Wolf Hunter (6 page)

Mark’s “none of your business” probably translated into “He’s sleeping off a bender,” but why couldn’t he say so? Austin was a beta too, but not an asshole. Not as big of one as other betas, anyway. Westley had stalked back to his truck and slammed the door after him. He hadn’t even had the chance to eat, and now he didn’t want to. He forced himself to slow his breathing.
You are calm, cool, and collected. Everything is okay. Assholes are as assholes do.
Maybe he didn’t have the best mantra in the world in terms of being inspirational, but it did the job.

And now, Jaylen. An excited knot formed in his stomach. New guy, new slate, and, yes, God, yes,
human.
A quick fuck was one thing, but Westley needed to get his medicine right so he could ask Jaylen out on a regular basis—assuming he’d stick around. He hadn’t been on a date since, well, since that thing with Cody, which had been a stupid, capital S, idea, and he’d mostly done it because his mother had pressured him.

“
You’re an omega, Westley, you need to find someone your age now before they’re all taken.”

Screw that. He was fine in his awesome cabin alone. And he didn’t want a wolf anyway. To risk passing this curse to children—no thanks.

When he was a pup, running around on four legs with Tom and Cody had been the best fun.

Then he’d shifted back to human after one of those awesome nights and discovered the dead body of one of his fifth grade classmates lying in the middle of his living room.

“Me?” He had looked to his parents for reassurance that he wasn’t a killer.

“
My kill,” his father had said, too quickly, before sending Westley up to his room.

“
It’s what happens sometimes,” his mother had said later, tucking Westley against her bosom. “It’s nature.”

“
I don’t want it,” Westley had sobbed.

She’d sighed. “I’m sorry you inherited this legacy, Westley. But it doesn’t have to be a curse.”

From that moment on, Westley had resolved to find a way out.

He was twenty-one when he stumbled on the right combination of herbs to stem his hormones, twenty-three when he stopped his transformation completely. Fortunately, he’d never had to explain his interest in gardening. His parents supported it as a proper activity for an omega. And, as the lowest on the totem pole, he wasn’t expected to join the other wolves on the hunt.

Every so often his mother had brought an alpha or beta woman home to sniff around and, after Westley came out, she’d presented him with men. Westley ignored them all. If he were a normal human, his parents would have been proud of him for all he’d done. Straight A student, varsity letters in three sports, early admission to college where he’d majored in plant husbandry.

Instead they snapped and yelled. At one point, Westley’s father drove him to a strange house and tried to force him into taking a man twice his age as his mate. Thankfully, the man had been horrified. (
“You said he was willing!”
) and sent them both packing.

“
I don’t think we should talk anymore, Dad,” Westley had said, picking at his knees when his father drove him home. He’d nodded, and maintained his stony silence, as he’d done ever since.

Westley liked his life as it was. Sure, he was on medicine he’d have to take until he died, but who wasn’t? It wasn’t any different than taking something for depression or diabetes. The werewolf curse could be controlled. He’d found a way. He didn’t begrudge the others their beliefs, but for him, being human, actually human, was the only thing he’d ever wanted.

And now, with Jaylen, maybe he could have it.

FALLING FOR SOMEONE—don’t do it. Damn sure that was in the Hunter’s Handbook. The one Jaylen had written in his head, anyway. He wasn’t falling for Westley. First thing, Jaylen only intended to be in town long enough to kill the Alpha or chase him out, and second thing, Westley didn’t seem like a guy who’d take too well to what Jaylen did for a living. He was more of the settling down type. He gardened, for God’s sake. Jaylen couldn’t drag him out on the road with him, and he couldn’t promise Westley he’d come back to him, not when he didn’t know day to day if he’d make it to the end of each.

But when he closed his eyes, he saw Westley’s smile. When he tried to sleep, he heard Westley’s ridiculous donkey laugh in the silence. When he touched his dick he.... Well, he’d memorized the way Westley’s chest stretched his T-shirt so tight it perked his nipples, leave it at that.

