Hunter

by Kym Grosso

  She peeked around the corner but saw no one. Catching a flash of the Alpha through a window, she ran to the sliding glass door and peered outside. Two males struggled to break free as Hunters’ men restrained them. Irmão. What is he doing here? Without thought to her own safety, she slid open the door, and bounded outside.

  “Tie them up,” the Alpha growled.

  “Kiss the ground, asshole.” A large muscled male, who she recognized as Remus, grunted, shoving the bound male to his knees.

  “Stop,” Willa cried. She should have been calm. Played it cool. But as her feet carried her to him, her heart raced.

  “Willamina?” he asked, blood dripping from his lip.

  “Irmão,” she cried. Tears spilled down her face. It had been years since she’d seen him in person.

  “What are you doing?” Hunter rushed toward Willa. He reached for her and attempted to lift her onto her feet, but she batted him off, caressing her palm over the cheek of the rogue wolf. “What are you doing? This man killed a wolf tonight.”

  “No, no…” she repeated. Willa had known him her entire life. “If he hurt anyone, it would be for good reason.”

  Her gaze drifted to the other man who leered at her.

  “I see the bitch got her some Alpha dick. Hope you enjoyed it because you’re goin’ back to Hell soon,” he spat at her.

  “Fuck you,” Willa screamed. With her heart pounding, she jumped to her feet and swung her fist at him, landing it square on his jaw. Blood sprayed in the air, his head thrashing to the side. As she went to punch him a second time, firm hands wrapped around her waist, pulling her away.

  “We need to question him first, Willa,” the Alpha told her.

  “No, he’s mine. None of the rest of you will touch him.”

  “They don’t know about you, Princess.” A diabolical, bloodstained grin flashed across the rogue’s face.

  “I’m going to kill you,” Willa threatened as she attempted to break free. “Let me go this instant. I have every right to kill him.”

  “Nah, bitch. None of youse is going to have the pleasure. I’m goin’ to Hell and none of you gonna stop me.”

  “You’re going to die,” Willa screamed, lunging toward him. But she was no match for the Alpha as he tightened his grip.

  The wolf broke free of the others, shifting before they had a chance to grab him. Hunter immediately released Willa and transformed, his dominant black wolf snatching the enemy by its neck.

  Viktor flashed behind her, instantly restraining her from going after the rogue. “No!!!”

  Without hesitation, the Alpha clamped his jaw upon the wolf’s neck and violently shook it, tearing away a chunk of its flesh. Blood sprayed into the air as he thrashed its dead body from side to side.

  The Alpha spat the corpse from his mouth and circled around to face the pack of men who had gathered. He gave a victorious howl into the crisp morning air, a warning to any rogues that their death would come next.

  Willa’s heart pounded in her chest, both grateful he’d killed her attacker but angry he’d deprived her of justice, wanting to kill him herself. The sight of his spectacular strength, the dead wolf at his feet, called to her beast. Alpha. The word resonated through her as if he’d spoken it out loud.

  Her focus shifted to the man on his knees. She wrenched away from Viktor and fell to the ground at his side.

  “Julian.”

  “Willamina. We’ve got to get out of here. What are you doing here with this pack?”

  “She’s mine.” The Alpha transformed, towering over them.

  The dominant tone of his voice sent shivers through Willa, but she concealed her reaction. “Let him go. I know this wolf. He’s not capable of whatever you are accusing him of doing.”

  “I’m plenty capable,” Julian challenged. “I restrained this asshole who just had his throat rearranged. I was on my way to bring him to the Alpha when meat head over here,” he glanced at Remus, “and his goons decided to attack me. What are you doing with this guy, anyway?”

  “Julian. Give me a minute.” Willa lifted her gaze to meet Hunter’s hard stare. “Trust me. Hunter. Alpha.” She lowered her eyes. “I swear to you on my life. I know him. He’s a good man. Please release him. I need to talk to him now.” She turned her head and glared at Remus. “Alone.”

