HURRICANE (Beasts of Prey Book 2)

by LC Lehesaho

  "So… he knows?" I ask, cocking an eyebrow.

  A bright smile spreads to Tiger's face. "Yeah, and don't worry, baby girl. He is totally cool with it."

  My brows fly high. "How the fuck did you do that? I saw the picture, and I was sure he was gonna kill you."

  "I punched him," he replies, grinning like an idiot.

  "What?" I hiss at him, shocked to the bone.

  "Yeah, straight to his nose. Once in a lifetime experience."

  I shake my head, stunned. "You're probably the only one who has lived after that to tell the tale."

  "I know, right?" Then he gets serious. "And I also told him about… just don't be mad at me, okay?"

  Cold spikes run through my spine. This is not good.

  "What the fuck did you tell him?"

  Tiger tears a hand through his hair. "About your thing. What you did before… well, fuck. I'm sorry, baby. I had to."

  I sink myself deeper to the pillow, closing my eyes. There are things I never wanted Dad to know, and… now, he has seen a picture of me sucking dick, and he knows I've been cutting myself like a fucking mental case.

  Great. Applauses for the Daughter of the Century.

  "Baby… he won't make a fuss. I promise," Tiger whispers, straight to my ear. I can feel his breathing on my skin. Then lips on my neck. "Don't be mad at me, baby girl."

  If my dad doesn't make a scene about it, I'm a fucking saint.

  Taking a deep breath, I open my eyes. "Do they know?"

  He knows who I'm talking about. Tiger's eyes come to mine. "About us? No. I thought you'd like to tell them together."

  My belly tickles like I'd be going into a wild roller coaster, just waiting for it to give me a ride of a lifetime. But it's a good tickle. I want to do it all with Tiger, together. I feel my mouth spreading into a smile.

  "I fucking love you," I blurt from my happy bubble.

  Tiger grins. "Well, you know what. I fucking love you more, worm."

  Something makes my brain buzz. There's something I needed to remember. What I needed to tell them. I squint my eyes, trying to think, but my brain is way too high.

  "Say it again," I wave my hand in the air impatiently. "There is something I need to remember, but I can't get a hold of it."

  Tiger arches a brow, and repeats, "Well, you know what. I fucking love you more, worm."

  What is it? Love? No… worm? What about worms?

  "Worm! Moles eat worms!" I gasp, eyes wide. "We have a mole in the house!"

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  "Shh, baby. Calm down." I brush her cheek, her hazel eyes now like plates staring back at me. "The meds are getting into your head. Don't worry, we don't have moles inside the house, and they certainly won't eat you."

  Cobra slaps my hand away, now an annoyed frown on her pretty face. "Jerk, I meant Crusador has someone in the house!"

  Every inch of joy that had made my chest swell turns now into a blazing rage. "Are you sure?"

  "Of course, I fucking am! Levi told me," she says, starting to push herself up from the bed. The name is like gasoline to the flames. My anger goes from manageable to burn the fucking world down in point two seconds.

  I stop her moves, planting a hand to her chest so she can't get up and whistle as hard as I manage. Everyone in the room jumps up like they were electrocuted. "Call Leo. We have a snitch in the house."

  All of them start to babble at the same time. Cobra curses at me that I should let her up, but she can dream about it.

  "Everyone, shut up, now, " Wolf's rough voice booms over others, and it works as well as Leo's. His dark, rich eyes land on me. "Go on, Tiger."

  I turn my eyes to Cobra. "Your turn, worm."

  "Let me get up," she grits her teeth at me.

  "No, you're not in shape even if you feel like it now ‘cause of the painkillers. Stay still and start talking." I swallow the baby girl from my tongue, and move my hand to the edge of the bed. She takes a deep breath, hazel gaze locked on me, clearly wondering if she should listen to me or not.

  Even though every inch of me is in desperate need of mayhem because of what's going on, just looking at her makes my blood cool down. The fact she hasn't lost even a little of her spark while being there makes me incredibly relieved. We need to go through things, or more like, she has to go through, and I'm going to help her. But the time for it is not now, she needs to settle first.

  "Umm…" Cobra turns her eyes to others, who all have gathered around her bed. "First of all, nice to see you guys. Thank you for coming to get me." She fumbles the sheets, nervously, and I just want to hug her. Bury her into my arms. But someone else does it before I can.

