Zane - Confessions of a lycan

Chapter 15

Zane

Goddess, my little Mate was stubborn, but also admirable. The fact that she was willing to put her own comfort aside to help save the abducted she-wolves said something about her, and I couldn't fault her for that. But that didn't mean I wouldn't put her first whether she wanted me to or not. I carried her into my office and gently laid her down on the couch before pulling the blanket over her.

"Are you comfortable, wildflower?" She adjusted a corner pillow under her head, wiggling around a bit.

"I'm fine, Zane. Thank you" She gave me a shy smile. I could hardly believe that she was still shy after what we did this morning. But that´s part of her charm that I hope she never loses.

I leaned down and kissed her hair, gently running my thumb over her cheek. Time to get to work.

Lucien was trailing into the room behind us, giving Lily a genuine smile, which was astounding.

Lucien was one of the most serious men I knew. He could give a sly smile, or a charming one. But only in situations where he pretended to be someone he really wasn't. It warmed my heart that this amazing woman not only gave me another chance at happiness, but also managed to make my best friend smile.

When he saw me glaring with a dumbfound expression, he immediately turned serious. "Piss off, Z".

"Me?! What did I do?" I struggled to hold back a laugh.

"Seriously, one word and I'll drop you on your ass, boy." He said and looked so damn serious that I started laughing out loud before holding my hands up in a peaceful gesture. "I'm not saying anything. My lips are sealed"

His eyes narrowed at me, but then broke out into a deep laugh of his own. Holy sh*t... so that's what he sounds like.

Much to my surprise, my friend came over and gave me a bear hug. He hadn't done that in over 87 years, not since that one time... Fu*k, I could feel myself getting emotional. "I'm just so bloody happy for you, Z. You deserve to be happy."

Swallowing back my emotions, I patted my friend on the back and pulled back.

"You deserve it too, old friend. Next time it's your turn." The look he gave me was so resigned that I felt a stitch in my heart.

I myself had that same look just yesterday morning.

"Hey brother, cheer up. Whoever she is, we'll find her. When this is over, maybe it's time to travel around? I'm sure Lily would be more than happy to explore the world. Or what do you say, wildflower?” I looked over at Lily, who had pulled herself up, leaning up on her elbow on the couch, watching us intently. "Yes, I would really like that." I could sense her honesty, as I have noticed that her emotions were always reflected in her face.

"I could never intrude on your new life together. Even if you do me the honor of offering it."

I have no patience for this kind of sh*t. I grabbed the back of his neck and stared into his eyes to lay the truth down for him.

"Oh, for fu*k sake. Put away your formal bullsh*t, your pompous prick. We're family and family sticks together. Do you hear what I'm saying?" For the first time ever, I saw tears in Lucien's eyes, as he struggled to hold back his emotions.

The last 24 hours really couldn't get any weirder. I gave him a quick pat a the back. "Come on, old man. Time to get to work"

He gave me a half smile and nodded, pulling himself together.

I looked at Lily, who quickly wiped away a tear. The fact that she had so much empathy that she was touched by the feelings of others made me wonder how I could be worthy of such a wonderful being.

I rolled up the curtain that covered the whiteboard where we set up the timeline of the abductions.

"Okay, listen up. This is what we know. The first abduction was in a wolfpack in Utah. Then you can follow the tracks in a crooked path all the way to the Shadow moon pack, 2 hours outside of New York where the last known abduction happened. The problem with knowing where they intend to strike next is that there are many smaller packs throughout the central and southern United States. But we do know which ones they won't go for.”

"How do you know that?" Lily looked at me with her gorgeous blue eyes, while her chestnut-colored hair fell over one of her shoulders. Goddess, she was beautiful. Fu*k what was I talking about? Mental note, keep your eyes on the board. Think about sweaty, smelly feet.

I pointed to the list we'd created and hung on the whiteboard.

"This is a ranking list. Beginning with the largest and strongest packs in the United States and Canada. All packs that have had disappearances have some common problems. They have too many young, permanently injured, or low-ranking members in their packs. Where there aren´t enough warriors to be able to protect them. As you can see here, we've drawn a red line on the list where the weaker, more vulnerable packs begin and everyone written over the red line we've crossed off as least likely targets for an attack against their she-wolfs. The blue dot on the side of a pack name are the packs that have already been affected and, as you can see, they are all below the red line. Which leaves 25 packs around the same area as the last abductions which may be possible targets.”

