Breathe Into Me (25 page)

“Of course we did
, nephew, blimey it was just like old times.” My uncle Lazarus sighs dreamily.

I try and hide my amusement. Nobody enjoys a good f
ight more than my uncle Laz does, well maybe Jamie. I suddenly notice two people are missing.

“Did you find Landon and where’s
, Izzy?”

Several emotions wash over my father’s rugged face.

“Your sister is in a safe house and Farron has your brother,” Isaiah offers.

“I’ll find him, D
ad, one way or another I will bring him home,” I promised my father years ago that I’d keep Landon safe. I will not fail again.

“WE will find him and the two missing females. I understand one of them is your mate. I can’t wait to meet the woman who has captured my son’s heart.”

With that statement, my father and uncles make their way into my home, shifters scramble to get out of their way and the first person to catch my father’s attention is, Gunnar.

“Chieftain
, it’s been awhile,” My father says has he sizes up the Viking.

“Templar, it has been far too long.” He extends his hand and my father firmly shakes it.

I had forgotten these two have a long history together. Micah steps forward and welcomes the men of my family to our home.

“It
’s good to see all of you again,” Micah says has he shakes their hands.

“Ah just the bloke
I wanted to see, just so you know, I secured more back up than just my brothers. Edward has gathered around seventy vampires from his line to aide us today.”

Edward Bennett is one of the many illegitimate sons of the Black Prince of Wales. My father has
been friends with him since before he was changed into a vampire.

“Thank you, we will take all the help we can get.”

My father greets the rest of my brothers before facing me once again. “I want to know everything that’s happened here, son.”

I nod and start retelling him the events of the last few weeks leaving nothing out.

“I received the same text message you did. I know for a fact your brother is still alive and so are the two females.”

I start to argue
, but my father gives me a stern look and I quickly bite my tongue. I swear no matter how old I am I will always feel like a pup around this man.

“I received a phone call this morning. The sodding bastard who shot you wants ten million dollars in exchange for their lives.
I had agreed, but only after, I had spoken with your brother. Landon assured me the females are safe and unharmed. The coyote is supposed to text message me with a drop off location within the next few hours.” My father’s expression turns serious. “I want you to know that even after he finished informing me of how much he enjoyed killing my eldest son, I had planned on coming here to aid your brothers in arms anyway that I could. Your mate would have been saved either way, son, I promise you that, but now we have a secret weapon.”

I
give my father a puzzling look.

“It’
s you, son. Your enemies think you’re dead and they believe your brothers are too severely wounded to fight. I say we show them what happens when you mess with an Enforcer and their family.”

***

The sun has finally set and we are still waiting for info on the drop location. This waiting around is killing me. Patience has never been my strong suit especially when a loved one is involved.

“Here, I thought you could use a drink.” Jamie joins me on the deck and passes me a tumbler full of
Southern Comfort.

“Thanks.
” I eagerly take a huge gulp, my throat burns, but I welcome the sensation.

“When this is over you know I’m going to kick your ass right.”

I turn to face my brother. “You can try, you attempted that once before remember. It didn’t work out for you as I recall.”

I had met the Trudeau brothers in Boston in 1782, at a bare-knuckle boxing match. Jamie and I had taken one look at each other and decided the best way to test our skills was to beat each
other to a bloody pulp, needless to say the match ended in a tie and we have been best friends ever since.

“Yeah I remember,” h
e sighs as he lights up a smoke. “After what you put me through last night…well let’s just say I’ve never felt that kind of agony before, and after everything I’ve lived through, losing you even for those few moments changed something inside of me and for that I could kick your ass from here to hell and back,” he growls.

“It’s not like I intended on dying
, James, you weren’t the only one who was pissed off, but I am sorry for causing you pain.”

The image of my brothers huddled over my dead body will stay with me for eternity.

“Just don’t ever fucking do that to me again, I don’t know how to handle all of these new emotions.”

I nod in understanding. Jamie has never been one to talk about his feelings let alone deal with them.

