CAGED (Mackenzie Grey #2) (24 page)

Against Charles wishes, the three of us rushed back into the city. Without grabbing clean clothes or taking a shower. Our skin covered in dried blood and grime, we headed to The Plaza Hotel in Manhattan. We were just entering the city when I borrowed Jonah’s phone and dialed Amy.

“Hello?” she mumbled with sleep still in her voice.

“Amy!” I screamed. My voice was already getting hoarse from all the yelling and crying.

“Oh my gosh Kenz! Are you okay?”

“Yes, why?” I asked in confusion.

She sighed. “This guy showed up at our apartment in the middle of the night! Jackson—” she paused. “Jackson took care of him,” she whispered.

My eyes closed. They were either after Emma or Amy, or both. They wouldn’t get away with this. If it was the last thing I did. “I’m sorry, Aims, I’m so so sorry. Are you okay? Were you hurt?”

“No I’m fine. Jack smelled him before he busted through the door. It was just scary.”

“It was The European Summit, Amy.”

“What? Jackson said your trial was tomorrow?”

“I was told the same,” I said. “Is Jackson near you? Put me on speaker.”

“Okay,” she said and I heard some rustling in the background. “Alright you’re on speaker.”

“Mackenzie are you okay?” Jackson asked. “Where’s my brother?”

“He’s with me but,” I paused and took a deep breath, “they came for us last night—for the Lunas. Jackson, they killed all of them.”

I heard the sound of glass shattering and Amy’s gasp.

“What about Blu, Kenz, is she okay? She has to be okay!” Amy cried into the phone.

I hiccupped. “I’m so sorry, Amy.”

“Where are you?” Jackson growled.

“You guys need to pack and get out of the apartment. I can’t explain everything right now, but I will soon. Amy do you remember the storage unit I used to shift in? The one in Queens?”

“Yeah,” she sniffled.

“Pack whatever you can, and meet us there in two hours. Take Emma to Roman. Make sure you tell him to drive to California and don’t look back. I’ll be in touch with him as soon as it’s safe. Fill Lucian in on what’s going on.”

“What
is
going on, Kenz?” Amy asked.

I stared at Sebastian through the rear view mirror from the back seat. He nodded as his eyes held the same anger I was feeling. “We’re going after The King,” I said and hung up the phone.

***

We didn’t bother to park the car anywhere since we were going to ditch it. We rolled up in front of The Plaza Hotel, leaving the engine running. Gasps escaped the hotel guests and bell hops as we climbed out looking like a bunch of serial killers and rushed inside. We were drawing unwanted attention, so we had to hurry. Security called out to us, but Sebastian knew where to go and how we could ditch the employees. We ran up the stairs to the fourth floor, running on pure adrenaline. I couldn’t even appreciate the architecture of The Plaza, a place every little girl dreamed of going because this was where Eloise lived from the children’s books.

We came out of the stairwell and made an immediate right. The Summit was meeting in the Rendezvous Suite. We made a left and ran into the first set of wolves protecting The Summit leaders. The three of us half shifted and went straight for their necks. I left Bash and Jonah to deal with those two. I ran into another pair around the corner. I knee’d the first one in the stomach, hunching him over to my level as I wrapped my arm around his neck and snapped it. His partner punched me in the ribs and slashed at my back. I was completely numb. I didn’t feel a thing—and that was the most dangerous part. I clawed at his face and tackled him to the wall. Slashing his chest over and over again until he slid down the wall in a puddle of blood. I was no longer counting—my kill list be damned.

Bash and Jonah caught up to me and we ran into one more wolf, taking him down easily before we stopped in front of the French doors to the suite. The three of us breathed hard, with Bash and Jonah on either side of me.

“I want to know who it was!” A voice inside yelled as I kicked open the doors into the conference room.

I scanned the layout as multiple eyes zeroed in on us. Less than ten Alphas were seated around a conference table, with snacks and coffee laid out.

“What is the meaning of this?” one of them yelled. He was a round man, older with a white beard. “This is a private meeting.”

I growled and flashed my silver eyes.

They gasped. Their chairs screeched as some of them stood from their seats.

“You think you could come after me?” I said, “That’s fine. But to go after my friends? Innocent beings who didn’t deserve to get slaughtered? You should have made sure you killed me, because now I’m coming after all of you.”

Their eyes widened and shifted over to a screen at the end of the table.

A man in a dark suit, similar to the one from last night, sat there. The logo on the corner told me it was through Skype. He wore the familiar gold pin on the lapel of his blazer and I didn’t need an introduction. Those gray eyes that pierced me in place told me who he was.

I stilled as I soaked him in. His black hair in neat waves combed back—long, just above his neck—with a single unruly strand curled over his forehead. Threads of white streaked his hair but it disappeared when the light hit. His jawline was cut sharp, with high cheek bones—the wrinkles at the corners of his eyes were deep—but he was still handsome. And we also looked too much alike.

He too was shocked to see me. Whether it was because of the distressed state I was in or the fact that my eyes were all the DNA testing he needed to know I was his.

The growls from the Alphas in the room made me snap my attention back to them. They all stood and prepared to attack. I didn’t care. They could all come for me because I was making it out of here alive—they weren’t. I was tired of running, I was tired of fearing these people who made these outrageous laws. They might have killed the Lunas from the Brooklyn Pack, but I hadn’t been lying low this past year. I’ve made friends and they owe me a lot of favors. It’s time for me to collect.

“You!” I pointed to the screen, shaking myself out of the staring contest. “I’m coming for you next.”

The shackles are off—I won’t be
caged.

If you or someone you know has been a victim of sexual abuse, there are ways to get help. Find resources, tips, and immediate help at
http://rainn.org/
or call 800.656.HOPE (4673) to be connected with a trained staff member from a sexual assault service provider in your area. International information available as well.

They’re many people to thank for the release of my fifth novel. My family and friends who have been more than supportive in my writing venture—thank you so much!

Thank you to my best friend and award-winning poet—Daniella Brooks—who wrote the poem for Mackenzie’s vision quest. With very little direction, you were able to write exactly what I wanted to convey. You’re a genius! And of course I owe you for all the late night phone calls, and IHOP visits every time I freaked out about this book. You’re a saint.

To my cover designer, Laura Hidalgo with Beyond Def—the patience you must have to deal with me is something that not many have. I made you change the cover multiple times and even though you almost quit on me, you pulled through and continue to deal with my diva antics. Someone better give you an award!

My author besties, H.D. Gordon and Janelle Stalder—where have you ladies been all my life?! If there is anyone to thank, it has to be these two who motivated me and texted me every day to keep writing. And even when I barely wrote a few words, you both still told me what a good job I did. Your encouragement and friendship is something I have been truly blessed with. Thank you!

And last but not least, my readers. To the hardcore Mackenzie Grey fans, I hear you. I read your emails, comments, and messages. I think the hardest part about CAGED was making sure I didn’t disappoint you. You’re all so passionate about Kenzie and I love it! Thank you for loving her too.

Karina Espinosa is the Urban Fantasy author of the Sins of the Fallen series, the Mackenzie Grey novels, and blogger at HollywoodNewsSource.com. Infatuated with travel, pop culture, and the need to write everything down, she spends much of her days in front of a computer working on her next book, shopping online, and listening to music. With nomadic tendencies, she is currently resting her head in South Florida until the itch to move strikes again. You can usually catch her on Facebook, Instagram, and live-tweeting during episodes of The Walking Dead and Orphan Black. Follow her on social media!

www.karinaespinosa.com