Page 50 of A Touch of Flame
“Alfonso told us the state you were in when they picked you up. He doesn’t know how you made it through.”
“I don’t either. But you know what I’m about, right? Why I can’t agree to stay, beyond my duty to my pack?”
“You mean your wife’s killers?”
“So, you do know me.”
At that, Greg grinned. “Boss, who doesn’t know Officer Braden of Savage and to stay the hell out of his way. It was a bad day when I heard what happened to Laura. I’d met her a few times. She was a remarkable woman. She went above and beyond to help new-arriving wolves find packs. It was a loss for the whole territory when she died.”
Braden’s throat had grown tight. He’d been gone for so long from Savage on his nightly quest, he’d forgotten the support and comfort other wolves could be. “I appreciate you saying so. She was the finest woman I’ve ever known.”
He cleared his throat then switched to telepathy.You good with this? Heading out with your pack if we call?
He needed to know if Greg was up to the task.
Hell, yeah.
Exactly the right response.
I’ll be in touch.Let your wolves know we have a mission on the horizon and it could be at any time.
Will do.
Greg inclined his head once slowly. Braden had missed this, the simple pack gestures that kept wolves working as a cohesive unit.
He left with his spirits lighter than they’d been in a long time. Unlike Maeve’s brief time as a witch, he was used to his wolf-life.
He had no idea what the future held. Wolves usually didn’t. But he hoped his own quest as well as Maeve’s desire to get Kiara out of Veyda’s hellhole, would soon be resolved. Then he could think about whether to return to Savage or perhaps, in a real twist of fate, align himself with Maeve and the wolves of Hard Landing.
Heading back into the property, he was about to contact Maeve telepathically when he caught sight of her through the French doors leading into what looked like another communal area. Maeve sat on a chair but leaned forward. She held another woman’s hand.
Braden remained standing very still. He was within Maeve’s sightline, but he didn’t want to disturb her. She was clearly in the middle of something with one of her female rescues, a painfully thin woman. He watched Maeve reach behind her, grab some tissues and then hand them to the woman.
She never said anything. She kept nodding, her expression sincere and sympathetic. Her world had become a mission in Five Bridges. She was all in and he loved that about her.
The woman spoke quietly. She was fae. Hisaltersenses knew each species at a glance.
He waited quietly for several minutes until Maeve eventually rose and patted the woman on the shoulder.
She saw him then, another sign of her focus on the woman’s well-being. She crossed the room then opened the French door, closing it quietly behind her. “You’re back. Everything okay?”
“Everything’s fine. Greg and his wolves are available to fight if we need them.”
“That’s fantastic. Can they fight?” She chuckled. “That’s a dumb question. They’re wolves.”
“Now you’re getting the idea.”
She chuckled again. She then gestured in the direction of her apartment, set the pace and he fell in beside her. She had a quick step.
“Is your friend all right?”
She lowered her voice. “She’s been at the Landing for two months and she works with our on-site therapist every day. But she still has nightmares.”
“What happened to her?”
“She’d been forced to work in one of the raunchy sex clubs on the Strip in Crescent Territory. She serviced a dozen vampires a night. Half of them tapped her vein. I thought I had it bad, but she was abducted into the club her first week in Five Bridges. Wrong place, wrong time. They use women up so fast. She’d only been here four months when she was nearly drained one night then dumped in the Graveyard and left for dead. She’s put on some weight but she’s got a long way to go.”
“On patrol, we deal with trafficking all the time. We search vehicles and get into gun fights with some of the sleaziest men you’ll ever meet. I don’t mind at all putting a bullet in their brains, especially when I find them hauling around a bunch of terrorized women.”
