31. Ryan

Chapter thirty-one

Ryan

T he stale coffee did little to sharpen my focus as I stared down at the detailed schematics laid out across the dining room table. Around me, the low murmur of voices droned on, my enforcers immersed in debate over entry points and extraction routes. I should have been right there with them, laser focused on finalizing our plans to raid the old forestry station north of town. Instead, my mind kept drifting. To what Camille had said about the True Shift. Was it possible? Or a kid's story? What could I do if I had that power? What would it mean for our Pack, for Mai? I'd be able to protect her better, could make sure that no one ever threatened her again. How had Brock done it? If he had managed to make a deal with the Dark Goddess, it could change everything. Right now, all I had was myths, legends, and guesses.

I shook my head, attempting to steer my thoughts back to the task at hand, and cleared my throat. The chatter in the room died down as all eyes turned my way.

"Waylen, what have you been able to find about the site? "

Waylen perked up from his slouched posture, pushing his green glasses up his nose. "I haven't gotten much from satellite images, nothing recent anyway. But I did manage to enhance and stitch together some older aerial shots to get a rough blueprint of the station's layout."

He pointed to a section of the crude map laid out on the table. "From what I can tell, there are a few structures that could be used for holding prisoners. This larger outbuilding here, or some of the storage sheds over in this area."

I saw Mai lean forward as she studied the spots Waylen had pointed to. I knew finding any trace of Jem was her top priority in all this, however slim the odds. The fierce hope in her eyes made my chest ache. I wished I could promise her that we'd bring her brother home safe. But I knew better than to make guarantees I couldn't keep.

"Waylen also managed to dig up ownership records for that shell company, Blackthorn Holdings," Derek added gruffly. "Took some creative hacking, but he was able to follow the trail back to a distant cousin of Brock's."

I nodded, unsurprised, but we needed concrete evidence tying him to the ripple operation.

"Hopefully this raid can not only get us Jem, but maybe there's some paperwork we can use to link Brock to his other operations." I said. "Anything you can retrieve linking Brock directly to distribution could be the proof we need to take to the Wolf Council."

"I'll sweep their system when we're in," Waylen assured me. Tech geniuses like him were invaluable for missions like this.

"You're going?" Mai asked, sounding surprised .

Waylen flicked his gaze between me, Sam, and Mason before frowning slightly at Mai. "Just because I'm the tech guy doesn't mean I sit in a dark room all day. You werewolves don't get to have all the fun!"

"He'll be well protected, Mai," Sam smiled at her. "And we've found him to be crucial in the field. He can access computers on site, bypass security systems and hack almost anything we put in front of him. It saves time, and in previous cases, saved lives."

Mai nodded, but she still looked uncomfortable with the idea.

"Sam, you're next." He'd headed out there as soon as I texted him the details and had got back about ten minutes ago.

"The area is crawling with goons, that's for sure. I saw fifteen to twenty guards around the perimeter."

The numbers were higher than I'd hoped, but not surprising. Brock would guard his secrets fiercely.

"How many enforcers can we spare?" asked Mai.

Mason squeezed a tennis ball in one hand. He was going to burst another one in a minute. He'd been working on the damn thing ever since we dropped Shya back home. "Not many. There are fifteen Renegades. We know we can rely on them, which is why they are either guarding the growing amount of prisoners we have or watching our borders. Korrin's attack has unsettled a lot of people. They thought with Brock and Hayley gone, the chaos of the last few weeks had passed. They're scared. An attack right in the heart of the Three Rivers has made some question if you're both up to the Alpha job."

Fabulous. Just what we needed right now .

"Keep them on the borders. We need to secure the Pack and make sure there are no more attacks. But Brock is the priority. Then we'll address any doubts in the Pack."

Mason nodded. "We can probably spare five Renegades. After this latest crisis is over, we'll increase recruitment. We've had a lot of interest but haven't had time to assess their loyalty or their skills. We'll take another five from our agency. The rest are on mission down south, following the ripple supply lines."

Five Renegades, five of Sam and Mason's guys, plus me and my brothers, that made fourteen. Fifteen if you included Waylen, but he wasn't a fighter. Plus however many men Ronnie took with him. The element of surprise would work in our favor—Brock had no reason to expect us to come crashing through his doors unannounced.

I glanced at Mai, knowing she was about to lose her shit.

"You can't come, Mai. You need to be here."

I started counting in my head, one, tw—

"You are out of your fucking mind, Ryan Shaw, if you think I'm staying behind while you walk in there. Not this time."

"Okay."

Mai paused, her mouth open to argue with me more. "Okay?" she said, her voice full of suspicion.

"I can't stop you from going. We just need to work out who will stay. As Mason pointed out, the Pack is nervous right now. We need someone who can settle nerves, someone with authority. Talia and the Wolf Council will also need an answer in three hours. So whoever stays behind will need to be trusted to give our nomination."

She looked at me sharply, and I knew she'd realized that it could only be her. She folded her arms across her chest and glared at me .

"Don't think I can't see how neatly you're maneuvering me into staying."

"So, you will stay?"

"Fine," she bit out the word.

I nodded, trying not to show how fucking relieved both me and my wolf were that she wouldn't be part of this fight.

"Alright, we move out in thirty. Get anything you need and meet me by the cars." I swept my gaze over each of my brothers and enforcers, watching their spines straighten and chins lift at my words. They were ready. So was I.