He whipped out his hand and grabbed the man by his neck, yanking him to the ground. In an instant, he had a knife pressed to the guard’s throat.
“Tell me where the children are,” Derek hissed through closed teeth. “And the woman that was with them.”
“Ha! You mean the whore?” the rogue snickered.
Derek shoved the blade further against his skin, causing a drop of blood to trickle down the silver. His skin sizzled as he winced in pain.
“I don’t know where they are. I swear on my life. None of the patrols do. Only Cyrus knows.”
“Is that so?” asked Mason.
“Well, in that case,” said Derek.
He snapped the rogue’s neck. Mason dragged the body to a hidden spot before the two headed deeper onto the mansiongrounds. The beta signaled for Derek to get down, and a few seconds later, he threw his dagger at the second level. A guard fell with a hard thud.
“Nice shot,” commented Derek.
The alpha tried the nearest door while Mason tried another. None of them budged, and each locked door caused the alpha’s agitation to grow. He wiped a pool of sweat from his forehead as he looked to the courtyard.
“Let’s split up for a moment. Everyone leave your bags in the courtyard. I’ll try the right end while you try the left. Open every door you see and take out anyone in your way. If you see Cyrus, save him for me.”
“I can’t say I will like it,” snarled Mason. “I’d love to gut the bastard myself.”
Derek tried every entryway into the mansion he could find but failed to find an access point. Three failed attempts later, he almost screamed with frustration. He turned back and met up with the others in the middle of the courtyard.
It was a tease to him to be dead center of Cyrus’s hideout with no progress. From the looks on everyone else’s faces, they had no luck either.
“What now?” asked Mason.
“Let me think,” Derek growled.
Just then, a blinding spotlight shot down where they stood. Derek spun around, snarling up at his nemesis. The inevitable confrontation had come.
“Gentlemen!” Cyrus yelled, appearing beside the burning spotlight. “How brilliant of you to finally join us. You certainly kept us waiting.”
“You could thank your patrols for that, but they won’t hear you.”
“So it seems,” said Cyrus, grimacing. “Nevertheless, I’m glad you could make it. We both know why we’re here, don’t we, Derek?”
