Aztec Treasure

Chase Nygaard’s POV

Arrowhead Pack Pool

I was sitting in the hot tub, keeping an eye on the televisions we had around the snack bar area for updates on the First Husband’s abduction. Like many, I was shocked that Julio had managed to take down the Secret Service agents and get away with him. Mom had reached out to all the Packs, urging them to send help for the search, and they had responded. Dozens of warriors and trackers were on their way to Washington, where they would pair with law enforcement agencies. The Secret Service would provide clothing with Andrew’s scent, and they would all recognize a Werecat.

I smiled as I looked over to where Maritza was playing with the other children in the pool. She and Maria were in their cat forms; my daughter Cheryl was climbing on her chest as she stretched out in the shallow water. Meanwhile, my son Mark was trying to catch her tail as it splashed back and forth at the edge of the pool. The nannies had things under control with the babies.

Spider Monkey was sitting across from me, taking a few minutes to let the jets massage her lower back before she had to get out again. Vic was sitting on the edge behind her, rubbing down her shoulders and neck. She and her team had been looking for Julio, but it was like he disappeared into thin air. All of the screen time was wearing on her, and Vic had insisted she take the night off. Like all werewolf males with pregnant mates, he was obsessively protective about her and the baby. It might drive Spider Monkey crazy, but he’d make sure she got her rest.

“Alpha, your pizza is coming,” Spider Monkey said.

I got out of the hot tub and sat down at a table with a towel under me. Rori walked out of the pool to the designated “shaking area” for those in wolf form, where screens kept water from flying onto everyone. She came over to the table, climbing up on a platform covered in outdoor carpet that left her just below table level. Her tongue was hanging out to the side, and she was drooling. “Hungry?”

“Starving,” she said. I put a few slices on a plate for her, peeling the cheese off the top so they would cool off faster. I knew she was frustrated by having to stay in wolf form while pregnant, but it was necessary. Our child was a big one, and her belly was stretched halfway to the ground when she stood up. “Swimming helps with my back pain.”

“It’s good for you,” I agreed. I poured some milk into a dish and set it next to the pizza plate before taking some pizza for my plate. I got to my first bite when the breaking news sounder came over.

“We interrupt this program with this breaking news. Julio Salazar, the werejaguar kidnapper of First Husband Andrew Kettering, released his demands to a Maryland television station a few minutes ago. Reading from the note: ’I have your husband. If you want to see him alive again, you must give me four things in return. The ten million dollars that you took from my Club. Chase Nygaard, the wolf directly responsible for the deaths of my Club brothers. My only living family members, Maria Meztli and baby Maritza. And a private jet and crew, fueled and ready for me at eight PM tomorrow at the Leesburg Executive Airport. Don’t even think about trying to arrest me or stop me; Andrew only has enough air to survive for forty-eight hours or so, and I’m the only one who can tell you where I have him buried.’ Thus far, there has been no reaction from the White House House.”

My jaw dropped at the demands even as I read my name on the list. The ten million dollars was chump change; the Kettering family had nearly a billion dollars in net worth, so it was a rounding error for them. I wasn’t shocked that Julio wanted me dead, but to make turning me over a demand?

“OH, HELL NO,” Rori thundered over the bond as she stood and growled at the screen. “You aren’t going ANYWHERE, and neither are Maria and Maritza. They are Pack now, and we will protect them from this bastard.”

Maria had shifted back when the update started. She was staring at the screen in shock as she stood at the edge of the pool. “He can’t have me. You can’t give me to that man!”

She was shaking, and I pulled her over to sit next to Rori. “No one is going to give you to anyone, Maria. We won’t allow it.”

Vic had moved up until he was standing behind us. “Julio is a smart guy. By burying the First Husband, he’s ensured the police and military won’t move against him while he flies out of the country with the money. He’s also an idiot because he has to know that you’re not going to turn yourself over to be tortured and killed.”

