Chapter 4

4

W alking across the campus with a pack of guards felt strange. Even stranger was when they didn’t simply let the girls run into the dorms to pack an overnight bag, but actually split into pairs to escort them.

Several guys were in the females only dorm, but everyone was silent and somber. Walking through the halls was unnerving. People were darting in and out of rooms. Some were packing to stay with their alphas and others were bunking together. Nervous energy crackled in the air.

I stayed close to Rhodes and Larkin since I didn’t have a room here anymore. Katy ducked into the room beside Larkin’s, while one of our packmates, Will, leaned against the hallway across from her open door. He gave me a small nod, but kept his eyes on Katy the whole time.

I was proud of Katy for keeping her mouth shut when I knew this whole situation bothered her. She hated being treated like a helpless little girl. Hell, so did I, but I didn’t have to be in wolf form to sense Remy’s emotions were volatile right now.

Everyone was on edge, and all I wanted was to go back to whatever normal we had.

But first I wanted to hurry this along so I could see Remy was okay with my own eyes.

“Can I help?” I asked Larkin, leaning against her open door frame and watching as she and Rhodes packed things into her overnight bag.

Or, rather, Larkin put things in the bag, and Rhodes tried to stealthily remove them.

“Rhodes!” she snapped, pulling her shirt back out of the drawer he had tried to tuck it into.

“Baby girl, I’m trying to help you save time,” he pointed out with a devilish grin.

“By putting away my pajamas?” she demanded incredulously.

He gave her a shrug. “It’s not like you’ll be wearing them, so why pack them?”

Larkin squeaked, her cheeks flushed crimson as she looked at me quickly before glaring at her boyfriend.

“There will be an entire cabin full of shifters,” she hissed, her eyes darting around to make sure Will and Katy weren’t coming up behind me to hear her. “I’m not sleeping naked.”

He rolled his eyes to the ceiling, a wicked gleam in his eye when he looked back at her. “Fine, you can wear one of my shirts then.”

“I get cold,” she answered with a delicate sniff, lifting her chin as she reached for flannel bottoms.

He crossed the room, wrapping his arms around her from behind and hauling her against his chest. Dipping his head, he whispered something in her ear that made her jaw drop and ears turn red.

But she refolded the bottoms and shoved them back into a drawer.

I chuckled as Rhodes tossed me a smug smirk. He zipped up her bag and threw it over his shoulder, all teasing sliding from his features as his gaze sharpened while stepping into the hallway and looking around. “That everything?”

Larkin nodded, exiting the room at the same time Katy did. Will pushed off the wall and fell into step with us. We waited until everyone was gathered downstairs before heading to the cabin as a unit, making the short trek to the other side of campus in a silent pack.

When we made it to the cabin, we all filed in. The fireplace was still going from earlier, but the embers were starting to fade to a soft glow. Will walked over and tossed a few logs onto it, bringing the flames back to a roar.

The door to Remy’s study was shut, and I didn’t hesitate. I crossed the floor to it, opening the door silently and slipping inside before I pulled the door shut quietly behind me.

Remy looked up from where he was on the phone, probably with his dad. The stark relief in his eyes when he saw me made me smile softly at him.

The agitation my wolf and I had struggled to keep down while he was out searching receded as we both took a deep breath and relaxed.

Our mate was safe.

Our pack was safe.

I went to his side, sliding an arm across the tight muscles of his shoulders, wanting to offer comfort. Without breaking the conversation, he pushed back from the desk, hooking an arm around my waist and pulling me into his lap. His strong arms banded around me, squeezing so hard for a second I couldn’t catch my breath.

When I could wriggle an arm free, I looped it around his neck, leaning my head to his shoulder and breathing in his scent.

Remy reached over and hit a button on the phone, setting it on top of the desk.

“Skye’s here,” he said. “I put you on speaker phone.”

“Hey, sweetheart.” Gabe’s warm voice filled the room, and I relaxed even more into Remy. “How’s my favorite kid?”

I loved his family. They had not only given Mom and I sanctuary when we were literally at the end of our rope, but they had taken me in as one of their own when Remy and I bonded. I had spent almost as much time with his parents over winter break as I did with my mom.

“Hanging in there,” I answered, giving Remy a quick glance.

Remy smiled, the action breaking some of the tension from his face. His thumb caressed my hip in a gentle, sweeping motion.

“Any word on Kit?” I asked him, my nose almost brushing his.

His eyes flashed with bitterness. “No. Not a damn clue.”

“I was telling Remy that we’re sending more guards for the school,” Gabe told me. I could hear the frustration in his voice. “We’ll be taking more precautions moving forward, but for now it’s imperative everyone stays alert and doesn’t wander off alone.”

“The good news is, if she was taken by whoever had been abducting shifters, they only seem to strike in one pack or one place before they move on,” Remy muttered.

That was the good news?

“Still, we’re increasing patrols and sending more guards,” Gabe said firmly. “I’m not playing games with anyone’s safety, and neither are the other packs. We have a conference call with all the Alphas in a few minutes I need to get ready for.”

