by Jodi Vaughn
From his scent she knew he was a wolf.
Big Mike grabbed the male’s hair and forced him to look at her. “Recognize him, Catty?”
She shook her head. “No.”
“Hmmm. So you don’t know Mitchell. That’s interesting.” He released the guys hair and walked to the other side of room. “I just figured since you knew one Guardian, you knew them all.”
“What are you talking about? I don’t know any Guardians.” Did Big Mike know about Zane? Could he have found out Zane was her brother?
“Let’s try this again. Here’s a familiar face you might recognize.” Big Mike grinned and turned the spot light on the wall.
Nausea rolled up into her throat. Horror settled in her gut as she looked at the man on the wall.
All he wore was jeans. His bare feet didn’t even touch the floor as the chains that bound his wrists lifted him up into a crucifixion position. His head lolled down and he struggled to speak. He lifted his head and blood ran down his face from a deep cut near his eye. His face was almost unrecognizable from the beating he’d received. But she would know those eyes anywhere.
Lucien.
***
“Fuck!” Barrett growled and glared at his cell phone.
“What is it?” Damon looked over at him as the rest of the Guardians got off their bikes and gathered around the parking lot off Bourbon Street.
“Fucking Lucien. That asshole went against my orders and went to find the missing Guardians on his own.” He held up his phone so Damon could read the message.
“So there’s a tunnel under the Triple X.” Zane cocked his head. “Why does New Orleans have old tunnels?”
“Because years ago they were going to use it as a way of transportation. That’s before the highway and trains took over. And plus, there was the flooding issue.” Jayden shrugged.
“So what’s the plan?” Damon looked at Barrett.
“The plan is to go in and get all my Guardians out.” Barrett looked at all his men. “I don’t care what the condition the body or bodies are in. I want them back. All of them.”
“You got it, boss.” Jayden nodded and flexed his fingers.
“The other part of the plan is to survive.” He met each of their gazes. “Do whatever it takes to survive.”
They nodded at the meaning of his words. He turned and tucked his phone away and hurried toward the club with his men right behind him.
Chapter Thirty-Three
“Don’t hurt him,” Catty cried out. She tried to go to Lucien but two of Big Mike’s men came from out of the shadows and restrained her arms. She kicked and screamed but she couldn’t get away.
“Aww. Isn’t that sweet.” Big Mike slapped Lucien’s face. “I think she likes you, man. You know, I remember a time when she couldn’t wait to crawl on top of me and ride me like a horse. Catty’s quite the professional in the sack, wouldn’t you say?”
Lucien growled and tried to lunge, but the iron restraints held him back.
“You see, Catty, it’s important that Lucien see you for what you really are. Just a stripper who will take her clothes off for anyone. Guys like him don’t mate with females who are dripping with sin. And that, my girl, is what you are.”
“And you are the devil himself,” she spat out.
“Yes, I am.” He stepped closer. “If I had known that Jill had started putting ideas in your head, I would have killed that girl sooner.”
“You killed Jill? Why? She didn’t do anything to you!”
“Jill got too nosy for her own good. She came in to get her last paycheck and she followed one of my men down here. She hid until after he left when she saw old Mitchell strung up like a Christmas goose. Stupid girl. She was trying to free him when I found her down here.” He shrugged. “I had to kill her. Didn’t have time to bury the body. I’m a busy man and got shit to do. So I told my men to dump her in the shipyard. Let the birds feed on her pretty face.”
“You bastard.”
“Now, now. That’s no way to talk to your old friend.” Big Mike looked from her to Lucien. “If you thought you had a chance with Lucien then he was lying to you the whole time. He’s a Guardian, you know.”
“No he’s not.” She looked from Big Mike to Lucien. He didn’t have the tattoo. Guardians always had the tattoo. Big Mike was lying.
Big Mike barked out a laugh. “Wait a minute. He didn’t tell you he was a Guardian, did he?” Laughter rolled out of him. “That’s fucking priceless.”
“Leave her alone.” Lucien growled.