"My stepmother drugged me. I doubt she'd be able to carry me out by herself and I'm pretty sure she wouldn't be able to do it without being seen. As much as I don't want to go back to that hellhole, we should travel there to interrogate her. She may have important information that can lead us further," Lily said with conviction.

“We´re already one step ahead of you, sweetheart. The information regarding your disappearance came to us last night before we left to attend the auction at Nola's gentleman's club. I called my brother Damien and my twin cousins Tristan and Theo before we left the apartment yesterday. They are on their way to the Blood moon pack as we speak."

Lily

Oh, my goodness. They are on their way to interrogate my stepmother. Who had reported me missing? Cassie? I didn't know what to say, to think. "Lily, are you all right? I know they are your biological family, but if they are behind your abduction they need to be brought to justice. I hope you understand that and don't get too upset with me." That snapped me out of my thoughts.

"Upset with you? Why would I be? I hope that b***h gets what she deserves, and that karma eats her alive!"

Zane dramatically placed his hand on his chest and looked at me with a shocked expression. "Who are you and what have you done with my little wildflower? I'm sure my mate said she wasn't a kitten with claws, so who are you? A changeling??"

That silly man. I had a hard time holding back a laugh at his antics. "That's because I'm not a tame little kitten you silly Lycan. I'm a goddamn tiger." Zane threw his head back and gave a full belly laugh. Even Lucien looked like he was having trouble holding back.

"Come here my little wildcat." Zane dropped to his knees next to the couch and gave me a tender kiss. "You´re precious, wildflower." My shyness flared as I nuzzled him, feeling his smile against my red cheeks.

"Are you two lovebirds ready to continue?" Lucien stood with his arms crossed and looked at us with an arrogantly raised eyebrow. Even my ears were probably red by now. Zane seemed pretty unfazed though.

He gave me one of his gorgeous sly smirks before he got up and walked back to the whiteboard.

"How have the other she-wolves been abducted? Has anyone been found who was reported missing?"

I really had a hundred questions. Lucien looked troubled as he ran a hand through his thick black hair. This couldn't be good.

"Well, the other she-wolves have been ambushed and abducted outside of the pack borders. Our theory is that they have gathered information about each pack's condition, their defense, she-wolves and such. That they then monitor the borders waiting for the females they have chosen to leave the premises, then they strike. We haven’t had a single witness or lead until you came along, unfortunately. And regarding whether we found any of the missing women, the answer is yes.”

"Okay, but the women you recovered must have seen something, right?” Zane didn't meet my gaze as he stared at the whiteboard.

I could tell by his rigid shoulders that he was tense. I looked at Lucien, who looked dejected. This didn't bode well.

"We found three of the missing she-wolves but they were deceased. I'm sorry Lily". Lucien answered me while Zane was looking sad. This wasn´t their fault. I felt my heartstrings tighten. Grief for these unknown women who met a terrible fate.

Goddess, what if we find Rose dead somewhere? She was already so broken by the fate she was about to meet.

I felt something cold brush gently against my hair. Looking up, I meet Lucien's red gaze.

"Your compassion for others is astounding. Especially considering how you have been treated throughout your life. I know this is hard but with your testimony we may be one step closer to revealing the culprits behind this."

I´m shocked Zane would let another man be this close to me, much less touch me. Alpha were-wolves tend to be extremely possessive. I couldn't imagine anything other than a Lycan being ten times worse.

These two must truly love each other as brothers for him to allow it. So for the first time I allowed myself to truly relax under Lucien's gaze and trust the vampire in front of me.

"It's hard, but nothing I'm not willing to go through. But when you told me about the she-wolves that were found dead, I thought of the girl I met when I was sitting in the cage in the basement." Lucien tilted his head and sat down and crossed his legs, completely focused on me. I no longer felt uncomfortable around him, but rather safe.

"Her name is Rose. She had given up, broken under the harsh reality that had become our new existence. She was first up for auction yesterday. I don't know who bought her or what terrible things she is going through. So, for her and everyone else in the same situation, I intend to fight through all obstacles, physical and emotional. I can only pray to the goddess that they stay alive in the meantime. But I'm afraid that even if we were to find those who were abducted, that they would only be shells of themselves."

Lucien looked at me seriously and gently took my hand between his two cold ones.

"As long as there's life there's hope, Lily, remember that".

"I guess what you say is true Lucien and I'll try to remember that. But my life has also taught me that death is easy, life is hard. So even if we find them, will they choose life?” Both looked at me seriously, with sadness in their eyes, taking in my words.

What more is there to say? I could only pray that we find them and that we will be able to reunite them with their families again, hoping that they choose life..