by Stormy Glenn
Boone had never been so thankful for something in his life.
The man’s smirk was as evil as Boone remembered. “Had you worried there for a minute, didn’t I?”
“Who are you?”
Boone screamed as that intense pain ripped through him once again. It wasn’t until he was sagging from the chains attached to the wall, panting heavily, that he realized the pain came from a red-hot poker being pulled along his skin.
He wasn’t sure a shift would heal those wounds.
“I’ve been waiting to meet you, Boone, you and your brothers. Hugh. Simon. Otto. Sawney. Reece. Tre. Trevor.” With each name he called out, the man jabbed the poker into some part of Boone’s body. He seemed to enjoy hearing Boone scream. “And all the brothers you have yet to discover. There are so many of them. Your father was quite prolific.”
“He was a bastard,” Boone spit out through gritted teeth. This guy was kind of a bastard, too.
“True.” The man walked over to the fireplace on the other side of the room and set the poker back into the hot coals.
“Who are you?”
He was the spitting image of Boone’s father, minus the scar on his left cheek. Even without the scar, it was eerie enough looking at the man. Boone had kind of gotten used to the idea that his father wasn’t around anymore. He wanted it to stay that way.
“My name is Klaus, Klaus Marshall.” The man smirked again. “Your uncle.”
“Impossible. Aldo Marshall was an only child.”
“Actually, Aldo was one of three sons. The middle child. He never did like being the middle child. Our older brother, Bern, was the golden child, the next alpha. I was the baby, doted on by Mother and Father alike.”
Yeah, Boone could see how that helped the guy turn into a productive member of society.
Not.
“Aldo, he didn’t get much attention, so he started acting out, getting involved with the wrong kind of crowd.”
Considering the man was pulling a hot poker out of the fire to use on him, Boone couldn’t help but wonder what he considered the right kind of crowd.
“Eventually, our father could no longer hide the things my brother did—even if he secretly approved of them—so Aldo was banished from the pride.”
“If he was banished, why are you here?” Boone stiffened and tried not to cry out when Klaus stuck him with the hot poker again. “Why are you torturing me?”
“Oh, I’m not torturing you, nephew. I’m persuading you.”
“You could try asking.” Boone had no idea what the man wanted.
Klaus grinned again. “Now, what would be the fun in that?”
“Just tell me what you want to know,” Boone shouted, tired of playing Klaus’s sick idea of a game.
“Oh, I’m looking for my brother, of course. Father regrettably passed a few weeks ago. Bern sent me to find him and bring him home.”
“He’s dead, killed while trying to kill the mate of his son.”
Klaus stared for a moment before jabbing the poker into Boone’s gut. Boone screamed at the pure agony that flared through his body as hot as the flames in the fireplace.
“Now, tell the truth,” Klaus encouraged in a sickly sweet voice.
“He’s dead!”
“I see.” Klaus paused for a moment, a frown wrinkling his forehead. It was almost as if he’d never considered that Aldo could be dead. “Well, that is distressing.”
He started slowly walking around the room, talking too low for Boone to make out what he was saying. Whatever it was, Boone didn’t think it was a good thing. The man seemed to be arguing with himself.
When he suddenly stopped and turned to glare, Boone got a very bad feeling in his gut. “How did he die? Who killed him?”
“I wasn’t there.” It was the truth, which was a good thing, as shifters could smell a lie.
“Who would know?”
“The council?” Boone just hoped they didn’t say anything.
“Posh!”
Boone’s eyebrows shot up.
“The council is nothing but a bunch of old men too stupid to die.”
Boone wouldn’t necessarily disagree with that, except he hated the idea of agreeing on anything with this loon.
“Why did you pay someone to vandalize Jackie’s shop and house?”
“I needed to get your attention.” He sounded so plausible.
“Why not just call? Or better yet, visit? Why terrorize someone?”
Boone really didn’t like it when the man grinned.
