by Bryce Evans
The Hunter’s Mage
The Death Hunters, Book 1
Bryce Evans
The Hunter’s Mage
The Death Hunter’s
Book #1
by: Bryce Evans
Copyright © November 2018 Bryce Evans
Art and Logo Copyright © Bryce Evans
All rights reserved.
Edited by: Tina Winograd
Artwork by: Andy Atkins
Formatted by: Stacey Price
Published by: Bryce Evans
EBooks are not transferrable.
This book is intended for the purchaser’s sole use.
Sharing or downloading to other individuals or devices is illegal.
This work is fictional. Any resemblance to real persons, places, or events is purely coincidental.
All Rights Are Reserved.
No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission of the author, except in the case of quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.
Contents
Blurb
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Also by Bryce Evans
About the Author
Dedication
To my family. I love you all very much.
To the Bryce Evans Fan Club. Thank you for sticking it out with me.
To my PA and friend, Janka Dustan, who keeps me grounded and on task. To KD Jones, my sprinting partner and friend.
Please be kind and leave a review on the site you purchased the book from.
Blurb
Alpha Death Hunter Lennox Bartley has kept the shifter world safe from rogues and exposure for years, making an enemy or ten along the way. Though something had always been missing in his life. Then he met Jade Cross.
Jade is the most beautiful woman he's ever seen, despite her disfigurement. She is a successful and creative entrepreneur but also the most submissive wolf he's ever known.
As the alpha, Lennox needs a strong, confident female or the Death Hunters will eat her for lunch. Plus, when his enemies learn he has a mate, her life will be in constant danger.
Jade has the choice to follow her heart or her head. One will keep her in her sheltered, safe world while the other will lead to the love of her life and almost certain death if she doesn't find the inner strength to help herself.
Chapter One
She couldn’t move as the claws raked down her side. Pieces of her new sweater flew into the air as the October wind battered her exposed flesh. She wanted to scream, but nothing came out. Puffs of air and blood blew across her face as the bear slapped its paw against her head, dragging skin off her face. She tried to play dead rolling over to protect her face from further attack, but she fell down the rocks. She prayed the bear was done, but it continued to attack.
Breathing became difficult when she was stomped farther down in between the opening of the rocks. Jade was trapped. Why did the bear attack? She did nothing to provoke it. Then claws raked down her back tearing past flesh and muscle until the pain became too much. Her scream died in her throat.
But she wanted to live. She was only ten years old and nobody knew she was even gone.
Finally, the pressure lifted, and she inhaled air into her constricted lungs. “Bane—” her voice was so low, she knew her brother wouldn’t hear her. She dug her nails into the rock and dirt, dragging herself toward the water, but she had no strength left.
Bane had told her not to wander off, but it was her birthday and she thought she could take care of herself. She wanted to show her big brother that she could do anything he could and that was to catch more fish than he did.
Her fishing pole lay on the ground, broken in two pieces. She tried to fend the bear off using the rod as a weapon, but it was no use. It had charged her from the woods and there wasn’t time to run or scream for help before its front paws planted on her chest knocking her off the hill and into the rocks below. All she saw was white fur until the bear leaned down and came face to face with her. She didn’t have a chance. At first, she thought it was another animal, but it was a white bear. She’d never heard of a white bear, but what did she know. This one was now trying to eat her.
If only she could shift, but her wolf never showed. Never made a sound. Didn’t matter now, she wouldn’t live much longer.
Coughing, blood flew out of her mouth and nose falling to the rocks. The taste of metal flooded her tongue as she tried to scream, but nothing came out. She couldn’t breathe as she gasped for air. She wanted her mom. She wanted to go home, but her life was ending soon. They were twenty miles from New Hope and any hospital.
And this trip was her wish. Her birthday present from her big brother to go camping in the woods. She loved this area. They were going to roast marshmallows and then go fishing. If only she had waited. Bane wanted to take a quick nap. He had worked all week and been up for hours. She would never get to do any of that ever again.
As she stared at the river, blood gathered in a puddle beside her. She waited for death to come for her, to release her from this agonizing pain. She was so tired, slowly her eyes closed, and then she heard the puffing of air again.
“Jade, Jade, wake up. It’s okay.” Her arms were pulled against something. Then her brain registered it was a nightmare. A terrible time in her life played over and over every night for the past couple months.
Bane gathered her in his arms, rocking her until the night terror faded from her eyes. Her body was drenched in sweat when she noticed her reflection in the mirror. The long scar lay swollen, jagged across her face. The bears claw savagely ripped down from the bottom of her eye to her jawline. The doctor stitched it the best he could, but it was no use. There was too much damage to heal properly making it stand out angry looking. She knew she should have gotten over this by now, but all she felt was disgust when she stared at it. Turning away, she couldn’t look at herself anymore. She would never forget what happened to her fifteen years ago. The scars would always remind her.
