**Josie''s POV **


    We get to the assessment office where the teens who wanted to negotiate with us were so fast that I don''t think Mason has fully opened his eyes yel.


    The teens, two boys and a girl look terrified when we arrive If I wasn''t so desperate to get the information from them I''d hug them and tell them they don''t need to be afraid, that they are safe now.


    "Sorry, but we don''t have time to be delicate about this. We are going to help you and get you back to your bond, but I need you to tell us exactly what you know," Deacon says to the teens.


    "There''s a guy, one of the ones that came in a couple of days ago from the other realm. Mandy and Brent have him. I think he is dying," the girl tells us, and Mason curses whilst sickness twists in my gut.


    "Where can we find him? How many are guarding him?" I ask.


    "There''s an empty retail space a few streets over from here They have him in a room in the back. There were around twenty people there when we left, but at least ten of them don''t have their gifts yet," she exins.


    "Is what you are telling us the truth?" Deacon asks,cing his words with his gift.


    The girl''s eyes go wide for a split second before her expression rxes, and she answers, "Yes."


    "Are you trying to deceive us in any way?" he asks.


    "No," she shakes her head.


    "Can you show us on the map exactly where the building is and how we can ess it?" Raff asks, pulling up a satellite map on his phone.


    One of the boys pinpoints the building whilst the other tells us there is a staircase at the back of the building that leads to a fire escape on the roof.


    "Let me see the satellite image of the roof," Deacon says, looking at the screen on Raff''s phone. "Okay, I''ve got it, let''s go."


    "Wait, let me call in a team, we can''t go in there without backup," Raff protests.


    "With all due respect, one of our bond members is in trouble. I''m not hanging around waiting for a team, not have that long. You can get your team and meet us there, but we are going now," Deacon says, and we all make sounds of agreement.


    he


    may


    "Take me with you, I can get you inside and to him faster," the girl says.


    "You''re not going, Lindsey, let me go instead,” one of the boys says.


    "We don''t have time for this, the boyes, let''s go," Mason grumbles.


    The boyes to stand with us, and we port onto a rooftop


    "Stay quiet," the boy whispers, and we all nod. I wish I''d gotten a chance to learn his name before we came.


    He approaches a metal door and knocks three times in rapid session, then he does four slow knocks followed by another two fast ones.


    "Who is it?" a young male voice calls through the door.


    Chapter 208.


    "It''s Ryan, I got fired from my job," he says, sounding disappointed.


    "For fucks sake, Ry, this is thest thing we need right now Brent is going to


    be so pissed," the voice says before we hear the locks click and the door slowly open.


    "I know, but It''s not my fault we couldn''t shower today. You know how fussy those food ces are about hygiene," Ryan says, making sure to block the view of whoever is behind the door.


    "You don''t even look that dirty," the voice says before Ryan grabs the door, pushing his way in.


    "Listen to me, you''re going to be safe, but I need you to keep quiet and not alert anyone," Ryan whispers. "What do you..." the boy''s voice trails off as he notices us. What''s going on?" He asks with an angry hiss. "Do not tell anyone we are here," Deacon demands the moment he catches the boy''s gaze. The boy nods, his expression turning calm.


    "This way," Ryan says, leading us down a dimly lit staircase that leads to another door.


    He peeks through the narrow ss window and motions for us to look. Mason looks through, and then I see the telltale signs of him using his telekinesis gift, his fingers and hands moving ever so slightly.


    "There are seven adults in here that I can see. I''m going to incapacitate as many as I can without drawing attention. Get ready to go in with force as soon as they notice something," Mason says into the mind link, and I can imagine him cutting off their air supply until they pass out.


    Tense seconds pass before we hear the first panicked shout and Mason yanks open the door. "Four still standing," he says.


    My guys file through the door and I warn Ryan to stay here until it''s safe before following them. More shouts sound out, one cutting off with a garbled cry as Mason flings them into a wall across the room. Me, Theo and Axel shift, choosing to fight in our wolf forms and Deacon ports around, getting teens out of the danger zone and in the stairwell with Ryan.


    I spot an adult female running towards the back of the space where there''s a door. Is this the bitch that took my bond? I lock in on her running as fast as I can. I managed to bite down on her leg as she pushes through the door, and she lets out a pained scream as she falls to the floor.


    I jump on her back, my front pawsnding heavily on her ribs and pushing the air from her lungs before I shift. "Where is my bond?" I demand, grabbing her hair and using it to yank her head up.


    "I don''t know who your bond is," she cries.


    "The man you took from the tunnels. Where is he?" I scream at her.


    "He''s my bond!" She shouts, and I m her face onto the tiled floor with a satisfying crunch.


    "He''s mine," I growl in her ear, even though she is unconscious.


    I jump to my feet and head down the small corridor she was trying to get to. I push open a door and my heart almost seizes in my chest when I see Luke on the floor. He is deathly pale and far too still.


    "Luke!" I cry dropping to my knees beside him as I call up my healing gift to search for injuries.