Rightfully Hers

VIII

JADA

Julian and I rushed into my bedroom to call Gabriel Caine, though neither of us were very happy to talk to him after only a short time away from the Council.

We sat on my bed, facing each other, and Julian dialed the number and pressed the call button. We stared at each other in silence until the rings abruptly stopped and there was a brief rustling sound.

"Mr. Cartridge, is Ms. Warren with you currently?" Gabriel Caine's rough tone was almost unbearably loud on speaker.

"We are both present, sir," I spoke up.

There was a loud rustle in the background and Gabriel swore quietly to himself before continuing. "Now that you're both present, we've got some news for you. Jared Manning has successfully killed the Silver Moon's Luna, Jessica Monroe. He's also holding the future Alpha, Jacob Monroe, captive. Location is unknown."

"What is the location of the pack?" I asked.

Julian's expression was unreadable as Gabriel grunted, "Maine."

"That's on the opposite side of the country," Julian mumbled to himself.

The response seemed to irritate Gabriel as he snapped, "I'm quite aware of the geographical location of Maine, Julian."

Ignoring the Counsel's snarky remark towards my partner, I spoke, "Have there been any more attacks, Mr. Caine? Any way to find out if Mr. Manning's attacks are patterned?"

The rustling sound on the other end of the line continued, but Gabriel Caine did not speak for several minutes. There was a loud tapping sound, probably computer keys, and then Katherine Caine's phlegmatic voice in the background.

Gabriel cleared his throat, "That was the first attack since the beginning of your mission. Ms. Warren, I expect you to continue tracking the locations of the attacks in attempt to find patterns."

"Yes, sir."

"Increase training of your current pack, have the Alpha get in contact with whomever necessary. The two of you have an advantage, as your Alpha has not yet met her mate, she has no obvious weakness." Gabriel continued speaking after that, but Julian and I exchanged somber expressions.

"Is that all, Mr. Caine?" I asked politely, tired of hearing him speak. The man grunted on the other end, but gave the affirmative.

"I want an update by the end of the week, that is all." And then the line went dead.

Julian and I both got up and left the room as quickly as we entered it. We had to go find Isabelle to inform her of the information, and plan from there. Jared may be on the opposite side of the US, an ocean away, but the more time we had to prepare, the better.

I knocked on Isabelle's office door and stepped in before she could call for us to come in. She was sitting in the giant leather chair, a phone pressed against her left ear. She motioned for us to take the seats in front of her, still engrossed in the conversation.

"Jackson, my pack would do anything to assist you," she nodded, "of course, yes, definitely. I'm close with the Alpha down in New York, I'll give him a call, and if you need absolutely anything at all, don't hesitate to call either of us."

Her eyes were sad, I noticed. Despite their brilliant green, they seemed dimmed with a sadness I wasn't familiar with. She rubbed her forehead as she listened to whatever the person on the other end had to say, nodding to herself as she did so.

"Yes, I do as well... I assure you they follow orders consistently, they did the best they could... I'm sure the King will uphold a meeting, though it may leave some packs defenseless..."