The Defiant Luna
Chapter 44

Nathan POV

It was barely 8pm out here in L.A. he was looking all around him, as was Jackson. He could see Apollo on the surface trying to scent anything at all, his Luna or his Gamma. It didn’t look like he was having any more luck than Nathan or Havoc was himself. They were both walking back and forth trying to find out anything at all.

Both got nothing.

There weren’t all that many people on the street, but surely someone would have seen something and reported it. He was looking at the people. There was no one milling around or looking like they were waiting on police.

Everyone was just passing by, was this just a normal occurrence for them to see? People disappearing off the street? He had no idea how no one was concerned.

Surely there had been someone who’d seen something they thought was out of the ordinary, but it certainly didn’t look like it. ‘I don’t like it.’ Havoc snarled, he was not happy and wanted to rip out of him to hunt her himself. Though that even appeared to be pointless right that minute. There was nothing to track them, both Jay-la and Stephen’s scents were gone, it just stopped right here on the footpath, by the roadside

“We need a car, we’re going to have to drive around and look.” He muttered, it was not the most efficient way to search for her or Stephen, but it was all they had right this minute.

“There has been no threats.” Jackson frowned “I’ve not even smelled a single wolf, that’s not ours, at all the whole time I’ve been here.”

Nathan stood surveying the street as he thought about Jackson’s words “I have.” He stated “Though it was days ago, so did Jay-la. At her apartment the day we got here. A she-wolf, not a rogue. I thought it was familiar, but couldn’t place it. Jay-lay, I don’t think knew it at all.”

“And you didn’t think to mention it?” Jackson was glaring at him

“I saw nothing at all, I looked. It was just one scent, caught it on the passing breeze, thought it was perhaps just a passing she-wolf was all. We wouldn’t be the only ones out here in L.A. There are packs here in California. It wasn’t rogue. There were no signs of a threat, no sign of the she-wolf herself.” he shook his head.

“Perhaps it wasn’t so innocent now,” Jackson muttered, sounding annoyed.

“No.” Nathan frowned, had to agree with him on that now ” Though it was familiar to me. Or I thought it was.

Therefore, no threat either, likely a she-wolf from a pack l’d visited before.”

“Do you recall it at all now?”

“No.” he shook his head, “Didn’t smell it all again after that either.” He sighed heavily.

Watched as Gregory pulled up a truck in front of him “We saw nothing on our way here boss. What happened?”

“Stephen and Jay-la were taken off the street. From right here. This is where the scent stops.” His eyes were once again on the move, assessing the people on the street.

Looking for anything at all. Looking for anyone looking right at them, that seemed to be watching them or looked to be hovering about.

“Hey you there. A male voice caught his attention, and he saw a homeless man walking towards him, filthy, dirty and quite pungent at that “You Nathan?” turned right to that man.

“I am.” He nodded.

“I was asked to give this to you, when you show up.” He was holding out a phone to him.

Nathan took it “Who are you? Who gave it to you?” he rapped out “What did they look like? Where did they go?”

“I don’t know man.” The guy shrugged. “Just got given a hundred bucks to give you that is all.”

“By who?” he asked again.

“Some dude, warned me not to fail in the request, or he’d beat me to death.”

“What did he look like? What car was he driving?”

“Wowa man, that’s a lot a questions you got.”

“How much for the information.” Nathan snapped at him as he saw the man holding out his hand, rubbing his fingers together.

“Match the other dude. A hundred bucks a question.” He snort fully amused, it seemed

Nathan got his wallet out and checked his cash, saw Jackson do the same, though he was not one to go around carrying much cash. Used his pack card for near everything, he was only carrying two hundred dollars.

Looked at Jackson he two was only carrying that much.

Looked at the homeless man and saw him blink in shock that they were willing to pay him the money, he requested ” You’ll be honest about this.”

“Yeah man.” He nodded the guy said as he heard Gregory state “we can pool more between us boss.”

“What did the guy look like?” he asked once more.

“Tall and bulky like you and your friend there, um, had dark hair, scary looking fella.”

“What was he wearing?”

“Jeans and a tee-shirt.” The guy shrugged.

“Nothing

unusual.”

“What kind of car was he in and which way did it go?

“It went down the street that way” he pointed behind him. “

Was blue and I don’t know what kind it was.”

“Anyone else with him?”

“Na, just that dude.”

“Did you see what happened?”

“No man. I was down in the alley, minding my own business, he called out to me offered me a hundred bucks.

I ain’t gonna say no.”

Nathan put the money they had pooled into the man’s hand, “Thanks.”

“Hey man, you short a hundred bucks.”

Nathan frowned at him. “It’s all I got, you don’t want the five hundred I can take it back.”

Saw the man pocked it and shake his head then turn and hurry away back towards the alley he said hed come from.

Stood and looked at the phone in his hand, touched the power button and the screen lit up, no lock screen. Clicked into the contacts nothing in there either. Frowned at it, thought there would at least be a number in there for him to call.

“Burner phone.” Jackson stated “We’re going to have to wait on them to call us as well.”

“Someone is going to die.” Nathan snarled.

This was the very reason he didn’t want her here on her own and she hadn’t been either. But someone had still managed to come along and take her from him. Took not just Jay-la but Stephen as well.

