Dual Embrace: 3 (Shadowpeak Wolves)

by Lorna Jean Roberts

  “Wait, aren’t they from Texas?” Cain asked.

  Dusty nodded. “Yep.”

  “What the hell do they want from us? Why would they try to hurt Laney?”

  “They’re not.” She took a sip of her coffee. “Someone else is.”

  “Well, who?”

  “Don’t know.” She shook her head then told Cain everything.

  “He thinks we have a traitor?” Cain growled.

  “Yeah. It makes me feel sick that one of the pack could betray us like that. But how else did he get that tip-off?”

  “It’s worse than that,” Cain said coldly.

  “What do you mean?” she asked.

  “Not all the pack knew what we were doing. Just the enforcers.”

  Now she really felt sick. “Jesus.”

  Cain ran a hand over his head. “Sounds like he spilled his guts. Guess he didn’t have any reason to keep quiet.”

  “None, except his wife. Edwards reckons he doesn’t care what happens to him, but he wants to get his wife out of their hands.”

  “Did he have any idea where they’re holding her?”

  Dusty frowned and shook her head. “Edwards thinks the cabin they’re hiding her in can’t be far away. He was blindfolded when they transported him from there into Landon. But he estimates they drove fifteen minutes on rough ground then twenty minutes on a main highway. They took off the blindfold on the north side of town.”

  Brynn nodded. “I’ve been looking. Couldn’t find anywhere that fit that description, but I’m going to go out again.”

  Dusty hugged him and squeezed tight. “Be careful.”

  Cain stared at him intensely. “What she said. You find them, you come back for me.”

  Brynn rolled his eyes and with a salute to them both, disappeared.

  Dusty sighed as Cain’s phone rang.

  “Morning… What? Are you kidding me?” His face paled slightly with fury. “Yeah, yeah… Yeah… All right.”

  He hung up and looked at Dusty solemnly. “That was Rye. Edwards and Tina are dead.”

  She gaped at him, her mouth flapping. “W-what?”

  “Tina was inside, guarding Edwards. Josiah was outside. Rye found Josiah. He was shot from behind in the stomach and shoulder. He must have hit his head when he fell and knocked himself out. Either the shooter assumed he was dead or didn’t care. Luckily, Rye got to him in time and he’ll live. Tina didn’t have a chance. She took a bullet to the head at close range. So did Edwards. Except Tina was shot outside the cabin.”

  “Outside the cabin?” Dusty asked in amazement. “Why would she leave the cabin when she was guarding a prisoner? If she had to leave she’d have called for backup.”

  “If she had time,” Cain said grimly.

  “You’re thinking someone drew her out of the cabin. But that would mean…” Her voice dropped off as the implications became clear.

  “It was someone she knew, probably someone she trusted. They drew her out, shot her then killed Edwards.”

  “What about scents?”

  He shook his head. “So many of the pack have been into that cabin, used it for storage, there were too many. And what’s to say the shooter touched anything? If Tina left the door open, they could have shot Edwards without entering the cabin.”

  “Jesus. Do we really have another traitor?”

  They’d dealt with a traitor recently. Justin had been third-in-command and Laney’s brother—although she hadn’t known it at the time. He’d attempted to kill Laney so he could gain control of the pack. It seemed inconceivable that they would have another traitor.

  “What the hell is happening? God, Tina,” she cried. Pain slashed through her.

  “Come on,” Cain sighed, looking sad. “Let’s head over to headquarters.”

  *

  Brynn was grateful he didn’t need to breathe to live. But the woman did. And if he didn’t get her out of the burning cabin now she was a goner. Brynn grabbed the slight female lying bound and beaten on the floor and sprinted from the room.

  He exited the small structure just as the roof fell in, the flames greedily eating what little was left. Brynn carried Hanna Edwards into the forest, wishing he could transport a human body. He hid her in the woods and pulled out the phone Cain had bought him.

  “Cain, I need a pickup. I found the woman but she’s in a bad way. Better bring your healer.” He gave him directions before ending the call and looked down at the girl. Still breathing. He supposed that was good, although from the look of her injuries she might wish otherwise. Her skin was covered in bruises, burns and soot.

