Break

Chapter 1 Dru Death. His own death more specifically. It was something Dru had been thinking about a lot lately. He also knew it was something his pack had on their minds as well. His bear was close to going feral. Every day he felt angrier, less stable and more beast than man. Each day brought the hope that he would find her, his mate. Unlike his other pack mates, he wasn’t simply waiting to meet the unknown by chance, he knew exactly who his mate was. Her name was Annie. She had beautiful blue eyes and skin as soft as velvet. The night he had laid with her, their mate bond had tangled them together for life. Then just as suddenly, life had ripped them apart. The only way Dru knew she was still alive was because he was. There was never a day that went by that Dru didn’t spend some portion, if not all of it, searching for her. Vincent Stonelli had taken her from him, and when the time came, Dru would rip the flesh from the man’s very body for his crime. Until Dru found his sweet Annie though, Vincent Stonelli would live. He was currently incarcerated at the local prison for his crimes against society over the past two decades. That part gave Dru some satisfaction, but not much. “Dru,” Terrell called, snapping Dru out of his dark thoughts. “Yes?” “We just got a call about a young woman being picked up down by the old park for selling drugs. The drugs are a match to some of Stonelli’s remaining stash still circulating the area.” “I want a sit down with this woman,” Dru said, rushing past Terrell. “They figured as much. They have her down at the precinct, waiting for you.” Dru didn’t say anything else before he slammed the main door behind him and headed for his truck. Every time they got a call about a woman with possible connections to Stonelli, Dru’s heart would clench with excitement. After the first several disappointments, Dru tried to reason with his bear to not get excited with each new possibility, but it never worked. Every single call, his bear reacted the same; full of hope and excitement. It was the only time Dru felt anything other than rage and despair anymore. He pulled up to the precinct in record time and hurried inside. “Hey, Bills, we were waiting for you. She’s in interrogation room three,” Josh called upon seeing Dru. Dru nodded his confirmation and then headed towards the room. With a deep breath, he threw the door open. His eyes cascaded down the woman, and his heart sunk. His bear deflated a bit sadder and closer to death at the realization the woman was not their Annie. After a brief second of mourning, he gathered himself together to begin his interview of the woman. If nothing else, there was always the chance that the woman knew his Annie. “Hello,” he said gruffly. Her eyes darted to his, and then immediately went downcast. That was a tell-tale sign that she had been trained to endure an interrogation, probably even torture. Dru tightened his hand into a fist, and then released it when he saw her watching him do it. “Are you the only woman where you’ve been staying?” She looked at him questioningly. No doubt she had been waiting for him to ask her about the drugs, or where she had gotten them. Dru knew better than to start off with those questions. Instead of verbally responding, she shook her head. “Has anyone offered you anything to drink or eat?” Again, she looked at him not sure what to make of his tactics. Dru could see that she was afraid to take him at face value. He was being nice to her, and it was something she wasn’t used to. “I would like something to eat and drink,” she finally whispered. “Perfect. Anything in particular?” “A hamburger, and a coke?” “Classic, I like it.” Dru pulled out his phone and shot Terrell a text to pick him up food and immediately bring it to the precinct. Once he put his phone back in his pocket, he turned his focused back on the woman. “It’ll be here shortly.” He didn’t say anything for a minute, giving her time to consider speaking to him first. She didn’t, but Dru wasn’t deterred. “I know a woman that’s now a part of my pack that had spent several years under Stonelli’s thumb. If you’d feel more comfortable speaking with her, I could easily get her down here?” They never took him up on his offer to send for Autumn. He knew they wouldn’t, it was the offer that counted though. The fact that he had offered to bring them a female companion, that helped win them over a bit more. The woman shook her head again. “May I ask your name? My name is Dru Bills, and I am the Alpha of my pack, and the leader of the ZPO which has been working tirelessly on taking drugs out of the valley.” She studied him carefully before she responded. “I’ve heard about you,” she responded. “Oh really? Might I ask from who?” She shrugged, which infuriated Dru. He turned his back to her so that she wouldn’t be able to see the anger he knew was showing in his eyes. The closer he got to going feral, the harder it was to hide his emotions, especially anger. Once he got his anger under control, he turned back to the woman and offered her a half smile. “Do you take the drugs yourself, or just sell them?” he asked casually. “Um, both,” she hesitantly responded. Dru nodded. “Does your husband or the other people living with you take them as well?” “I, um, I haven’t seen my husband in almost ten years.” “Is he not living with you then? If you give me his name, I would be happy to notify him that you’ve been found.” She shook her head as tears began to fall down her face. She wiped them away angrily, piquing Dru’s curiosity. “Ma’am, I am trying to help you. Please give me something?” “I can’t!” she sobbed, slamming her hands down on the counter. “Why not?” Dru responded, raising his voice as well. “He will kill my husband, my parents, everyone I hold dear; he will kill them.” “Stonelli can’t harm your family any longer. He’s in prison.” She shook her head, looking annoyed. “Stonelli may be the face of the monster, but he’s not the brains or the power.” “What do you mean?” “I can’t say any more. You have to let me out of here. I’m begging you. He will kill my family.” “I can help you,” Dru countered. “No, you can’t. There is nothing you all can do. If you have any humanity in you at all, you will let me go.” A knock sounded on the door, disrupting their argument. Dru paused before he went to open it, starring the woman down hoping to break her. She remained steadfast, looking back at him determined. Terrell opened the door and held up the fast food bags. Dru took them and nodded his gratitude. Silence hung between them as Dru divided up the food. Once he had hers in front of her, he grabbed himself one of the hamburgers and leaned against the wall to eat it. Dru smirked a bit at what Stephanie, Jake’s mate, would say to him about eating the fast food burger. Now that Stephanie and Jake’s baby girl was old enough to start eating table foods, Stephanie had enforced a strict clean eating rule for the pack. Dru obliged when he had too, but he would never give up his greasy, fast food burgers. The woman dug into her food with gusto. Before Dru could even finish his first burger, the woman had devoured her entire meal and was slurping on her coke. “Do you all not have adequate food where you’re staying?” “Staying,” she snorted, rolling her eyes. “I’m sorry?” “You made it sound as though we had a choose. As if we’re on some sort of vacation. No, we don’t have adequate food. They give us enough to barely keep us alive. We make sure the kid’s full first, then go from there. It’s a real good time.” “Let me help you,” Dru urged, setting his half-eaten burger down and leaning over the table. She peered up at him, her eyes showing her slow resolve. Dru slammed his hand down on the desk, causing the woman to jump. Then her eyes locked on to the small tattoo he had on his ring finger. “You’re him,” she said, her eyes flying back up to Dru’s. “Him, who?” “You’re Annie’s Dru.”