Page 11 of His Place in the World (Legendary Shifters #9)

Most of them were dressed similarly to Angus, some even more skimpily.

It was clear they weren’t here because they wanted to be, although some wore neutral expressions.

A few others were clearly pissed, others seemed tired, and even more looked terrified.

Del wished he could help every single one of them, and he had to work hard to stay where he was instead of rushing out and doing something stupid.

“How are you feeling?” Doyle asked.

He’d snuck in right before they left, to Remi’s displeasure. Del was glad for his brother’s presence, though. He was the only one here he knew well and the only one he could talk to.

“I’ve been better,” he confessed.

Doyle snorted softly. “I bet you have. I’m sorry you have to go through this.”

“It’s fine.”

“It’s really not. I’m impressed, though. Your mate is a force of nature, and when he wants something, he takes it.”

“Even though he might get hurt,” Del muttered.

On the screens, he could see people mingling, talking, and drinking champagne. A couple of men stepped way too close to Angus, and Del was ever more thankful for Mercer and his father, who always managed to keep those men away.

One reached for Angus’s face, but Ryland was quick to interrupt the action. He pulled Angus closer to his body, something Del had never thought he’d be grateful for.

“No touching,” Mercer said with a growl.

The man raised both hands and took a step back. He was smiling, but Del was ready to bet he was annoyed. “I apologize. Most people don’t mind if we touch their shifters.”

“Well, I do,” Ryland said smoothly. “I buy them for myself, not for others to touch.”

“I understand. I don’t think I’ve ever seen you at one of these parties before.”

Del held his breath, but he shouldn’t have worried. Ryland was smooth. “I haven’t. This isn’t how I usually find my shifters, but a friend of a friend talked to me about this opportunity, and I thought I’d see what it was about. I got an invitation if that’s what you’re worried about.”

“Of course not. I was just curious as to who you are.”

“I’m Ryland Young. You are?”

The man stared at Ryland for a moment before offering him his hand. “Colbert Smith.”

Del wondered if that was Colbert’s actual last name, but he honestly didn’t care. Everly would look into it. He was back home in pack territory, hearing and seeing the same things Del and the others were. Del had no doubt he was already working on it.

Ryland looked around. “Security is impressive, although I would have done a few things differently,” he commented.

“You know something about security?”

“I own a security company.”

“I see. Maybe we can talk about all of this during dinner after the auction. I’m always open to adding more associates to my business opportunities.”

“I’d be delighted.”

Del swallowed. His stomach churned, threatening to make him throw up.

He was disgusted by the way Colbert behaved.

He acted as if shifters were nothing more than objects to be bought and sold.

He wasn’t one bit bothered about anything happening in that room, and Del counted backward from twenty to keep himself from going right inside and punching the asshole.

He peeked at his brother. Doyle was much calmer than he was, and while that might have something to do with the fact that Doyle’s mate wasn’t in there being treated like a piece of meat, Del couldn’t help but be impressed.

His brother had always been the nervous kind, even when there was nothing to be nervous about.

Right now, though, he was settled, and part of that was thanks to the man sitting next to him with his arm wrapped around his waist. Marcus had done Doyle a lot of good, but then, so had living with the pack.

Doyle had finally found a place where he belonged, even though it had been hard in the beginning considering the situation that had brought him to the Rosewood pack.

“They’re all doing great jobs,” Doyle said as if he felt Del needed to be reassured.

“It’s not the four of them I’m worried about. It’s everyone else. What if they find out Angus and the others don’t belong there?”

“Then we go in.”

“It’s that easy?”

Doyle nodded, suddenly serious. “Why else would we be here? We even brought Carey.”

Del eyed the man. He was on the other side of the van, for which Del was grateful because he didn’t seem to be able to stay still for more than a few seconds at a time. “What’s up with him?”

“He’s just a weird guy. You’ll get used to it.”

“Will I?”

Doyle grinned. “Just make sure to stay away from him when he gets into a fight. I wouldn’t want you to burn to a crisp.”

Del squinted at his brother. “That seems specific.”

