The Human's Complicated Wolf [Nehalem Pack 5] (Siren Publishing Classic ManLove) (11 page)

Jensen let Josh help him stand to his feet. He looked up at his lover’s bloody, swollen face and gasped in horror. Josh looked almost unrecognizable except that the bright green of his eyes hadn’t faltered. Jensen wrapped his arms around his man’s waist and hugged him tight.

“From now on, I get to pick your friends for you,” Josh jokingly whispered at his ear.

Jensen smiled as he looked up at Josh. “Deal.”

A loud groan came from behind them, and Josh quickly shifted to put himself in front of Jensen. Jensen looked around Josh’s body toward Ethan. “Is he still alive?”

Josh held onto Jensen’s hand as they slowly neared the other man. Ethan’s eyes were shut and his face pinched in pain.

“It looks like you didn’t kill him if that’s what you were wondering.” Josh knelt down and felt for Ethan’s pulse. “Yeah, it feels pretty steady. The bullet must not have hit anything important.”

“What should we do with him?” Jensen asked. His mind raced with what Ethan new. If he told others, would they come for Josh? Would they take away the man he’d loved because of what he was?”

“We have two options.” Josh turned to him and gazed into Jensen’s eyes. “We can either kill him or give him a lift to the nearest hospital.”

Jensen looked over to where Ethan lay moaning on the ground then back to his mate. No matter how much it scared him to let Ethan live with what he knew, he couldn’t take the man’s life. Josh must have seen that in his eyes, because he bent down and kissed his cheek.

“I’ll get the car.” Josh stopped and knelt down next to Ethan when he reached his side. Josh pulled up on one of Ethan’s eyelids. “Hear that, you bastard, you’re going to live.”

Jensen helped Josh get Ethan in the backseat of the car. He let Josh drive as he kept watch over Ethan. With all that Ethan had done to him, he still couldn’t wish for his death. If anything, he prayed that the man pulled through. Everyone deserved a second chance, even Ethan.

They drove to the hospital in Southaven in record time. Josh pulled the car up at the emergency-room entrance, and Jensen ran inside to have the nurses bring out a gurney for Ethan. The man had passed out fifteen minutes before. Josh felt confident in saying it was due to pain and not lack of blood.

Jensen followed Ethan in, explaining to the hospital staff what had happened. Josh quickly parked the car then ran inside the building. Ethan may have been incapacitated at the moment, but Josh didn’t want to take any chances.

The emergency room doctor had to report the shooting to the local police. Whenever a patient with a gunshot wound came into the hospital, they had to notify the authorities. Josh said that was great because they wanted to press charges against Ethan for kidnapping and imprisoning Jensen in a cage. Jensen looked like he wanted to protest, but Josh narrowed his eyes at his mate. He loved that Jensen had a big heart and cared about people, but what Ethan had done was unacceptable.

As they waited for the police to arrive, another doctor came out to take a look at Josh’s face. She said that with the situation that surrounded what had happened, the police would probably want photographs of his face. When he finally looked in the mirror, he couldn’t believe the reflection staring back at him. Ethan had really done a number on him. The area around his left eye had swelled and he had a cut on his forehead. His bottom lip had been busted open and several bruises colored his face. He looked horrible.

Jensen stayed by his side the entire time. The man looked like the slightest thing would send him over the edge. His skin had gone pale, making his red hair appear brighter than usual. And the skin under his eyes looked like dark bruises.

“It looks awful,” Jensen said after the doctor stitched up Josh’s forehead. “Does it hurt?”

“Nah, I’m fine.” Josh held out his hand to Jensen, and the man took it eagerly as if it were a life line. “How about you? You doing okay?”

Jensen chuckled. “You’re asking if I’m okay. You’re the one who got his face beat in.”

“Hey, I got in a few good punches.” Josh smiled. He tugged on Jensen’s hand, pulling the man closer. “Seriously though, how are you?”

“Fine, I guess.” Jensen sat down on the edge of the bed. “I just kept thinking he was going to beat you to death and fear took over. I didn’t want to shoot him, but I couldn’t let him take you from me.”

