Page 24 of Marked For A Bite (Rebellious Mates #2)

TWENTY

LOGAN

L ogan visibly forced himself to count to sixty, his rational mind wrestling with every protective instinct screaming at him to immediately follow his distraught mate.

The sound of Zoe's angry footsteps hitting the forest floor echoed through Rhea's hut like gunshots, each step driving spikes of anguish through their bond that made his teeth grind.

Sixty seconds, he reminded himself grimly. Give her that much space to process before you go after her.

He understood her fury completely. Hell, if someone had walked up to him right now and announced that his father and sister were still alive—which was impossible since Logan had held their bloody, lifeless bodies in his own arms that terrible night—he'd tear through every obstacle between him and them without a second thought.

But ten years as Silvercrest pack's most lethal enforcer had taught him that impulsiveness got you killed. Fast.

When his internal countdown reached zero, Logan rose from his chair with predatory grace. "I'm going to her."

"Give her time to—" Lena started.

"She's had her time," Logan cut off, already moving toward the door. His hand automatically checked the tactical knife on his right thigh, a gesture so ingrained he barely realized he'd done it.

Outside Rhea's hut, the autumn afternoon air carried the scent of dying leaves and approaching winter, but Logan's enhanced senses locked immediately onto Zoe. He found her twenty feet from the porch, collapsed to her knees on the forest floor, her shoulders shaking with silent sobs.

The sight hit him like a physical blow. His fierce, stubborn mate—the woman who'd killed for him without hesitation, who'd faced down his brutal training regimen with fierce joy—was breaking apart right in front of him.

Logan approached slowly, his combat boots crunching deliberately on fallen leaves to announce his presence. The last thing he wanted was to startle her when she was this emotionally raw.

Without a word, he dropped to his knees beside her and wrapped his arms around her trembling form. She melted into his embrace immediately, her face pressing into the hollow of his throat as fresh tears soaked through his black henley.

He didn't try to fix anything with words. Didn't offer empty platitudes or false reassurances. Instead, he simply held her, letting his solid presence anchor her while the emotional storm raged through her system.

This is what mates do, his wolf reminded him with satisfaction. We weather the storms together.

Minutes passed before Zoe finally spoke, her voice muffled against his neck. "I can't believe I got to live a happy, normal life while my dad was locked up somewhere, probably suffering for twenty-five years."

His arms tightened around her. "You can't blame yourself for living your life," he said firmly. "Your mother clearly wanted you to have that normal, happy childhood despite whatever circumstances led to your father's imprisonment."

She pulled back enough to meet his eyes, and the guilt swimming in those hazel depths made his chest ache. "But what if he's been waiting for me? What if he thinks I abandoned him, or that I don't care enough to find him?"

"Hey." Logan cupped her face in his large hands, his thumbs brushing away fresh tears. "Your father has no idea you even exist as anything other than a baby. For all he knows, you're still living safely with your mother, completely unaware of this world."

Some of the anguish in her expression eased at his words.

"Besides," Logan continued, pressing a gentle kiss to her forehead, "we're going to find him. I promise you that."

Zoe's fingers curled into his henley, anchoring herself to his solid strength. "I want to go back inside and get more information from Rhea. Find out if she saw anything else in her vision, or if she knows about historical events that might have led to this."

Pride surged through Logan at her ability to push past the emotional upheaval and focus on action. That's my warrior.

"Good plan," he agreed, helping her to her feet. "We'll get whatever intelligence we can, then head back to Kieran's to start mapping potential locations."

They walked back into Rhea's hut hand-in-hand, Logan's protective instincts humming with satisfaction at the contact. Inside, Rhea and Lena looked up expectantly as they settled back at the small wooden table.

"Did you see anything else in your vision?" Zoe asked without preamble, her professional curator instincts taking charge. "Any details that might help us locate him?"

Rhea's violet eyes grew distant with concentration. "I saw markings on your father's arm—tribal symbols that identify him as the Delta of the Granite Ridge pack."

