by Shannon West
“You didn’t see him after their talk, Nicky. I did. He was practically destroyed. He cared deeply, believe me. I think his heart was broken, and I’m afraid something may have happened to him.”
A little gasping sound by the door made them both look up to see Evan standing just inside the door. He’d overheard what Marco said. His face registered a direct hit, and he swayed on his feet. Nicky jumped up to put a hand on his shoulder and guide him into the room. “It’s okay, Evan. He’s coming back, I’m sure of it.”
“What if he doesn’t, Nicky? I was so damn mad at him when he came to see me, I couldn’t even stand for him to touch me. I was awful to him—really hateful. He thinks I hate him now, so there’s no reason for him to come back.”
“You were just giving him some tough love, and it’s what he needed. He had to realize how serious it was and how much he hurt you emotionally. It was the only way for the two of you to ever make it work between you. You remember what I told you the first day I met you? He’s a wolf, and wolves mate for life. They have all these stupid wolf laws, but that’s one I always liked. That’s one I could always get behind.”
Evan gave Nicky a shaky little smile. “I hope you’re right.”
Nicky smiled at him encouragingly. “Come on over here now and you can feed from Marco. It won’t taste as good to you as Brett’s does, but it will nourish you.”
A knock on the door interrupted them, and Nicky went over to open it. It was Ian, and he looked serious and a little grim. He glanced over at Evan and then back at Marco. “It’s Brett, Marco. Dr. Cornsilk has gotten word to us. The Hunters have had him for over a week and the doctor just discovered it and has managed to get in and see him. They’ve been experimenting on him, Marco. Dr. Cornsilk says he’s afraid they’ve completely destroyed his mind.”
* * * *
“We have to move quickly if this is going to work. The doctor said the Hunters think Brett has outlived his usefulness now, and they’re ready to execute him. ‘Put him out of his misery,’ as they put it.” Casey slammed his hand down on the table in front of him, contempt for the Hunters and their cruelty twisting his lips.
“We still have to be smart about it.” Marco stood up and paced around the council room that was packed, not only with all of his advisors, but all of Zack’s advisors as well. Zack and his entire clan had come to help as soon as they learned of Marco’s plan.
Marco had declared an all-out war on the Hunters, and further declared that it was time to end this thing once and for all. His desire for peace and need for privacy all these years to escape detection by the outside world had forced his clan to simply defend themselves from the Hunters’ increasingly vicious attacks. Elias Winters and his psychotic behavior had finally driven him too far. They would attack the complex and destroy it, along with Winters and anyone else in his command who resisted. If any of the Hunters wished to put down their arms, and become Werekin, they’d be spared. Otherwise, the wolves would take no prisoners. They hadn’t started this war, but they could no longer stand by and allow their families to be in danger. The wolves had had enough.
Deciding against the safe rooms in the basement, Marco had moved all of the older pets and the children to Zack’s lodge, along with some of the older men and teenaged boys to act as protection. Everyone else would be in on the fight—even the pets who wanted to help. This last provision had been hard won for Logan and Nicky and the others, but an impassioned plea by Evan had finally turned the tide in their favor. It was his mate who had been injured, he argued, and he was going in after him, regardless of what anybody thought. When Logan, Nicky, Gabe and all the other human pets backed him, the wolves had finally given in.
“Like I said, we have to be smart about this thing. They have plenty of firepower so we’re not going to rush in, guns blasting.”
“We have a plan,” Casey said confidently. “We’ve had this in mind for a long time, but we were hoping we wouldn’t have to use it. We still want to avoid exposure, so we’re going to have to make this look good to any outsiders. That’s one reason we’ll take no prisoners. Each person who surrenders must become Werekin. All the feral soldiers will be given blood as well. It looks like our community is about to experience a huge growth spurt.”
“What’s the plan, Casey?” Evan asked quietly. He was standing between Logan and Nicky and this was one of the first days he’d wanted to be around other people. The thought of what Brett was going through, and not knowing if he were alive or dead had taken its toll on him, and he was pale and had lost a lot of weight, even though both Ian and Marco had been feeding him as often as he would allow.
