The Maverick Pride Tales - Chapter 201: Chapter 201

“I wonder what he’ll think of this,” Megan murmured, sitting up in her work chair as she took in the lines she’d just painted.
Megan would know the second Cole came back into the garage. She missed him already, but she loved living with him so much. It still amazed her at the incredible exhaust system Cole had installed in the garage, so their home was literally fume free. They’d been working side by side the past few days in the huge garage. Him on a rebuild and her on a custom paint job for a new client she’d gotten through the DWMC.
The design was simple enough. The client wanted something to remember his wife’s favorite place. Poor woman had died from cancer, and he was riding to sprinkle her ashes down at Hilton Head Island. So, Megan was painting a beach scene from a photo the client had sent her of a sunrise there that his wife had taken.
She teared up every time she read the email. It was a wonderful sentiment, and Megan was a sucker for those. She put her whole heart into the design and hoped he would be happy which Cole seemed to think he would be crazy not to be happy. Working with her mate was amazing. She was officially moved in, and the Pack seemed to accept her.
She’d sent Elissa Maverick, her Nari, an email and explained the situation on how Uncle Uzzi had hit a homerun right out of the park with her very first non-date. Non-date because Cole had wanted to be friends at first. Of course. He’d changed his mind, and hers rather quickly after that.
The Nari was beyond happy for her, and she relayed the good news to Hunter, the Neta of the Maverick Pride, who extended his congratulations as well. She had choices to make about her allegiance and was waiting for confirmation from Cole first. But it looked like Megan would be joining the Dire Wolf MC as Cole’s official mate.
Hunter explained that new Pride laws meant she did not lose her home. She would always have a place with the Tigers of Maverick Point, and that soothed her soul in a way she hadn’t expected. The only dark spot happened when she brought up her brother. Megan learned Matthew hadn’t been seen or heard since the day he’d called her. That was over two weeks ago.
Her parents were worried. But they promised to let her know if they heard from him, but they seemed to understand she was living her own life now and they were happy for her. She was finally looking out for herself, and Megan felt good about her choices. How lucky was she? Finding her fated mate and claiming him just like that. Even better, he loved her. He. Loved. Her. Big, scary strong, Megan Sudak was loved. Wasn’t that wonderful?
Where was Cole? He’d been gone fifteen minutes, and that was long, considering he’d only run over to the bar to grab some burgers for lunch. It was after three and she was starving. They’d been working all morning. Well, except for that little break they took upstairs.
Her cheeks burned at the memory of Cole chasing her to their loft and stripping her bare after she’d wagered against him when he said he could make her come in under fifteen minutes. Naughty Wolf, he’d kept his clothes on the whole time while he ate her out and finger fucked her until she didn’t even know her own name. After that, he made her come again while on her hands and knees, ass up in the air as he drove into her like a wild man. She’d never been good at doggy style. Had thought it was because of her size, but Cole had no problem at all filling her deep and long.
The man fucked like a god, and Megan was head over heels. Oh, she hadn’t said it to him yet. Something she planned to rectify that very night. She’d ordered a special bodysuit from Kisses by Kylie. This one was red and sheer with a rounded neck and long sleeves. The fabric was soft as silk and made her feel like a temptress when she put it on. Megan knew she was all curves, but ever since she got together with Cole, she’d learned to love them even more. With the way he worshipped them every night, and sometimes during daylight hours as well, how could she not?
It was February 13th, and she wanted to do something special for him tonight, the night before the whole world boarded up and rode the love train! She’d decided on the thirteenth because it could be theirs that way. Megan was really fond of things that belonged to the two of them alone. She couldn’t wait to say I love you to the man who had completely stolen her heart, made her breathless with a glance, and seemed to know her own mind better than she did.
She was so deep in thought, sighing as she pictured the way the evening would go, Megan didn’t hear him approach until he was on her. Big, rough hands—not Cole’s—grabbed Megan and before she could scream an even bigger one clamped over her mouth. Someone pushed a bloodied Matthew onto the floor in front of her and the big, scarred face of Igor Polosavich filled her sight.
“There you are bitch who did this to my face. Now, we have rematch. Give her drug,” he growled.
Something sharp struck Megan in the neck, and she screamed and threw her head back, freeing herself from that big brute. She struggled against another of her captors. There were just too many of them. At least eight giant Siberian Tiger Shifters. Yeah, she was strong, and she knew how to fight, but something was wrong with her. her reflexes weren’t the same and her Tiger was not responsive. Megan roared, breaking one of their arms in her struggle. Igor was screaming in Russian, and she didn’t understand. Another sharp stab, and she looked down at the needle sticking out of her thigh.
Fire! It was filled with fire, and she screamed as it burned into her blood. Whatever they gave her, it was too strong for her Shifter metabolism to fight. She stumbled and fell. Someone threw a bag over her head, and briefly, she wondered if Matthew was even alive. Her little brother had turned out so badly, but she didn’t want him dead.
