FavoriteObsession, page 26
“But what—”
Another shake and she bit her tongue. Blood filled her mouth, blood that didn’t taste right. It had a hint of metal in it. Iron.
“But nothing. Now look at me.”
She swallowed the odd-tasting liquid and focused on Kade.
“You cannot risk it.”
She closed her eyes against the sympathy in Kade’s eyes. “I know that, I do. But why? Why have the gods done this to me?”
Tears filled her eyes. She didn’t know they’d spilled over until Kade brushed them away with his thumb. “You love him.”
A statement, not a question. She answered it anyway. “Yes, with my heart and soul. I can’t let him go.” Even if it meant making the dream she had a reality.
He didn’t try to convince her differently. Instead, he wrapped his arms around her and let her cry. When the sobs stopped, he rested his cheek over her head. “You’ll need to mate me then, my Mira. Aron will not allow you to keep your human lover. I will.”
“What about Zoe?”
“Zoe only wants my cock.”
The bitterness in his words suggested he wanted more.
“I’m sorry, Kade.”
He squeezed her tighter. “Don’t be. I’ll suffer with you, wanting and never having. Maybe when they’re gone we can find a way to love each other.”
She doubted it, but the pain in Kade’s voice forced the lie past her lips.
“Maybe, Kade. Maybe.”
Chapter Twenty-Five
Josh pressed hard against the tugging in his chest. Mira needed him. He felt her pain as if it were his own. If it weren’t for Abby and her fucking brothers, he’d turn around and rush back to her side. But no. He had to wander around town hitting all the spots he knew Zeb, along with Sam and Saul, the two younger Ernest brothers, frequented.
After exhausting all the possible places, Josh pulled into the parking lot of the diner where Abby worked the lunch shift. Saul’s truck with its pissing decals sat in its usual spot, right by the light. He breathed a sigh at the sight of the rusted piece of shit. He jumped out of his car, not even bothering to shut the door, and jogged toward the entrance.
He paused halfway across the lot and spun on his heel. Eyes burned into him. The lot looked the same, parked cars and a few couples coming and going. Nobody paid him any notice, yet he swore someone watched him. A flash of gold near the dumpsters behind the neighboring gas station caught his attention. He narrowed his eyes and studied the spot. Nothing moved. Although the compulsion to investigate beat at him, he ignored it and turned back. Saul had to come first. Besides, he had a feeling he knew who lurked there.
The diner had its normal breakfast crowd—retired couples and widowed seniors who made the greasy grill their second home. He nodded at some of the greetings, but didn’t stop to chat with anyone like he normally did. His gaze was locked onto the curly red hair at the end booth and the two half-eaten breakfasts.
Hands clenching and releasing at his sides, he strode toward the smallest of the Ernest brothers. Saul turned his head at his approach. His eyes widened and mouth formed a perfect O. The impression of a shocked teenage girl would’ve normally pulled a laugh from Josh but he had too much anger brewing inside him. Saul had watched him make love to Mira last night and Josh hated the fact that he’d never noticed him.
Goddammit, he should’ve known. Actually, he’d thought he’d heard something but he’d been balls-deep inside Mira at the time.
No matter. He’d fix this.
Weak. The word bounced around in his head. Saul looked like a fool as he scrambled out of the booth and fell to his knees. He reminded Josh of…prey. Yeah, that was the word which suited Saul best. Prey. My prey.
Josh grinned. Excitement and a sense of satisfaction replaced the anger. He’d put Saul in his place years ago, the day he’d told Jazz she was fat and made her cry. Today, however, Josh would break him and make him understand that hurting his family would never be tolerated.
He hauled him up by his collar so they were eye to eye. “Going somewhere?”
“I-I…have to go to work.”
The stench oozing from Saul—a combination of piss and booze—disgusted Josh. He dropped him and grabbed the back of his neck. Josh used the tight grip to guide him toward the front door. “Of course, those pig sties need tending but I’m sure you can spare some time for your old buddy, right?”
“Yeah, sure. Uhmm, we can talk.” Saul motioned toward the table he’d occupied. “Let’s sit.”