Casey turned toward him. “We’re going to use the tunnel that Ian, Rory, Nicky and Logan used the night they helped Ian escape from the complex.”
Logan frowned. “Surely they would have destroyed that tunnel by now.”
“No, they didn’t,” Casey replied. “According to our sources, they did seal it off with a heavily locked and bolted steel door at the end that comes out on the mountainside, and they have it guarded now, but they kept it as an escape route for themselves if their compound walls are ever breached.”
“So how can we get inside if it’s so secured?” Logan asked.
“Simple. Our guys on the inside. When we send the signal, they’ll overpower the guards and open the door. We’ll be there to waltz right in,” Casey said.
Meanwhile, to keep their attention focused somewhere else, Zack and I will take a small group of four and come in the front gate,” Marco said. “We’ll be hiding in Dr. Cornsilk’s car and come in right under their noses. When he lets us out, two of us will go immediately to Elias Winter’s quarters and take him prisoner. If he resists, we’ll kill him. Another two will go to the other general’s quarters and secure that area. We’ll cut off the head of the snake right away and hope the body flounders. Our boys will be coming in the tunnel and going from building to building. We’ll go in quietly and have the element of surprise on our side. It’ll be just like the Trojan horse.” Casey turned to Rory. “Rory, I’d like you to lead a small group to the prison cells and find Brett, and anyone else they may be holding.” He cast a quick glance at Evan. “From what I understand about his condition, you may have to subdue him, because I don’t think he’ll know you. Take at least two more wolves with you in case he puts up a fight.” He turned to Evan and smiled at him. “Yes, I know, Evan, you’ll want to be with them too. Of course, and you can take Nicky with you.”
Nicky frowned. “But I thought I could go with Marco...”
“Not a chance, baby,” Marco said. “Where I’ll be is too damn dangerous, and besides, Evan will need you. No, I’ll take Zack and Ian and...”
“And me,” Logan said quietly. “I have the right to be there, Marco, when you go after my father. I’ll be able to keep up just fine.” He glanced over at Ian as if to gauge his support, but Ian was smiling warmly at him.
Marco considered it gravely for a moment. The pack had never willingly put a pet in such jeopardy before, but Logan had a point. After all the things his father had done to him, he did deserve a chance. “All right,” he said, nodding. “We’ll make sure our contacts are in place and we’ll attack at dawn tomorrow. Any questions?” He looked around the table, but found only determined faces staring back at him. “All right, get some rest. See you in the morning.”
* * * *
Logan was pressed up tight against Ian’s big body in the trunk of the doctor’s car. He could feel the slow, steady heartbeat of his mate, and it calmed him. Soon now, they’d be passing through the checkpoint at the gate, and he had to be ready. Zack and Marco were folded up between the back seat and the floor board under some blankets, and he knew it had to be uncomfortable for them. The guards rarely stopped Dr. Cornsilk’s car, but if they did, they had to be ready. Logan’s finger rested lightly on the safety of his assault rifle as he felt the car slow to a stop. He could hear some muffled conversation and a snatch of a short laugh. Then the car st
arted up again, and he breathed a deep sigh of relief. He felt Ian’s hand on his thigh, gripping him tightly in reassurance, letting him know he was there and would protect him with his life.
Logan felt the same way toward Ian and pressed his body back into him for a second. He felt a soft kiss graze his temple and smiled to himself. How many other soldiers about to go into battle stayed up half the night making love, he wondered? The time spent with his lover had strengthened and sustained him through the night, and he felt ready to face whatever he had to this morning, no matter how difficult.
The car came to a stop and in a few seconds, the trunk opened so they could crawl out. They stood stretching for a moment before following Marco’s hand signals and moving into the building that housed the generals. Marco had the codes to the door and punched them in quickly. Once inside, Marco and Zack nodded to show they were headed to the upstairs quarters of Elias Winters’ next in command while Ian and Logan moved quietly to Winters’ door.
