Quinn’s hands fluttered as fat tears streamed down his cheeks. “I—I don’t…. I—Sean, I’m scared. Please, tell me what to do.”
“Sean wears my Alpha bite. What do you think he’d want you to do?”
Though he tried to be patient with Quinn, it wasn’t helping. Quinn was near panic, and Gareth didn’t have any more time. Quinn screamed as Gareth grabbed him around his much-too-thin waist and tossed him over his shoulder. As soon as he was positioned, Quinn’s body went slack. He was breathing, so Gareth assumed he’d passed out. That was probably for the best. The kid was too near a meltdown to keep it together. The problem now was if someone saw them, Gareth would have to drop Sean and Quinn to protect them. Still, that was a bridge to cross if necessary. It was a mile to the Escalade, and they needed to move, now.
He rushed out the door, then zipped around the buildings. He made it as far as the front gate before the alarm sounded. It didn’t surprise Gareth that instead of rushing to Ryker’s aid, his people hid in their homes, probably cowering in fear, or maybe they were hoping someone had finally come to rescue them. He swore he would be back.
Gareth was rushing down the road when he was tackled from behind, knocking him and his precious cargo to the ground. Gareth pushed up off the ground and spun to face the man he believed was the monster of Sean’s dreams. He was enormous, at least seven feet tall, with long dark hair that flowed to the middle of his back. His eyes were… maniacal. That was the only word Gareth could come up with to describe them. Dark, nearly black, they glinted in the moonlight.
“You son of a bitch. You come onto my lands and try to take my property?”
He stalked closer, his gaze locked on Sean.
“They’re not your property. Sean is my pack and my mate. You’re not going to get him back.”
From behind came another gargantuan man. Not quite as big as Ryker, but definitely not someone Gareth would want to tangle with. The two of them together would be…. As much as Gareth hated to admit it, he was outclassed, overpowered, and unless he learned to fight in the next few seconds, he was a dead man. Sean would become Ryker’s slave, and their baby would belong to this bastard.
“Is that fear I see in your eyes, Alpha?” Ryker swiped at Gareth, his hand a claw. Gareth was shocked at the fact that Ryker could transform bits of himself. “What do you say, Kristopher? Can you smell his terror? In a few seconds, he’ll probably wet himself.”
They approached from different angles, and Gareth’s mind went blank on how he could fight both men. His wolf howled that they had to protect their mate, but against these men, Gareth feared it would be impossible.
From behind them, down the long dark road, came the sound of vehicles, moving fast. Fuck, what if Ryker had more people? Gareth cursed himself. He’d always been a thinker, the one who solved problems, and right now, he had no fucking clue what to do. He positioned himself between Sean and Ryker, but that left Quinn unprotected, which Kristopher took advantage of.
He grabbed Quinn’s leg and hauled him off the ground. “You can’t take my toy.” He rubbed Quinn’s ass. “Though yours will probably be a lot more fun to play with.”
Gareth opened his mouth to say something, but then the headlights of dozens of cars illuminated the area. Doors slammed, and the sound of feet rushing toward them had Gareth whirling to face the new threat.
“Need help, Alpha?”
Lyram strode forward, larger than life. He moved fast, crossing the distance before anyone could register it. He nailed Kristopher with two sharp jabs to the stomach, shocking him into dropping Quinn. When Kristopher stepped closer, Lyram snarled, which had Kristopher stopping in his tracks.
“No one touches any of them.”
Relief swept through Gareth as Lyram stood his ground against Kristopher. When Gareth glanced over his shoulder, he was shocked to find the entire pack shifted and stalking closer.
Gareth rose to his full height. “This is my pack, Ryker. Where’s yours?”
Ryker sneered. “I don’t need them. You’re trying to take my property.”
“Sean is ours, you fucker.” Lyram’s eyes narrowed. “We protect what belongs to us.”
Dark eyes became slits as Ryker’s lip curled back to show off some wicked fangs. “Then kill us now, because if you don’t, we’re going to keep coming.”
Lyram stepped forward and cracked his knuckles. “If that’s what you want.”
There was something wrong here, and Gareth was the only one who seemed to see it. “Lyram, stop.”
