“I’m sorry to hear that.”
“He’d been hunting a serial killer.” Barney pulled up outside a dilapidated roadside motel. “The guy got to him first, and used his mate against him. Neither one survived.”
“I get that, I really do.” Ryan blew out a breath. “And I’ll make sure all the girls at Cynful take some self-defense classes.”
“It may not be enough. It took three of us to take the killer down. The Atlantic City Hunter had been a good friend of Daniel’s and his mate’s, and insisted on helping.” Barney seemed haunted by the memory of the Hunter he’d lost. “Look. I’m not telling you this to be a Debbie Downer. You need to know the life you’ve been born into. It’s going to be rough, and if you’re not careful your mate could become a liability.”
“You’re wrong.” The soft voice of his mate filled the car. “Ryan’s the reason I would keep fighting.”
Ryan nodded. “You’re not mated yet, so you don’t understand.” He almost felt sorry for Barney. He had no idea what he was trying to deny himself, and Ryan hoped like hell that he’d find out one day soon just what that wonderful something was. “Glory is my strength, not my weakness.”
“If you say so. Your cousin…” Barney grimaced, his expression clear as he glanced in the rearview mirror. “She’s small, Ryan, and so god-damn young. Until I know she can protect herself I won’t mate her.”
“You keep telling yourself that.” Ryan could already tell Barney was going to have a hard time with that. Every time he said Heather’s name he got this wistful expression before he covered it up with banter or determination. “The pull is going to be too strong to resist. You’ll claim her because you won’t have any other choice.”
The stubborn set of Barney’s jaw said otherwise. “I’m doing what’s right for her.”
“I’d ask Heather what she thinks is the right thing to do. You might be surprised at what she has to say.” Glory sat up and put her hand on Barney’s shoulder. “Now, go get my sister.”
Ryan nodded. “I’ll be right back.”
“Ryan, damn it.”
But he ignored the Hunter and got out of the car, taking a deep whiff. If Gabe was in the area, odds were good it was safe enough.
And he was proven right when Gabe strolled out of the woods. It was strange to see the sheriff in casual clothes, the dark jeans and jacket causing him to blend into the night. Even his face had patches of darkness on them, and Ryan realized he’d put on camouflage. “All clear, Ryan. Let’s go get Hope.”
With one last glance at the car, Ryan followed Gabe to the motel, and Glory’s past.
Glory waited as long as she could, which was about two seconds longer than she’d thought she’d be able to. Ryan and Gabe were standing in front of a motel door, quietly talking, neither one making a move toward knocking on said door.
“Glory, I know what you’re thinking, but you need to stay put until they call for you.”
She glared at Barney, who’d wound up staying behind by default. “Yeah, let’s keep the liability in the car.”
His jaw tightened. “I’m not going to apologize. If it saves Ryan’s life, then I’ll call you whatever the hell I want, whether you like it or not.”
As much as she wanted to argue with him, he was right, damn it. “Fine. But you’re not invited to the family barbecue.”
“Story of my life, and one I can live with.” Barney climbed out of the car and took up a sentry-like pose outside. He leaned against the driver’s side door, his gaze glued to Ryan and Gabe, but Glory was willing to bet his attention was focused more on the surrounding woods. It was there the Wolf who’d been stalking her and her sister would be waiting for them, if he was even in the area.
At a gesture from Gabe, Glory got out of the car. She was shaking like a leaf. The knowledge that she might finally have found her twin rushed through her like a tsunami.
Hope was here. Glory was certain of it. That twin sense that told her that Hope was alive was tingling now, driving her toward Ryan and the door that separated her from her long-lost sister.
Ryan took a couple of steps forward and took her hand. “You ready for this?”
She nodded, barely able to speak. “She’s here.”
Ryan smiled. “Good. Then we’ll have her home with us, safe and sound.”
“We’ll put her in a safe place, guarded by Pumas. We won’t let anyone lay a hand on her, I swear.” Gabe gave her a brief hug. “Knock on the door, Glory.”
She took a deep breath and squared her shoulders. Butterflies danced the jitterbug through her veins. “Here goes.”
