Hagen, Lynn - Hunter [Zeus's Pack 5] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting ManLove) (15 page)

Quinn walked back into the storeroom, looking around for clues to the crashing sound he had heard. Nothing seemed out of place, and it was pissing him off. “What in the hell is going on here?” he asked himself, walking back up front.

The iron swung in front of him at the shadow behind the counter.

“Whoa, it’s me, Torem.” He held his hands up in defense, taking a step back from the lethal weapon clutched in Quinn’s hand.

“Hunter’s missing.” Quinn ran back out to his car, checking on Tristan.

“No!” The tire iron clattered to the ground.

The car was empty.

114

Lynn Hagen

Quinn spun around and shoved Torem as hard as he could, the shifter falling back a few steps before regaining his footing. “Do that again and I won’t care if you’re human.” There was a coarse thread of warning in his voice.

“Where is Tristan? He was in the car. Tell me you watched him get taken.” Quinn was at the end of his rope. This was just too fucking much.

“First of all, I didn’t see anyone in that car when I came in. And second, do you honestly think I would watch your mate being kidnapped?” Torem advanced toward Quinn, his hands balled into fists at his side.

“I don’t fucking know you well enough to say what you would or wouldn’t do. All I know is that my
mate
was sitting in the front seat only a few minutes ago,” he answered in a tense, clipped voice that told Torem he was done arguing about it.

Torem walked over to Quinn’s car and opened the passenger door, inhaling deeply. “Don’t freak out, human.” Torem looked around and then began to strip.

“Geez.” Quinn gave his back to the man. He was ready to kill and maim if his men weren’t returned to him soon and unharmed.

Whoever was behind this was going to be beaten to within an inch of his life.

Quinn looked behind him when he heard nails clicking on the ground. A wolf was sniffing around the area of his car. This was weird as hell, but Quinn didn’t have time to process this right now.

“Find him, Torem, so I can kill him.”

Hunter

115

The wolf growled, his head giving a quick nod. Could the animal understand him? Quinn picked up the tire iron, following as the wolf led him away from the store and down Route 14. Right on the outskirts of town, just past the county line, Quinn spotted a vehicle’s tail end sticking out from between some trees.

His grip tightened on the tool he was going to use, his heart rate picking up, worrying that he may be too late.

No, you can’t think like that.

Were Hunter and Tristan together? Was this even the right place to look? Even though Torem was leading him here, Quinn feared they were on the wrong trail and wasting time.

What if, what if, what if.

Fuck, shut up!
He scolded his overactive brain.

Deep breaths. Take deep breaths. It’s not going to do you any
good to get all worked up right now. You won’t be able to think. You
need to stay sharp and focused.

The wolf stopped, and a low, primitive growl rumbled ominously from the creature’s chest.

Apprehensively, Quinn looked out into the darkness, trying to spot what Torem was warning him about. Or was that warning meant for the person foolish enough to take what was Quinn’s?

He stepped carefully behind Torem, trying to be as quiet as the wolf. Quinn wanted the element of surprise, yet he wanted to rush in to save Hunter and Tristan.

“If you don’t back the fuck off, I’m going to rip your throat out.”

That was Hunter’s voice, but who was he talking to? And was Tristan with him?

Please let Tristan be with him.

Quinn walked around the vehicle and spotted Hunter
and
Tristan.

Thank fuck.

Quinn saw red when he noticed Tristan standing in the middle of Hunter and another man, looking from one to the other. He was fucking naked and shaking.

116

Lynn Hagen

“Get the hell away from him!” Quinn raised his tire iron, rushing at the stranger. With swiftness Quinn would wonder about later, claws shot out of the man’s fingers and slashed through the air, knocking his tire iron some twenty feet away.

Quinn changed tactics and grabbed his jellybean around his waist, running toward Hunter. “Why didn’t you just grab him?” Quinn shouted at Hunter. He was relieved they both seemed unharmed, but his anger was superseding his joy and relief.

“Because.” Hunter looked down at Tristan, his eyes full of pain and something else Quinn couldn’t quite put his finger on. “Tristan doesn’t know who he wants to be with.”

