Chapter 32

Chapter 32

Kaeleen's POV

Rage, raw and untamed, clawed at my insides as I watched Leon's car disappear down the road, taking Astrid with it. I balled my fists, the urge to shift and tear after them overwhelming. Every instinct screamed at me to chase them down, to rip Leon apart limb from limb, to bring Astrid back to safety.

I took a step forward, ready to give chase, when Alex grabbed my arm, stopping me in my tracks.

"Where do you think you're going?" he asked, his voice firm.

"I'm going after her," I growled, my eyes burning with fury. "I'm not going to let him get away with this."

Alex shook his head, his expression grim. "You can't, Kaeleen. Not now."

"What are you talking about?" I snapped, pulling my arm away from his grasp. "He has Astrid! I have to save her!"

"Save her?" He asked me incredulously. "You and I both know she walked into that shit herself."

"But it's a trap."

"And she knows that. She knew it was a trap and she walked into it for you and us. Think about the consequences, dude. This isn't our territory. We're outnumbered. We don't even know where he's taking her," Alex said.

"Pretty sure he's taking her back to the pack building," Rebecca said bitterly.

"Not helping, love," Alex replied to her.

"I'm just saying…maybe we could…"

"Did you just forget the part where I said we were outnumbered? For fuck's sake. Don't think with your heart but your head. Would I tear the bastard apart if the same thing happened with Becca? Yes, yes I would, but this ain't something that will just be smoothed over if the both of you just throw a fist. Can't you see just how sly Leon is? He would take every opportunity to bring us down, especially with how obsessed he is with Astrid. And again, she is not your mate yet, bro. She is still a member of his pack! So think before you act and involve your people in a war that puts your life at stake," he said to me.

He was right, damn it. As much as I hated to admit it, Alex was right. Rushing in without a plan would be suicide. It would put Astrid in even more danger and also leave my pack without a leader. And that wasn't something anyone would sign up for, not when we had something good going on now.

"Astrid knew what she was doing," Alex added, his voice soft but firm. "She went with him to protect us. We can't throw that away by doing something stupid."

I knew he was right. I knew that Astrid had made her choice to protect us, to prevent a war. But that didn't make it any easier to stand here and do nothing while she was being dragged back into Leon's clutches.

I opened my mouth to argue, to tell them that I didn't care about the consequences, that I would burn the whole world down to save Astrid, when my phone rang.

I glanced at the screen, my brow furrowing in confusion. It was from a number I wasn't expecting to call. It was Johnson, one of the senior managers at Emerald Automotives.

I hesitated for a moment, then answered the call, holding the phone to my ear.

"Kaeleen speaking," I said, my voice tight with suppressed anger.

There was a brief pause, then Johnson's voice on the other end spoke, his tone laced with barely contained panic.

"Boss, we have a problem. A major one."

"What is it, Johnson?" I asked, my gut clenching.

"The parts for the new Phoenix model...they're gone. Missing. All of them."

My blood ran cold. The Phoenix. Our latest release. The car that was set to revolutionize the industry. We had orders stacked high, people practically throwing money at us to get their hands on it the moment it rolled off the production line.

"What do you mean, missing?" I asked, my voice dangerously low.

"We placed the order weeks ago, Boss. Production was scheduled to start next week. We went to check on the delivery, and the warehouse is empty. Every single part is gone. Vanished."

I frowned. How was that possible?

"I'm on my way," I said, my voice hard as steel. "Lock down the facility. I want every employee accounted for. No one leaves until I say so."

I hung up the phone, my mind racing. This changed everything. I couldn't just abandon my pack. I had a responsibility to protect them, to protect our livelihood.

I turned to Alex and Rebecca, my expression grim. "We have to go back," I said. "There's been an incident at Automotives. The parts for the Phoenix are missing."

Alex's eyes widened in shock. "Missing? How is that even possible?"

"I'm not sure but something about this doesn't sit well with me. It feels…planned."

"I have an inkling it's you know who," Rebecca muttered.

"Really?" Alex asked her with a raised eyebrow.

"What? I'm just saying." She said with a shrug of her shoulders.

I was quiet. Could it be that Leon was behind this like Rebecca had said? I wasn't sure and I didn't want to point fingers without getting to the bottom of the problem. But if he was the one, then he must know how much pride Alex and I have in the company. It was something we started without the influence of the pack. We had started this when we were younger, before I even became Aloha. And it was the most famous business we had in the pack right now.

The drive back to the airport was a blur. I barely registered the scenery, my mind consumed with thoughts of Astrid and the attack on our automotive business. Although most of it was on Astrid.

As soon as we arrived at the airport, we boarded our private jet and took off for Los Angeles. The flight was long and agonizing, each minute feeling like an hour.

As we soared through the sky, I couldn't shake the feeling that I was abandoning Astrid, that I was letting her down.

"I'm not giving up on her," I said, my voice breaking the silence. "I'm going to get her back. I promise you that."

Alex and Rebecca nodded, their eyes filled with determination.

"What's the plan?" Alex asked.

I took a deep breath, my mind racing. "First, we deal with the situation at Automotives," I said. "We find out who's responsible, and we make sure they pay for what they've done."

"We just need to continue the investigation. Leon is in our black book officially now," Alex said.

I gave him a nod, then turned to Rebecca. "I need to borrow Shadow."