Rick had said Dorian was different, that his instincts and his conscience warred inside his head. The man had been right. Dorian was so not touching that. Instead, he walked back inside the diner, feeling his head hurting from the nightmares that bastard had caused.

  Miguel had gotten his justice, although Dorian was pretty sure it would not help Miguel with his loss. But Jayson was finally dead.

  Finally.

  That brought some comfort to him. Dorian spun around when he heard fighting. Shit. He had forgotten that Jayson probably hadn’t come alone. He raced toward the back door and then ran outside.

  Dorian didn’t hesitate when he saw the humans attacking the changelings. He leapt on the first person he could get his claws on and attacked. He really wished he had a gun right now. Tearing out someone’s throat was going to be gross as hell.

  Yeah, he was a squeamish changeling. Sue him.

  But he did what he had to do. Dorian took down the human and went for another. The other changelings were battling as well. The Shadow had said that the closer to Washington they got, the more obstacles they would run into.

  He wasn’t lying.

  But eventually the fighting ceased.

  “We need to get out of here,” Rick said as he stared at the dead bodies on the ground. “I’m pretty sure Jayson had more coming.”

  Everyone quickly gathered their things and loaded their trucks. So much for taking some time to unwind.

  Dorian couldn’t wait for this shit to be over so he could go home and do absolutely nothing. He was going to barricade him and Rick inside for a solid year.

  Slipping back into the truck, Rick pulled away from the diner, the others following. It wasn’t until they had the diner far behind them that Dorian let out a shaky breath. “I swear I hate this shit.”

  “Me, too, gatito,” Rick said as he exhaled. “I’m tired of running, fighting, hiding, and looking over my shoulder every second of every day. It’s time to put an end to all of this.”

  “I am going to kill that damn bio-daddy of yours,” Dorian grumbled. “If I ever get my hands on him—” Dorian choked the air with his hands, mimicking him strangling O’Hanlon. He even stuck his tongue out and to the side for good measure.

  Rick chuckled. “I’ll hold him down for you.”

  “Good,” Dorian said. “Because I want to give him one good bitch slap before you kill him.”

  “Duly noted,” Rick replied.

  Dorian slumped back. All kidding aside, he really did want to smack the fuck out of O’Hanlon. The guy had turned their worlds upside down and inside out. The only good thing that came from this war was mating Rick. If they hadn’t been forced to run together, Dorian knew Rick would have never talked to him.

  He guessed he could thank the bastard before he smacked him. He began to laugh at the thought, images of him shaking O’Hanlon’s hand before Rick tore the man into a thousand little pieces somehow seemed funny as hell to him.

  “Are you all right?” Rick asked, his light-grey eyes flickering between Dorian and the road. “Should I be worried?”

  Dorian shook his head as the bubbles of laughter subsided. “Nah, I’m just losing my mind. It’s nothing new.”

  “Well, before you totally lose it, I need you to call Bryson and let him know our location has changed.”

  Dorian grabbed the cell Rick handed him and dialed the number.

  He kept glancing in the mirror to make sure no unwanted guests were following them. His nerves were frayed after dealing with Jayson, and then seeing the changelings eat him.

  “Hey, Bryson,” Dorian said when the medic answered the phone. “We are no longer at the diner. We had some unwanted visitors.”

  “Who?” Bryson asked.

  “An old nemesis of mine named Jayson showed up—”

  “Tell me it’s not the same Jayson who ambushed me and nearly killed Marco.” Dorian could hear the light growl in Bryson’s voice and didn’t blame the man one bit. Jayson had been a pain in the ass when Dorian worked with him. He became a monster once he joined up with the Breed Hunters.

  “The one and only,” Dorian replied.

  “Please tell me he didn’t get away.”

  At least Dorian could take comfort that he was giving the man some sort of good news. “He’s dead.”

  “Are you sure?”

  Oh yeah, he was sure. He had watched the changelings—Dorian shivered. “Very.”

