by Shea Balik
Chapter 11
When Forest stepped closer to Ernesto, a growl from behind was his only warning before Blade’s hand clamped around his arm to pull him back until he was standing next to his mate. Annoyed, he glared at Blade, but the man’s eyes had never left Ernesto.
“I know where Raptor is, and I am willing to give you the location as long as you grant me immunity.” As an assassin there would be a price on Ernesto’s head if another Alpha with morals took over the Latin Territory.
“You know, I don’t have the power to do that. You are a known assassin for hire. If the next Alpha wishes to punish you, I can’t do anything to stop it,” Talon told him honestly.
Of course Talon didn’t know what Forest knew. Alek had sworn him to secrecy when he’d overheard the man talking to his mate, Seth, about making Talon the next Alpha once Raptor was found and killed. He hated keeping something like this from Talon, but there was no way Forest was going against Alek Rykov.
“That may be true, but the Alpha Primus can. From what I hear, Forest here has an in with the man.” Ernesto’s gaze bore into Forest as if asking for confirmation.
Forest was stunned how anyone could know that. It wasn’t like they’d told anyone. Not that he would have said he had an ‘in’ with the Alpha Primus anyway, it was more like Alek acknowledge his presence more than he’d actually listen to what Forest had to say. “How did you know that?”
“It’s my job to know things.” That vague answer told Forest he was in his Concesionario Muerte role and probably wouldn’t be honest.
Blade growled out, “Tell him the truth.”
Ernesto just glared at Blade as if daring the man to make him. Before Blade did just that, Forest put his hand on Blade’s arm to stop him.
Talon on the other hand grabbed Ernesto by the front of his shirt and lifted him out his chair. “You have exactly thirty seconds to tell us the truth before I hand you over to the Alpha Primus myself.”
Ernesto’s face went white at the threat. There weren’t many people in the world willing to stand up to Alek Rykov. Forest knew he had a heart of gold, especially to his friends, but when angry the Alpha Primus wasn’t to be messed with. The man had actually been really nice to Forest but still managed to scare the crap out of him.
“Okay, okay,” Ernesto said.
Talon dropped him back in the chair. He continued to stand over him with his arms crossed over his chest. Forest fortunately had never been the recipient of that stare, but he swore it almost rivaled Alek’s for most intimidating.
“Talk,” Talon ordered.
“Will you promise to talk to the Alpha Primus about immunity for me?” Ernesto asked Forest.
“You know I will, Ernesto. Just tell us how to find Raptor.” Whether Talon or the others were okay with Forest going to bat for Ernesto didn’t matter. The man had been his friend when he could have killed Forest for daring to come into his bar when he was younger. Since then he’d put out the word that Forest wasn’t to be touched. At the time, Forest hadn’t understood why, no matter what area of town he was in, no one ever seemed to bother him. Just after graduation from high school, he’d learned that Ernesto had threatened to kill anyone who was even rude to Forest.
After witnessing his parents’ murder and his subsequent kidnapping to be used as a boy toy for a sick fuck, Forest understood just how dangerous the world really was. If it hadn’t been for this man, Forest would have probably died long ago. He owed Ernesto for watching over him, and Forest always repaid his debts.
Ernesto smiled at Forest, knowing he could be trusted to keep his word. “There are several places he uses when he needs to go underground for a while. He gets antsy, so he never stays there more than a week at a time.”
Hunter placed a hand on Ernesto’s shoulder. “How do you know this?”
Ernesto shrugged. “I wasn’t kidding earlier. It’s my job to know things. I pay well for information. Those who are looking to earn extra money understand I not only will pay them, but I keep my mouth shut as to who’s doing the talking.”
“So where is he?” Talon asked.
“He just moved this morning. There’s an old human military base on the other side of Juarez. That’s where he is,” Ernesto told them. “But all of his hideouts are pretty impenetrable. This one even more so. Apparently, and this is not completely verified, there was a secret compound underneath the main base that not many know about. From what my source said, there is no way in unless they open the door from inside.”