“Because I enjoy it.”
Fuck!
This guy might actually be crazier than the rat bastard, and that was saying a lot.
“I am sorry about the truck. I merely meant to shoot your passenger so you would stop. I certainly did not mean for your truck to be destroyed. You have my apologies for that.”
This was by far one of the strangest conversations Boone could ever remember having. Klaus had no problem shooting someone to get Boone’s attention, and torturing him, but he was sorry he’d damaged Boone’s truck?
“It’s insured.”
“Still, I hate to see a good piece of machinery be destroyed.”
“You drive a BMW, right? Red?”
“Yes.” Klaus smiled. Boone was really starting to hate that smile. “I chose the two door instead of the four door because the two door allows more power under the hood.”
“Nice.”
Yep, weird conversation.
“Is the truck your only vehicle?”
“No, I have a motorcycle, as well. The truck is mostly for work.”
“Motorcycles, ba!” Klaus waved a hand at him. “Nothing but death machines.”
“But they go very fast.”
“Get a BMW. They go fast, as well, but are a lot less likely to be smashed to smithereens if you hit something.”
“I’ll remember that.”
“Well.” Klaus stopped in front of Boone and folded his hands together, letting them dangle in front of him. “This little visit has been delightful, nephew, but I must bring it to an end. I have another engagement and I don’t want to be late. Punctuality is a virtue, you know.”
Boone was pretty sure this guy wouldn’t know a virtue if someone beat it into him, but he’d sure like to try.
“We’ll have to get together when you have more time,” Boone said. “Maybe you can tell me more about my father.”
“As pleasant as that sounds, nephew, I’m afraid you won’t be able to make it.”
Boone was afraid of that.
“I’ve invited some friends of mine to keep you company.” When Klaus snapped his fingers, the door opened and two of the biggest, beefiest guys Boone had ever seen walked in. They looked as if they enjoyed eating rocks for breakfast.
“Karl and Franz will keep you company while I attend my meeting. Karl is a distant cousin on your grandmother’s side. Franz came to us through a business associate. Perhaps you’ve heard of him. Tyrone Drummond.”
Boone didn’t have the energy to growl, so he just glared.
Klaus chuckled. “Yes, I see you have heard of him.”
“He’s human.”
“Yes, that part is unfortunate, but one must do what one must to increase the strength of the pride.” Klaus cocked his head to one side. “I must admit, I am surprised your father did not teach this to you.”
“Oh, he did.” In many painful ways.
“Well, nephew, it has been delightful meeting you. I wish I could stay longer, but I really must be going. I will be sure to give your regards to whoever killed your father.”
Boone winced as he thought about the man in question. Trevor was the sweetest, most unassuming man he had ever met. The guy jumped at his own shadow. The only person he seemed to respond to was his mate, Kumiko. He never left Kumiko’s side unless it was a matter of his safety, and then he was placed somewhere he couldn’t be hurt.
Boone was still a little shocked to learn Trevor was his brother. He had known a
bout Trevor, but only distantly. The man had barely ever been let out of his house. Boone didn’t know it at the time, but Trevor was an omega. Their rat bastard father kept Trevor a virtual prisoner to keep him close.
He would rather die than give his brother up.
He kept his mouth shut as Klaus walked out of the room and the door closed behind him. One of the men stoked the fire until the flames turned so hot that Boone could feel the heat all the way across the room.
After a few minutes, Franz pulled the poker out of the red-hot coals and turned to face Boone. “This is going to hurt.”
Boone grinned. “Good.”
To use one of Klaus’s words, Boone was quite delighted when Franz walked over and shoved the poker through Karl’s chest. The man dropped to the floor with a sickening gurgle and didn’t move again.
Boone raised his eyes to the other man. “Do you think you could get me the fuck out of here?”
“Keep your panties on. I have to make sure no one’s coming.”
