Page 22 of Cruel Revenge (Jacky Leon #12)

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

HASAN

H asan drove fast, trying to ignore the shaking, small witch next to him.

It pricked an old memory of when his mate had been less confident.

It had taken years for him to build her up into the majestic woman she was now.

He’d only spent those long years trying to tell her.

He remembered the traumatic day that changed her forever.

He knew why Subira was drawn to Olivia. First, she had stepped up to help Jacky only because Dirk had asked her to.

Second, she was a sweet thing, connected to nature, much like his mate.

His mate took it a step further, finding the magic in the natural world.

Even he, avoidant of magic and any witches outside his family, could see the parallels between Olivia and Subira.

Olivia also reached out into the natural world and felt the magic, even if she didn’t have the power to be like his mate.

But she was still a foreign witch. He tolerated it, focusing on getting to his daughter.

“She’s north of us,” Subira whispered loud enough next to the window. In his mind, he saw the path Subira wished to follow and tried to find the right turns for it.

“I need a map of the roads,” he finally said. Olivia nodded and started hitting fancy buttons on Dirk’s truck until a map showed up. She even zoomed it out so he could see even more of the roads. Hasan was used to luxury, but he didn’t often need to drive. He also didn’t know Dirk’s truck.

A truck. He’s properly becoming an American, thanks to Jacky and the werewolves.

It was an errant and amusing thought in a terrible moment. Subira prodded him mentally, also finding it lightly humorous, something for them to remember for a better day. After five thousand years together, they knew how to pay attention to the world together.

He was flying in the truck, hitting speeds over one hundred miles per hour.

Olivia and Teagan were in danger at this speed, but he knew if something happened, his mate was going to protect them over him.

He made sure of it mentally, picturing it, and she sent back a confirmation.

She would keep them safe if something came out in front of him before he could brake.

It wouldn’t be perfect, but they didn’t need to kill anyone else tonight.

Jacky has the death part of the Texas evening covered.

“Hasan.” Subira’s sharp tone saying his name told him his thought had gone too far.

“Sorry, love,” he called out, knowing if he could hear her, she could hear him over the wind outside, even at these speeds.

Olivia yelped as they hit a bump at speed, and Hasan had to force the truck to stay in the right lane.

They passed police cruisers that didn’t notice them, thanks to Dirk maintaining his fae charms on the vehicle.

Hasan was grateful Niko had raised Dirk so well because moments like this, they would have been punished for anything less than being fully prepared.

Hasan avoided going through the center of any town.

Olivia was on her phone, trying to find more news, and as she read out everything being reported, he knew he had made the right decision.

Jacky hadn’t just been in a chase. She had jumped on police cars and over other vehicles.

She had displayed to the world everything she could do.

There were a handful of accidents caused by her and the ones who took Carey.

The police were upset, the people were upset, the anchors on the news were upset.

The BSA, that annoying little human organization his youngest had to deal with, were upset and had people on the way to secure everything and demand answers from his daughter.

If Heath can’t handle them, should we? Do we risk the exposure to their government now for Jacky and Carey?

Subira’s response was an image of Zuri in their minds.

She will be here tomorrow. That’s right. She’s been helping Jacky with the wedding. I just saw those flight plans yesterday. They already know of her. She’s fine with it because she can disappear back to Africa with you and Jabari and the grandbabies. There’s also Niko.

Subira’s response was a firm no to Niko being the face of this. He didn’t argue. He would ask for more of an explanation later. Maybe.

Finally, Subira lit up and opened the back window of the truck to stick her head in.

“We’re getting close,” she said. “There. Right in front of us,” she said, pointing straight. “Slow down so we don’t run over anything important. Evidence of what happened.”

“Of course, love,” he said, slowing as they came up to an intersection of a side road and a high-speed highway. The drive had taken only ten minutes thanks to how fast he had gone, ignoring every rule of the road he could.

As they neared, he could already see what Subira meant. There was blood on the road. First in some spots, then a drag line of it, leading into the brush off the side. It disappeared because of the angle, that side of the road having a descent.

Once he parked, they all jumped out quickly. He wasn’t shaky on his feet, and neither was Subira nor the werewolf, Teagan. Olivia looked nauseous, whether from the drive or the scene they were now taking in.

