Urquia

Chapter 16: Complications arose, ensued, were overcome. Part 1

*Author POV*

Monday, 5 AM. Andrea, on her back porch, absentmindedly gazed at the forest, her thoughts consumed by Nathan. A warm blush spread across her cheeks as she remembered the hot kiss they shared and the best date she'd ever had. She realized he hadn't left her mind since their encounter at the airport.

She'd never experienced such a connection, not during her marriage or before. The flirting felt natural, not forced; she didn't even want to hide her attraction to him. Even though he was a huge werewolf, she never felt in danger. Instead, a deep sense of calm settled over her. She felt safe enough to let her guard down and be vulnerable.

Gosh, she even told him about that horrible week, a secret only Cris knew, not even her parents. In his eyes, she saw no pity, only pure rage, just like the anger she felt inside, as if he wanted to avenge her.

She saw his admiration, as if she were a heroine capable of anything. He relaxed under her touch, and she liked how he reacted to her. He didn't treat her as fragile; instead, she saw pride in his eyes. When he kissed her, it felt like he was making a promise: to always be there, never to let go, to love and cherish her. When he told her directly that he wanted her, she truly believed him.

But now? She'd have to tell him everything, lay it all out. She had to be honest. Her life was dangerous, and he and his pack were in danger. Maybe he'd change his mind after knowing what he was signing up for.

She sighed, the sound catching in her throat, and prepared herself for this long week.

She opened her phone and saw the message Cris wrote to him when she was torturing those fuckers. 'Will he still like her when she comes clean?' She knew wolves often had tempers and mood swings. 'Will he forgive her for what she has to do to the men following her?' They were his friends and pack mates, after all, but she had to test them. She had to be sure.

Knowing they mostly followed her, she had to distract them, perhaps taking them one by one. Cris made a plan with her: first, preparing the cells. It had been a long time since they captured a shifter, and this was their first time without their dad leading them. This time it was a bit trickier because they didn't want to harm them. They knew how to make a cell warded; they used old runes on the walls and iron chains, so they didn't need to use silver, which they knew would severely harm them.

They prepared wolfbane darts to weaken them and made special darts to drug them so they wouldn't be able to shift or use the mind-link.

After her training, Andy made breakfast, prepared lunch for the kids, and fed the chickens. At 7:30 AM, she decided to take the dogs for a long run, a routine she normally followed every other day. She stopped for a drink at the start of a park.

The sun was already warm on her skin, and the air smelled faintly of damp earth and blossoming trees.

She looked up at a four-story building, 600 yards away at her 11 o'clock, and saw a light twinkle twice. As she turned to walk back, a few meters from her, Ramirez lay face down on the ground, sleeping like a baby.

She looked around, searching for witnesses. It was deserted at that time. She picked him up, cursing because he was heavier than she estimated, but she managed to put him over her shoulders like firefighters or soldiers do when they carry victims. 'He was like a werewolf scarf on her neck,' she thought to herself, a small huff of effort escaping her lips.

She carried him to a truck parked nearby, blindfolded him, put him in warded handcuffs and a choker, and gave him headphones so he wouldn't hear a thing.

The dose they used would last at least an hour. She chained him to the car in case he woke up. She drove with her dogs, listening to 'Little Big,' her favorite Russian band. They were crazy, and she loved it. By the time she arrived at the warehouse, Cris was already there. Andy parked next to the door.

When Cris came to the back of the truck, she said,

-"Can I touch it?" Looking at Andy's dart gun.

-"With all due respect, Simmons, I don't think you can handle my rod." said Andy.

They used to talk in quotes, drawing from many series, books, or movies they obsessed over. They'd often mix them up, quoting Lord of the Rings and ending with Pirates of the Caribbean. It was their secret language.

People around them always found them weird, but they didn't care. When some did get the quotes, they would try to do the same. But their memories weren't as good as Cris and Andy's, so they would end up even more confused.

When Andy was unloading Ramirez from her truck, Cris said, -"Slap me thrice and hand me to me, mama. It’s Jack!" Andy chuckled. They took him to the cell. They knew he might recognize their scent as soon as he'd wake up, but it didn't matter; they needed some answers.