Breathing a quick prayer that Winters hadn’t changed his keypad code, Logan punched it in, and they flung open the door and dived inside, each one rolling to either side of the door before jumping back to their feet. As expected, Winters had heard the slight tones of the keypad and had been ready for them, firing the pistol he kept on his night stand and missing Logan by inches. Logan had actually felt the breeze of the bullet as it passed his face.
Before Logan could make another move, Ian had fired, striking Winters in the chest. He fell back against the pillows and lay still, his face drained of color. Logan approached the bed cautiously and stood over his father. He was aware of shouts coming from the hall and Ian running to secure the doorway. Winters opened his eyes and stared directly at Logan.
“You,” he said bitterly. “I might have known it would be you, you bastard.”
“Your bastard,” Logan said quietly.
Winters gave a short bark of laughter, but Logan could see the light fading from his eyes. “I wonder if that’s even true. Your mother always was a whore.”
“Father, don’t...”
“Don’t what? Speak the truth? She was a filthy whore, and I’m glad I killed her. You didn’t really think she died in any car accident, did you? She wanted to protect her little sissy boy. Well, I showed her and I’ll show you too! Nobody gets the best of Elias Winters! Nobody!” He raised the gun he still had clutched in his hand and pointed it straight at Logan’s heart.
Before Winters could make a move, a red spot of blood blossomed in the center of his forehead, as Ian killed him with a single shot. He pulled Logan into his arms and pressed his face against his chest. “I’m sorry, sweetheart, but he had it coming.”
“I know,” Logan said softly. “I thought I could do it, but...”
“No one expected you to—nobody’s that strong.” Ian turned him away from the bed. “C’mon. let’s go find Marco.”
They found Marco coming down the stairs, pushing the general, his hands tied in front of him. Marco looked a little shaken, and Zack was behind them speaking urgently on his radio.
“Are you all right, Marco?” Ian noticed the paleness on Marco’s face and was a little alarmed.
“Some bastard surprised me on the way to the general’s bedroom. Came out of nowhere and jabbed me with a hyprodermic needle.”
“A hypodermic needle? What was in it?”
“No idea. Not poison, thank God, or I’d be dead by now. Probably some of their crazy concoctions—like most of them, it didn’t work. I’m fine. I’m sure it was nothing, just made me feel a little woozy.”
“Yeah, and he didn’t live long enough to tell us much. I’m afraid I just reacted when I saw him stabbing at Marco. I killed the son-of-a-bitch.” He looked remarkably unrepentant as he turned to Marco. “They’re inside the compound, Marco,” Zack said with obvious excitement. They’ve already secured two buildings with minimum casualties and Hunters are surrendering all over the place.”
“Any word on Nicky?”
“Rory’s group has entered the prison building. Only minimal resistance, with a few casualties—Nicky’s not one of them,” he said quickly at the look on Marco’s face. “He and Evan and Gabe are on their way down with Rory and the wolves to find Brett.”
“Thank God,” Marco said softly as Ian slapped him on the back. “Never again,” he said with a laugh, shaking his head. “I’m a nervous wreck.”
“They’ve done well so far, though,” Ian said with pride, looking at Logan. “You have to admit that.”
“I do admit it,” Marco said. “But I still wish this was over with so I could get my hands on him again. You do realize what this means, don’t you, Ian? From now on, Nicky will want to sit in on all our council meetings.”
Ian regarded him with horror as Logan stood beside them and smiled a little as he leaned against the wall.
* * * *
Evan followed Rory and the other two gammas down the dark, familiar hallway of the prison where he’d first seen Brett only a few months ago. Then he’d been shackled to the floor in chains. He wondered what condition he would find him in this time. They checked each cell as they went down the hall and found them empty until they reached the third door down. From within they could hear what sounded like an animal in pain, howling and whimpering. The sound made the hair stand up on the back of Evan’s neck. Nicky squeezed his arm reassuringly as they waited for Rory and the others to get the door open. When they did, all three of the wolves rushed inside and over to a figure chained to the wall. Evan caught a glimpse of something not quite human and couldn’t be sure if it was Brett or not.
