Chapter 18

M aisie. Maisie.

There was only one thought running through Rhys's head as he sprinted down the street with Euan and Trent by his side, trying to keep the rapidly disappearing shape of Maisie and the enormous bird that had taken her in sight. That, and the furious shrieking of his griffin.

As soon as he reached a slightly quieter place, he would shift and fly after them. There was a park coming up ahead with a fair few trees in it where he should be able to at least shift while hidden from view.

His phone buzzed with an email notification, and he yanked it from his pocket.

Michael.

Maybe he'd finally sent those files he'd promised now that whatever quokka-looking tour group he'd been performing for had moved on.

Rhys tapped at the screen impatiently, not breaking his stride.

hey, it read. here are those files i was talking abt. becus ur technologically iliterate, iv scrubbed the identifing info from the data. fwd it to whoevr u need to. in anticpation of ur enormous gratitude, i will say ur welcome in advance.

Rhys scrolled quickly through the documents, but there was just way too much for him to sift through right now. He knew, however, that Michael wouldn't have sent them through if they hadn't been important.

He really would have to say thank you to Michael later. Or at least send him a dodgy gift basket full of shitty food, which Michael would probably prefer, anyway.

Ducking into the stand of trees, he hesitated for a moment, before, forcing himself to be decisive, he forwarded the documents to Robb.

Could he trust Robb?

… He wanted to. He thought he did. Robb had never given him reason in the past not to trust him, and he wanted to think that the distance he'd kept lately was solely due to following proper procedures during the investigation and suspension.

Either way, he had no choice. These other Agency guys were apparently going to stop at nothing to get Maisie, unless orders came down from above telling them otherwise.

Well, he hoped. Right now, he wasn't sure if there was anyone he could trust. The news about Aaron Merrett was still fresh in his mind, and if even someone who seemed as solid as Aaron could be a mole, then anyone could be suspect.

"Michael came through for us with information about what's been going on," he said to the other two, who looked grave. "I've forwarded what he gave me to Robb. Here's hoping he tells these idiots to knock it off."

"He'll do whatever's right," Euan said seriously. "Robb is the best of us."

"I hope you're right," Rhys said, trying to keep any doubt out of his voice.

Trent squinted as he followed the flight of the enormous bird. "You shift and go after them now," he said. "We'll stay back and hold the others off as much as we can – they'll catch up to us pretty soon, I reckon."

Rhys nodded. "Thanks. I owe you one."

"Damn right you do," Trent said cheerfully. "I accept payment in parmi and beer. Steak is also acceptable."

"Ignore this idiot," said Euan. "Go."

Rhys shifted without another word, running from the trees and launching himself into the air. The area seemed quiet – probably everyone was off gawking at the crocodile – but he didn't really care, anyway.

His griffin zeroed in on Maisie and her abductor within a split second, its eagle eyes locating them with ease. Well, it was a giant bird, he supposed – it wasn't exactly inconspicuous.

Haast's eagle, the griffin hissed. Extinct bird from New Zealand. It could pick up an entire moa bird in its talons. It is a very dangerous foe.

Rhys supposed that if nothing else, his griffin's half-eagle nature and its encyclopedic knowledge of birds came in handy sometimes.

I don't care what it is or what it can pick up, he told the griffin. All I care about is getting our mate back.

That, at least, the griffin could agree with.

Letting out a furious screech, Rhys powered himself forward with mighty beats of his wings. The eagle might have been big and fast, but he was bigger and faster still. And he was fighting for his mate – there was nothing he couldn't do when Maisie's safety was on the line.

It might have been just his imagination, but he thought he saw the eagle – The Haast's eagle! his griffin insisted – glance backward over its shoulder at the sound of Rhys's infuriated screech, and then speed up a little in its flight.

That's right, you better be nervous, you feathered piece of shit, Rhys thought, his rage only lending him more speed.

The eagle changed course, heading slightly further west, and Rhys followed.

It's heading for Castle Hill.

He had no idea why it thought taking Maisie there was a good idea. He also had no idea who might be waiting for them up there.

I don't give a shit, Rhys thought, putting on another burst of speed.

He hoped if the eagle did, for some reason, wish Maisie harm, then it would have shown some sign of that before now. But all it was doing was carrying her.

But Rhys couldn't stop thinking about Robb's voice as he'd told him that all the men – except for Brent – who'd attacked him were now dead.

At the time, it had struck him as strange, but it wasn't as if it was the first time something like that had happened. Now, with everything he knew, Rhys was doubtful he'd gotten the whole truth.

Maybe those men didn't kill themselves rather than reveal the truth after all. Maybe they were murdered to shut them up.

If there was something rotten in the Agency, then that was a distinct possibility. And it meant that Maisie might be in serious danger. The eagle might be planning to kill her, not just keep her in custody in order to question her.

If he drops her, I'll catch her. And if he doesn't, I'll chase him to the ends of the earth to get her back.

It seemed the eagle really was heading toward Castle Hill, looming up over the city like a hunchbacked mountain.