“Lucien? Tell him it’s not true.” Unease snaked down her spine and she knew when she met his gaze, he’d lied to her.
Why didn’t he tell her? If he hadn’t been honest about that, what else had he been lying about?
“I guess he was using you until he moved on to his next piece of ass.” Big Mike shook his head.
“Why are you doing this?” She glared at him under her lashes.
“Torturing Guardians?” Bike Mike looked at her and cocked his head. “Well, because number one, I hate how they are always in my fucking business. Damn Guardians were always in my club causing problems. They want my girls pampered, no sex and no drugs in the club. They don’t understand I have a business to run. So I had a chat with Edward Boudier, our own Pack Master. Told him I didn’t appreciate his Guardians making trouble for me. He actually agreed. Said he was going to get rid of his own Guardians.” He glared as he stalked over to a table where numerous knives and operating items were laid out.
“Number two, when your Pack Master of your home state gives you an order and a hefty salary to hunt down Guardians, you don’t question him.”
“How did you capture them?” She had to keep him talking. As long as he was talking he couldn’t hurt Lucien.
“Well, after I got a list of the Arkansas Guardians, I got one of the girls to call Heimy. She said that his mama had been in a car accident and he needed to come on back to New Orleans. He was so worried, he didn’t even tell Barrett what had happened. Just rode on down to New Orleans.”
“When he captured him, he was in the parking lot of the hospital. Managed to knock him out long enough to get him down here.” He smiled. “Heimy was one tough fucker. Even after we skinned his back and cut off his hand, that asshole held on for hours. Refused to die.” Big Mike shrugged. “So I finally cut his head off and had them dump him in the swamp.”
“Mitchell, that’s him.” He pointed at the figure on the wall. “Well, we just got lucky with him. He was on the border of Arkansas and Louisiana and one of my hired werewolves followed him into a bar. Injected him with silver, which weakened him, and then carted him back here. For me to play with.”
“Oh, my god.” She couldn’t stop the tremble that ran through her entire body. She was going to die. Lucien was going to die. In a tunnel filled with blood and waste and hatred.
“How is Edward Boudier’s Guardians going to feel about him allowing the Arkansas Guardians to be killed?”
“Edward don’t give two shits what the Louisiana Guardians think. Why do you think he’s firing them right and left? He wants to rule the state himself, without having to answer to anyone.”
“You don’t have to do this.” She pleaded.
He picked up a horrific instrument “Know what this is? This is a rib spreader, like they use for open heart surgeries. Have you ever seen the inside of a man’s chest before, Catty? Do you know how exciting it is to crack open the rib cage and see his heart beating inside his chest? Or hear him scream when you pull his heart out?”
“You can’t kill Lucien. He doesn’t have the Guardian tattoo on his back.” Her heart jackhammered in her chest. He was going to kill Lucien, but first he was going to torture him. She had to somehow stop him.
“Well Arkansas seems to have to have some lax rules concerning their Guardians. Not all of them have a tattoo. I would have missed him. He wasn’t on my list. Good thing I’ve got some intel of my own in Arkansas.” He glared at Lucien. �
��Enough of all this jabbering. Let’s get down to business.”
He looked at her over his shoulder. “I’m going to skin your wolf alive and you’re going to watch.”
***
“Don’t you fucking touch her.” Lucien ground out. The pain from being beaten over the head with a baseball bat was nothing compared to the anger he felt at what Big Mike was going to do with Catty. He wanted to shift but the silver cuffs on his arm prevented him.
If he could just get down…
“I tell you what, Guardian. If you make a sound while I’m peeling the flesh from your bones, I’m going to stop and I’m going to let Catty take your place.” His manic eyes flashed with glee. “I’ve never seen a female without her skin. Think she will look so pretty after I do that?” He laughed.
“You’re one sick fuck.” His body pulsed with anger.
Big Mike stopped laughing and grabbed Lucien’s face. “Don’t call me that. I’m not sick. I’m the only one around here in my right mind.” He sneered. “I know what you’re doing. You’re stalling, wolf. Well, it’s not going to work. Let’s get started, shall we?”
