HunterUndone Page 14

  He almost expected her to blow him off, to tell him he was worrying over nothing. Instead, she closed her eyes and let out a shuddering breath, before throwing her arms around his neck and yanking him closer.

  “Don’t leave the room, okay?” Her voice was thready, more shaken than he’d ever heard it. “In case this does go wrong, being able to feel you near me— “

  He cut her off with a vicious snarl. “Not a question, gypsy. I’m not going any fucking place. You’re not doing this alone.”

  Her eyes popped open, and he was staggered at the sheer relief he saw in them. She nodded, then tangled her hands in his hair and tugged gently so she could kiss him. It was soft, sweet, a melding of lips and tongue that belonged on her bed while he worshipped her. Then she moaned and leaned in closer. Raw starvation flooded his system until he ate at her mouth with a desperation that bordered on insanity, but his Shay met him every inch of the way, her tongue and lips matching his hunger as if the fire that burned through him lived inside her, as well.

  When she finally pulled back, her gorgeous eyes were glazed and filled with need, and a sadness that scared the ever-loving shit out of him. “Whatever happens, don’t wake me up.”

  Before he could demand she explain it, she sunk back to her heels and closed her eyes, shutting him out as she started chanting the spell.

  Unable to do anything but sit and watch over her, he pulled her vanity chair closer to the circle. He had just settled into it when her body twitched and she collapsed onto the floor, as if the bones had suddenly melted out of her body.

  Leaning forward, he shoved both hands through his hair and watched her, his eyes never leaving her sleeping form.

  As his gypsy dreamed, Tyler started to plan.

  CHAPTER 19

  The baby was giggling again. Turning onto her side, Shay snuggled into the pillow and smiled, breathing in the fresh Michigan spring air drifting in from the bedroom’s open windows. She loved this time of day. Those few, stolen moments she could still feel Tyler’s warmth in the bed with her, his scent filling her head, and Noah’s sweet giggles coming from his room filling her heart to bursting.

  It still amazed her how quickly dreams could change. Only months before, she’d sworn nothing would ever make her happier than waking up in Ty’s arms, his large, warrior’s body already desperate for hers. She’d open her eyes to find that dark, possessive gaze blazing into hers as he used that mouth and those hands and all of his hard edges to bring her the type of pleasure she’d never really believe existed. And every morning she’d woken up that way, she’d fallen in love with him a little bit more. Because she’d learned months before that her demon hunter took her pleasure—and more importantly, her orgasms—very seriously. Like his entire existence had narrowed into her body, and he was determined to keep her so sated and blissed out that she’d never regret choosing him.

  Even now, the thought made her snort. As much as she’d loved him then, and gods knew she’d loved him like a mad woman, it was nothing to how she felt about him now.

  Desperate to see him, to watch the way his face still softened every time she walked into a room, she untangled herself from the mounds of blankets and pillows on their bed and followed the sounds of giggles now mixed with that low, gruff, growly voice.

  As always, the sight that greeted her staggered her. She had no choice but to lean against the doorjamb for support.

  Noah was on his back on the floor, chubby arms and legs pumping away as happy baby drool covered his adorable chin. Every three seconds, he’d let out a squeal of laughter as his father, who was doing push-ups on the floor by him, came down and pretended to bite his nose.

  Her gaze tracked over Tyler’s shirtless, sweat-glistened torso, and the name tattooed down the outside of his left rib cage. Her name. In big, dark bold lettering, so the whole world would know who he belonged to.

  His body slowed, his head turning to look at her over his shoulder. He’d scraped his messy hair back off his scruffy face with one of her headbands, and while the look should have been ridiculous, the pure, heady male-ness of him was just a great, big package of freaking yum.

  “Good morning, beautiful.” In one smooth, beautiful move, he rolled to his feet, scooping up Noah on his way. When the baby curled up against his shoulder as if he’d found his perfect comfy spot, Tyler pressed his lips to the soft, blonde curls, his eyes locked on Shay’s. “They were taken because of you. You know that, right?”

  She heard it then. It was faint, just a bare sound in the distance. Screaming.

  Her gut twisted with horror. “What? Who?”

  “Our friends. Malia.” He kissed Noah’s head again and put him in the crib. “Ivy and Hayden. It’s your fault.”

  She shook her head, stepping back from him. “I don’t understand.”

  His laugh was humorless. “You rejected him. He had to do something.”

  “No.” Her hand went to her stomach, her gaze darting around the room as the surroundings vanished. The baby vanished. In his place was a cage, the metal bars rusted and thick, the ceiling so low not even Shay’s short height would be able to stand upright. Ivy, Hayden, and another woman faced her, screaming. “I didn’t mean to.”

  That heartless laugh escaped him again.

  “Of course not.” His hand cupped the side of her face. “But you chose selfishness over them. You chose me when Jackson warned you.” His warm blue eyes hardened to ice. “You chose your own happiness despite knowing it could lead to my death.”

  Tears stung her eyes. “No, no, that’s not— “

  “It is true.” His hands pushed her backward, into the hall behind her.

  “I’ll prove it.” Dropping his head, he caged her body in with his hips, his hands braced on either side of her.