“The same dream?” her brother asked.
She tried to answer but she couldn’t speak. Instead, she squeezed him letting him know she was okay. If you could say that she was. The nightmares were getting worse and coming more frequently, but if she told Bane that, he would only worry more. Her big brother had put his life on hold taking care of her.
“Maybe it’s time we talked to someone. It might help—”
She shook her head and pulled away. “No,” she coughed out. “I’m fine. It’s just a bad dream.”
“Every night, Jade? Something is triggering these nightmares. I think it could be the stress from the business. Maybe you need to slow down and take some time off.”
Her brother had lost his cotton-picking mind. Take time off? Her business was growing from a small online company to five locations in another year.
Getting up, she dropped her feet to the floor and went to the bathroom and shut the door behind her. She was tired, and she wouldn’t hold her tongue anymore. He wanted her to talk to a shrink, who would undoubtedly think she was crazy. “You don’t think I can run my business?” she shouted through the door.
“Of course, I do, but it’s grown so fast, and it’s just you. Take some time off
and—”
Jade jerked the door open and stared at her brother. Tears slipped from her eyes when she realized that her big brother didn’t think she could handle the stress. Pointing her finger at him, she cried out, “You…you don’t have any faith in me, do you?”
Frowning, her brother came toward her and said, “Yes, I do, little sister.”
“Stop treating me like a child. Don’t you see I’ve grown up? I can handle this. It’s just a few nightmares. Believe in me, Bane.” When she saw her brother’s face, she knew this conversation was a lost cause. “Just leave, Bane. I’m late for work and have to get ready.” Jade turned and slammed the door in his face.
“Jade?”
It had been two weeks since he left New Hope and he couldn’t stop thinking about the land and her. Unfortunately, he had been summoned to meet with the council. Lennox hated this place. It had been the Death Hunters’ home for such a long time, but it never felt like a home. More like barracks for the military. Security fences surrounded the hundred acres where the council met and their staff lived. All the archives were placed here. Basically, it was a sterile and lifeless place.
His bear hated it as much as he did. He wanted to run and be free, but the fences always stopped him from going farther into the wilderness and keeping humans out. Nothing about this environment called to him. Yes, they had trees but that was it. It was manicured and bland. Nothing like New Hope. He needed the wild where he could be in the open. His clothes were here, but this wasn’t home. None of this had bothered him until he was sent to New Hope, Georgia, and met Jade Cross.
Why the council wanted to put their main office in Virginia made no sense to him. Most shifters stayed in the southern states where their animal could run untethered. He was getting impatient as he waited to see the council.
Today was the day he would give them his ultimatum. He was Alpha of the Death Hunters, and one way or another, he was moving.
“They are ready for you, Alpha,” the guard said, opening the door for him.
“Now, the crying will begin,” he muttered under his breath.
“This is unheard of, Alpha Bartley. Never in the history of the Death Hunters have they claimed a piece of land and moved in as a pack does.”
Lennox never twitched or said a word, just waited for Stetson Trammell, leader of the council to come up with another excuse. Truth was Stetson wanted the Death Hunters close by to protect him. He was a weasel of a shifter. How on earth they voted him as the leader of the council, Lennox would never understand.
Didn’t matter, his decision was made. They could either give him the permission he wanted, or he would resign and leave the Death Hunters. He had plenty of money saved and had already purchased the land next to Arden Dixon. He had plans, and they included one Jade Cross. Even though she didn’t know it yet.
He couldn’t stop thinking about her. He could barely work knowing she wasn’t near him. His protective instincts were going wild, and his heart pounded so hard, he felt like he would pass out. The moment he was sent to New Hope to help the Dixon Pack, he knew this area was special and Jade was too. He was done for the moment he took in her scent.
She was beautiful in every way he wasn’t. He watched her closely. She had to be the sweetest wolf. She also had to be the most submissive too. When she smiled, he wanted to take her into his arms and protect her from anything ever hurting her again. The scars only enhanced her beauty. He learned that Jade had been attacked as a young girl by a bear on a camping trip. Nothing was ever going to hurt her again.
He tried to stay away but his bear drew him to her. He was addicted to her. She belonged to him and his bear.
“I don’t understand why you want to move from council land. You are always on the road, handling the problems with the rogues. It doesn’t make sense to have your own land,” Stetson Trammell said.
Mitch Andrews spoke up. “I think it’s time the Death Hunters had their own piece of property. I can tell you from my own experience as a past member that it’s hard on our animal knowing we don’t have our own place to run and hunt. A place to call home. Something that isn’t lent to you.” He glanced around the room at the other council members, gaining their support. “It doesn’t mean they won’t respond to wherever we send them. Times are changing, Stetson, and we best change with them.”