Boone glared as he watched him walk over and peek out the door before closing it. He ran across the room and dropped down next to Karl.
“What are you doing?” Boone asked when he began searching through Karl’s pockets. “Get me out of here.”
“I will, but this asshole has the key to your chains.”
Oh.
“Just hurry up. That idiot is going to go after Trevor.”
A moment later, his chains were unlocked and he was dropping into the arms of someone he never expected to see in the pits of hell. It took him a few moments to gain his footing and be able to look into the face of the man helping him.
“What in the fuck are you doing here, Boston?”
“Saving your ass,” Boston replied as he slid his arm around Boone’s waist. “Can you make it?”
“I need to shift.”
“Well, be quick about it. We need to get out of here before they figure out what we’ve done.”
“Speak for yourself. I didn’t do a thing. I was just hanging there. You’re the one who put a poker through Jughead over there.”
“Just shift already.”
Boone dropped to his hands and knees. As he shifted, he watched Boston chain Karl up just as he had been chained up. It wouldn’t fool people for long, but it might give them the time they needed to escape.
Boone breathed a sigh of relief when he shifted back. There were still a few places he was tender, but for the most part, he was healed. He was pretty sure he’d shifted in time not to have any lasting damage.
“Come on, we need to get out of here. I have a car waiting for us down the road.” Boston pulled his flannel shirt off, leaving him in just a T-shirt. “Here, put this on. People are going to ask questions if you’re walking around with no shirt on.”
Made sense.
Boone quickly pulled the shirt on and buttoned it up, grimacing as the extra-large shirt hung on him. “I look like I’m playing dress-up.”
“Well, it’s either that or Karl’s shirt.”
“Yeah, no.” Damn thing had a hole in it the size of a fireplace poker. It was also a little creepy to wear the shirt of a dead man. “Okay, let’s go.”
“Stay close, keep your head down, and do exactly what I tell you to do. You’re deep in the bowels of hell. We have a few assholes to go through before we reach freedom.”
“I don’t suppose you have another one of those?” Boone asked when Boston pulled out a handgun.
Boston rolled his eyes as he reached into the back of his pants and pulled out another pistol, then handed it over. “Try not to shoot me.”
“I’ll try,” Boone replied as he checked the magazine and then slapped it back into place, “but I make no promises.”
Boston just shook his head before opening the door and stepping out. Boone made sure he stayed on Boston’s heels. He wasn’t sure a gun was going to be all that useful if they were surrounded by shifters, but it might slow one or two of them down.
“Where in the hell are we?” he whispered.
“It’s an old warehouse about an hour outside of Potter’s Creek. I think your uncle was using it as a base of operations because the road out front leads to the Potter’s Creek Pride, the Mihos Pride, the Marshall Pride, and the de Luca Pride.”
“Fuck.”
That wasn’t good.
“He’s been pretty determined on finding the rat bastard,” Boston said.
“He seemed disappointed when I told him the good news.”
Boston grinned. “Wish I’d been here for that part.”
“We need to put a warning out and call the Feline Council. They need to know this asshole is on the loose.”
“They know,” Boston replied. “I reported in yesterday, before he took you.”
“What are they going to do about him?”
Boston seemed apprehensive as he glanced back over his shoulder. There was a hesitancy in his gaze. “I’m not sure you get the full scale of what’s going on here, Boone.”
“So, tell me.”
“Your father was involved with all that omega business with Drummond.”
“I know that.”
Everyone knew that.
“So were Klaus and Bern. That whole damn family is involved in that mess.”
Boone grimaced. “Is it too late to be put up for adoption?”
Chapter Fourteen
Jackie walked over and peered out the window into the darkness. Boone had been missing for hours. It felt like days. The sun was just starting to crest over the mountains in the distance. Daylight was quickly moving in.
And there was no sign of Boone.
Jackie didn’t know what he was going to do if they didn’t find Boone. In a matter of days, the man had come to mean more to him than breathing. He would be lost without him. The thought of never seeing Boone again made Jackie’s stomach clench.