Andy wondered how much time would pass until they noticed Ramirez missing. It was around 10 AM when she wrote to Nathan,

-"Good morning, sunshine, slept well?"

-"Good morning, princess, yes I did. How about you?"

-"Nah, I couldn't. I have lots of stuff to do today, so I won't be available. Hope you have a nice day. I'll text you when I get some free time."

-"Ok, princess, take care. Call me when you're done."

-"Ok, papi xoxo" she wrote hesitantly.

Being affectionate was new for her. She actually meant it as sarcasm. But the thing about text messages is that you really have to know the person to figure out the tone they use when they write. That's why when Nathan read "ok papi," he absolutely loved it. A small, private smile touched his lips.

('Papi' is 'daddy' in Spanish, an endearment nickname used by couples, mostly with kids.) He was so excited and happy all morning that he didn't notice Ramirez failed to call in his report.

It was Tom's shift, and he was supposed to tell them where they were. He got to Rami's car, sniffed, and noticed the scent was nearly gone, so he decided to follow it.

He went to the park, frowning. He smelled his Luna too, so he knew Rami was following her. She was running with the dogs as usual. He tried to mind-link him but couldn't; he called him but got no answer. A cold knot of worry tightened in his stomach.

He knew something was off. Rami was a delta, their best tracker. If something happened, he would have reported it. But he had just disappeared. 'To where? How did his scent fade just like that?' When he was about to call Nate, he spotted Cris walking.

'What is she doing here? She normally stays at home all day,' he thought to himself.

His wolf, Kai, agreed: 'Something is off.'

He decided to follow her. She turned to an alley a few streets away from him. When he stuck his head really quick to see where she was heading, he saw her fainted on the floor.

He didn't even think about looking around; he just bent down to check on her.

Suddenly, he felt a sting in his neck. Then another. He instinctively put his hand where he felt a burning sensation and took out a dart. A sharp, metallic tang filled his mouth, a taste of fear.

-"Wwhaadtthafuck," he said stammering, dragging his words.

He smelled it. Wolfbane. Another sting.

But this wasn't like the others. He took the dart out; it smelled weird. His vision was bleary, and his mind was getting fuzzy. He couldn't even stand up. He couldn't reach his wolf. He turned but didn't see anyone. His vision became dark, so he shook his head. A wave of dizziness washed over him. A few seconds later, he finally collapsed.

Andy was in the same building as Cris moments before. She had to shoot him one more time than she wanted, but she figured it was because he was bigger. She put her modified MacMillan back in its suitcase.

She went down to her truck and headed towards Cris and Tom. When she got there, Cris had already cuffed, blindfolded, and put a choker on him.

-"Did everyone see that? Because I will NOT be doing it again." She said, quoting Jack Sparrow.

-"Complications arose, ensued, were overcome." Andy retorted with another one of his phrases.

-"Nice shots, momma." Cris then said.

-"Nah, you're still a better sniper than me, babe." Andy said, closing her truck with him tied up. A grim satisfaction settled over her.

********************************************

Meanwhile, Nathan was working with Leo at his pack office; they had to prepare the new alliance treaty documents for the Yellow Moon pack.

The former Alpha's son, Nicholas, took charge now that he was 21 years old. They were good neighbors and good allies, which was a good thing. Over the past months, they'd reported rogues going into their territory and requested help. It was a small pack with about 100 people, so they needed warriors. Another pack reported they had spotted a few vampires in the main city, but they were being low-key.

Nathan had a feeling something was going on, but he couldn't pinpoint exactly what. A subtle unease gnawed at him.

A knock at the door pulled him out of his thoughts.

-"Come in," he smelled his Gamma and Delta females.

-"Alpha." Liza and Monique said, bowing their heads.

-"What's the matter, girls?" Nathan said with a smile. He was in a good mood.

-"I...I felt a few stings on my back this morning, and then I lost connection with Rami's wolf. I tried to call him, but his phone was off. I waited until Tom took over the shift, but then Liza felt the same. We tried calling them, but got nothing,"

Monique said, worried, her voice trembling slightly.

Nathan was stiff, his face pale. He tried to reach them, feel their wolf, but he couldn't either. Leo was already on the phone. He looked at Nate.