Jensen’s eyes began to water, and Josh hugged him close. “Baby, it’s okay. I’d have done the same thing. When I pulled up and saw you sitting in that cage I wanted to rip his throat out.”

“But you didn’t.” Jensen’s voice fell to just above a whisper. “I could have killed him.”

Josh used a finger to tilt Jensen’s head up to meet his stare. “Jensen, Ethan is going to be fine. The doctor said as much. You did what you had to do to keep me safe. I’ll spend the rest of my life thanking you for it, too. I’m sure my brothers will feel the same way.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah.” Josh brushed his lips over Jensen’s. “They are going to love you just as much as I do.”

Jensen moved in for another kiss when a knock on the door had him pulling away.

“Mr. Weathers,” a man in a gray suit asked as he came into the room.

“I’m Josh Weathers.”

“Hello there, I’m Detective Gates and I have a few questions for you.” The man looked to Jensen. “Are you Jensen Collins?”

“Yes, sir.”

“My partner would like to question you in regards to tonight’s events.”

Jensen nodded then hopped down from the bed. The further away Jensen got from him, the more Josh missed his mate. So much had happened that day, and he didn’t want Jensen out of his sight, not even for a second.

Over the next hour Josh explained to detective Gates what Ethan had done. The man jotted everything down. When the man asked why Ethan would do this, Josh told the man the truth. That Ethan thought he was a werewolf and he wanted Josh to turn him into one. Detective Gates stopped writing in his book and looked up at him.

“Seriously?”

“Trust me. I wouldn’t lie about something like that.” Well, he was, but it was safer for werewolves if human didn’t know of their existence.

Gates told Josh to stay put. He needed to speak to his partner. Once he had left the room, Jensen came back in. He told Josh what he had said to the other detective, and it had been similar to what he told Gates.

Josh scooted over and patted the side of the bed. Jensen climbed up and lay on his side. Josh snuggled up behind his mate. He wrapped his arm around Jensen’s waist and could feel the tension leave Jensen’s body. The stress of the last few hours had drained Jensen. Josh hated to see his mate like this, but he wasn’t sorry for what Jensen had done. Josh’s only regret was that Jensen didn’t kill Ethan when he shot the man.

It seemed like hours before Detective Gates came back to his room. Jensen had finally fallen asleep but woke up instantly when Gates and his partner came through the door.

“It looks like your story checks out.” Gates pulled a chair up close to the bed. He and Jensen both sat up to face the man. “We had a patrol car go to the location, and he saw the cage. He also searched Mr. Compton’s car and found all kinds of treasures.” Josh opened his mouth to ask what he meant, but Gates just shook his head. “Don’t bother asking. I can’t discuss that information with you, but I can tell you this. The doctor treating Mr. Compton called his next of kin to inform them of the accident. He spoke to Mrs. Compton, Mr. Compton’s mother. She informed the doctor that Mr. Compton had been dealing with some depression and anxiety issues. I’m guessing he went off his meds and that would explain the attack. She also stated that Mr. Compton is a paranormal writer. So that gives some explanation as to why he was fixated on wolves. It looks like he just got confused.”

Josh let out the breath he didn’t realize he had been holding. His lungs screamed with relief to have fresh oxygen. “What’s going to happen to Ethan now?” Josh needed to know if they had to worry about Ethan coming after them again

“The ER doc called a doctor down from psych to evaluate him. According to his mother, he had been seeing a therapist in San Francisco before he left. Mr. Compton’s family is extremely concerned, and they’re flying out here to be with him. They should be here by morning. I’m guessing once this gets settled, they’ll be taking him back to the West Coast with them.” Gates stood from his chair. “You gentlemen are free to go. I will need you both to come down to the station tomorrow to make a formal statement. I think you’ve had enough to deal with tonight, so just come in when you get up and around in the morning.”

“Thank you.” Josh climbed off the bed and shook the man’s hand. “I really appreciate all you’ve done.”

“It’s my job, young man.” Gates smiled at them then left the room.

Josh wanted to shout to the heavens his joy. They both survived being held hostage by a lunatic, and Josh’s secret was still safe. The cops didn’t believe anything Ethan had said. He and Jensen could go on with their lives without the threat of being hunted.

