The Pack's Hacker (by Cooper) novel Chapter 29

Jude

A moment after Sanatrix got a call to report to the Academy, I got a call from Hijack.

“They were ambushed,” he says without preamble.

“How bad?”

“Bad enough that Raptor is down,” he says.

“Fuck! Tracker?”

“She’s on her way to the Academy. I was going to go pick her up …” he begins.

“But she’s not going to wait. I wouldn’t wait either if it were my mate,” I say.

“She’ll beat Sanatrix here,” he says.

“Keep her calm. As soon as I figure out where Sphinx is going, I’ll head that way.”

“You know you’re better at keeping people calm than I am.”

It’s unusual for Hijack to sound ruffled. He’s a lot like Raptor, a lot like Alpha Quirin. They don’t get ruffled. It’s exactly why he’s the unofficial leader of our group. 1

“Do what you have to do until I can get there, Lane. This is Jaelynn we’re talking about. She was already struggling. How is the rest of Alpha Squad?”

“Beaten up. Vivienne and her squad are also pretty battered. Like I said, it was an ambush. Javelin is coming in to take over and they’re bringing in the rest of Beta Squad. The Council is pissed.”

“They should be. We wouldn’t even know about this if it wasn’t for Vivienne.”

“Have you found anything else in the prison records?” he asks.

“Not as much as I’d like. I’m getting through the tapes, but between spending time with a stressed out Tracker and working with Sphinx, I haven’t gotten as far as I’d like,” I say honestly.

“While we’re in the hospital, I’ll try to take a look,” he says.

“No. Focus onTracker. Sphinx and I are leaving tomorrow. I’ll make sure she’s safe. That gives us a little bit of time,” I say. “We hope,” he growls.

I narrow my eyes. “What aren’t you telling me, Hijack?”

He sighs. “I should have realized this was an ambush. They trust us to figure these things out and I missed it.”

“Did you miss it, or did they dangle a carrot that couldn’t be ignored?” I know my co-worker. He doesn’t make mistakes. If this slipped through his fingers, it’s because he thought someone was in trouble.

“It doesn’t matter. I was wrong.”

“Lane, were you wrong, or were you right about the threat and wrong about where it was aimed?”

I’ve never heard Hijack second guess himself before. I don’t like it. He’s always Mr. Calm, Cool, and Collected.

He sighs again. “They used one of the missing women to draw us in. I fell for it.”

I think about that for a moment. “Is she still alive?”

“Yes.”

“Then you did what needed to be done. We can’t always save everyone, Lane. How many times have you told me that?”

“Yeah, I know. It’s just … it’s a lot harder when you’re in it.”

“Yes, it is. Sanatrix is on her way. I’ll let you know when I’m on my way.”

“Thanks, Hacker.”

“We take care of our own, Hijack,” I say, hanging up and seeing Wendy’s eyes on me.

I’m not surprised that she wants to be there to make sure her friends are okay rather than attending a party. I’m pretty sure I can count the number of people on one hand, outside of my family and hers, who would choose that. It’s yet another reason why I really hope that the Moon Goddess mated me to Wendy. I want someone in my life who understands the importance of friendship over parties and things, and Wendy is definitely that person. Thankfully, Alpha Connor agrees since Alpha Warren left with Sanatrix.

As we walk to the car, I notice Wendy looking behind us.

“What about Yorrie and Piper?”

“Striker and Hellfire might get called into the mission, or they may just be getting put on alert. Hijack said they are pulling Beta Squad in now and Javelin is going to take charge of Alpha Squad while Raptor is down.”

“Does she realize that Cipher and Siren are new?” she asks as I drive.

“My mother has one rule – no one dies in her hospital. So, no matter how badly Raptor is injured, he won’t die. My mother won’t allow it.”

“You can’t know that,” I hear Tracker whisper.

“I’m nearly eighteen years old, Jaelynn, and in all that time, not one person has died in my mother’s hospital, nor in my sister Kennedy’s. I should have died when I was fifteen years old. I was badly injured in a battle with an attacking pack. But no one dies in my families’ hospitals, and Kennedy didn’t let me die. Believe me when I tell you that my mother has taken this place as hers now. If Raptor tries to offend my mother by dying on her, he’ll get dressed down so loudly that he’ll come back from the Moon Goddess’s realm just so my mother will stop yelling at him,” Wendy tells her.

I hear Tracker chuckle. “Thanks, Sphinx.”

“Anytime, Tracker,” she says, then looks around. The moment she spots Vivienne, she makes a beeline to her.

I saw her too. The typical bruises on her face are even more pronounced than usual. Her lip is split, she has a bruise forming near her mouth, and there’s a nasty bruise forming on her cheek near her eye.

Wendy walks right up to her, pulling her into a hug, just as Alpha Arman walks into the waiting room.

I watch as he stops, assessing Vivienne, while she tries to hide the evidence of the abuse she’s suffered.

“Wendy,” I say softly, just loud enough for her to hear me.

She glances at me, confused when I extend a hand to get her to come to me.

Thankfully, she doesn’t argue and now that gives Arman gives a direct line to Vivienne, it’s only a moment before he’s in front of her.

“What’s going on?” Wendy asks as I pull her to me.

“I’m pretty sure we have an unannounced mate bond in our midst,” I tell her.

She turns and looks at Vivienne and Arman, her eyes going wide.

“Oh, Jude,” she says.

“Yeah. Your family doesn’t do anything by halves.” 1

“She’s not my family,” Wendy says, distractedly.

“She will be soon,” I say confidently.