Chapter 19

chapter 19

. . .

Logan

T he scent of blood, sweat, and adrenaline filled the air as I grappled with one of Henry’s men. Our wolf bodies collided, and my teeth bared in full rage.

They were threatening my omega. They weren’t going to touch her.

My pack fought around me, their snarls mingling with the sounds of fists connecting with flesh.

In the midst of the chaos, the three wolves seemed to be listening to their pack leader telepathically. The wolf slipped from my grasp and bolted for the door, his pack members following suit. Their paws skidded on the hardwood floor, leaving trails of blood behind them.

I quickly shifted back.

“Come back here, you fucking cowards!” I shouted after them, but they were already gone. As I surveyed the living room, torn apart by the battle, a sickening realization washed over me.

Carmen was missing.

She had been there just moments ago with Tyler, but now, she was gone, and he was gone as well .

“Shit,” I muttered under my breath, my heart sinking. We hadn’t won the fight; they had captured Carmen and escaped. How could I let this happen? My chest tightened with guilt, anger, and a primal need to find her and bring her back to safety.

“Logan,” Griffin called out, his voice strained from the fight, bloody claw marks visible on his chest. “What’s going on?”

“Those bastards took her,” I growled, breathing hard as my chest nearly exploded with rage.

“Fuck!” shouted Talon, slamming his fist into the wall. “We need to get back to the compound.”

“Damn right, we do,” I said, even though this meant waging war on Henry. We wouldn’t rest until Carmen was back with us, safe and sound.

“Let’s go then,” Axel added, his torn clothes hanging loosely from his battered body. “We can’t waste any more time.”

I grabbed a fresh pair of jeans that weren’t ripped before we bolted toward the van. Panic gnawed at me, realizing that Carmen was being taken straight to Henry. She didn’t have much time. We spotted Jaxon and Axel holding a bloodied Tyler up between them as they made their way toward us.

“Listen, I don’t have time,” I barked at Tyler when he opened his mouth to speak.

“Logan, please listen to me,” he rasped as he leaned against his comrades. “Let me join your pack.”

“What makes you think I’m interested in that? What use do you bring except trouble?” I asked as I unlocked the van door and hopped into the driver’s seat. I was about to slam the door in his face until…

“Henry plans on marking her as soon as he sees her,” he shouted, and I paused reluctantly. “I can help you break into his home. ”

“You rejected her, left her vulnerable and alone. And now, because of your selfishness, she’s in the hands of that monster,” I growled, not easily swayed.

“Henry trusts me,” said Tyler, wincing at my words. “I promise you we will get her back if it’s the last thing I do on this earth.”

Even if I wanted to fucking leave him there, I couldn’t dismiss the fire in his eyes. He genuinely wanted to save her.

"What do you propose we do?"

"We need to combine packs so we can have a fighting chance against Henry."

A heavy weight settled in the pit of my stomach, realizing he was going to have a claim on Carmen, too, if he joined.

We needed him and all the information he had on Henry. I gritted my teeth, forcing down the bile that rose in my throat at the thought of relying on Tyler for anything.

“If you join, I’m your alpha,” I reminded him, and his jaw tensed. “And if you so much as think about hurting her again, I swear to god, Tyler, I’ll fucking kill you.”

“Understood,” he replied, his tone heavy with resolve. He bent his neck respectfully, even if it looked like it pained him. “I’m doing this for Carmen, and I won’t let you down.”

"Get in," I said, and Griffin slid the van door open for them. I shook my head, never imagining I’d have a pack of seven, including myself and our precious Carmen. “Let's go save our girl. We’re going to bring her home, no matter what it takes.”

“We need to get to the airport,” suggested Talon calmly. “We'll get there before them and keep an eye when they bring her in.”

"Copy that," I replied, gripping the steering wheel tighter as I pressed the gas pedal toward the nearest airport.

“Hey, Jax,” Axel said. “You alright, man? ”

“No, what do you think?” Jaxon snapped, his eyes never leaving the dark road ahead.

“Look, we need to stay calm," Tyler urged quietly. I knew that Jaxon always cared for Carmen, even when his ex-pack leader rejected her.

He obviously loved her, and I felt comforted by the knowledge that he would also do anything to protect her. His eyes were bloodshot, and his face was pained.

“Stay calm about what?” Jaxon shot back, fire blazing in his eyes. “Carmen's gone, and it's all because of you, Ty.”

His anger was palpable, radiating off him in waves now that Tyler was his equal and no longer his leader. I needed to maintain peace within my pack, no matter the tension between them or how much I despised Tyler as well.

“We’ve got a plan,” I barked at them, my voice strained as I fought to keep my emotions in check. “We're going to get her back, and you're going to be officially one of her mates. But we need to stay focused, Jax.”

Jaxon exhaled sharply, but the tension in his shoulders eased ever so slightly.

“Yeah, alright,” he muttered before falling silent once more.

As I sped down the highway, I couldn't help but wonder if Carmen was scared or if she was being tortured at this very moment. If anyone touched a hair on her head… so help me God.

An hour later, we were on a plane after buying last-minute first-class tickets. I didn’t care about the price; all I knew was that we needed to get to El Paso, no matter what.

“Once we’re in there, I’m going straight for Henry,” Griffin growled, his knuckles white from gripping the chair so tightly. “I’ll tear him apart with my bare hands for what he’s done to Carmen.”

“Dude, chill,” Talon said nervously, looking around to see if any of the flight attendants heard anything.

“Count me in,” I replied, breathing hard with impatience as the plane took forever to take off. “That bastard won’t know what hit him.”

“A couple of you will focus on getting Carmen out,” Tyler reminded us as he sat behind us with his pack. “The rest of us will deal with Henry and his men.”

“Right,” Griffin muttered, though the fire in his eyes didn’t dim.

As the miles slipped away beneath us, my thoughts kept returning to Carmen—her laughter, her warmth, the way she looked at me with those mesmerizing eyes. Fear clawed at my insides at the thought of her in Henry's clutches, but I forced it down, channeling it into a fierce resolve to bring her back safely.

“Logan,” Tyler's voice broke through my thoughts, and I reluctantly turned to look at him. “When we get there, I'll lead you to where they’re most likely keeping her. But you need to be ready for anything—they’ll be expecting us.”

“Let them,” I spat, my anger flaring anew. “They won’t stand a chance against us protecting our omega.”

“Don't let your emotions cloud your judgment, or it could cost us everything.”

As we drew closer to our destination, I felt the weight of responsibility pressing down on me, along with the knowledge that the lives of my pack, Carmen, and our baby were in my hands.