Her Mortal Mate

Chapter Thirteen: Waiting Game

Jadea

"Alright," Nikolai started when I joined the other alphas and betas at the table. Blade being the only other wolf there, but I wouldn't have had it any other way. He was a part of my pack and would be in the thick of everything. He had every right to be here to put his own thoughts in the mix and debate about the plans as we hammered them out. The Russian alpha's stormy gaze met mine from across the table. "I've already sent Allen ahead to track Adam," he said confidently. "He knows he has only twenty four hours to find him. While he is working, we need to come up with our own plan on how to proceed if he does or doesn't find your mate."

I nodded. "I believe either way, we should 'walk' into the trap they have laid out for us."

"I agree. That way we can hopefully identify who they truly are." I was glad we were on the same page.

"If Adam is found, we should hold off on extracting him until after Jadea and her pack have met with the other party," Lance added. "That way, we hopefully won't spook them and we can take them all into custody."

Lance's suggestion was sound. If we extracted Adam right when we found him, we wouldn't ever get the chance to identify who this dangerous pack was or who was calling the shots. “I’m okay with that, unless he is severely injured and in need of immediate assistance.” While I was okay not extracting him right away in order to get all of the bad guys, I did want to make it clear I wasn’t going to allow him to die for the opportunity to catch them.

“Of course.” Nikolai agreed.

"Alright, so if Allen locates Adam, I will send Caden down with Garret, Rick and Andy--

"If you think I'm going to leave your side," Garret started with a defiant growl deep in his chest, turning to look me dead in the eye.

"She'll need a clear line of communication," Lance cut Garret off before I could. "Yes, I'm sure she is close to Caden, but he isn't an alpha nor a part of her pack," he stated pointedly before Garret could suggest as much. "It would take more concentration and a great deal more time to connect with him and visa versa. If she will be relying on when to strike the vigilante pack, she will need to know when Adam has been safely extracted. And, the extraction team will not want to strike until after she has made direct contact with the opposing pack. It makes sense to have someone from her pack be with the extraction team," Lance backed me up much to Garret's disappointment.

"Why can't we send Derrick?" Garret suggested. "My mind reading capabilities will be more useful with you instead of with Adam."

"If it is my family who is behind this," I started gently. "They know I am a manipulator, Garret. They wouldn't attack me or trap me and force me into a kind of servitude if they weren't protected in some way. And we may not have Derrick in time.”

"You think they have a shield?" Nikolai asked.

"It would make the most logical sense," I replied to the Russian alpha, glancing at him before turning back to Garret. "Your mind reading capabilities would then be useless. If I send you with Caden to extract Adam, they will not be expecting you, or anyone really. You will have the most luck there by reading their minds, because I highly doubt they will have a shield at both locations."

I knew Garret really wanted to argue but he finally relented after a little critical deliberation.

"And," I added a little gentler, "It would put me at ease with you there. Adam won't know anyone else. It would be good to have a friendly face, to know he is being rescued and not transported to another unknown location with strangers."

"So, your adversary is expecting you to track their scent into a trap. Once you walk into their clutches, we will release Adam and let you know so you can whip their asses and take them into custody," Caden summarized.

"My pack and I will follow at a distance and wait until Adam has been recovered before joining you in apprehending them," Nikolai stated.

"I would greatly appreciate that. I'm unsure of how many there are, but we have identified almost a dozen individual scents."

"A rather large pack," Caden mumbled under his breath and I knew he was wracking his brain trying to think of who--in North America--had such a substantial pack.

"There could be more than one pack working together," I said gently.

"What if Adam is unrecoverable?" Lance pressed.

"Then I will have no choice but to comply with their demands," I stated without hesitation. "I have to try to give Adam as much time to be rescued as possible."

"In that instance, we will keep our distance and continue to track you and search for Adam," Nikolai reassured.

I nodded, hoping it didn't come to that. There were a few other minor details that were worked out before we agreed we were as ready as could be. "We should all try to get some rest while we wait for Allen's response," Nikolai encouraged.

As much as I wanted to take him up on his advice, my mind was racing a mile a minute. I'd already rested. We were all playing the waiting game.

Caden stayed with me as I paced a hole in the living room floor. "Would you like me to distract you?" he offered, a playful smirk on his face.

I leveled him with a glare, not in the mood for playful banter.

His hands shot up in a sign of peace. "Just an offer."

I rolled my eyes before walking over to the window and staring out into the little garden. I closed my eyes and reached out into the empty space with a heartfelt prayer. One I hoped would reach the edges of Adam's subconscious and let him know I was on my way and doing everything I could to rescue him.

I couldn't tell you how long I stood there for, staring off into space, but when I was snapped out of my reverie, the sky was starting to darken.

"Jadea?" Lance called again and I realized he'd said my name a few times.

I slowly turned to face him and I instantly knew they'd found him. But, by the guarded look in his eyes, I wasn't going to like what they had found.

"Is he...?"

"Dead? No."

Relief washed over me. Whatever he said next, I knew I could handle.

Except, when I refocused and saw the others standing stoically behind him, I wasn't so sure about my resolve. Why did they have such gloomy expressions? My stomach bottomed out. What had they done to him?

"But, by the time you get to the meeting point, he might be," Lance said gently.