Chapter 154 - A TRAIL

[KYLE POV]

When I opened the door I saw that EZ, Bastian, and Laremy were all standing there. EZ looked a little embarrassed at the moment.

"Why didn't you just use your key?" I asked him. "The doorbell woke Maya."

"I'm sorry. Laremy rushed me out of the door so fast that I forgot to grab my keys. It wasn't an issue getting here since Bastian was driving, but it meant that I couldn't open the door." I could tell that EZ was upset about having woken the baby. "I'm sorry." I don't think I have ever seen EZ look like this before.

"It's fine, just come on in." I held the door open, and the three of them walked past me into the house.

Laremy and Bastian had gotten to know Baxter after the whole execution business, but EZ had only seen him as a guest at the weddings. He had talked to him, but not much.

"Hello there, Baxter." EZ smiled, playing host even though he just came into my place and wasn't actually the host.

"Hello there, EZ." Baxter smiled as he looked up from the baby in his arms.

"I see you've met our little princess, Maya." EZ grinned at him.

"She is beautiful." I could see the longing once again. I hoped that Baxter could find his mate soon. He wanted to have a family and settle down.

"I know that." EZ walked over to him and rubbed Maya's head. "I take it you have some important information for us all." He looked Baxter in the eyes now as he spoke. "So what is it?"

"Let's sit down over here." I called them. "Don't worry, Baxter, I trust them all." He nodded then and came to sit with Maya still in his arms. I would let it go for now, he wasn't often around us so he wouldn't be seeing the baby too much. Though, I did need to present her to the pack, but that wouldn't happen until the beginning of December, and she will not be passed around for the pack to hold then. I was not going to let all of them hold her, no way in hell. And I am very sure that Jacy wouldn't allow it either.

Once we were all seated, Laremy looked at Baxter and asked him to start the show.

"Come on now, out with it. Why are we all here, Bax baby?" I saw Baxter blush at the way Laremy had spoken to him. He didn't let it stop him though, he went straight to his business mode, and the blush disappeared.

"As you all probably know, I have been working hard to try and track down the men that Jacy's cousin have sent this way. I have not gone to attack them directly since that would be a major affront, and I don't want to cause a war between our packs. Not yet anyway. However, if what I think is true, then they're trying to make a move soon. That will be when we can go after them."

"What have you found out?" I asked him with a grim look on my face. If Jacy hadn't had the baby early, then it's possible that the images from her dream could have come true.

"They're in the city."

Those couple of words from Baxter made us all go silent. The only sound that could be heard was the thumping of our hearts and the soft breathing from the baby.

"Where?"

"How many of them?"

"How close are they?"

These three questions were asked by the other men in the room. I was so angry at the moment that I couldn't even form one sentence. I was just looking at him with stern eyes, willing him to speak more.

"I estimate that there are at least fifteen of them, based on the trails that we caught last night." I watched Baxter look around the room and down at Maya before he continued. "At three different points into the city, we caught the trails of wolves entering the city. This normally wouldn't have been a problem, but we were able to match some of their scent to the man that attacked EZ."

"So you knew they were from the same pack because of that?" EZ sounded surprised.

"Yes, they smelled like the land they had come from and not at all like the city wolves we have here. Not to mention, their trails didn't lead into the wolf territory. Instead, all fifteen of these scent trails went into the Vampire's Den."

"Are you kidding me?" Laremy looked the most shocked. "So, they're getting help from a vampire in this city. I will not stand for that."

"That is what I was hoping for." Baxter grinned at him with determination and resolve. "I need you to take us to the vampires so that we can try to track them down."

"WHAT?" EZ and Laremy both shouted out at that moment, and Maya started to cry again.

"Dammit, you two need to watch your volumes. Not to mention, Jacy is sleeping."

I stood up then and took Maya from Baxter's arms so that I could cradle her.

"Shh. Shh. Daddy has you now." I soothed her and looked at her little face. "I think you're getting hungry."

"I'll get her a bottle, you boys continue talking."