The sound of her knuckles rapping on the metal-clad door was loud in the quiet, but Glory could still hear the sound of someone breathing behind it. Her senses had sharpened considerably since Ryan marked her.
Going with her gut instinct, Glory called out to her sister. “Hope? It’s me.” The door remained shut, but Glory could no longer hear breathing. “It’s safe, Hope, I swear. Open the door, please?”
The door remained stubbornly shut.
“Temp and Faith are back. They’ve been looking for us.” She shared a glance with Ryan, who shrugged. “The man who took you? I’ve got friends here. Strong ones. We’re going to stop him.”
The door flew open, and Glory found herself staring into a face she’d never thought to truly see again. For all they were identical, there had always been minute differences between them. Glory was a quarter inch shorter than her twin, and Hope’s blue eyes had been a touch darker than Glory’s baby blue. It had somehow made Hope’s disappearance even harder on her.
Cyn thought it was the reason Glory dyed her hair wild colors and pierced her skin. So she wouldn’t see that not-quite-right face in the mirror every day. But Glory knew better. It was about being Glory, not Hope. She wanted people to see her, not her missing twin, and it had worked.
But the differences between the Hope of her childhood and the worn, battle-scarred woman before her were night and day. Hope’s blonde hair was chopped off, cut so short it was almost a buzz cut. Even Chloe had more hair than Hope did. A vicious scar ran down one cheek, a cheek so thin Glory immediately had the urge to buy a couple of pizzas to fatten her up with.
Worst of all was the sheer terror Glory saw as her twin took in Ryan and Gabe.
Glory held out her hand, taking hold of Ryan. “This is my fiancé, Ryan, and Gabe is a police officer. They’re both friends of mine, and they’re here to help you.” Better than saying they were both Hunters.
“Hi, Hope.” Ryan held out his hand to her twin, trying to appear non-threatening.
Hope didn’t take his hand. “I…Hello.”
Ryan lowered his hand. He didn’t seem at all phased by the fact that Hope had essentially refused to touch him. “The local Wolf Pack will want to meet you.”
Hope sucked in a breath. “What are you?”
“Bear.”
A big hand reached over Glory’s head and pushed open the door. “Hi. My name’s Barney.” Barney very gently pushed past Glory and into Hope’s hotel room. “I’m here to help you too.”
Hope’s eyes grew wide with fear before her expression turned bitter. “No one can help me.”
“I can.” Barney crouched down, putting his head below Hope’s. Glory knew a submissive gesture when she saw one, and Barney was going all kinds of shades of gray on her shaking sister. It was a shock to see the strong, in-your-face Hunter be so gentle with Hope. “I’m what’s called a Hunter. I’m a cop for the shifter world, and I’m here to take in the man who abducted and changed you against your will. He did, right? Change you against your will?”
Hope nodded.
“If you come with me, I can protect you from him, even introduce you to a Wolf Pack that will welcome you with open arms and protect you.” He held up his hand, patiently waiting for Hope to place hers in it.
“I know what a Hunter is.” Hope took a step back. “He told me all about them.”
Barney nodded. “He was
one.”
“Was?”
Glory closed her eyes as Hope confirmed all their worst fears. No wonder they’d never found her.
Barney didn’t move a muscle. His expression remained serene, calm in the face of Hope’s overwhelming fear. His hand was still held out for Hope to take, or not. “Yes. Was. A Hunter who turns bad is just another rogue.”
“Just like a human cop who goes bad is just another criminal.” Gabe held up his badge. “He will be brought to justice. I swear it.”
Barney smiled so sweetly Glory was shocked. She’d never seen such a soft expression on the Hunter’s face before. “Come with us, Hope. See your family. There are three Hunters here just to protect you, and the Senate knows who you are. All you need to do is tell me the man’s name.”
She barely heard Gabe’s indrawn breath. “Of course. If we know his name, we know everything about him.”
Barney never stopped looking away from Hope. “Yup.”
Glory wanted to drag her sister out of this depressing room and into Ryan’s car. “Please, Hope. I missed you so much.”