  Puma bends over her, sticking his face into her neck, and wraps his hands around her gently as he can to not cause her pain. "I missed you, sis."

  She folds her hands around him, carefully for not to pull the needle out from the back of her hand. "I missed you, too. Thanks for saving my ass from Joe. You were kinda badass."

  I try to think who the fuck she's talking about. Joe? The image of Puma losing his shit back at the hotel and going all ground 'n pound to the guy draws lines together. So, she knew the guy. I feel how my body temperature starts to rise all over again, and I want to drag the fuckers back from Hell just to get to kill them again.

  "Look who's talking," Bear snickers, massaging her ankle over the sheets. It doesn't matter he's her brother, I want to smack his hands off her, but I fist the sheets instead. He gives her a proud smile as he continues. "We followed the trail of bodies to you. You're the true badass here, little squirt."

  "Yup, you did good." Falcon nods, her black bob bouncing.

  Wolf snaps his fingers. "Yes, we're all enormously proud of you and extremely happy that you're home, but now, cut to the chase, and tell us what you know, Cobra."

  Puma straightens, brushing her hair to the side and gathering her long strands into his hands, he starts to braid them. Cobra squeezes her eyes shut for a moment, thinking hard.

  "Okay, so…" She opens her eyes, focusing on Wolf. "Levi, you know Luke, told me that they've been watching us for years and they have someone on the inside. He didn't tell me who, but the one has been in my loft and made notes for him about me." She bites her cheek, frowning. "They know a lot about us."

  Everyone curses under their breaths, and Bear scrubs his hands over his face, crossing fingers behind his head. Wolf stays cool, waiting for Cobra to go on. My body is ready to explode any second now. I can't fucking stand the idea that the fucker was there with her.

  "Levi was Silas's foster son," she says, dropping her gaze to her hands. "He'd been there for nine years."

  "Was?" I ask, slightly excited that the SOB might be dead and partly disappointed I don’t get to skin him.

  Cobra nods. "Yeah, he…" She swallows, eyes still on the sheets. "He's dead."

  "Why do you sound like you're sorry for the piece of shit?" Falcon asks the question of what probably every one of us is thinking. At least, I fucking am.

  She shakes her head. "I'm not, I just… he was sick, you know. Silas made him that way."

  My eyes almost bulk out. "What the fucking hell, baby girl? He used you! They fucking tortured—"

  My sentence gets cut off as a heavy palm slaps to my shoulder. "Stop right there," Wolf's gravel voice makes me realize my mistake. "Did you just call Cobra a baby girl?"

  The color drains out of Cobra's face as her head pops up to gape at me. "Uh, oh…"

  An oppressive silence lands into the room. Okay, well I guess we're not waiting for the right time to tell them. I arch an eyebrow at her, but she just stares at me, mouth gaping like a fish on dry land. No help from there, clearly.

  I turn to face Wolf, who I swear to Satan, grew two inches in the past few minutes. He's always been slightly taller than me, but on the other hand, I'm bulkier than him these days. The furious expression on his face tells me he's going to lose his wits.

  "We don't have to make a scene about this, okay, brother? Let's j
ust take it easy." I lift my hands as a surrender, but clearly it doesn't have any effect on him.

  "You have five seconds to explain," Wolf says through clenched teeth.

  Bear whistles. "Whoa, this is exciting. I'm taking bets. Wolf's gonna take this one."

  "Please, Wolf, don't—" Cobra starts but gets cut off by him.

  "Tick-tock." He cracks his knuckles one by one.

  A TV remote flies past me, straight to Wolf's face.

  "I was talking to you!" Cobra's angry snarl echoes in the room, drawing everyone's attention to her. "Yeah, you." She points at Wolf with her index finger, oozing deadly vibes. "I didn't go through all that shit just to get home and watch you go Hulk on Tiger ‘cause I fucking love him. Yeah, we're together, and he's gonna marry me, and we're gonna make shit tons of babies, and you have nothing to say about it! None of you has anything to say about it, am I making myself clear?"

