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

Chapter 41

"Have a seat," Mitch Browning said the moment Daniel and he were alone in his office.

Daniel sat down, wondering what Jenna's father had wanted to talk to him about. He had a feeling this was the man who had thwarted his efforts to find Jenna. If he thought Daniel was going to stay away from her now, then he was in for a shock, because there was no way he was letting Jenna and Noelle out of his life. Once Jenna had learned everything about him, if she decided to walk away, then that would be her decision, and he would accept it. But until then, he would fight for her.

Browning walked around his desk and sat down, staring at Daniel. "Do you know a General McKenzie?"

Daniel's eyes snapped up at Browning's words and he suddenly realized why General Browning's name sounded so familiar to him. Daniel had met General McKenzie five years before when he had done business with the government, something he rarely did.

Daniel had been invited to dinner at his home one evening. He'd been shocked to find out that the general was married to a werewolf. His wife was shocked to be serving dinner that evening to the Alpha King. General McKenzie had asked to interview Daniel, who had reluctantly agreed. He hadn't divulged much to the General, but he knew the man had shared it with one other person, General Mitch Browning.

General McKenzie and his wife had been killed in a car accident a few years ago, and he had no idea what had happened to the interview recording. Now, he was sitting across the desk from the man who very well might know.

"I take it you know who I am," Mitch said calmly.

"I knew your name sounded familiar, but I couldn't place you. General McKenzie only mentioned you once," Daniel said warily.

Mitch looked down and sighed, then met Daniel's gaze again. "The recording was destroyed. There was only one copy of it, and I made sure after the General's death to destroy it. We never wanted that information to get out, and now, I'm even more glad I did."

Daniel searched the man's gaze and saw only truth in his eyes. "Thank you, General."

"Mitch, please. What is my daughter to you?"

"She's my mate, my queen. But only if she chooses to accept me." Daniel steepled his fingers together.

"And Noelle is yours?" Mitch asked.

"She is," Daniel said quietly, and watched Mitch's face light up when he spoke Noelle's name before sadness crept into his eyes again.

"Does Jenna know what you are?" Mitch asked.

"She does, though there are still things we need to discuss. She and I have only recently reconnected and there's still much to talk about. If Jenna chooses to accept me, she will be my queen, queen of all of my kind. Either way, Noelle will one day take my position and she will be the Alpha Queen," Daniel smiled.

Mitch nodded thoughtfully. "Do you think your position may be the reason Noelle was taken?"

"More than likely," Daniel said and sat back. "Noelle will be protected. I never knew about her until today. I've spent the last year searching for Jenna."

"About that," Mitch sighed. "I'm the one who was keeping you from her. I had no idea who you were though. None of your Investigators would tell me your name. They said you scared them more than I did, which made me even more nervous."

Daniel smirked. "I suspected it was you." His phone suddenly dinged and a mind link came through at the same time.

We know who took Noelle, Ragnar said through the link.

Daniel glanced at his phone, surprised to see a text from Quinton.

Alpha, please call me as soon as you possibly can. It's an emergency.

He looked up at Mitch. "My Beta knows who took Noelle. If you could excuse me for a moment, I need to make a call." He stood.

"How do you know?" Mitch asked in surprise. "Is everyone in my house a werewolf?"

Daniel gave him a grim smile. "Everyone except Jenna and Tyler. There are many things I never told General McKenzie as well. My Beta is the best tracker in the werewolf community. He has an amazing nose, and he knows who took her. I need to return this call, and then, we can come up with a game plan. Is your son to be trusted?"

Mitch took in this new information and smiled inwardly. Maybe retirement wasn't going to be so bad. "Yes, if we stress to him how important it is that this must be kept secret. Jenna is closest to him out of her three brothers."

Daniel nodded and left the room. Everyone was gathered in the living room, and his gaze settled on Tyler. "Someone needs to tell him," he said to no one in particular before walking outside. He quickly dialed Alpha Quinton's number and waited for him to pick up.

"Alpha." Quinton said.

"Is this business related or personal?" Daniel asked.

"Personal. I had reports just a bit ago that a few wolves noticed an odd smell coming from the fifth floor of the pack apartment complex," Quinton said.

Daniel felt his heart drop. James and Talia lived on the fifth floor.

"The landlord opened the apartment, and they found James inside. He was tied to a chair, both of his legs cut up pretty badly, and his neck broken," Quinton paused.

Daniel placed his hand over his eyes. He'd gotten to know James quite well over the last year. "And Talia?"

"Talia and their pup weren't in the home, and we have no idea where they are. Talia's phone was still at the apartment. We can't reach her via mind link either," Quinton sighed in frustration.

Daniel was quiet for several long seconds. He needed to know more details about what Ragnar had found. If a wolf had taken Noelle, it was possible Talia was involved. Poor Talia. His heart broke for her. "Quinton, keep searching, and let me know if you find anything else. I have a situation here as well, and this all may be related, but I don't have enough facts yet."

"Can you share anything?" Quinton asked.

"Jenna and I have reconnected, and I just found out Jenna had my child," Daniel rubbed at his neck. "Someone kidnapped the baby."

Quinton let out a long breath. "And you think they might be related."

"It's possible. Jenna and Talia were best friends," Daniel said.

"Okay, keep me updated, and I'll do the same. If you need any help, I will do what I can. I want to bring James' killer to justice," Quinton said.

"Okay. I'll speak to you soon." Daniel ended the call, and headed back inside the house.