by Katie Reus
“Jeez,” Javier muttered.
Ian smiled to himself at his half-brother’s tone.
They walked in silence for the better part of an hour, using the trees and shadows as cover. Ian saw that Javier was just as vigilant as he was and, points to him, he didn’t stare or give Fiona any lingering looks. Ian wasn’t sure how the male could keep his eyes off her when she was perfect, but he was glad for it. He was already worried enough for her; wanted to get her the hell out of this place so Ophelia could examine her again.
“I’m pretty sure your friends are currently watching us. Are they going to attack me and ask questions later?” Javier said quietly as they stepped into a clearing of sorts. The green-on-green trees had grown slightly more spaced out, but they were still able to use the shadows as cover.
Not that it would matter if the wolves were close enough to hear. And Ian was certain they were. He’d scented them roughly five minutes ago as they’d been walking.
He figured Finn was trying to ascertain if this male was a hostage or a threat to them and how he should respond, so he’d given the Alpha the chance to make his own opinion. “You can come out if you like,” Ian said quietly. “The male is with us.” Though if he could be trusted remained to be seen.
As if it had been choreographed, the four wolves in human form dropped from the trees, as silent as ghosts. Finn looked every inch the warrior he was as he eyed Ian’s half-brother. He looked over Fiona with just a hint of concern and Ian wondered if the male saw how pale she appeared. But Finn didn’t say anything. He looked at Ian next with a question in his eyes.
“For now, I’m trusting him. But that leash does not go far,” he said, even though he knew it would likely insult his half-brother. At this point he didn’t care. His only concern was keeping his mate safe and getting her out of this realm so they could find help for her.
“And no offense taken,” Javier muttered under his breath.
Fiona let out a small chuckle, making Ian smile a little bit too. This female owned him.
“Who are you?” Finn’s question was asked quietly, but the power in his words was unmistakable. Before he’d even finished speaking, the other three wolves in human form fanned out and took up guard around them in a spread-out triangle.
It was strange, but the longer Ian was around the male the more he realized how much raw power the wolf actually had. And he was a good leader, had trained his wolves well.
“My name’s Javier. I was taken from my farm in Alabama—it’s a cattle and agriculture farm. Some people who worked for me started going missing and the police were as stumped as anyone else. It’s a rural area though, so I didn’t expect much. A lot of the people were seasonal workers so it wasn’t uncommon for me to lose workers without notice. But this was getting to be too much. So I went to this bar that some of the men frequented on their nights off and I saw these females who were definitely shifters luring my workers outside. I followed. And I ended up in this shithole because I was stupid enough to try to take on a bunch of half-demons by myself. I’m strong in this form but there were twenty of them and I wasn’t prepared,” he muttered, disgust in his voice.
“Once we got here, they started using my blood and mixing it with humans’ and something else. From what I can gather they were trying to create a certain cocktail and apparently perfected it with my blood. All I know is that it kills the victim within days.”
Finn nodded once, taking time to digest his words. It lined up with what Gray had told them. “Whose territory do you live in?” the Alpha finally asked.
Javier blinked. “Um…my own. I own my ranch. No mortgage. Everything’s paid off.”
Finn just frowned but didn’t respond. Maybe Javier didn’t know that there were various territories around the world and that if you were supernatural and lived in one, you were under the jurisdiction of the Alpha—whoever he or she might be. Now certainly wasn’t the time to tell him.
“He’s also my half-brother,” Ian added when it was clear that Javier wasn’t going to tell Finn.
Finn didn’t look surprised, but the male rarely did. “What are you? I can smell wolf on you but there’s something else. Something other than the demon.”
“Obviously I’m a half-demon. But…my mother was a mixed breed, half Jaguar, half wolf. That’s likely what you smell. My dominant gene is wolf and I only shift to wolf and demon, but the other nature is still in my DNA, still in my blood.”
“According to Javier there are guards around the gate exit,” Fiona murmured, her tone grim. “But we did get Ava out.”
Finn nodded. “How many guards? And what are their skill levels?”
“Last I was there was a few hours ago and it was dark as well as foggy. Using mostly my sense of smell I would say a couple dozen. But by morning I guarantee there will be more. They know there’s only one way to escape. Or I assume there’s only one way to get out of this hellhole. As far as skill level…they’re all fighters, as far as I know.”
Finn looked at Ian. “Are there often more than one exit in these realms?”
“No. But this one is different than any I’ve ever been in. I expected creatures to come out at night but it was just silent and cold.”
Javier nodded again. “I know they have creatures native to this realm—according to one of the dragons—but they remain in the few water sources including the moat around the castle. I heard some half-demons talking about the viciousness of them. But from what I’ve gathered just by eavesdropping that’s one of the reasons they picked this place. They wanted the freedom to do whatever sick thing it is they’re doing without dealing with extra threats. It was a specific tactical decision.”
“We’re going to talk more about this operation later,” Finn said, authority in his voice. “But for now I want to get out of here and bring back the rest of my pack so we can clean this place out.”
“Did you find any humans?” Fiona asked him. Even though she was pale, her voice was strong.