Lucien gritted his teeth as Mike brought the knife down across his chest in a slow, agonizing cut. The white hot pain bore down on him like he was being burned alive.
Catty screamed.
Lucien gritted his teeth and slammed his eyes closed.
No matter what, he wouldn’t make a sound.
***
They’d made their way inside the Triple X without any trouble, but when they’d tried to gain entrance to the back rooms, security had stopped them. Barrett, Jayden and Damon and quickly knocked them out while the other Guardians looked for the room.
“I heard a female scream.” Zane looked over at Barrett.
“Son of a bitch.” Barrett rounded on Zane and pressed his hand in the middle of his chest. “Zane I want you to stay back and guard the entrance.”
“Why me?”
“Because I fucking said so. Are we clear?” Barrett growled. The last thing he needed was Zane seeing his sister tortured.
“Yeah, sure.” Zane scowled but stayed at the bottom of the stairwell while the rest of them rushed into the tunnel.
Barrett handed Zane his .45. “Take this.” He looked at Damon, Jayden and Jaxon. “the rest of you shift. I want to get in that room and find Lucien and the rest of the Guardians.”
Barrett didn’t want for a confirmation from his men before he began shifting into wolf. The familiar pain and pleasure of his bones lengthening and cartilage shifting shot through his entire body. He could smell Lucien and he could smell blood.
Lifting his head back he growled, shaking the tunnel with his voice. He looked over his shoulder at his men, all in wolf form, except for Zane.
He nodded once and took off down the tunnel.
The tunnel shook around him as his skin was being cut. Lucien trembled as he held in his screams.
He kept his eyes squeezed tight, refusing to look at Catty’s face. He couldn’t see her like that.
At least Barrett knew where to come look for his body. If Barrett got here in time, there would be a chance to save Catty. His death would be the only casualty of this mission.
That’s all he wanted. That’s all he asked for.
As he sucked in a breath to take the next cut into his skin, a monstrous howl echoed in the tunnel, stinging his ears and rattling his brain. Using all the energy he had left he lifted his head expecting to see the devil himself ascending into this horrific hell.
What he didn’t expect was the enormous wolf that was his Pack Master.
Chapter Thirty-Four
Barrett burst in the room with his Guardians right behind him. He spotted Mitchell hanging on the wall barely alive. He searched for and found Lucien being flayed alive.
He rushed for Lucien’s captor and slammed him to the ground. He knocked the knife out of his hand and the blade tinged along the concrete floor.
Barrett saw a flash of fear in the male’s eyes before he lunged for his throat. Bone and cartilage cracked under his teeth as he bit down. He pulled back, ripping the male’s throat out of his neck. Blood spurted as the man’s eyes grew wide with panic and fear. He opened his mouth but Barrett slammed his paw over it.
Barrett wanted blood and vengeance for what was done to his Pack and he was damn well going to get it today.
A female scream had him looking over his shoulder.
Catty Steele.
He spat out the man’s bloodied throat as he watched Damon and Jayden head for the two men who were restraining Catty.
Her fingers found the silver necklace and she tugged it off. She stabbed one of her captures in the eye. He cried out and dropped to his knees as Damon and Jayden descended on them in wolf form. She looked scared as hell but otherwise was unharmed.
Jaxon was already by Lucien, paws on his chest and licking his face to make sure he was alive.
Barrett shifted back into human and looked at Catty.
She met his gaze, unflinching.
“You’re Catty, right?”
“Yes,” she whispered.
“You’ve got about ten seconds before your brother comes running in here. So get it together and assure him you’re okay.” He looked at Lucien. “I need to take care of Lucien.”
Catty beat him first and ran over to Lucien. She brushed his bloodied hair away from his forehead. “Lucien, please open your eyes. Please don’t be dead.”
Barrett reached for the chains that bound Lucien’s hands. “He’s not dead. Not yet.” He pulled the chains apart and Lucien slumped to one side. “Move back. I’ve got to get him down.”
“Jaxon, shift back,” Barrett ordered over his shoulder. He knew he shouldn’t be walking around in front of Zane’s sister buck ass naked but he had bigger concerns than worrying about offending her.