Hasan forgot all of that as the smell hit him.

It was Carey’s blood.

“Gods,” he breathed out, then started running. Then Jacky’s blood hit him.

“Tell me they are alive!” Subira pleaded to no one as she ran with him. Behind them, Teagan was bringing Olivia, lifting her up and running as well.

Hasan stopped at the first spot of blood, seeing what had possibly happened. Carey must have been thrown from the vehicle. There was no other explanation. Or she jumped, but in the end, the result was the same.

She bounced. Three times. Stopped here. Then was dragged or crawled off the road.

Hasan followed it, knowing Subira was running farther, going to where this story ended.

It was what they did. One of them had to figure out part of the story while the other took the other part.

He knew the modern world better, so he could deduce the truth on the road while Subira went to find Carey and Jacky.

He followed the trail until Subira’s keening whine pierced his heart and had him running for her, Olivia, and Teagan.

“Love?”

He stumbled to a stop as he discovered what Subira found.

Their youngest, the powerful and fierce Jacky, was unconscious, metal spikes holding her to the earth, straight through her body. Carey wasn’t there at all.

Something in him was cracking. Fracturing. Part of him detached from reality. His mate would notice, but she was busy with their daughter.

“Olivia, you need to heal what you can as I pull these out,” Subira said, pointing at the spikes. “She’s still breathing, but it doesn’t sound right. Her heart is still beating. They missed that.”

“Let me try to figure out what’s wrong. I haven’t healed since… since the last time. I don’t know how this will go.” Olivia was already touching Jacky, closing her eyes as magic filled the air.

Hasan hoped the world was ready for him. If another daughter of his died, he was going to end it. If that meant only his family still walked the earth when he was done, then so be it.

Teagan stepped farther away from him and closer to Olivia, his movement cautious as his eyes flicked in Hasan’s direction. Hasan kept himself physically composed as he wondered who he would kill first, which world government he would dismantle would cause the most devastation.

I just started fixing things with her. They can’t do this to me. I’ve done too much for this forsaken world for them to do this to me.

“It nicked her lung, so she’s slowly drowning,” Olivia said, her words quick.

“Multiple organs were hit, but the spikes are keeping the damage from truly wreaking havoc. Like leaving a weapon in stops the bleeding from becoming severe, that sort of thing. She’s still bleeding, though. She’s lost a lot of blood.”

“How long do you think it’s been?” Subira demanded.

“Fifteen minutes, maybe twenty,” Hasan answered for Olivia. “Based on how the blood hasn’t fully dried anywhere. This is fresh, love,” he explained, his words controlled and cool.

That was when his mate fully noticed his fracturing, his fragility, his planning, his need to kill everyone who touched his little girl and took his future granddaughter, and brought this into their lives. She looked back at him for only a second.

“Thank you,” she said, then turned back to Jacky and Olivia.

He felt her energy through the mate bond, tasting her emotions as well. She would save their daughter, and if she couldn’t, she was willing to let him wreak the havoc he wished for a time. She was so angry, she was willing to turn a blind eye until her conscience forced her to step in.

Perfect.

“I’ll move slow. If you need a boost in power?—”

“I don’t need power. I’m afraid I’m going to heal her with too much painful scar tissue,” Olivia said, her eyes opening as she looked up at Subira.

“Those things can be fixed. We need her stabilized so we can move her to her home or to mine if the humans won’t let her heal restfully here.

Just that, Olivia. Then we can do more to help her.

We’ll get someone from the Mygi Hospital to come to her in a safe place to fix any healing damage, the scar tissue. All of that.”

“You can do that?”

“I’m a member of the Tribunal. Of course, I can do that,” Hasan answered. “Dirk couldn’t. He made the right call finding you.”

“Oh.” Olivia nodded. “Then I’m ready. I’ll do what I can the right way, but if something wants to scar, I’ll let it, and we’ll manage.

She’ll live. I promise. The blood loss will be more long term, though.

I can’t force her to make more blood without draining her of all her precious energy that I need for everything else.

She won’t come back to consciousness. She needs to sleep through that. ”