Page 23 of Cruel Revenge (Jacky Leon #12)

“Thank you.” Subira grabbed a spike. Hasan finally stepped forward and did something he knew the werewolf couldn’t.

While Jacky was unconscious now, there was no telling what sort of pain this was going to cause.

That could easily wake her up, and she was a werecat.

She could accidentally kill the witch and wolf.

She could still hurt Subira, who was going to be focused on the spike and making sure it was pulled at the right speed.

He knelt next to her large head and grabbed it with the ability to control its movement.

He had fifty-three hundred years of experience dealing with his own kind in their werecat forms. He fought more werecats early on in his life than he did werewolves, as he and his ‘brothers’ jostled for the best hunting grounds and to be the best warriors for their creator because whoever was deemed worthless was cut loose.

That monster hadn’t been afraid to eat those he Changed.

He used all that experience to teach his children.

That was how he made sure, even in only a few short years, Jacky had been a good enough werecat to survive everything she had so far.

“Now, you must live through this. You must, Jacky. You are so important to me. To your mother. To your siblings. Your werewolves,” he whispered, his mouth on the top of Jacky’s head.

His sanity depended on it. He couldn’t do this again, not here, not like this.

“Think of little Carey. Hold her in your dreams as you let your mother and her apprentice help you. She’s out there. You were so close to saving her. I can see that here.”

He studied her head as Subira and Olivia worked behind him; he’d picked an angle where he didn’t have to see what was happening.

So close… Oh, Jacky…

He could smell it.

He opened Jacky’s mouth, inspecting all of it. There was a lot of blood—some of her own, some of strangers—but those weren’t the scents he was concerned with.

Carey’s blood was in Jacky’s mouth.

Subira’s shock rang in his mind in tune with his own.

Jacky bit Carey. Carey was either going to Change or die now.

We don’t even know where the girl is. We don’t know where Jacky and Heath’s daughter is.

“Teagan, call your Alpha,” Hasan ordered, his words rough. “Hold it out to me.”

“Okay.”

It rang as Subira and Olivia worked. The first spike was halfway out.

“Teagan?”

“It’s me,” Hasan said. “You can’t come here. No matter what. We will meet you at Jacky’s house.”

“What’s wrong?”

“We found Jacky, and that’s all you need to know,” Hasan growled. “You will do what you must in the city, and we will meet you back at Jacky’s home.”

“No Carey?” Heath asked. “Any werewolves?”

“Only Jacky. She’s the only one here,” Hasan said, knowing he just crushed the wolf’s heart into pieces.

He felt no satisfaction from it. He would have destroyed Heath for loving Jacky.

Hasan never would have wanted him to lose Carey, though.

Never would have wished that on the man.

He had once said he would kill Heath to give Carey to Jacky. The distinction was important.

“Thank you for letting me know,” Heath said simply, devoid of emotion, even his general friendlier professional persona that was naturally there. “We’ll see you back there when we can.”

Heath hung up on them.

“You can’t hide it from him,” Teagan said softly.

“So you noticed,” Hasan said, a light growl in his words.

“I have a better nose than you. Of course?—”

“Not now, you two,” Subira snapped, ending the conversation. “It will be discussed at home.”

A mother’s words, but from Subira—one of the most powerful women, one of the oldest women, from the cradle of humanity itself—everyone listened.

It was slow work, but thankfully, no one found them off the road.

Some slowed down because of the truck, but no one stopped.

Human agents didn’t arrive. Once both spikes were gone, Hasan released Jacky’s head, gently putting it down into the grass.

Subira quickly lifted their little girl and started moving with her.

Hasan stood there for a moment, looking at the removed spikes as Teagan lifted Olivia and bridal carried her toward the truck.

Hasan picked up a spike, covered in his daughter’s blood, something about the magic scent lingering on it making him think he recognized it.

Then he dropped it, knowing he had something more pressing to deal with.

“Subira, let me,” he said, catching up with his mate. Subira could very easily carry the over five-hundred-pound werecat, but Jacky’s paws were dragging on the ground. Subira could lift it, but she wasn’t tall enough to keep their daughter from dragging. “Can you collect the spikes?”

“Of course.” The pass off was as easy as a bag of groceries. Hasan lifted Jacky higher, saving her paws from the dirt. He loaded her into the bed of the truck, Subira right behind him with the spikes now. She jumped into the back with Teagan once again, and Hasan got back into the driver’s seat.

“Thank you,” he said to the now very tired witch beside him. The words were not easy for him, but they came out. Twice now, this witch had stepped up and helped this wild and misfortunate daughter of his. Twice now, he had her to thank for keeping his Jacky alive.

“It’s no trouble,” she said, smiling weakly. “She’s a good person, Jacky. A good friend.”

“She is,” he agreed, and began the drive to take his daughter home.