“Not directly. I scented a lot of death on one of the lower levels, but…” Finn cleared his throat once. “We were discovered and had to set off a few distractions to escape.”
Fiona just snorted.
Finn turned to Javier, his gaze speculative. “Not all those explosions were from us.”
Javier lifted a shoulder. “I did what I could. And I’ll help you bring this place down. These beings are monsters. I didn’t… I didn’t know there were so many different supernatural beings until I got dragged into here. I’ve been to Afghanistan and Iraq—I was in the Corps for eight years. I thought I’d seen it all,” he muttered, scanning the area again, clearly on alert.
“I’m sure there’s a lot you don’t know.” Finn’s tone was even. “If you fight with my pack—and you don’t betray us—I’ll give you sanctuary in my territory and I’ll speak to the Alpha of the territory you’re living in and let him know you don’t know all the supernatural laws.”
“Ah…okay.” Javier looked at Ian questioningly.
“I’ll explain it to you later. This is a good thing.”
“Thank you, then. And I’ll fight regardless of what you offer,” Javier said. “These guys need to be stopped.”
Finn gave him one of the first real smiles Ian had ever seen from the Alpha. “All right, then. Let’s go do some damage.”
Chapter 17
“This won’t take long,” Ophelia said.
“I’m really okay.” Ava perched on the edge of one of the beds in the healing ward, her foot tapping nervously against the floor.
Ophelia simply nodded as she ran her hands over Ava’s head, arms and chest—though not actually touching her. Using her healing gift, she checked for any internal trauma. “Is there anything else you need to tell me? What we talk about here is private. I don’t even tell my Alpha. This relationship,” she motioned between the two of them, “is sacred.” Thankfully she hadn’t felt any physical issues going on with Ava, but vampires healed as quickly as any other supernatu
ral being.
“No. I swear it. I was thrown into a cage with a half-demon but he didn’t hurt me. He actually protected me,” she murmured. “I didn’t expect it.”
“Lyra, Finn’s mate, and our Guardian, Gabriel, will want to speak to you when we’re done.” Ophelia had insisted she check out Ava first. The female had been kidnapped and taken to a Hell realm; anything else they wanted to know would wait.
The vampire nodded. “Of course. I’ll tell them everything I know.”
“I’m going to get you more blood and I’ve already got one of my packmates setting up a room for you. I have no authority over you but I believe it would be smarter for you to stay with my pack right now. Until the others get back at least.”
“I don’t mind staying here. Fiona sort of ordered me to anyway.” Ava snorted, a grin pulling at her lips. “She’s like an overprotective mother bear.”
“That’s not a bad thing.”
“No, it’s not.” The pretty vampire smiled and lay back against the bed. “Would it be okay if I rested here for a bit until they want to talk to me? I feel like all my energy has been sucked out of me and I just need to lie still.”
“Of course. This place is insulated so you’ll have ultimate privacy. There’s a phone if you need to contact me for anything and I’ve got a few packmates out in the hall if you need something immediately. Do you need to wait to talk to Lyra and Gabriel?”
“No, but I don’t feel like moving to another room.”
Ophelia nodded. “Okay. I’ll let them know you’re good for questioning. You can get this over with as soon as possible. By the time they’re done I’ll be back down here with your blood.”
Ava gave her a grateful smile. “Thanks.”
As Ophelia left the room, she nodded once at her packmate Taylor, who was leaning against the door outside Gray’s room. Her vibrant red hair was pulled back into a tight braid and she looked bored.
Taylor brightened and pushed up from the wall when she saw Ophelia. “Hey, mama.”
She smiled at the nickname. Many of her packmates, especially the younger generation, called her mama or some form of the motherly endearment. “Hey. How’s our guest?” Too sexy for his own good Alpha wolf Gray.
Taylor snorted. “Fine, I guess. Man, that male is hot but he’s freaking grumpy and snarly.”
Ophelia hadn’t even realized she’d started to bare her canines in an aggressive manner until Taylor blinked in surprise. Ophelia had never done that to anyone before, and it was pretty clear that she was getting all possessive because of Taylor’s “hot” comment.
Taylor grinned and opened her mouth to speak but Ophelia held a finger to her friend’s mouth. “Say anything and I shred you.”
Taylor just snorted again and batted her finger away. “You want to take over my shift?”
“Bite me,” she muttered, heading down the hallway. The last thing she needed was to be anywhere near that obnoxious wolf. First she had to bring Ava that blood. Then she had to check on three packmates—all of whom were pregnant. They hadn’t had any pups in the pack in a while and now it was like something was in the water.
Once she was done with the checkups, she was going to relax and watch a movie for the next couple hours. With Finn and a small team of warriors in a Hell realm right now it was very possible that she’d have injured packmates to deal with soon. She knew she needed to rest and be ready for whatever came their way.
After the pregnancy checkups, she found Jason in one of the game/movie rooms. She didn’t have the energy to talk and be friendly. Yeah, she could have gone back to her actual room but she didn’t feel like being quite so separated from the rest of the pack. Her wolf was in a weird mood right now. And she blamed it on a certain wolf currently under the same roof.
“I just put in a movie,” Jason said, the younger wolf stretching out on the well-worn couch.
