Fated to the Warrior Wolf (The Hunted Omegas #3)

31. Gael

THIRTY-ONE

Gael

O ur return flight to the castle was uneventful, and the whole thing rubbed my fur the wrong way, no matter how ready I was to be back under the same roof as my mate without a hitch.

The need for her was an itch under my skin that I couldn’t scratch until I laid eyes on her myself, and we were still ten minutes out.

Kane went stiff as a board at my side. “What’s wrong?” I asked, that uneasy feeling not letting me go.

Varga started to laugh from his position at the front of the cargo area, the sound low and unnerving. We’d strapped him into a harness to be kept safe and sound until the tribunal was held in front of witnesses.

It was too easy collecting him. What is he up to?

Kane was a better man than I was, because the temptation to end Varga while I’d had his throat in my grip was strong. A lesser wolf would have let me. But it was too late; we were airborne and not there with the women. Dirge was more than capable of keeping them safe, but I knew in my gut that something was wrong .

“It’s Brielle. Something’s happened. I’m getting pure terror, but she’s trying to block me. Probably in a bid not to distract me.”

I wanted to pace, but I was still strapped in. I grabbed my discarded helmet and spoke into the mic.

“Speed this bird up. Something’s wrong at the castle.”

“Ten-four,” the pilot responded immediately, and the chopper lurched momentarily as it picked up speed. It didn’t do anything for my pounding pulse or sky-high blood pressure.

If anyone so much as lays a finger on her, I’m going to rip their whole arm off and feed it to them.

“Anything?” I asked under my breath so Varga couldn’t hear as another minute ticked past like a snail across an ice cube.

“She says they’re safe, and Dirge locked them in the tunnels.”

“The tunnels? I’d forgotten about those,” Reed said from his position across the aisle.

Kane’s expression was grim. “They’ve very rarely been used over the years, but that’s what they’re for. They’re all four safe, just nervous about Dirge fighting alone.”

Reed snorted. “They haven’t seen Cristian shift yet. Plus, he’s got the perimeter security as backup, but we’ll be there soon.”

“I told them,” Kane said, meeting my eyes. “Leigh is fine. She wanted to make sure I told you.”

Goddess, I envied him in that moment. The mental bond, the security in knowing his mate was okay. I was sick to death of getting it secondhand, as much as I was grateful that one of us knew.

I was ready for it to be me. I never knew that I’d be so glad to be done with my days of bachelorhood, but as soon as I’d met Leigh, I had no more interest in sowing oats. I wanted her, and our daughter.

My blood pressure lowered a few points, but I was sure it was still far too high. “I’ll radio the perimeter and get an update.”

“Andrei, come in,” I said, but as long seconds ticked by, there was no answer. “Andrei, we have reports of an attack at the castle. Do you read? Check in.” I tried again, but there was still no response.

Varga laughed again, wearing an unhinged expression. “Don’t bother trying a third time. They’re all dead, or they will be soon.”

What did this shitbag do?

I unlatched my harness, not caring about in-flight turbulence. The space between us was gone in four long strides, and I grabbed him by the throat.

“What the fuck are you up to, Varga? Kane wants a public tribunal, but I’m happy to rip your bowels out on the floor of this chopper if that’s what it takes.”

“You took the bait. The hook is your problem,” the man said with another cackle.

I backhanded him across the face. “Speak!”

Reed dragged me back from our prisoner. “G, this isn’t helping. He’ll get what’s coming to him at the tribunal. You need to sit back down. We’re coming in for a landing, and we’ll get the situation on the ground.”

Blowing out a furious breath through my nose, I realized he was right. The pilot was flashing the light to warn we were about to touch down.

“Fine. You keep Varga on lock and stay onboard. When we touch down and bail, have the pilot take you two back up, hover nearby in case we need a speedy exit, but not so close they can take potshots at you.”

Reed clapped me on the back, seemingly satisfied that my head was back in the game. “Consider it done.”

I braced for touchdown on the handhold nearest to Kane, not bothering to strap myself back in .

“What’s the plan?” Kane asked quietly enough not to be heard by Varga, in case he was passing information via his pack links. He looked pensive, and I knew it must be distracting having your mate’s fear inside your head when you were trying to focus.

“Stay behind me. Then we clear this place out and get to our females.”

“Based on what Brielle has told me, they’re all the way down in the bunker, not in any of the tunnels.”

I nodded. That was good. “What’s the closest entrance to the bunker itself?”

