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I smacked my brain repeatedly until some neurons started to fire, trying to think about practicalities when in reality, the rest of the world could burn as long as I got to reunite with the others, safe and whole.
Licking my lips, I glanced around and pushed away from Emiel’s embrace reluctantly. “Yeah, give me a couple of minutes.”
I made my unsteady way back to Shani, who’d been competently handling the line while I had my mini-breakdown in the corner. She immediately looked up.
“Tell me it’s good news?” she said hopefully.
I nodded. “They’ve been found. They’re at Barnes Jewish. Shani... I have to go.”
She made a scoffing noise. “Of course you do, Mia. You want me to kick everyone out and close things down for the night, or take over for the last hour?”
Again, I tried to run through logistics. I’d had Emiel give Shani a general rundown of what was going on at the beginning of the shift, mostly because I couldn’t bear to talk about it. She knew about the guys who’d been lurking in the alley, andour worries that Nat had been targeted as an owner of the restaurant. It all came down to whether I trusted her to run the place for an hour, close up, and, most importantly, get all the employees home safe.
And, yeah—now that it came down to it, I totally did.
“Keep it going for us, Shani,” I said, handing over the keys to lock up. “But all the employees need to leave in one big group out the front door tonight, okay? And if you get the slightest inkling that something’s off, lock everyone in and call the cops. Remind them that three people were kidnapped here last night, and that there were armed men lurking around the place earlier today.”
She put her hands on my shoulders and squeezed. “I’ll take care of everyone, Mia. Already got my alphas coming to play lookout around closing time, and if anything looks suss, I’ll call the police. Go. Your men need you.” She shot a significant glance over my shoulder, to where Emiel was standing.
“She’s right about that,” he rumbled. “Let’s go see them.”
It was only five miles to the hospital, but it seemed to take an age to get there.
“Did Zalen say how they were hurt?” I asked, picking obsessively at a thread on my sleeve. I hadn’t even had the presence of mind to take off my white chef’s coat, and my chef’s hat was lying in a sad crumple in the Bronco’s passenger-side footwell.
“Don’t think he knows any details,” Emiel said, his eyes fixed firmly on the road. “They dragged him off to the nearest precinct to give a statement. He’s still on the other side of the river.”
Alarm coursed through me. “He’s not in trouble, is he?”
“Nah, nothin’ like that.” The hospital loomed ahead, and Emiel turned into the sprawling visitor parking area, following the signs. “From what I gather, he managed to find where theothers were being held and called in the cops. Don’t have much detail about that part either... sorry.”
“As long as everyone’s safe, there’snothingto be sorry for,” I said. “I just need to see them for myself.”
“Right there with you,” he agreed. “I want a word with Byron, for one thing.” He paused when I looked over at him, confused. “Oh. But maybe you don’t know about that yet? I forgot, you were asleep this morning when Zalen came in and told me.”
“Told you what?” I asked, bewildered.
“Byron’s got this kind of... adopted grandmother.” He huffed out a breath. “Apparently he sent Tony away to stay with her so the kid’s stepdad couldn’t get to him.”
It took a second for the puzzle piece to click. I blinked. “Tony? As in, the missing teen, Tony?Byronhid him away?”
Were we talking about the same Byron who was allergic to sentiment and made a big show about never giving a damn about anything?
“He didn’t tell a soul, the bastard,” Emiel said, sounding equal parts irritated and awed. “Not that he should have. I mean, it puts Zalen in a tough position.”
“Only if he tells anyone else,” I said, equally awed. NowIwanted a word with Byron as well.
“Yeah, he won’t,” Emiel said with certainty. “Zalen just wants the kid safe.”
He pulled the Bronco into a parking spot that wasn’t miles from the main entrance. I had the passenger door open before the engine even turned off. I probably looked like a lunatic as I sprinted for the entrance, Emiel easily keeping pace behind me. By the time I got to the information desks in front of their massive wood accent wall, I was panting.
“May I help you?” asked the beta woman at the nearest desk.
“We’re here to see Nathaniel Bell, Luca Doyle, and Byron Harper,” I said breathlessly. “Nat is my husband, and Luca andByron are his packmates.” I jerked my chin toward Emiel, the words coming without thought.
“Certainly. Let me find the room numbers for you.” She looked down, typing. “May I see some I.D.?”
Byron, it turned out, was in surgery. Panic burst through me for a terrible instant, but the woman assured us his condition was listed as stable. Luca was with a doctor, getting blood tests. Nat was installed in a private room under observation, so we headed there first.