Brother’s Best Friends Are My Mates novel Chapter 62

Lia

“I’m telling you, Michael’s a wreck,” I said, pacing back and forth across the room. I could feel the anger, fear, and frustration bubbling up inside me, and I couldn’t seem to settle. Every thought in my head kept coming back to him—Michael—and how out of control everything was getting.

“He’s not exactly subtle about it,” Rain replied, leaning against the wall with his arms crossed. He sounded more exasperated than anything else. “I caught him snapping at the delivery guy yesterday. Poor kid almost cried.”

I let out a frustrated breath. “Yeah, well, I don’t blame him. He’s holding all of this inside, and it’s tearing him apart. He’s been on edge for days, and I don’t know how much longer he can take it.”

Colby shook his head, his voice filled with sympathy. “He’s been through hell with Gabi being taken. I’d be a wreck too if my mate was in danger. I think we all would.”

“No kidding,” Jesse muttered, his tone dark and heavy. “But the way he’s holding it in? It’s like a ticking time bomb just waiting to explode. I’m scared what’ll happen if he doesn’t let it out.”

I turned to Matt, finally. He’d been so quiet for most of the conversation, and I knew something was eating at him. “Matt, you’ve been quiet. What do you think about all of this?”

Matt crossed his arms, his gaze downcast as he thought. “I think we’re all on edge. Michael’s not the only one feeling this. We all are. Maybe we’re just better at hiding it.”

“You think we don’t know that?” Rain shot back, his voice laced with irritation. “We’re all feeling it, but at least we’re not biting everyone’s heads off every chance we get.”

“Rain, stop,” I snapped, my patience fraying. This wasn’t the time for this kind of argument. “This isn’t about who’s coping better. Michael’s struggling because he feels completely powerless. Gabi’s his mate. He’s drowning in that fear, and it’s eating him alive. We’d be the same if we were in his shoes.”

Colby sighed deeply, rubbing his temples. “Yeah, but sitting here doing nothing isn’t helping. The Rosewood Clan made their move, and now they’re waiting for us to react. We can’t just keep sitting here while they control the pace.”

“Which is exactly what they want,” Jesse said, his tone flat but filled with quiet fury. “They want us to panic, to make hasty decisions. If Michael cracks, if he lets all this break him, we’re playing right into their hands.”

“Jesse’s right,” I agreed, my voice steady but filled with resolve. “We need to stay calm, for Michael’s sake and Gabi’s. We can’t let ourselves fall apart. But we also need a plan. We can’t just keep spinning in circles.”

Matt lifted his eyes to meet mine, and I could see the same fear in his gaze that I was feeling. “Michael won’t sit still long enough for a plan. He’s convinced that he has to fix it all himself. He’s been this way ever since Gabi was taken. He thinks if he doesn’t act if he doesn’t do something himself, she’s gone for good.”

“Then we convince him otherwise,” I said firmly. The words felt heavy in my chest, but I had to say them. “If he tries to go after Gabi alone, the Rosewood Clan will destroy him. He won’t make it. We have to make him see that.”

Rain smirked, but I could see the underlying tension in his face. “Good luck with that. You know how he gets when his mind is made up. You’ll have to tie him down to stop him.”

“Yeah,” I muttered under my breath, the frustration in my voice rising. “Stubborn as hell. It runs in the family.”

Colby chuckled softly, his teasing tone cutting through the tension a little. “You’re one to talk, Lia. You’re no stranger to being stubborn yourself.”

I shot him a glare but didn’t deny it. “Maybe. But this isn’t about me. It’s about Michael-and Gabi. So, are we doing this together, or not?”

The room fell silent for a moment, the weight of the decision pressing on all of us. My heart was pounding in my chest, but I knew what had to be done. We couldn’t sit back and wait anymore. Finally, Jesse nodded. “Together.”

“Always,” Rain added, his smirk softening into something more genuine.

Colby clapped his hands together, the sharp sound breaking the silence. “Then let’s get to it. The Rosewood Clan doesn’t know who they’re messing with.”

Matt gave a small, determined smile. “For Gabi-and Michael.”

“For both,” I agreed, my voice unwavering.

And for the first time in days, despite all the fear and uncertainty still hanging over us, I felt a glimmer of hope. We’d do this. Together, we’d figure it out. We’d take back what was ours, no matter what it took.

***

Colby

The search for the Rosewater Coven contains, leaving me at a loss for what to do. We were trying our best to track them down, wanting to see where they were keeping Gabi. As the pack leader, I knew it was up to me to lead the search.

I had made many calls over the past week or so, trying to figure out where the fuck they could be! Once I even drove to the closest Witch Association official building that was about an hour away from where we lived.

They continued to give me the runaround. When they said they couldn’t help me for what felt like the 1000th time, I lashed out.

“What the fuck do you mean you can’t help us?” I growled, slamming my hands down on the desk with a force that rattled the papers and made the man flinch. “If a werewolf pack had taken one of your own, you know what you would’ve done? You would’ve taken your little book of curses and turned every last one of us into a toad.”

Lia and Rain exchanged a glance, their eyes wide with surprise. Their mouths parted in unison, caught off guard by my outburst. I wasn’t the type to lose my temper-at least, not like this. Normally, it was Matt who wore his fury on his sleeve, sharp and biting, lashing out as a defense mechanism. But today… today, I had reached my limit.

They had every reason to help, every damn reason. And yet, here they were, refusing to lift a finger. A blood oath wasn’t illegal, sure, but that didn’t mean it was right. It didn’t mean they couldn’t do something. Anything.

What would it cost them to just take a moment, make a call, or use their magic to give us a little fucking help? Help to find Gabi.

I muttered under my breath, hoping that Lia could come through for us. She seemed pretty sure that she would be able to get her teacher to find out where the Rosewater Coven was hiding out.

This would be our only way to find out where they were hiding. They were a terrible coven, making me wish they hadn’t ever come here to dark our doorstep.

“Colby?” Lia asked, knocking at the door. I looked up from my phone and smiled.

“Hey, Lia.”

She walked with a twinkle in her eye. “I have good news.”

“Please tell me it’s where the Rosewater coven is located.”

“It is.”

I let out a sigh of relief, feeling hope swell inside my chest. It was about time we located where those witches were. “How far from here?”

“This is what you’re never going to believe!” she cried. “They aren’t very far-only about forty minutes from here.”

My eyes narrowed. “Please don’t tell me they have always been here.”

“No, they haven’t. They relocated in the past few years in their search for me and my brother. The coven knew we were in this area, but that was all they knew until recently… obviously.”

The two of us shared a look.

“Lia, you can’t tell Michael.”

“I wouldn’t think of it!” she cried. “He has a right to know but he might try to do something stupid.’

“

I scoffed. “Might? It’s almost guaranteed that he is going to do something stupid if he finds that out.”