  “What are you doing here? Oh Goddess…look at your face.” Willa reached for Julian, gently touching the red welt on his lip.

  “It’s nothing. I’ll shift and I’ll be fine.” He winced and batted her fingers away.

  “But you’re hurt.”

  Julian sniffed and went still, his eyes trained on hers. “You’re different.”

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Willa crossed her arms. She turned toward the window and walked away, her thoughts drawn to Hunter.

  Although she’d convinced him to release Julian, he refused to let him leave Jackson Hole. She hadn’t divulged the details of their relationship but simply told Hunter they were close, and that Julian would never hurt her, insisting she needed time to speak with him privately.

  “I know that look. You’re in trouble. You can’t hide from me, Irmã.” Julian’s voice broke her contemplation.

  Memories flooded back as he spoke their native tongue. “Irmão. It’s been too long, but with good reason.”

  “What have you been up to, Willa? You haven’t texted in over a month. What are you doing in the States?”

  “It doesn’t matter, Julian. What matters is that you’re here. Those rogues. They could’ve killed you.” Or he could kill the Alpha. His powers had always been lethal. If pushed, he’d lose control.

  “They’d never be able to kill me, and you know it. What’s with the Alpha? How well do you know him?” Julian shoved off the bed and leaned on the dresser, inspecting the swelling on his face. “I’m gonna have to shift.”

  “I met him a few days ago.”

  “Moving quickly, aren’t you?”

  “Whatever you thought you saw, you’re mistaken. You need to leave here.” She concealed her expression, concerned he’d suspect the Alpha was her mate.

  “Your scent…”

  “I’ve been to Hell. The Alpha rescued me and was kind enough to let me stay here a few days. I’ll be on my way soon, as should you.” The lie rolled off her tongue easy enough. Confident with her half-truth of a declaration, deflecting talk of Hunter, she turned to face him. “He doesn’t like rogues. Just tell him what he wants to know and I’m sure he’ll let you go.”

  “Whoa, hold up. Willa. Why didn’t you contact me?” Julian strode over to her within seconds and took her hand. “I was up in Idaho when I heard about the explosion. Something about it didn’t sit right with me so I thought I’d check things out. I found that rogue just over the border. It doesn’t matter. What matters is that you didn’t contact me.”

  “We agreed not to contact each other often. It’s too dangerous. Besides, I didn’t have my phone and…” The air deflated from her lungs and she debated how much to tell him. “You know I haven’t been to the States in years. My work in Guatemala…I’ve been busy. I’m helping humans. Staying well hidden. Or at least I thought so.” Her lips drew into a smile that didn’t reach her eyes. “Something happened. And before you say anything…I’m going to fix it.”

  “Who put you in Hell, Willa?” he asked, his voice stone cold.

  “I don’t have names. All I know is that they’re rogue. That guy today. He was one of them. But there were at least five, maybe six. They took me by surprise. But I swear before that it’d been safe. Quiet. No one was ever looking for me and if they were, I always knew hours before they ever showed their faces. The villagers often knew about strangers before I did.”

  “You let humans protect you?” he asked with a smug air.

  “Of course not, but I absolutely used them as a check as to who was in town. Besides, the jungle is a big place and if evil wants to visit, they can always orb in. I live in a pretty remote pla
ce. Aside from drug and human traffickers, I haven’t had to kill too many people. Just the bad ones.” Not sorry. “It’s been decades since I’ve detected any kind of real danger. The paranormal kind. Look, I don’t know how the hell these guys got past the villagers. There were no signs.”

  “What did you do?”

  “What do you mean, what did I do? I fought them of course. But they nabbed me with silver. I couldn’t get free. My wolf, she couldn’t fight them. The next thing I know I’m in Hell. I don’t remember much of it.” Vampires. Demons. Teeth ripping into her flesh, her skin flayed open. She shivered at the nightmarish thoughts, closing her eyes briefly and then reopening them, forcing her rapidly increasing pulse to slow down. “Hell doesn’t matter. What does matter is that Hunter saved me.”