They wrestled with the creature, forcing him to the ground and trying not to hurt him, though he fought them desperately. One of the big gammas got the creature in a headlock so that Rory could inject him with the sedative prescribed by Dr. Cornsilk. It took almost five minutes for it to calm him down enough so that some of the hair and claws receded from him and Evan was finally able to recognize Brett. He ran over to him, but he saw no recognition on his face as he growled at him from beneath the press of arms holding him down. Evan put a hand on his thigh and spoke to him softly, calling his name, but he shut his eyes tightly and screamed so loudly Evan drew back his hand.
Finally, the sedative took full effect and Brett’s big body relaxed into a deep sleep, only twitching occasionally. They picked him up carefully and carried him outside to lay him on the grass. There was a kind of controlled chaos all around them as Evan knelt down next to Brett and held his hand, with Nicky by his side. Evan was shocked by Brett’s appearance. He was filthy and gaunt, with almost purple shadows under his beautiful eyes, now sunken and hollow. There were deep cuts all along his arm, which were crusted with blood, swollen and infected. He was burning with fever, and his body jerked from time to time and shuddered.
Dr. Cornfield arrived to examine him and immediately called Marco over. Marco warmly glanced once at Nicky and then focused all his attention on the doctor.
“I need to get him to the clinic right away, Marco. I wish I could take him to the hospital, but I know it’s impossible. We’ll need to transfuse him as soon as possible with alpha blood.”
Marco nodded. “You’ll have three of us as donors.”
“Good. He’s going to need it.” Marco ran off to obtain transport and Dr. Cornfield looked over at Evan for the first time. “He’s bad, Evan. He’s only made it this long because he’s so young and strong. After I transfuse him and get him stabilized, I can find the records to see what they’ve been injecting him with. “I’m sorry, Evan. I’ll do the best I can.”
Evan nodded as Nicky grasped his shoulder. “He’ll make it. Just keep telling yourself that and don’t give up hope.”
“I know he will, Nicky. He has to—I don’t think I can live without him.”
* * * *
“Stop pacing, Evan. You’re beginning to make me nervous,” Nicky said, trying to concentrate on his painting. He was working at an easel set up in his and Marco’s quarte
rs. It was the first time Evan had ever seen him work, though he’d heard that he was a really good artist.
Evan stood behind him for a few minutes, looking at his painting. It was a landscape of a mountain view in a picture he had taped to the top of his easel. It was beautifully done, and Evan was a little amazed that Nicky had painted it. Nicky was a great guy and had been a good friend to Evan, but he never seemed to be serious about much of anything, always making jokes and fooling around. Nicky always surprised him when he displayed just how smart and talented he really was.
Six weeks had passed since the night at the Hunters’ complex. The total number of Hunters who had decided to surrender and join them that night numbered seventy-five, including the feral soldiers. They had decided to divide the numbers up by three, with a third going to live at Zack’s home in Georgia, a third going to the alpha in Tennessee, and the rest living in a big encampment near Mountainwood. The young gamma male and female wolves had been encouraged to find a mate among their numbers and quite a few had done so. The rest were being supplied with blood from the other wolves on a rotating basis until a mate could be found for them. Marco grumbled that he felt like he was running a dating service these days instead of a pack.
Ironically, the general who had been captured was one of the first to find a mate. An older widower from Zack’s pack had asked for him. Now that he was Werekin, they had to accept him and not make fun of him, but Logan was finding it hard not to be just a little gleeful that the previously homophobic general was now the mate of a wolf, and from all accounts, very happy.
The most worrisome problem, of course, had been Brett. When Evan was finally allowed to see him after a few days of intensive treatment, he had still looked terrible, and had gazed at Evan with no recognition evident on his face.
The doctor had discovered the records showing the various chemicals that he’d been injected with, an assortment of acids and poisons. He said the only treatment was the alpha blood and they gave him as much as he could hold. After about a week, he’d begun to show improvement and his recovery had been steady after that. He knew who Evan was, but he still wouldn’t meet his gaze or talk to him, turning his head to the wall whenever Evan came in.