Page 55 of Broken Bonds

“Calm down,” she says. “Jax asked me to intercept you.”

“Why?”

“So you don’t bust in here and get in trouble,” Jax calls out from his office. “Come on back, but calmly, please? We’re having a conversation. And if you’re carrying, do not pull it.”

I fight the urge to growl as I cross the lobby and open Jax’s office door. “What the fuck’s going on?”

Jax holds a staying hand to me or his visitor, I’m not sure, but he speaks to the man. “Please, stay seated,” he says to him, then focuses on me. “Stay calm,” he says in a tone that brooks zero resistance. Then he points not to the other chair, where the fucking nightcrawler’s cape is draped, but indicates for me to round the desk as he stands and points at his chair.

I do as ordered because he’s my mate, duh, and glare at the guy who eerily remains preternaturally placid and nonreactive.

“Bruce Marchman, this is my mate, Shawn.” He lays a hand on my shoulder. “And behave yourself, because Father’s listening.” He points at the cell phone on his desk.

“Hi, Shawn,” Mike says. “Why don’t I have grandpups yet?”

I sense what the older man’s trying to do—calm my ass down.

But I’m not ready to play nice. “Blame your son for that. Why is there a vampire sitting in Jax’s office?”

“Glad you asked.” Mike quickly catches me up and I marginally relax. And that’s only because the nightcrawler hasn’t so much as moved.

To his credit, at least he’s trying. And if Mike vouches for the guy it’s my duty—like it or not—to go along and behave myself.

So I swallow back my anger and mistrust and other stuff and try to transition into Mate of the Pack Alpha mode.

“I’m sorry for your loss,” I manage through a clenched jaw.

I do mean it, but this will take some time to actually, you know, not be tensed in anticipation of getting my throat ripped out.

Or wanting to rip out his.

The man slowly tips his head to me. “Thank you. Believe me, I understand the…mental strain this meeting creates. I would not be here if it were only my own safety at risk.” He blinks, and the humanity finally bleeds through when I spot unshed tears in his eyes. “If you heard the anguished wails of my nest members, if our positions were reversed, you would be where I am now and likely just as reluctantly.”

I’m tempted to shoot back probably not, but Jax squeezes my shoulder, his intent clear.

Shut. Up.

I’m torn between my empathy trying to sneak through my mental defenses and my natural, instinctive…revulsion over vampires.

“How soon can you get your people here?” Jax asks him. “And how are you transporting them?”

“We’ve already reached out to a fae band who’s enlisting the help of witches they’re allied with. They will ward and protect the vehicles and accompany them. It will take at least a few days.”

“Are these people from the same groups who were attacked not too long ago?”

Marchman nods. “They are. My people will arrive in stages. I will defer to you regarding arrival logistics. We will, obviously, accept any accommodations, as long as we can black out natural light sources. We don’t even care if it’s a concrete storehouse. My only concern is their safety.”

“Well, Jax?” Mike asks. “You’re the pack Alpha. It’s your call.”

Jax takes a moment to ponder it, then nods. “We have a community center that’s also our hurricane shelter. It’ll work, plus it has locker rooms with bathrooms and showers, and there’s a kitchen. I’ll have our people put up the storm shutters, so don’t bring them for at least two days. We can supply regular food, but if there are other special ‘dietary considerations,’ you’ll need to arrange that. And, for their safety, your people need to remain inside the community center until you and I figure out the next step. Will that work?”

He nods. “Absolutely. Whatever you want us to do, we will. Will the fae and witches be allowed to accompany us into your territory?”

“Who are their leaders?” Mike asks.

I have had little contact in my life with fae and witches.

By “witches” I mean real ones, not the granola-and-rainbows humans who pretend they are, or who practice it as a religion or spiritual thing and don’t have actual powers.