Enticing Their Mate (5 page)

“No. She’s about the same, but she needs some antibiotics fast.”

Sarah wanted to confide in her, but she didn’t dare. “If you find any, let me know.”

Amy nodded, but her shoulders remained slumped. She tossed her thin jacket on the back of the sofa and set down her purse. “Michelle didn’t show up for her shift, so I stayed for as long as I could to cover for her.”

They hadn’t been at the warehouse long enough to have established a pattern, but so far, no one had dared miss even a minute of their required time. Statler was highly unpredictable, and she wouldn’t put it past him to order someone’s execution for crossing him. “Did you call her?”

“Yes, but her cell went to voicemail. That’s not all. Darnell didn’t show up to his shift either. Russ is staying with Wendell a little bit longer, too.”

Sarah tried to remember if she’d witnessed any exchange between Michelle and Darnell. “Could they be doing something together for Statler?”

Amy chewed on a nail, one that was already bitten to the quick. “I don’t think so, but it’s Russ I’m worried about. He wants to tell Statler about Darnell going AWOL. You know how volatile our boss is. It could end up badly for Russ.”

That was an understatement. She wouldn’t want to be on the receiving end of that conversation. “Maybe they’ll show up tomorrow. I hope. I’m going to head on into bed.”

It was time to send a text. She prayed Statler hadn’t employed someone to hack into her messages. If so, she’d end up in a grave before she could call for help.

*     *     *

At eleven o’clock at night, Statler’s phone rang and his claws immediately extended at the interruption. No one dared call him at this uncivilized hour.

The gorgeous blonde next to him in bed rolled over, her naked breasts enticing him. “Are you going to answer that?” she asked as she grabbed his hard cock.

With a glorious woman so close, he sure as fuck didn’t want to, but he couldn’t chance missing a call from his buyer. Keeping his hands under the sheet, he focused on retracting his claws. The last thing he needed was for a human to run out of the apartment screaming bloody murder.

“Give me a sec.” He dragged his now fully human hand over her luscious breasts then pinched the tip.

“Ouch.”

He grinned. “Serves you right for looking so good. How about getting yourself a drink and waiting for me in the living room?”

“Okay.” She tossed him a pout and rolled out of bed, wiggling her naked ass as she left the bedroom.

As soon as Gloria or Stella or whatever the fuck her name was couldn’t hear him, he glanced at the caller ID. Shit. It was Russ Sizemore. “This better be good,” he said grinding out his words. “I told you never to disturb me.”

“I’m sorry, sir, but this is important. Darnell didn’t show up for his shift.”

“Why the fuck should I care?”

“Wendell can’t secure the warehouse by himself.”

He was right. Statler would do something about that only because he didn’t trust the General not to show up again. Jesus, his life had been a bitch ever since the head of the Pack and his men had found them. To make matters worse, Tyson and Ford Summerville had managed to kill almost their entire security team. Fuckers. “Did you call Darnell? He might still be trying to dispose of Michelle.” Though he didn’t understand how it could take a few hours to slit a throat and bury a body. Bitch never should have refused to drug the women. She had to pay for that insubordination.

“He didn’t answer his cell.”

“Keep trying.” Incompetent idiot. Statler worked hard not to drive back to the warehouse and take care of Sizemore himself.

“I don’t think he followed your orders, sir.” Sizemore’s voice shook.

Statler’s fangs elongated again. Fucker. Why was everyone turning on him? “Explain.” This time he wasn’t able to control his volume. He clawed the silk sheets. If this ass didn’t give him some good news soon, he might be joining Michelle.

“I heard Darnell was fucking her.”

What kind of security had he hired? “What the hell does that have to do with anything? When I give an order, I expect my men to follow it.”

“Yes, sir.”

“Well, go find him and when you do, kill him.” He didn’t need any traitors among them.

Statler hung up and immediately called a contact who’d supplied him with many of his security team members the first time around.

“It’s late, Statler.”

How dare the ass act pissed. “I don’t give a shit what time it is. I’m short a few security.”

“It’ll cost you double this time. Almost all them died under your watch the last time.”

“That’s because you sent me untrained men.” Statler was in a bind and didn’t need to be arguing with the man. “I’ll only need them for a week.” They haggled over the price and eventually came to an agreement.

“I’ll send them your way in two days.”

“Make it one and I’ll double the price.”

“Deal.”

Asshole. Statler disconnected. He slipped out of bed, needing someone to take his frustrations out on—someone who wouldn’t complain. Like the cute naked blonde in the room next door.

T
he next morning, Sarah barely made it out of bed. Despite the renewing run, she hadn’t slept much. Michelle’s disappearance had upset her more than she thought possible. Ever since going undercover, Sarah had seen too much evil come from inside those walls and had been tempted to walk away, but she had a valuable job to perform—that of helping take down Paul Statler and his band of not-so-merry men.

Sarah had set her alarm for a half an hour earlier than usual, hoping there had been a mistake and Michelle had come to work, albeit a few hours late. Sarah slipped out of bed and dressed quietly since Amy would still be asleep. Once she washed up and donned her uniform, Sarah headed to the warehouse, not caring if anyone followed her this time. As long as she wasn’t meeting with Jay or Riley, she didn’t need to be as careful.

She parked in front of the warehouse, swiped her entry card, and went in. Dread filled her at what she might find. Michelle always took good care of Nancy Edmonds on her shift, and even a few hours without someone looking after Nancy might kill her. Statler had commanded Sarah to heal her, and if Michelle had skipped town—possibly with Darnell—she hoped Statler would provide a replacement nurse. Then again, he planned to sell these women in a few days, so he might not bother.

A band tightened around her chest at the thought. Everything about this situation sucked.

