Page 12 of Captive Nanny to the Wolf

“Well, I’m glad,” she said, a little charmed by the kid despite the circumstances.

She caught herself feeling almost flattered that Mr. Wright had trusted her.Please. Don’t even go there. That is definitely some Stockholm syndrome shit if that makes you feel good.She almost chuckled out loud. What elsecouldshe do?

“There it is,” she said as she got the mix down. “Want to help? I’m thinking you guys probably have a fridge around here somewhere. We’re gonna need milk. So just tell me, are you Jasper or Marcus?”

The kid laughed again. “Okay, fine, I’m Jasper, but don’t tell Marcus that I told you. He likes to keep it going as long as possible. I’m taller cause I’m the oldest.”

Jasper moved to a tall cabinet door and opened it. “The fridge is over here.” He smirked. “Dad is always complaining that everything looks the same. He always blames it on the ‘designer’.”

“Must be rough having a ‘designer’,” she muttered under her breath, her mind temporarily distracted from her predicament.

With the kids “helping” wherever they could, she finally began to serve up the promised treats.

“Voilà!” she said, as she finally began to divvy up the stack of steaming pancakes to her charges.

How did this happen? Better yet, how soon till I get out of here? Because Iamgetting out of here, right? Oh god. Please tell me “Mr. Wright” just had a bout of temporary insanity.

Then she thought absently.Julie is never gonna believe this.

CHAPTER6

Rollo stood at the line of cars, looking down the barrel of a gun. They had Frederick surrounded alright. He and his pack didn’t often have a use for guns, but every once in a while they did come in handy. Frederick was inside an old automotive garage. Sutter’s had been there forever, the lettering on the side of the building faded beyond recognition. Three shifters were approaching the door when they heard a roar. Rollo could feel himself trying to identify what it could be, his senses overwhelmed with the noise. The air around them tightened somehow and they had time to look at each other in alarm before the building exploded outwards. Rollo was knocked backwards off his feet and the world faded to black.

When he came to, he looked around to find himself leaning against the tire of a car. There was no car to be found, just a tire. The smoke was still clearing, and he shook his head. His hearing had been replaced by a high ringing. Everything seemed to be in slow motion as he struggled to get his bearings. He could see other slowly moving bodies on the ground nearby and knew his shifter companions were injured but not lost. Looking down at his own body, he was able to ascertain that he was all in one piece. Maybe he had some internal trauma, but he could tell it was nothing that his potent shifter blood couldn’t set right. His wolf was staggering to his feet inside him. The hearing was returning even as he sat. Sound was coming back as if someone were slowly turning down the high ringing and turning up the normal volume. He could hear groaning and the approach of sirens.

He tried to sit up, looking around to see. “So, did we get him? Tell me that wasn’t some kind of a set up!” He could feel the fury building in him.After all this time, was it a fucking set up?Had Frederick really suckered them in? He could see the ruins of the garage in front of him, and one still shape on the ground nearest the door. One of his packmates approached, tentatively. He quickly motioned that whoever it was was alive. But it was clear that time was of the essence. Rollo rushed over where a few others also converged. It was Jack. Dammit. Not that it could have been anyone he didn’t care about. They were a tight knit pack.

“Jack’s down!” he called to all those in ear shot. He was out cold, and had blood trickling from his nose and a few other superficial cuts on his face and arms. His shirt was in tatters, but he was in one piece. However, Rollo knew that didn’t mean much. The compression wave from an explosion wreaked havoc on your insides.

Thank God.

Even as others rushed to secure the area, Dayton, came over to help him load Jack into the back of Clint’s Bronco. Dayton was often a bit of a clown, but when push came to shove, he was one bear shifter you wanted in your corner. Didn’t hurt that that made him strong as hell too.

“Damn that mother fucker. Jack better pull through or that bastard is gonna pay,” Dayton growled.

“Oh, he’s gonna pay no matter what,” Rollo replied darkly.

“Ain’t that the truth, brother,” Dayton said as they shut the door to Clint’s vehicle before returning to help secure the area. Clint pulled away without a moment to spare. They had to get Jack help. He imagined he would take him to June, or maybe straight to the witches.

The thought made him shiver a bit. The fae were strange enough with their magic. He was vaguely aware, like everyone was that Fae Crossing was supposedly founded where it was because it was some positive energy vortex or something. That shit was above his pay grade, so he rarely wasted any brain cells thinking about it. And then you had the witches. They could just be downright unsettling at times. Sometimes, he suspected they might even play it up for effect. It was a toss up who would be tasked with healing Jack up…or at least trying to. His wolf was still focused on the immediate situation and he followed his cue, pushing all thoughts of his wounded comrade from his mind.

Dammit. What a total clusterfuck.Burning timbers, and debris littered the ground. A few others were already sifting through the rubble. One glance at them let him know Frederick had once again gotten away.

Dammit.

But he couldn’t dwell on that now either. They had to stay focused. Dax was already approaching him, jogging across the open ground.

“Hey, you okay?” he asked.

“Yeah, man, I’m good. Can’t say the same for Jack, though.”

“Yeah, but he’s a tough son of a bitch.”

“Amen to that.”

“Okay, I want everyone out searching. Scour Mossy Ridge, but also Fae Crossing. From the Clouded Woods to the Quarry and from here to the Meadow. Leave no stone unturned. Got it?”

“Now?”

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