Page 61 of Secret Wolf Baby

She took a deep breath, steadying herself. When she looked at me again, the tears and fright were still there, but I could see an ice-cold rage beginning to form in her as well. In her eyes, in the way her shoulders stiffened, in the hard expression on her face.

“They told me to tell you that they would hurt Claire if you or any of the Gold Wolves tried to interfere with their plans,” she said.

Blind rage took over. They had kidnapped Claire and hurt Audrey. It was all I could do to stay rational enough to know thatI had to come up with a plan before I stormed into their pack and tore out their throats.

“Don’t worry,” I said, my voice low and hard. “They’re going to pay for this. I swear.”

“What are you planning on doing?” she asked.

“What do you think?” I growled as I helped her to her feet. “I’m going to get our daughter back. There’s no way in hell I’m letting her stay in that pack, especially as a bargaining chip. Those assholes don’t know who they’re messing with if they think I’m going to let them get away with that bullshit.”

She stared at me, her expression unreadable. I half-expected her to tell me no, to tell me it was too risky. I wouldn’t have blamed her, not after everything she had been through. But letting Claire stay with Reacher and Saul and bowing to their will was infinitely worse on so many levels. And you don’t use kids as hostages. I was going to rescue Claire no matter what. Still, I prepared myself to argue my point.

Instead, she asked, “How certain are you that you can get her out safely?”

“Very,” I said. “And if I’m not able to, it’s because I’m dead. She’s coming back.”

Audrey took this in. I could see her shoulders quivering and the tremors in her hands—not out of fear, but pure rage. She glanced up at me, her jaw set.

“I’m coming with you,” she said.

I shook my head. “No, you’re not. It’s too dangerous for you.”

Her eyes flashed, that old spark from when we were kids fully reignited. She straightened her shoulders and met my gaze, seeming to tower over me despite being much shorter.

“I don’t care,” she said. “And I happen to know the town a hell of a lot better than you do. I’ll know the spots he’s most likely to keep Claire.”

“I can figure it out on my own,” I said. “But I’m not going to put you in danger. Stay here.”

“No way in hell.”

I stepped toward her, my hands going to her shoulders as I met her gaze. “I know you’re angry,” I said evenly. “And you have every right to be. But these guys already hurt you once. I’m not going to give them the chance to do it again.”

Her lips pursed, the rage in her eyes burning so bright that I could practically feel the flames.

“Those two kidnapped my daughter,” she said. “And all of this is my fault. I’m not staying back.”

“Audrey—”

“I’m going,” she nearly shouted. “And I swear, the only way you’re going to stop me is by knocking me out again, tying me up, and keeping a guard on me. And I’ll still fight every step of the way.”

I growled. Despite everything, I had to admire her determination. This was the Audrey I used to know. And I knew just by the look in her eyes that she was prepared to move heaven and earth to get Claire back, and I wasn’t going to be able to stop her.

Part of me wanted to try, anyway. I didn’t want her to go and put herself in danger. I cared about her too much. I wanted to find a way to keep her here, even if it meant locking her in her room. It was the same selfish bit of me that had thrown away a mission when she walked into Reacher’s office. That same selfishness that was half the reason we were in this mess in thefirst place. I wanted to protect her, to keep her safe. But in order to do that, I knew I would have to take away her free will again. And if I did that, she would never forgive me.

She deserved to make her own decisions. I couldn’t blame her for wanting to protect her daughter. I couldn’t take that away from her, no matter how badly I wanted to for my own selfish reasons. I couldn’t be self-centered this time. I had to let her do this.

The only thing I could do was help her and make sure she stayed safe.

“All right,” I conceded. “We’ll do this together.”

She blinked, taking a half-step back as if she hadn’t expected me to go along with it. “You mean it?” she asked.

When I nodded, she flung her arms around my neck, her head burying itself in my chest. I pulled her close, stroking her hair absent-mindedly as I breathed in her scent.

“Thank you,” she murmured. When she stepped back, her eyes burned with that old fire. “Let’s get going.”

She turned toward the door. I reached out and took her bicep. She turned to glare at me.

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