Tall, Dark & Heartless

That was not happening.

They were grabbing Joshua, hopefully, and getting the hell out of here and in a few hours they'd be in their new home where they could do whatever they wanted and go wherever they pleased. Tomorrow morning they'd send for Grandma and Jill and she'd wring Jill's neck for this recent bullshit, but then they'd move on and hopefully Jill would have learned a valuable lesson. They were still going to have to figure out a way to erase the bastard's mark off her neck without hurting her.

Speaking of the bastard.......

As soon as the elevator doors slid open she spotted him lying on his cot, resting peacefully while her poor sister was forced to leave the compound. When she started to waddle in his direction, just to poke him gently in the heart with a stake a few times, Izzy grabbed her by the arm and pulled her away.

"Behave," Izzy said. They followed slowly after Marc as he made his way to Joshua's cell. It was only because she knew that Ephraim would probably take his rage out on the vampire when he discovered that they were gone that she allowed Izzy to drag her away.

As soon as they stepped in front of Joshua's cell she felt her heart break for her baby. There he sat all alone, looking both handsome and miserable. She loved all her children, but Joshua was and always would be her little guy. He was the one who used to make her smile when things were bad and who was always there for her. Before he was shot and changed by Ephraim and Kale into God only knows what, he was well on his way to becoming a brilliant doctor for the Sentinels. Now he simply sat in his cell, saying nothing and barely acknowledging any of them. It was sad, but hopefully he'd respond well to their new home.

"Joshua," she said as Marc nodded and moved over to the security pad and waited for her signal to open the cell. "We're going to the new house today and we're taking you with us."

When he didn't go into a rage she took that as a good sign and nodded to Marc, who couldn't press in the code fast enough. They all missed Joshua and couldn't wait to have him back. As the door slid open he stood up and walked towards them. She nearly sighed with relief as he took a left and headed towards the back staircase.

They didn't know what he'd become, but whatever it was, she knew that her little guy was still inside somewhere waiting to come back out and be with them. Izzy threw her a pleased smile as she followed after the man who used to be her best friend and Madison couldn't help but hope that things were going to get better.

Twenty minutes later she watched as Izzy typed in the code for the secret exit that would take them out to Boston Common where they'd be able to blend in, hail a taxi or two and get out of town. They knew from the surveillance tapes and eavesdropping on the men that this was one of the few exits that the mercenaries still after Izzy didn't know about, but of course the men refused to risk them by taking this chance and trying to escape.

When Marc reached for the door to open it Joshua stilled, it was subtle, but she noticed it. She opened her mouth to ask him what was wrong when she caught the scent that filled her with dread. Izzy realized what was going on, but too late, as she tried to slam the door shut and escape to another exit.

"I wonder what we have here," Chris drawled lazily as he carefully shoved the door open and reached for his mate. With a wince, Izzy turned and tried to waddle away, but her mate was faster. Unfortunately for Madison, her mate was a hell of a lot faster. He had her scooped up in his arms before she could turn around.

"It's not what it looks like!" Izzy said on a squeal as Chris scooped her up.

"I told you they were up to no good," Kale said cheerfully from the doorway as he reached out and grabbed hold of Marc by the back of his neck as the boy smartly tried to make his escape.

Her eyes shot over to Izzy just in time to catch her subtle nod. Good, they were in agreement; they were going to have to kick the shifter's tattletaling ass.

Chapter 40

"Are you comfortable?" Chris bit out tightly as Izzy continued to shift on his lap until she was sitting sideways with her legs draped across Kale's lap. The shifter glowered in their direction as he continued to nibble on a large chocolate peanut butter candy bar.

"No, but.....," Izzy said, leaning forward and snagging the candy bar away from the shifter with a cocky little grin that shouldn't turn Chris on given the circumstances, but it did. "Now I am," she said, sounding pleased as she took a huge bite of the candy bar and made a show of savoring it.

The shifter released a menacing growl that had Jessica giggling from the safety of her car seat where she was strapped in tightly and secured to the thick divider of the cargo van. Marc noticeably started at the sound as he reached out and took Jessica's little hand into his to offer the happy infant comfort.

"Actually, you know what? I'd be even more comfortable if you just went ahead and unchained Joshua now," she said in that damn smug tone that grated on his nerves and caused his c**k to twitch with need.

He shot a look over to his brother whose legs and arms were bound tightly in chains and secured to the other side of the van. The man might look as docile as a puppy, but Chris hadn't missed the flash or silver and red when the tunnel door opened and revealed the little sneaks. There was more to his brother than any of them knew and he sure as hell wasn't risking his family to find out.

"Not happening," Chris said, wondering if his father would be willing to trade places with him, but then again he'd have to deal with Madison's gloating as he drove so he decided that perhaps he'd better stay right where he was.

"Give it back," Kale said, reaching to snatch it out of Izzy's hands only to have the woman shake her head as she sighed contently and took another bite.

Kale noticeably fumed as he forced himself to pull his hand back. The woman had them all by the balls and she knew it, too. After the shifter confirmed Chris' suspicions that his mate was up to something they put off their trip and waited by the door that his mate had shown a little too much interest in lately.

For two hours he waited, anticipating the five minute spanking he was going to give her ass as he took her only to have his plans destroyed by his devious little mate. Instead of scooping her up in his arms, he should have searched her before her sneaky little hands could pull out her Smartphone. In less than a minute she was able to send out a program that f**ked with their phones and more importantly, Kale's tablet, which held all the information they needed to go after the Pytes.

So instead of spanking their asses like they deserved they were forced to grovel to the damn women and break speed laws in two states to get everyone to their new home where they'd drop them off before they could go after the Pytes. It added an extra twelve hours to their plans and he should be pissed, but he really wasn't. Well, he was, but he was also relieved.

His family was leaving the compound and was going to be tucked away somewhere safe and that's all that mattered. Well, that and the fact that once he finished this mission his mate was going to get the sound spanking that she so richly deserved.

********

Somewhere in Western Massachusetts

"This better work," Caine said, holding Danni's cold limp body tightly against his as he walked through the automated double doors of the hospital's waiting room.

"Of course it will," Jax said, not sounding a hundred percent sure and for good reason.