“I missed you too.” Hope eyed her warily. “What are you?”
Glory didn’t pretend to misunderstand. “Grizzly. Ryan is my mate, and we just claimed one another, so I haven’t even gone through my first change yet.”
“Whoa.” For the first time Glory saw some of the girl she’d known in the suspicious woman before her. Hope’s eyes lit up, a small smile creasing the scar on her cheek. “Your ass will finally be bigger than mine.”
Glory laughed, aware she was close to tears. “Bitch, you always had a fat ass.”
She grunted as Hope dove into her arms. “I really did missed you. It’s why I came back. I wanted to see you, just once, before I ran again.”
“Missed you too. So much.” She held tight, terrified Hope would disappear like she had all those years ago. “I’m glad we found you before you left.”
“He’ll come back.” Hope was shaking so hard Glory was afraid she’d rattle to pieces. “He always finds me.”
“Then we’ll be here to stop him.” Glory said the one thing she could, closing her eyes at the irony of it. “You’re not alone anymore.”
Hope sobbed.
Glory wasn’t that far behind her. She couldn’t seem to stop the tears that came. She finally had her twin in her arms, and she had no intention of losing her again. “Let’s get you home, okay?”
Hope sniffled. “Okay.”
“Can you tell me his name?”
“His name.” Hope turned toward them, tears running down her cheeks. “Tito Salazar.”
Barney quivered, but that was the only sign he gave that he might recognize the name. “Good. Thank you, Hope.” Still using the unusually gentle tone and touch, he guided Hope and Glory toward Ryan’s car, careful not to touch Hope. “I’m a Bear as well, a Grizzly, and Gabe is a Puma. The local Pride has taken your sister and her friends in, made them Pride.”
“I’m authorized to inform you that Max and Emma, our Alpha and Curana, are willing to extend the same protections to you that your sister enjoys.” Gabe held open the backseat door for Hope. “We want you to have as many options as possible.”
“I just never want to see Tito again. I barely got away from him. If he finds me again…” Hope bit her lip, and even in the early morning darkness Glory could see how she shook. “You don’t know what that son of a bitch did to me.”
“We’ll stop him.” Barney gestured for Glory to climb into the car next to her sister. “Is there anything in the motel room you can’t live without?”
Hope shot a despondent glance toward her temporary home. “I’ve learned there’s very little I can’t live without.”
Glory couldn’t stand it anymore. She took hold of Hope’s hand. “Let’s see if we can change that, hmm?”
When Hope leaned her head against Glory’s shoulder, it took everything in her not to break down and weep like a child.
Chapter Fifteen
Hope had been through a rougher hell than any of them had dealt with before. Barney had done his best to seem as unthreatening as possible, and all of them were treating her like a china doll that could break at any moment. Hope was impossibly traumatized, and might never fully recover from her ordeal.
He very much doubted Hope had slept with her abductor willingly.
Gabe sighed. “I’ve got more bad news.”
“What now?” Crap, could this night get any worse?
Gabe shot him a worried glance that had Ryan’s claws extending, ready to protect and defend. “I’m not just smelling the rogue Wolf around here.”
“Fuck.” Ryan took a deep breath, sneezing as the strong odor of dust, mold and a very familiar, very frightening Puma filled his nostrils. “Is that…?”
Gabe nodded.
“What the fuck is he doing around here?” Last Ryan had heard the good doctor was secluded with his family, refusing to speak to anyone.
“I have no idea, but I’m worried.”
“You think he’s gone crazy on us?” It was possible. Ryan didn’t know of anyone who survived the traumatic loss of a mate the way Jamie Howard had. If Julian hadn’t saved him, there would have been a double funeral in Halle.
Marie Howard had been the daughter of the previous Alpha, and much loved in the community. Her death had hit the Pumas of Halle hard, none more so than her mate. He was just glad that Jamie was the only one who seemed to place his mate’s death at the feet of the Cynful girls. Even if it wasn’t fair, he could almost understand why. It was Tabby’s ex-Alpha who had taken his mate from him, and Julian who had saved Jamie’s life, leaving him forever denied his mate.
