The Breed: Nora's Choice (20 page)

            He had come
in hours ago to tell her that he had killed her parents. “Freed her from them,”
were the exact words he had chosen to use. She was too exhausted to cry for
them anymore; the tears had dried onto her skin and her eyes were swollen
painfully from the sorrow.

            Now all her
thoughts were with Jonathan and his wife. He had told her he would be
“punishing” them for their crimes against him and once that was done they would
at last be able to be together. Once he had killed everyone she ever loved, all
she would have left in the world was him.

            Bile rose
up her throat but she swallowed it down. She had already thrown up all of her
stomach contents at the news of her family, there was nothing left to throw up
now. There was nothing left of her now.

            Down the
hallway she heard the agonizing screams of Jonathan’s wife. She strained and
thrashed against her bindings, desperate to get to her, desperate to help her.

            Nora
smashed the back of her head against her expensive head board, angry tears
welling up in her eyes and she hated herself for not being able to stop the
visions.

            She was so
tired of this. So tired of the helplessness, of having to relive the same damn
horrors over and over again.

            Grabbing
her head she fisted her own hair and pulled, screaming in frustration and
praying the physical pain would help break her out of her mental prison.

            In her mind
all she could see was the pristine white ceiling of Jonathan’s mothers’
bedroom. A ceiling she and her own mother had washed dozens of times in their
lifetime. The cleanliness the room, and the softness of the bed under her
should have made her feel safe and secure; this was the house she was raised
in. Her home.

            Instead
everything was wrong. The white perfectness of the ceiling coupled with the
horrific screams down the hall were driving her to the point of madness. She
screamed and thrashed against her gag and bindings until once again she was
choking on her own misery.

            This room
that she loved so much used to smell like baby powder and expensive women’s
perfume. Now the stench of dried blood was inescapable. Her wrists were covered
in it from where the ropes had dug into her, causing blood to run down her
forearms, eventually drying because she was helpless to wipe it away. Blood
crusted around her nose and filled her throat from where he had hit her
repeatedly, making it impossible to escape the smell.

            Her body
was sore and swollen from his beatings, her spirit exhausted from the fight of
it all.

           
Death
….
The word whispered softly in her mind, caressing her consciousness like a long
missed lover.

            Her
breathing slowed and she closed her eyes. Death was the answer for her now, the
solution to everything. To be reunited with her loved ones in a place that evil
could not follow them.

            She looked
around, this time for something to end her life instead of freeing her. Nothing
but soft elegant beauty met her eyes.

            All around
her were rich colors, expensive gold and beautiful southern art. She had been
in this room a thousand times and always enjoyed the stateliness of it, but now
the violence contaminated everything.

            She
couldn’t look at the intricately carved mahogany door frame without seeing
Billy’s hideous figure looming in it. She tried to remember the sounds of her
childhood laughter as she played here, but the memory couldn’t drown out the
horrible noises coming from down the hall.

            A fresh
wave of screams echoed towards her, mixed in with the sound of hard repetitive
slaps. Only one thing in the world made that exact slapping sound.

            He was
raping her.

            The
realization sent a cold pulse of horror into her bones. He was raping the
pregnant lady of the house, and if Jonathan wasn’t already dead, then he was
wounded to the point of helplessness and was being forced to watch all of this
happen to his wife.

            Her heart
was breaking for them. She wanted to cry for him, but there was no tears left
for her to gather.

            Instead she
screamed as loud as her lungs could carry the sound. She screamed for rage and
frustration, for pain and fear, for sorrow and loathing. Screamed until her
throat was raw and she was choking on the smell of sweat and blood.

            The pure
perfection of the white ceiling above taunted her with how out of touch it was
with everything that was happening.

            Out of the
window she could see the sun shining merrily, could almost hear the birds
singing softly. She wanted to hope that someone would notice the tragedy
happening inside, but she knew better, knew that Billy had killed every field
worker he had come across. If someone was still alive, they would be running
for safety, not daring to look back.

            It
destroyed her to know that all around her, people’s lives were moving along
normally. Men were walking home calmly from work, women were happily making dinner
for their families, children were laughing and carefree. All the while she was
tied to a bed, the ropes binding her so tightly that her skin cracked and bled.

            She was
decaying in her lavish prison, rotting away in the middle of pure elegance, the
white ceiling crushing down on her.

            “Gentlemen,
I’m sure we can come to a peaceful conclusion,” Casstiel sighed, clearly not
surprised to see the Hunters react in the manner that they had, “put down your
weapons, and let’s discuss this.”

            “Or,” the
Hunter holding Balor scowled, “We can take these pieces of filth back with us,
on the ship that is going to be rolling up any second now, and if we have to
shoot our way out of here, then we will, and we’ll be happy to end the life of
your friends in the process.”

            Memphis was
snarling before he could stop himself, his eyes fixed on the golden eyed
goddess that they held, every muscle in his body bunching and straining, ready
to protect her.

