Hunter Betrayed (16 page)

She laid her palm over his cheek. “After Raul hurt me, I was
afraid. I didn’t trust that you weren’t an illusion too.”

“Harley.” He curled his body around hers. “I am sorry I
wasn’t here for you and that I didn’t explain that I was leaving a piece of
myself with you. I should have.”

He waited for her to absolve him of the sin. She didn’t.
After a long moment, she sighed. “Get me out of here, Calan. Please.”

He swept her into his arms and strode for outside. His horse
no longer stood where he’d left him. The morning sun brightened the landscape.
His stallion would’ve returned to the Underworld with the first rays of light.

He surveyed the vacant lot. They’d have to return to
Harley’s house by human means. “We need a car.”

She reached into her back pocket and retrieved her cell. A
couple of swipes of her finger and she pressed it to her ear. “Hey, it’s me.
Come out to the warehouse behind Cynthia’s house. We need a ride.”

He heard Ian’s mumbled agreement then she pressed a button
on the phone and slid it back into her pocket.

“Ian’s coming.”

Calan nodded. He would’ve much rather spent the day in his
female’s arms but she hurt, for herself, her brother and all those killed by
Raul.

He rested his head on hers. He hated knowing he’d failed to
protect her for all the years they’d been separated but he finally had her in
his arms. Nothing would ever hurt her ever again. He’d make sure of it.

Calan bent to kiss Harley. She scooted under his arm and walked
into the kitchen of her home. Hands fisted so he didn’t yank her back to him,
he followed and leaned against the wall. She set two dishes on the center
island and moved to the fridge.

“We do not require food, Harley. We are eternal. Death will
never find us.”

She shrugged and continued pulling meat and condiments out
of the stainless steel refrigerator. They’d spent most of the day with her
brother searching for Cynthia. Calan suspected they were wasting their time but
Ian had insisted and Harley had refused to leave him.

The day’s events had hurt her, in multiple ways. He hated
knowing his insistence to understand why she’d touched other males had been one
of the causes.

He stepped up behind her and linked his arms around her
waist. “Don’t suffer in silence, Harley. It’s my duty and privilege to ease you
in any way I can.”

She laid her head against his chest. “Unless you can bring
Cynthia’s family back to life or find her alive and well, you can’t.”

He sighed. “You know I can’t do—”

The phone’s shrill ring stopped his words.

Harley gasped. “Ian.”

He immediately reached for Riesa. She shared an image of Ian
pacing, phone at his ear and Trevor scowling in the background. They were safe.
Physically, at least.

He grabbed the phone. “Hello?”

“Calan?” Ian’s questioning voice filled the line. He didn’t
give Calan the chance to answer. In the next breath, Ian demanded, “Get your
ass down here.”

“We can’t hunt until nightfall.”

“Don’t care. We need to act. Raul walked into the police
station and left with Cynthia’s little sister, Allie.” Ian cursed. “She went
willingly, crying on his fucking shoulder according to the cops. They thought
he was her boyfriend or something.”

Harley’s eyes widened. Calan turned away from the panic in
them. “The female that walked away last night? She looks like Harley, doesn’t
she?”

“Yeah.” Ian muttered more vivid expletives. “Darker blonde
but the same deep-blue eyes.”

“Come to the estate. I’ll send my hounds to the storage
building in case Raul decides to lure her into the ring. They’ll keep watch
over it.” He glanced out the window at the darkening sky. “Have your decision
made before you arrive, human. We don’t have much time.”

“It’s made. I’m in.”

“So be it.” Calan was grateful too. He’d need a Huntsman to
guard his mate. The sluaghs’ souls he collected tonight would need to be
transported to their resting place in hell. It was his duty to give them peace.
“When you arrive, we’ll ride.”

He ended the call and faced Harley. It was time to show her
his darker side. “Are you ready to meet your Huntsman?”

“I’ve already seen your other form.”

He frowned.

“I saw it in your memories.”

“That’s impossible.” He’d been so careful to block them
whenever he’d touched her mind.

“You shared them with me when you slept.” She took his hand.
“But I’d like to see that side of you in person.”

He rubbed her knuckles. “And you’re not afraid? I look like
a monster.”

She gave him a small smile. “Show me and you’ll see for
yourself.”

He led her outside and opened himself, body and soul, to the
Hunt. Power rushed into him. He slowed the transformation into his Huntsman’s
form for Harley’s benefit. He wanted her to see what it entailed.

His nails grew into sharpened talons. The ridges of his spine
extended. Deadly teeth slipped into place and the bones in his face rearranged
to allow his muzzle to take shape. Not ready for her reaction to his other
form, he squeezed his eyes shut before he caught Harley’s gaze. Blood oozed
from the corner of his eyelids. He didn’t wipe it away. He stood there utterly
exposed and let his mate see with her own eyes what loving him entailed.