Logan's tactical mind immediately began working.

Granite Ridge pack territory bordered Silvercrest pack lands to the northeast, a mountainous region known for its warrior culture and deep cave systems. If someone wanted to hide a prisoner for decades, those mountains offered countless possibilities.

"I also had another vision as you stormed out that was triggered by your raw emotions," Rhea continued, her voice gentling. "Your mother, pregnant and crying. Your father sending her away from here, as if he had no other choice but to do so for her protection. And for their baby's."

Lena leaned forward with sudden understanding.

"That aligns with the Severance laws. Mating with humans on pack lands is strictly forbidden, especially for someone with a leadership position.

" She paused briefly. "Or at least it was before Kieran became the acting Alpha three months ago.

So twenty-five years ago, your father would have been imprisoned if they found out he had a human mate here, and the human mate would have been killed without hesitation. "

"Which means as the Delta of the Granite Ridge pack, he would have had to choose between staying with your mother and bringing Council punishment down on her and you or send her away somewhere safe to protect you both," Logan finished grimly.

Zoe's hand found his under the table, her grip desperate. "So the 'ultimate sacrifice for protection' mentioned in the prophecy refers to him giving up his family to keep us safe."

"But that still doesn't explain the ancient bloodlines or tragic circumstances," Zoe added, frustration creeping back into her voice.

Logan squeezed her hand reassuringly. "Let's focus on finding your father first. Once we get him out of wherever he's being held captive, he can hopefully fill in the missing pieces of the prophecy."

Rhea nodded approvingly. "The truth will reveal itself when the family is reunited. The prophecy has waited three centuries—a few more days won't matter."

As they prepared to leave Rhea's hut, Logan's mind was already shifting into mission planning mode. Granite Ridge territory. Underground imprisonment. Twenty-five years of captivity suggested serious magical or physical restraints.

This rescue would require every skill he'd honed as an enforcer—and then some.

Logan pulled his phone from his pocket as they stepped out of Rhea's hut, the autumn afternoon light filtering through the forest canopy above them. His fingers moved efficiently across the keypad, muscle memory from countless mission reports.

"Kieran," he said when his Alpha answered on the first ring. "We're heading back to your place now. We need to plan a rescue mission."

The silence on the other end lasted exactly three seconds before Kieran's controlled voice came through. "Who are we extracting?"

"Zoe's father. Former Delta of Granite Ridge pack. He's been imprisoned somewhere on their territory for twenty-five years."

Logan watched Zoe's face as he spoke, noting how her jaw clenched with determination despite the lingering traces of tears on her cheeks. His fierce mate had processed her emotional breakdown quickly, channeling grief into action with the kind of tactical mindset that made his wolf preen.

"Jesus," Kieran muttered through the phone. "That's going to be next to impossible. Granite Ridge territory is a fortress—all mountains and caves, perfect for hiding someone you never want found."

"I know," Logan replied grimly. "But I promised her we'd find him, and I don't break my promises."

Ever, his wolf added with savage certainty. Especially not to our mate.

"Understood. I'll start gathering maps and intel while you head this way. ETA?"

Logan glanced at the position of the sun through the trees, automatically calculating distance and terrain. "Forty-five minutes if we push it."

"Copy that."

The line went dead, and Logan pocketed the phone before falling into step beside Zoe. Lena walked slightly ahead of them, her eyes scanning the forest with the practiced awareness of someone who'd learned to navigate dangerous territory.

As they moved through the forest, he was already working through the complexities of breaking someone out of Granite Ridge territory. He'd conducted hundreds of extractions during his years as an enforcer, but most had involved quick in-and-out operations against human facilities.

Granite Ridge was different. They were mountain wolves, warriors born and bred in some of the most defensible terrain in the Pacific Northwest. Their isolation wasn't just cultural—it was strategic. Every approach would be monitored, and every escape route planned for and blocked.

