Predator's Refuge (22 page)

Anton stared the boy in the eye, frowning. “Are you okay? What happened with the police?”

He shrugged with the carelessness of youth. “No evidence. They couldn’t keep me there.” He grinned. “My mom’s a paralegal. She started spouting all kinds of law crap and they said I could go home.”

“But you didn’t go home,” Anton countered coyly.

“Nah.” Shawn smiled at his mentor. “I figured my parents already paid for me to come here. Might as well let them get their money’s worth.” He elbowed Anton. “But I wanna join your fencing class. That shit is cool. And next time my uncle gets in my face, I’ll wave my sword at him.”

“We use practice foils.”

“Whatever.”

Anton put an arm around Shawn’s shoulders and they chatted quietly about how his parents were handling the situation with his uncle. Marci felt a swell of warmth in her breast, watching her lover bond with the boy.

Despite his own tragic upbringing, or lack of it, she somehow knew Anton would make a marvelous father. Strict, yet playful at times. Ryland couldn’t have hired a better mentor for the kids here.

A chunk of charred wood fell from the frame of her cabin, bringing her back to reality. Somewhere on their island, her home, a villain lurked, perhaps even more than one. Could it be the person who attacked April and Charlotte also started the fire? Could each incident just be a horrible accident? And what of Istvan? Was Anton’s violent sibling hiding on Gemini Island, and was he responsible for any of this? It sounded as if Shawn was in the clear, but could it be the teen had any part in these crimes?

As Shawn said good night to them and walked away, she turned to Anton. The questions racing through her mind must have been written all over her face.

“Don’t worry, angel. We’ll get to the bottom of this.”

She allowed her gaze to pan out over the scene, and swallowed down the pain in her gut. “I feel as if we can’t trust anyone.”

He wrapped her in his arms. “Do you trust me?”

Thump, thump
went her heart. “Yes.”

“Then trust we’ll discover the truth.” His fingers curled around her neck and he brought her closer for a soft kiss. Sweet and reverent and captivating. He ended it with a small groan at the back of his throat. “Come. Let’s go talk to my brother. I want to know exactly why he thinks Istvan is behind this.”

She nodded and they left, hand in hand.

* * * *

Anton didn’t think his brother had ever looked so white. Gabi had never been the sort to cower. Indeed, even when father and Istvan were dishing out their best, neither Anton nor Gabi took it lying down. However, Gabi was pale as paper now, and there was a shadow in his eyes that hinted of defeat. As they entered the cabin, he looked at them with the haunted eyes of one who’d seen far too much.

That shadow of hurt turned to a glint of determination and he rushed them at the door, grabbing Anton by the upper arms. “We can’t let him get away with this mental torture. We need to end this now!”

He coaxed his brother to sit on the bed. “Calm down. You don’t know this is Istvan’s doing.”

“Don’t I? I saw him.”

“Where?”

“Outside my cabin.” He took a deep breath, no doubt to help him clear his head. “Sometime during the night, I was startled awake by a low growl. As disoriented as I was, I got out of bed and made my way to the window. I looked out and saw, as clear as day, our brother’s tiger standing there. Taunting me. The foul beast grinned and then disappeared.”

Marci lay a gentle hand on his arm. “It sounds as if you were dreaming.”

“What do you know, lynx?” Gabi lashed out and slapped her hand away.

Anton was on him before Marci could even react with a gasp. He collared his brother, seething. “If you ever lay hands on my woman again, you stupid shit, I will fuck you up. Do you understand me, Gabi? I don’t care if we do share bloodlines. You. Don’t. Touch. Her.”

Gabi crumpled. He raised his gaze to Marci. “Please forgive me. My temper got the best of me.”

He could see she was holding back out of respect for him, but Anton saw the fiery glimmer in her lynx’s eyes. If he hadn’t been there, he knew without a doubt Marci would have punched Gabi in the teeth. “It’s okay,” she whispered.

Part of him would have been pleased to see her punch him. What was his brother thinking? There was no excuse for such savage behavior. Had he learned nothing over the years?

As he let go of his brother’s shirt, he gathered his thoughts and calmed his racing heart. His nerves pinched and anger coursed through every vein. Seeing Gabi’s hands on his woman’s skin set his blood to boiling, and he was winded just from thinking what he might do as retaliation if anyone ever hurt Marci.