“I don’t agree, Mitch. The Death Hunters are not meant for pack life. What if they want to start a family? Will they want to even leave when we call for them. Never has a Death Hunter had a mate or children. It won’t work, I tell you, and I’m not inclined to give it a try and have it fail. The Death Hunters are too important to our way of life.”
Lennox had heard enough. “Council Trammell, if you don’t give us permission, then I will turn my resignation in effective immediately. Our animals have wandered long enough. We hunters are restless and want a place of our own, and just so you know, all the hunters agree with me and will be turning in their resignations too. None of us want to quit, but it’s time our terms are met. You choose.”
Lennox watched as Stetson Trammell sat down hard in his chair. His mouth hung open not believing the ultimatum. He knew Stetson wouldn’t change his mind But Mitch already had the other council members’ votes. He knew they didn’t have any men trained to be Death Hunters. It took a different type of shifter to do this job and the council needed them more than he needed them. It was time.
“I believe a vote is in order, Stetson,” Mitch said.
Closing his mouth and clearing his throat, Stetson asked, “Do you plan on finding mates?”
“If we are lucky enough to find that person who can handle a Death Hunter as a mate then, yes, sir, we do.”
Shaking his head, Stetson remained quiet a few minutes before he called a vote. “If you are in favor of the Death Hunters becoming a registered pack, owning land, and finding mates, raise your hand.”
Lennox sat back and watched every member lift a hand. They all turned toward Stetson and waited. Stetson would have to agree. He was too afraid of losing his seat and being the reason for losing the Death Hunters.
“Well, Alpha, you have your wish. I hope you aren’t making a huge mistake that will not only be detrimental to the council and shifters everywhere, but also to yourselves.”
Lennox never answered, just nodded and started to walk out. Stetson leaned forward. “Alpha Bartley, one other item. I’ve heard from the Twister Council about a group of dark arts mages. There have been sketchy reports coming in about this group for numerous years. Together they are very powerful. In fact, these are not ordinary mages, and Presley Darden is in this group. I think you remember him.”
Stetson got up from the table, went to his desk and pulled out a file and handed it to him. “Apparently, they have been looking for shifters who possess magic. From what I’m hearing, they are not just wanting information from them, but also stealing their power. Maybe you could send someone to watch them and see if this intelligence is true. We don’t need any bad publicity right now. My sources say we are not as hidden as we would like to be, and if this group of mages is hunting, we need to know and stop it before it draws the humans’ attention.”
“I’ll take care of it,” Lennox said, putting the file under his arm then walking out the door.
Cosmo stood at the end of the hallway, smoking a cigar. He blew fat rings into the air when he looked up. His best friend and beta smiled. Cosmo Fitzgerald was eavesdropping for sure. That smirk on his face said it all.
“I guess you heard?” Lennox asked.
“Yep. I noticed you didn’t tell them where we would be living,” Cosmo said, puffing more rings in the air.
“They will find out soon enough. Let’s get the team packed and head to the inn. We already have time off to build. I think we can start with one house, and once we finish, go to the next. I’m sure Arden Dixon has workers who need a job. Pay them well enough so they’ll continue helping us build. The faster we get it done, the better off we’ll be. Also, th
ere are mages hunting shifters.”
“I heard,” Cosmo answered.
“The council doesn’t even know if the information is reliable, but send Raven to check it out. Tell her not to infiltrate but to watch and report back.”
“You got it. Can we eat now?”
“No, I’m ready to hit the road and get there before dark,” Lennox said.
“You sure want to get back fast. Something catch your eye in New Hope?” Cosmo said, smiling.
“No, but if something did, it’s none of your business.”
“Of course, it is. You’re our alpha and if you have your eye on someone then we need to get to know her too. Besides, she will be our alpha female. She will have to be one tough lady to handle the Death Hunters.”
“No one has, so drop it.”
Cosmo shook his head. His beta/best friend knew him well enough. He only hoped his gut feeling was wrong this time. Jade needed to be a strong female who could handle him and the Death Hunters. He had to admit, Jade Cross was a mystery to him. He had only seen her at Southern Treasures and she acted submissive. That worried him. What would he do if she couldn’t handle the pack? What if Jade was too meek for his bear?
Chapter Two
Jade Cross shook her head trying to get the gritty vision out of her head. She smoothed her hands down her pants, glancing around the Southern Treasures to see if anyone noticed the snarl that rattled up her throat. Why was she dreaming about the white bear again? That was her past and that’s where she wanted it to stay, in the past. But every night, it swarmed her beautiful dreams turning them into the nightmares she had endured. That happened fifteen years ago, and she wanted the memories to stop.