“I don’t even care what it is. You just getting off your patrol shift?” She collapsed next to him and let out a sigh to finally kick her feet up. She felt as if she’d been going nonstop the past week, and Gray’s mere presence in the mansion was making her edgy and out of sorts.
“Yeah. Want to relax a little in case shit goes down. You talked to Lyra about anything interesting?”
She nearly snorted. Wolves were so damn nosy. “Uh, no.” And even if Ophelia had, she likely wouldn’t share any information with Jason. Sometimes she could but there was a hierarchy in the pack. Jason was a warrior but he was young and if he needed to know something, one of the senior warriors would let him know—not her. As healer and one of the oldest members of the pack, she was privy to almost everything. “You’re smart to be prepared though.” And she hated that her packmates might be headed into battle soon.
The mission Finn was on now with the others was part recon and part rescue but Ophelia knew deep down that it would end in bloodshed. If not now, then once they went back. Because with what Gray had said was going on—Finn wouldn’t stand for that. He would put an end to people being kidnapped and killed, no matter what. It was part of his Alpha nature to protect those who needed it.
As the movie came on the gigantic television screen on the wall, she relaxed, letting her head fall back against the couch and kicking her sock-clad feet up on the equally well-worn coffee table. The pack had quality furniture but since they were wolves and generally rough all around they tended to buy industrial-type stuff that could withstand the roughhousing of shifters.
“So what’s up with the ‘guest’ downstairs?” Jason asked sometime later during one of the many car chase scenes.
The movie they were watching was over-the-top ridiculous but there was a lot of eye candy of the male variety so she wasn’t complaining, since it temporarily distracted her from Gray. “What about him?”
“Just wondering why Finn’s keeping another Alpha here.”
Ophelia shrugged. “You’re super nosy today.”
Jason gave her one of those adorable smiles she was sure had made plenty of shifter females his own age drop their panties, and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. “Come on. I’ve been working shifts nonstop and have no gossip.”
She laughed and leaned her head on his shoulder. Shifters were the worst when it came to gossip. Like middle schoolers. Worse, even.
A soft growling sound had all the hairs on the back of her neck standing up. Before she’d turned around, she scented him.
Gray.
Sitting up, she looked over to the open doorway to find Gray and Taylor standing there—Taylor with a big freaking smile on her face. What the hell?
“And this is one of our game rooms where the pack likes to unwind,” Taylor said, motioning with her hand. “You know Ophelia, and this is Jason.”
Next to her Jason pressed pause and stood. “Hey man, nice to—”
Gray just stared at him in the way Alphas could do when they were pissed, trying to force the other individual to submit.
Oh, no. This was not good. Jason already had an Alpha and for another to stare him down would mess with his wolf. She was already pushing to her feet even as Jason started to growl low in his throat.
“Taylor, you need to get the heck out of here, and Jason, you’re going with her.”
Jason didn’t tear his gaze from the threat. “I’m not leaving you—”
“Now!” she snapped, using her healer voice. “That’s an order.” Hierarchy was a funny thing in packs and even though she wasn’t a warrior, as healer she was revered by all.
Jason paused only once, giving Gray a hard look before averting his gaze. Because he had no choice. Gray was more dominant through and through.
Once they were alone Gray kicked the door shut behind the others, his expression dark as he stalked toward her.
Oh, hell no. “What’s the matter with you, you freaking caveman? You can’t come in here and—”
His mouth was on hers in a savage claiming before she realized he’d managed to cover the distance between them. Everything a
round them faded away as his tongue danced against hers. With one big hand, he cupped her cheek and jaw and his other he wrapped securely around her, pinning her tightly to him.
And there was absolutely no hiding his very clear reaction to her.
She should push him away. Punch him right in the face. Instead, she moaned into his mouth, arching against him even as she knew she shouldn’t be doing this. By letting him go all caveman and kiss her, she was telling him this behavior was acceptable. Damn it, she shouldn’t be giving in to this ridiculous display of his. But…she loved the way he tasted, loved the way he’d just completely taken over and gone all crazy Alpha. She dug her fingers into his shoulders, holding him tight. She’d been thinking about this male nonstop and here he was, devouring her mouth with his.
Just as suddenly as he’d started, he pulled back, stared down at her. His normally bright green eyes had gone a shade darker as he simply watched her, his breathing harsh and erratic. Leaning down, he rubbed his cheek against hers in a surprisingly sweet gesture.
“I don’t like his scent on you,” he murmured, continuing to rub against her.
Damn it, she needed to stop this, but… “He’s just a pup. Just one of my packmates,” she whispered, needing to somehow assuage the rage she could feel underneath Gray’s surface.
“Still don’t like it. Don’t want anyone else’s scent on you but mine.” The way he rasped it out and wouldn’t look her in the face told her how hard this was for him to say aloud. He was making himself completely vulnerable.
She shouldn’t like that either. They didn’t even know each other. “I like your scent on me.” Crap. Did I just say that?
He pulled back to look at her and there was unmistakable triumph in his gaze when he met her own.
Ah, hell. Things had definitely just shifted between them. And she was pretty sure that she was not ready for what this sexy-as-sin male wanted from her.