Arrow Inferno
Chapter 76: Jeremy Stanton vs. Ryan Hicks ~ Feral attraction in the midst of hatred… The Wyatt Clan!

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Not everyone around the table knew the exact whereabouts of Jeremy. He sometimes took unannounced trips since as second in command to the head of all alphas in the world, he had other duties. So no one questioned his absence. Besides, Philip always managed the affairs of the pack just fine so there was no problem at all. At Philip's words, all eyes turned on Deloris.

"Why haven't you said anything till now Del?" Gloria gasped but the warlock didn't even raise her head to acknowledge the question.

"I'll explain everything Mama G," Philip said. "The Wyatt Clan kidnapped Camilla to blackmail Deloris. They wanted Jeremy but couldn't find him anywhere. So they decided they needed an insider to help them. And what better person than a fellow warlock who knew all about how nasty they could be? She's not supposed to tell anyone about the kidnap otherwise Camilla dies." "Oh my god." Gloria's hand flew to her throat.

"They've sorta tapped into her brain to ensure they'll know immediately if Deloris tells. Camilla was made to apply for leave from the hospital so no one thinks there's foul play. Deloris has been trying to come up with a spell that would shield her brain. She's..."

"Hold it, hold it..." Stan rasped, cutting Phillip off. "You mean it's taken you three months to come up with a fucking spell?" His question was directed at Deloris, who winced at the disbelief in Stan's voice. "I mean since we were kids we knew that spells are Deloris' specialty."

"If you could just allow me to finish, Stan," Phillip said calmly. "I did say they'd tapped into her brain. To work on a spell, she had to use her brain, right? So she had to be extra careful in order not to be detected. She's managed to shield her brain long enough to write down what we need to know down. She hopes we can rescue Camilla before the Wyatt Clan catches on. We have to move fast. She can write down answers to whatever questions we have for her." "Fuck." Pete, the head assassin growled. "What are we waiting for if she's already written down where those fuckers can be found?" He sounded pissed. "Just point us in the right direction. We have to hit those bastards hard." "We have to plan before we move Pete." Joel rasped. "This is the Wyatt Clan we're talking about son. If we don't proceed cautiously, we will be wiped out before we say, Jack. Now what I want to know is..." He turned to look at Deloris. "How sure are you that this spell of yours works? Wouldn't want that bloodthirsty bunch to do anything to Camilla. God knows Reynard Wyatt never bluffs."

"And that's the scary part, Dad," Philip said with a deep sigh. "She doesn't. She needed more time to make sure it works but it looks like she doesn't have any choice but to act now. You see, the clan has decided that if they take Ryan, Jeremy will come back from wherever he's gone. So they're coming for Ryan." He turned to look at Ryan. "Now I understand why you've felt like you're being watched. It must be them." He said quietly. "What scares me, even more, is the fact that they seem to think that since Ryan is mated to Jeremy, Jeremy's blood runs through him, and therefore they can use Ryan for their silly ritual even if they don't get Jeremy. And that is what pushed Deloris to risk her daughter's life by spilling the beans. She's not a hundred percent sure her spell will work."

"We have to move now before anything happens to Camilla." Stan breathed.

"We sure do." Phillip nodded. "At least thanks to Deloris, we know exactly where to find them. They can no longer fool us with all that cloaking they've been using to throw us off their location. In the meantime, Ryan will have to be sent to a safe..."

"They want me, right?" Ryan spoke up. "So why don't we take me to them?"

"No, Ryan," Gloria said sternly. "If anything happens to you..."

"Hold it, Mama G." Phillip quickly cut in. "Guys, we need to get ready to move. Dad, Mama G, Paige, Stan, and Deloris can you kindly wait behind so we can quickly decide on what to do with Ryan, whilst the rest go and get ready?" "Good," Pete growled as he got to his feet. "Those stupid warlocks are going down."

"That's what I'm talking about." Stan chuckled, slapping his raised palm against Pete's. Warriors and Assassins had a lot in common. They both got off on violence.

When the others left the meeting room, Philip got to his feet and addressed Ryan.

"Now listen to me, Ryan." He began. "The last place we can take you is where there is bound to be violence. If touch wood, you die, that's the end of Jeremy. That will be the fastest assurance to us that he's not going to return to us." "And if you get physically hurt in any way, he's going to feel it," Gloria added. "We can't add that to his pain."

"What?" Ryan gasped, staring at Gloria. "What do you mean he's going to feel it?"

"It was his wish, Ryan," Gloria said quietly. "His wish was to give you his mark. But my son did have his own conditions. By giving you that mark, he was to automatically bear any physical pain that you're meant to feel." "What the fuck!" Ryan whispered.

"Your emotional and mental pain was cloaked but not your physical pain. Everybody feels physical pain at a point, right? Not a big deal. But Jeremy wouldn't even accept that. He insisted that he wanted to bear any physical pain of yours." Ryan suddenly understood why he hadn't felt any physical pain in months. He clearly remembered that time he'd stretched and felt that familiar spasm in his thigh that was usually meant to be accompanied by pain. After all, muscle pulls were meant to be painful. He'd watched as his thigh had tightened rhythmically and wondered why he couldn't feel the usual pain. He'd been both fascinated and shocked at the strange development, thinking it probably had something to do with his newfound power. And that wasn't the only time he hadn't felt pain when he knew he should. Damn Jeremy.

"Why didn't you tell me?" The wretchedness in his voice couldn't be masked.

"If we had told you, you wouldn't have accepted his mark," Gloria said simply, watching Ryan's eyes fill with anger. "Hey, calm down. For as long as you stay away from harm's way, Jeremy is okay." Jeremy is okay? Really? Ryan couldn't feel pain but he sure as hell could feel anger. And at that very moment, he was so furious he felt himself shake.

"When you get to know that someone you love is going through so much unnecessary pain..." Ryan's voice sounded dead, "...pain that you could have prevented or reduced if you'd known about it, anger hits you hard. Anger floods. I'm flooded."

"Ryan please..." Gloria groaned.

"From the way you talk about this Wyatt Clan, I believe you need all the help you can get." Ryan went on as if Gloria hadn't spoken. "What's the use of power if you have it but can't use it when it's most needed?" Ryan asked with a careless shrug. "I guess we just have to make sure I don't get hurt or die, won't we?"