Page 19 of A Second Chance for the Beta

Let’s take the wrong one first and change it a few times so they can’t follow us to the hotel,I say.

He nods, taking my hand and targeting the staircase leading to the subway. I can feel our followers sneaking behind us. Dante and I remain unfazed, though, going through the train schedule leisurely and strolling around as if we don’t have any plan. I let Dante do his thing; this is truly his expertise, and he has more experience in situations that acquire his tactical thinking.

It’s always a bit hard for me to step back and allow him to take the lead. I’m just not used to letting anyone into my life, but I trust Dante and can allow myself to be a bit more vulnerable with him.

Dante and I grab a map and pretend to look at it. I’m trying not to get nervous; I know which subway Dante is waiting for, and it’s really going to be a close call to catch it. I almost think we won’t make it, when he suddenly grabs my hand and our suitcase, and runs. I follow him swiftly; stamina and cardio are my forte after all, and we chase through one subway, exiting on the other side, and jump right into the one we want to catch. The doors close before us, and when I look outside, I see two men running towards us right when we set off. One of them gestures towards us, and I can see his eyes darkening as his wolf comes forward. I try my best to take in as much of his appearance as I can to memorize it.

He has a tattoo,I link Dante.On his neck. It’s a snake wrapped around a moon.

Sounds like a pack tattoo,Dante verifies while rummaging in his pocket. He hands me his little notebook and a pen. That’s the upside of having a bit of an old-school guy as a mate; he always carries around a pen and something to write on. I scribble down the tattoo I saw and draft a picture of the man.

You are so good, Ella,Dante says, impressed.I always forget that you studied art.

This? That’s nothing,I mutter.

Drawing that fast and in a moving vehicle? I call that something.

Whenever I hear someone praise me it makes me uncomfortable. It’s not necessarily a bad feeling… just weird. But Dante is always honest and genuine, so I find myself nodding instead of answering.

He smiles warmly but doesn’t push further.

“Here,” I say and hand him the notebook. We both take a picture of it and then send it to our contacts, hoping they can help us, either with recognizing the man or the tattoo at least.

“What’s our first step now?” I ask.

“Let’s go to our hotel,” Dante suggests. “And then head out to Prince Eric’s contact. He said he was able to book us an appointment with someone. Let’s hope they will help us.”

I nod, closing my eyes to focus on Nefeli and the bond we share to our family. For most parts, it’s inexistent as they all passed, but we were able to take up a hint of it earlier when we tried to see if Charlie is still alive. Maybe I can try to reach out to it again. I gasp slightly when I can feel the bond feeling more vibrant, a bit more intense.

It’s getting stronger, which means we are getting closer to my nephew. To the only family I have left. Please stay safe.

eight

Secret Helpers

*DANTE*

I’mstartingtogetincreasingly worried. I know Ella doesn’t like me to be patronizing, but I just can’t get out of my skin. Ever since we heard about the possibility of Ella’s nephew being alive and in Europe, Ella hasn’t had a minute of rest.

She hasn’t had these nightmares for a long while.

We need to trust our mate,Sylvan reasons.This is her family. Remember how we felt when Dad died and Mom left us. We at least had our friends, our pack. She had nothing, and yet she is so strong.

You aren’t wrong,I admit, feeling a bit ashamed by my trail of thoughts.I’m just worried.

We are here with her,he reassures me.We will find her nephew and get him back safely, and then we will find these wolves that are hunting us right now.

He is right; we should definitely find out who they are. It’s very worrying that they tracked us down, and I wonder how they did it. How did they know we were at the airport and that we would land here? Are they after Ella and me, or are they looking for Charlie as well?

We really need to find the pup before someone else might get to him and hurt him. My heart clenches at the thought of something happening to him. Technically, he is Ella’s nephew and not mine, but if he is her family, he is mine too.

“Did my anxiety rub off on you?” Ella pulls me out of my thoughts. We are currently in a taxi that takes us from the hotel to our meeting.

I can’t help but chuckle. “You know me well.”

“We are quite the pair,” she snorts.

“I’m just worried,” I admit.