“Hunting the assholes who hurt my mates,” Sawyer growled.
“I’m going with you…remember, I have years of experience doing exactly this shit.”
“Not this time…you aren’t steady on your feet, probably have a concussion…think about it, Glenn. Someone needs to stay with Alex. What happens if he comes to and panics because neither of us is here? My bet is he’ll come looking for us and that’s the last thing we want. Besides, when it comes right down to it, your tiger is much stronger than my wolf, so it’s better if you stay with our mate. And don’t forget, Alex is carrying your cub.”
“You’re playing fucking dirty pool,” Glenn growled, but had to agree with Sawyer’s reasoning.
“Besides, I can get the drop on these assholes because I can see through this shitty fog.”
“Okay…the best way to…”
“I’m going to do just fine. Just take care of Alex so I don’t have to worry about him.”
Glenn gave Sawyer a tight smile. “No one will live long enough to get close to him. Now, go.”
Sawyer nodded.
Glenn watched his mate melt into the soupy fog before turning to Alex, lifting him gently and walking over to a thicket next to the trash bins. Ignoring the thorns, he moved in deeper until he found a place to sit down with his mate. After hugging Alex close to his chest, Glenn’s thoughts turned to his other mate, praying Sawyer would be safe.
~/~/~/~/~
Sawyer ran toward the last place the men had been, betting they were still there. If he’d read the boss correctly, the asshole would order his men to search for his mates, even though they couldn’t see their hands in front of their faces. He stopped short when the sound of someone tramping through the woods off to his left reached his ears.
Turning his head, Sawyer saw one of the men he was searching for, heading toward the place Glenn and Alex were located. He wasn’t taking precautions to conceal his whereabouts, which surprised him for a moment.The asshole doesn’t know the fog won’t hide him from me. He waited until the man passed before falling in behind him, claws extended on both hands. It was swift and soundless. Looking down at the near headless corpse, Sawyer slipped out his phone to take a picture, knowing Glenn would want proof. Then pausing a minute to get his bearings, he resumed his search to find another target.
The next two were dealt with as efficiently as the first and Sawyer now only had to find the boss. It took about twenty minutes before he found him, sitting in one of Alex’s camp chairs. Extending his now-bloody claws once again, Sawyer stopped in front of him, wanting to see the asshole’s face when he killed him. Waiting patiently, he stood still, memorizing everything about him. He didn’t know why the man was hunting him and his mates, but if anyone could figure it out Glenn would be the one.
Hearing a small rustle of branches in the tree above him, the boss tilted his head up, curious as to what it might be. Seizing the opportunity, Sawyer cut his throat with brutal force, severing his head from his body. Breathing a sigh of relief that it was over and his mates were safe, Sawyerwiped his claws on the man’s shirt before retracting them. After photographing the man’s face—eyes wide open but sightless—Sawyer pocketed his phone, turned away, and headed back to rejoin his mates.
~/~/~/~/~
When Sawyer returned to his mates, Alex was awake and threw himself into his arms, his tears soaking the front of Sawyer’s shirt. Checking on Alex to make sure he was all right, Sawyer then turned to his other mate, listening in as Glenn explained on the phone to Riley what happened. With assurances that Riley would send a cleanup crew to the campground to remove the bodies and then “scrub” it, Sawyer led his mates to Glenn’s car, bundling his two mates into the back and then driving back in the fog to Ghost’s house.
After showering, Alex and Glenn left Sawyer alone in the bathroom, sensing he needed a moment to himself. Peering at himself in the bathroom mirror, Sawyer searched his reflection, certain it would have changed…but it hadn’t. The faces of those he’d killed filled his mind; it had almost been too simple, and that’s what troubled him. During childhood, he was always the easy-going brother, so laid-back Hunter always joked that Sawyer was sleeping when he was born. Even his father used to say he was more a lover than a fighter. And yet, he’d just coldly taken four lives without even a moment’s hesitation…or regret.
Not that he had a choice.Or did I? Did I ever consider any other possibility?Thinking back to when he formulated his plan, all that was on his mind was fear and worry for his mates. Nothing else mattered but making sure they were safe and that no one could harm them again.But did I have to kill to protect my mates?
Yes, you did!
Hearing Glenn’s voice through their mind link startled Sawyer before embarrassment filled his body as he realized the bad-ass tiger heard his doubts.
Sawyer, you did what you had to do to save Alex and me. I don’t know why those men were hunting us but I can tell you one thing from my many years of experience dealing with scumbags like them…it’s either kill or be killed. There isn’t any middle ground for a meeting of the minds…no sitting around a campfire holding hands while singing Kumbaya. You told me your wolf knew we were in danger and you trusted him. Even if your human part has doubts, our animals never do. Now get in here, Alex is waiting.
My mate is right. I’d never forgive myself if I didn’t do everything possible to make sure they were safe.But knowing it and accepting it were two very different things. Sighing, he flipped off the light switch before leaving the bathroom. Padding over to the bed, Sawyer saw Alex looking up at him, patting the space between himself and Glenn.
“Wolf mate,” Alex murmured, “we saved this spot for you. Glenn and I decided we needed to thank you properly for rescuing us tonight.”
The love shining in his mate’s eyes was a balm to Sawyer’s ragged emotions. Smiling, he climbed over Glenn, lying down, book-ended by his two mates. Once in place, Sawyer’s earlier misgivings melted away and, as his two mates moved closer to him, the warmth of their bodies chased the chill from his soul. “Tonight…”
“Tonight, you showed you are just as bad-ass as our tiger mate,” whispered Alex.
“Our mate is right,” Glenn murmured. “We owe our lives to you.”
“But…”
“I know,” Alex murmured, smiling. “You still don’t have a code name.”
“But…”