“And Maria isn’t going to be his breeding bitch,” I added. “I have to talk to my Mom about this. She must be freaking out right now. Stay here, and I’ll call her from my office.” Mom and Frank were in Washington, supervising the Council assistance to the Federal Government.

I took a quick shower and dressed before going back to the office. The phone was ringing as I opened the door. “Hi, Mom,” I said as I picked it up.

“You’ve seen the news?”

“Yes, I just saw the summary. Is there anything beyond what the news stations released?”

“No,” Frank said. “We were in the Situation Room with the President when the news came in.”

“It’s a no-go, Frank. I can’t give myself up to this asshole, and Maria is scared of Julio, for good reasons. She doesn’t want to leave, and we won’t make her.”

“That’s where I need you to help us out, Chase,” Mom said. “The President can’t compel you to give yourself up. She won’t ask that of you. What we DO need is to give Julio the impression we are preparing to meet his demands.”

“What do you mean?”

“We want you to bring Maria and Maritza to Washington. The Air Force will transport you out here on one of their planes out of the Duluth. We’ll make sure the press sees you, and that will keep Julio thinking we are going to meet his demands,” Frank said.

“I don’t like it,” I said. “What is to keep the President from shooting us with tranquilizer darts and trussing us up as presents for Julio? I mean nothing to her, and Maria even less.”

“The Council would go to war over that, and you know it,” Mom said.

“And then what? We’re out in the open now, and the Administration has all the intelligence they need to win a war if we start one. We’re talking about the President’s husband!”

“There is no way the President can make that trade, Chase. It’s a non-starter,” Mom said. “Her political career would be over if she caved to these demands.”

“My life is more than a political calculation,” I said. “Look, I have to talk it over with Rori and Maria, and I don’t need to make the decision now. I also don’t plan to put myself under the military’s control; I don’t see the need for it. I’ll call you in the morning with my decision.”

“I understand,” Mom said. “President Kettering is our ally, Chase. We need to do what we can to help while staying true to our values.”

“I agree, Mom, and Pack sanctuary is one of those values. Make sure you get your rest, Mom. We miss you here.”

Mom laughed. “Trust me, Chase. Frank is just as overprotective as every other werewolf male. I’ll be fine. Tell everyone we love them and miss them. We’ve got a search underway for Andrew, but it doesn’t look good. Julio cut out the tracker the Secret Service implanted and left it in the van we found. He could be anywhere.”

“It has to be somewhere he could dig a hole without being discovered,” I said. “Somewhere he could have confidence it wouldn’t be disturbed or stumbled upon.”

“We’re on that,” Frank said. “We are deploying thousands of troops and volunteers in the search, and we’re placing a werewolf with each search team. We figure we can smell a cat faster than they can look for one.”

“If you see him, kill him,” I said. “This guy needs to die.”

“We can’t do that, Chase, not until we find Andrew.”

“And he knows that. Goodnight, Mom. You’ve given me a lot to think about.”

“Goodnight, baby. Tell the babies Grandma misses them.”

“I will.” I hung up the phone, leaning back and thinking over the options. They all sucked.

“We’re coming in,” Rori sent to me just before the door opened. She trotted over and sat by me, her head on my leg. Maria came in behind her with Vic. I filled them in on what Mom and Frank told me and my promise to get back to them.

“They’ve put us in an impossible position,” Vic complained. “If we refuse, the Packs take the blame for the First Husband’s death. If we agree, we risk both of you.”

“Andrew will die, and we can’t change that,” Maria said. “Julio won’t be satisfied with the money, not if he blames the President for what happened to him. He wants the President to suffer for what she did. He’s only using him as a shield so he can get away, probably to Mexico.”

My eyes got wide at this. “Mexico? Really? The government will turn him over in a heartbeat, and the Cartel already killed the Presidents.”

“There’s more than one Cartel, you know. And the government controls less of the country than you might think.”

I disagreed with Maria about the destination, but I knew Julio wasn’t going to let Andrew live.