  “I just wish it was me who killed him,” Bryson said and then was quiet for a moment before he continued. Dorian could hear the small clearing of a throat and knew that it was an emotional moment for Bryson. “Where are you headed now?”

  Dorian pulled the phone away from his ear. “Bryson wants to know where we are headed.”

  Rick glanced at Dorian and he could see the concern in his mate’s eyes. Bryson had nearly died at the hands of Jayson. That hadn’t escaped either of them. “Tell him to head toward the diner and call us when he gets close. I’ll let him know from there.”

  “Did you hear that?”

  “Yeah,” Bryson answered. “I’ll meet up with you guys by tomorrow. I need to let Marco rest and check his wounds in a few hours.”

  “He really can’t shift?” Dorian asked, feeling the anger building inside of him. He didn’t know Marco personally, but it was truly fucked up that he had to have a part of him taken away in such a violent manner. Although Dorian was still considered newly converted, he would miss his werewolf if he was no longer able to shift.

  “No, and neither can Remus. They’re both asleep now, but I can see how hard it is on them. Whatever Jayson did, he really fucked them up.”

  Dorian wished he could bring the man back to life so Remus and Marco could seek their revenge. There were a lot of people the man had hurt. It was too bad he didn’t die in the beginning of this war.

  What bothered Dorian the most was the fact that Jayson had killed Miguel’s parents. So damn senseless.

  “I’ll call you later,” Bryson said before hanging up. He set the phone down and gazed out of the window, thinking about all the people they had lost and those they still might lose. He wasn’t sure how much more of this he could take.

  What if it had been Rick or Miguel who had been killed? Dorian shivered at the possibility of Benito or Nate dying. He cherished everyone in their group. He even liked Clyde and Ross.

  He didn’t want to lose any of them, and he didn’t want another person to be out there mourning the loss of their loved one.

  “I can scent your sadness, gatito, and it breaks my heart,” Rick said in the quietness of the truck.

  “I don’t want anyone else to die,” he admitted. “I don’t think I can handle if one of the people closest to us is killed. I already hurt for those I don’t even know who sacrificed their lives for us.”

  “Not us,” Rick said as he reached over and grabbed Dorian’s hand. “They sacrificed their lives for freedom, for a chance to be who they were born to be. We must never forget that.”

  Dorian wasn’t. He couldn’t, because people were still sacrificing themselves. Until this war ended, more would die and a hell of a lot more would mourn the loss.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Remus wasn’t sure what was going on. Bryson was talking with a group of men who had flagged them down. He had argued that stopping for strangers was a very bad idea. There was no telling if they were friendly or the enemy. But Bryson hadn’t listened. The medic in the werewolf had taken over and he pulled over.

  Was the guy nuts? The strangers could have been Breed Hunters or mercenaries. It seemed the medic had a death wish. It was a death wish Remus didn’t share with the lunatic. He had to be crazy to let a stranger wave him down.

  “Is it safe?” Marco asked from under Remus. “I’m getting a damn crook in my back. You’re heavy as hell. You know that?”

  Remus didn’t want to let the man up. If things went to shit, he wanted Marco under him where Remus could shield the leopard. He just hated that Marco still had his stiches in. He knew he was putting undue pressure on the man, but there was little he could do about that.

  Remus was determined to keep his mate safe.

  As Bryson leaned into the back of the truck, Remus sat up a little further. Just what in the hell was he doing? Remus was torn between keeping Marco safe and making sure Bryson was okay. He was starting to realize the man’s heart overrode his common sense sometimes.

  “Motherfucker,” Remus said when he saw Bryson struggling with whoever was in the back of the truck. He couldn’t just sit here. As much as he wanted to keep Marco safe, Remus wasn’t going to let Bryson get hurt.

  Even if the werewolf had been the one to pull over.

  Quickly jumping from the truck, Remus moved toward the strangers at changeling speed. He grabbed the guy who had been standing by the back door—right behind Bryson—and threw him to the ground.

  “What the hell are you doing?” the guy asked when he hit pavement.

