Page 52 of Fight

“I think that’s karma for taking years off my life,” I grunt. “Holy shit, I’m just glad that part is over.”

Getting comfortable, Augustine pulls out his phone to check it. Shaking his head, his eyes are pulled back to the restaurant.

“I hope they’re going back to his house or wherever they may have her. I’d rather think Cere is with them than?—”

“I don’t think she’s at an auction house,” I tell him. “Knowing Jasper and Tommy, if they felt some kind of connection to Cerenity, they’d have her close by.”

“God, what are the chances that they’re also…”

“We’re not manifesting that shit,” I mutter. “Shut that adorable mouth.”

“Hmmm, it’s kind of hot when you get all bossy,” he teases me.

I’m glad he thinks so, because I’m not typically this way.

“I belong firmly underneath you, so don’t get all excited,” I say with a chuckle.

Auggie snorts in amusement, and we prepare to wait. The restaurant is off the corner of a strip mall, with a few of the stores keeping busy foot traffic. However, due to where the mom and pop restaurant is located, it’s still fairly isolated. Auggie was lucky that he was able to walk at an angle, using the few cars around as cover to place the tracker.

Fuck, so much of this requires luck. I’m not comfortable with any of it, but nothing else was working. Being slightly underhanded and stalking is our next step. Thankfully, Shaw and the guys who walked into the restaurant are on our side.

When Augustine looks back down at his phone, there’s a look of relief, and I see Jasper and Tommy starting to walk out.

“Oh fuck,” Auggie mutters, and I have to force my eyes from closing. I know that tone. It can’t be good news.

Turning the phone toward me, I lean over so I can read the texts.

Shaw: Tommy told us that Cerenity is Jasper and his scent match, and they are keeping her with them to get to know her.

“Goddamnit, she’s not a puppy,” I groan. “Are they fucking dense?”

Augustine simply sighs, and I scroll down to read the rest.

Shaw: Their alpha instincts are riding them hard, and they refuse to see reason. They’re both one step away from a full rut. Tommy said that Cerenity is still pretty shaken up about Arthur’s bash and grab. I think there needs to be a voice of reason between those alphas. Neither are thinking with their big head.

Snorting, I have to admit that I think he’s right.

“So I guess we’re following them to see where it takes us,” I say.

Auggie is already nodding as he puts the vehicle into drive, handing me the phone to hold onto. Making sure they have enough room not to feel tailed, he follows them through the roads.

“You know, I don’t have a problem with sharing Cere,” he says softly as he drives. “She’s got this huge heart and personality, it makes perfect sense to me that she would have multiple scent matches. My issue is that they baldly lied to my face while I was losing my fucking mind.”

“I barely know the little omega, and I know she’s got to be hating this,” I rumble.

“Her structure is in shambles, and she has no control. Cere will be spiraling,” Auggie murmurs softly. “I’m glad she’s somewhere safe, but I hate where she is. I feel like a hypocrite.”

My lips twitch as we weave through the roads, eyes rising as I see that we’re pulling into Jasper’s apartment complex. Augustine does a good job of keeping a low profile as he keeps going, turning and following his phone app that I pull up to be able to track them.

“It’ll get interesting from here,” Auggie says, voicing my concerns. “Let’s see how well this AirTag works.”

Without letting him see, I cross my fingers, hoping we can finally find Cerenity.

TOMMY

My fingers tap on the table as I look across it at Shaw. We’ve been discussing the events that happened in Minneapolis to trace Cerenity’s steps. I haven’t gotten to the point where I tell them about how Arthur threw her into the garbage outside of the gym, and I don’t know if I should.

I’m not playing coy outside of that because he has a bead on the pulse point on his city and territory, to do anything but be as honest as possible would be rude. He simply smirks as he crosses his thick arms, eyebrow raised as he lets me process his words.