“I’ll do my best.” I can’t promise him I’ll never die because that is the nature of our job, but I will make sure I never hurt him intentionally.

“I
’m still going to kick your ass,” he jokes as he punches me in the arm.

“I look forward to it,
” I chuckle.

Jamie takes a long drag of his smoke at stares up at the stars. “Do you reall
y think the females are safe?”

“Landon would’ve told my father if they had been hurt.” I can only hope the situation hasn’t changed in the last few hours. Andy must be so scared right now.

“I’m telling you right fucking now, if anyone has touched Kelsey or even looked at her the wrong way I will unleash the fires of hell down upon them.”

I have no doubt that he means it too. Once Jamie decides to protect someone, he will stop at nothing to keep that person safe. “I’m trying to stay calm
, but the thought of Andy being hurt or even scared makes my blood boil.”

I never wanted anything like this to happen to her, I had really hoped my job would never touch her. But this is the reality of my life, my world. One she openly accepted, I just hope it doesn’t cost her the ultimate price, her life. The second I get her back I’m making her immortal whether she wants it or not.

“Andy is a strong woman, I have no doubt she’ll make it through this.”

Normally I’d agree
, but she thinks I’m dead, god only knows what’s going through her head right now. If the roles were reversed, I’d avenge her death then most likely join her.

“I’m sure Kelsey will be fine as well. That female might be small
, but she’s tough,” I try to offer him some comfort, but it seems to be having little effect.

“You forgot to add stubborn, mouthy, and defiant.” Jamie runs a hand over his Mohawk. “Did you
see her face when we shifted? She was terrified, no female should ever be that afraid. I’ve never wanted to kill someone more than I did in that fucking moment.”

That was an awful way for her to learn the truth about what we are. I can only hope that Andy will be able to help her understand all of this.

“Then I guess there is only one thing you can do about it, son, you find that bloody bastard and make him pay.”

We both turn to see my father standing in the doorway.

“I have every intention of doing so, Dom,” Jamie says as he shakes hands with my father.

“You’re a good male
, James. I have no doubt in my mind you’ll save your mate.”

Jamie becomes noticeably uncomfortable. “I’m just doing my job
, Dominick.” His smile turns wicked. “If anything I’m just a sucker for a beautiful woman in need of assistance.”

He pats my father on the shoulder and struts back into the crowded cabin.

“That lad has all the qualities of a true warrior. He also reminds me a lot of your uncle, Lazarus. I can see why you like him.”

I ignore my father’s
praise of my best friend.

“Has there been any word yet?” I don’t know how much more of this waiting around I can take.

“I just received the location and time. Micah is getting everyone organized and ready to go.”

It’s about fucking time. I light up a smoke and try to prepare myself for battle.

“Are you ready for this, son?”

I stare at the man I’ve aspired to be my whole life. “You do realize this isn’t the first time I’ve done this.”

My father lights up a smoke of his own. “Yes and I’m sure it won’t be the last, but this time is different. You can’t let your emotions get in the way, son. You died last night and the only reason you were spared was because God’s plan for you isn’t finished.”                                                                                                                                         

“I hate to break this to you father
, but I’m not like you. I’m not some great knight who can set aside his feelings for a cause. I can wield any weapon you put in front of me. I will put myself in danger to save an innocent life. I will do everything within my power to bring peace to our people, but do not ask me to stop feeling. That is the one thing I cannot do.”

My father
grips my shoulders, his expression is filled with pride. “Being a great warrior means more than picking up a sword or spilling your own blood for another. It means living your life by a code of honor and you have done that my boy. I am not questioning your courage or your capacity to show mercy. It is your inability to let go of your self-doubt. Ever since you were young, that was your one and only weakness. Let go of your fear, son. You are a skilled fighter, Adam, and an even better male. You have no idea how proud I am of the man you have become. You need to trust in your abilities, you must have faith that you can keep your family safe. Believe in yourself, son, just as I do, just like everyone here does.”

