Chapter 16

Chapter16

“Where is he?”Daphne asked the Mother because suspecting who had Baptiste and locating him were two different things.

His uncle has him inside the Pack compound. Heavily secured. You won’t get in without help.

Help? Daphne would usually eschew any but the last time she got cocky, she was severely injured and cursed for centuries. Add in that Baptiste’s life might very well end up in the balance and she truly couldn’t take any chances.

Luckily, Baptiste had left his phone behind—which was password locked.

She glared at the device. “Open.”

It didn’t obey.

“I command you to give me access.”

Also didn’t work.

She glared at the annoying object, and as if it sensed her ire, it suddenly rang. The screen displayed a red and green circle.

Green meant go, so she poked it.

“Hi Baptiste,” Marissa greeted.

“It’s Daphne,” she quickly corrected. “Baptiste has been taken.”

A pause on the other end before Marissa replied, “Did Circe get him?”

“Worse than that. His uncle did. Mother says I should seek reinforcements to fetch him.”

“Wait, the Pack has him?”

“Yes.”

“Then I doubt he’s in danger. He’s one of them. Most likely he’s annoyed, though. He doesn’t seem to like his uncle much.”

“They mean to harm him.”

“What makes you say that?”

Daphne wasn’t one to lie. “I can feel it.”

To her surprise, Marissa didn’t argue. “Do you know where he’s being held?”

“Mother says they have him in their compound, under guard.”

“Unfortunately, the CA doesn’t have legal authority to enter,” Marissa mused aloud.

“But they committed a crime. They kidnapped him.”

“Doesn’t matter. The Packs have their own laws. They police their own.”

Excuses. Daphne didn’t have the time or patience to hear them. “I don’t care. I’m going after him.”

“Of course. I’m sure we can figure something out once we get there. Where are you? I’ll come get you.”

“Wait, you’re going to help? But you just said it was dangerous and you had no jurisdiction.”

“And? If he needs rescuing, then I’m in. Where are you?”

“I’m in a cabin in the woods.”

The correct reply but Marissa laughed. “You’ll have to be more specific. I need an address.”

A complicated thing to request from someone who’d yet to learn to read. In the end, Daphne had to go to the building where Baptiste had secured their use of the cabin and ask the person behind the counter to tell Marissa her location.

It felt like forever, waiting for her to arrive. Especially given Daphne’s hunger. The sun tickling her skin was well and good, but the hard soil didn’t allow her to dig in her toes and get any nourishment.

By the time Marissa pulled into the parking lot, Daphne was ready to chew the leaves from some trees. Luckily, she didn’t have to harm any possibly distant relatives as the CA agent brought a cooling bag filled with beverages and snacks.

The cheese and crackers tided Daphne over until they hit something called McDonald’s. The French fries—salty sticks of goodness—were the best thing she’d ever eaten.

Marissa helped unlock the phone with a waggle of her fingers, and as they made the long drive back to Nexus, Daphne called Nelly who answered, “Baptiste? Where are you? Your uncle has been calling the office multiple times a day, flipping out since you left town.”

“Baptiste is gone. His uncle found him,” Daphne stated. “He kidnapped Baptiste earlier this morning.”

“Daphne?” Nelly didn’t hide her surprise.

“Yes, it’s me. I have his phone and am on my way back to Nexus to rescue him.”

A pause. “If his uncle has him then he’s in Pack territory. You won’t be allowed inside.”

“I wasn’t going to ask permission.”

Nelly coughed. Must have caught Clive’s cold. “You’ll have to wait until tomorrow.”

“Why?”

“Full moon tonight. If you illegally enter Pack lands while they’re in their moon phase, they will tear you apart.”

“This can’t wait.”

Marissa interjected, “Your friend is right. You don’t want to mess with wolves on a full moon.”

“Baptiste doesn’t have until tomorrow.” Daphne couldn’t have said why she stated it with such certainty.

“Is he being threatened?” Nelly asked.

“Yes. He needs to be rescued before the moon rises or we’ll be conducting a mission of vengeance for his death.”

“They won’t kill him. He’s the Garou,” Nelly exclaimed.

“That is precisely why he’s going to die,” Daphne countered.

“Let me talk to Clive and see what we can arrange,” Nelly stated before giving Marissa her address and then hanging up.

Marissa took her eyes off the road to glance at Daphne. “What makes you so sure he’s in dire peril? Did your goddess warn you?”

For a moment, Daphne didn’t know how to explain it. “Baptiste and I were intimate last night, and it appears to have left a type of bond between us.” She frowned. “I can sense some of his emotions. He is angry. Also a bit afraid. He’s in danger. And I keep getting the impression of the moon and blood.”

A moment passed before Marissa said softly, “It would seem you’ve mated with the wolf.”

“Yes, we had sex,” Daphne repeated since Marissa apparently didn’t grasp that simple concept the first time.

“Mated, as in bonded at a deeper level. It’s why you can feel things about him.”

“But he didn’t bite me.” Daphne knew about shifter claiming, and Baptiste had done many things—licked, sucked, nibbled, penetrated—but not once did he chomp down on her skin.

“Don’t quote me, but I think the bite mark is more symbolic than anything. I believe a couple that is fated-to-be simply needs an intense moment, like sex, to forge the bond.”

“Oh.” For once Daphne had nothing to say.

“Are you okay with that?” Marissa carefully asked.

To which she retorted, “Jealous he’s mine?”