“Okay, Dad,” Remy said, picking the phone back up. “We’ll be in touch if anything else happens.”

“You two take care of each other. Call if you need us.” Gabe sighed. “Remy, if this is too much...”

“I’ll let you know,” he replied firmly. “We’ll check in with you guys in the morning.”

“Tell Katy your mother and I love her. And we love you guys, too.”

A warm fissure cracked open a piece of my heart, heating me. I swallowed hard and licked my lips. “We’ll be safe,” I assured Gabe. “We love you, too.” The words rolled easily off my tongue, the way they had for the last few weeks.

I had left the broken omega behind and was starting to finally find my footing with my pack and my family.

“Bye, Dad.” Remy hung up the call, dropping the silent phone back onto the desk with a groan. He closed his eyes, his head dropping back in exhaustion.

I framed his face with my hands. “Talk to me, Rem.”

He blinked at me, his dark eyes churning with a hundred emotions. “It’s like she vanished, Skye. We completely lost her scent on the road.”

“Were there any other scents with hers you guys could make out?”

He frowned. “Ryder thinks he noticed two sets of human tracks where the scent ended. But we couldn’t get a read if they were normals or shifters.”

“You think the same people who took Kit took the other shifters?” I asked slowly.

“It’s the only thing that makes sense,” he replied.

“But Kit’s a teenager. Haven’t they been abducting adults?” My brow furrowed as I tried to remember the specifics of the missing shifters.

Remy nodded, one hand sliding up my spine to toy with the ends of my braid. “It’s definitely a break in their MO, but the circumstances fit.”

I exhaled through my nose, a headache forming between my eyes. “So, what happens now?”

“Now we go on lockdown,” he replied grimly, lips pressed together in a tight line. “Dad is talking with the other Alphas. They’ll all send more people to help guard the school.”

I traced an abstract pattern into the shoulder of his shirt. “Is your dad coming here?”

He shook his head, his expression turning fierce. “No. For now, they’re trusting us to handle things. They’ll intervene if they have to, but it’s on the campus alphas to keep everyone safe.”

I framed his gorgeous face with my hands. “We trust you, Remy. Tell us what to do.”

He smiled grimly. “For starters? No female goes anywhere unescorted. At least not until we have a perimeter around the school I know can’t be breached.”

“Katy will love that,” I murmured.

“Katy will deal with it,” Remy said with a sharp finality. “Until we can be sure the school is safe, and the extra guards arrive, I’m not taking chances with anyone’s safety.”

“Hey,” I said softly, waiting until he was looking me in the eye before continuing, “I get it. The girls will all be on board. If they aren’t, I’ll yell at them for you.”

A smile ghosted across his lips, something like pride shining in his eyes. “I heard about the cafeteria.”

My brows shot up. “What?”

“You took control, calmed the masses.”

“Not exactly masses ,” I murmured, weirdly embarrassed by the attention he was giving me. I bossed around a few dozen girls.

“I’m proud of you, babe,” he told me honestly, sincerely. “It’s exactly what you should have done. What needed to be done. You’re pretty amazing, Skye.”

I smiled sardonically, even as warmth spread in my chest at his praise. “You might be a little biased.”

“Doesn’t make it any less true,” he replied softly before kissing me slowly. His lips moved across mine, coaxing them open so he could deepen the kiss.

Both my arms circled his neck as I pressed myself closer, angling my head to completely yield to him as his hands tightened around my waist, pulling me against the solid muscle of his chest.

Until loud voices reminded us that we had a house full of our pack mates, and the only thing separating us from them was a pair of glass doors.

With a groan, I pulled my mouth away, but Remy’s hands kept me pinned to his body, his eyes still dark and intense as he studied me.

“What?” I finally asked, shifting on his lap as a small smile tugged at my lips.

A wrinkle creased the skin between his eyes. “Something about this whole thing feels wrong, and I’m fighting the urge to barricade you somewhere safe until I know you aren’t at risk.”

I cocked my head to the side. “Can you barricade yourself with me?”

He chuckled quietly, his gaze drifting to my lips. “God, I wish.”

Everything in me wanted to kiss him again. To fuse my mouth to his as my hands explored every part of his skin. My wolf whined in agreement. She had seriously turned into a horny little bitch recently, my dreams taking a more... adult turn when I wasn’t having a nightmare.

Especially when I was in Remy’s bed.

But there was always something around the corner to keep us from doing much more than kissing or a heavy makeout session.

Case in point, the room full of packmates a few feet away.

“We should get out there,” I said softly, loving the way his dark hair felt sliding through my fingers.

“I know,” he agreed with a heavy sigh before standing up, still holding me in his arms for a second before letting me slide down his body to the floor.

House full of shifters , I reminded my hormones, unable to suppress the shudder of want that shook my body and had Remy licking his lips a second before stepping back.

Reaching down, he grabbed my hand in his and led us out into the main room to talk to the rest of the pack.