Rune was already typing away at his computer to pull up any blueprints for this secret area. Even though Forest had graduated with a computer degree, he still never understood half of what Rune could do.
“Okay, I have the underground schematics up. It looks like Ernesto was right. I’m still not sure why they built what looks like five rooms, but there’s only one way in or out, and once the door is shut, it can only be opened from the inside,” Rune said. His eyes never left the screen as he continued to pull in more information about the area.
For several minutes, no one spoke. Finally, Talon broke the silence. “If Ernesto is right, that means we have one week until he comes out of his hidey hole. Until then, we need to set up surveillance and find a place on site to set up camp.”
The others went into autopilot as arrangements were made and gear was packed. Not having any specific job as of yet, Forest went over to Ernesto to speak to him. He sat on the other chair facing his friend. “Why are telling us this?”
It was something that was bugging Forest. From everything he knew about Ernesto, the man rarely did anything without an ulterior motive. Befriending Forest had been an exception, and to this day, he still didn’t understand what made the man decide to take him on.
Ernesto looked at Talon, Rune, and Blade, who were still in the room. They didn’t seem to paying them any attention, although Forest could tell Blade was watching them closely. “I found my mate.”
A feather could have knocked Forest over when he heard Ernesto’s confession. It never even occurred to Forest that someone like Concesionario Muerte would have a mate. He wasn’t sure why, but it had been the last thing Forest thought to hear from this man who killed people for a living.
“His name is Ty, and he’s the sweetest, kindest person I’ve ever met.” The way Ernesto talked about his mate, plus the love-struck look in the man’s eyes said it all. Ernesto would do anything for his mate.
Although Forest still wasn’t sure what that had to do with the man telling them where Raptor was. “I’m happy for you, Ernesto, but it still doesn’t explain why you’re willing to piss off men like Raptor by talking to us.”
Sadness crept into Ernesto’s eyes. “Even though men like Raptor have made me a very rich man, they have also made this a very dangerous place to live. If I have any chance of keeping my Ty safe, men like Raptor have to go.”
Ernesto reached out to grip Forest’s hand, but Blade’s growl of warning stopped him from actually making contact. “I also have a child on the way with a woman I used to sleep with before meeting Ty. For the first time in my life I have a real future, and I refuse to allow them to live in the world filled with violence.”
Forest couldn’t help but smile at the way life sometimes worked. For years he’d always known deep down Ernesto was a good man. If he hadn’t been, the man wouldn’t have protected Forest all these years. It’s nice to know that he’s willing to do what’s right. “I’ll talk to Alek for you.”
Ernesto jumped up and hugged Forest before Blade could stop him. “Thank you. I will owe you for the rest of my life. Anything you need, it’s yours.”
Blade pulled him away before yanking Forest into his arms. “Touch my mate again, and I’ll kill you,” Blade warned Ernesto.
Maybe Forest should have pointed out that he could take care of himself, but right now he couldn’t deny he loved how protective Blade was of him. Later he’d tell Blade not to make decisions for him. But for now, he liked feeling cherished.
Chapter 12
For the last three days, Blade lived in a state of constant confusion. Whoever said being mated was like two puzzle pieces fitting together perfectly lied. Not that he didn’t love being mated to Forest, but it was like being on an emotional rollercoaster.
From the start Forest had been a handful. How he’d survived to the age of twenty-five was beyond comprehension. It was like he had no sense of danger. If he saw something he wanted, he just plowed ahead, damn the consequences.
Anyone else would have ended up dead, yet somehow Forest always managed to walk away fairly unscathed. His getting beaten up by Raptor’s men was the only time he’d actually been hurt. Sooner or later his luck was going to run out.