He hadn’t gotten laid in a while. That was all it was. So what if he jacked off thinking about Westley? Wasn’t the first time. Every town had a hot guy. Jaylen’s luck, he managed to run into so many of them. He ought to start keeping a tally, keep his fantasies straight. But those guys had all been über confident (and mostly straight), and sometimes acted like Jaylen had come to town to steal their women. He didn’t like fighting other people—waste of time and energy, but when he did, he put them down fast. Left blood and broken noses in his wake. It was a fine way to get himself rushed out of a town ahead of schedule.

He tried not to think about how he might have killed the Alpha already if not for temper tantrums and asshole posturing from liquored up frat boys. There was one time, a few years back, when he was so close, in town before the weres had started acting weird, before the Alpha had turned up his charm, and he got run out of town by a pair of asshats who thought he’d taken their pride in some way he was never clear on. Leaving them bleeding and screaming maybe hadn’t been the best reaction to that, but Jaylen had always struggled with seeing the long game. Hit first, ask questions never. It worked for him, most times.

The drug came into it when he was twenty-five, courtesy of a witch named Danni. Best one night stand he’d ever had, and they hadn’t even fucked. They had stayed up all night talking magic and “What if we could...,” “If there was a way...,” and figuring shit out. It was a mix of this and that, powders ground down from roots with weird names, mostly. Shit he’d get arrested for having because they violated customs laws.

The first time he took the drug, nothing had happened except the pain. The second time was the kicker. Wolves everywhere. Thankfully, he had sense enough to know how unlikely that was. (And Danni there too.) Third time did it. Balanced it out. From there it was trial and painful, painful error that made him realize he needed to detox every twenty-four hours and stay off it for a few hours before dosing up again. He tried to keep to his schedule. Over a full-moon, he could reduce it because the wolves’ hormones were so jumpy his drug would react to them even on a half-dose. And he knew the Alpha was near when his reactions increased, because their hormone levels rose even without the moon beckoning them out. It made hunting so much easier. Made life easier, really, and it kept his hope alive that he would survive to avenge his family.

“
FUCKING BOLL WEEVILS.” Westley stared in dismay at his garden tomatoes and the little critters happily chomping through them. He’d spent the morning reading his new books, and now was taking a break to tend his garden. He stomped toward his garden shed and came back armed with a spray bottle. “Fuck organic,” he muttered, and started his attack. The weevils fell away. For good measure, he soaked them into the ground and then sprayed his lettuce and cabbage as well. He double-checked the wire cages that were supposed to keep the rabbits out and found that something had been digging around the radishes. He stomped the wire back into the ground and shoved more dirt in around it.

He heard a car rumble up the long drive, wending its way through the trees that framed either side of the gravel road. He stood up and wiped his hands on his jeans as he waited for it to come into view. When he caught a glimpse of the blue and red bar on top of the brown sedan, he sighed and walked the spade and spray bottle back to the shed. He emerged as Cody parked. Westley motioned him toward the front of the cabin. Tom, in uniform as well, stretched his huge self out of the passenger side. Cody ambled up to the porch.

“How are the rabbits?” Cody thumbed toward the garden.

“
No problems as yet,” Westley said. He hovered on the stairs, waiting to see why Cody had decided on a drive by. “You guys want something to drink?”

“
We’re on duty,” Tom said, before Cody could accept. He offered an apologetic smile.

“
I’ve got lemonade if you’re staying,” Westley offered. He kept his focus on Tom and ignored the way Cody stared at his garden, no doubt thinking about what he saw as the ridiculous lengths Westley took to keep rabbits off his vegetables when he could just eat them. Fortunately, Cody never showed more interest than this. If he had any curiosity about Westley’s herb garden, Westley would have cause to worry.

“
We won’t be long,” Cody said, turning back to face him. “This is an unofficial stop. Just wanted to let you know that Ed and Leslie Hooper are dead.”

“
Cody!” Tom said. “Don’t tell him like that. Have some sensitivity.”

“
What?” Westley leaned heavy on the wooden banister. It dug into his back. “Was it a... What happened?” For Ed, Westley would have guessed heart attack. He couldn’t live off red meat forever. But Leslie was sixteen and fit as a fiddle.

