It's Always Something - 15. Chapter 15

The O'Leary's returned with a variety of sandwiches and other baked goods and hot beverages. They set up two more folding tables and lined them with the food for the search party and the Deputies assisting with finding Ethan. Cameron worked the refreshment tables with the blended family's elders, coordinating his staff through his mobile phone.

Fabien knew he didn't have to legally ask anymore but respected his parents and family enough to get permission to join the effort in looking for his lost cousin. As expected, everyone agreed, and he paired up with his mate, brother, and Alex. Taylor and Rhylan shed their clothing and gave them to their parents, then after a round of hugs and kisses, the brothers shifted into their wolf forms. The furry pair and Fabien followed Alex into the secret passage entrance and were able to pick up Ethan's scent. Cameron used the shared connection with his siblings and mate to keep the four of them in contact.

*****

Ethan's eyes slowly opened. The first thing he noticed was total blackness, and he immediately realized that he'd been blindfolded. The second thing his brain registered was the dull throbbing in his head. He smacked his lips together, then slid his tongue across them to alleviate the soreness from being dry. He closed his eyes, letting his other senses take over, trying to figure out where he was. The questions of how he got wherever he was and why he was tied to a chair dominated his thoughts until suddenly, the teen's memory flooded his mind with everything leading up to blacking out. Muffled voices echoed off the walls and floor, voices that were somewhat known to the young Stormcloud male. He squirmed and pulled at the ropes that bound him, hoping to loosen them enough to attempt an escape while stretching his neck closer to where he thought the talking emanated from, as well as straining to focus his hearing.

"Why the fuck did you bring the kid here?" Mystofelles' black and red-lined cape fluttered behind his thin body as he fumed and walked down the dimly lit corridor.

"I hid around the corner while you were in the room with him and that little bitch who calls himself an amateur magician and saw the fucker pick up and pocket your disc." Gavin Banks responded as he remained uninterested in the ridiculous man.

Ethan's continued effort to work himself free was slowly beginning to pay off because he could feel the knots starting to give but stopped when the voices got closer and, with certainty, knew who the unseen speakers were.

"I can use him to get his cousins to agree to my demands, and he's leverage to keep that Sheriff father of his from interfering in our operation."

The gang Mystofelles and Gavin belonged to used the Manor and its hidden passageways to get the stolen art, antiques, and drugs in and out of the county and distributed to various locations around the world under the nose of the authorities.

The magician's eyes burned as he stared at the entitled rich bastard he'd been paired with. "I'll work on finding out where the kid stashed my disc."

"I will go outside to see what's happening.”

One of the ways the gang avoided detection was a constant rotation of members so that no person was in a location for too long. Gavin knew his time in the county was close to an end, and that's the reason he wanted one last fling with Cameron. He turned a corner and pressed one of the stone blocks that made up the wall. As it slid open, he got excited when Cameron walked by, oblivious to the opening he just passed. He pulled a piece of rope from his pocket, then crept up behind the object of his lustful desires, quickly wrapped it around the redhead's neck, and tightened the slender piece of fabric, cutting off the air when his chosen victim struggled. He hit the back of the witch's head, hard knocking him out, and dragged the unmoving body into the opening before the hidden door closed.

As they walked along the dark passageway, the Stormcloud wolves and Fabien stopped short and stared at each other. They could feel the connection with Cameron had been severed.

After a minute or two, Alex realized his companions weren't behind him, and the teen retraced his steps to rejoin the worried-looking trio. "What's wrong," he asked fearfully.

"Cameron's not telepathically connected anymore," Fabien answered. Tears welled in his emerald green eyes, and his body began shaking. Instantly, Rhylan and Taylor were on either side of him, their furry bodies pressing into his, and just their touch calmed his rising anxiety. He instinctively lowered his hands and stroked their backs. "Thanks," he whispered.

"We love you, my brave Leprechaun," Rhylan said through the telepathic link. The wolf sent as much love as possible to his mate.

"You three keep looking, I'll go find my love," Taylor said.