Blade, on the other hand, was always prepared to the point of obsession. Each plan was made with precision, and every possibility was gone over until each man on his team was ready. Some called him a fanatic, but in all the years he’d been running military ops, he’d only lost five men, the lowest loss of any leader.
It’s what made him a good second. As the leader, he sometimes obsessed so much the mission would have to be delayed. Talon never allowed that. He would force Blade to make a plan in the time allotted.
With the exception of when he ran away after realizing that Forest was his mate, Blade kept his emotions in check. Forest was all over the place. One moment, he seemed to like when Blade was possessive. The next, he was yelling at Blade for being an overbearing jerk. No matter what Blade did, he couldn’t win.
Right now, he was in hot water because some guy had grabbed Forest’s ass when they were walking down the sidewalk to the dojo, and Blade had knocked him out. He wasn’t sure what Forest thought he should have done, but he’d be damned if some guy thought that he could grope his mate without paying the consequences.
“Are you even listening to me?” Forest yelled from his position in the middle of the room.
It probably would not be wise to tell his mate how hot he looked with his feet braced apart, his arms crossed over his chest, and his green eyes spitting daggers at Blade. Instead he went with a safer answer. “Of course I’m listening. I just don’t see why knocking that guy on his ass for touching yours is a bad thing.”
Forest actually huffed with such a dramatic flair, Blade wanted to applaud his performance. “Because I can take care of myself. I don’t need you fighting all my battles for me.”
“I never said you couldn’t take care of yourself. But I’m not about to stand aside and let someone touch you.” Blade knew he wasn’t getting his point across, but he honestly didn’t know what else to say.
Forest threw his hands up at Blade’s answer. “Is there ever going to be a time that you think I can take care of myself? That I’m good enough to fight at your side, instead of you jumping in to rescue me.”
Huh?
“What in the hell are you talking about? I do think you’re good enough to fight by my side.” None of this made any sense to Blade, and he was too tired to keep having the same arguments over and over with Forest.
In an effort to make sure they didn’t lose track of Raptor when he came out of his hiding spot, they were all taking two five-hour shifts each day, one patrolling the surrounding area and one keeping an eye on the door. As the second, Blade was also in charge of making sure everyone was ready, supplies were available, and everyone was kept updated.
He also trained Forest for several hours a day, most of which was spent arguing. Some days Blade didn’t get more than an hour of sleep each night, and that would have been fine, but this constant turmoil with his mate was draining him.
“Why haven’t you put me on the rotation for patrol or to at least watch Raptor’s exit?” Forest asked.
“Because Talon hasn’t approved you for duty yet,” he answered honestly. Well it was technically true. Sure, Blade hadn’t made the recommendation, which he knew Talon was waiting for before giving Forest more responsibility, but his mate didn’t need to know that.
Too bad Forest was too smart to let it go at that. “Why doesn’t he think I’m ready? You’re my trainer. What are you telling him?”
Shit.
“Is that why you keep picking fights with me? Because you want to be on guard duty?” He knew trying to change the topic wasn’t going to work, but at this point, he had nothing to lose.
“No, I’m angry with you because no matter what I do, no matter how much I improve, it’s never enough for you. You are always quick to criticize, but never once do you tell me I’m improving,” Forest yelled at Blade before storming out of the dojo.
Well, that hadn’t gone like he thought it would. Not that it ever did where his mate was concerned. He just didn’t understand how Forest could think that he’d meet the team’s expectations after only a week and a half of training.
He had a point with the encouragement, though. Talon had warned him to start letting Forest know he was doing better, but Blade was having a hard time doing that. Every time he wanted to praise his mate, he thought about Forest bruised and broken on the floor of that bar. Instead of complimenting him, he’d find something to nitpick.
Was it really bad that he didn’t want Forest hurt again? The look of defeat on his mate’s face said it was. Blade just wasn’t sure how to make it better. There was no way he could pretend to be comfortable with his mate fighting by his side with so little training. He wasn’t sure if he would ever be okay with Forest fighting.