The truth in my father’s words cut me like a knife. He’s right, I’ve never believed in myself. I always second-guess every decision I make.

“Come with me, son.”

I follow my father into the cabin. It’s fil
led to the rafters with fellow Enforcers. All eyes are on my father as he takes his place in the middle of the room.

“I want all of you to
take a look around this room. You all come from different walks of life. Most of you do not share blood, but you ARE family. Your cultures, your religions, your ancestors may be different. But you do have things in common, your sense of honor, loyalty to those you call family, and your determination to bring peace to this world. Today we all come together to fight a common enemy, one who has declared war on us all. An enemy who loathes what we all stand for. They believe themselves to be superior to us in every way. They no longer fear us, so I say we give them new reasons to do so.

“
We will hit them hard and fast and show them that we will not tolerate our loved ones to be threatened. I have never relished in taking a life, but as you all know, sometimes it is a necessary evil. Today is one of those days, I for one plan on making one hell of a bloody mess. We will not give up until every one of our enemies has taken their last breaths. Take a moment to pray to whatever god you worship. Now let’s go unleash hell.”

Chapter 21

“Move it
, gorgeous,” Farron says as he drags me down a long hallway of a small abandoned hospital. I glance around at the army of armed men. Panic grips me as I ponder what’s to come. My kidnapper unlocks a door and pushes Kelsey and me inside. The room is small with nothing but a couple of mattresses placed on the floor. A door on the left opens into a small bathroom. Streetlights outside of the two barred windows provide the room’s only light.

“Don’t bother getting t
oo comfortable ladies, you won’t be here long,” Farron says as he runs his eyes over the length of my body.

I instinctively take a step back. “What are you going to do with us?”

The sound of his laughter turns my stomach. “Oh I have big plans for the two of us, honey, but first I have to spread the word about your dead Enforcer.” He reaches out and fingers a strand of my hair. “I bet you taste so sweet.”

I slap his hand and take another step back. “Keep your fucking hands off me.” Anger courses through me at the thought of this animal touching me
or my friend.

“I love a girl with some fight in her, but save it for later
, sweetheart,” he growls.

“You disgust me
,” I fire back. All of my rage over what this monster has taken from me bursts free. “You’re going to pay for what you’ve done tonight. Do you really think Adam’s brothers won’t come after you? They will hunt you down and make you sorry that you were born. I just hope I’m there to watch as they take your head. Tears stream down my cheeks as the reality hits me that Adam is dead.

“What did you say?” a
male voice asks. I turn to my right as a familiar looking man steps out of the shadows. “What happened to my brother?” he demands.

Oh my god, it’s Landon, I recognize him from that picture in the FBI file. He’s about an inch tal
ler than his brother, but has the same dark curly hair only its cut short. His eyes are the same warm shade of honey. Other than a few bruises and scrapes, he seems relatively unharmed. I open my mouth, but the only thing that comes out is a sob. Kelsey pulls me into her arms as I collapse to my knees. This can’t be happening he can’t really be gone. Farron begins to laugh.

“Oh I’m sorry, where are my manners?  Landon,
meet your dead brother’s mate.”

Landon
lunges forward, but is quickly subdued by three hulking men. “I’M GOING TO FUCKING KILL YOU!” Landon struggles to free himself, but the men have a good grip on him.

“Please, do you really think I
’m scared of you? I killed one Horseman tonight and injured the other three. The only reason you’re still alive is because the Alpha still has use for you.”

Images of Adam
struggling for breath flash in my head and I begin to sob harder.

“Now if you’ll all excuse me I have shit to do, but don’t worry
, baby, I’ll be back for you soon.”

The three men holding Landon shove him back against the wall and follow their boss out of the room. I hear the door being locked as I struggle to breath. The anguish I feel is so overwhelming, I feel as though my heart is literally breaking. Landon c
rouches a few feet away from me.

“Please, tell me he’s lying, Adam
can’t be dead.”

I wipe the tears from my face as I focus on the man in front
of me. “He’s telling the truth,” I sob.

