Falconâs POV~
Looking at the screen..seeing this punkâs face.. I am struggling not to run to where he is and strangle him. Unfortunately, I need information..I have to figure out what he wants with Anna. Itâs obviously him.. so, at least, we have the whoâ¦now we need the why!
Anna walks back in with her fatherâs books. She tells me âI brought the book he has about Spirit wolves..maybe it will give us some insight. Iâm going to search the darkweb for the server or servers running Flaming Rose..we need an In! Bonnie, sweet girl..it would be such a help, if you could run to the kitchen and grab us some snacks..and coffee? Lots of coffee?â And Bonnie scampers out.
Axel asks âHow do you do that? You see our insecurities and turn them around making them abilities? Thatâs amazingâ Anna shrugs âBonnie needs to feel vitalâ¦she wants to be useful..feel needed. I donât think sheâs had much of that in her life..but changing who she inherently is, on the inside..to fit in with this bunch of homicidal maniacs..is something that canât happen. Her innocent heart is necessary to keep us balancedâ
I lift my amazing mate into my lapâ¦whispering âI love you so much!â And she smiles so beautifullyâ¦.Belinda asks âAnna is it okay if I read the book on Spirit wolves? Maybe I can find something to explain why this moron wants you.. mostly, I want to learn more about Bethany..sheâs my niece too..and I love her! I want to know her!â And Bethany was out and laying on top of Belinda before I could blink! Anna says âDamnit Bethany! You know that hurts when you just leap!â And Bethany snarks âsheâs my aunt, too! I just want a little lovinâ too!â Anna sighs âIâm sorry fuzzy butt! I havenât let you out and about much since we lost mama and daddy! How about when we are in here..brainstorming..you can enjoy a little freedom?â
She jumps up and licks Annaâs face then comes over and lies on my feet..saying âI get Falcon.â Anna laughs and shakes her head no âWe share Falcon..you get Othelloâ¦and if you behaveâ¦maybe we can run with him, later. But NO glow!â â But my glow makes me prettyâ she whinesâ¦I scratch her ears and tell her âYour glow is lovely..but itâs your heart that makes you beautifulâ and she curls up and dozes off. I laugh and ask âa little high maintenance?â Anna shakes her head âyou have no idea!â
Looking up, I tell them back to business and Brady says âOur scouts verify Gregorâs pack is done. This guy doesnât even care about resources..or money.. he just kills everyone and moves on. Sociopathic behavior! It makes no sense and just feels random. He gives an order..and if you donât succeedâ¦even when you canât control the circumstanceâ¦he kills everyone associated with you..before he murders youâ
I respond âThere has to be a pattern..even sociopaths have reasonsâ¦albeit reasons we canât comprehendâ¦but always an impetusâ¦like mommy didnât love him enough..or the babysitter slapped him for trying to kiss her.â Axel nods..âFind the catalyst..find an explanation..On it!â
Looking at Annaâs fatherâs recordsâ¦and he was a very meticulous man..thorough. I said âhereâ¦Listen⦠I had to banish an entire family of five today. Cyrus Culver was observed by several witnesses trying to force himself on a 14 year old girl. I sentenced him to twenty lashes..and six months hard labor on the farms after recovering from his lashing. However, a precocious little six year old girl felt the ripple of pain through her pack bond and snuck herself into the infirmary to heal the hurt. She stumbled into the view of the youngest Culver boy and he took a liking to her..he dragged her into a supply closet, and while she refuses to discuss what happened in the locked closet, it was obvious by her bruises and his left hand missing two fingers, he had hurt her. The entire family was stripped of pack bond and banished to No Manâs Land.â
Marcus says âThatâs the impetus! His left hand is missing two fingers..the pinky and ring fingersâ I look at my fiery little mate and ask âYou bit his fingers off? At six?â She shrugs âI donât remember thatâ and Bethany stands up and lays her head in Annaâs lapâ¦âI did it! He was hurting her. Saying bad things..touching placesâ¦like his father. I taught him he doesnât get to do thatâ and she whines. Anna whispers âback inside, my Bethy..we are okay. I love youâ and poof! Blue wispy smoke and sheâs gone. Anna turns in my lap and I wrap her up. Sheâs asleep in seconds.
Axel blew âI want that fucker! I will filet his assâ¦skin him alive! She was a baby! Had it not been for Bethany who knows what would have happened!â Brady soothes âCalm bro..we will get him. Heâs obsessed..we can use that⦠we need a plan!â
I , on the other hand.. am livid! I say âI want everythingâ¦every bit of information on this scumbag we can find. From the time they left Silver Bladeâ¦to now! And I want it NOW! If he tried it with Anna..he succeeded with some other girl! There has to be a trail!â Sabrina says âand now we have the why!â And we all nod.
Bonnie comes in with snacks and fresh coffee for Anna..and I nudge her awake. She rubs her eyes and apologizes to us allâ¦and smiles so wide at Bonnie for the coffee..thanking her. And I realize Anna is absolutely right about Bonnie..she needs to feel necessary and Anna gives her that. Anna jumps off my lap and over to her laptop because itâs beeping..and she spins around to Axel âLook Axe! Weâve found a back door! Now..we need to encrypt the hack..just in case they have their own techie.. I donât want to be detected â and he replies âback off..I know exactly how to take care of this..I will bounce our ISP around to every satellite in the world! Letâs confuse some fuckers!â And we all laugh! I will never understand tech talk!
Sabrina laughs âDid anyone except the two computer nerds understand that?â Bonnie shakes her head âI donât speak geekâ and we all cracked up while Anna and Axel yelled âHey!â Making us laugh harderâ¦and it was just what we needed!