Damn. Forest had a point. Blade was the one holding him back. Striding to the door, he went in search of his mate to apologize. This relationship thing was hard.
* * * *
“Well, well, well. If it isn’t Talon’s new recruit,” a cold, hard voice said from behind Forest.
He froze, praying that it wasn’t Raptor even though he knew perfectly well it was. As much as Forest wished otherwise, his time in Raptor’s clutches before being beaten to a bloody pulp was one time he’d never forget. Especially with that voice, so devoid of all emotion it sent fear straight into his soul.
After storming away from Blade earlier, Forest had been replaying their argument in his head, not paying attention to his surroundings. He could almost hear Blade chastising him for his inattention during training. Apparently his mate might have been right. It was something he would work on as soon as he got away from Raptor.
Not bothering to turn around, Forest took off running. He tried not to bump into too many people, but the streets were packed as it was five and everyone was getting off work. Soon it became necessary to push them out of the way. Many shouted at him to watch where he was going or to “fuck off,” but Forest wasn’t slowing down for anyone.
His feet pounded out a rhythm on the cement that matched the beating of his heart. He swore it felt like his heart was about to burst out of his chest as the fear rose. Never had he been so afraid. Even when Raptor’s goons were beating him, Forest had known Blade would save him.
But Blade didn’t know he was in trouble this time. No one was going to save him if Raptor caught him. There was no doubt in his mind if that happened, he was dead. The thought of not seeing his mate again spurred Forest faster. He had no idea where he was going, he just tried to put as much distance between himself and Raptor as possible.
Needing to get to the safety of the team, he started looking around for something familiar. Unfortunately he didn’t know this area of Juarez well. Back before the war between the humans and the paranormals, this had been El Paso, Texas. Now it all fell under the city of Juarez, but there was still a separation.
The river was the physical divide, but it went deeper than that. Each side thought they were better, and for the most part, people were expected to stay on the side that they were born on. Forest never really understood it, but since there was only one bridge connecting the two parts, he tended to stay on the old city section of town.
Darting down an alley when the sidewalk became too jammed with bodies to run, he heard a shout behind him. Risking a glance
behind him, he saw Raptor and two other men emerge from the crowd into the alley. They were closer than he’d hoped.
Whipping his head back around, his mind screamed in denial as he saw a fifteen-foot wood fence at the other end of the alley. Scanning either side, Forest didn’t see another way out. There was no way he’d be able to scale that before they caught up to him.
His mind reeled as he tried to figure a way out of this, but he just couldn’t think of anything. Knowing he had to try, he leapt into the air as he reached the barrier. His hand gripped tightly to the slats about three-fourths of the way up.
Using his feet to propel him the rest of the way, he nearly wept with relief when his hand touched the top of the boards. Pulling as hard as he could, his body rose until he could swing one leg over.
Just as he lifted his other leg up, two sets of hands grabbed on and jerked him hard. He tried to hold on to the fence but he lost his balance and tumbled down onto the concrete below. The wind was knocked out of his lungs as he landed on his side. Cruel hands plunged into his hair, jerking him to his knees. Still trying to catch his breath, Forest didn’t have a choice but to kneel in front of his pursuers.
“Did you honestly think you could run from me, kid?” Raptor said as he pulled hard on Forest’s hair, tilting his head back until he was looking into dead, soulless eyes.
It took everything in him not to visibly shudder. How anyone could be so devoid of emotion, Forest didn’t know, nor did he want to know. What amazed him was how Raptor convinced others to vote him in as Alpha. Although word on the street was the election was fixed. Raptor had threatened the Cadre, who was responsible for the voting of a new Alpha in the Territory.
Not that the Cadre were angels either. The only thing those idiots cared about was how much they would get paid for their cooperation. Many times they took money from opposing groups leading to wars within the Territory. Instead of trying to stop the animosity, the Cadre encourage it, as it allowed them to demand more money for their cooperation.