“The risk might be worth it,” Hilde said grimly.
Emma leaned forward and patted Hilde’s hand. “You’re immortal. I know it’s difficult to wait, but let us figure the virus out, and then we can apply the benefits to you.”
Hilde’s jaw set. “Twenty. Five. Years.”
Amber sucked in air. What else could possibly go wrong?
Kane spread the stack of papers over the sofa table, his eyes beginning to ache. He’d turned down the lights in his underground haven as well as engaging the soothing wall waterfall, but sitting on the sofa and hunching over to read was probably stupid. He frowned. There had to be a pattern that showed when the shifter inoculation was doctored. Thick boots sounded in the hallway and caught his attention.
The door opened and Dage moved inside. The rug muffled his heavy steps as he crossed the room and dropped into the oversized chair. “Did you find anything?”
“Not yet. Well, that’s not true.” Kane grabbed two sheets from the far corner of the table. “All infected vials, even those that ended up in feline territory, were held at wolf territory in Montana.”
“So the traitor is a wolf.”
Kane shrugged. “That’s my best guess right now.”
The king leaned over to scan the papers. “I’ll let Talen know. He was going to make Cara and Garrett come home, but if the problem is in wolf territory, they should be fine with Jordan at his ranch.”
Jordan was the leader of the feline nation as well as being a good friend. Kane nodded. “I’d leave them with the felines—somebody needs to keep any eye on those monstrous Pride twins.” He didn’t care that adoration coated his voice. He’d adored Sam and Sid since the two little cubs had been born. “They’re turning four years old soon.” Which reminded him, he needed to go shopping.
“I absolutely can’t figure out why you’re their favorite,” the king grumbled. “You’re no fun.”
“The twins think I’m fun.” Kane smiled. He had every intention of getting them involved in science, so maybe a new microscope set would be a good gift. “Who should I alert about the wolf problem? The Bane’s Council or individual Alpha wolves?”
“Neither.” Dage closed his eyes and settled his head on the chair with a deep sigh. “I studied the data earlier. Does anything stand out?”
Kane had been trying to figure out a way to broach the subject and should’ve known Dage already caught the problem. Every once in a while Kane forgot the rest of his brothers were as smart as he. Almost, anyway. “The Bane’s Council visits coincide with when the vials were probably infected. All seven times—from what I could see.”
“Yeah.” Dage didn’t open his eyes. “And I have what is probably a terrible idea.”
Kane studied the king.
Dage had tied his thick hair at the nape and wore sparring clothes absent any blood, so he hadn’t sparred yet. Dark circles spread under his eyes, and frown lines cut on either side of his mouth. His eyes flipped open, a deep silver lighting his face. “What?”
Kane frowned. “When was the last time you slept?”
“When was the last time you slept?” Dage asked wearily.
“The night before Jase was taken.”
“Me, too.” Dage ran both hands down his dark sweats. “Don’t you want to hear my terrible plan?”
He didn’t need to hear the plan. “You’re going to send in a spy—a wolf shifter—to sniff out the traitor. Maybe somebody the Bane’s Council has requested to appear anyway, and somebody champing at the bit to have a job and help the Realm.” Kane pressed his fingers to his temples, mimicking a psychic. “Let’s see . . . maybe someone named Maggie.”
“You’re hilarious.” Dage stood and paced over to the wall waterfall. “She wants to go. What do you think?”
That every plan they had would backfire as usual. “I think she wants to go, but not because she wants to help the Realm or meet wolves.”
“She wants to help the Realm.”
“Not as badly as she wants to pull one over on Terrent.” Kane shook his head. The little wolf shifter had been waiting for Terrent to retaliate for her kidnapping him years ago, and apparently she was done waiting. Though, Maggie was a sweetheart and probably did want to help the Realm. “I say you let her go.” While the job might be dangerous, Maggie was smart, and wolves protected their own. She’d be protected. Well, from everyone but Terrent.
“She’s never been on a mission, at least that I know of.” Dage stuck a finger in the water of the tinkling fountain.
“Don’t touch that.” Kane rolled his eyes. He mulled over the situation in his mind. Maggie had been kidnapped and experimented on by the Kurjans, resulting in her having no memory of her life before the vampires rescued her. Nobody had come forward to say they knew her anyway. Dage, as usual, felt responsible for everyone. But the king would do what was necessary to protect the Realm, and sending Maggie was necessary. What he needed from Kane was something else. Support. “The right decision is to send her.”
“Thanks.” Dage touched the water again. “Ah, we should probably discuss our other issue.”
“There’s nothing to discuss.”
“Right. I’m going to ask you one more time. Are you sure about Hilde? I mean, about using her for bait?”
Kane shook his head. “No, I’m not sure. But she is sure, and she’s a tough woman—she volunteered.”
“You should tell Amber.”
He’d given Hilde his word that he’d keep Amber safe and in the dark about their plan. What the hell had he been thinking? “I can’t.”
Dage sighed, shaking his head. “Believe me, learn now not to keep important matters from your mate. They get really angry when you do that, and they make your life a living hell. Trust me.”
Kane shook his head. “Amber isn’t my mate.” The stubborn little demon destroyer refused to consider his offer.
“Maybe you didn’t use the right words.”
The right words didn’t really exist as far as Kane was concerned. But he’d started thinking about just seducing her until she wore his mark for eternity. Although, then she’d really make his life a living hell. He sighed.
A speaker crackled in the far corner. Kane concentrated on the device, waiting until Talen’s voice came through. “We have a problem. Meet me in Dage’s private control room.”
Dage sighed. “I’m here—we’ll be there in a minute.” He eyed Kane. “This can’t be good.”
Kane stood, a rock of dread slamming into his gut. “No.”
He followed Dage through the underground labyrinth to a partially hidden door that opened easily. Stalking inside, he found Talen and Max standing near the control chair. A conference table took space over to the right, but nobody sat. Instead, they all stared at a blank screen.
Talen’s face had paled, and his hands shook. He leaned over and punched in a series of codes. “We received this ten minutes ago, and I watched it before calling you.”
“What is it?” Max asked. He settled his stance near the door, always protecting the king’s back. Nobody would ever sneak up on Dage when Max was around.
“You’re about to watch a video showing two things. The first thing is that Jase is alive, and the second is that he won’t be for long.” Talen’s voice cracked on the last. “We intercepted the video on the Web, and the guys upstairs should have a location soon—after you watch, be prepared to go the second we can.”
Kane took a deep breath and opened all his senses, laying himself vulnerable.
Dage turned quickly, his eyes narrowing. “You sure?”
“Yes.” Only the king knew how much opening his senses hurt Kane—not merely emotionally, but every time he tried, his brain waves faltered. The intelligence always returned, but at what cost? Most geniuses turned mad at some point, a fact Kane had long understood. “We need to find Jase.”