“Damn it,” Jon muttered as the males came out of the trance.
“What did you see?” Tara asked. It was obvious they hadn’t been successful, but had they learned anything helpful?
Jon glanced at her then shook his head. “We found Juan, but he’d already left the cave. We’ll have to try again in the morning.”
Tara nodded, disappointed but accepting. They were doing everything possible to find the captives. Complaining about the time it was taking wasn’t helpful to anyone.
“Do you know who Alex and Nate are?” Kyle asked. “Juan was not happy with those two.”
Tara started to say that she had no idea when she realized that Kyle wasn’t asking her.
“I don’t know which pack he leads, but Alex is one of the other alphas,” Jon explained.
“The ‘other alphas’?” Tara asked, confused by the phrase. “I didn’t know there was more than one.”
Jon moved to the couch and sat down beside her before he went on. “There are eleven wolf packs living in the lupine village. Each pack has its own alpha and the strongest alpha rules the village. For the past year or so, Elias has been the village alpha, but our spy has indicated that several of the others are ready to challenge his leadership.”
“Or lack thereof,” Isaac grumbled.
“Exactly,” Jon responded. “It sounds like Alex and Nate are ready to make their move.”
“It makes sense,” Kyle interjected as he moved closer to the couch. “Juan isn’t even an alpha. Elias’ pack is vulnerable as long as he is out of commission.”
“Is this good or bad for the captives?” Tara wanted to know.
Jon lifted one shoulder and shook his head. “I have no idea. I know little more than Alex’s name.”
“Even if Alex is a huge improvement, we don’t want the captives caught in the middle of a pack war,” Isaac pointed out. “We have to get them out of there.”
Kyle’s penetrating gaze suddenly shifted to Tara. “How well do you know Claire?”
Tara tensed, unsure of his motivation for asking the question. “I didn’t know her before we came here, but she was in my tent while we were starving and struggling to stay warm. That sort of trauma creates closeness. I feel a certain bond with all six of the women that were assigned to my tent.”
Isaac nodded thoughtfully. “The same thing happens to fire teams or military squads. They create bonds that last the rest of their lives.” He looked at Kyle and asked, “What are you thinking?”
“What if…” Kyle hesitated, clearly uncomfortable with what he was about to suggest. “What if there was a way to contact Claire directly? Juan might eventually lead us to the cave, but Claire is there right now.”
“Tara isn’t ready,” Isaac said firmly.
“Not ready for what?” Tara countered. “What’s Kyle talking about? How can we contact Claire?”
Jon slipped his arm around her and gave her shoulder a squeeze. “If we had full access to your mind, we might be able to use your emotional connection with Claire to contact her telepathically.”
“Even with a soul bond there is a series of mights,” Isaac countered. He stood behind one of the chairs that faced the couch. His hands rested on the back, his fingers squeezing and releasing. “Wemightbe able to find her, and wemightbe able to form a connection allowing us to communicate, and even if all that falls into place, Clairemighthave been blindfolded or unconscious when they took her down there. We’re not locking Tara into a soul bond for a might.”
“If a long shot for Claire were the only reason we were doing this, I would agree with you,” Tara said. “But I’ve spent the lastfew days wondering why I’m waiting. I know this is the coalition I want to join and I’m relatively certain you want me as your mate.”
Jon scoffed and pulled her tighter against his side. “We’ve known you were our mate since the first day we saw you.”
“Your scent told us everything we needed to know,” Isaac added.
“It’s only been two weeks,” Kyle reminded. “Are you sure this is what you want?”
“I’ve been with youcontinuallyfor two weeks and our minds have been linked for much of that time.” She took a deep breath and made her final decision. “I know how you guys think and what you honestly feel about me. I’ve shared your memories. I know who you were before Nuevo, and I know who you are now. You each appeal to me in a different way. You fulfill a different portion of my desire, which means I’m completely satisfied. I’m ready.” She paused and looked each one of them in the eyes before she concluded, “I want to be your soul bonded mate.”
Kyle’s brows drew together and his expression tensed. “Is desire all you feel for us?”
“You know it’s not.” She lowered her gaze, feeling vulnerable for reasons she didn’t understand. Why was sharing her body with three males easier than sharing her emotions?
