Abandoned and Unseen (Branded Packs #2)(54)

Disbelief jolted through her. After all these years. After all the dead ends and disappointments.

Could she dare to hope that her prey was within her grasp?

“Then what are we waiting for?” she demanded in thick tones.

His expression was unreadable. “We need to talk.”

“No.” She planted her fists on her hips. She knew what those words meant. She’d endured them a thousand times over the past seven years. “I don’t want to hear any sermons on turning the other cheek or bullshit about the emptiness of revenge.”

He stepped forward, his eyes dark with understanding. “I’m not going to say any of those things.”

“Then what?”

He paused before saying the words he clearly sensed she wasn’t going to like.

“Have you considered the possibility that your greatest revenge might come from leaving the guard alive?”

Nicole flinched. As if she’d been slapped in the face.

Leave the monster who’d shot down her child alive?

“No.”

He stepped forward. “Hear me out. Please.”

She huffed out an impatient sigh. It was the ‘please’ that did it.

“Fine.”

He grimaced, easily hearing the pain in her voice. “The bastard deserves to die. Hell, I want to rip out his heart and stuff it down his throat,” he rasped, his eyes abruptly glowing with the power of his bear. “But he’s just a small part of the evil. We have to cut off the head of the snake if we want it to die.”

Nicole wrapped her arms around her waist. She didn’t want to accept that he might have a point. Who cared if he could help the shifters? She wanted to destroy the man who’d ruined her life.

She’d waited so long.

Too long.

But he continued to stare at her, clearly needing her to hear him out.

“So what are you suggesting?” she grudgingly asked.

“The SAU managed to cover up the crime five years ago, but the political climate isn’t the same,” he said in a gentle voice. “If we could capture the guard and force him to confess to a room full of reporters that he murdered an innocent child, they might start to see just how corrupt the SAU has become.”

She immediately shook his head. “They would never believe him.”

“They would if we had proof.” He lifted his hand, revealing a file folder.

Nicole reached out, only to yank back her hand. She’d had enough nightmares, thank you very much. She didn’t need to add to her sleepless nights.

She grimaced. “The SAU would crush the story before it could ever get out.”

“We have contacts with media outlets that aren’t intimidated by the SAU,” he revealed. “In fact, they relish the opportunity to expose the bastards.”

Nicole shrugged. She found it hard to believe that anyone had the ability to fight against the subversive agency. They’d been the boogiemen who’d intimidated and imprisoned and brutalized her people for so long, they didn’t even remember what it was like to be free.

But even if there were a few brave journalists willing to spread the story, it didn’t mean that it would change anything.

“You don’t know what you’re asking,” she hissed.

“You’re right. I don’t,” he admitted, reaching out to brush the back of his fingers down her cheek. “I can’t even imagine the pain you’ve had to suffer day after day. But I do understand your need for blood. I felt the same way after my father’s death, even though I was just a young child.”

Nicole’s simmering frustration faltered. She knew Tucker’s heart and soul.

He was loyal, kind, fiercely protective, and unexpectedly playful.

But there were large parts of his life that remained a mystery.

“He was killed?” she asked.

“Yes.” A bone-deep pain tightened his beautiful features. “When they started rounding up shifters, my father sent my mother and me into hiding but he stayed behind to try and stand with those who refused to be caged.” His eyes were unfocused as if he were lost in his memories. “He was shot in the back.”

Nicole reached out to lay her fingers on his forearm. Her own parents had died during the roundup of shifters. She’d been raised by an aunt, although it’d been Soren’s mother who’d truly taken on the role of parent.

“I’m sorry,” she husked.

He dipped his head in acknowledgment of her sympathy. “I can barely recall his face, but I have a vivid memory of learning he was dead. I was overwhelmed with the primitive urge to hunt down and destroy those responsible.” He paused before giving a sharp shake of his head. Perhaps dismissing the painful memories. “Instead, I can only use my powers as a healer to try and save as many of my people as possible. I hope in some small way I’m honoring his sacrifice.”

Nicole dropped her hand and took a step back. Logically, she realized he was making sense, but her heart still ached for revenge.

“I need to see him dead,” she said in a harsh voice.

“Then he’s dead,” Tucker announced with a shocking swiftness. Placing the file on a nearby table, he held out his hand. “Let’s go.”

She frowned. Tucker had many fine qualities, but he was stubborn as a mule.