I'll catch it before it gets there.

He could see Maisie's silhouetted form, clutched in the eagle's talons. And, with his eagle's vision, he could see that she wasn't hurt – but she was beating on the eagle's talons with her fists, which Rhys didn't think was a great idea when she was so high up. But he couldn't exactly say he blamed her either.

She knows we will catch her if she falls, his griffin growled. And we will.

He was catching up with the eagle now, and the eagle seemed to know it. It was beating its wings desperately, but even with the head start it had had, there was no way it could outrun a pissed-off griffin who was protecting its mate.

How will we get Maisie out of its talons without hurting her, though? Rhys wondered, as he gained on it. I don't want her to be any more frightened than she already is.

We will know what to do when the time is right, the griffin said, and Rhys just had to trust it was correct. In any case, the right time was coming up fast – he'd just have to think of something.

The eagle seemed to sense his proximity and it dipped its wings suddenly, plummeting a short way – Rhys heard Maisie's short, sharp scream as it dropped through the air, and red misted his vision.

Out mate! Our mate!

With difficulty, Rhys tried to wrestle his mind back from the griffin's control. If he wasn't careful, it would take over his mind, and then he didn't know what would happen. There'd been cases of shifters – even someone like Euan – who'd lost control of their animal sides and let it take them over, and had woken up covered in the blood of the people they'd unknowingly killed while the animal's rage had taken over their minds. The only way to deal with it was to suppress their animal side so hard that it could never emerge again – and lose the ability to shift along with it.

If I do that, we're both dead, Rhys tried to tell the griffin as it raged within him, screaming for the blood of whoever would dare to harm its mate. We have to work together. Do you understand?

But the griffin wasn't having it. The sound of Maisie's scream had unlocked something within him that he couldn't push back down. He'd always known the mate bond was strong, but he'd never known a power like this before.

Rhys struggled against it, and managed to claw back a little control. He couldn't just allow the griffin to take over here – at times like this, it was nothing but pure rage. But he knew he'd need his wits about him if Maisie wasn't going to be hurt.

You hear me? He shouted at the griffin. Maisie's life is on the line here. Calm the fuck down!

That at least seemed to pull the griffin back from whatever rampage it was on the brink of. The thought of Maisie being harmed sent a cold shiver straight through him.

Okay. We have to think.

The eagle had a tight grip on Maisie, its talons wrapped around her upper arms. Rhys knew he'd have to force it to land somehow – and the closest place for it to do that was on the top of Castle Hill. He didn't think he'd be able to force it down into the town itself – the eagle would probably resist doing that, as it would expose both of them to human eyes.

I'll do it if I have to, Rhys thought, but it'll be a last resort. Castle Hill is my best option.

Rhys's griffin let out a screech of fury, and then it too folded its wings and followed the eagle down. The eagle had pulled up from its dive and was now weaving through the sky, clearly trying to evade him, but Rhys was not only faster than it, it also seemed he was more maneuverable.

He matched the eagle pace for pace, swooping down from above before swerving around it, driving it closer and closer to the mountain, forcing it to lose speed and altitude as it went.

Please hang on, Maisie, Rhys thought desperately, though he knew this had to be completely terrifying for her. I have to end this.

He dropped a little, before leveling out and coming up below the eagle. Maisie's face was white with fear, and, far from the beating she'd been giving the eagle's talons before, now she was hanging on to them for dear life.

I'm sorry, Maisie, Rhys tried to – somehow – psychically transmit to her. I'll get you out of here. I promise.

And somehow, maybe, Maisie could understand him.

He saw the ghost of a smile pass over her face, and she nodded, her dark blonde hair whipping across her face in the wind.

Somehow, Rhys could sense the trust she was placing in him. He might have been sure that no matter what, he'd keep her safe. But she also seemed to believe it just as strongly.

Determination rose up in him, stronger even than before. I won't let you down, Maisie. Not now, not ever.

He had to finish this. He had to get Maisie back to solid earth. Beating his wings, he rose higher once more.

Screeching again, this time Rhys dive bombed the eagle from above, forcing it to lose even more height. Below them, Rhys could see Castle Hill, with its flat, lightly forested top the perfect place for two large, winged creatures to land.

He kept harrying, driving the eagle down, shepherding it when it tried to veer away and fly back out over either the city itself or the ocean. Despite the fact it was also a shifter, Rhys could see it tiring.

But he had no such concerns. The thought of saving Maisie meant that physical concerns meant nothing to him. He felt no fatigue. Only determination.

He dropped height again, trying to push the eagle down. But this time the eagle, clearly at the end of its stamina, fluttered weakly, doing the flight equivalent of staggering.

And that was all it took.

The eagle went off-balance, the high winds battering it as its wings went out of kilter. It didn't help of course that it was carrying extra weight in the form of Maisie, and it couldn't seem to figure out how to right itself while still carrying her.

Shit! Rhys thought – the eagle was flapping and tumbling, and any moment now, Rhys could see it was going to –

It opened its talons.

Maisie fell.