He’d kill anyone who touched her with malice. Hell, he felt ready to maim anyone who even happened to brush up against her in the supermarket.

As rage made his tongue thicken and his fists clench, Marci leaned over to him and placed a soft kiss on his neck. She rubbed his back and his angry tiger purred.

“I’m fine,” she whispered, offering a sweet smile that had him breathing in deeply and puffing out his chest. “Down, boy.”

He grasped her to him, sat on a chair opposite the bed, and pulled Marci onto his lap. He only felt any measure of calm once he could snake his arms around her waist. Putting his nose to the back of her neck, he breathed her in and his throbbing blood vessels once again knew peace. His body settled and his heartbeat regulated. He closed his eyes and nuzzled her shoulder, drinking her in.

So remarkable
.

She squeezed his arm and he remembered Gabi was sitting in front of them, hanging his head. He narrowed his eyes at his brother, still pissed. “Marci’s right, you know. You could have been dreaming.”

“I’m not stupid. I know the difference between awake and asleep. Give me some credit.”

“All right, then.” He motioned around the room. “Where is he? Why would Istvan hide? It’s not his style. He was never the sort to shy away from an attack. He prefers a full-on assault.”

“I don’t know. He’s fucking with us, toying with us. He always liked a game of cat and mouse, the sick pig.”

“Well, he’s not here now, and I hate to say it, but the fire could have been started by almost anything or anyone.”

Gabi stood and paced. “I won’t stand for this. Whether I dreamed him or not, I refuse to let the threat of him hang over my head any longer. We spent years cowering as children in front of our father.” He looked at him, full of rage and desperation. “We’re not those children anymore, Anton, and I will not cower in front of our brother. Look at us! Tigers, in our prime. Both of us exceedingly strong and gifted. There is no reason to want to escape any longer. It’s time for a showdown between us and Istvan. It’s time to go back to Hungary.”

What?
No.

Anton could not miss how Marci stiffened in his arms. Even though he ran a hand over her back, she pulled away and slid off his lap. White in the face, she moved to a dresser and perched there uncomfortably.

“Our people expect it of us,” Gabi continued. “Those who are left will need help. They will want guidance and will look to the princes of the house of Árpád. We need to take a stand.”

He shook his head, dazed, sure the hand of destiny had him by the nuts. “I can’t. In my dreams…”

“Fuck your dreams!” Gabi growled and his eyes burned as bright as Blake’s tiger. “Stop trying to escape your fate. You think you were born to destroy our father? Well, father is dead and Istvan has stolen your role, the role of Grand Prince. Don’t you see? You were born to kill our brother.”

Marci’s head wobbled from side to side. “I can’t believe I’m hearing this.”

“Oh, come now, Ms. Lennox,” Gabi drawled. “The world is a vicious place. Kill or be killed. Have you never heard that?”

“You have it wrong,” she whispered.

“Well,” he countered. “For years, I thought our father had it wrong. Now, I’m beginning to see he may have been right all along.” He turned to face him, and Anton’s blood chilled. “Brother, why do you think I came all this way? I’m here to fetch you. Back to responsibility, back to our former way of life. I need you to help me take back the Gaspar throne. Don’t you want it?”

“I don’t know…”

“You need to make a decision. And fast. How am I supposed to plan my attack if I don’t even know your intentions? You are my brother and you owe this much to me.” He opened his mouth to snatch a breath and Anton fancied he saw his brother’s predator canines pushing through his gums.

He stood, gritting his teeth, and moved over to Marci. How she shook! He pulled her to him and held her close. “Whatever I decide, I will not desert Marci in her time of need. We still have no idea who attacked the women here, and have no clue how the fire started. If you think I’m going to leave
my
woman alone, you’re a lunatic.”

Gabi stared at him for the longest time, running his tongue over his canines, easing them back into his gums. “Of course. I ask too much of you right now. I understand you wish to be with your mate.”

Mate?
Anton wove a little on his feet at the word, so old-fashioned and absolute. He hadn’t really considered the implications of biting and marking Marci, but he supposed it meant they were mated, at least in some way.

Mate. It implied forever. Was that what he’d been offering Marci when he cut through her skin like a drooling monster? Would she even want forever with someone like him? Someone rough and moody and greedy?

