Chapter 8

Kasta stared in awe of the baby girl in her arms. She was so little and so wrinkly. The redness was fading from her. She had obviously been wailing before they had come in. It must have been because of the attack.

They all had been moved into an interior room to protect them. The little girl had not liked that so she had made her displeasure known. She fit right in with her family. If she didn't like something, she made it known. But unlike the adults, she couldn't help fix it. All she could do was cry.

The Elven maid lifted her head and looked around the room. Men were stationed all around, guarding the entrance and windows. The blond headed Healer that was named after a tree was looking at the Queen. He was smiling at her as she did as he asked. Her Healer brother hovered close by listening intently to the other man.

The other brothers, biological and adopted, were scattered throughout the room. The oldest brother was playing with the oldest nephew by the window as he watched the police herd the intruders into a truck. The lawyer brother was scribbling furiously on the kiddie table. Mikey wasn't around anymore. When the attack came, he was teleported out by his cousin. It had nothing to do with being a coward. If something happened, it would be his duty to place someone on the throne.

The only other brother they had wasn't around. Kasta didn't know his name but she knew he had been sent out with a sentry team to guard the town.

Someone touched her shoulder. A young woman with light brown hair smiled down at her. She held the other twin as he slept.

"If you'd like, you can put her in the crib," she said gently.

Kasta nodded and stood from the rocking chair. She crossed the room and placed the little girl in the crib. With a second thought, she brushed her hand against the girl's curls. Her brother had a messier mass, but they were tamer than their older brother's that flopped in his face.

Jess was a few feet away so she went to him. Standing next to him sent a zing up her spine, and she did the best she could to ignore it. It was becoming harder and harder to do just that, so she took half a step to the side to ease the tension in her shoulders.

Jess read Kasta's face all too easily without even having to delve into her mind. She was worried about something. When she stopped beside him, he didn't turn to look at her. She would tell him in her own time.

"Jess, who is that woman?" she asked after a few moments of awkward silence.

"That's one of the nurses we brought in before Aiden gave birth. I think her name is Alysse. Why?" he replied.

"Well, I'm not a telepath as most of you are, but something is off about that woman. There's something dark about her." She cast the woman a dark look for a long moment.

Jess frowned and took that to heart. He looked up at Alysse. She was humming and swaying gently with Kielan in her arms. He abided by his rule never to look into someone's mind without them knowing but he itched to do so. If Kasta was correct, they had to get Alysse away from the children.

"Keldin?" he said mentally because the other man had gone back home an hour before the attack took place.

He answered immediately. "What's wrong?"

"Is there any way you can send me a list of people we have hired in the last four months. I need to do background checks on them."

He could feel his friend's reticence. He wasn't sure what was going on. "Tyler's already done background checks on them."

"I know but I have a sudden feeling we missed something."

Keldin knew something was up simply by the tone of his friend's voice. If Jess was suspicious, something was wrong. Jess was rarely ever suspicious of anyone unless they attacked his family.

Jess waited patiently, keeping his eyes on Alysse the entire time. He needed to have Keldin's approval before he did anything because Keldin was in charge of finances. He would have all the background checks on him, as would Tyler. Despite their titles, things still cost money. They had to have Keldin's permission for any extra expenses.

"I'll get them for you. I'll send them directly to Tyler."

Jess sighed. "Thank you." He looked to Kasta. "Keldin's going to send us the list of people we have put on payroll. It will be a few hours to a day."

"The question is do we have that long?"

Rowan, Wyatt and Paycen walked up to them at that time, their faces grim. It didn't make Jess's spirit lift any.

"Can we talk to you?" Rowan asked.

Jess turned towards the door. Zander nodded to them on their way out. Jess led them down the hall to the back balcony and down the stairs. The Elves stirred and began to muster around them.

"What's up?" Jess asked.

"It's poison," Wyatt said. "Someone's been poisoning her slowly."

"I did what I normally do when I look at someone. I saw a silver substance that is slowly killing her," Rowan replied.

Rowan and Paycen were on par with each other but Rowan's healing abilities were slightly different. He could turn his conscious into a warm orb and go into someone's body to help heal them. It helped when there was a toxin or internal bleeding. Wyatt could tune into a person's power and heal them with that power. Both men could be drained easily if they didn't take care of themselves.

"Do you know what kind of poison it is?" Kasta asked.

"It's not one I've ever seen and I have a degree in medicine," Rowan replied.

"Same here," Wyatt seconded.

"What if it's not a drug you've seen because it's only in nature?" Leothain asked. No one said a word as they looked at him. "From what you just explained, there's only one plant in this area that can do any of that. It's algae."

"From the river." Jess kicked the dirt. "Why didn't I think of that?"

"Because it has to be prepared the correct way. If it isn't, it's easy to kill someone."

"Isn't that the whole point of poisoning someone? To kill them?"

"This person seems to want Aiden to suffer before he or she kills her. He or she wants her to know who it was."