“
Best we can tell they were stabbed.”

“
What?” Westley repeated. He felt hands on his shoulders and glanced up to see Tom steadying him. “Thanks.” He let Tom help him sit down on the top step leading up to the porch. “What are you talking about?”

“
It was Austin who found them. He shifted last night, and he was attacked.”

“
What?”

“
The guy who did also murdered Ed and Leslie,” Cody said. He used his professional “Just the facts, ma’am” tone. It annoyed Westley every time.

“
How do you know?”

“
Because he thought Austin was dead. He dropped him into a grave with them,” Tom said.

“
Did he know who it was?”

“
No. He’s not a hundred percent when he’s a wolf, you know, and with his injuries... well, he climbed out of the grave and a few hours later Cyrus found him wandering around the motel naked with his gut slashed. He’s in the hospital now.”

“
Oh my God,” Westley said. “I was... I was upset with him today for standing me up. Oh my God.”

“
It’s not your fault,” Tom said. He squeezed Westley’s shoulder.
There there. Calm the hysterical omega.
Westley shrugged him off as he struggled not to cry.

“
Do you know where they were killed?” Leslie. Shit. He’d
babysat
her.

“
Ed’s wife said they were at the Curlicue, so we assume there,” Cody said. So that was why Mark and the other
not-Austin
guy had been looking around this morning.

“
You saw?” Westley asked.

“
I didn’t go,” Cody admitted. “But from what I hear, the blood was ankle deep.” His voice took on the excited cadence of the teenager he used to be, the kid who cheated off Westley’s math tests and flirted with Westley’s mother.

“
Actually, the place was clean as a whistle,” Tom said. Westley glanced at Tom, checking his reaction. Tom’s face was perfectly blank. As the son and presumed heir to pack leadership, he was practiced at hiding his thoughts.

“
What about the bodies? Were they—?”

“
Wolfed?” Cody asked. “We pulled them out of a grave, West. Hard to tell what was wolf and what was mud.”

The more Cody talked, the more Westley’s stomach turned. “You think this sicko who did it is a—”

“There’s a council meeting tonight before sundown.” Tom jumped in before Westley could voice his fear. “That’s why we stopped by. Everyone needs to be there.” The “even you” remained unspoken.

“
Okay,” Westley said. He tucked his hands against his stomach to stop them from shaking.

“
We can pick you up,” Cody said. “So you don’t chicken out.”

Westley knew he should raise his head, meet Cody’s attention with a glare, but Cody had him and they both knew it. “Fine,” he bit out. “But not in that.” He pointed at the patrol car.

“Geez,” Cody said. “If you’re going to be a baby about riding in the back—”

“
Trapped in the back,” Westley snapped, still focused on the ground. “Which wasn’t funny.”

“
Cody, leave him alone,” Tom said. “We’ll bring a different car.” He stepped back from the porch. A second later, Westley sensed Cody departing as well. He glanced up to see Cody staring at him. Cody maintained eye contact and spat on the ground.

“
We’ll see you around six,” Tom said, raising his voice slightly even though it carried fine. Westley raised his hand in a half-hearted wave. Tom turned to Cody. “Get in the damn car.”

With an insouciant grin, Cody obeyed.

CHAPTER THREE

WHEN HE WALKED in, there were a few friendly smiles from people he knew well, but overall the reception was markedly unpleasant. Westley stared straight ahead and ignored the elbow nudges and pointed nods in his direction as the were population of La Mer-sur-Plaines noticed his attendance at a council meeting. He sat buffeted between Tom and Cody, hands in his lap, fighting to keep his panic down. He could smell it. Hell, everyone in the room could.
Terrified omega. See what refusing a mate gets you, kids? Freak of nature, living alone, acting like an alpha, screwing around with alphas, leading them on...
Thank God Tom was his best friend and strong enough that he didn’t give a shit about the unspoken thoughts behind their glares. Anyone else, and he’d have been force-mated years ago. He’d seen his parents. His mother had smiled at him. His father had pretended not to see him.