Page 2 of The Last Ultimatum: Part 2

My whole body was going numb and I was shaking violently as I listened.

“Too much trouble. Best we get rid of her right away.”

“I don’t know. He wants the strongest of them all. Look at her. She’s still fighting the serum.”

“I’ve never seen anything like it.”

I could now hear her thrashing around as someone fell to the ground.

“Stop fighting it,” one of the men said. “It’ll hurt less.”

“No!” I screamed. “Tilly! Keep fighting, baby!”

The other end went silent for another moment, but then I heard some rustling.

“Lachlan,” she whispered.

“Shit. She’s still on the damn phone.”

Then it all went dead and it felt as if something inside me died too.

“Lachlan. Lachlan!”

Taylor slapped me across the face again.

I growled at her, menacingly.

“Back up, babe. Now,” Grant told her, leaving no room for argument.

“Something’s wrong,” Chelle told them.

It was as if I was there and could hear their conversations, but not really there either. They sounded muffled and far off, though I was acutely aware of their presence in the room.

Grant pulled the women away from me, and rightly so.

My mate was in danger. There was a very real possibility that I would never see her again. My parents had been taken too, but my brain could barely process that fact with the fear of my mate scared and all alone.

Other things started coming back to me slowly. I had no idea how long I’d sat there just trying to cope and process through the situation.

I was in shock.

I knew the signs well and had helped countless of victims through it in my time with Westin Force.

Finally, I cleared my throat and picked up my phone. I was still numb, but I knew what I had to do. I dialed the number and waited.

“Archie, I’m sending over an audio file. I need you to run it through your system for voice recognition. Get me names ASAP.”

“Lachlan? What’s this all about?”

“The dingoes are under attack, and they just took my mate.”

I heard some muttering I couldn’t make out on the other end, then he returned. “I’ll do whatever I can. You have my word.”

He didn’t question it or probe me for answers. For that, I was grateful. I had never called in a personal request beyond a few minor securities around my family, but that was standard protocol for all the active members of a Westin Force team. This was very different, and I think he knew that I wouldn’t have asked if it wasn’t important.

Once off the phone with him, I quickly dialed another number.

“Lachlan? Dude, what’s up? I don’t hear from you in years and now this is twice in as many days.”

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