“Because it is. Carey and his twin brother are phoenix shifters. They can set things on fire with a thought, and Carey is way too enthusiastic about that, especially in fights. He tends to get carried away.”

“I’ll stay away from him,” Del promised. Now that he knew what Doyle was talking about, he was happy to do so.

“Have you and Angus talked?” Doyle asked.

Del looked around the van. It would be impossible for the others not to hear what he was saying, but they were all focused on the screens.

He supposed he should be, too, but it was hard to see Angus do this without him.

It was for the best, though, and he’d realized that as soon as he and Angus had talked about it after the meeting with Ryland and Remi a few days ago.

That didn’t mean he didn’t want to run in there and protect his mate.

“How do you deal with these feelings?” he asked his brother.

Doyle didn’t ask what he was talking about. “It’s tough, isn’t it? And I bet it’s even worse for you, considering the situation Angus is in right now.”

“It’s almost as if my brain isn’t mine anymore. I’ve never felt this way for anyone else, and it’s fucking confusing.”

“It’s still confusing for me, even though Marcus and I have been together for some time. I don’t know if this feeling will ever smooth out, but I also don’t know if I want it to. I like feeling this way. I like being nuts about Marcus and wanting to be with him all the time.”

“What about when he’s at work? Aren’t you worried something will happen to him?”

“Always, but I have faith in him.” He leaned closer. “Does this mean you’re giving Angus a chance?”

Del looked at the screen. He was watching the party through Ryland’s camera, which meant he could see Angus. Angus’s expression was smooth, but his focus jumped from one person to another, and Del had no doubt he was working hard to keep up the show. He’d be fine, just like the others would.

“Was there ever a doubt I would?” he asked. “We’ll see where things go after this, but I want it to work.”

“It will,” Doyle promised.

Del couldn’t help but wonder if his brother was right. He wasn’t lying, though. He’d do everything to make sure his relationship with Angus was successful.

“Something’s happening,” Remi suddenly said. He leaned even closer to the screen he was watching, his nose almost brushing against it.

Del did the same. He watched as Ryland and Angus were herded toward a door at the back of the room.

The hallway they stepped in was dark, but Del could see curtains framing doors every few feet on the right side.

Someone quickly brought them to one of the red curtains, which they raised.

Behind the curtains were several comfortable-looking seats on what appeared to be some kind of balcony, and Ryland settled in one of them while Angus sat next to him.

Mercer and Matt were no doubt behind them, making sure no one snuck in.

From this position, Del could see what Ryland saw, and it made his mouth go dry.

It was a stage framed by more red curtains and illuminated by one single spotlight directed right at the center of it.

The auction was about to begin.

* * * *

Angus had to work hard not to throw up. He stared in front of him, wondering if he was strong enough not to run away screaming or possibly jump onto the stage and intervene.

Ryland grabbed his hand and squeezed. Angus was thankful for the relative darkness. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have been able to fool anyone into thinking he was a meek shifter only doing what his master wanted.

“This is awful,” Ryland murmured.

Angus suspected he was holding onto him for both their sakes.

Knowing that Ryland’s brother had been involved in something like this couldn’t be easy for Ryland.

Angus despised how these shifters were treated, but he didn’t have a personal connection to any of them.

The same couldn’t be said for Ryland, yet, he hadn’t hesitated to come on this mission.

“Do we know what’s going to happen?” Matt asked.

“Not for sure, but I can imagine,” Angus told him.

The silence between them was tense as they waited.

It took several more minutes for the room to fall quiet.

The only light was the spotlight on the stage, but it was so bright that Angus could see the other balconies.

The people he’d seen earlier sipping champagne and talking were eagerly staring at the stage.

One woman was even leaning so far out over the railing that he wondered if she might be about to fall.

One could hope.

Then a man stepped onto the stage. A scattering of applause made Angus want to rage, but instead, he swallowed and looked at the man.

Like every other human in the room, he wore a suit that appeared to be costly enough to pay for Angus’s grocery shopping for an entire year.

He held the microphone and stopped right under the spotlight, seeming to love it.

He raised his free hand and waved at a few people, and Angus took advantage of that moment to examine him.