“Do you think they’ll let me see him?”

Josh stumbled over his feet and had to grab the wall to balance himself. What his mate just asked had to be the most asinine thing he had ever heard in his life. “Why in god’s name would you want to do that?” Josh couldn’t believe his ears. Jensen wanted to go visit the man who could have killed them both.

* * * *

“You heard what the detective said.” Jensen pointed toward the door. “Ethan has some personal issues he’s going through. I really don’t think he meant us any harm.” He didn’t expect his mate to understand, but it was something he had to do. Jensen needed to know what had pushed Ethan to such extremes.

“Well, I’ll have to disagree with you on that.” Josh crossed his arms over his chest and stared down at Jensen where he sat on the edge of the bed. “The guy is a crack job. He might try to hurt you if you go in there.”

“I don’t think he will.” Jensen remembered the first time he saw Ethan. The man had seemed larger than life standing in the field where he wanted to build a house. Looking back now, Jensen still didn’t see any indication that the man was having some sort of mental break down. Jensen couldn’t help but think it was partially his fault. Him getting drunk and airing out his and Josh’s dirty laundry probably triggered something in Ethan, causing him to lose control.

“How do you know? Do you have a crystal ball you’re looking into that is guaranteeing that that freak won’t hurt you gain?” Josh snapped. Jensen flinched back at the fierceness in the man’s tone. A look of horror flashed over Josh’s face, and he rushed to Jensen. He rested both his hands on Jensen’s cheeks. “Oh, baby, I’m sorry.”

“Josh, I love you.” He covered Josh’s hands with his own. “But I don’t need your permission to do this. I feel responsible for what Ethan has done. He was fine until I got drunk and started talking about you and what you are capable of.”

“Jensen, you can’t blame yourself for this. You didn’t force Ethan to kidnap you and hold us at gunpoint.” Josh placed a gentle kiss on his forehead. “Ethan has problems and he needs to get help for them. Nothing you said or did caused this.”

“Maybe, but I still want to see him.”

Josh tried for a little longer to talk him out of it, but Jensen had made up his mind. Jensen spoke to the doctor, who in return asked Ethan if it would be okay. Five minutes later the doctor ushered him and Josh down the corridor to Ethan’s room. Jensen paused at the door and turned to Josh.

“I need to go in by myself.” He could see the flare of his mate’s nostrils as he prepared to tell Jensen why that was a bad idea, but he cut off his tirade before it got started. “Please.”

The doctor said that Ethan had been handcuffed to the bed and Jensen had nothing to fear from the other man. Jensen squeezed Josh’s hand, trying to let him know everything would be okay then turned and walked into Ethan’s room. A nurse stood near the bed checking Ethan’s vitals. When she finished, she left.

Ethan lay on the bed with his eyes closed. Jensen couldn’t believe how gaunt and pale the man looked. He didn’t even look like the same person.

“Hey.” Jensen looked up to see Ethan looking at him. “I didn’t think you’d ever want to see me again after what I did.”

Jensen pulled a chair close to the side of the bed. The room had been lit in low lighting except for the lights over the bed. They shone bright and the light reflected off the metal cuff around Ethan’s wrist. He pulled his gaze away from it. “We all make mistakes.”

“Yeah, we do, but not everyone takes another person hostage and holds them at gunpoint.”

“No, they don’t.” Jensen agreed. He leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees and entwined his fingers. It took a moment for him to gather his thoughts then he gazed back up at Ethan. “Why did you do all this?”

“I’d like to say it’s because I’m crazy, but it’d be a lie. The doctor started me back on my meds, so I can see quite clearly now.” Ethan rested back against his pillows and stared up at the ceiling. “Two years ago, doing something like this would never have crossed my mind. I was living a happy life with the man I thought I’d grow old with.” Ethan laughed but not with humor. “It’s funny how everything can change in a blink of an eye.”

“What happened?” Jensen didn’t want to pry or make Ethan relive something he would rather soon forget, but he needed to understand what had prompted this man to do what he had done.