  “I’m not talking about that. What did you do? Something must have attracted them. Please tell me you didn’t…”

  “I experimented with my blood.” Willa bit her lip, anticipating his wrath.

  “Now why would you do that? You know full well that demons would like nothing better than to use you up. The wolves were just looking for a payout.”

  “I’d discovered this plant that accelerates the regeneration of cells. I’d been experimenting just to see if I could duplicate the characteristics of my blood without drawing new samples. I used a drop of my blood. I extracted and manipulated it. I’d refined the technique, adding it to a serum I’d developed from the plant.”

  Julian plowed his fingers through his hair, promptly scrubbing the scruff of his jaw. “This is not good.”

  “There was this child.” She lifted her gaze to meet his; anger flared in his eyes. “Don’t judge me, Julian. There was a little girl. I couldn’t let her die. I attempted every human technique possible. The only other way someone with her injury could have survived is if maybe a vampire had been present…which there wasn’t. I’m sorry but it was the only way. You don’t know what it’s like with the humans.”

  “You saved her?” His cold expression softened.

  “Yes, it worked, but somehow the rogues found out about me. Or demons. You know how they are.”

  “I can’t believe you did this. You’re going to be more exposed now. You’ll have to go into hiding again. Preferably somewhere off this continent.”

  “No. I can’t go. Not yet.” Hunter. “I have to destroy the formula. I have to go back to the village. And then maybe I’ll go to New Orleans where I can blend in. I’m not leaving the States until I find every last wolf who did this to me and kill them. I’m going to make a statement to anyone else who thinks they’re coming at me. I’m not running anymore.”

  “Fine.” He blew out a resigned breath. “But you’re not going without me.”

  Willa gave a sad smile, her heart tightening at his words. Always protective, always her Julian. “You’ll be in danger.”

  “We’ll be in danger,” he replied.

  “I know I fucked up. But these humans…when you see a child…”

  “You’ve always had a big heart.”

  “Hell will put a bigger bounty on our heads if we are together.”

  “It’s been over a hundred years. Let em’ come at me.”

  “The Fae. Some of them won’t like that I walked away.”

  “You didn’t walk in and out. No, it sounds like that’ll be on the Alpha’s head if any of them have a problem with it. Besides, now that you’ve been in Hell, they’re not going to just let you go anyway. I don’t know what demons got hold of you, but they’ll want a taste. You’re like retribution for our entire species.”

  “We could make a deal with a Fae. They could bargain on my behalf,” she suggested.

  “It’s like dealing with the devil. No. You’ll owe them forever. We need an ally. Someone who has the ability to wield dark magick but hasn’t quite gone all bad.”

  “How about a vampire?”

  “We’d need an ancient, but I don’t know if we should do that. They can be just as dangerous as demons.”

  “Hunter rescued someone in Hell. He’s here. He actually was there…outside with us just now.” Viktor. Willa inwardly cringed, immediately regretting her suggestion.

  “What did you just say?” His eyes widened at her statement.

  “It’s why Hunter went to Hell. He was there for Viktor.” Who drank my blood? Better to leave out that tidbit of information. “He’s friends with him.”

  “I don’t like the idea of it. They can be dangerous.” The corners of his lips drew upward into a devious smile. “But I do know a powerful witch who owes me a favor. She can help us give something of value to the demon, something better than you. The only reason Hell wants us is because the Fae is pissed about something our ancestors did a thousand years ago. If we can appease them, we’ll be free to live as we want.”

  “I’m not sure I would live any different.” Willa reflected on her solo travels, her kindness toward humans. “This world needs our help.”

  “We are all born as we are. Humans must walk their own path. But if we do this…go to this witch, we can at least have a choice again.”

  “I’ve got to go to Guatemala first. I need to erase any trace of what I’ve done with my blood. The plant alone, though…the research must continue. I have to make sure it falls into the right hands.”

