Esti Ginzburg as Fredericka Klyne-Winters (Freddy)

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"We got here just in time," Esme says. "Is that Salim's cat?"

"Yes, scary, isn't he?"

"I have never seen him in his cat form. Dang, he is huge. What's his name?"

"Silvermane."

I look around me at the damage in the den, while Esme is busy admiring Silvermane's build. To be fair to her, he is majestic in stature. At seven feet plus, over three hundred pounds, shiny black fur, and white underbelly coat, eyes glowing like fire, claws as long as the average tentacles, elongated teeth; he is a frightening sight to behold.

"Now what?" Esme asks.

"See the one on the ceiling trying to..."

"Yes, I do. Bind him." I bind the shimmering Unri on the ceiling trying to hide from us.

"We cover our folks in a protective aura and deal with the guards. Esme, what exactly is Freddy into? The ruling council will arrest no one without a reason."

"You're right. Rafe and I have warned her so many times. I'll let her be the one to tell you. She means well, it's just..."

"Just what?"

"She went about it the wrong way."

"Esme, whatever Freddy says, we must take her to the Ruling Council. I don't want an unnecessary war with them. We will support and protect her, but she will need to face these charges."

"I know that Cal. But she's a child. A child who thought she was doing the right thing."

"She's seventeen years old, almost eighteen and only two years younger than you and I. Esme, how bad is what she did?"

"If her actions had been against humans only, I will say maybe we would've been able to hide it. She will have gotten a slap upside her dumb head, but she didn't spare anyone: she went after weres, vampires, witches, fates, in fact, she spared no one."

"Esme what did she do?"

Rafe arrives with Darric and answers my lingering question.

"She robs pack, clan, coven, gathering leaders she deems evil and abusive. She turns around and pawns the loot and gives the cash to their abused members. She helps them to be financially stable and out of their leader's reach. Georgiana and Raul are on their way."

"She did what? How? When?"

Georgiana and Raul arrive seconds later.

"Freddy?" Georgiana runs over to Freddy. "Why is she frozen? Did the guards do this?"

"We arrived in the middle of a rampage and I froze everyone to stop the mayhem. They're not hurt, just, you know, frozen." I explain what they're seeing.

"Unfreeze my daughter now, Cal." Georgiana hisses.

"Not yet Georgiana," Esme replies. "Trust us okay, we need all of you under a protective aura before he unfreezes everyone. Or the guards may do her harm."

"Fine. I trust you both. I'm just so scared for her. That's my little girl, Esme."

"I'm sorry, Georgiana. I don't know how powerful these guards are. We must stop them from taking Freddy and Summer with them. Everyone must be protected before we send them back empty-handed."

"Empty-handed? What do you mean Cal?" Raul asks.

"Let's be honest here. Freddy and Summer must report to the Ruling Council and answer whatever charges laid at them. But we will take them there, not these guards. And to confront them we need you all..."

"... protected," Esme finishes.

"I don't understand what you're doing or plan to do but if it keeps my daughter safe, do it," Georgiana says.

"Okay, stay here."

"Are you ready?" I ask Esme.

"Ready."

I move the guards away from Silvermane, Freddy, Summer, the warriors, and Jeffery.

Esme and I join our hands and the purple aura from our combined powers cover everyone except the guards and Silvermane. I move Silvermane into his own private orbit and also cover him with our aura. In his current state, I don't know what he would do. Once done, I unfreeze my people.

Silvermane roars so loud, the house rafters shake at his sound.

I shift into my wolf Sköll and tilt my head in submission to Silvermane, after all, he is my Alpha and I am still a member of his pack.

"Alpha Salim sir," I mind link him.

"Sköll what are you doing here?"

"I am here to help my Alpha."

"Help me? No one helps me. They will not take my sister off this pack."

"No sir, I will not let them take Summer, we," I tilt my head towards the others, "will not let them. Alpha Salim, look around you. We are all here to help. Please shift back, sir."

Several seconds go by, and finally, Silvermane shifts back to Alpha Salim in all his 'glory'. I shift back too.

"Damn, Salim, you're huge, dude," Esme yells.

I try not to smile. Even amid our trouble, Esme finds the time to mention Alpha Salim's 'unmentionable'.

"Esme focus!" I mind link her.

"I'm trying, believe me, I'm trying. Roman is one lucky hombre, just saying."

"Don't forget your dear old dad, too."

'Please don't make me gag."