“Uh, no. He’s not my type, not to mention he only has eyes for you.”

“He’d better or I will pluck them like grapes.”

A vehement reply that led to Marissa chuckling. “Oh boy, you really do have the hots for him, and I get the sense the feeling is mutual. You should have seen how frantic he was when he was in that cell at the CA office. He only wanted to escape so he could go to your rescue.”

“And now you see why I have to do the same. No matter the danger,” Daphne swore.

“I get it. We’ll find a way.”

The promise and use of we had Daphne frowning. “Why are you helping me?”

“Because while we might have only recently met, I like you.” Marissa grinned in her direction. “Not to mention, we’ve shared a home-cooked breakfast. That makes us friends.”

“You do make excellent bacon.”

“Can’t believe your mate doesn’t eat any. A non-carnivore wolf. It’s not right,” Marissa muttered, shaking her head.

“It makes him unique,” Daphne agreed. Part of why she liked him.

Entering Nexus, Daphne felt the difference, a slight shiver that had Marissa remarking, “What the fuck was that?”

“We’ve entered the Monster King’s domain,” she murmured.

“Have you met him?” Marissa inquired.

“No. But Mother claims so long as I don’t harm his subjects, he won’t bother me.”

“What about if his subjects are trying to kill you?”

“Self-defense is allowed. Just not active hunting. Mother claims it should not be an issue in his territory. The monsters know better than to disobey their king.”

“Wild fucking shit,” Marissa muttered. “An actual god living in a town.”

“Where does your goddess reside?”

“No idea. She just talks to me at random. We’ve never met. What about you and the Earth Mother?”

“She is the ground we walk upon. She is in every living plant.”

“Have you always been her champion?” Marissa asked as she paused at a stop sign and checked the screen with all kinds of lines that she called a map.

“No. I began as a simple dryad, gentle like my sisters of the grove. We danced. We weaved crowns of flowers. We ate the nectar of fruit and lay in the soft grasses with human men for pleasure. We lived carefree and happy.”

“This doesn’t sound like a story that ends well.”

“Because it doesn’t.” Daphne’s jaw stiffened. The tragedy might have happened centuries ago, but it remained vivid in her mind. “One day, while we were harvesting some honey from a nearby hive, the trees in our grove were cut down. A senseless act since their wood wasn’t the type good for building. The humans did it to trap us so we wouldn’t have a place to hide.” Daphne paused. “They had nets woven with iron and they threw them over my sisters and took them captive.”

“And you?”

“I hadn’t returned with them. I’d stopped to play in the river. By the time I made my way to the grove, the torture had begun. I heard their screams as my sisters were violated and mutilated.”

“Why didn’t your goddess save them?”

“The Mother isn’t one to act directly, and at night, she flees for the lands where the sun shines. There was no one to hear their cries but me.”

“What did you do?”

Daphne bowed her head. “I took the axe lying by the stump of my tree, and when the men fell asleep, I began chopping.” The blood had quickly rendered her grip slick and yet she’d kept swinging, the lifeless eyes of her sisters fueling her. The moans of those who’d survived giving her strength.

“How many did you kill?”

“There were six men. I killed three before the others woke.” They’d converged on her, angry and taunting her with the things they’d do once they managed to capture her. “I expected to die. Wanted to because of my grief. Instead, I discovered what I was capable of. The vinelike extension of my arm that I used to pluck fruit gave me the reach to strangle the closest attacker. My skin turned hard as bark, my body dense as the bole of my trunk, making their blows ineffectual. My fingers rooted around the haft of the axe, making sure I didn’t lose my grip.”

“You found your inner strength,” Marissa softly commented.

“I did, and in the morning, when the dawn bathed the bloody grove, the Mother returned and wept at what they’d done. The sisters who survived were inconsolable and so Mother took them into her bosom. But to me, she said, ‘You are the bough who did not break despite the storm. You are the stave against those who did evil. And for your bravery, I name thee the Earth’s Paladin, my champion.’”

“Wow. That’s intense. Do you like being a paladin?”

“Yes. There is satisfaction to be found in meting out justice for those who cannot achieve it on their own.”

“You’re basically a CA agent,” Marissa summarized.

“You work to protect humans. My task is guarding the Earth.” But then because that sounded harsh, Daphne added, “We are both important when it comes to providing safety to all.”

“We are. We’re here.”

Marissa parked in front of the building Nelly and Clive called home. Not the house where she’d first met them. Apparently, they’d borrowed that home. This was a much larger building that had several floors and what they called apartments specifically for CA agent use. Mostly empty since the Monster King came into power. As Nelly had stated, “Not much use for a Special Monster Unit when they’ve now got a big boss who makes sure they claw and paw the line.”

Daphne remembered how to reach Nelly’s door which opened before she could knock. “You made good time,” Nelly remarked, “But we’ll still be cutting it close to moon rise.”

“Hey.” Clive lifted his head from the computer he stared at for a moment. Daphne didn’t quite understand the strange contraption. Yet. She planned to learn.

“I have returned,” Daphne announced. “Do you have a plan for us to access this compound where Baptiste is being held?”

Clive pointed to his screen. “I think I’ve found a weak spot where we can get in unnoticed.”

With that opening statement, they put their heads together to plan. Quickly, though. Time was running out, the moon would rise soon, and to make matters worse, once the sun set, the Mother and her extra help would be gone.

But that wouldn’t stop Daphne from saving her beast.

I’m coming for you. And woe to any who stood in her way.