The monstrous body that labeled him as a beast from hell had
terrified all the humans who’d seen him the last time he’d walked the earth,
but he couldn’t hide it from his mate. It belonged to her as much as his human
side did. By the gods, he wanted her to accept both.

Minutes passed in silence. Unable to bear the suspense any
longer, he opened his eyes and surveyed the woods to seek out her angelic face.
She stood several feet away, devilish black hounds encircling her. Saliva
dripped from their mouths, bloody pools had replaced their eyes and three-inch
nails tipped their paws. Their bulky bodies brought them to her chest. Next to
the animals bred to rip the fairies and their creatures apart, she appeared
tiny. Delicate. Beautiful.

A flower in the midst of death.

Unfazed by his growling hounds and his Huntsman form, she
approached in a slow glide, proving her statement correct. She wasn’t afraid of
him.

She stopped a hairsbreadth away. On her tiptoes, she slid
her fingers into his hair and dragged his head to hers. She rained kisses over
his ghastly features, licked the blood away and moaned.

Lust surged. The pointy teeth he couldn’t retain if he meant
to part her legs and feast retreated. His nails dulled into the blunt tips he’d
need to dip into her core and his snout shortened to kiss her plump lips.

Hands at her waist, he lifted her and took her mouth on a
groan. Her sweet flavor invaded his senses. He worshipped her mouth until his
only thought centered on getting her naked. Duty stopped him from doing so. He
pulled back.

She trailed her fingertips over his jaw. “See, my wicked
Huntsman. I’m not afraid.”

He grinned. Harley lightened the weight he carried. How had
he survived the ages without her? He kissed her once more even as he opened the
portal to the Underworld, calling forth his stallion. A yank on his chest tore
a groan from him. He staggered back.

Harley reached for him. “What’s wrong?”

He clamped his jaw and locked his muscles. The summons from
his father tugged on his very being. Calan closed his eyes and fought it. He
refused to leave Harley without a Huntsmen’s protection. The urgency in the call
reverberated through him, however. Arawn was angry but more than that, he was
anxious. Something had happened, but he couldn’t force his will on his
children. He’d given his Huntsmen too much power.

For a second time, Calan blocked his sire’s order and sent
his response. He’d return home after Ian joined the Hunt. Calan refused to
leave Harley unguarded again.

He focused on Harley’s tight features. “Nothing. My father
wants me to come to him.”

“The devil?”

He flashed her a smile. “Arawn or Lord of the Underworld. He
doesn’t like being called the devil. My father isn’t inherently bad nor is he
evil. He’s simply the god chosen to rule over hell’s realms and its inhabitants.”

“What does he want from you?”

The squealing tires of a black SUV stopped him from answering,
not that he had one to give. He wouldn’t know what Arawn wanted until he spoke
to him.

The driver’s door opened. Ian jumped out. He approached in
long strides. Rage contorted his features and flared his nostrils. The other
male, Trevor, followed behind, cautiously watching the crouched and silent
hounds spread out around them. Ian paid them no mind, however. He stepped
around the ones in his way.

Gaze locked to his, Ian scowled. “Raul burned the fucking
ring.”

“What?” Harley straightened and pushed out of the loose
circle of Calan’s arms. “But how?”

He would like to know also. His hounds hadn’t seen anyone
who met Raul’s description there.

“My men saw a police van enter the building. A half hour
later, it leaves but nobody closes the overhead door.” Ian took a threatening
step forward. “My guys got curious and investigated.”

Harley reached a trembling hand to Calan. He took it. “And
they found the ring burned?”

“Yeah. They didn’t know what it was, but they described a
black scorched circle in the center of the building. The cops who’d been inside
were knocked out, but one came around pretty quickly.” Ian shifted his gaze
from Harley to him. “He said a guy who looked a hell of a lot like Raul got out
of the van with Allie. The cop didn’t remember much else, only that Allie
wasn’t struggling or crying.”

Harley sucked in a rough breath. “If Raul lured her into the
ring, he has to call her forth after dark in order to turn her into a sluagh,
right?” She turned and met Calan’s gaze with widened eyes.

Calan worked his jaw back and forth. “We don’t know he did
for certain. The redcap isn’t typical. He’s too patient and clever for us to
assume anything.”

She shook her head. “Raul’s a serial killer who—”

“Who has had the foresight to hide his fairy ring.” He squeezed
her hand. Her guilt over the redcap beat at him. She’d told him how much she
regretted not killing him. “I wouldn’t put it past him to use the female to try
to coerce you into doing his bidding.”

“Never.” She narrowed her gaze. “He’s a fool to think I’d save
the man who killed my family. But if he’s tricked Allie into entering the ring,
what will happen to her now that it’s gone?”