Quinn’s ears heard the words, but his mind refused to process them. Everything seemed to lose focus as Hunter’s statement fell apart around him and crumbled to his feet. Quinn numbly released Tristan, wondering what those words would say if he could only put them together.

What did he just say again?

“Come here, Tristan, now.” The man’s voice was stern with no vestige of sympathy in its hardness. Quinn raised his head, staring roughly thirty feet ahead at the stranger.

This had to be Xavier.

“Who in the
fuck
do you think you’re talking to like that?” Quinn snapped out of his muddled stupor. Anger the likes of which he’d never felt before started in the pit of his stomach and rolled up like a ball of fire until he was consumed with it. His body felt like it was burning alive.

“You think just because you’re his mates that he’s willing to follow you? I trained him better than that. His feeble mind is mine.”

Xavier scoffed at Quinn and Hunter, giving his attention back to Tristan. “Now get over here.” He snapped his fingers and pointed to the spot in front of him.

Tristan took a few steps in Xavier’s direction.

Hunter

117

“Jellybean?” Quinn cocked his head, wondering what the hell
his
Tristan was doing.

“That’s what I was trying to tell you.” Hunter stepped closer to Quinn, his body physically shaking with untapped rage. “I won’t force our mate to stay with us. It has to be his choice.”

“Look at his fucking scarred-ass back,” Quinn shouted, stabbing his finger in Tristan’s direction, “and how quickly we forget about the
sir
shit.”

Hunter shook his head. “I know. But until Tristan opens his eyes and sees Xavier for who he truly is, he’ll only run if we force him back with us.”

“Then force him!”

“Do you really want a mate who doesn’t want to be with us?”

“Fuck this. At least he’ll be safe from that asshole’s abuse.”

Hunter grabbed Quinn’s arm before he could take a step.

“Choices, you have to give him choices. It sounds really screwed up right now, but he has to decide. Have you ever seen a woman who has been beaten by her husband or boyfriend? I have. Every time someone stepped in to stop it, the woman turned on her rescuer, continually returning to her abuser. We’ve shown him another side of the coin. Now
he
is the one who has to decide.”

Quinn’s leg snapped nervously in place as the anger built in him.

If his jellybean chose Xavier, he was kidnapping him, no matter what Hunter said.

“I want to rip Xavier’s fucking throat out, but give Tristan half a chance.” Hunter growled.

Let him decide, or grab and run? Let him decide, or grab and
run?
The thought spun around his mind like a merry-go-round. Quinn was torn. He didn’t want to force Tristan, but he didn’t want to give him up if his jellybean chose that prick. This was almost too unbearable.

“I love you, jellybean. I can love you past your pain and bring you happiness you only dreamed of.” Quinn’s agonized voice cut across

118

Lynn Hagen

the field. “Please.” His world began to lose color, darkness trying to engulf him like a slow-moving fog, rolling in to take him away. There was no
anything
without Tristan and Hunter.

“I didn’t know why I couldn’t say it before, rainbow, but I honestly do love you. I’m not telling you this to sway your decision.

Hell, yes I am, but it’s true. I love you, rainbow. You’re magical to me every morning I wake up and discover you’re still there, that you’re still mine. I’m a lucky bastard just for having the honor of knowing you.” Hunter ran his hands over his head, pulling at his own hair as they watched Tristan stop in his journey.

“Do you want your master to be upset with you?” Xavier’s voice was so calm, so egotistically smug, that Quinn could feel the fault line between his conscious and his id shift.

Tristan looked back at Hunter and Quinn, his face full of regret.

No!

Tristan turned back toward Xavier, his
master
grinning triumphantly. His jellybean’s shoulders squared, his head rose regally.

“I want to thank you, Xavier.”

“You will call me master. I see your training will start fresh once we return home.”

“I want to thank you, Xavier,” Tristan repeated, ignoring the insidious tone. “If you hadn’t treated me so badly, I wouldn’t have found not only my mates, but the loves of my life.”

“Get. Over. Here.” Xavier’s composure started to slip. That was something Tristan had only seen when the man pulled his whip out.

He steeled his spine and continued.

“I never gave you all of me. You didn’t deserve it.” Tristan pointed behind him at Quinn and Hunter. “They have all that I am.