-"No answer."

-"Okay, girls, listen up. Leo and I are going to look for them with some trackers. You stay on guard here with Alpha Marty and Luna Susana. I'll let you know as soon as I find them. They are probably out of reach of the mind-link, but they are still alive and well because you haven't felt anything through the bond." Nathan said, already standing up in front of them, his voice firm despite the rising tension within him.

-"Don't worry, girls, they probably lost signal or something," Leo said, trying to make them worry less.

-"Yes, Alpha," they said, not so convinced.

After they left the office, Leo said,

-"Do you think it's related to Luna?"

-"She might be. Wait, I'll call her." Nate was already on the phone speaker.

-"You know what to do... beep."

-"It's her voicemail. She said she'd be busy. Let's go to her place."

-"I already mind-linked the Epsilons to follow us. They're getting ready," Leo said.

They took their bikes and drove to Andy's house. They parked in the woods and went through them towards the backyard. Both men listened. Only her parents and the baby were in the house.

-"Andy is probably at the clinic and Cris is at the warehouse," Nathan said.

They went back to their bikes. Leo spotted the men's cars. He frowned, and Nate followed his gaze.

-"They left them here? They went on foot?" Nate said.

They went there and could only sniff Tom's scent. They both followed his scent to the park. Nate, because he was an Alpha and had more enhanced senses, caught the smell of wolfbane on the floor where Ramirez fainted. His wolf was getting enraged by the second, but he kept his cool. He traced Tom's scent through the streets, to an alley.

-"You smell that?" Leo said. His wolf was pacing from one end to the other, agitated, though he didn't know why.

-"There's wolfbane here too," Nate said.

-"You think they've been taken?" Leo said, not really wanting an answer. A cold dread began to creep through him.

-"It might be related to Andy. Let's go to her clinic," Nate said, already heading back to their bikes. After 15 minutes, they asked the receptionist about Andy.

-"No, she isn't here. She called in sick this morning. She has a nasty fever, so she probably won't be here this week," the receptionist said.

Nathan paled. He ran towards his bike again and went straight to her warehouse. He knocked, but there was no answer. He sniffed the air to see if he could catch her scent, or even Tom's or Ramirez'. A frantic energy hummed beneath his skin.

-'Maybe the people who have them have her too.' He tried calling her again, trying to keep his cool. She answered on the third ring.

-"Wasup," she said. He could tell she was distracted; he could hear hammering and music in the background. It sounded like a construction site.

-"Hey princess, just wanted to check on you. I know you're busy, but I don't know, I guess I just missed you."

-"Aww, you're so sweet. I've actually missed you too. I called in sick at the clinic; I have a huge project I'm working on this week, and I'm a bit behind," she replied, all happily.

-"Oh, I see. Are you at the warehouse? I can come over and help if you want," he said, trying to sound chill. But he suspected something wasn't adding up. She didn't have to lie to her clinic.

-"Yeah, I am, but not at the one you've been in. I have another one for my other projects, wanna come?" she said simply. She was bluffing; if he had his two men missing, she knew he would decline.

-"Actually, I wish I could, princess, but I have an urgent issue I have to solve first. If I finish early, I'll bring dinner. I want to see all your projects, baby," he said sincerely.

He had to find his men first. Leo was mind-linking the Epsilons. They haven't found anything yet.

-"Umm, I wanted to ask you something, princess. I know it's a bit of an unusual question, but have you seen something weird around you? Like people who are not from town?" Nate asked, trying to hide his rising anxiety.

-"No, not really. Why?"

-"Okay, well, be careful. I think something's happening, and I don't want you to be scared," he said.

-"Oookaay," she said slowly. -"Well, I better get going," she said, shrugging.

-"I'll talk to you later, princess."

-"Bye."

-"Bye."

Leo and the Epsilons went tracking Ramirez and Tom. They spent the whole day and night looking for them, but they didn't find anything. Nathan sent warriors to watch Andy's house; he thought maybe her husband was responsible for his men missing. He couldn't get any information about him and didn't want to worry Andy, at least not yet. A heavy weight settled in his chest as the hours passed without news.