  Remus ignored him as he grabbed Bryson’s arm. He could hear screaming and feared the worst. Reaching down, Remus helped the poor father to his feet. “Sorry about that,” he said as the guy released his hand.

  Remus could scent he was human.

  Great. As if the humans didn’t already look at us as savages, I had to go and prove it. In his defense, he had thought Bryson was in trouble. They couldn’t hold that against him.

  “Why did you throw me down?”

  Because I can’t tell the difference between fighting and a woman screaming as she is giving birth. “Thought my buddy was in trouble.”

  “From my pregnant wife?”

  When the father to be said it like that, Remus wanted to walk away with his hands tucked in his pockets and his head hung down. “I didn’t know it was your pregnant wife, buddy. All I saw was my friend struggling and I heard screaming.”

  The guy stood there for a moment, and then a slow grin formed on his face. “No harm. No foul.” He extended his hand and Remus shook it. “You throwing me down actually helped me.”

  He hadn’t been expecting that statement. “How?”

  They looked over to where Bryson was standing and then glanced at Remus. “I was starting to freak out hearing my wife scream like that.”

  Yeah, Remus could understand. If he heard Marco screaming, he would have gone nuts as well. Those sounds hit a man in the heart when it was a loved one who was making them. Even though no one was hurting her, Remus could see where the stranger was coming from.

  “Just breathe easy. Bryson is a medic.”

  “That’s what he said.”

  Remus glanced over his shoulder to see Marco getting out from the backseat. He looked like shit. His mate needed some serious rest.

  Remus would give anything if Marco could shift so he would heal.

  He was too thin, pale, and the bandages stood out in stark contrast to his frail frame. His short black hair was sticking up everywhere from Marco running his hands repeatedly through the strands.

  And even though the man looked a complete mess, he still was as gorgeous as ever to Remus. There wasn’t another living soul who could hold a candle to his Marco.

  “Yours?” the stranger asked.

  Remus wasn’t sure what the guy was talking about until he turned and saw him staring. He had to have seen the enamored look on Remus’s face. “Yeah, mine.” And he felt proud of that claim.

  They both turned when the shrill of a baby’s cry broke through the silent air. The stranger had tears brimming at his eyes as he stared at Bryson’s back.

  “Congrats, bro.” Remus chucked the guy on his arm. He grabbed Marco’s hand when his mate reached his side, listening to the sound of a new life in the middle of a world gone mad. It was a sobering reminder of what they were fighting for, and why. Remus never wanted a sound like that to become extinct.

  Bryson turned, a swaddle of shirt in his arms. “You have a son,” he stated proudly to the stranger and then handed the baby over to his father. The man’s hands shook and he swallowed about a thousand times before he took what Bryson was offering to him.

  As soon as the father had the baby nestled in the crook of his arm, Bryson turned and started attending to the mother once more. Remus wasn’t sure why, and he wasn’t going to take a peek to find out.

  Instead, he looked over the plaid shirt and saw a tiny little face with the biggest blue eyes he had ever seen. “What’s his name?”

  The father glanced at Remus and shook his head. “We hadn’t picked a name out yet.” His eyes flickered over to Bryson and a wistful expression filled them. “I think I like Bryson.”

  So did Remus. The name was befitting considering the circumstance.

  “Cute kid,” Marco said as he peered at the baby. “You should so name him Marco.”

  Remus chuckled. “Why, you didn’t bring him into this world?”

  “Bryson Marco Dillinger. I like that,” the father said.

  “Really?” Marco asked, his dark eyes rounding in astonishment. “You would give your kid my name?”

  “If it wasn’t for the three wise men, I probably would have lost my wife and son. She wasn’t doing too well before Bryson showed up.”

  They were far from the three wise men, but Remus was glad Bryson hadn’t listened to him, this time. He glanced at the baby again in wonderment. “He’s so tiny.”

  The man gave him a smile that said he was the proudest father on the planet. “Name’s Lawson Dillinger.”

  “I’m Remus.”

  “Well, Remus, would you like to hold Bryson?”

  “That doesn’t sound right on so many levels,” Remus teased. “But no, he’s too tiny. I just might drop him.”

