Page 17 of His Place in the World
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“What if this is an auction?”Cam asked.“Will you just be gathering information, or are you planning on trying to save the shifters there?”
Angus hadn’t gotten that far.“My first instinct would be to save everyone we see, but I don’t think that will be possible.”
“I agree,” Remi said.He glared at Ryland when Ryland opened his mouth.“And I know that if Pembroke is there, all hell will break loose.I don’t expect you not to do anything if you find your brother.But think about it.What will happen if you decide to step in and attempt to save all the shifters these people are auctioning?You can’t buy all of them, and if you try, people will notice and know something’s wrong.What will happen to you then?What will happen to Angus or any of the shifters involved?”
Ryland’s heart looked like it was breaking, and Angus understood.He wanted to save rare shifters, too.
But they wouldn’t be able to, at least not the night of the party.
“We’ll gather as much information as possible while we’re there,” he said.“Hopefully, that will include information about where the rare shifters are being kept between auctions.If we can find an address, these shifters will be easier to rescue than the ones who get sold.We’ll get all of them eventually, though.”It was a promise that Angus was making to Ryland and the others as much as he was making it to himself.
“And you’re willing to put yourself in danger for this information,” Del said.
He was staring at Angus, but Angus couldn’t read his expression.It was fairly easy to understand how he felt, though.Angus just had to think about how he’d feel if Del volunteered for a mission like the one he’d just volunteered for.
His mouth went dry.He understood where Del was coming from, but that didn’t mean his mate’s feelings would stop him.This was too important, maybe even more important than a mate.“This is the best way to get me inside and for me to find the information we need,” he explained.
“You could get hurt.”
“I could get hurt here without even walking out the door.I could get hurt on my way back to Wakefield.I was lucky enough to find not one but two places to call home.I was able to get off the street and be safe.I want every single rare shifter to have the same and for all of them to be free to make their own decisions.These people, the whole operation, needs to be shut down.If the only way to get the information I’ll need to make that happen is to go there and act as if I’m Ryland’s pet, I’ll do it.”
Angus wasn’t used to having to keep in mind other people’s feelings when he made decisions.He was careful of Angela, but usually, she went along with whatever he said.She knew he wouldn’t do anything without a good reason, and he had no doubt she’d agree.
“I’m not letting you go on this mission on your own.If you’re going, then I am, too,” Del said.
Angus was annoyed.Didn’t Del realize he could take care of himself?He’d been doing so since he was a teenager, and while he was safer now than he’d been with the Wakefield pack, he’d always be careful of his surroundings and the people around him.He’d made sure he could defend himself if someone tried attacking him, and he knew what he’d be walking in to if he went on this mission.
“You can’t go,” he declared.
“Why not?Because I’m human?”
“Exactly.”
“Ryland is human,” Del pointed out, looking smug.
“And I wouldn’t be asking him to do this if I didn’t need him to.”
The sound of something crashing in the hallway made all of them jump and turn toward the door.Angus heard someone talking, but no one came in, so he turned back to the problem at hand.“We need to put as few people as possible in danger.Ryland needs to go, as do I, because beyond Everly, I’m the only one who can gather this information, and considering he was kidnapped once, we can’t put him in the spotlight that way.”
Del crossed his arms over his chest.“Do you think the other people invited to the auction will have bodyguards?”
Angus frowned.“Probably.Why?”
“Ryland will need bodyguards, too.It wouldn’t look good if he didn’t, right?”
Angus’s stomach churned.He knew where Del was going.“You can’t be his bodyguard.”
“So you’re telling me that I can’t forbid you to go on this mission, but you can tell me to stay back?”
The door opened suddenly, slamming against the wall and revealing a man holding a little girl.She clung to his neck, hiding her face against it.
Angus hadn’t officially met Matt, but he knew who the man was, and having him there, glaring at Del, couldn’t be good.
“Are you out of your mind?”Matt asked, stomping inside the room and stopping in front of his son.“How can you think they’ll allow you to go?”
Del threw his hands in the air.“Have you and Angus agreed on this?I’m an adult.Neither of you can forbid me to do anything.”
