He jogged out and started punching holes in the floor, thinking about the warning he'd given Nessa about ruling with her heart, about watching her back and not trusting the people closest to her. He'd been right-just not about her allies.
Not once had he suspected Lucas.
What was Lucas doing to Nessa at this very minute? The shifter hated witches. Bear tried to banish the horrific thoughts, but he couldn't get her pretty face out of his mind. He'd failed to protect her again. And not once, not once, had he told her his feelings. The little witch owned him, and he loved her. Hell. Love wasn't a strong enough word for what he felt.
He hadn't told her. She should know. She should understand he'd be coming for her. Oh, his friend was going to die. He'd known Lucas for decades. Maybe not as well as he'd thought, but he'd known him.
The boys kicked the floor to shit around him. Bear stood and surveyed the area, running through the topography of his land. He eyed the dartboards. "Over there." He ran past broken boards and knelt, punching the floor. His hand hit concrete, and pain rippled up his arm.
He punched again and again along the wall. Finally, his hand went through into air. "Found it." Standing, he jumped as hard as he could, breaking through the trapdoor and landing on steps.
"Call for backup," he ordered the boys, turning and running down.
Chapter 33
Nessa tried to escape the cuffs, but they were well constructed. Across from her, Grace watched her carefully.
They'd have to work together to get out of this.
Lucas paced back and forth, muttering to himself. His phone rang, and he lifted it to listen. His face twisted. "Are you fucking kidding me? Where? How about Alaska? Damn it, find out." He slammed the phone down on the table.
"Campaign not going quite as expected?" Nessa drawled, hiding the terror trying to rip its way out of her chest.
"No." Lucas turned and stared at her, spittle flying from his mouth. "I can at least kill one witch to calm myself." He reached beside a keyboard and lifted a long-bladed hunting knife. The sharp edge shone in the light from the screens.
Nessa watched the glimmer, her gaze caught. Her limbs weakened. She lifted her gaze to Lucas's face, forcing her expression to show no fear. "That all you got?"
He jerked his head and huffed air, smiling. "Think I could take off your head with one swipe?"
With that blade? Definitely. "What? No foreplay?" Nessa drawled.
Grace fought against her shackles. "Be a man, asshole. At least give us a chance to fight."
Lucas licked his lips and stared at Nessa. "I've wanted to do this since the first time Bear looked at you instead of me for an answer." He crouched and pressed the flat steel of the blade against her jugular. "My best friend with a witch."
The lunatic was jealous of her relationship with Bear? "You've been lying to him for decades," she whispered, trying not to move her throat too much.
"But still. We both hated witches." Lucas watched the blade as he rubbed the knife against her skin.
"Bear never hated witches." Nessa kept perfectly still. "He's grumpy and likes to be left alone, but he's not a hater. Not like you."
Lucas nodded almost sadly. "I wish I didn't know that," he mumbled. "I disliked killing my best friend."
Chills clacked through Nessa. Bear couldn't be dead. He just couldn't be. "There's still time to stop this madness. Your plan isn't going to work. Each of your hired attack squads is being tracked right now, and they'll be stopped. My people are secure."
"You're not." Lucas dropped forward on his knees and lifted his knife high above his head.
All time stopped. Nessa took a breath, pulled her knees in, and kicked Lucas in the balls. He doubled over with a harsh groan, and she clapped his head between her knees, squeezing hard. He slashed at her, his knife hitting the floor and scraping. She opened her knees and smashed them shut again, nailing his temples.
He howled and shoved away, scrambling backward. "You bitch." He moved closer, and Grace kicked up between his legs while screaming.
He dropped to his knees, shrieking.
Grace angled toward him, kicking furiously. Nessa came from the other side, kicking him solidly in the temple.
Jumping up, he lunged, knife aimed for Nessa's throat.
The entire floor exploded.
Bear leaped through, catching Lucas around the waist before he could reach Nessa. They pummeled each other into the far wall, sending computer monitors crashing down.
Nessa ducked as ceiling tiles started dropping.