Sharp Change(25)
Seff, Chase, and River turned to glare at him.
“Sorry to say it, but it’s true. The samples are safe unless they can get their hands on Sophia to get the vault opened. This means she can’t be left alone without protection.”
River sighed and turned to Chase. “He’s right. I’m sure by now they’ve realized they can’t get the storage opened without Sophia. They’re going to want to get their hands on her soon, which means she’s not to be left alone.”
“What do you mean I can’t be left alone? What am I, four?” Outraged she looked at River and gave him an angry glare.
“We’ll all take turns until we get rid of the threat—” River broke off as Riel’s cell phone went off.
The enforcer looked at the number and stood to answer the call away from the table. Meanwhile Chase continued to pile more food on Sophia’s plate. She wondered if he was trying to turn her into a cow. Here she was trying not to eat them out of everything they had, and he just kept adding stuff to her plate thinking she wasn’t paying attention. She rolled her eyes but continued eating.
Riel returned, concern written on his face. “That was Tryx’s phone. The caller wasn’t Tryx. Not really sure who it was, but it’s clear they have her. They stated she was fine for the moment, but they want Sophia if we want her back.”
He hadn’t finished speaking when the other three men stood ready to take action.
“We can’t let anything happen to her. Do you have her phone’s GPS turned on?” Seff asked.
“Everyone in the pack has an active GPS on their cell phone. If hers is working, they want us to find her. It might be a trap,” Riel said.
“I hope so. I need to get my hands on whoever is behind all this and finish it once and for all.” Chase’s voice had deepened to an almost unintelligible growl.
“So who stays with Sophia?” Riel asked.
River stood and walked toward Chase’s open home office. Everyone quickly followed as the men gathered weapons, and Riel sat down to access the mapping of Tryx’s phone location from Chase’s laptop.
“Oh for God’s sake. Give me a frigging break and just go. I’m not going to go anywhere, and I’m sure anyone looking wouldn’t think to find me here.” Sophia’s rage had been simmering since they started talking of watching over her like she was some newborn, and now that someone actually needed all of them, they were still debating who would stay with her.
“Absolutely not.” Chase turned and pulled her into his arms. He held her tightly to him. “I’m not taking any chances with your life.”
His concern soothed her, and she leaned into his body. The fear she saw in his eyes was enough to stop her ranting.
“Riel, you stay and track the signal while we go and find Tryx.”
* * *
Seff drove Chase’s SUV while the alpha called two other enforcers, Kane and Troy. The men were working the streets as cleaners to ensure resolution of any problems the pack members got into with humans. They were usually left to work on their own.
River was on the phone with Riel to get an exact location and verify there had been no movement. They met up with Kane and Troy about a mile from where Tryx’s phone’s GPS had locked its last location. Chase had given Tryx’s shop a call and verified with her assistant she hadn’t shown up and was truly missing.
They drove the vehicles off the road and hid them behind a group of thick trees. Splitting up in groups of two, they shifted out of their skin and set out in a large circle around the area, slowly closing in on the coordinates Riel had passed along.
In the center of the clearing lay a woman bound and gagged with a cell phone next to her. Her clothes had been torn, and cut marks dripping blood were visible on her arms and legs. The woman’s blonde hair was covered with dirt and leaves. There was no one else around, and she resembled Tryx, but as they neared her they realized she wasn’t Chase’s cousin.
Once they got closer to the unmoving body, Chase scented her and knew she was a human. Kane picked up the female and removed her from the scene. Growls sounded around the group. Their display of aggravation made Chase wonder what else could be done to find Tryx.
They returned to their vehicles and called Riel, but he didn’t answer. Concern made Chase’s heart beat faster in his chest, and he tried Julia and Sophia’s phones with no success.
* * *
Riel left Sophia and Julia sitting in the living room and went into Chase’s office. When an explosion rocked the front and back of the house, he lifted his gaze from the computer screen to see the women run into the office and join him. Not wasting any time, Riel clicked a button that unlatched a column on the wall.