My mates have shown me what true love is, what
real
love is.”

Hunter

119

“You know what I can do to you,” Xavier reminded him. “Do you really want to test my patience?”

Tristan shook his head. That final hold, that last vestige of power Xavier had over his mind snapped, freeing him completely. “When someone hurts you, they have power over you. When you forgive them, you take that power back.”

Tristan smiled at Xavier. “I want to be free, so, I forgive you.” He laughed with joy, spinning around and running to his mates.

“You’re mine!” Xavier roared.

Tristan skidded to halt when Quinn’s eyes began to blaze, his face contorting into something that should belong to the pits of hell.

Hunter grabbed Tristan and yanked him away as Quinn’s body glowed and then caught fire.

He couldn’t move. Tristan’s eyes locked onto his mate as Quinn’s head fell back and an unearthly cry burst from his chest.

Arrogant Xavier shifted, snapping his head back and forth as he growled and snarled. His muzzle pulled all the way back as his ears tucked back.

“Oh, hell. Oh, hell.” Hunter’s eyes widened as a group of extremely large men came out of nowhere, loping toward them like hellions on a mission. Tristan was terrified.

“Do you need assistance, young one?” the largest of them all asked.

Quinn opened his mouth and roared at them, the blaze rising higher from his body. For some reason, Tristan wanted to touch it to see if it would burn him. He was more fascinated than frightened.

“I guess not.” Another of the massive man-thingy’s chuckled.

“Don’t just stand there, help him,” Tristan shouted, Hunter grabbing hold of his waist and pulling him back.

“I cannot.” The largest one spoke again. “His demon is in control.

The man and his demon must find common ground, and only the young one can do that.”

“Demon?” Tristan and Hunter gasped in unison.

120

Lynn Hagen

“I am Panahasi, leader of the Demon warriors. My goal here is to help…what’s his name?”

“Quinn,” Tristan offered.

Panahasi bowed his head. “Thank you. My goal here is to help Quinn with his demon, but I did not expect to find his demon unleashed and in control. We must play the waiting game until Quinn is back under control.”

“What kind of fucked-up plan is that?’ Hunter asked incredulously. “So we wait until he’s crispy-fried and then help him?”

Tristan’s head snapped away from Panahasi to Quinn, watching Xavier lunge at Quinn, his mate swinging out to stop the attack.

“Pretzel sticks.” He squeaked. “
You are my sunshine, my only
sunshine. You make me happy, when skies are grey
…” Tristan sang loudly, the loudest he had ever sang because this was the most terrified he’d ever been.

“Catchy tune.” The same man as before snapped his finger and tapped his foot. Tristan didn’t stop singing, but he began to relax a degree. “Let’s put a little pizzazz into it.” He started singing along with Tristan, adding a zydeco twist to it.

Oh god, this wasn’t real. Tristan had to be hallucinating. Shit like this didn’t happen in real life. He knew shifters and vampires existed, but shit like this
did not
happen in real life.

“Quinn!” Hunter shouted, shutting Tristan up and bringing his brain back into focus. Quinn grabbed Xavier’s wolf form and lifted him into the air. Xavier locked his jaws onto Quinn’s arm. His hind legs kicked wildly in the air, trying to find purchase. A pungent smell of burning fur filled the night sky, making Tristan gag.

Quinn howled, releasing Xavier.

“Just throw yourself on him.” Tristan recovered and shouted. He was against violence, but Xavier was being ruthless. Self-defense was totally different.

Hunter

121

Hunter walked halfway to Quinn before one of the Demon Warriors blocked his progression. “Mate or not, you really don’t want to interfere right now.”

“That’s my mate. Get the hell out of my way before I rip your throat out.” Hunter shoved the large demon. Tristan was impressed.

Hunter showed no fear.

“Let him do this on his own. That’s the only way Quinn can surface and his demon can settle down.”

“This is ridiculous,” Hunter snapped.

All eyes turned on Quinn when he caught Xavier mid-leap and broke his neck. Tristan covered his face, the scene shaking him up badly.

“Quinn.” Hunter said his name once more.

They watched Quinn’s back expand and contract, either from trying to bring himself back under control or from rage. Maybe both?