Alpha King's Missing Mate (Book 1 Of The Regal Eclipse Pack Series)

Chapter 13

Thirty minutes later, they were seated in Quinton's office on the eighty-second floor of Big Apple Industries.

Quinton Ramirez was the Alpha of the Big Apple pack, and the owner of Big Apple Industries. He was one of the shrewdest business men Daniel had ever met, and because of that, Big Apple was one of the wealthiest and most powerful packs in the world. Most of the Big Apple pack was employed by Big Apple Industries in some way.

Chris Abbott had been suddenly thrust into the Beta position when his father had unexpectedly passed away in a car accident. Chris and Quinton's son, Oliver, who were close in age, had both planned to go to college for four years for business, then spend two years training to take over both the Alpha and Beta positions, along with major roles in the company, under the guidance of their fathers.

Chris' father had passed during his second year in college. Chris had buckled down after that, and managed to finish his degree in three years, instead of four. Quinton, along with his Luna and his Gamma had covered the Beta duties while Chris had finished his studies, and now he had mostly taken over the position, though there were still many things he had to learn.

Daniel had been very impressed with Chris. Not only had he graduated with honors, but he hadn't let it go to his head, and was very willing to learn what he could. His father would be very proud of him.

Quinton's own son would be graduating soon, and start training to take over as Alpha. Big Apple was in good hands. Quinton himself had been the alpha of Big Apple for twenty years, and kept a tight leash on his pack. He had to, given the fact that they lived in a city of eight million, most of which were human. Word had come down from the Royal Pack, Regal Eclipse, years ago when Big Apple had first settled into New York City that if it was ever discovered that a large pack of werewolves lived and operated there, the pack would be put down. It was harsh, but necessary to ensure secrecy.

Like his father, grandfather, great grandfather, and those before them, Quinton had successfully kept his pack secret and had instilled into his own son the importance of maintaining the secret.

Regal Eclipse would not hesitate to act if necessary. He'd seen it happen in his lifetime, during the Great War twenty years ago. They had put down a good portion of two packs.

The war had started because of greed and had ended with a lot of good people either dead or gone rogue to escape the bloodshed. Two power hungry alphas had tried to take over most of North America, with sights set on eventually taking out Regal Eclipse, and had ravaged the countryside, sucking up packs like a vacuum cleaner. Eventually, the two packs had clashed, and a huge battle ensued. Regal Eclipse had stepped in, and taken out both alphas and a great deal of the warriors as well. Quinton's father had been very fortunate that his own pack had not been targeted, though if the alpha's had been left unchecked, they would have eventually targeted Big Apple.

Quinton sat behind his huge oak desk, staring at his computer screen, as he tried to figure out why Daniel Remington was looking for a human girl. Chris had given him a basic rundown over the phone of the situation, though he hadn't really known many details himself.

Quinton eyed the Alpha who was wearing a path in his rug with his pacing. He'd never seen Daniel Remington this agitated before. He'd become good friends with the alpha over the years. They'd done a lot of business together, and he wouldn't hesitate to go to Daniel for advice.

Quinton had never known Daniel Remington to have a girlfriend, or a Luna for that matter. While he had no idea why Daniel was so interested in this human girl, Quinton would do everything within his power to find her. Besides the fact that Daniel was king, he was also a close friend.

"You don't know her last name?" Quinton asked his beta, his eyes still on the screen in front of him.

"No, Alpha. I've never seen her before," Chris leaned against the desk, his eyes on the alpha king pacing the room like a caged lion. Chris had met the Alpha many times, had even gone out partying with him several times, but typically Daniel was either relaxed or all business.

"Well, she doesn't work for me, which is interesting." Quinton flipped to a new file that was basically an address book for the entire pack. "Fortunately, Talia isn't a common name. There's only one Talia listed," he said, picking up his phone and dialing her number.

Daniel approached the desk, crossing his arms across his chest, as he waited impatiently for Talia to pick up.

"Voicemail," Quinton muttered, frustrated. "Hi Talia, this is Alpha Quinton. I need you to call me back as soon as possible. I have something I need to speak with you about..."

Daniel moved away from the desk in frustration, both he and Rafe growing more agitated by the moment. He really wanted to rip someone's throat out.

'Go to her home,' Rafe suggested.

Daniel watched Quinton put the phone down and approached his desk again. "Do you have an address for her?"

Quinton looked back at the computer screen. "It looks as though she recently applied to move into the pack apartment. Do you want to give her a visit?"

"Better than sitting around waiting for her to call," Daniel said, heading for the door. Jenna had been pretty calm all afternoon after her excitement from earlier.

"I have two addresses for her." Quinton wrote them both down, then stood. "I'll go with you. Chris?"

The Beta nodded. "I already called a car."

They decided to visit the packhouse apartment building first as it was attached to Big Apple Industries through the underground parking garage. They hurried through the parking garage and took the elevator up to Talia's floor, then headed down the hall to her apartment. Daniel and Quinton both stood to the side as Chris knocked on the door. There was no answer. Daniel sniffed the air, but he couldn't smell Jenna at all. He sighed with annoyance. "She's not been here."

They left the building and headed to the other apartment building which was several blocks away. There was no answer at this one either, but Jenna's scent was very strong, along with two others that Daniel didn't recognize. He breathed her in, hoping to calm both himself and Rafe.

"Jenna has been here recently," he said quietly.

Quinton and Chris both looked at him curiously.

"Maybe she came back here with Talia this morning?" Chris suggested.

"Or she lives here too," Daniel muttered, laying his hand on the door. It was the only connection he had to her for the moment.

"Why is this girl so important to you?" Quinton asked him curiously. He knew he probably shouldn't question the alpha, but he needed to know how serious Daniel was about finding her.

Daniel looked at him sharply. "She's my mate."

THAT serious. Quinton stared at the powerful alpha in shock. Daniel raised his eyebrows at him. "Word of this MUST stay between the three of us. I cannot have anyone knowing she's mine until I find her and bring her into the pack. She's in a vulnerable state right now," Daniel said, releasing some of his powerful aura. If Jenna decided she didn't want to be with him, it was better no one knew he'd found his mate. She could return to her normal life with no one being the wiser.

Both the Alpha and Beta bowed their heads. "We will remain silent," Quinton said. With power came enemies, and while Daniel never seemed concerned with his own safety, his human mate would be an easy target.

Daniel pulled back his aura. "I will stay at the hotel for now, but I'll come back here to see if either girl returns. Please continue to try to reach Talia. If anything changes, let me know immediately. I must find her."

Quinton and Chris nodded in agreement. "We'll do whatever we can to help, Alpha," Chris said. He felt partially like this was all his fault.

"I can put out the word that I'm looking for Talia. Someone has to know where she is," Quinton said, glancing at Chris, who gave a nod.

They all left the apartment building, with Quinton and Chris headed back to Big Apple Industries, and Daniel hailed a cab to take him back to his hotel.