He ran a hand over the back of his neck, his favorite thinking gesture. “From the kitchens. There’s an entrance in the back of the pantry.”

“Perfect. We go in low, check on our perimeter guards to make sure they’re not dead, then arrow to the kitchens. Are we taking prisoners?” My jaw ticked, I clenched it so hard. I knew what my answer would be, but it was his ancestral home under attack, not mine.

“No. A direct assault on the high alpha’s mate is not tolerated.” He growled, his eyes glowing as he spoke.

“Easy, I agree. I just needed to know if our tribunal was growing.”

“Not a chance. These fuckers charged the wrong castle.”

I grinned at that, my own bloodthirsty side coming out. I didn’t give two shits about the castle, but my mate was in it. And these fuckers were about to learn that we didn’t play with our females’ safety.

Too bad they’d be too dead to remember the lesson. The survivors of the Hungarian pack would know, though, and word would spread. Kane might have been a young high alpha, but he was no weakling.

The rig jolted around us as we touched down, and I stripped off my Kevlar vest and helmet as the loading hatch lowered. Kane followed suit, and the rest of our unit mirrored our moves without question.

By the time the door was open, seven snarling wolves stood where the men had once been.

All of us bailed out except Reed, who was speaking into his helmet mic, giving orders to the pilot.

The seven of us moved as one, and I let my wolf’s nose lead the way. We were right outside the castle, on the elevated ground behind it next to the drop-off. It was an unofficial helipad, nothing more than a rough clearing that could be used in case of emergencies.

There was no sign of strangers, which meant they hadn’t flown in. The castle armaments would have prevented them from landing on the official helipad up top.

I ran at full speed toward the nearest guard post, dismayed to find it empty. That was where we picked up the first scent of our enemies. There was no blood or sign of struggle, just a missing guard and the scent of unknown wolves.

We followed the perimeter at half speed, following the scent trail. Sure enough, every guard was gone, including Andrei. But when we reached the main guardhouse in front of the castle where he should have been stationed outside, we found them.

The door hung open, and when I nosed it wider, all twelve men were piled inside like so much abandoned luggage. I yipped, then shifted back to human form. I turned toward Kane and the rest of our party. “I’m going to check their pulses. Fan out and guard our backs, but don’t leave anyone’s line of sight.”

They moved immediately, Kane taking up the position directly outside the door.

To my relief, they weren’t dead. Their pulses were thin and thready, though, with dark lines spreading out from pinprick wounds on each of their necks.

Shit .

I stepped back out of the shack. “They’ve all been darted with wolfsbane. The cowards poisoned them.”

Kane snarled, saliva dripping from his open maw.

There used to be a first aid kit inside the shack. Check it for the antidote, he told me through the pack bonds.

He sent a mental image of the location, and I stepped back inside the building. Sure enough, it was behind one of the monitors, easily within reach but not readily visible to the men who dragged our guards in here. I quickly administered doses to each of them using the autoinjectors I found inside.

When all was said and done, there were only two left, but each man would be on the mend soon enough. Pissed, but alive. I took a second to think, then decided to lock the door before I stepped outside. We could send someone to retrieve them once we’d secured the grounds, and they’d at least have some protection in case any of the attackers fled this way.

With our men secured, I left the two spare injectors outside the shack, behind a rock. Then I shifted back to wolf form, and we headed for the castle.

We followed the scent trail straight to the front doors. It was wide and contained a multitude of scents—if I had to guess, they’d brought at least twenty men, and from the depth of the pheromones, they were all in heightened states of anger.

Brazen motherfuckers.

The double front doors stood open, hanging oddly off the hinges as if they’d been battered. We found the first traces of blood in the foyer, and several mangled bodies. Most were Hungarian pack members I didn’t know, but I spotted one of the housekeepers, her neck twisted at an odd angle.

She must have been the one to answer the door, I thought sadly. There was no sign of Cristian, the butler, but I suspected the bodies were his handiwork.

The trail broke then, scents scattering up the stairs toward the family wing, while others went forward into the main floor of the house.

I turned to Kane, and he spoke to us all mentally. Split up. Sergei with us, the rest of you clear the upstairs. We’re making a push to get to our females. Keep an eye out for Dirge. He stayed out to fight and may need medical attention. Do not split up further, and when you’re finished upstairs, wait here unless I call for you.

Sergei stepped up to my other side as the four remaining wolves darted up the stairs on swift paws. Seconds later, the sounds of fighting reached our ears.

We ran deeper into the house, heading straight for the kitchens.

Hang on, Leigh. I’m coming for you .