“I don’t believe it,
” Landon says as he begins to pace the floor. “Wait, do you know what we are?”

I nod my head.

“Then you know what it takes to kill us.”

As I explain how
Adam was murdered, Landon falls to his knees. Tears begin to stream down his cheeks.

“We must have faith that Adam
is alright, he is strong and powerful, and if anyone could survive it’s my brother.”

I can’t blame
Landon for his denial. I saw it with my own eyes and still don’t want to accept it.

“Someone needs to explain to me wh
at the hell is going on here.”

Oh god Kelsey, in all of the chaos I’d forgotten
that she saw the men shift tonight. I notice her tear stained face and wonder if she’s afraid or if those tears are for, Jamie.

“The men who kidnapped us are shape shifters, coyotes
I think.”

Landon nods his head in conformation.

“Adam and his brothers
are wolves, except for Lincoln, he’s a bear.” I wish I could ease her into this, but there isn’t any time. God only knows what those men have planned for us.

“I don’t believe this, how is this possible?”

For the next several minutes, I try to explain it the best way I can. I stress the points that we are only in danger from the men holding us captive and that Jamie and the others are most likely fine. All in all, I think she’s handling it better than I did.

“I should’ve known they weren’t human, they are way too hot.” Kelsey’s attempt at humor comforts me, once we get out of this it might take her sometime
, but I’m sure she’ll come to terms with all of this.

“A
ndy, I’m so sorry about Adam. I’ll do whatever I can to help you through this.”

I nod my head as more tears roll down my face. I can’t believe I’ll never be with
Adam again. I’ll never see his smile or hear his laugh. I bring my shirt up to my nose, the scent of clean air, and sunshine pushes me over the edge and I begin to cry uncontrollably. Strong arms wrap around me.

“Please don’t cry
, Andy, my brother would hate it if he knew you were so upset.”

I know he’s right, Adam hadn’t liked seeing me cry when we were in the shower and I had been upset about his scarred back.

“Your right, I can cry later. We need to get out of here.” I wipe my face with the back of my hand as determination washes over me. I’m not going to sit here like some fairytale princess and wait to be rescued.

“I’ve been trying to get out of here for the last few days. But to be honest even if we could escape this room you two wouldn’t survive long. We are too high up for you to jump and there is no way you could outrun them. I’m afraid we are going to have to bide o
ur time and wait for back up.”

I scan the room for something, anything to use as a weapon
, but the room is completely empty.

“I promise I won’t let anything happen to the two of you.”

I wish I could believe that. Landon might be a shifter, but he’s not an Enforcer, and he doesn’t have any powers. I try to ignore my rising fear. We are nothing but sitting ducks in this room.

***

Several hours have passed and thankfully, we’ve been left alone. I talked Kelsey into getting some sleep. It took me a while, but she finally gave in.

“Can I ask you a
question?”

Landon nods his head.
“You can ask me anything, you are my brother’s mate after all. We will forever be family.”

His kind words touch my heart.
“Why is your step brother doing all of this? And why does he hate your family?”

Those are only some of the questions that have been bothering me since this whole thing st
arted.

Landon runs his hand through
his short curly hair. “It’s complicated, Andy, when you live as long as we do enemies can add up. Grudges can last for centuries if not longer. Terric’s father and my family have a long history that goes back to the twelfth century. You can imagine how shocked I was when I found out my father was going to marry his enemy’s widow. Of course now we know that was just one more set up.”

Jeez
and I thought I could hold a grudge for a long time
.

“Terric and his father have finally come up with a way to kill my father and ruin his reputation at the same time.” He shakes his head in disgust. “They have to know my father will prevail, he always does. Dominick Stone is a force of nature all his own. You’d have to be completely out of your mind to fuck with him. Every shifter who was involved with Adam’s …death now has a target on his back. My father will not rest until they have paid with their lives. And then there is the little matter of you.”

I swallow the lump in my throat. “What do you mean?”