“But Alpha—”
“Grab Sean’s brother and let’s get out of here.”
“What? We have the chance to finish this!”
A small piece of Gareth was pleased by Lyram’s new attitude. He apparently hadn’t noticed it either, which made things even better.
“At what price? We don’t know who is loyal to Ryker. If we kill him, who’s to say the next person won’t be worse? We’ve beat him, and now we have to take our men home.” He turned to Ryker. “Don’t think this is over, because I promise you, it’s not.”
The grin Ryker gave sent a chill down Gareth’s spine. “Oh, I know it’s not. Sean’s going to belong to me, and the child will be mine.”
“Over my dead body.”
“It’s like you read my mind.” Ryker backed away, the grin never leaving his face. “Kristopher, let’s go.”
As the two slipped into the inky darkness, Gareth feared that the worst was still to come.
Chapter Seventeen
SEAN’S STOMACH heaved as he came awake. He feared he would open his eyes and still be Ryker’s prisoner. When a hand stroked over his cheek, he shuddered and twisted away.
“Hey, it’s okay. You’re home and you’re safe.”
Sean opened his eyes and found Gareth smiling down at him. “I’m home?” He jolted up. “I have to go back. He’s got Quinn!”
“Your brother is safe. He’s asleep in your old room. When we got home, Dani took one look at him and told us all to, and I quote, back the fuck off. She guided him into the kitchen, where she has been trying to get him to eat. So far, Quinn’s resisting. She isn’t giving up, though.”
“You brought him home?” Sean sagged back against the bed. “Thank you.”
“You never have to thank me, Sean. Quinn’s family, and this is his home for as long as he wants.”
Tears pricked Sean’s eyes. “They did things to him. Bad things.”
“I know. I saw his stomach.”
“Wait.” Sean sat up again, only this time he swung his feet over the edge of the bed. “What’s wrong with his stomach?”
Gareth turned away, looking decidedly uncomfortable. “I thought you knew. They…. They branded him, Sean. Ryker and Kristopher burned a wolf symbol into Quinn’s stomach.”
Sean’s eyes went wide a moment before he leaned over and hurled. He gagged and retched as he sobbed. His brother was the purest, sweetest person Sean had ever known. How could anyone do this to him? It took him a moment to realize Gareth was rubbing in soft circles on his back.
He sat up, scrubbed a hand over his mouth, and leaned against Gareth. “I’m sorry.”
“For what? I had to force myself not to do that when Quinn showed it to me.” He stood and pulled Sean with him. “Come on. Let’s get you cleaned up.”
He wrapped Sean’s hand in his and led him to the bathroom. While Sean brushed, Gareth ran a bath in the huge claw-foot tub. He dropped a couple of beads in and swirled the water, which turned a light purple. The air was scented with lavender and vanilla, which Sean inhaled deeply.
Gareth turned and smiled at Sean. “Get in and relax.”
“What about you?”
“Who do you think is going to be washing you?”
A dipped toe skimming the water helped Sean determine the temperature was perfect. He got in and sank down until the water touched his chin. Gareth reached into the cabinet and pulled out a washcloth, then knelt beside the tub. He wetted the cloth, th
en reached over, took some lavender soap, and squeezed a generous dollop onto it.
“Have a thing for lavender?”
“It’s Dani’s. She sent it up, telling me it would help you. I used it to wash you when we got home. I had to get his smell off you.” He touched Sean gently, worshipfully. “I could have lost you today.”
There was strained emotion in Gareth’s voice.
Sean bit his lip. “I know. I wanted you to stay away, and then I saw Quinn, and the only thing I could think of was I hoped you’d come to rescue him. Ryker…. They raped Quinn. He was passed around the pack, and Ryker said that since they had me, he would do the same to me and get rid of Quinn. He…. Oh God, Gareth. They ate my parents and said they were going to eat Quinn.”