  She pants like after a marathon, and I can't help but stare at her. That's my baby. I know, she's high from the meds pumped into her system and those are probably the reason she blurted all out, but still, I smile like a fucking idiot, taking her hand in mine.

  Everyone is still silent as she huffs, "I need more painkillers."

  Falcon is the first one to act. She grabs a bottle and a syringe from the nightstand, filling it with firm hands, and then turns to Cobra, shoving Puma aside. With confident moves, she wipes her arm and sticks the needle into her vein. Cobra doesn't even flinch.

  "So… " Bear draws with a grin on his face. "How long have you been boning my sister?"

  "Fuck you, Bear," Cobra says, her voice starting to turn soft from the meds.

  "Does Dad know?" Wolf finally speaks up.

  "Yeah." I nod, feeling my chest swelling. "And just so you know, I love her too, and swear I'm never going to hurt her in any way."

  Cobra squeezes my fingers, her eyes starting to go hazy. It's probably best that she gets more sleep. The damages on her body are not lethal, but still, they need time to heal. Doc said she will make a full recovery, except for those scars on her belly. She said they're made by using salt, so the scars became permanent.

  "I've been waiting for ages for you two actually to hit it 'cuz for fuck's sake, it's been awkward to watch how you've been circling each other," Falcon states, wiping Cobra's arm clean. Then she gives Puma a look. "Did you know about this?"

  He takes off his cap, adjusting it back on face backward. "Well, yeah. At least from Purgatory’s opening night."

  "Chatting aside. I called Dad, and we need to have a meeting about the mole. We have to find out who it is," Wolf says, already tapping his phone.

  "Am I the only one who feels like we've been dropped into a psychological thriller?" Bear asks with a smirk on his face like it's somehow funny.

  Cobra sighs, sounding tired. "That's what our life has always been, now we're just getting closer to the grand finale. Endgame and credits are around the corner."

  No matter how fucking sad it sounds, she is right. The cards are shared, and we have to put our A-game on to win this round.

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  Circle after circle floats in the air before the smoke fades away in the night. Puma blows more of them and pokes the last one with his joint.

  He's brave enough to smoke on the back porch because Leo isn't home yet, just on his way. I take a long drag off my cig, glancing at him by my side as we sit on the top step of the stairs.

  "What did you do to Red?" I ask, wondering at the same time how Cobra's check out with the Doc goes. I don't want to think about the examination she's doing to her. It makes me sick. But yet, here I am, still thinking about it.

  "You mean Ada?" He cocks an eyebrow.

  I mimic his expression, stunned. "Huh, man. Using her first name and all?"

  Puma narrows his eyes. "She's a human being, yes, I called her by her name. Jesus, you're weird."

  "Yeah, sure I am." I nod slowly, exaggerating it as much as I possibly can. "So?"

  He takes a hit, turning to look at the garden. "I took her home. What else was I supposed to do?"

  "She doesn't recognize us?"

  "No. Besides, she was so fucking scared that who do you think she's gonna tell?"

  I huff out a sarcastic laugh. "Who do people usually tell if they've been held hostage in the trunk for hours? Wait, let me think." I trail my eyes to the forest behind the garden, taking a pondering look to my face. Snapping my fingers, I turn back to look at him. "Cops. Yes, usually people tell cops about it. And when she's questioned about her boyfriend's and his playmate's deaths? Yeah. She won't probably say shit."

  Puma blows out a heavy breath, shoulders sagging. "She didn't see us."

  "No, but she heard us."

  "Drop it, bro. Ada is not going to say shit," he snaps at me. Whatever. If there will be problems with her, those will be dealt with. Of course, it'd be best for her to keep her mouth shut.

  We sit there for a while in silence, but it never lasts long when it comes to Puma. Now is not an exception.

  "You think Cobra is…" he focuses on the joint in his fingers, playing with it. "You know, traumatized or something?"

  I know Puma saw the text on her stomach too. She was wearing only a loose T-shirt and panties when we found her. But is she traumatized? I don't know. Most likely, yes. Who wouldn't be after that?

  "Probably, but she'll manage. Cobra is strong, and I can help her. She'll be okay," I assure him, as much as I can assure myself. If I believed in God, this would be the time I'd pray, but since I fucking don't, I know we have to do everything to help her rise above it.

