HELLHOUND (Book Two of the Wisteria Chronicles)

CHAPTER 13~I forgot~

Leo

       Unloading the ship took longer than expected. Each cargo container held fifteen people, making a grand total of 75 rescued prisoners. James and Cameron were able to secure a few vans that would take them to Kingston. We rented a few party boats that would bring them back to the mainland. The party boats were a perfect disguise that wouldn’t draw attention to our large crowd. Phoebe was a f*****g genius.

    I went down into the cabin where Keith held our hostage. He was a goblin hybrid; his skin was leathery and his jaw protruded out. “Where were you taking these people?” I asked him. He reared his head back and spat in my face. Keith gave him a swift beating, his eye already swelling. “Look man, we’ve got all day. We’re in no rush. But I don’t know how well your body will keep up.” I reasoned with him while wiping my cheek.

  When he remained silent, Keith continued to hit him, his blows echoing throughout the cabin. “Ok...” the goblin groaned. Keith stepped back as I crossed my arms. “Talk.” I demanded. “30 of them were going to go to different locations. The others were a bulk order meant for one place.” he said through bloodied lips.

   “Where?” I asked. “The Underworld.” I pursed my lips, “Who ordered them?” The goblin was quiet, so I lifted up my hand to signal Keith. “Gozredal.” I frowned; I’ve heard that name before. “Why does he need so many slaves?” the goblin laughed, “How was I supposed to know?” His tone was too light for someone who didn’t know anything. 

   Keith stepped forward, ready to continue. “Because of Discovery!” The goblin yelled. I motioned for Keith to stop. “Gozredal holds an exhibit every two months where he displays magical slaves. Word has it that he wants to display as many as he can before the Infinity Exchange.” 

   “Thank you for the information.” I said as I stood up. “Wait, aren’t you gonna kill me?” he asked, confused. “No. We don’t believe in killing without a good reason. You provided me with the information, now we will send you to the Council. They would love to hear how a goblin is smuggling supernaturals into their territory.”

     The goblin paled at my words. “NO! Come back! Just kill me, please!” he shouted as I made my way out to the deck. If there was a fate worse than death, it was being sent to the Council as a criminal. I walked up to Cameron and asked for an update. “James confirmed that all the boats made it to Kingston.” he reported. I clapped him on the back then headed to the back of the boat.  

   Titus and Phoebe were awake, having an animated argument. When Phoebe saw me, she crossed her arms and turned her head away from Titus. He looked annoyed but didn’t try to continue their conversation. Trouble in paradise? I linked him. He rolled his eyes, She’s mad because I told her she shouldn’t do higher level spells without me present. I laughed and cut the link. “How’s everything going?” Phoebe asked. I ran through the updates from James and Cameron. I also let them know about what I learned from the goblin.

   Phoebe furrowed her brows as she listened. “Do you think Faedan will be there?” she asked. I smiled and ruffled her hair. “There’s a big probability that he is.” Titus nodded, “Gozredal is rumored to own a vast number of slaves in the Underworld. If he isn’t there, then it will help narrow out places to look.”

   “When do we start investigating?” Phoebe asked, her eyes full of excitement. I looked over at Titus who frowned at her. “There is no we. Leo and a few others will take over the investigation now.” Phoebe whipped her head back to look at him. “What do you mean?” she demanded with squinted eyes.

   “You know exactly what I mean. You can’t go into the Underworld. I won’t be able to protect you.” Titus said. Phoebe stood up, making Titus follow. “I can protect my damn self!” she yelled. “Phoebe, please don’t do this.” Phoebe began to shake her head, “You started this! I want to help find him.” 

    Titus shook his head, a plea in his eyes. “You can’t run in and out of the Underworld like it's a friendly visit. There are people there who will be able to sense your magic. Do you know how unique and rare you are?” he asked her. Phoebe frowned and shook her head. 

  “Bee, you're a lycan who can use dark magic. There’s never been someone like you before. We can’t just let you waltz into a place that’s crawling with people who would literally kill to get to you.” I explained. The anger in her face began to disappear, her mouth now in a sad pout. “But I want to help.”

   “You will, but not right now.” I reassured her. “Once the team confirms that they’ve found Faedan, you will go out to retrieve him. I’ll be right there with you to make sure those bastards never lay a hand on you.” Titus said. I gave him a worried glance, he returned it with a look that said drop it. I bit my lip; this wasn’t what we had planned. Titus knew he couldn't step through that f*****g portal. 

    Phoebe gave a reluctant sigh. “Alright. I’ll trust you.” she said before walking away. I swung my head around, “You know you can’t be there with us!” Titus let out a deep breath. “I know. But after seeing how vulnerable she is when she’s using magic…” he trailed off, panic in his eyes. “There’s no way I’ll be able to stay at home.” he finished lamely.

   “f**k Titus. You know you could be risking everything!” He slowly shook his head. “She is my everything.” I rubbed my face in frustration. “You better tell her before we find him.” I ordered. “She would tell me not to go and stay with me. I couldn’t ask her to do that. You saw how important this is to her.” I understood what he was saying, I just didn’t want it to be true.

  I wagged my finger at him, “If anything happens to you-” Titus laughed  and cut me off. “I know, you’ll kick my ass.” I gave up resisting, he already made up his mind. I opened my arms up and embraced him. Titus held on tight. 

