Free Blind Hearts and Silenced Passion by Anya Byrne

or twice without success. Odder still, it
made no sense to wear something ornamental on the inside of a battle outfit, so
it had to be something ceremonial... But what? A memento of sorts? He had never
traced its meaning or origin, so he'd eventually pushed it to the back of his
mind.
    Now that he'd given it to Blanchefleur, he wondered if she
could shed some light on the issue. He'd mostly believed that the seal was
related to the guild itself, but what if that wasn't the case?
    He got at least part of his answer when his companion stared
blankly at the item. "What is this?"
    "The only thing I have left from that day," Remy
replied.
    She showed no sign of having heard him, since she was too
busy scowling at the engraving she'd finally noticed. "This is an odd
symbol." She hissed when she touched it. "It almost seems like
silver, despite all the rust."
    "Does it?" Remy scanned the seal again, but he saw
nothing out of the ordinary. "It didn't feel like anything special to
me."
    Blanchefleur stared at him. "You cannot be
serious."
    To prove his words, Remy pressed his hand to the seal he
still held. It was a little uncomfortable to be in such close contact with
Blanchefleur, but it was worth it if only because he got to look at her
befuddled expression.
    "I don't know what this means, Remy," she finally admitted.
"I've never seen such a thing before, and the way the metal reacts is
peculiar to say the least. We have to look into it more."
    "I've tried that. No luck."
    She smiled tightly, and a shadow crossed her face. "You
haven't tried it my way. Come on. We're late for a meeting."
    Without further explanation, she dragged him out of the
apartment and into the underground parking lot of the building.

Chapter Five
    Remy's pack was one of the strongest and most influential
ones in France. As such, its enforcers had access to a lot of things, including
CCTV feed and police reports. Normally, Baqir wouldn't have had to turn to
them, but his authority as a silencer had collapsed and because of it, his
sources for information had a lot of gaps.
    Since he couldn't afford a lengthy investigation, Baqir
contacted the people who had the most incentive in keeping Remy safe—other than
him, of course. Sadly, the pack Alpha was still in Russia, and Baqir was
reluctant to call him there, in that pit of vipers where information was a free
for all. Worst still, the beta of Remy's pack had decided Baqir was lying, and
refused to help.
    "If you think we'd trust a silencer with Remy's well
being," he had said, "you're highly mistaken."
    Baqir had gritted his teeth in an attempt to contain his
rising temper. "He's missing. I'm simply worried."
    His attempts to coax information out of the stubborn werewolf
had not worked, which left Baqir with very few options. His other resources and
the men in his employ could not help him. Hours passed while Baqir struggled to
track Remy through the insanely busy city, and as the feeling of helplessness
and impending doom increased, he realized he had no choice but to fall back on
his last plan.
    There were few things that frightened Baqir, and fewer people
who could intimidate him. Dread came very close to it. He wasn't a big man. In
fact, he looked surprisingly slim for a silencer—not frail, but definitely not
as muscular as Baqir or his brother. His height contributed to it, giving him
the appearance of an ethereal, almost fae-like creature.
    Naturally, Baqir knew better than to underestimate the
strange silencer. He also would have never contacted Dread if he hadn't feared
for his mate. Dread was a double-edged blade that could easily kill its
wielder, which was why most everyone in the silencer world—Baqir included—gave
him a wide berth. If he'd ever belonged to a guild, no one knew it, but when it
came to Dread, something was always very clear. Owing the mysterious werewolf a
favor wasn't a good idea.
    However, at this point, Baqir was desperate, and if nothing
else, Dread had always proven to be