Chapter 20

Beck had to piss for the first time since he'd been taken. Chloe had split the case of water with him, but he only sipped enough to stay alive, not knowing if they'd be given more. He clambered to his knees and unzipped his pants, pointing away from where he was shackled. He never heard his sister relieving her bladder. Either she did it while he was asleep or… Hell, he didn't want to think about it.

"Tell me about your mate. At least give me a name."

Why did she wait until he had his dick in his hand to talk? Maybe the isolation was getting to her. She had questioned him several times about his mate, and each time, Beck changed the subject. Tired of her hounding him, Beck said, "I'm dying, so what's the point in thinking about someone I'll never see again?"

"You said before that she'd come find you," she all but growled. Was Chloe jealous? Why would she be? Or maybe she was counting on being rescued, and Beck was being tight-lipped.

"That was wishful thinking."

"Was she going to move to Seward to be with you?"

Beck grunted as he sat back down. "No, I was planning to move in with her."

"Why won't you tell me her name?"

"Fuck it. Her name's Nicole, all right?"

"Don't get all pissy. I'm just making conversation."

Beck was afraid if he lay back down, he wouldn't be able to get up again, so he settled against the cold wall of his prison.

"Nicole. I'm not aware of any Nicoles in our pack. Is she new to the area?"

"Nah. She's not one of us. I got tired of waiting to find another bear, so I settled for a human."

"What's she like?"

"Let it go, Chloe. It doesn't matter. By now she probably thinks I've ghosted her and moved on."

"That's because she's human. I've not met one yet that was worth the trouble."

Beck was taken aback. This Chloe was out of character with the sister he'd grown up with. She never had a disparaging word for anyone, humans included. She was friendly with their passengers. She hung out at the diner every morning to chat with the couple who owned it. And her best friend was human. "What about Cynthia?"

"She met a woman and moved to California with her."

"Oh. Good for her."

Chloe huffed harshly. "Good for her? What about me? She left me for someone she knew for two weeks."

If Beck didn't know better, he would say his sister was jealous. He'd never known her to date a woman, but that didn't mean she didn't have feelings for her best friend. Beck started to say she'd find someone else, but would she? Would either of them ever get out of their prison? Beck closed his eyes. Keeping them open in the darkness made his head throb worse.

"Nothing to say about that? No, ‘I'm sorry, Chloe. You'll find the right one.' You're like every other male."

Beck sighed. "I didn't know you had those kinds of feelings for her. It's not like you or Delaney share your lives with me. I'm nothing more than an employee. Just ask Delaney. Oh, that's right. You can't because we're stuck in this goddess forsaken cave!" Beck roared and wished he hadn't.

Lydia and Kennedy sat on their packs while they waited on Dooley to return from scouting ahead. The blood had lessened with each mile, and Lydia prayed that meant the bear was healing. Dooley was the one who pointed out that Amara, or whoever the tracks belonged to, was running on four legs instead of walking. If they continued that way, they would never catch up to them as long as Lydia was among the search party. She pulled out her sat phone and called Carleigh to let her know what was going on.

"Hey, Cuz. Did you find her?"

"We found a cave where someone had been restrained in cuffs laced with wolfsbane, and there were signs of a struggle, but no one was there. Dooley's gone off in his fur to see if he can catch up to her. What's new on your end?"

"I've been keeping tabs on Boyd, and either he knows someone bugged his rental house, or he's extremely paranoid. He had a visitor, probably the same one you saw the first night you went to his house. Whoever it was didn't arrive in a car. They came through the woods, and when they shifted from their fur, they had on a hoodie, so I couldn't see their face. I'm assuming they're female by their size. They knocked on the door, and Boyd followed them outside. They took off through the woods, and about twenty minutes later, he returned alone. Other than that, he hasn't left the house. At all."

"Then who is responsible for taking Beck? It has to be another male."

"Why? You think because he's six and a half feet tall that a female shifter couldn't lift his body? You could pick him up if you wanted."

"True, but there were two sets of tracks at the cave and one of them was male. If Boyd is staying in Sterling, then someone else is doing the heavy lifting, so to speak. We need to find out who's behind the hoodie."

"I'm trying. And the one name I keep coming back to is Heather. Before Dooley left Kodiak for Valdez, he put me in contact with a former packmate who lives in BC. This Russell hasn't seen Heather around for a few weeks, which fits our timeline."

Lydia pulled her knees in and propped her arms over them. "It's been ten years since she dated Beck. Why go after him now?"