“We’re not going to be able to do anything Nathan. Have to wait on that phone to ring and see what demands are made.”

He already knew that, didn’t bloody like it at all. She had been with him just 33 minutes ago and now she was just gone from him. He had no idea who took her, why they took her or what they wanted from him in order to get her back. If they were willing to give her back, that was.

The two of them were finally in a good place, they were actually happy and loved up together and now this has to go and happen. She had told him she was ready to go home, wanted to be with him. They had had a really good couple of days here, had gone out just the two of them and had dinner. They’d gone dancing last night and she was smiling at him nearly non-stop. She was really happy, and he knew it, Kora was letting Havoc and he feel just how happy she was.

It had been just the two of them the whole time here in L.A

Havoc and Kora were behaving themselves and actually staying out of it. Letting the two of them fully reconnect and bond to each other. Havoc and Kora had simply taken a back seat for them to really spend time together and Jay-lay knew this as much as he did

He could tease her and play with her, sit and talk with her, cuddle on the couch with her in her apartment and just be with her, like it had been in the old days. It was really nice, not just for her but for him as well. He could make her laugh and roll her eyes, shake her head and whack him playfully.

The past few days had been amazing between them, not just in the bedroom but during the day and afternoons, evenings just sitting and talking, spending quality time with each other, really getting to know each other.

Though Havoc had laid his paws on her, like his father had Ch 14

told him 100, Nathan had woken up to find his beast in control and his ear pressed to her belly while she had been sleeping soundly. They could hear a tiny furiously beating Nutter of a heartbeat in her belly, they had both smiled. She had not woken up and Nathan had made sure she hadn’t.

He’d not particularly wanted to know, it would happen when it happened. He wasn’t the one trying to impregnate her, but Havoc was a different story altogether, his beast was very happy. Just a few weeks along she was, he had no idea how far along she was when they found out about the triplets.

Didn’t know right now if Kora knew they were with pup or not. He had laid there and both he and Havoc had just watched her sleep for a long time. Havoc was happy, told him it was his pup not Nathan’s which had nearly made him laugh out loud. They were one and the same,

, but

Havoc was certain he’d been in control when that pup was created.

He’d also not told her he knew, wanted them to find out on their own, tell him the news when they were ready to.

Hoped she was going to be okay with this so soon in their relationship. Havoc had snort inside his mind, Kora wants it’. He told his wolf that he and Kora needed to back off a bit and let Jay-la make some choices for herself and her body.

Havoc was no longer allowed to be all aggressive in his mating of Kora any more either. She also wouldn’t be able to shift till after that pup was born, so Kora and Havoc could only mate in human form now. Havoc had snorted at him, told him 1 can be gentle, Kora just likes it rough and aggressive

Well, no more of that. You got a pup to think about now.’

He’d heard Havoc chortle inside his mind and then just settle back down to watch her sleep.

“Nathan, Jay-la will be fine, and Stephen is with her.” Jackson’s voice interrupted his thoughts.

“You don’t know that.” He sighed as he looked at the phone, they may have taken both of them, but that didn’t mean that they were safe or even together. As for her being fine, he’d not told anyone about her being pregnant, he was pretty certain she didn’t even know yet, too early.

“Yes I do, Nathan.” Jackson put a hand on his shoulder. “if she gets really scared, it is going to set off her flight and fight response. She and Kora will react without much thought and kill everyone that is a threat to her. She’ll be just fine.”

“If Stephen is with her?” he muttered, that would put the man in danger himself if he was where she was.

“Stephen is a smart man, he’ll also know not to present himself as any kind of threat to her, he knows about her affliction, he will back away and she’ll leave him alone.”

He looked right at Jackson and knew that was likely the truth of the matter.

“You’ve seen Kora, she is massive now, and hopped up on adrenaline no one will be a match for her.”

“She can’t shift Jackson.” He looked right at his Beta, shook his head. “Won’t shift, I don’t think.”

Saw Jackson look right at him for a moment and then nod in understanding “She will be just fine, Jay-la can fight, with or without Kora, was trained with all of us. She took down the last lot that took her and didn’t have Kora, was cuffed with silver and still got away. Your Luna is strong and capable.”

“She doesn’t have Kora right now, we can’t feel them, wolfsbane or silver. I don’t even know if she knows she can’t shift yet.”

“I know you’re scared for her, we all are. Stephen will do everything to protect her, you know that. She is not only his job Nathan, he is her closest friend right now. She trusts him more than anyone.”

He knew that, but that did not stop him or Havoc worrying about her safety, or Stephen’s for that matter. Her affliction could well save her life, but it could well also mean that she will attack Stephen. Kill him, without understanding who or what he is to her, not care at all at the time. Lost to her flight and fight response nothing and no one was going to register with her.

“Back to the hotel.” He muttered, very unhappy with the situation that was unfolding around him. There was no point standing on the street, they could only wait on that phone in his hand to ring, to find out who had her and why.

What they wanted from him was another matter, he would give anything to get her back, that much he knew. No price was too high for him to pay to get her back. He could only pray that no one harmed her, touched her. He would know if someone violated her, and it wasn’t going to go down so well if they felt that.

Tried not to think about that at all. Was agitating not only him but his wolf too.