     “I’m not worried, I know you’ll come find me.” he murmured. I pulled back and laughed, “No pressure, right.” We laughed and made our way toward the front. I could see Phoebe talking to Cameron and Keith up on the shore.

     In a few hours the rescued prisoners will be housed at The Vortex. The agency will be very busy for the next few weeks trying to find everyone’s family. This was the biggest recovery mission Hell’s Shield has ever done, I’ve never been prouder. But I couldn’t ignore the sense of unease in the pit of my stomach.  

Titus

   The screeching ring of the phone jolted me out of my deep sleep. I groaned as I fumbled around for it, finally locating it under my pillow. I answered it with a groggy hello, my eyes still closed. There was a long silence from the other end. I opened my eyes to see an opened mouth Lotus. 

   I frowned at her, “What?” Her mouth flapped a few times before she finally found her voice. “Titus Lamar Jones!” she screeched, making my ears tingle. I continued to stare at her in confusion. “Goddess, Lo, why are you yelling at me so early in the damn morning?” I demanded.

   She gave me an incredulous look. “First of all, it’s 1 pm here which means it's noon in Washington. Secondly, who is that woman?!” she demanded; her eyes concerned. It took a moment to register what she said. It was already noon? As for the woman, I looked down. 

    Phoebe’s leg rested on top of mine. Her arm laid across my chest, her small hand above my heart. Her face was nestled into the crook of my arm, her chubby cheeks squished together. She looked like a koala bear hugging a tree. I was confused by Lotus’s question. “She’s my mate.” I said dumbly.

   Lotus stared at me with big wide eyes, not saying anything. My sleepy mind was slowly waking up, finally realizing why Lotus was reacting this way. f**k! I forgot to tell her! Lotus began to scream and cuss. Her angry rant had several words I’ve never even heard of, her face molten red.

  All of her yelling must’ve attracted attention because now I heard Lila and Lily in the background asking her what’s wrong. Lotus paused her litany of curses and shouted to her sisters, “Titus found his mate and didn’t tell us!” I groaned as the twins started to yell, their faces coming into focus. 

   The phone was being passed around, each sister letting me know her disdain. “Titus, how could you?!” demanded Lily. “Oh, you’re so dead when I see you!” promised Lila. I groaned and rubbed my face. “Girls, please stop yelling. You’re gonna wake her up.” I said as I motioned towards Phoebe. Damn, this girl slept like a rock.

   They quieted down and glared at me. “Lo, why did you call?” I asked. “I called because you were supposed to be on a plane an hour ago.” She pursed her lips into an angry scowl. f**k, I forgot! “You forgot, didn’t you?” Lily questioned. Lila scoffed, “Of course he did! He’s still in bed!” I groaned, “I’m so sorry. I leave later on in the evening.” I told them.

   “I expect both of you to be here by tomorrow morning or you’re DEAD MEAT.” Lotus threatened before hanging up. I groaned again; I was definitely in trouble. I laid in bed for a few more minutes listening to Phoebe’s quiet snore. I gave her a quick kiss on the forehead and slid out of the bed. I got dressed and started to get our clothes ready.

     I couldn’t believe I forgot to let Lotus know about Phoebe. I hoped she would forgive me quickly because I'm pretty sure I'll need her help. Maybe this trip would be good for us. It was going to take time for Leo’s team to confirm Faedan whereabouts, so this would be a good distraction. 

Phoebe

    I woke up to Titus making a lot of noise as he packed a bag. “Where are you going?” I asked him, watching him walk back and forth to the closet. “Oh, I’m sorry baby. Did I wake you?” he asked before throwing more clothes into the suitcase. I shook my head no and he smiled.

  “Remember that trip to Colorado I was telling you about?” he asked. I bobbed my head. “Well, I missed the flight, so now we have to rush to catch the next one.” I tilted my head to the side, “We?” He stopped walking around and looked at me. “Yeah we. I have some family there that I want you to meet.”

   My palms instantly became sweaty. “Family?” I squeaked. He smiled and sat next to me on the bed. “Yeah, not by blood but they are still very important to me. I wouldn’t be here without them.” I was terrified of meeting Titus’s family, what if they didn’t approve. 

    I mentally shook myself. I promised Titus that I wouldn’t doubt myself anymore, but I was still worried. I nervously licked my lips, “Um, ok. When do we leave?” He beamed at me, pulling me in for a breathtaking kiss. “Ten minutes. We just need to see the guys off before they cross over through the portal.” he said.

    I nodded then got up and got ready. I grabbed the small bags I worked on last night and followed Titus out the door. Leo was hugging Everlee while Josiah threw his arms about. Oliver was pouting with James and Mikey.  He was upset that couldn’t go too. With Samantha being due within the next few weeks, Titus didn’t want to risk him being away.

  Leo gave Oliver a reluctant hug then made his way over to us. “I made these for you guys.” I said shyly. I handed out the small black bags. “Just to be on the safe side. It’s just a few cloaking necklaces, a couple vials of confusion spells and some home brewed instant coffee.” Leo and the guys were silent. Maybe I overstepped? 

   They suddenly surrounded me in one big huddle and passed me around, thanking me. I was confused but happy that they accepted my gift. I laughed and looked up at Titus. He had a proud expression on his face that made me blush. 

   We bade them farewell before piling into our car. Titus held my hand as we drove to the airport. I couldn’t help but wonder what his family was like.