“It’s possible. Hope has victim written all over her. And Ryan…” Gabe shot him an unreadable glance, “…Jamie used to take care of…certain things for the Alpha that were better left to the Hunters.”
“Shit.” The easygoing, affable man Ryan remembered wouldn’t hurt a fly, but if what Gabe was saying was true, it could spell big trouble for the Walsh family. “Tell me.”
“Only because you’re a Hunter, Ryan.”
He got that, he really did, but this secretive stuff was going to get old fast. This might be Puma business, but right now it was Ryan’s business as well. “Whatever helps you sleep at night.” He made an impatient gesture. “Spill, damn it.”
Gabe almost chuckled at that, but his expression remained grim. “When Emma Carter first mated Max, there was some opposition to her becoming our Curana, specifically from a woman named Livia Patterson. She’d been Max’s girlfriend in high school and always assumed she’d become his mate and co-ruler of the Pride. She lorded it over anyone and everyone, even the people who called her friend.”
“But then Max met Emma?”
Gabe shrugged. “They all went to the same high school, but Emma was younger. I think the mating instinct didn’t kick in until he met the adult Emma. Anyway, he met up again with Emma, he marked her, and declared her his Curana instead of Livia. Livia was furious, and in a fit of rage attacked Becky Holt at the annual masquerade ball.”
“Which is when Becky got those scars.” The Beta mate had deep, savage-looking scars on her shoulder, ones she hid in the long, curly fall of her hair, but Ryan had seen them.
Gabe nodded as he led the way out of the motel room. “Yup. She bit her, but didn’t try and change her. She just wanted to prove that Emma’s weakness for her friend would be her downfall, but she wasn’t aware that Becky was Simon Holt’s mate.” The glass artist and Beta of the Puma Pride was an easygoing man much in the same mold as Bunny. Ryan was willing to bet he had the same protective instincts Bunny had too. “Emma forced Livia to submit to her, cementing her place as Curana, and she and Max Outcast Livia.”
“Let me guess. Livia couldn’t let it go?”
“Of course not. Bitch always thought she was owed more than she was worth. She came back and went after Emma and Becky a second time, poisoning Becky and threatening her with a gun. S
imon wound up killing Livia when she attacked Becky, and Jamie made the body…disappear. And it wasn’t the first time he’d done something like that for the Pride.”
“And you know that because you’re a Hunter?”
Gabe stared at him. “Because I’m Marshal’s Second. This wasn’t something that could be hidden from Adrian and me, not when we’re part of the ruling hierarchy. Max had to tell us, but the rest of the Pride has no idea that Livia is dead.”
Ryan would never understand the whole Pack/Pride thing. They took their whole “ruling hierarchy” thing far too seriously. In his family, they all would have known what happened and done their best to make sure no one ever found the body. It was what family did for each other. “No one questioned it?”
“Nope. Everyone assumed Livia was gone, that she took her Outcast ass and just disappeared. There wasn’t any need to tell anyone what really happened. I think the only people outside the Pride who know are Rick and Belle Lowell, and that’s only because Livia was Belle’s best friend before she went after Emma.”
“So why is Jamie Howard hanging around here?” Ryan sniffed the air, recognizing the lingering traces of Dr. Howard now that he was looking for them. “He’s not here now.”
“I have no idea. Maybe he decided to go after Glory’s attacker?”
“That doesn’t make sense. He still blames Cyn and Julian for losing Marie. The last person he’d help would be Glory.”
“Then he’s here for Hope.” Gabe shrugged. “If he’s been watching her, I have to wonder how he’ll react when he realizes she’s gone.”
“He’s not a rogue yet.” Ryan knew it the way he knew his mate’s scent, or that little gasp she gave just before she came.
“No, but he’s come close. Too close. And now this, watching a woman who was on the run from an abuser?” Gabe sighed roughly. Jamie’s actions were wearing the Second down. Everyone had loved Jamie Howard, but now several Pumas feared him. “I don’t know what to think.”
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