But impossible just means it hasn't been done yet, he reminded himself. And I've made a career out of doing the impossible.

Zoe's hand found his as they navigated a particularly steep section of the trail, her fingers intertwining with his in a gesture that sent warmth shooting through their bond. The contact grounded him and reminded him that this wasn't just another mission. This was personal.

"You're thinking very loudly," she observed, glancing up at him with those hazel eyes that seemed to see straight through his tactical mask to the man underneath.

"Just running scenarios," he admitted. "Granite Ridge won't be like the underground bunker. This is going to require precision planning and probably a fair amount of luck."

Her grip on his hand tightened. "But you think it can be done?"

Logan looked down at her, taking in the fierce determination etched across her beautiful features, and the way she carried herself like a warrior despite having only discovered her true nature four days ago.

His mate was extraordinary, and her father—wherever he was—had clearly passed on some exceptional genes.

"It will be done," he said with absolute certainty. "I don't care how well hidden he is or how many guards they have watching him. We're getting him out."

The utter conviction in his voice seemed to ease some of the tension in her shoulders, and she nodded once before focusing back on the trail ahead.

When they finally reached Kieran's cabin, Logan could see through the window that the dining table had been transformed into a command center. Maps covered every available surface, and both Kieran and Malcolm were bent over what looked like architectural blueprints.

"Looks like they've been busy," Lena observed, adjusting the concealed pouch where she'd secured the ancient scroll.

They climbed the porch steps, and Logan knocked once before pushing open the door. The scent of coffee and Maya's stress-baking filled the cabin, creating an oddly domestic backdrop for what was clearly a military planning session.

"Perfect timing," Kieran said without looking up from the table. "I've got topographical maps of Granite Ridge territory and about six different theories on where they might be holding a high-value prisoner."

Logan guided Zoe to the table, automatically positioning himself so he could watch both entrances while still engaging with the tactical discussion. Old habits.

"Any good intel on potential locations?" Logan asked, studying the spread of maps and documents.

Kieran pointed to several marked locations on the largest map. "The mountains would be the obvious choice—plenty of caves, natural fortifications, and easy to guard."

"That's what I thought too," Logan agreed, his eyes tracing elevation lines and access routes.

Maya suddenly looked up from where she'd been quietly studying a set of blueprints, her green eyes bright with sudden realization. "Actually, I think I might know where he is."

Every head in the room turned toward her.

"When I was held captive at the Granite Ridge medical facility three months ago, there were sections of that building that felt... different. Older. Like they'd been repurposed from something else."

Logan felt his tactical instincts sharpen. Maya had been imprisoned and experimented on by Granite Ridge's research division before Kieran had extracted her in a daring rescue mission that had nearly started a war between the packs.

"You think he's being held at the medical facility?" Zoe asked, leaning forward intently.

Maya nodded, sliding the blueprints toward them. "Kieran still has the building schematics from my rescue. But the thing is, these blueprints don't show anything that matches what I sensed there—stone walls and older construction that felt almost ancient."

Logan studied the blueprints with the focused intensity of a predator analyzing prey. Something about Maya's description triggered a memory from earlier that day, and he glanced at Zoe to see if she was thinking the same thing.

"What if there's a hidden level?" Zoe said suddenly, her curator's mind making connections that his tactical training had missed. "Just like in the underground bunker today. A super sublevel, way underground, that doesn't show up on the official blueprints."

Logan could have picked her up and spun her around the room. His brilliant, clever mate had just solved the mystery that had been nagging at him all afternoon.

"Of course," he said, admiration thick in his voice. "They'd use the same concealment principles we encountered today. Design something that's invisible to the unsuspecting eye."

The pieces were falling into place now, creating the foundation for what would undoubtedly be the most dangerous mission of his career. But as Logan looked around the table at the assembled faces—his Alpha, his mate, and their allies—he felt something he hadn't experienced in over fifteen years.

Hope.