Page 60 of Resisted
The silence settled over us as we waited for the few minutes it took for the two to reach us. When they arrived, we said our acknowledgments, then we dispersed, Silas and I heading toward the town to keep eyes on the group as they entered.
As predicted, the caravan rolled into town, hitting the gas station first to fill up the gas tanks in all of their vehicles. It was a smart first move. If they stopped for a meal, which was fucking absolutely going to happen, then they would be fueled and ready to go if they had to make a quick escape. Which, judging by the large tarp covered squares in a few of the truck beds, could very well be something that might happen.
“They’ve already picked up some cargo,” Silas observed, though he didn’t have to verbalize it. Those cages were the absolute first thing every one of us picked up on. And we knew, with absolute certainty, that if they were covered, a shifter was inside.
“How do we want to go about it?” My palms itched, begging me to go up right now and release the ties of the tarp, break the lock, free them all.
He pondered my question for a bit, “If they stop for food…” They would. “We’ll release what we can. Who we can.”
An engine roared. “And if they don’t? If they don’t stop for food?”
He stayed silent for a moment, his eyes fixed on the vehicles in front of him as, one by one, the engines roared to life and men, disgusting vile creatures, climbed into the cabs. The first in line pulled forward and the others moved to follow it until they were all turned onto the main road, heading to the diner.
“If they don’t stop, then we do what we have to do as gently as possible to avoid another situation.”
I knew what situation he was referring to—a situation like the one that had resulted in the death of our mate. Still, I couldn’t think that there was an inkling of a possibility that any of us would allow that to happen before we stood in the way, offering our life in exchange. “They are going to stop. No one can resist Lynn’s pies.”
Chapter 25
SILAS
As I watchedthe caravan of vehicles move toward the diner, all I could do was pray Vince had controlled the wild girl that had fucking stolen my thoughts, because if I walked into that place and she was waiting tables, I would go berserk. I was already living on the edge of feral, struggling not to give in to every single one of my desires and make her mine.
I decided to—or I hoped to, after I found her family. She deserved to choose whether she wanted to stay or go, and damnit, I would give it to her if it was the last thing I’d ever accomplish. Deep down, I wanted her to pick me, to pick Boyce and even Vince, over the only thing she’d wanted her entire childhood.
“They’re going for the pie,” Boyce mumbled.
Of course they were. Lynn’s pies were famous. Any pie she made. Apple. Cherry. Banana cream. Hell, even her pot pie was the most delicious savory pie I’d ever put in my mouth. “Figured as much.”
“What’s the plan? Where do you want me?”
I thought about it for a second, taking a mental inventory of what I knew Boyce had on him. “When they go inside, I want you to go for the cages. I’ll wait a few, then head inside and place a to go order so I can just stand by the exit and watch.”
“Think that will spook them?”
I fucking hoped so. “Not if they think they have nothing to be spooked about.”
“Oh, yeah. Absolutely nothing. Besides the people in the cages.”
Small details.
The trucks all pulled into the diner’s parking lot and the men got out, heading toward the door of the food establishment, talking so fucking loudly I could hear them down the block. No damn respect for our quiet town, that was for sure. Not that it mattered. In just about an hour, every one of them would be dead, their hearts set on fire as a gift to the fates above for blessing us with yet another successful retrieval.
We didn’t always burn the hearts, but when we did, the satisfaction was endless. It ensured that the bodies lying at our feet would not take in another breath of air. They could not be saved, not like they should be, anyway. It was the tiniest ounce of revenge for my mate, even though I knew it wouldn’t bring her back.
Former mate. The hard truth of it hit my stomach like a steel bowling ball and I tried not flinch from the pain, but it was true. My mate, former mate, whatever her name had been, was no longer walking this plane, and I needed to accept that her child… Fuck, her child was meant for us now. Bella was our destiny, and I knew at some point, I should tell her. I needed to tell her, but it fucking hurt to admit it.
Their grimy hands touched the door of the diner and pulled, the mass of them walking straight into a shifter’s den, though they had no way of knowing that. They would learn pretty quickly that in this town, you were either welcomed and accepted with open arms or you weren’t. They most certainly were not welcomed into Full Moon Bay.
When all of them were out of sight, I gave the go-ahead to Boyce, who crept into the lot with stealthy and limber movements, heading straight for the vehicle farthest from the diner. His knife slit into the rope holding the cage in place, and the slack gave way as the rope fell to the bottom of the truck bed. He hiked himself up, then crouched, waiting to see if the truck was alarmed.
It wasn’t. The dumb fucks luckily took shortcuts with protecting their precious cargo. Their inability to fund their excursion properly was their loss and our gain. Boyce’s finger went to his lips as he lifted the tarp, and I fucking knew without a doubt that the fucking monsters in the diner were just as bad as we thought. I knew the drill from here. We’d planned it out to the tiniest detail of what would happen if they actually had cargo. We would free them, obviously. As he released each cage from each truck, he would direct them to Rig’s garage down the block—a safe zone. Safe from danger. Safe from being sold. Safe from all the horrific things they could possibly have seen in their captivity.
With the first cage opened, I knew it was my time. I entered the diner, walking straight up to the register without a glance around, then I placed my order, to go of course. It was a longer than usual wait, but then again, I’d already known it would be. I was willing to wait here, observing as Lynn and her staff took care of the poachers. I hoped they spit in their food. Fuck it, I knew they would. The atmosphere was nearly stifling, the normal upbeat and kind vibe nowhere in sight.
I took a spot on a bench by the front door, and though my body language appeared causal, I was anything but. I was strung tightly, ready to pounce, willing to defend my town and the people in it at a second’s notice. I was a trained killer, though the truth was I enjoyed the hunt but hated the kill. I never really hesitated to do it, though, not since the day we lost our mate. I wouldn’t hesitate again.
One by one, Lynn served the food to the men at the diner, and I knew outside, Boyce was working on the releases. It wasn’t as simple as just rapidly releasing them. He had to make sure the girls made it to Rig’s shop before he could even think of opening another cage. If they became aware and alert, it would risk the ones walking or running toward the safety. It could give away the hiding location. It could risk all their lives.