He just didn’t think he’d survive it.
“Hugh, there’s a car coming up the driveway.”
Jackie wanted to run outside and see if it was Boone or someone with news of Boone. He didn’t. He had enough sense to know Hugh and the enforcers needed to meet whomever it was first.
Still, he couldn’t pry himself away from the window. He clutched at the windowsill as he watched Hugh walk down the first couple of steps on the porch. His enforcers fanned out behind him, creating a wall between whoever was coming and the house.
Basically, Hugh’s mates.
“Daddy.” Jackie raced for the door. He couldn’t believe his dad was here. He hadn’t seen the man in what felt like forever. When the man said he was coming, Jackie hadn’t quite believed it, and yet here he was.
Jackie pulled the front door open and stepped out, right into an enforcer. “Please, I need to get through.” When the enforcer didn’t move, Jackie tried to go around him. The behemoth simply moved into Jackie’s path. “Move, damn it.”
The man spared Jackie a quick glance and growled. No one was more surprised than Jackie when he growled back. That sound had never come out of his mouth before.
But it got the guy to move.
Jackie darted past him before the enforcer could stop him. He started to hop down the steps, but one glare from Hugh stopped him where he was. He pointed. “That’s my dad.”
“Does he know?”
Jackie shook his head.
“Then you need to let me handle it, because the man he’s with is a shifter.”
Jackie’s gaze snapped up to the men standing near the car. He hadn’t even realized someone was with his father. He clenched his hands as fear swelled up in his chest. “He can’t be,” Jackie whispered. “That’s Drummond.”
Hugh turned to look at him. “I thought you’d never met Drummond.”
“I haven’t, but I know that scent.” Of course, Jackie had no idea how he could smell the guy from across the yard. “I’ve smelled it before, down in the catacombs where they were holding us while they experimented on us. The halls reeked of it.”
He met Hugh’s gaze. “So was I.”
The low growl that started coming from Hugh as he looked back at the two men approaching surprised Jackie. Okay, maybe not. Hugh seemed like the growly type. The fact that he believed the things Jackie said was more surprising.
Jackie had no proof, only his word, and yet Hugh still believed him. Jackie suddenly had an idea of what Boone meant when he said Hugh was a good alpha.
“Stay here,” Hugh ordered.
“My father—”
“I’ll send him to you.” Hugh met his eyes again. “Get him inside and away from the windows as quickly as possible. This may turn furry.”
Jackie nodded his understanding.
It took everything he possessed to stay on the porch as Hugh stepped off, followed quickly by two of his enforcers. Jeez, they were huge. Jackie had to grab on to the porch railing to keep from running down the stairs to his father.
When Hugh stopped in front of Jackie’s father and Drummond, Jackie couldn’t stand it. He glanced around to see if anyone was watching him. They weren’t. They all seemed to be watching the confrontation in the driveway.
Jackie took a step down, and then another. As he took the next step down, a loud roar echoed through the dawn air. It was a ferocious sound. Angry. Jackie’s heart slammed in his chest as panic filled him.
He had to get to his father.
Jackie jumped down the last two steps and started racing across the ground toward his father. He could see the man looking around in confusion. He could also see Drummond pulling something silver and shiny out of his jacket pocket.
He didn’t realize the next roar that shattered the air came from him until he jumped on Drummond with paws instead of hands and feet.
The man went down, but he didn’t stay down. He quickly rolled out from beneath Jackie, then came up onto his hands and knees. His face sprouted fur and sharp teeth as he snarled at Jackie. The rest of him quickly followed, and Jackie was suddenly faced with a fully shifted lion.
He lunged at Jackie. Not having fought on four legs before, Jackie went down. Razor-sharp claws raked across his hip as Drummond snapped his teeth at him. Jackie jerked back, narrowly missing having his throat ripped out.