"Maybe he's collateral damage." Lydia growled, and Carleigh backpedaled. "Sorry, Cuz. That was harsh. If the plan is to take over Amara's pack, then Heather would know Beck is going to defend his mother. And if Heather is in Alaska, who's sending the messages from BC?"

Lydia stretched her legs back out so she could reach the pack containing their food. She dug around for a banana. "Well, a coup could involve several players. But why take Chloe and not Delaney? Delaney's next in line for the throne."

"I haven't figured that out yet. Unless…"

"Unless Delaney's behind it all? Maybe she was planning to take on Amara, but then she found out she was pregnant and came up with an alternate plan. Boyd was in the same building where she works right before he knocked me down."

"Playing devil's advocate here, but if she is after the throne, why send Beck to find their mother?"

"She would want Amara's strongest fighter out of the way, and what better way to do that than send him off on a wild goose chase where he ends up out of commission?"

"Okay. I'm going to take a closer look at her. Tap into her phone and see if I can track where she's been other than the office. I'm also going to try and locate Heather. Who knows? Maybe the two females are colluding. How are you holding up?"

"Not well. I'm farther away from where Beck was taken, and we didn't catch up with Amara. It's all been a waste of fucking time."

"I'm doing my best, Lydia," Carleigh said softly.

Lydia rubbed her eyes. "I know you are, C. I'm not mad at you. I just want my mate back."

"I have no doubt, and I won't stop scouring for any scrap of information I can get, okay? I'll check back soon." She disconnected without saying she loved Lydia, and that made her heart hurt worse.

"Fuck." Lydia tossed the phone onto the pack and peeled the nearly frozen banana. As she took a bite, her mind went back over her conversation with Carleigh. If Heather was responsible for Beck's abduction, Lydia would enjoy taking on the female even if she weighed five times more.

Kennedy jumped to her feet, her eyes focused on something in the distance. "He's coming back."

Dooley's large form was camouflaged until he got closer. He slowed his pace to a walk, then shifted to his skin. "Amara, or whoever that was, went into the water. There's no way to tell which way they swam."

Lydia tossed the banana peel in the snow and wiped her hands. "Then let's follow the other tracks. Who knows? Maybe they'll lead us to Beck and Chloe." She locked on the snowshoes, then bent down and picked up her pack, sliding her arms through the straps. Once Dooley and Kennedy had theirs on, they set out, and Lydia relayed her conversation with Carleigh.

Dooley stopped walking. "Wait a second. If Heather's here, and the messages are being relayed from Valerie's house, someone… Fuck. I bet it's her son, Tate. Russell told me he'd seen Heather and Tate together more than once."

"Why would Valerie's son help Boyd?" Lydia asked.

Kennedy smiled up at Dooley. "For love."

"You mean revenge." Lydia stared at Kennedy who was still smiling.

"No. I mean love. From what Dooley said, Valerie has no use for anyone if they aren't bringing in money, but males especially. If Heather and Boyd came up with a way to overthrow Amara, then Heather could take over the throne here and bring Tate with her. She'd give Boyd a cut of the money for helping."

Lydia leaned heavily on her poles. "But what about Delaney?"

"She's a pregnant female who can't fight. She's the least of their worries. And maybe while Heather's at it, she does get a little revenge to go with her new queendom."

"And her father's helping, allowing Boyd to remain in Sterling."

Dooley shifted the pack on his back. "Say we're right, but how are they going to keep money coming in if they take out the ones running the company? Beck's going with you, and the girls will go with Amara again."

Lydia bit her lip, deciding whether to share the snooping Carleigh did. She already considered the couple part of her Clan, so she admitted, "While Sagan Adventures brings in a good bit of money, Amara has amassed a nest egg separate from the company. One large enough to start over anywhere."

Dooley didn't ask how Lydia came by that information. He probably had a good idea. "That is if she doesn't fight Heather. Who's to say Amara isn't off licking her wounds and planning revenge of her own? Regardless, we need to follow these tracks as far as we can since we're running out of daylight. We should have brought the drones after all."

The trio got back to it. They agreed to stop for the night after an hour of walking. The next morning, they got an early start. It took two hours until the bear tracks changed to those of a human. Snowmobile indentions headed north. Lydia found the paper map in her pack and spread it out. "Where are we?" she asked Dooley.

"Here." He pointed to a spot well away from where they'd left the helicopter.