Jaxon shifted back and wrapped his arms around Lucien’s waist to take his weight while Barrett cut his other wrist loose.
Lucien slumped and blood spurted from his chest wounds. Barrett eased him on the ground.
He looked over at Jaxon. “Go cut Mitchell down and check on him. And then go tell Zane we need transportation out of the city. Something that will carry us and our bikes.”
Damon and Jayden killed the two guards and shifted back into human form. Covered in their enemies’ blood, they stood over Lucien with worried expressions.
“We need to get out of here as soon as possible.”
Barrett looked back at his Guardian and silently cursed. “Lucien, you hold on. You hear me.” He looked up at Catty. He knew then she meant something to him. “Tell him, Catty. Tell him he better not fucking die.”
She buried her face against Lucien’s, and whispered to him.
He looked around and grabbed some dirty sheets laying on the floor. He quickly made a bandage. Before he placed them over Lucien’s gaping chest, Barrett stopped. He looked around on the floor and found the knife. Picking it up, he slashed his hand and made a fist.
“What are you doing?” Catty whispered.
“He’ll thank me for this later.” He squeezed his hand over his wound. Blood dripped from his hand into Lucien’s wound. He reached for the makeshift bandage and tied it around Lucien’s chest.
“I can’t get any transportation out of New Orleans. It’s going to be hours before someone gets here.” Zane ran in yelling.
Zane stopped and glanced around the bloody carnage. He looked at Barrett and then at Lucien lying on the floor. Catty lifted her head and met his eyes.
“Katy?” Zane’s voice cracked. “Oh my god, are you okay?” He knelt beside her and pulled her into his chest. “Did you get hurt? What are you doing here?”
“I’m fine, Zane.” She wiped her tears and looked back at Lucien. “Lucien’s not.”
Zane frowned and looked at the Guardian.
“Will he make it?” Zane looked at Barrett.
“Stop talking about me like I’m not here,” Lucien managed to
say.
Everyone in the room came over and knelt beside him.
“It’s just a fucking scratch,” he murmured.
Catty buried her face in the crook of his neck and sobbed.
“It’s more than a scratch, dude.” Jaxon’s tone was low and serious.
“I’ll be all right.” He gave a weak smile.
“So how the fuck are we going to get out of here?” Jayden asked.
“We’re going to walk out of here.”
Everyone turned toward the unfamiliar voice on the other end of the room. Barrett jumped up, ready to shift. His Guardians flanked him, making a protective wall between the danger and Lucien.
“Easy. I don’t want a fight. Least of all with the Arkansas Pack Master.” The figure stepped forward into the light. He was covered in signature head-to-toe black leather and he held his hands up.
“Lorcan.” Barrett cocked his head. “What the fuck do you want? Come to gloat over your brother’s body?”
“Brother?” Jayden looked from Lucien to Lorcan. “Holy shit, Lorcan is Lucien’s brother? Did you guys know this?” He looked around the room and the other Guardians shook their heads.
“Don’t everyone sound so pleased,” Lorcan said. He frowned when his gaze landed on Lucien. “Why the hell is Lucien here? I told him not to come back to Louisiana. It was too dangerous.”
“Well, he didn’t listen. Lucien was on a mission to find my Guardians.” Barrett nodded over his shoulder. “We’ve gotten Mitchell, but Heimy is still missing.”
Lorcan’s eyes darkened. “Not missing. Dead. If I know Boudier, he probably fed his body to the alligators in the swamp.”
“You fucker,” Zane lunged but Barrett caught the werewolf before he could make contact with him.
“What are you doing here, Lorcan? Are the Louisiana Assassins now hunting Guardians? Is that what your Pack Master has assigned you to do?” Rage boiled in Barrett’s veins until he was consumed with hatred.
“You won’t believe me if I told you.” Lorcan looked away and then back at Barrett. “Right now you’ve got to get out of here.” Lorcan pulled out his phone and punched in a text. A few seconds later it dinged with a message.