            Again she
looked up at him through the distance. Could she see him? A regular human’s
sight wouldn’t be able to make his figure out from this far away, but her eyes
squinted and her brow furrowed as if she knew he was there.

She
sensed that something out there in the dark was hungry for her.

The
thought made his cock swell and strain against the fabric of his pants and he
had to rub the heel of his hand painfully across it to remind himself he was in
the middle of a battle.

“You
ok?” Jax whispered, looking at him like he was growing another head.

“Just
amped up, ready to do this,” he lied, not taking his eyes off the woman in
front of him.

The
second Cass gave the order he was going to gun it for her, and kill the Hunter
with his hands on her.

“I
don’t think that attempting to fight your way out of here is really in your
best interest,” Casstiel replied patiently, and across the way Memphis saw Kain
take aim just out of the view of the Hunters.

“Cass,
I’ve got the leader in my sights,” Ghost spoke through the head set, claiming
the man with the gun to Roderick’s head.

Kain
had Balor’s captor pinned, which left Memphis and Jax lifting their weapons to
take aim at the two remaining Hunters.

“On
my signal,” Cass replied, his lips barely moving, then he raised his hands in
mock surrender.

“This
doesn’t need to get bloody,” he spoke to the Hunters, “no one needs to lose
their lives today.”

Laughter
sparked all around them, the Hunters were unable to process the situation that
they were in.

“Clearly
you don’t seem to understand that since we have your friends, we call the
shots,” the Hunter in charge snarled, pressing the muzzle of his gun harder
against Roderick’s head, “maybe we need to shoot one of them to make you take
us seriously.”

The
Hunters shifted their weight uncomfortably, the tension of the situation
finally getting to them, and giving away the fact that they would be in some
seriously deep shit if all  four of their hostages weren’t delivered to where
their superiors wanted them.

Up
ahead the outline of a small cargo ship broke through the horizon and was
approaching fast.

Casstiel
pointed the first two fingers on his raised right hand up ward. The second he
dropped them, four simultaneous shots would go off, taking out the hostage
holders instantly and leaving them to deal with only the Hunters outside of the
truck.

“I’m
sure you’ve been keeping these four alive for a reason, my guess is that your
leaders have a plan for them and wouldn’t be happy if you killed them before
they could execute that plan,” Cass spoke logically, “stop bluffing and make
the smart decision and negotiate.” 

“You
don’t know dick,” the Hunter fidgeted, then unlocked the safety on his gun,
“and you don’t give the orders around here.”

An
ear splitting roar echoed through the docks vibrating the tin roofs of the
freight containers.

“The
fuck is that?” a Hunter on the ground moaned, his hands clamped over both ears.

“Thirty
eight minutes, that’s better than I expected,” Casstiel looked at the watch on
his raised wrist, “he’s still a few miles away though.”

“I
said what the fuck is that!” the Hunter screamed, and Memphis could smell the
fear rolling off of them even at this distance.

“That
would be one of your escaped experiments. I believe you used to call him number
117?” Cass smirked, “I’m sure he’s missed you.”

“Fuck
this, kill them and let’s get out of here, we’ll tell Ivesley they were lost in
the battle,” their leader was erratic with fear now.
            Some of the other Hunters looked as if they were thinking about
standing up for themselves, but didn’t. The situation had reached a level of
discomfort that no one was happy with.

Casstiel
dropped his two fingers and in less than a blink four identical shots fired
off, dropping the four Hunters inside of the truck.

Yells
and confusion ran through the Hunters, some of them dropping to the floor,
others looking wildly around for the source of the shots.

“If
I were you,” Cass smiled politely at them, “I would come quietly with us and
not run.”

Like
cockroaches they scattered before he was even able to finish his sentence.

“Well,
can’t say I didn’t try to warn you,” he sighed, as another roar erupted near
them.

The
moment the Hunters had fallen Memphis had rushed  into the truck, closing the
hundred yard distance in two heart beats, his muscles screamed in agony at the
sudden burst of speed, but it was worth it to catch her before she hit the
ground.

She
looked up at him with shock and fear, her breath caught up in her tiny lungs.

“I’ve
got you girl,” he scooped her up into his arms and clutched her to his chest,
“nothing will ever hurt you again.”

~

Quinn
pushed his muscles to the absolute limit as he raced towards the docks.
Casstiel hadn’t said that his pack had actually been found, but he felt it in
his heart.

He
let out a furious battle cry, ready for war. He needed the pain of the upcoming
fight, needed to feel the suffering of his enemies, craved the hurt of it all.

Before
he left he had shifted into his wolf form and was now barreling down the
freeway too fast for the humans around him to see.

He
had to get to this battle. Since the moment he had escaped the Hunters two
years ago, he had been determined to be the one to save his pack. Now the time
had finally come.

Once
he could smell the filth of the Hunters intermixing with his Breed brethren, he
knew he was close. He put on a burst of speed and within moments could see
them.

Cass
was trying to reason with them, but that was foolish. Quinn wouldn’t let any of
them live to see another day, not if he could help it.