The growl started low but grew in volume until it became a roar. Gareth’s face was a mask of pain, anger, and frustration. “I should have been able to do something. An Alpha is supposed to be able to fight. It’s how life has always been, but I thought I knew a better way. I wanted to kill Ryker for what he did to you, and then after meeting Quinn, I wanted it even more. But I knew I couldn’t take them. I’ve never been in a fight, and my inability to do so could have cost me my family.” He let his chin drop onto his chest. “I’m sorry I failed you. If the pack hadn’t shown up, I don’t know what I would have done.”
“The pack?” Had Sean somehow called them to help him? He didn’t think it could be done over hundreds of miles, but then again, he hadn’t known he could get pregnant either.
“And before you ask, no, it was nothing you did. They pinged the GPS in the Escalade and came after us. All of us. Lyram told me he wouldn’t allow Ryker to have what belonged to the pack.”
The memory of what happened seared through Sean. “He slit Caleb’s throat!”
A rub of the cloth over Sean’s chest, and a soft smile. “Hey, calm down. I told you, everything is okay. Caleb is fine.”
That wasn’t possible. “But how?”
Gareth shrugged. “Somehow Lyram pulled Caleb through his first shift. It was incredible to watch. Somehow my Beta became an Alpha in his own right.”
Though Gareth had said it, Sean was still so afraid. He’d seen Caleb fall, watched as blood spilled from the wound Kristopher inflicted. “You swear Caleb is okay?”
“He’s okay. He hasn’t come out of his wolf form yet. Lyram insisted he stay until the damage they caused had fully healed. Caleb looked at me like I was going to say otherwise, but Lyram laughed when I told him I agreed he needed to heal up.” Gareth grinned. “Little bastard pissed in my shoe.” His cheeks flushed. “Lyram feels more than protective for Caleb. He said…. Well, he told Caleb he needed him to pull through so they could talk.”
Sean breathed easy for the first time in a long while. “What’s going to happen now?”
“I wish I knew. Ryker’s going to try something, I know it. Lyram is pissed that we didn’t kill him on the spot, and I think Lyram probably could have done it, because he was so angry. But there was something nagging at me, and I told him to back off.”
“Why? What’s wrong?”
Gareth sighed. “You said that there were a lot of bad Alphas, and after Ryker offered money for you, I had to wonder if Ryker had alliances with any of them. Would they come after us if we took him out? Was there a worse threat right around the corner?”
“Then what do we do?”
Sean knew the answer, but he still didn’t want to explain to Gareth what he knew, because once he did, their lives would be over. And Sean was finally starting to love life again.
SEAN RAPPED gently on the door, a war within himself. He was uncertain if he wanted Quinn to answer or not. It had been three days since Gareth had brought them home, and though he’d spent some time with Caleb, he hadn’t seen Quinn at all. On the one hand, he was desperate to see him, but on the other, he didn’t know if he could handle the pain his brother had undergone.
“Come in.”
The first thing Sean noticed was the room was pitch-black. The curtains were drawn tight, with not even a stray shaft of light filtering through. It didn’t matter, though. Sean could see Quinn plain as day. He sat on the bed, covers drawn up to his chin, his eyes wide and filled with fear.
“Hey, Quinn.” He stepped into the room and closed the door. “How are you?”
“Master is going to be angry. He’s going to punish me again.” Quinn’s lip trembled as he rocked back and forth. “Why won’t they let me go back to him?”
Sean hurried across the room and sat on the bed. “Gareth talked to you about this. Ryker isn’t your master. He’s barely even human.”
“But he’s Master. He’s supposed to be obeyed in all things. That’s his rule, and I broke it.” A soft sigh escaped Quinn. “Please, let me go home.”
“You are home. With me, where you belong.”
Quinn shook his head harshly. “This isn’t home. They won’t let me do anything! That woman, Dani, she keeps bringing me food, telling me I need to eat. But Master—”
“Stop saying that! Ryker is a monster. He killed our parents. Do you get that? He fucking….” No, he wasn’t going to tell Quinn what happened to their parents. It was bad enough Ryker had them killed, but if he cooked them, then Quinn might have…. No, he definitely wasn’t going to tell him. “He would have done the same to you.” As soon as he realized how harsh he’d been, Sean was swamped with regret. “He hurt you, and I wasn’t there to protect you.”