Josh directed him forward without responding. He stopped at the cash register and dropped a fifty on the scuffed counter. “For Saul’s breakfast. Keep the change.”
He hauled him outside and dragged him around the back of the diner.
“Let go!” Saul uselessly scratched at his arm. “I’m not going anywhere with you, freak.”
Josh tightened his hold on Saul’s neck until he squeaked. “Didn’t I teach you not to call people names back in eighth grade? Do I need to give you another lesson?”
Saul shook his head. “No, no but I know what you are! You ain’t normal!”
Josh clamped his hand over Saul’s mouth and narrowed his eyes on him. “Shut the fuck up, Saul, and if you even think of biting me, I’ll bite you back and I promise you, I’ll make it hurt.”
Whimpers fell from Saul’s throat and the sound pleased him on some level he’d never known he had. He liked seeing the stark terror in his eyes and knowing he’d put it there without trying. He shook off the chilling realization and stared at the trembling man.
“Do you understand me?” He waited until Saul nodded before uncovering his mouth. “Now you and I are going to take a little walk and discuss your unwise decision to spy on me and my girlfriend last night.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about. I didn’t—”
“Walk, Saul, or when I’m done with you, I’ll make sure you can’t.”
Saul shuffled with him, eyes on the ground as if he were going to his death. In the small alley between the diner and the empty store next to it, Josh slammed him into the wall and held him dangling a foot off the ground. He leaned close and ignored the nauseating combination of whiskey, eggs and coffee on his breath.
“Who sent you to spy on me?”
“Nobody did, I—”
Josh growled and watched the panic slide into Saul’s green eyes. “No lies.”
“Abby. S-she’s got a new boyfriend and he doesn’t like how you’ve treated her. He wants you to be hu-humiliated like…like she’s been.”
Every muscle in his body tensed. “Who’s the new guy?”
“I don’t know. He’s—”
Josh grabbed Saul’s biceps and bounced him off the wall. The crack of his skull against the brick echoed in the narrow corridor. “I said no lies.”
Saul blinked hard. Unfocused eyes met him. “I’m not. I ain’t never seen him.”
“Name.”
“I don’t—”
Josh raised him up for another whack against the building but paused. A glance over his shoulder confirmed his suspicion at who the flash of gold he’d seen earlier belonged to. “What are you doing here, Rafe?”
Rafe slid his golden eyes from him to the man he held. “Kade sent me to help you with your little problem.”
“I don’t need help. Saul and I were just having a little chat.” Josh turned back to the man he held. “Weren’t we?”
Another whiff of piss surrounded them. Josh glanced at the wet line spreading down Saul’s leg. Great. Josh eased back so the drips falling off Saul’s shoe didn’t land on him. “Why are so afraid, buddy?”
“I…I told you why. I know what your new friends are.” Saul jerked his head in Rafe’s direction. “And I know they’re making you into a freak too.”
Josh wished. It’d make his life easier. “I’ll tell you the truth about what my new friends are. Want to hear it?” He waited until Saul nodded. “They’re a powerful, honorable family who live, love and put their pants on one leg at a time just like you do. They’re also going to be mine as soon as Mira and I tie the knot.”
“You’re going to marry that thing.”
Josh grabbed Saul’s shoulder with one hand and delivered three short, hard jabs to his nose. Bone cracked. Saul shrieked. Josh covered Saul’s mouth to muffle the cry and berated himself for giving in to his rage.
Blood dripped over his knuckles. Instead of it bringing him back to reality, he wanted more of Saul’s blood, preferably in his mouth as he tore his throat out. Josh shook his head to get the violent images out.
With his raging instincts held at bay, he bent his head closer. “That beautiful woman is the love of my life. She’s mine. You understand what that means for me and what I’ll do to protect those I love, don’t you?”
Saul nodded quickly and another weak whimper escaped, the sound garbled by Josh’s palm.
“You sure? I know how sometimes you forget things.” Josh pulled his hand away from Saul’s mouth and lifted him. “But I bet your buddy Vince remembers.” And if he didn’t, Josh made sure he had enough scars to ensure he never forgot. “How many years does he have left for taking Zoe’s family away from her?”