  Puma eyes me, and I really don’t want to know what he thinks, but he has that face again—the one where he’s wondering what the fuck happened to me. I hate it. I hate it to my fucking core when he tries to solve the mystery and starts to look at me like I'm a puppy which needs a bit of petting on the head and kind words. Like I haven't proved I don't fucking need any of that sympathy or pity bullshit.

  I'm an open book when it comes to other things between Puma and me, but this? No one has to know. No-fucking-one.

  I toss the cig's butt to the ashtray and push myself up, trying to cool down the thunderstorm of feelings inside me. "I'm gonna go check on Cobra. See you in Leo's office."

  "Dude," Puma calls me back when I wheel around, ready to storm inside. I stop, giving him a look over my shoulder. "I'm sorry I fucked things up earlier. When I pushed her to the dates with…" He swallows his words, rubbing his face. "If I'd known… I really messed up things with her and with you too."

  He did, it's true. There's no denying it. But when it comes to Puma… he tried to do the right thing. We all make mistakes, and I'm not one to hold a grudge. I have no right after the shit I've done.

  "There's no way you could've known. Don't beat yourself too hard, okay? When you need to get punched, just come to me. I'll help you out and happily wreck you up." I reach my fist towards him, and with a half-smile, he answers the fist bump.

  "Sparring tomorrow if we're still alive?"

  "Yeah, get ready to be fucked up, bro," I retort with a promise of a good time. Since I got here, we've been sparring, and the first two years Puma and Cobra were the only ones I did it with. I couldn't stand anyone else's hands on me. My nerves snapped very quickly at that time. It's the only time I have really injured Cobra—broke her nose—when I lost control, and my instincts tackled me. We were seventeen. It scared the shit out of me, but she waved a dismissive hand and said that one day she'd break my nose. That day came too, twice.

  Cobra has always been tough.

  She'll always be.

  I knock on the door of the medical room, and Doc's voice calls me in. Peeking in, I see Cobra already sitting on the side of her bed. Doc is typing on her laptop beside the high desk and gives me a glance over her shoulder. Her dry face is as emotionless as always.

  "What are you doing? Lay down, I'll bring you everything you need." I make my way to her, so she doesn't have time
to get up. She grins at me, eyes sparkling.

  "I'm going to the bathroom to take a shower. Try to breathe, kitty," she laughs but allows me to help her up when she starts to rise on her feet. "Though, you can help me get there ‘cause, my legs feel weird."

  "Tiger." Doc turns to us, adjusting her glasses. "Help her to get started and then come here. We need to exchange a few words."

  My breath catches in my throat, cold shivers running down my spine as I nod at her. Why does she want to speak without Cobra hearing it? My mind starts to go through all kinds of fucked up things of what it can be.

  Cobra doesn't react to her words in any way. She just looks up at me, waiting.

  I pull on the fakest smile I've ever worn on my face while I pick her up in my arms. Her hands wrap around my neck, and warmth spreads through my body as she leans her head on my shoulder.

  She's lost weight, and I fucking hate it.

  I hate everything about what happened.

  Anger is smoldering inside me, waiting to ignite. I will tear Crusador into pieces limb by limb when I get my hands on him.

  The smell of disinfectant is stronger in the bathroom, and it almost makes me gag. Memories flash in my mind like a broken video, but I bite my tongue and suppress them down. Focusing on Cobra, I clear my mind.

  I knock down the toilet seat cover and gently place her on it. She yawns, covering her mouth with her hand, and blinks her hazel eyes like trying to stay awake. When I crouch down in front of her, I see how her pupils are blown, black obscuring her beautiful hazel shade. This time, I know it's not because of me. It's the meds.

  "You okay, baby?"

  Cobra nods, her mouth curving into a smile. "Mmhh," her hands cup my face, "you're so handsome."

  "And you're high." I skim my fingers over her sensual lips and then poke her nose, grinning. "But thank you, gorgeous. Now, let's get you into the shower before you fall asleep."

  "Will you join me?"

  "I'd fucking love to, but no. Next time I will." I slide my hands to the nape of her neck, untying the hospital gown. There are bruises on both sides of her neck, but not the kind I've given to her when we've been fucking around. There are little dots in them, like from a needle. It makes my stomach churn.