Chapter 103 Chapter~103~Book 'em Danno.

Chapter 103 Chapter~103~Book 'em Danno.
Nick~

So far, so good. The decoy transport van is in place with a flat tire up on a jack. A lookalike Harley is in the back waiting for the driver to fix it. Kyle and I secured our backpacks on the branches of a cedar tree near the bridge.

Then we drove our SUV a few miles back down the road and found a hiding spot. After returning in wolf form, we take cover in the thick brush and trees, which Rolling Bridge has much of.

Zeek's panting from the run; his rapid breaths sound like a jackhammer on this side of the wolf. He lay down, stretching his belly out on the cool earth. Within a few moments, the vibration stops, and he tilts his head to the wind. 'They're coming, Nick.'

To our right, Knox raises his snout in the air and snorts as he scents them too. We rise from the ground, and our two wolves maneuver their way unseen through the brush back to the bridge. We shift, retrieve our clothes, dress, and their humans emerge.

It had been a mystery why Harley had stayed in such an isolated location long enough to be abducted. Now, with the scenery speaking for itself, I have my answer. My nature-loving mate would have found it enchanting.

We're surrounded by wild-flowering buds and time-honored, moss-draped oaks acting as both a temptation and a trap. Steve cheated when selecting this location, whether he knew it or not!

Leonard is the first to arrive; he pulls to a hasty stop and gets out of the black Cadillac. Thirty seconds later, Ian's coming in hot from the other direction.

Ian exited his car, making a pitiful human attempt to slam the door before he shook his fist at Leonard. "What the hell are you doing here?"

Leonard stops his advance on the cargo van and faces Ian. "Getting what's mine!" he spits at Ian with venom.

"Are you thinking what I'm thinking?"

Kyle meets my eyes. "Stool pigeon?"

With a united nod, we stepped out of the treeline. Their eyes went to us as I went for the handcuffs at my waist. "Leonard Luccese, you're under arrest! Step away from the Lycan and put your hands behind your back."

Luccese's eyes snapped wide as he stared straight through me at nothing. Air rattled in his throat, his chest rising and falling in ragged gasps. He threw his arms wide and backward, bracing for the bone-snapping crack of transformation, but silence reigned.
He lunged at Ian, "You son-of-bitch, you set me up."

My hand connects to his arm, and I twist. "I said, hands behind your back!" The cuffs go on, his wrist pops out of place, and he screams in pain.

Ian's face lit up. "Kyle, Nick, my boys, that's what I'm talking about!" Ian extends his hand to Kyle as he approaches him.

Kyle accepts his hand, twists it, and puts it behind his back. "Ian Steel, you are also under arrest."

Ian struggles to get away from his son, only to help him with getting his other hand. The cuffs go over his wrists with a loud clank-click. "What is this? Some kinda joke? Well, it isn't very fucking funny! Take these damn cuffs off me, Kyle!"

"It is no joke, Father; you are finally going to pay for all you've done. Life behind bars with no wolf sounds right to me. It was I, Ian, who poisoned you," Kyle nodded at Leonard, "both of you."

Ian's face traced a rapid emotional arc, starting with shock, shifting to fear, and settling finally into hard realization. "But Kyle, I am your father."

"Your Harley's father, too. What difference did that make?"

We dragged them across the gravel, put them both in the back seat of the Cadillac, and jumped in the front. Kyle took the driver's seat, and I linked my phone to Apple Pay and dialed the Captain.

Howard asked me to repeat my statement twice. "How the hell did you pull that off, Nick?"

"The FBI got a tip, and I followed it. We'll be there within the hour. Is Harley still in court?"

"Yeah, Wong is on the stand now," he paused with a deep breath. "Ben and his father both have a lot of pull around here, Nick. The Judge hearing Harley's case? He got his appointment largely because of the commissioners' influence."

"He's going to order the test, isn't he?"

"It's almost a certainty."

"Is there anything we can do?"

"Short of making her disappear? No," he disconnected before I could reply.

Kyle glanced over at me. "I will take care of things here." He put the car in gear and headed us back to the highway.

Leonard was still trying to shift, and when he abandoned his futile attempt to render a wolf, he launched himself sideways at Ian. "We had a deal, Steel! None of this would be happening if you'd just given me the bitch."

Blood roared in my ears, and I was over the back seat before I thought about it; my hand went around Leonard's throat. "That 'bitch' is my mate," I snarled, tightening my grip until his eyes widened. "And if you want to see the inside of a cell, you'll keep any reference to her out of your filthy mouth."

Kyle hits the brakes, and the SUV comes to a quick stop; his hand grasps my shoulder. "Nick, enough! We are too close."

Once I'm reseated with a thud as my back meets the leather, he takes off again. Captain Howard has the parking lot covered as we pull in, and Harley pops into my head.

'Nick?'

'Where are you, Harley?'

'On the way to the squad room and then to Belinda's lab. The Judge ordered the paternity test but not the amniocentesis after Wong got through with him. I'm going for a mouth swab.'

'Wait for me; we're coming in.'

A harsh, rattling screech tears from Ian's throat as I yank him out of the car, his body dead-weight against my grip. "Please......don't take me in there," he chokes out, reeking of fear. "I can't live in a cage."

I feel no pity, only a cold, driving heat as I tighten my grip on him and shove him forward, slamming the door. "It's better than what you deserve, Ian."

His desperate gaze shifted to the two uniforms approaching; their boots thudded a warning against the pavement as they closed the distance. Protocol dictates that they take control of the prisoners.

Absolutely not! I stop and step in front of Ian to block their path. This is mine; I lock eyes with the nearest cop before I shove Ian past them. We're close enough that the solid resistance of the cop's duty belt dragged against my forearm.

Ian stumbled; I ignored his misstep and continued, more dragging him than he was walking. "Move!" I shouted. Kyle stayed right behind me, dealing with a resisting Leonard but pulling him into the fray.