Damn Hunter! Leaving me in a bind!“Sorry…think what you want but if you have questions, ask Hunter,” Mason growled, tired of being the one his brothers always accosted when Hunter was less than truthful. Leaving the dinette he said, “I’m going to check on Quin.”
Waiting till Mason was gone, Mac, who’d been silent during the conversation, said, “Remember the guy who rushed in here to find Aunt Hope? Well, you’ll never believe this, but he’s a Shaman.”
“So what’s the big deal? Packs usually have Shamans,” Sawyer said.
“Yeah, I know that,” replied Mac, “but this Shaman is different.”
“How?” asked Robin.
“Well, first of all, he has extraordinary power,” Mac said. “Do you know what he did? He laid his hands on Aunt Hope and removed the darkness that was killing her. He saved her! I watched as his aura became pitch black...he collapsed…his heart stopped beating. When his mate came…”
“Who’s his mate?” asked Sawyer.
“Our cousin, Logan…Jackson’s twin. Anyway, Logan put his hands on the Shaman, and sucked the black out of the Shaman’s aura and his heart began to beat again,” Mac said. “I’m telling you…I’ve never seen anything like it before.”
“I wonder if Hunter knew Logan and Jackson had mates?” asked Robin.
“I don’t think so,” Mac said. “Neither he nor Mase ever said anything about mates. And listen to this. You know that doctor who came back to take over from me? He’s a pregnant Omega wolf shifter.”
“A male Omega? You’re shittin’ me,” uttered Sawyer.
“No, I’m not. And I’m not sure, but I think our other cousin, Colton, is the doc’s mate,” Mac said.
“Colton? Isn’t he one of the triplets?” asked Robin.
“Yeah, he is,” Mac said.
“You’re sure the Shaman saved Aunt Hope?” asked Sawyer.
“Yup. When we arrived, I’d have sworn she’d die within the hour. But after the Shaman treated her, Aunt Hope is much better and resting quietly.”
Sawyer’s eyes widened. “What the fuck is this Blackwood Pack? I mean…look at what they have…off the charts Alpha power…a Shaman with tricks up the gazoo…a pregnant Omega. No wonder they don’t want us to get any closer.”
Chapter 7
Hunter hid his reaction to the Blackwood Pack house while following Steel through the great room to Jackson’s study, where the brothers were waiting.Where did Jackie get the money to build something like this?Stumped again for an answer, he set it aside as he entered the room.Whoa! That’s a lot of power Jackie is throwing out!Jackson was standing and his mate moved close to him.Like he’s guarding my cousin. From me?
“Hunter, thanks for coming,” Jackson said.
Huh, like I had a choice.Looking around the room, Hunter saw one empty chair and assumed it was meant for him. Striding over, he sat down, then waited; the meeting was Jackie’s to run so he kept quiet.
“You’ve met Logan and Colton,” Jackson said, sitting down. Then, pointing at the others in turn, continued, “This is Cody, his mate Dylon, Zane and his mate David, and Carson.”
Glancing over at Zane, who was born after his family moved east, Hunter got a close-up look at the mark of the gods on David.What the hell! Was this who Mom told me about!Staring at the shifter, he suddenly heard a low growl that, raised his wolf’s ruff. Trying to pinpoint the source, he zeroed in on Zane again.Now what?Before he could figure it out, he felt a surge of Alpha power forcing him to look at Jackson, after which the growl subsided.
“Go ahead, Hunter,” Jackson said.
“Where’s Dakota?” asked Hunter.
“He won’t be joining us,” Jackson replied.
Why Not?Hunter stared at Jackson, wanting to know the answer but bit back his question. Remembering why he was here, he ran a hand over his face, inhaling, then slowly letting his breath out.Fuck! Where to start?Dropping his hand, Hunter began. “On the day of the massacre, Aunt Hope had gone to meet a friend who’d called that morning. After arranging for her pups to be fed and put to bed by one of the girls who usually helped her, she left to pick up her friend in a town that was some distance from the pack’s land.”
“Do you know the name of the friend or what town they met in?” asked Cody.
“No,” said Hunter, shaking his head, before continuing. “After their evening out, she headed back home with her friend who was going to stay overnight because it was so late. When they turned off the highway, they could smell smoke and see flames shooting up into the sky. Aunt Hope sped up, worried about her pups, but her friend made her pull over, insisting they go the rest of the way on foot. Approaching the house through the woods, they finally got close enough to see what was happening.”
Hunter hung his head, gathering strength to go on. Burying his face in his hands, he hid the tears that filled his eyes; the next part of the story would hurt his cousins deeply and he didn’t want to do that. The pain Aunt Hope carried all these years would settle in his cousins’ hearts and they’d never be the same again.How could my mother ever have thought doing this would be the right thing?It was beyond his understanding.