Lydia pulled out a marker and circled their location. "Okay, if we're here, and the snowmobile went north…" She drew a line with her finger. "It's headed toward where the Sagan helo is. Let's go back and get ours, then fly there and begin our search for Beck. I know we don't have solid coordinates, but I'm tired of waiting. I'd rather follow tracks on foot and get closer to where he is than sit around with my thumb up my ass while I wait on whoever has him to screw up again!" Her chest heaved, and Kennedy squeaked. Dooley stepped between Lydia and his mate, his eyes narrowed.

Lydia held up her hands. "Sorry. I'm sorry." She turned her back and removed her goggles, swiping at her tears. A gentle hand landed on her shoulder, and Lydia cried harder. Kennedy moved so she was standing beside her and hugged her. At least she tried to. It was awkward wearing backpacks, but the little fox managed as best she could.

"Nothing to be sorry for. If I were in your shoes, I'd have said, ‘Fuck Amara' and gone after my mate. Since we're closer to your helicopter, why don't we head that way, return to the house and stock up on enough supplies to last more than a few days, fuel up, and get the drones?"

Lydia didn't want to return to Valdez. She wanted to look for Beck straightaway, but Kennedy was right. They needed to be prepared. At that thought, she pulled out the satellite phone and called Carleigh.

"Hey, Lydia." It was Harlow who answered. Oh, gods. Was her cousin avoiding talking to her?

"Hi, Low. Is Carleigh around?" Lydia used the silly greeting, hoping for some levity.

Harlow giggled as always. "She had to pee. Hang on, here she comes."

"I'm here," Carleigh said.

"First off, I love you, and I'm sorry I snapped. I appreciate everything you're doing."

"I know that, silly. I love you too. Is that the only reason you called?"

"No. I was thinking. If Amara was held in chains that were covered in wolfsbane, who's to say Beck won't be also? Please call Luna and have her whip up one of her potions."

"Won't she need more information than that?"

"I don't know. Maybe she can talk with her mom. Lilly's the one who helped Jasper when he was poisoned."

"Okay. I'm on it."

"Thanks. We're headed back to Valdez for more supplies, and then we're tracking down my mate come hell or high water. Or snow. Whatever."

"Are you sure you don't want to call someone to help? I know your dad and Locke would be there if you asked. Maybe Rain or Uncle Sin since they're even closer?"

"Locke has school, and I'm not taking Dad away from Mom when she's about to pop out my baby brother. I'm not waiting any longer to go after Beck."

"I hear you, and I understand. Let me call Luna. If she does come up with an antidote, where should she send it?"

"I guess the rental. Hopefully Beck isn't too hurt that he won't be able to travel. If he is—"

"Nope. No negative thoughts. He's got your toxin running through his veins now. Hold onto that."

"You're right. It's starting to snow again, but hopefully it's not going to be another storm. I'll call you as soon as I'm back in Valdez."

"If I don't call you sooner."

Lydia returned the phone to her pack, then shrugged it on. Dooley and Kennedy were waiting, ready to go.

Dooley side-eyed Lydia as they walked. "I really want to be part of your Clan. You have witches who create unbelievable weapons and potions. Rock stars. A trio of hackers. A seer. What else?"

"Well, the seer, as you call Connor, is also a famous artist." Lydia left out Connor discovering a cure for his aunt's cancer. That was still a secret. "Harlow's dad is the Italian Gargoyle King, and her mother, Lucy, is a brilliant hacker and geneticist. She's also a Gryphon, and through her, we claim her family, most of whom are bikers. Uncle Frey, who taught me to fly, his mate, Abbi, has danced with the Atlanta Ballet Company. Her brother, Matthew, and his mate, Slade, own a chain of upscale restaurants. Banyan is the Norwegian King. He and his mate, Urijah, forge the swords for our Clan, and they have a passel of kids, both biological and adopted. The list goes on."

"Wait. If Harlow's dad is a Gargoyle, and her mother's a Gryphon, what does that make her?"

"A Princess who is a badass hybrid. Her beast is a Gryphon, but instead of having eagle wings, they're the same leathery type as a Gargoyle's. It's not fair."

"I'll be damned."

Lydia prayed his innocent comment didn't jinx them. Luckily, the snow didn't come down harder. The flurries swirled around them as they walked, and Dooley peppered her with questions about the Clan, making the time go faster. It took an extra day to arrive at the helo due to their late start. Four days, and Lydia was ready to fly back to Valdez. Ready for a hot shower, coffee, and sleep in a comfortable bed. More than that, she was ready to find her mate, nurse him back to health, then drag him off to Atlanta where they could hide from the world and tons of fucking snow.