Fuck. Where was Cole? Cole? COLE!
She tried to talk, but it was like she was paralyzed. Nothing worked. Not her arms or legs. Even her eyelids were frozen open. They stung something fierce, and the smelly hood they covered her head with was black and itchy against her skin.
Blood rushed to her head and her arms hung limply as she swayed to and fro as she hung off a pair of mammoth shoulders. More Russian was spoken, but Megan did not recognize the words or voices. She only knew one of the males who was kidnapping her.
Igor Polosavich. That piece of shit Siberian Tiger Shifter was the son of the leader of the baddest, scariest, and most disreputable gang of the supernatural underworld. Igor wasn’t as big and bad as his daddy, but he sure liked to pretend. And he didn’t mind hitting women. Especially when their brothers offered a match with them in return for clearing some bad debts.
Motherfucker.
That could have been for either Matthew or Igor at that point. Oh, she felt bad her brother was hurt by those hooligans, but that was because of his choices. Megan had no business with these men. But deep down, she knew that wasn’t exactly true either.
Yeah, Igor had cheated during their match. But instead of walking away and giving him the win, however dishonorable. Megan had allowed her fingers to shift into claws and she got that asshole right across his face. She would wear those scars forever, and that made her she-Tiger angry as fuck.
If Megan was going to be maimed, why shouldn’t he be? That was how the animal saw things. So, maim him, she did. The doctors were able to save his sight, but the color of his left eye was irreversibly lost and now it was pure white. The four angry slices she’d made down his cheek remained red and angry even years later. That soothed something inside her. Igor had left her bleeding and broken with a punctured lung, several cracked ribs, a broken cheek, jaw, nose, and dislocated shoulder. Those were the worst injuries. She’d also had more bruises than she could count and a few torn ligaments here and there after that fight.
Her brother was responsible for that whole gory mess, and yet, he still hadn’t learned his lesson. Shit, where was he, anyway? Last she saw of him, they’d tossed Matthew on the garage floor and kicked him like he was garbage. Did they pick him up and bring him back? Was he still there? Was he actually dead?
Shit. Oh shit.
Whatever had happened between them, he was her brother and a piece of her would always love him. Bile rose in her throat as she was tossed in what felt like the back of a van. She still couldn’t move, but it smelled like leather and fur, and she was pretty sure the floor was wet. Her clothes were getting soaked, and she was freezing. Someone kicked her, shouting in Russian and laughter rang out in the vehicle.
I’m gonna kill these assholes, her beast snarled.
Anger and fear rolled through her. Cole had never come back into the garage. She only hoped they hadn’t hurt him before they got to her. Megan could get over a lot of things, had spent much of her life doing just that, but she would never forgive herself or Matthew if Cole was hurt.
Please be safe, my love.
Cole paced in circles. Fury and fear warred with each other as he waited for Megan’s piece of shit brother to wake up. Fuck. Why had he stopped to help Lucy into the roadhouse with the babies instead of coming right back to the garage to his mate? hell, he knew why. Of course, he did. And it wasn’t Lucy’s fault, despite her tears and pleas to be forgiven. The whole Pack was with him, and they were all upset and anxious, though one more than he.
“We’ll get her back, brother,” Derrick said.
Usually, his Alpha voice was soothing to the monster Wolf inside Cole but not now. His beast was filled with a desperation he’d never felt before. Cole wanted his mate back, unharmed, and immediately. His skin itched with the need to change. His gums ached and his fingertips burned.
“Is he responding?” someone asked Thor, who’d been using some magic or whatever to get the motherfucker talking.
“Not yet,” the big bald Wolf answered.
You deserve it you little shit, but she sure as fuck doesn’t. Shit.
Cole shouldn’t be thinking such horrible things about Megan’s brother. From the looks of him, he’d had his ass handed to him and then some. Broken bones in almost every appendage, Matthew also had huge, bleeding claw and bite marks across his skin. He’d been mauled and not just by humans, but by their beasts.
“They have my mate,” was all Cole could say.
Arms held him back, and Cole looked down, not even aware he’d gone after Matthew, lying on the cot they’d brought into the garage for him. He heard the sounds of cars pulling up outside and Cole’s Wolf snapped and snarled, desperate to be let out. He didn’t need visitors, he needed answers.
“I know, brother, I know. But we need information before we can go get her. That’s Hunter Maverick and some of his Pride. You can’t attack this fucker without starting a war. Besides, it’s her brother. Would she really want you to do that?” Derrick asked.
“Fuck. You’re right. I’m fine. I said, I’m fine!” Cole snapped at Phoenix and Weylin who nodded once before releasing him.
“In here,” Derrick called out.
Leo stood off to the side with Sheila, and he looked worried. He’d been on the phone with some guys from his precinct running a check on the van the security footage showed. Fuck, Cole had lost his shit when he saw his sweet mate being carried over some soon to be dead asshole’s shoulder. This whole thing was so fucked.