His crazed reverie was disturbed as Gabi babbled. “Maybe Istvan wasn’t here in person to start the fire, but one thing is certain. He is in my head and I know he is in yours. And until I take care of him, until I free our people of his sick influence, he will remain there.” He gaped at him. “It’s time for me to go home. I’ll ask once more. Are you coming?”

Anton just stared, cut to the core, torn between lover and brother.
Mate
and brother? Marci turned in his arms, clearly horrified. She understood the turmoil in his soul, and no doubt comprehended his tremendous guilt too. She sucked in a breath and curled her fists in the front of his shirt.

Fuck. No contest.

He loved her.

“I’m sorry, Gabi,” he replied. “Maybe one day I’ll go back, but I’m not leaving now.”

Her eyelashes fluttered and her small fists relaxed and smoothed down his shirt. She licked her lips, gazing at him, and her sweet breath fanned out over his face. He’d made the right decision. No matter how they classified their relationship, he wanted to be with her and explore it further. Her pretty brown eyes crinkled and he spied relief in the fine lines at the outer corners.

Yes, my mate
.

What do you think I’ve been trying to tell you?
His pouty tiger remarked.
You dolt
.

Gabi approached, his hand extended. “I respect your decision. You’ve never been one for violence, Anton. Neither have I. Sadly, though, our brother can’t say the same.” They shook hands. “Tomorrow, I will book the earliest flight to Hungary and leave Gemini Island. Our brother needs to pay for what he did to our parents, despite what they did to us. I only hope I can vanquish him on my own.” He turned to Marci. “Thank you for your hospitality. I hope you and my brother will be very happy.”

Marci nodded, and Anton could see she had no words. What did one say to a man who was about to embark on a mission to destroy a sibling? It would likely prove to be Gabi’s death as well.

Anton released Marci for a moment and hugged his brother, unsure of whether they would ever see each other again. Familial guilt and devotion to Marci warred inside him and he wanted to rage. Despite how amazed he was at realizing Marci was his mate, he felt so badly at letting Gabi do the dirty work all by himself. He and Gabi had defended each other so many times in their father’s training cage, and now he was deserting the only sibling who meant anything to him.

Oh, he could use Brother Ferenc’s wisdom now.

“Go,” Gabi said. “Be with your mate.”

And because he didn’t know what else to do, that was exactly what Anton did.

Chapter 13

The sun had risen. A new day had begun, even before they left Gabi alone in his cabin. It was the start of what appeared to be a beautiful day: warm and sunny. The smell of smoke had dissipated, and she could almost pretend a fire hadn’t happened on the property. As they trod the path back to his cabin, not saying a word but clutching each other’s hands, they crunched on curly dried leaves and listened to the
coo
of mourning doves.

It should have been a beautiful moment.

Because of the tortured look on Anton’s face, Marci couldn’t wrestle an ounce of enjoyment out of it. She wished she could make him feel better, not so agonized over his decision to stay. And yet, in her heart, she also couldn’t fault him in any way.

Gabi had called them “mates.” If that was the case, they’d never want to leave each other’s sides. It wouldn’t feel natural to do so.

But were they mates? She wasn’t yet sure. She saw the intense pull between Ryland and his mate Lia; had glimpsed the passion between her own mated parents. Not having felt it before, she wasn’t sure what it was supposed to feel like. She just knew it was supposed to run deeper than any ocean, more engulfing than any tidal wave.

She imagined Anton leaving, and a stabbing pain assaulted both her insides and those of her lynx. She pictured him walking away, and her chest seized, her heart halting and dragging. Just to test her own feelings, she tried to imagine him disappearing from her life, and couldn’t because the pain was so bad she let loose a whimper.

He turned to her immediately and cupped her cheeks. His skin paled and he shivered. “What’s wrong?”

Her voice came out choked, strangled, but she forced the words out. “Oh, just me being mental again.” She let out a pathetic laugh. “I’m afraid I’ll lose you one day. And it hurts.”

He embraced her tightly, burying his face in her hair. Relief threaded through her constricted veins. “My angel, I’m not going anywhere without you.”

He lifted his head and found her mouth, capturing her lips with the familiarity of one who’d kissed them a thousand times. His breath poured into her system, filling her with satisfaction and joy and everything she never thought she’d feel. And only when Anton had kissed her quite thoroughly, did he look her in the eye and speak. “You are my mate, Marci Lennox. Do you understand what that means?”