When she punched in the code to enter the first of two rooms that housed the women, Sarah hoped Michelle would be there, working her magic. Unfortunately, she was not. All Sarah found was silence inside the dark, windowless room.

Her pulse raced. Something wasn’t right. Sarah flicked on one small bank of lights. Her mind blanked and her heart fluttered. Dear God, help us all. The women appeared to be unconscious, or else were sleeping deeply. If she’d had something in her hand other than her purse, she would have thrown it against the wall.

She stepped over to Nancy and placed a palm on her forehead. The woman was burning up. Shit. Even if Sarah had the skills of a doctor, without medicine, she couldn’t do much for her.

Shouts sounded outside the door and she rushed to see what the ruckus was about. She peeked out and spotted Statler grabbing Russ by the neck. That had to be bad news for him. As much as she wanted to listen, if Statler caught her spying, it might end up badly for her.

Both Riley and Jay would be interested to learn that Statler was now at the warehouse, though for how long was anyone’s guess. What they would do with that knowledge she didn’t know, but she needed to text them anyway. Her email to Jay read:
Statler in house. A nurse and guard are missing.

If the men wanted her to do something, they’d respond. Sure enough, Jay’s text came through seconds later.
Working on getting medicine. Thanks for the update. Now delete all evidence of our correspondence and stay safe. Jay.

Her stomach cramped. Sarah would be able to administer the medicine only if Nancy woke. Perhaps the reason Michelle was no longer at work was because one of the guards asked her to drug the women and she’d refused. As much as she wanted to figure out what happened to Michelle, she didn’t need to dwell on it.

The women had to be her first concern. Sarah flooded the room with light, hoping to jolt them awake. “Wake up, ladies. Rise and shine!” She clapped her hands, and when no sounds arose, she gently nudged a few mattresses. No response. Shit.

Discouraged, she headed to the second room, hoping she’d meet with more success. When she stepped into that room, the air was stale and all the girls were in the same condition. Well damn.

*     *     *

Jay paced the small motel room frustrated he wasn’t able to make his move even though Statler was nearby. It was taking all of his control not to confront the man, but to do so would probably end in disaster, and he didn’t want to ruin the General’s chance at ridding the world of one more evil man.

Riley was studying Sarah’s drawing when the General’s caller ID popped up on Jay’s phone. There must have been something really interesting about the map because his roommate didn’t look up.

Jay answered. “Sir?”

“We’ve had a stroke of luck.”

Finally. Jay walked over to the bed and sat down. “What is it?”

“I never knew how wonderful chat rooms could be.”

He glanced over at Riley who seemed to be in a zone of concentration. The General had never been known to drink or make frivolous calls. “Sir?”

“I found out that Statler hired three more guards, and the man handling the operation put some feelers out on the Internet. Dumb, if you ask me.”

His mind raced, trying to figure out why the General appeared to be gloating. “What is it you’d like me to do, sir?”

“I’m not sure if you’ve met them, but I asked Cam and Spence Summerville—Ford and Tyson’s cousins—to help us out. They live in Pittsburgh and were able to drive to New York and successfully intercept the truck with the three guards who were to arrive at the warehouse tomorrow afternoon.”

While that sounded great, he could think of a lot of issues that might pop up. “When the men don’t arrive, won’t Statler question why and then find others?”

“Jay, Jay, you underestimate me.” Now he felt small. “You haven’t been part of the team long enough to know how things work. Tom Hammond, the scum who supplied Statler with the three men, has been sent off on a little vacation if you get my drift. As for the three guards, let’s just say they won’t be working for Statler any time soon.”

“I see.”

“Clay Demmers and Dirk Tilton, who I know you’ve met, will be replacing two of these guards.”

The genius of the plan sunk in. “Excellent. What about the third man?” Statler had hired three men.

“I want Riley to take his place.”

A streak of jealousy raced through him, but Jay understood why he had to lay low. “What’s my role?” If the General asked him to sit idly by, he wasn’t certain he could.

“I want you to be the point man, coordinating their every move. All information will be fed through you.”

“Thank you, sir.”

“The men are expected tomorrow around three. Riley will need to figure out where he’ll meet Clay and Dirk.” The General then provided him with their contact information, which Jay wrote down on the back of his hand, feeling like he was back in high school. Damn motel room didn’t even provide a pad of paper.

Having three men on the inside would be fantastic. “What if Statler calls this Tom Hammond and he doesn’t answer?”

“You let me worry about that. Good luck and stay safe.” The General disconnected.

Jay tossed his phone on the bed. “That was interesting.”

“Yeah, what’s that?”

He gave Riley the good news, but instead of the expected fist pump, tension rippled across his face. “That’s good, I guess.”

“What the fuck is wrong with you? This is our chance to get the women out. Why aren’t you chomping at the bit to do this?”

“Sarah will be there.”

Oh, shit. He’d forgotten about Riley’s aversion to commitments. With his mate so near, Jay wasn’t certain Riley would be able to keep his hands off her.

*     *     *

Sarah stepped into the hallway, and as she was about to head to the other room, she spotted Skip Jackson, one of the guards she intensely disliked. She quickly judged whether she could make it to the other room without him seeing her.

“Sarah?” he called.

Crap. “Yes?”

He strode toward her, looking like he’d won a prize. “Statler wants to see you in his office. Now.”

Her stomach flipped. No good could come of this conversation, especially if he told her to drug the women tonight. Denying him wasn’t an option. She would just have to figure out a way to lighten the dosage. “Thank you.”

Skip turned and continued on his rounds. An order from the boss had to be obeyed. Inhaling, she went to see what the boss man wanted. Like always, he’d expect her to be meek, and that was how she would present herself. Little did he know she was trained by the best. She’d killed before and she would kill again. If she thought she could get behind Statler, she’d have brought a scalpel and sliced his throat.