"I'm coming with you, Tay," Fabien countered.

"No way. I do this on my own," Taylor stated. He softly growled as his eyes glowed a light shade of amber in an attempt to assert his brotherly authority.

He almost gasped and flinched, but Fabien stopped himself when he realized this was a challenge. He quickly matched the older shifter's demeanor and didn't back down. His glowing green eyes stared into the wolf's eyes. The pair intensified their efforts, and Fabien could feel the increasing strength of his opponent. On his end, Taylor was starting to feel the strain from the young witch's Will. Their bodies quivered from the physical exertion as one tried to force the other to blink.

"I'm not letting you win, Tay," Fabien yelled. He reached deep inside himself, found some more energy, and used it to strengthen him.

Taylor's fur bristled, and his legs started buckling. To Rhylan, who'd shifted back to his human form, and Alex, it felt like an eternity of hair-raising silence had passed before Taylor finally lowered his head and heeled at Fabien's feet.

He shifted to his human body, extended his arm, and when he and his brother shook hands, Taylor said, "You win." He pulled the panting teen into a loving embrace.

Fabien laid his head on Taylor's chest. "I honestly didn't know if I would," he admitted.

"Little brother, you've made me very proud of you," the shifter said as he stroked the shorter man's hair. "Honestly, even if you lost the challenge, I'd have taken you with me because he's your birth brother, and if you're strong enough to respond to a wolf's challenge, then you can face almost anything."

"I love you, Tay."

Rhylan grabbed his mate's waist, lifted him off the floor, and spun around. "Fuck, yeah, that's my kick ass Witch."

Taylor and Alex chuckled as they watched the giggling pair.

"Don't get too cocky, baby bro. The next challenge won't be as easy," the eldest shifter stated with a slight growl.

Fabien's eyes widened as he wiped his brow. "You think that was easy?"

The young men shared another hug before going their separate ways, with Fabien keeping them telepathically connected.

*****

Mystofelles smiled as he entered the concave where the restrained Stormcloud man was. "Ah, I see you're finally awake, my young friend," he said with fake pleasantry.

"Let me go, Mystofelles. You've got no idea the trouble you're in by kidnapping me," Ethan growled.

"Even blindfolded, you're quite the observant young man."

The magician grinned and placed a wooden chair beside the wiggling captive. He rubbed his hands together and giggled boyishly at Ethan's flinch when his fingers lightly grazed the back of his neck, right under his hair.

"Freak, keep your fucking hands off me."

"My, my, such vulgar language for such a dear boy. It's a shame there's no soap to plug up that filthy mouth of yours," the older man sneered.

"I'd love to see your fucking ass try. Turn me loose, Mystofelles."

"There's that uncalled-for vulgarity. Perhaps it's time you were taught some manners."

The teen was about to continue with his tirade when a palm slapped his cheek so hard it flung his head to the side. Before he could even think, a slap on the second cheek thrust his head to the other side. His face burned and was bright pink. At the moment, he was actually grateful for the blindfold because his assailant couldn't see him blink the tears back.

"Since you obviously know who I am, we don't need this anymore," Mystofelles said as he ripped the blindfold off.

Ethan glared at the older man. "If I were free, I'd show you something vulgar."

The older man smirked as he approached the grunting male, stared directly into his fire-filled eyes, slowly reached out, and ruffled the raven locks of hair. "Do you know how adorable you look trying to break free," Mystofelles said before giggling and pinching the teen's cheeks.

This threw Ethan off a bit as a look of confusion replaced the hardened expression, and his brown eyes never strayed from the actions of his captor. "When I get free, you'd better hope the cops get you before I do, bastard."

The magician shook his head, saying "Let's get down to business, young man. I know you have my disc."

"Go to hell, I'd die before telling you where it is."

Mystofelles pulled out a black-handled dagger. His eyes were dark, and his face contorted to this horrifying expression as he raised his arm and pointed the shiny silver blade at the teenager's chest. Ethan involuntarily flinched, turned his head to the left, and closed his eyes.

I'm soooo hiding now.