Page 63 of In Plain Sight

“What do you think of this, Bran? I mean, you know them better than we do,” Liam said.

I held up my still-ringing phone. “Give me a minute,” I said, walking back outside.

“Is the witch dead?” Alpha’s voice made me want to throw up.

“Not yet,” I admitted.

I heard him punch something. “Why not? I’ve made sure you have every opportunity possible, Branimir. You have the knife. I’ve weakened the girl. You have the access no one else has to her. Just walk in there and put the knife through her heart and all this will end.”

I gulped. He had orchestrated it all. I could feel Conlin still watching me from afar. I nodded and showed no external emotions, all while raging inside at being a pawn to his games.

“They still have her locked away with security guarding the door. Only Kyle goes in and out, not even family yet.”

“That’s because you didn’t act fast enough last night. Why were you not by your poor mate’s side comforting her last night while their defenses were at their lowest?” There was an eerie pause, followed by a laugh that caused the hair on my arms to stand up. “Of course. You’re torn over your mate. I should have predicted this. My beloved, there is no need to fear. I give you my full assurance that in your death, I will claim your mate and unborn child. They will come home and be welcomed by all our pack. Your pup will be raised the son of a victor, not that of a traitor. They will both know what you have done for us and your name shall be revered and celebrated for generations to come. Now finish it.”

My entire body was shaking violently, and my wolf was threatening to take control, not to kill Kelsey, but to protect Ruby. I took several calming breaths and managed to say in a clear voice, “Yes Alpha,” before the line went dead.

I walked around the side of the house, out of the prying eyes of Conlin, and dialed Thomas Collier’s number.

“Hey, Bran. How’s it going down there?” he asked.

“Listen close, I only have a minute. You need to call Kyle, give him whatever excuse necessary, send a goddamn plane and get me and Ruby out of here now. I can’t stop the chain of events in play if you don’t and I can’t explain anything over the phone. Now Thomas. I don’t have much longer.”

I hung up the phone, shoved it in my pocket, and walked back around and inside the house. The pull to Kelsey was stronger than ever. This was the end and I was about to do something that would not only ruin my life, but that of Ruby and our child. too.

Patrick and Liam were still pouring over the details from the couch. Kyle was standing in the corner of the room. His phone rang as I walked in and I almost sighed in relief. Thomas was my only hope now.

“So, Wyatt,” Liam said, sounding like Patrick had finally convinced him.

Before I could speak, Kyle hung up the phone and walked over to me.

“Thomas called. There’s an emergency back home and he needs you and Ruby to return immediately. I’ve placed a few quick calls and arranged for one of my planes to be gassed and ready and Cole’s picking up Ruby now and will swing by to get you in a few minutes. I really hope everything’s okay, and I’m sorry this trip has been so chaotic.”

I nodded. “I hope Kelsey makes a full recovery,” I said honestly, fighting back the urge to push him out of the way and run down the hall to kill her where she lay.

Kyle was called away, and I turned to walk back outside.

“So what’s next?” Liam asked. “I mean, Thomas isn’t going to be happy about this. If we’re wrong, we could start an inter-pack shitstorm, that I really don’t want any part of.’

“Feck, I know,” Patrick said, struggling with his decision.

Through the window I saw Cole pull up. I pulled up Notes on my phone and started typing, then walked over to Patrick and Liam. Without a word, I turned Wyatt’s and Austin’s cards over, and pointed to Conlin. Then I flashed them my phone.

Check again. Run background with facial recognition. Bulgarian spy, the note read.

I pointed to my ears and placed a finger over my lips to let them know he was listening. Before they could even recover, I was gone.

My phone was ringing as I boarded the plane. It was local and I suspected Patrick, but I ignored it.

Ruby was in a huff, frustrated by the barbaric actions of her brother, as she kept reminding me. I stayed quiet, calculating what needed to be done.

Thomas was waiting for us at the airport when we arrived. I gave Ruby the front seat and we listened to her fuss the entire way back to the apartment. Thomas kept giving me questioning looks in the rearview mirror, but for his part he made no excuses or apologies to his sister. Ruby stomped upstairs and slammed the door. I followed with our bags, dropped them off in the living room, and without a word to Ruby, I opened the side window and jumped back down to the ground below.

Thomas was standing by the car and startled. “Jesus, Bran, what the hell?” he asked, looking from me and back up to the windows.

I typed out on my phoneCameras, showed him, and after carefully checking my surroundings I slid into the backseat again and laid down on the floorboard.

“This is crazy, you know?” he said as he drove off. “Where are we going?”

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