Page 52 of Out of Peril

“Mary Alice. Why don't you go get your brothers and tell them Daddy's home? I'm going to call Aunt Maddie and see if you guys can go over there for a bit while Daddy and I catch up.”

“Do we have to?”

“Do as your mother said, sweetpea.”

Shelby had no idea what I was about to tell her, but she knew enough to know that it was bad. Still she smiled for the kids and kept a positive tone on the phone with her sister.

“Hey Mads, can you take the kids this evening for dinner and some playtime? Ben just got home . . . I'm not really sure. . . Thanks. You're the best. I'll have them ready.”

She hung up and turned towards the kids. “Hey, guess what you guys? Aunt Maddie and Uncle Liam want to spoil you guys tonight with a sleepover. Doesn't that sound like fun?”

“But Dad just got home,” Nathan said.

Zachary took in the situation and seemed to have a sixth sense for moments like this. As a baby he would have started crying. But now he stiffened and smiled for his siblings.

“That sounds great. We love going sleepover with Aunt Maddie and Uncle Liam. Right guys?”

They mumbled in agreement and I gave my son a grateful nod.

Twenty minutes later we stood on the porch waving goodbye as Maddie drove away with the triplets.

Shelby smacked my chest. “Spill it. What the hell happened? This was supposed to be a long mission. Why are you home and why do you look like someone just died?”

I cringed.

“Oh my God! Who died?”

“No one. I hope.”

“You hope?”

“I don't know how to tell you this.”

“Spill it Mr. Shay, right now because I'm imagining the worst here.”

“Fine, we lost Walker,” I blurted out.

She froze. “Come again?”

“We lost Walker. He's gone, Shelbs. Just vanished in the claws of a monster.”

“What exactly does that mean?”

“Listen to me. There was this witch who transforms into this hideous beast. She escaped with two pups and then came back around and snatched Walker and flew off.”

“Do you hear yourself right now, Benjamin Shay? That is insane.”

“I know. I watched it all unfold unable to stop it and I'm still struggling to believe what I saw, but I'm dead serious here, babe. Walker is gone. They flew out of coms reach and then later we even lost him on the tracker. Unless or until he comes close enough to a cellular device to reconnect, then we don't have a clue where he could be.”

She stared at me for a moment and then burst into tears.

I pulled her into my arms, feeling like the absolute worst mate on the planet. Of all the people on that mission, why the hell did it have to be him?

*****

Another 24 or so hours later.

“What's this all about?” I asked Tucker as I took a seat.

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