  Thirty minutes later, Cain, Marcus, Rye and Mason arrived. Cain nodded at him, grasping his shoulder in a tight squeeze. Heat from Cain’s touch surged through Brynn’s body. Dusty might be the focus of his arousal, but there was no denying his feelings for Cain. He was attracted to him. Intrigued by him.

  He loved him.

  As Mason got Hanna ready for transport, Brynn filled them in on what he’d found. Sirens sounded in the distance.

  “Damn,” Cain swore. “Someone must have seen the smoke and called 9-1-1. They’ll be here soon. Any evidence will be completely flushed away.”

  “Don’t think you’d have gotten much anyway,” Brynn replied. “There’s really nothing left.”

  “Marcus, take the woman and the doc and get them out of here,” Rye ordered. He looked at Cain. “We’ll stay here—see what we can find before the humans get here. Then we’ll watch the cabin, see if anyone comes back. We can take it in shifts.”

  Cain nodded grimly. “Brynn, you go home. Tell Dusty what’s going on.”

  Brynn frowned. “I’ll stay with you.”

  Cain grabbed his shoulders and, pulling him close, kissed him. He pulled back slightly to stare down into Brynn’s eyes. “Go,” he said huskily. “Dusty will hate being out of the action.”

  Brynn looked over at Rye—shocked Cain would kiss him in public. But the other werewolf was paying them no attention. He was already studying the smoldering remains. The sirens sounded close.

  Brynn smiled at Cain before transporting himself to their house.

  “Dusty?” he called out. The smell of burning hit him and he raced into the kitchen, coming to a skidding stop in front of Dusty as she stood in the middle of the smoky room, waving around a dishtowel.

  “Where’s the fire?” he yelled.

  “There,” she yelled, pointing at something black and charred in a pot on the stovetop. Brynn grabbed it. Ignoring the way it burned into his palm, he quickly disappeared outside, reappearing by a small creek about half a mile away.

  When he came back to the house, most of the doors and windows were open. He stepped up beside Dusty, who was still flapping around a dishtowel, her shoulders slumped, her hair in wild disarray, flour and other bits of food he couldn’t name coating her clothes.

  “So I guess we’re having toast for dinner?”

  Her glare was hot enough to light him on fire.

  “Your hand?” she asked, grabbing his wrist. “Did you burn yourself?”

  He shook his head, showing her his clear, white palm. “Already healed.”

  “Where’d you throw it?” she asked.

  “The creek.”

  She nodded and threw the dishtowel on the counter, looking around in dismay. “Shit. Cain’s going to kill me.”

  “Cain is still at the cabin where I found Edwards’ wife. The humans were almost there when I left. He and Rye are going to wait for a while, see if anyone comes back. I think we can get this cleaned up before he gets back.”

  “So you found her?”

  He nodded.

  “Thank God. Is she okay?”

  “I’m no doctor but I think she will be okay. She was pretty badly beaten.”

  “Bastards,” Dusty snarled. Sighing, she looked around the dirty kitchen. “You really think we have time to clean this up?”

  She looked at him so hopefully he would have promised her the world.


  “Yes, my own.”

  An hour later the place was spotless and Dusty lay on the sofa, a hand over her forehead.

  “I don’t know how other people do it, this whole cooking and cleaning thing. Imagine if you had to take care of children as well.” She looked up at him aghast. He chuckled and sat beside her.

  “We should really go help Cain.”

  Brynn had told her all the details while they’d cleaned. “Nothing we can do, hellcat. Nothing they can do either, but they didn’t want to give up.”

  “Let’s hope Hanna lives.”

  The last update they’d received on her condition was that she was stable but had yet to wake up. She had a large bump on her head, and Mason was concerned she might have swelling. They were transporting her to the werewolf hospital in New York.

  “So what would you like to do?” Dusty asked.

  She looked up tiredly. Poor darling, she really was exhausted.

  “Do you know what I would really like to do?” he asked her.

  Dusty shook her head.

  “Hold you.”