I release the guards and all three resume their fighting stance. The one guarding Freddy and Summer starts towards them and I surround him with ice. Esme surrounds the other two with fire.

"Listen, we don't want to hurt you, but we can't allow you to take these young ladies with you," Esme tells them.

"They are under arrest and must come with us NOW!"

"I'm afraid that won't do. I've heard a rumor that going with you usually does more harm to your captives before you deliver them to the Ruling Council. I wonder why?" I ask.

"What we do to anyone is not your business, WOLF, RELEASE US NOW AND HAND OVER THE PRISONERS."

He changes into his wolf, as does one other guard and the last one into his cat.

I bind all three together and surround them with ice. I shape three pieces of ice into arrows and position each one at their throats.

"I don't want to hurt you, but I will if you don't leave right now. Please tell the Ruling Council that Esme and I will bring the accused to them in a few hours. They have our word on that."

"What should we do? We can't leave here without those two. You know what will happen if we don't return with the accused."

"I know, we'll spend the rest of our lives in jail."

"I say we fight our way through and leave with them."

Reading their thoughts, I reply, "I wouldn't do that. That ice will pierce your necks like silver, and it will be the worst death you'll ever experience."

They all shift back.

"How did you know...?" Asks the smallest of the group.

I pull down the Unri on the ceiling we bound when we arrived.

"Leave NOW!" Esme tells them.

The Unri nods and they hold hands and shimmer out of the den.

"Now Freddy, what the fuck have you been up to," I turn to Fredericka Klyne-Winters in anger.

The den is a mess. We are all scattered around the room. Some are on sitting on chairs, the floor, tables you name it.

"Before I tell you everything, Summer has nothing to do with this," Freddy tells us.

She and Summer are sitting on one of the tables, side by side. Summer is holding onto Freddy's hand tightly.

"Then why is she arrested?" Asks Alpha Salim.

"I don't know. Maybe because we are mates?"

"You are mates? Why didn't you tell me, Summer?" Alpha Salim asks.

"Because I know you are having a tough time with your mate, and I didn't want to flaunt mine."

"I love you. I am happy you found your mate. I would never deny you that happiness, don't you know that?"

Summer runs over to Alpha Salim and hugs him. "I know that. I just feel bad for your mate situation."

"I'm a big boy I can handle it. So, you and Joaquim have found your mates, great."

"Hmm, Winter too."

"Winter? Who is his mate?"

"I'll let him tell you. His mate is also giving him a hard time like yours."

"Great, since we're sharing, I have two mates, and both are a handful."

"Two?" squeals Summer. "Oh Salim, that's wonderful."

"Back to the issue at hand, Freddy what have you been up to?" I repeat.

"Other than Esme and my uncle, you might have heard the rumor of certain Alphas, High Lords, High Priest or Priestess and Unris losing precious gems, paintings, jewelry, and other high-end items?" Freddy asks us.

"Yes. The rumor started about four years ago. He hit every race; no one was exempted. I lost nothing to 'silent reaper' as he is called," Alpha Salim says.

"No, you didn't. I like you and you are a wonderful Alpha, so I never targeted you," Freddy tells him.

"You never...you're the 'silent reaper'?" Alpha Salim asks, mouth wide open. Summer shuts his mouth and leaves his side to sit back next to Freddy.

"You've stolen items worth millions and millions of dollars? Did you all know about this?" He turns to us.

"I found out three years ago," Rafe says.

"Two years ago," Georgiana says, "and I told her father."

"I'm the newbie, found out a year ago," Esme says.

"Just now," I pipe in.

"Same here. Wait a doggone minute, my parents lost some jewelry and a ruby stone handed down from generations to the 'silent reaper'," Darric says. "Don't tell me you stole that from us?"

"Remember how your parents were Uncle Darric? They were mean and abusive to some pack members. They deserved it."

"Now she calls me Uncle. You started when you were thirteen?"

"No, I started when I was twelve, just little knickknacks here and there initially. Then I went all in about four years ago."

"How do you get into the homes of these leaders?" I ask in awe. "You're not invisible or anything."

"Oh Cal, I am not invisible. I just learned to move like I am. It all started when I was twelve and we had a party at home. Most of the High Lords and Ladies and their families attended. I saw Robert Phelan, steal grand's emerald ring, and he denied it when I confronted him. His grandparents were loud and obnoxious. They said I lied, and that their grandson is not a thief. I would not let that pompous Robert get away with it, so I talked you into attending his birthday party the following month, remember mother?"