  “And you think I’m a pro at this?” the guy asked. “I’m shaking like a leaf.”

  Marco nudged Remus in the shoulder. “Go on, hold Tiny.”

  “I like that,” Lawson said. “Tiny, yeah.”

  With sweaty palms and a racing heart, Remus reached for the babe. God, he was terrified he was going to drop the kid. It was just a shirt. But once he had the small weight in his arms, Remus held on for dear life.

  But Tiny didn’t seem to notice. He blinked rapidly and then stared up at Remus with curiosity. He was a grown man, yet his throat was growing tight as he stared down at the newborn. He was nothing but a miracle in Remus’s arms, plain and simple.

  Bryson pulled from the truck, blood on his front and sweat on his face.

  “She should be okay to travel. Everything went well. Your wife is sleeping now.”

  Lawson took the few steps between them and then pulled Bryson into a tight hug, thanking the man before taking a step back. “There is no way I’ll ever be able to repay you.”

  “Just take damn good care of them,” Bryson stated. “And come by sometime so I can see the little guy.”

  “Name the place and we’ll be there,” Lawson stated firmly.

  Bryson told them where they lived, and Lawson’s eyes grew just a little. “Isn’t that the town where Enrique Marcelo was living?”

  All three changelings glanced at one another, and then Bryson gave a small dip to his head. “It is.”

  “Then I’ll be there,” Lawson said. “I sure would love to meet the man who put our government on its ass.”

  Remus relaxed and then handed Tiny over to Lawson. “We need to get going. Are you sure you’ll be all right?”

  Lawson gazed at his son and smiled. “We’ve made it this far.” He looked up at Remus. “We’ll be fine.”

  “Let your wife get some rest, but the babe will need to feed soon.

  Stay out of sight and try to find someplace safe until this war is over,” Bryson said.

  “That could be years,” Lawson said.

  “No.” Remus shook his head. “Trust me, it will be over soon.”

  Lawson didn’t say a word, but the understanding dawned in his pale-blue eyes. He gave them a nod as he walked back to his car. “I’ll keep them safe.”

  Remus watched Lawson tuck Tiny in with his mother, and then he got into the driver’s seat and drove off, waving out the window at them as he disappeared down the road.

  “Real good thing you did for them,” Remus said as he pulled on Marco’s hand, leading his mate back to their vehicle.

  “It’s what I was born to do,” Bryson said. “I may be young, but I found my calling early in life.”

  That he had.

  Marco was still glowing with pride about his name being used with the newborn baby. How cool was that? It was like nothing he had ever felt before. He sure hoped the father kept his word and brought Tiny to see them.

  But until then, he was lying here waiting on Bryson to take all of his stitches out. It hurt like a bitch, and the man had no meds. Marco never hid the fact that he wasn’t as strong as most leopards. That didn’t mean he liked being weaker. It had always made him a target for the bullies while growing up. If it hadn’t been for Remus, he would have taken a lot more ass kickings than he had already suffered through.

  And leopards were notorious for picking on the weak. They were vicious and cruel, caring for no one but themselves. There were a few exceptions, like Sasha and Remus. They were the rare ones who actually gave a fuck.

  That was part of the reason he had fallen in love with Remus. The leopard was not only there to chase away the bullies, but he was also there just to hang out. Marco could be himself around Remus and the changeling had never looked at him any differently.

  “That hurt,” Marco complained when Bryson pulled at a stitch in his thigh. God, it felt like the man was pulling nerve endings out through his skin. Marco wasn’t used to dealing with things on a human level.

  It plain old sucked not to be able to shift and heal. He missed his leopard. Marco wasn’t going to piss and moan about it. He was going to find a way to either fix it or deal with the loss. He had learned from almost dying that life was way too short to complain about.

  “I’m trying to be gentle,” Bryson said. “I just don’t have the right equipment with me.”

  “To take out stitches?” Marco asked as his brows dropped down over his eyes. “Give me some damn pliers and I’ll do it.”

 

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22