He held his mate’s gaze and told her the harsh truth.
“Unless he creates another ring and calls her forth, she’ll be trapped in the
fairy realm.”

“With the sluaghs?”

Calan brushed a wisp of blonde hair from her cheek. “They
are mere shells in the fairy realm. The human puppets will not be a problem.”

“What will?” Ian asked.

Calan shifted his attention to the male who’d soon become
his brother of the Hunt. “Time moves slower there, but she’ll grow hungry. Once
she consumes anything from the realm, she won’t ever be able to leave. If she
keeps eating the magically laced food, she’ll eventually lose her mind.”

Trevor stepped closer. “Somebody needs to go after her and
bring her home.”

“Only fairies can come and go there as they please.” Calan
sighed. “If he indeed tricked her into the circle, the best we can hope for is
if Raul brings her back as a sluagh. At least then, we can kill her and free
her soul.”

Trevor pointed. “Send Harley. She’s half fairy. She can—”

Calan moved with inhuman speed and wrapped his hand around
the male’s throat. He dragged him closer until they were eye to eye. A low
growl crawled up his throat. The male flinched, pleasing Calan. He bared a
mouthful of deadly teeth at the human. “Nobody will ever endanger my mate.
Harley is mine to protect and cherish. She will not risk herself for a female
who may or may not be in danger.”

Harley stroked his forearm. “Let him go, Calan. He’s only
worried about Allie. Let’s see what we can find out first. Maybe she’s safe.”

Calan released him. “Agreed. We’ve wasted enough time. Let’s
hunt.”

With a thought he stirred his hounds and sent them out in
all directions. A crook of his finger and he called forth another stallion from
hell. A shimmering wall appeared several feet away. The glimmer faded. A wash
of hot sulfur-tainted air swept out along with a black steed. Each step the
horse took from the portal leeched color from its hair and dimension from its
body. Its red eyes turned into endless portals that could bestow visions or
absorb the lost souls of the sluagh. Tied not only to its rider but also to
Arawn himself, the animal became the link to the Underworld and the other
Huntsmen.

Only once had Calan witnessed a joining between human and
horse. Tegan had fallen in love with a human but hadn’t wanted to mate him.
She’d thought turning him into a Huntsman was the perfect solution. He’d died
during the process. His heart had not been pure enough to withstand the heavy
weight of responsibility the Huntsmen bore.

Calan hesitated. He had been the one to extend the offer to
ride to Tegan’s betrothed all those years ago. He’d doubted his choice then.
Now?
He glanced between Harley and her brother.
No, this time I’m right.

He met Ian’s eyes. Eagerness widened them and quickened his
breaths. No fear of dying shown in them. Calan had explained everything to him
when he’d given him half of the Huntsman’s mark—the hound. He used his tie to
Ian to draw his mind close.

Are you ready?

Ian gave a single nod, turned and straddled the horse in one
fluid move. He fell forward on a groan and wrapped his arms around its ghastly
neck. Raucous pants fell from his parted lips. He squeezed his eyelids shut. A
violent tremor shook his body. His mouth moved yet no words came out—the vow of
the Hunt given to his horse and in turn, Arawn.

Harley gasped. “What’s happening to him?”

Calan took her hand and rubbed his thumb over her white
knuckles. “He’s bonding to his horse.”

“You’re…” She swallowed hard. “You’re making him into a
Huntsman?”

“Yes, look.” He tipped his head in Ian’s direction. A soft
white light encompassed both rider and horse. In Ian’s hand, an obsidian sword
appeared. Calan breathed a sigh. “It’s done.”

“Son of a bitch,” Ian rasped. He pushed up and swayed on his
mount. A deep laugh rumbled his chest. He raised his sword. A faint glow
emanated from it for a moment before it burst into flames. “It’s real.”

Calan nodded. “Yes, we’re real and so is the oath you’ve
taken. Betray it and you will suffer in the lowest levels of hell.” He willed
his steed closer, hating that he had to toss Ian into the fury so soon.
“Ready?”

“Fuck yeah.” Ian lowered his arm, the sword disappearing in
a puff of sulfur-scented smoke. He grabbed his mount’s mane. “Hope this horse
doesn’t need me to direct it. I don’t know how to ride.”

“It doesn’t and you’ll learn.” The bump of his horse’s head
to his arm reminded him of the time they’d wasted. “Follow my lead, Ian. Always.”

“Hey, what about me? Don’t I get a horse?”

Calan glanced at the other human. For a moment, he
considered extending an offer to ride to the male. Without his siblings, he was
at a disadvantage. He could use the bodies, inexperienced or not. He dismissed
the urge in the next breath. Ian had shown his dedication by doing all he could
to protect his fellow humans and Harley. Calan knew little about Trevor other
than he was a friend to Ian.