  Brynn pulled her up from the sofa, then lay down and tugged her until she lay on top of him. He tucked her head into his chest and kissed the top of her head. Ten minutes later, he was smiling as he heard her breathing slow and sleep overtake her.

  “Well, this is a surprise.”

  Brynn opened his eyes to find Cain standing over them. Dusty snuffled against him and Brynn rubbed her back, soothing her.

  “I must have fallen asleep,” Brynn whispered.

  Cain rubbed the back of his neck tiredly. “Come on, bed.” He reached down and picked Dusty up. She snuggled into Cain’s chest, murmuring his name before falling back asleep.

  Brynn stood and followed his family into the bedroom. Standing in the doorway, he watched Cain place Dusty in the middle of the large bed.

  Cain stripped and, hopping into bed, pulled her into his arms so he spooned her.

  Not for the first time, Brynn questioned whether he truly deserved this. After everything he’d done in his life, all the people he’d slept with, stolen their energy. All the chaos and trouble he’d caused.

  “Brynn, come to bed,” Cain ordered. Brynn climbed in on the other side of Dusty. Cain leaned up and over her to kiss Brynn gently.

  “Everything will still be there in the morning.”

  Lord, he hoped so.

  He let his worries slip away and took what was offered. Because whether he deserved them or not, he wouldn’t be letting them go.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Dusty raised her glass and drank deep from the rum within. The flames of the pyre burned higher, hotter. She could scarcely believe that Tina was dead. Quiet, dedicated Tina. Nothing had been too much for her. Dusty hadn’t been truly close to her—they hadn’t had that kind of relationship. But they’d understood each other and she was going to miss her.

  Brynn cuddled close and she smiled at him, marveling at how right it felt having him in her life. Two men. Two mates. If anyone had told her a year ago that her life would end up like this she’d have laughed her ass off.

  But she wouldn’t trade what she had for the world.

  However, her happiness wasn’t complete quite yet. She was still worried that the pack wouldn’t accept Brynn. Or that he couldn’t survive living here. She didn’t like the fact that he left so often. She wished he would just take his energy needs from her and Cain.

  What if it had been Brynn or Cain up on that pyre, dead, their body turning to ashes? They’d both become so important to her, so entrenched in her heart that she couldn’t imagine ever living without them.

  “You okay?” Cain asked as he crouched down beside her.

  “I just want this over. I want these bastards punished.”

  “We all do. Is that all that’s wrong? Or is there something else?”

  She stared at them both. “When it’s all over, what do you think will happen with us?”

  “What do you mean, hellcat?” Brynn asked.

  It felt wrong talking about this at Tina’s funeral. Not that werewolves mourned, they celebrated life. Even now, packmates around them were talking, sharing stories they remembered about Tina.

  “Come for a walk,” Cain suggested.

  Dusty grasped both of their hands and let them tug her up. Luckily she hadn’t done any further damage to her leg when she’d jumped out of Laney’s living room window.

  They strode deeper into the forest. Dusty plopped onto a fallen log. Cain and Brynn rested beside her, showing no discomfort over sitting on the cold, damp ground.

  “I’m scared.” She couldn’t look at them, instead staring down at her feet.

  “About what, sweetheart?” Cain asked.

  She took a deep breath. “About losing you, either of you. I know I can’t stop some things. I can’t wrap you both up in cotton wool any more than you can me. But losing Tina, it just makes me realize how much you both mean to me. The thought of anything happening to either of you. Of one of you leaving…” she trailed off. Cain placed a hand on her thigh while Brynn brought the palm of her hand to his mouth and kissed it.

  “Nothing will happen to us,” Brynn said quietly. “I will make sure of that.”

  “Will you? You’re only here part of the time. I know you have your reasons, but can’t you try to stay for longer periods of time? We haven’t felt any side effects from you taking energy from us. If we feel too exhausted we can tell you. I feel like—like you don’t truly want to be here.”

  “No, no, I want to be here,” Brynn said urgently. “When I’m not here, the two of you are all I think about. I just hope you don’t ever hate me for what I did to you.”