EZ left the room then, and I managed to get Maya quieted down. Once EZ came back out, I would feed my daughter while listening to what Baxter had to say. 

"I am sorry for being too loud." Laremy was the next one to speak. "I just did not expect  you would seriously expect me to take you straight into the heart of the Vampire's Den." Laremy was shaking his head as if he couldn't believe what he was saying.

"Excuse me for being ignorant here, but what is the Vampire's Den?" Bastian was looking a little sheepish at having to ask that question.

"I forgot, Bassy, you're newish to the city, and you've spent all your time with EZ." Laremy smiled at him. "The Vampire's Den is a club."

"There's really a club called the Vampire's Den?" Shock was all over Bastian's face.

"Oh Goddess, no." Laremy giggled. "That's just its nickname among the supernatural residents of the city. The humans know it as The Water's Edge."

"You mean that cheesy looking bar that I've seen near the docks?" Bastian was laughing.

"That's just its cover. In the back of the bar is a nightclub for the supernatural. However, it is mostly frequented by vampires so it has earned its unique name."

"So, what? The plan is to go there and find these wolves that snuck into the city?" EZ was coming back into the room with a bottle for Maya in his hands that he quickly brought to me.

"Yes, that is essentially the plan that I have. I want Kyle and Laremy to go with me to the Vampire's Den so that we can find out what they know about these wolves."

Well, I could tell that Baxter was determined, that was for sure. However, there was also the fact that we could possibly be walking into a trap.

"Baxter, don't we need more people with us?" I asked him. "What if we have to face off against the vampires and the intruders?" I was confident in my skills, but three men against fifteen wolves and who knows how many vampires, those were odds that I didn't want to try out right now.

"Well to be fair, I plan to bring along my team as well. That adds another five men to our numbers." He smiled. "Do you have anyone else you want to include?"

"Why not ask the local Alpha for help?" EZ's suggestion came out of nowhere, and it nearly made me drop the bottle that I was holding.

"That is an option." Baxter nodded at him. "But we don't know if these new wolves are working with the local pack or not. If they are, then we will be up against even more enemies."

"I get that, Bax, I do. However, the wolves in question ran to the vampires, not to the wolves. If they were working with the wolves, then they would have gone to them, right?"

EZ had a really valid point. It might honestly be a good idea to involve the local wolf Alpha. I mean, it couldn't hurt, could it?

"I think EZ is right. We should go there first and then go to see what is up at the Vampire's Den tonight." 

"Good, I am glad that you're seeing the reason in my suggestion." EZ grinned at me. "And might I suggest taking Lucy with you. I know that he will want to be part of this. He has been helping to protect Jacy way longer than any of you have." EZ pulled out his phone. "Here, I will call him for you."

"Yes, he will be valuable as well." I grinned at the efficient little chihuahua. "I am going to get ready to go. Will you and Bastian stay here to protect Jacy and the baby?"

"Of course. However." Ez looked at me while he listened to the phone ring. "You had better leave a note for Jacy this time. I will not sit here again with that hormonal response that she will have when you're gone. You need to think about the fact that she just had a baby. She is not emotionally stable, and if you disappear on her, she will flip the fuck out." He paused for a minute and then spoke again. "Oh hey there Lucy, do you want to help Kyle and the others track down the assholes from Jacy's pack?" 

I went to my office without listening to the rest of his words. I was writing that letter that he told me to prepare. I remember the state that Jacy was in the last time that I disappeared while she was sleeping. She was so pissed off at me and angry at herself at the same time. I didn't need that happening to her again. Especially not with how she was feeling right now. I wanted her to know what was going on. And I needed to explain why I was not waking her up to take her with me. I just hoped like fucking hell that she understood why I wasn't including her again. She wasn't ready to fight. Besides, she needed to be home to protect Maya.

Dammit, I just know that she is going to be mad at me again. But I am doing this to protect her and Maya.. I love her too much to see her fight when she isn't fully back to her usual self.