"I do. That should have been a red flag for me. I know you didn't like that boy so why you insisted on going to his party was baffling."

"To get grand's ring back. I pretended that I needed a tour of their home. I had their maid, Consuela Baez, a nice hybrid, take me to Robert's room. That boy is so dumb, he 'hid' the ring in his underwear drawer. How stupid can one be? I mean how can you steal something so precious and put it where anyone can find it. How..."

"Freddyyyy???"

"Sorry, Mother. Anyway, I found grand's ring, and I decided to teach the Phelans a valuable lesson or two."

"Teach them a lesson?" I ask.

"Yes. A leader is supposed to be nice and helpful to their subordinates. You don't act like morons or treat your helpers like servants with no rights. I mean the way they talked to Consuela and the other helpers was atrocious. Just because they're hybrids does not mean they can treat them like dirt. And you don't come into my house, steal from me and call me a liar. So, I took three of Lady Phelan's diamond rings and Lord Phelan's diamond cufflinks as payback."

"You were only twelve. What did you do with them? I never saw them in your room," Georgiana says.

"Hmm, I pawned them."

"You pawned them? Where? When?"

"I researched pawn shops and kinda blackmailed one of the soldiers into driving me to town, and I have used the same pawnbroker ever since. I couldn't keep the jewels or give them to Consuela like that. So, I did the next best thing. Pawned them and sent her the cash. And no, I am not telling you the soldier or the broker. Sun god knows I pay that broker higher than the average commission to keep his mouth shut!"

"Why did you continue to steal?"

I am really flabbergasted and want to hear the whole story. This is Freddy, our Freddy is a thief?

"STEAL!!! I don't steal, I burgle." Freddy marches up to me yelling in my face.

"Steal, burgle, what's the difference?"

"I am a refined cat burglar. I study my prey. I familiarize myself with the layout of their homes. I worked on my body to make me sleek and flexible. Five years of gymnastics made me agile at scaling walls, bypassing locks or traps, creeping, hiding from detection, tumble, jump, whatever is needed to hide and..."

"Raul, remind me not to sign Rick for gymnastics," Georgiana interrupts.

"I learn to pick locks. I can open any lock, any safe within 45 seconds top. You know the level of intelligence and skill that requires? I am in and out before they realize they've been robbed."

"Unh, unh," I shake my head, drawn into the eye-opening tale I'm hearing.

"Do you know how delicate it is to infiltrate your mark's surroundings? It requires patience, an in-depth study of their routine, homes, offices if that's where the item is, and chameleon-like attitude in every situation. I learned to appraise paintings, jewelry, and artifacts. Now no one can shortchange me when I sell my loot."

"What do you do with the money you get from your..."

'My what?" she dares me.

"Your burgling?" Far be it for me to call it thievery.

"I gave them all back to the abused members of whichever pack, coven, clan or gathering I looted. Sort of like a severance package from their mean leaders."

"About how many leaders have you burgled?" I ask.

"Since I became a professional?"

"Yeah, if burgling is a job," I snicker.

"Let's see you try it. Anyway, I hit about four to five leaders a year, so maybe about twenty, not that much," she shrugs.

"Not much? Well, it looks like the Ruling Council is aware now and wants your head on a platter. And why Summer? Did you ever take her on your job?" I tell her.

"NO! I would never put my mate in danger like that. Besides, I pulled my last job a few weeks ago."

"I warned you that you were making some powerful people angry. You must not have been as careful as you think you were because how does the Ruling Council know of your job?" Rafe asks.

"Oh, my Sun-god, I have raised a cat woman. Is that why he mates you to a werecat? To keep it all in your family." Georgiana asks.

"Funny mother, hilarious! Now, what are we going to do? The Ruling Council can't hurt Summer. She has nothing to do with all this." Freddy sounds so very much like the young lady she really is.

"If what we've heard is all true, Freddy has no defense. She was doing the wrong thing to bad people to help the good ones. The best we can do is go with her to the Ruling council and agree that she should be punished," I tell everyone.

"CALLUM YORKE, YOU ARE NOT TAKING MY CHILD TO THE RULING COUNCIL TO BE PUNISHED. YOU WILL TAKE HER OVER MY DEAD BODY," Georgiana says.

Is this the end of Cal and Georgiana's friendship?

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