He didn’t need to see Rafe to know that statement shocked him. Josh felt the tension radiating off the shifter who stood behind him, blocking them from curious eyes. He’d meant to clue Rafe into why Kade had no chance in hell with Zoe. He hadn’t had time. The mess with Mira had taken all of his.
“Vince is sorry, man. You know that.”
Josh punched him and felt the cartilage shift under the blow. “Vince is a sick fuck who wanted what never belonged to him.”
“It was the drugs. He’s…he’s all cleaned-up now.” Saul licked the blood away from his lips. More flowed to coat it. “The judge believed him. That’s why he went easy on him.”
More likely the judge had been paid off. Vince’s family owned the biggest meat packing plant in the state. They also supplied the local dealers, including Zeb, not that the police could tie them to it. Ella had tried for years and kept running into dead ends.
As much as he wanted to find out what Saul meant by the judge going easy on him—last he heard Vince was doing twenty to thirty in the state penitentiary—he had to deal with the images Saul should never have taken. Josh tightened his grip and growled, “So about last night…who did you tell?”
“No-nobody. I didn’t tell—”
Josh smacked him into the wall. Saul’s eyes rolled back in his head. Josh shook him so he wouldn’t pass out. “What did I tell you about lying to me, Saul? I don’t like when people lie.”
“S…Sam.”
The slurred word dropped between them and worry stirred Josh’s anger. Sam gossiped worse than some of the elderly women in town. “Where is he?”
The sound of a police siren reached Josh’s ears. He cursed. “Tell me, Saul. Where is he?”
“Went to…tell,” Saul licked his lips, “Abby’s boyfriend…he was right.”
Shit, shit, shit. “Where. Tell me where.”
“Ca-cabin.”
“Dammit to hell, Josh. Again?”
Josh dropped Saul’s unconscious body and turned to meet Ella’s hazel eyes. He grinned. “Morning, cuz.”
Ella’s gaze swept over the scene, did a double take on Rafe, and settled on him. “What’s going on?”
“Uhmm, nothing?” Josh widened his smile. “Saul and I were just talking.”
Ella dropped her arms to hang loosely at her sides and widened her legs, her usual ‘don’t-mess-with-me’ stance. “No bullshit lines, Josh.” She turned her head and leveled a hard glare on Rafe. “I got a very interesting call this morning from an arm of the government I never knew existed and I’m not happy, not happy at all that shit has been kept from me.”
Rafe flashed a grin. “Ma’am, let me introduce myself. I’m—”
“Rafe Alexander.” Ella gave him a once-over. “Don’t even try to charm me, Rafe. It won’t work. I know your wife.”
He chuckled. “Jazz says, welcome to the club. She wants you to stop by and she’ll fill you in but,” Rafe motioned toward the slumped body on the ground, “in the meantime, we could use your help containing a little slip that happened last night.”
Josh strode forward and gave her arm a small squeeze. “We good, cuz?”
Ella shrugged. “I’m a little hurt that I had to find out this way but yeah, we’re good.”
Josh sighed. “Great because I’ve got to stop Sam from messing this up worse than it already is.”
He didn’t bother waiting to listen to her argument. He jogged toward his car and ignored her bellowed order to stop.
* * * * *
The Ernests’ hunting cabin sat at the top of a mountain. Josh’s SUV lurched over the divots and potholes in the road leading to it. He cursed each time the underbelly scraped, more because of the wasted time than the damage to his new car. His only consolation stemmed from knowing this impassable path was the only way in or out of the place.
Rafe sat next to him but thankfully had stopped asking him questions. It took all of Josh’s control not to turn his head and snarl at the shifter. Mira’s anxiety radiated along their invisible tether. It added to the worry he felt and the regret over not checking out the thumping sound last night. On top of that, the unexplainable pain in his body had grown since they’d left Ella. Shallow breaths and focusing on the mess he had to fix stopped him from obsessing over it.
He breathed a sigh when the dilapidated building came into view. The only vehicle parked in front belonged to Sam. Josh blocked it in with his.
A whiff of blood and death hit him as soon as he got out. He had a moment to wonder how he could smell it or know what it meant before concern for the man who had never been his friend kicked in. He rushed to the door and flung it open.