Gunshots
cracked through the night, and the movement of four figures dropping caught his
eye.

That’s
when he saw Balor and Roderick. Joy filled him at the confirmation that his
pack leaders were alive. All of his determination and sacrifice weren’t just in
vain, he had made it, he would save them.

Now
all he needed to do was take out some vengeance on those who had imprisoned
them.

The
Hunters had fled the moment they saw his hulking figure approaching. He knew
how horrifying he looked in this form, and relished how terrified they all were
of their own creation.

The
monster was about to destroy those who created it, he smiled to himself.

He
watched Memphis dive to scoop up a wounded woman and Jax racing behind him to
help the others. Ghost was nowhere to be seen, and Kain was already happily
stalking his prey down winding tunnels of cargo containers.

A
large group of Hunters raced up the docks and began boarding a cargo ship that
was now attempting to reverse and flee the port. Quinn narrowed his eyes and
locked on to them as targets.

He
would die tonight before he let them escape.

Casstiel
tried to stop him, tried to slow him down and reason with him; Something about
keeping some of them alive for questioning, something to do with leverage and
the betterment of the war and strategy.

The
words were utterly lost on him.

Tonight
wasn’t about logic, reasoning, or plans for the future. Tonight was about anger
and punishment.

He
raced past Casstiel as if his leader didn’t even exist. Someone else could
worry about using kid gloves with the Hunters and bringing them in alive, after
seeing Rod and Balor broken and crumpled on the ground, his focus was all about
avenging his murdered pack mates, getting blood for blood in the most brutal
form of justice.

The
last of the Hunters were now either attempting to jump after the ship and
ending up cold in the water, or were scattering down the docks hoping not to be
captured.

More
of the Hunters had stayed on land than had made it into the boat, in a lot of
ways staying on shore made more sense, but he
wanted
that freighter. Up
until this point he hadn’t had a chance to show the guys at the New York
embassy what he could really do, and he couldn’t think of a better
demonstration than taking down an entire cargo ship full of Hunters and tossing
it at their feet.

The
vessel was now so far out that the distance between it and land was suicidaly
long. None of the other Breed members would be able to make the jump, but he
was faster than them all, he was the only one who could build up enough
momentum to make it happen.

If
not he would land in the water and be sucked into the undertow of the ship, its
engines shredding his body like paper.

Success
was his only option.

Out
of the corner of his eye he noticed a large stack of wooden pallets at the edge
of the docks,
perfect
. His footing and execution would have to be
flawless, his timing precise, because the wood would splinter seconds after the
full weight of his wolf form was placed on it.

Narrowing
his eyes he focused all of his energy on completing this one thing.

Putting
on a last burst of speed he covered the distance and sprung himself on top of
the pallets. Without slowing his momentum he took on furious step across the
wood, then launched himself across the water.

Closing
his eyes he let the soothing weightless feeling over come him as he soared.

He
was so much more in tune with everything when he was in this form. He felt the
light of the moon above him caressing his body, the refreshing crispness of the
water below him flooding his sense of smell, and the lullaby of the seagulls
hovering nearby put his spirit at ease.

Such
a beautiful night.
So perfect for a blood bath.

His
eyes opened as his feet hit the solid metal of the ships guard rail and he
rolled into a crouch.

He
turned around and saw Cass standing on the edge of the docks, hands on his
hips, the word “fuck,” pouring from his mouth. It was not a positive sight to
look forward to going back to.

He
turned away from his leader knowing that he needed to focus, and that Cass was
going to be pissed off at him no matter what he did from here out. Quinn was
utterly and completely alone, without even a head set to connect him to the
rest of his team, and apparently his leader was seriously unhappy about this.

Looking
around he found not a single Hunter in sight. If he could keep them from
detecting his presence, then he would be able to completely take them by
surprise.

Keeping
his nearly 8 foot tall hulking wolf form from notice would be next to
impossible however, and since he hadn’t bothered to stop and pick up any
weapons, transforming back to a human would be suicide. His only weapon at this
point was his own brute strength.

There
was no way he would be getting off this boat unscathed, and the realization of
that didn’t deter him in the slightest.

Taking
a deep breath he tried to scent how many Hunters were on the ship but with how
thick the walls of the steel barge were it was impossible.

Crouching
low he decided to make his way through the lower deck first, knowing that the
upper deck would hold the captain of the ship and an alarm system that would
alert the entire crew as to what was happening.

Quietly
he slithered down the stairs, thankful that even the steps were made of metal,
because wooden ones would groaned under his weight and given him away.

On
the opposite end of the ship he noticed a sliver of light and the quiet
muffling of voices, though he couldn’t tell how many there were.

            Between
him and the lighted room at the end was nothing but storage space piled up with
junk.

As
quickly as he dared he made his way towards the light, wishing he had had his
cell phone with him to at least record what they were saying.

“…
a traitor is the only answer…”

“…
even if they did find out about this place there’s no way they would have known
to come at this exact date and time…”