They were quiet for a few moments, and then Quinn spoke up. “I don’t know what to do. At Master’s house, I had jobs to do and needed to see to the… needs of the pack. I thought when I got here, I was going to be doing the same thing, but no one comes except Dani, and when I offered to satisfy her needs, she started to cry. I—I’m lost. I don’t know who I am or where I belong. All I know is I’m the property of Master, and when he finds me, he’s going to hurt me again.”
Sean vowed that Ryker would never again get his hands on Quinn. No one would.
“Please, trust me. This is home. With me, my mate, and….” Sean reached for Quinn’s hand and placed it on his stomach. “Our baby. Your nephew.”
“Baby?” Quinn’s brow furrowed. “But men can’t have babies.”
“Apparently, I can.” When Quinn started to draw back, Sean held his hand still. “This is why you need to stay here, Quinn. This baby I have inside me? He’s your family. I’m your family. We need you. As for what you should do, that’s easy. Let Dani feed you. You need it to grow strong again. If for no other reason than you’re going to have to babysit on occasion.”
Quinn turned away. “I’m afraid all the time. Everyone here scares me because I don’t know what they expect, and when I think what will happen when Master finds me, that scares me too.”
“Okay, you want to know what’s going to help? Let me show you.” Sean got up and went to the other side of the bed. He lifted the comforter and slid under it, then pulled Quinn close. “You’re going to let your brother hold you, so you can find the comfort you haven’t had in far too long.”
“I don’t need it anymore. My wolf is dead.”
“If there is one thing I’m absolutely certain of, it’s that your wolf is still buried inside you. He wants to come out and be part of you again. In order for that to happen, you need to stop being afraid, and the only way to do that is to recognize your family. Now shut up and let me hold you.”
The sigh was soft as Quinn snuggled in. Sean held him firmly but as gently as he could. He could feel the bones of Quinn’s ribs against his arm, and when he laid his head against Quinn’s back, the bones in his shoulders protruded. Ryker had much to answer for, and Sean finally knew what he had to do to help set things right.
GARETH PULLED the door to Quinn’s bedroom shut. He was grateful that Sean had gone to see Quinn, and he hoped the fact that the two were cuddling together on the bed would help Quinn start the healing process. When Dani had told Gareth what Quinn offered to do for her, he had been horri
fied and appalled. He knew it was all on Ryker, but it tore at him because he understood what his hesitancy to take others into the pack had cost.
“Alpha?”
He turned to find Dani standing behind him, her hand wrapped in a dish towel.
“What happened? Are you okay?”
“I’m fine. I broke a glass while I was washing. I was thinking about Quinn and squeezed the stupid thing, and it shattered.” She reached for Gareth’s hand. “You did a good thing bringing him home with you.”
“I wouldn’t leave him there. He’s family. Mine and Sean’s, and yours and Caleb’s.” He sighed. “I think we need to have the first meeting of our new council. There are things we need to discuss.” Now that he had the six members he wanted, it was time.
Dani gave him a sharp nod and hustled downstairs.
Gareth opened the door once more. He could hear Quinn’s gentle breathing, and he could see that Sean was looking directly at him. He stepped into the room and tiptoed to the bed. “Thank you for connecting with him. He was afraid of everyone, even Dani. Maybe now he’ll eat.”
“He will. I promise.” Sean’s eyes drifted shut. “We need to talk later.”
“Okay. I’m heading to the first council meeting, but I don’t know that will take long. Can it wait until we’re done?”
Sean nodded. “I’d like to stay with Quinn a while longer.”
“Take all the time you need.” Gareth leaned in for a kiss. “I’ll see you soon.”
Warmth filled Gareth as he left the room. Things were falling into place so easily now. Unfortunately, once the council meeting was done, life in the sleepy little hamlet of Lydon would never be the same.
His phone buzzed, and Gareth glanced at the screen. A message from Dani, letting him know everyone had arrived. It was faster than Gareth expected, but no sense in letting things stew. He went into the bedroom and slapped on some deodorant, then brushed his teeth. Fine, he was procrastinating, but…. He sighed. Time to face the music.
The Night Wolf Page 16