He grabbed the doorframe to stop himself from entering and messing up the crime scene. The single red dot between Sam’s open eyes and the trail of blood down his crooked nose told him everything he needed to know.
“There’s no scent from the murderer.”
“Shit.” Josh met Rafe’s eyes.
“Yeah, shit,” Rafe echoed.
Josh pulled out his phone and dialed. “Ella, get up here and bring a body bag. We were too late.”
Chapter Twenty-Six
Josh followed Jazz and Rafe’s retreating car with his eyes. Molly poked her furry head over the backseat. He waved and waited until the vehicle disappeared before giving in to his rage. He grabbed the nearest thing, an Adirondack chair, and flung it off the porch. It hit a nearby tree with a satisfying crunch. The second and third brand-new wooden chairs met the same fate.
He reached for the fourth but paused with his fingers wrapped around the arms. The few times Mira had been over she’d sat in this seat. He dropped down in it and held his head. The pressure in it made the world around him take on that weird haze where colors dimmed and grays sharpened.
Deep, controlled breaths eased the pain. He conjured Mira’s imagine. Instead of soothing him, it made the whirling emotions worse. He needed her but she’d refused to answer his calls. Instead, she’d texted him and told him she wanted a few hours to think things through and she’d talk to him after her fake date with Micah.
He only let her go because he knew Lena was with her, not one of her other suitors. He also knew Mira had to go through with the charade. If there was a chance Micah had any involvement in Sam’s murder, they needed to know. Hopefully, the little prick would make a slip they could call him on.
The door banged shut. A moment later, something cold pressed against his arm. He grabbed the water bottle without opening his eyes, untwisted the cap and chugged.
The porch swing groaned and the rhythmic creak as it swung on its rusty hooks filled the silence. With Megan staying at Rafe’s house and Molly gone, he’d better get used to it. No chance of that happening. The quiet irritated the fuck out of him.
Josh waited for Devin to say something. He’d come over with Rafe and Jazz, pleading their case. No need. As soon as Josh learned of Micah’s threat, he’d agreed wholeheartedly with their suggestion to get the little girl somewhere safer. He sure as hell didn’t like it but his wants came last.
“It’s only temporary.”
Devin’s gravelly voice made the thump in Josh’s head worse. He pinched the bridge of his nose and nodded, best he could do.
The swing squeaked and the pressure between his ears increased with each shrill whine. Josh ground his teeth.
“Megan misses you. She doesn’t understand why she can’t stay here.”
Josh forced his heavy eyelids apart. “I’ll stop by before I go to the bar tonight and see if I can get through to her. It’s just too damn dangerous for her to be around me.” The bright afternoon sun blinded him. He closed his eyes and blessed darkness cocooned him. He wanted it to wrap it around him like an inky blanket that would take all his pain away. “Sam’s murder worries me. Abby’s new boyfriend obviously didn’t like what he had to say.”
“Or that he didn’t have any evidence.” Devin cursed. “No word on where Abby is?”
Josh shook his head and regretted the motion a second later. His stomach rolled. He swallowed the bile down. “No, both Abby and Zeb are missing and nobody knows anything about the mysterious boyfriend. Ella’s on top of it. She’ll find them.”
“The wolves are prowling the woods behind the cabin hoping to pick up some tracks but without a scent we don’t have much to go on besides the tire tracks in the road.”
Josh worked his jaw back and forth. He wanted to be out there with them, but he hurt too damn much to tramp around the forest. He peered at Devin through cracked eyelids.
“Do you think it’s the Council?”
A shrug accompanied Devin’s grunt. “Maybe but it doesn’t make sense that they’d send a human to watch you and Mira have sex, not unless they wanted the humans to learn about us.” He shook his head. “No, that’d be suicide.”
Or a brilliant plan. Gather evidence to use as blackmail so they could force Mira’s compliance and secure Molly. He sighed. No use thinking about the whys. Josh turned his focus back to Devin’s words. No animosity had accompanied his acknowledgement of what he’d shared with Mira. “What? Aren’t you going to tell me I made a mistake?”