  “You didn’t do anything to us,” Cain snarled. “Being bonded to you, to both of you has been the most amazing experience. I feel happier, more content than I have ever felt in my life. For you to regret that it happened is an insult.”

  Brynn looked shocked. “I don’t regret it. I feel exactly the same way.” He took in a deep breath. “You’re right. I just haven’t been thinking about this in the right way.”

  “So you’ll stick around for longer periods?” Dusty asked hopefully. “I can understand if you miss Hell and have to go back to visit. But don’t go back because you’re scared you’ll hurt us.”

  “I could kill the two of you if I’m not careful.”

  “You haven’t yet,” Cain protested quietly. “I don’t feel drained when we feed you energy. We’re werewolves. We have more energy than sense half the time.”

  Dusty snorted with laugher.

  “Besides, I’ve been thinking about it,” he continued. “Werewolves live in a pack because they need the other members to keep themselves centered, sane. You said that the energy you got from us was richer than anything you’ve ever felt. I wonder if that’s because of the pack. Perhaps we feed energy to each other, and in turn can feed you.”

  “So I’m stealing energy from the whole pack? I’m sure that will endear me to them.”

  “There’s only one way to find out what they think,” Cain said sensibly. “I’m going to talk to Cooper, petition that you be formally accepted as part of the pack.”

  Brynn frowned. “And have to follow their rules? I don’t know.”

  Dusty clasped his hand. “Even if it means staying with us? With Cassie?”

  “It’s asking a lot. And if you can’t, we understand. We support you.” Cain held his hand over the two of theirs. A sharp shock of delight raced through Dusty’s body.

  Brynn took a deep breath, kneeling before the two of them on the forest floor. He rested a hand on each of their knees.

  “I’ve lived for a thousand years and happiness isn’t something I thought I would ever find, let alone with two werewolves. I love you both. But you both need to promise that if you start to get tired, dizzy, whatever, that you will tell me. I can go back to Hell for a while, not that I particularly want to. It’s not a place I like to be anymore. But it will stop me drainin
g you both. And because the pack gives you what you both need, I will do my best to fit in. If they will have me.”

  Cain grinned, a flash of white in the dark of the forest. “I don’t think anyone expects you to fit in exactly. But as long as you work for the good of the pack instead of against it, they’d be fools to turn you away.”

  “Ah, so they will put up with me because they can use me.” He smiled.

  “Hey, it’s the only reason they put up with me,” Dusty half-joked. Both men grabbed a hand, squeezing tight.

  “Soon you’ll get the plate and disc out. Then you’ll be back to normal,” Brynn said.

  Dusty shook her head. “Sorry, didn’t mean to draw it back to me. We were talking about you.”

  Brynn shook his head. “Enough about me. I’m going to stay. We are all going to live happily ever after, end of story.”

  Dusty grinned. “Wonder how many demons say they’re going to live happily ever after?”

  He stood and kissed her. “Enough, you little minx.”

  “I love both of you so much,” she said.

  “We love you too,” they both replied.

  “And each other?” she asked.

  Her two men looked at each other. “Yes,” Cain said deeply as Brynn nodded.

  “Then kiss. I love it when you kiss, it makes me so hot.”

  Cain quirked an eyebrow at Brynn. “Well, what do you say? Shall we do as the lady asks?”

  Dusty snorted. “Lady, shmady,” she muttered disparagingly. Cain leaned down and kissed Brynn. Her clit twitched, her breath coming faster as she sat back on the log and watched them.

  Cain moved closer, kneeling on the ground so their bodies were flush, his dark hands covering Brynn’s pale face. Cain ran his hands down over Brynn’s neck to his shoulders as Brynn’s arms surrounded Cain’s trim waist.

  Cain pulled back and they both looked at her.

  “Good enough, my own?” Brynn asked.

  “More,” she begged breathlessly. “Please. I want to see you both naked, touching each other. Please.”

  “And what do we get if we do this?” Cain asked.

  “Whatever you want,” she replied.

  “Hmm,” Brynn said thoughtfully. “Endless possibilities. I accept.”