Landon begins to chuckle. “You are the mate of his eldest son, and by our laws you are enti
tled to certain perks. One of them being protection by a member of our family, and as Adam’s only biological brother that honor falls to me, and it would be an honor. One I will take very seriously.”

Watching him come to grips with the truth is heartbreaking. If anyone understands the pain I’m feeling, it’s this man. “That’s a very generous offer but I c
an’t-”

Landon cuts off my reply.
“You don’t understand, Andy. Our enemies aren’t just going to leave you alone because Adam is gone. Until Terric and his father are dead, you are not safe. I will be your protector until that day happens. Once they are eliminated, you will inherit all of Adam’s wealth, and if you ever need anything and I mean anything at all, all you have to do is ask. My family will always be there for you. I owe my brother everything and now the only way I can repay him is by watching over you. Please do not take that away from me.” His sad brown eyes and heartfelt words bring new tears to my eyes.

“Thank you
, Landon, you are a good man.” There is no way I can deny him this. If watching over me helps him deal with the loss of his brother then who am I to take that from him?

“You know w
hen we were growing up Adam idolized our father. He wanted to be just like him, strong, commanding, and respected. I on the other hand wanted to be like my brother. He was so brave, smart, and kindhearted. He will always be my hero.”

I of
fer him a warm smile. “You are more alike than you think.”

Landon’s shy smile mimic’s his brothers and seeing it causes twinges of pain. The sound of the unlocking door sends me into a panic. I quickly wake Kelsey and Landon moves in front of us as the door opens. Farron walks in wearing a sinister grin.

“If you try anything funny I’ll take it out on the females, understand?”

Landon nods as he’s handed a c
ell phone. “Hello? No, I’m fine, Dad. Yes, the women are alright. I promise. Of course, I understand.” He hands the phone back to the extremely happy coyote.

“I’ll text message you in a few hours with a time and place. See you soon
, old man.” He closes his phone and lets out a cheer. “Hot damn I’m rich. I knew taking these humans was going to be beneficial.” He begins to sigh. “I feel like celebrating, how’s about we find an empty room, sweetheart.”

Landon moves in front of him blocking his access to me. “I don’t think so, if you touch either one of these woman my father won’t pay you a fucking dime.”

Farron stands nose to nose with my new bodyguard. “When Dominick gets here we’re going to kill him and take the money anyway. So it doesn’t matter what I do to them does it, boy?”

He attempts to get to me once again
, but Landon throws out a right hook, and the sound of crunching bones echoes off the barren walls. He hooks his foot in the coyote’s leg and sends him to the ground causing the shifters head to bounce off the linoleum floor. Landon places his booted foot against Phelps throat.

“I will not let you hurt them do you understand me?”

Holy shit, maybe I underestimated his skills. I’ve only seen moves like that from one other man.

“If any of you touch them
, the deal is off and by my honor I will see you all dead. Now get the fuck out.”

He removes his foot and positions himself between us, and the three men in the room.

“You little bastard, you’ve been holding out on us.”

Landon chuckles as he crosses his arms over his chest. “You can’t really be this stupid, I was taught by the best there is, now get out and do not come back until it’s time to make the trade.”

The three men release growls, but back out of the room.

“I was just going to kill you when your father got here
, but now I think I’ll make you watch as I violate both women,” Farron chuckles as he closes the door behind him.

“Asshole,” Landon growls. “I long for the days when males had a
sense of honor and chivalry,” he says as he takes a seat on the opposite mattress and leans his body against the wall.

“Where in the hell did you learn moves like that?” Kelsey asks with awe in her voice. 

“My father and uncles were once Templar Knights. Not to mention the Spartan and Roman blood that runs through my veins. I guess you can say I come from a long line of warriors.”

I’ll say.
No wonder Adam had so easily taken out those four men at the bar.

“I wanted to be an E
nforcer like my brother, but he wouldn’t allow me to join, and since he was one of the four who trained new recruits, I needed his approval, although I guess I don’t need to worry about that now.”