  “Where’s your research?”

  “In the jungle.”

  “What about these rogues? Do you remember anything else? Something they may have said?” he asked, changing the subject.

  “I don’t know. The only person who knew about it in the village was Yoselin and she’s dead. But I know full well that a miraculous recovery would stir people to talk. The only other person who knew about the plant is a colleague of mine in New Orleans, but it wouldn’t make sense that she told anyone. Scientists make plant and animal discoveries all the time where there is potential to cure disease. I guess what I’m saying is that it’s nothing unusual. Nothing that would scream paranormal to a human. It’s not like we talked often. Obviously, I don’t have my phone here, so I haven’t been able to try to contact her. I’ve been in Hell for a month. I could ask Hunter if I can use his computer and log in to my email. Even if she was the one who outed me, it’s likely she’s dead. It’s not like the wolves or demons are going to leave her alone.”

  “We’ll worry about her later. I agree. First, we’ve got to get rid of any evidence you still have that you used your blood. So, if it’s written down somewhere…”

  “It is. You have to understand. I was doing research. I wasn’t stupid enough to leave the papers in my house though. I have them hidden.” Willa turned to him, knowing he wouldn’t accept the Alpha in her life. “I’ve promised he could go with me.”

  “What are you thinking? If you’ve got some idea about you and the Alpha, you know we can’t mate,” Julian stated with no emotion in his voice.

  Willa noted the sadness flickering in his eyes. He quickly recovered, the hint of his pain disappearing as if it had never existed. She knew all too well the familiar sense of loss. She’d long ago accepted her fate, but her entire world had shifted last night within the Alpha’s arms.

  “Our lives have been fulfilling, yes? Whatever we have done has been our destiny.” She deliberately withheld sharing her suspicions about the Alpha. Mate.

  “It’s been too long, Willa. I’ve missed you.”

  Julian wrapped his arms around her, and she fell into his embrace. Home. Tears rolled from her eyes, the comfort of family. He’d been everything growing up, and her separation from Julian had broken her heart.

  “Goddess, I can’t let you go again even if I wanted to. This has to end. We’ll find a way,” he assured her.

  “No more running for us. No more hiding.”

  Julian was back in her life under the most unexpected circumstances. Willa reined in her emotions, swallowing a gentle sob. As she clung to him, she never heard the creak of the door.

  “What in the hell? Step away from the female or you di
e,” she heard Hunter growl. Waves of his anger rolled through her as if they were her own. She startled, breaking free of the embrace. She threw herself in front of Julian, shielding him from the feral Alpha.

  “He’s not hurting me,” she told Hunter, defiantly glaring at him.

  “I don’t care what he’s doing. No male should be touching my…”

  Willa’s stomach flipped as his words lingered. No, don’t say it , she inwardly willed. Her pulse raced. This is not happening….not in front of Julian.

  “Your what?” Julian asked, his voice equally terse. “You just met her. She’s nothing to you.”

  “She’s my responsibility. Whoever you are…”

  “A friend,” she lied. “He’s a friend.”

  Hunter’s heated stare painted over both of them, his face tensed in anger. “I don’t care what he is. You’re mine and I want him away from you.” He cocked his head, studying Julian. “Lying doesn’t become you, doctor. This wolf is more than a friend. Who he is I don’t know yet, but I don’t care. He’s not staying here. I should have never made the mistake of leaving you alone with him.”

  “I told you I know him. That’s reason enough. Besides, you can’t tell me what to do.” Willa released a pensive sigh. “Look, I appreciate you saving me, but you can’t start telling me who I can and can’t see.”

  “I don’t have time to play games. Over a dozen vampires were killed and we’ve got significant human casualties. The one wolf who knows where his buddies are is dead by my own hands. And now this. You in his arms. I won’t have it.”

  “What is wrong with you? Just because we had sex, that doesn’t give you the right to…” Her voice trailed to silence, inwardly cringing at her choice of words.