“Yes, I do!” she insisted.
“If I tell you, I put you in danger, and not just from my family. That is something I can’t give you an answer to,” Mitch replied.
“They hunt humans,” Jess whispered. She knew they did. Mac and Ranson had explained a lot to them. Jess’s gut was twisting. She was sitting in a Hunter’s house. Mitch, the man she’d been falling in love with, was a Hunter. But she didn’t know of any families called McQuoid. That meant he was lying to her. Which probably meant this was a trap. She had to deny all knowledge and find an escape route ASAP.
Mitch closed his eyes. “Yes. They’ve taken those whom they thought could lead them to their goal and tortured and murdered them.”
“Is Mitch McQuoid your real name?” Jess demanded.Would Mitch answer?
“Yes and no. The surname is one I chose,” Mitch admitted.
“What’s your previous surname?”
“Mitchum Weideman.”
Jess nearly came screaming out of the chair. Weideman? As in one of the Hunter’s ruling families, Weideman? Crap, she was in deep shit here. Jess carefully looked around the kitchen and through the windows. How many Hunters were out there to bring her in? She’d walked right into this like a fool.
Disease reared its head. It snarled at Jess’s turmoil of emotions. Jess didn’t want to deal with the Sin now and stomped on it, but she barely had control of it. If they attacked, she’d release Sin in all its ugliness. Disease subsided a little when it realised that Jess was keeping it leashed.
“You know that name?” Mitch said, confused.
“I’ve heard of it,” Jess said carefully.
“How?”
“You said they hunted humans,” Jess replied, leaving the sentence hanging. Mitch closed his eyes.
“Oh God, they killed your family,” Mitch said, horrified.
Jess neither denied nor confirmed it.
“Jess, oh shit, I’m so sorry. I don’t know what to say, fuck!” Mitch ranted as he stepped towards her and then moved back again.
Jess shook her head. It was a masterful performance, but she didn’t trust it.
“Jess, I swear, I’m not them. Alfred and my father disgust me,” Mitch swore.
“You still call Alexander father,” she whispered, and Mitch closed his eyes in horror.
“Not because I’m fond of him, Jess. But because Alexander sired me, that’s all. And usually, I refer to him by name. Alexander,” Mitch said.
Alfred and Alexander Weideman. Monsters of the worst kind. Mitch was right when he said they were vile; they were beyond that. His ancestors had been part of the capture of Harpy and Basilisk. The torture they had committed was the thing nightmares were made of. Mitch’s family was the cruellest of the cruel, and they’d tortured Saviours when they failed to find a Legendary Shifter.
Jess stared at Mitch. Hell’s bells. She’d kissed a man whose lineage was responsible for murdering at least two of her siblings. Bile rose in her throat, and Jess rushed over to the rubbish bin and vomited. Mitch made a distressed noise, but Jess kept heaving. His hand landed on her back, and Jess cringed away from him, holding up her own to keep Mitch away.
“Oh, baby,” Mitch crooned, guilt in his voice.
Jess threw up once more. She’d been falling in love with aHunter. A criminal. Someone who’d slit her throat the minute he knew what she was. Jess had to get out before Mitch realised he had one of his targets in his home. Because that’s what Jess was to Mitch. Prey.
His large hand hauled her hair back as the mere thought caused her to heave again. Her belly rebelled until there wasnothing left, and then his hand appeared, offering her a tissue. Jess wiped her mouth and dropped it in the bin.
“I need to leave,” she said huskily.
“Drink this first,” Mitch said, holding out a glass of water. Jess eyed it suspiciously, and Mitch looked hurt. “Jess, I’m not them!”
“You share their bloodline, were taught at the knee to hate, to torture and maim, to kill. How many have you harmed, Mitch?” Jess bit out. The taste in her mouth was awful, but Jess wouldn’t drink from that glass.
Mitch bent down and opened the fridge. “Pick your own out.”
