Page 126 of Visions, Paws, and Claws

“Eventually. She had you declared dead seven years after you disappeared. I was only fourteen at the time, but I remember one thing. Everyone had to convince her it was time to move on. She was certain you’d walk through the door, a suitcase in one hand, a bag containing gifts from Italy in the other.”

“She hung on in there, didn’t she?” Knowing Miranda, she would have only resorted to that if there was no hope of his return.

“Visiting the lawyer to go through the paperwork? It devastated her. She was working as a barista—one of three jobs—when she met Tom Prescott. They married a while later. He took care of her. He was a good guy.” Dellan snorted. “Can’t say the same for his son, but Anson got his in the end.”

“How did she die?”

Dellan’s face tightened. “I don’t know. Doc doesn’t think it was natural causes, though. He thinks the Gerans got her out of the way, because once I was drugged and unable to shift back, she’d have known about it and tried to find me.”

Doc sounded like a very astute man. “He may well be correct in that assumption. I take it heisa doctor?”

Dellan smiled. “Yes. He was a military doctor. That’s where Horvan met him. And when they rescued me, they called in Doc Tranter to check me out.” He glanced at Jake. “He told me he knew you and Mom.”

Jake stilled. “Nicholas? Do you know where I can find him?” His heart pounded.

“You’ll see him when we get to Brunswick. He’s with the inmates we rescued.”

That sent Jake’s heart into overdrive, until he forced himself to breathe more evenly.

It’s been a long time. You don’t know anything about his life. He could be happily married. Hell, he could be a grandfather.

“I’m gonna go sit a while with Jamie.” Dellan squeezed his knee, then stood, a little unsteady on his feet.

“He’d love that. He’s talked about you so often.” Jake watched as Dellan made his way along the plane to where Jamie sat with Rael, Dellan’s other mate.

Still can’t believe they found each other.When he and Miranda first met, Jake didn’t even know there was such a thing as mates, but after listening to Seth, he had a feeling she hadn’t been Jake’s. Not that it mattered. He’d loved her from that day forward. Nicholas had been a good friend. He was also incredibly sexy, a fact Jake was sure Miranda hadn’t overlooked when she’d given him a push in Nicholas’s direction.

I wonder if age has diminished his appearance—or improved it.

Either way, Jake was about to find out, and the prospect of meeting him again was enough to give him butterflies.

Horvan came over and sat beside Jake. “How’re you doing?”

“Better now that I’m a free man. It’s been a while.” He peered at Horvan. “I understand you’re the man who freed Dellan.”

“Yes, sir.”

He chuckled. “Sir? Damn, that makes me feel old. Call me Jake, okay? Did you know he was your mate when you rescued him?”

“Yeah.” Horvan smiled. “That episode was just one shock after another. I met Rael and discovered mates were real. Thenhe told mehehad a mate, and that logically, Dellan would be my mate too.” He sighed. “Which made it imperative to get him the fuck out of that cage.”

“I’m looking forward to getting to know you.” Jake trusted his instincts, and right then they were telling him Dellan’s mates were good men.

“Once we get to Brunswick, a medic will check you out.” Horvan’s eyes glittered. “I imagine there’s a certain elephant shifter who’d be keen to draw that straw.”

Yeah, Horvan was pretty astute.

“Did you capture any of the guards from the camp?”

Horvan cocked his head. “Capture? Hell no. We left them there to face the music when the Geran powers that be discover we breezed into the camp, grabbed Fielding—who we’re sure is a big noise—and took every last fucking inmate with us. The camp commandant won’t be put in charge of a parking lot, once they’ve finished hauling him over the coals. We did bring one guard with us, though.”

“Milo Keppler?”

“Yeah.”

Relief swamped him. “Then he’s safe. Thank God. Is he with his mate?”

Horvan nodded. “We owe him a lot. It was thanks to him that we knew about your imminent execution.”

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