"Father," Kasta said. Everyone looked at her. "I had a bad feeling when I touched one of their nannies. Could it be a woman who is doing this instead of one of ours? From what you just said, no one here knows how to turn algae into a poison, and since the twins were born, we've been too guarded to get near them."

"It must be an inside job," Wyatt said.

"It has to be. No one besides us can get at Aiden any time of the day."

The double doors on the balcony opened as Tyler stuck his head out. He looked grim even from that height.

"I've found something. Lord Leothain, would you please come with them?"

Wyatt sighed and turned on his heel. He led the group up the stairs back into the house. When he turned around, he realized Leothain was the only Elf that had come with them but that was enough. He pulled enough weight all by himself.

Tyler was standing outside the door of his computer room. All sorts of whirring noises were coming from the room, as well as clacking. Petey must have been in there working his fingers to the bone. Tyler stepped aside to allow them into the room then closed the door when they were inside.

"Sorry to seclude you so quickly but we've got an issue. Klark, you're on the screen," Tyler said. He turned the computer around and there was the missing brother.

Jess's frown deepened. "What's wrong?" His brother looked worn out and ragged, much worse than he had every seen him.

"There's a riot in South Haven. They've heard about the attack on the Queen and are ready to come fight," Klark replied.

"Just what we need. A bunch of rednecks with four wheelers and sawed off shotguns. That will get us in so much trouble," Petey murmured.

Petey was right in his assumption. He and Carter had been born in the South and knew the inner workings of it. If he said rednecks would show up with four wheelers and sawed off shotguns, he was right.

Another screen lit up with Col Manchestor's face. Half of the Manchestor duo, Col was Lin's younger brother and a werewolf master. The Moon Chosen of the East had an alliance with Aiden. Austin and Emery must be off grid doing research for Col to call. It was the only explanation.

"What's up?" Tyler asked as he sat down in his seat.

"Austin and Emery have gone missing," Col replied.

Silence filled the room. If Austin and Emery were missing, things were about to get intense. Austin was one of the main forces behind them, and with him gone, they just didn't want to think about it.

Jess wanted to punch something. Austin was Aiden's closest friend. He'd been the one who had helped her do more things than the rest of them had because he was nosy.

This was Tyler's domain and he would exact revenge if Jess messed something up. These computers were sometimes the only things that kept them from losing their minds. Sometimes it was the only way they find out information when their outside leads went cold. They needed them desperately especially now.

"We have to do something," he muttered.

Col nodded in agreement. "I agree but you have to find out where he is first."

"That's not the issue. What if it's the vampires are behind it?"

This earned a severe head shake from the werewolf on the screen. "That's not possible. Marcos, the Atlantean in charge, has been cooperating on all levels. He may be scum but he's an innocent scumbag. It's too bad I couldn't kill him."

"If you do that, Aiden will bite your head off."

"If she survives." Col's final statement, though a fragment, cut them all to the core. If she didn't survive, there was no point in keeping the peace. People were going to kill to get the throne.

Petey stopped typing, a ghost like look on his face. He wasn't old enough to learn how to control his facial muscles when he was talking telepathically. It was something they had learned with time.

Everyone waited until he looked at them, an eerie silver glow in his eyes that made Kasta step back into her father. The young man took a deep breath and closed his eyes. When he opened them again, they were clear.

"Who was it?" Tyler asked.

"It was Austin. He's been drugged. He's trapped in the safe house. They don't know where he and Emery are but it won't take them long to find him," Petey replied as he turned around and started typing furiously.

"Where is he?"

"Abby's."

Tyler stalled for a moment then typed just as furiously as his friend. Jess didn't miss the look they shared over their shoulders. He and Petey stared at each other for a long moment.

"Who's Abby?" he asked.

"The mayor's daughter. She's thirteen and just learning how to use her powers. Austin's been training her. She and Bryony have become fast friends. When he knew about the attack, he got Bryony out of the warehouse and took the tranq meant for her. The dosage could probably kill the baby," Petey replied.

"They want the children?" Tyler asked.

"No, they don't. They want us dead."

Jess rubbed his forehead in agitation. "Can you give us the address?"

Petey stopped and turned around. "Us? Who's us?"

"Kasta and I are going to New York to retrieve Austin and his family." He caught Kasta's eye. She nodded.

Tyler and Petey shared a smile then started typing once again. It took a few moments but then they turned around with a piece of paper.

"This is the address of the mayor's house. I'm going to warn you. They employ a wizard. The magic may be detrimental to you," Tyler said.

Jess tucked the piece of paper into his back pocket. "I know my limits." He turned around to find Leothain hugging Kasta. "Are you ready?"

Leothain let his daughter go. "Be safe, my child."

Kasta nodded. "I will." She turned to Jess. "I'm ready."

Jess nodded to her father in agreement. He took Kasta's hand and stepped into the shadows. He heard her gasp when they were thrown into darkness.