  Without warning, his mouth took hers in a kiss so full of longing and lust, her brain switched off as raw need pounded through her. Struggling to retain control of her senses, her hands pushed at his shoulders, hurt and fear expanding her chest. But then his hips ground against her core, locking her in tight against him, and she moaned in his mouth.

  “See?” He lifted his head, his fingers sliding down her sides to dig into her ass. “You’ll choose yourself over everyone else, every time.”

  “No!” She pushed at his shoulders again, avoiding his eyes as she struggled to get away from him. “It’s not true! I went to Phoenix, I tried— “

  This time, his laugh was bitter. “Tried. Failed. Because deep down, you know the truth. The only way to save them is sacrifice yourself, and you want me too much. But guess what?” Ignoring her struggles as if she was as insignificant as a gnat, he pushed his brow against hers. “You chose wrong. Why would I want someone selfish enough to risk everyone she supposedly loves?”

  Oh, gods, it hurt. Swiping her fingers under her eyes, she used her limited space to slam her knee into his groin. Snarling in pain, he reached for her. She darted past him, toward the cage. Narrow windows sat high on cement walls, and a single light hung from the unfinished ceiling, it’s bulb barely illuminating the space.

  “Help us, Shay, please!” Hayden screamed as all around the darkened, damp space, black-robed figures appeared in wisps of fog.

  Ivy’s fingers reached out between the bars, curling around Shay’s arm. “There’s only one way to stop this. Please, please don’t let us die this way!”

  Tears trickled down Shay’s face. “Ivy, I can’t. I don’t know how— “

  “Enough talking.” A robed figure stepped forward as low, measured chanting overpowered the screams.

  With a single snap of the figure’s fingers, an altar appeared where only moments before, Tyler had played with their son. Thick, wrought iron chains hung from each corner, and even in the darkness Shay could see the runes scratched into them.

  Forcing her chin up in a show of defiance she didn’t feel, she tried to see past the hood. “What do you want from me?”

  “Your blood
, for starters.” He laughed as the color drained from her face. Reaching up, he pushed the hood back,

  Jackson.

  “Then your body and your soul,” he continued. “But mostly, your soul.”

  Jackson wasn’t a surprise. The sheer hatred in his eyes startled her. No one had ever looked at her that way before.

  “What do you want with my soul?”

  Like the parking lot earlier, his body flickered, but instead of disappearing for that brief instant, his appearance aged. One flicker he was in his thirties, and the next he was barely more than skin and bones, just a stooped old man with wrinkles and sunken eyes. Then in the next blink, he was the Jackson she knew and hated again.

  “Because staying this young isn’t free. The souls I took before weren’t strong enough. Not even your mother’s. Especially not the other women’s.”

  “What?” Feeling like she’d fallen into the rabbit hole, all she could do was blink at him. “My mother died raising a demon.”

  He snorted. “No. Your mother died screaming on my altar, the last sacrifice I needed to keep from aging.”

  She swallowed hard as all the pieces she thought she knew about her life re-adjusted themselves. “What other sacrifices?”

  He rolled his eyes. “What do you think? Now I’m bored with this.” Waving her off, he shrugged, and the chanting intensified. “So now you have your choice laid out before you. One soul for the price of freedom for your friends.” Moving over to the cage, he wrapped his hand around Hayden’s hair and pulled her hard against the bars. “Go on, sweetheart. Tell Shay what she needs to hear.”

  Instead of answering, Hayden’s eyes pierced Shay’s soul, and deep inside her brain, in her heart, she heard her friend scream. Shay shot forward and threw herself at Jackson. The room spun out, sending her flying backward instead. Her eyes closed as her head bounced off the cold stone floor, and even as she tried to pry her lids open again, her world tilted.

  For the second time in twenty-four hours, she watched her world implode before everything went black.

  ***

  “Come on, gypsy.” Shaken to his soul, Tyler cradled Shay against his chest. “Stay with me, okay?”

  Her eyes fluttered open, focused on him. Then she jackknifed forward. “Sick.”

  Fuck.

  He was on his feet with her in an instant, shoving past the three men standing guard outside the door, and ran into the bathroom. He’d barely gotten her to the toilet before she was dry heaving into it, her tiny body wracking so violently he was surprised it didn’t crack in half.

  “Talk to me, gypsy.” Gods, why had he let her do this? He’d known—he’d goddamn fucking known—this dream shit wasn’t going to end well.

  “It’s my fault.” Wrenching forward again, her body spasmed as she continued to heave. “I chose you over them.”

  Pulling the hair out of her face, he rubbed his free hand over her back and tried not to growl the whole house down around them, but he was pretty sure his heart was being ripped out of his chest. “What are you talking about?”

  She folded her arms over the toilet bowl and dropped her head on them. “The dream. I was supposed to break up with you for good after my last dream, when I saw you being killed. But I chose my own happiness instead. I was supposed to break up with you, and accept Jackson’s proposal. When I didn’t…Oh, God.”

  “Wade.” Leith crouched next to him, something almost—almost—like sympathy flashing through his eyes as she heaved again. He cleared his throat. “How is she?”

  “I’m fine.” Shuddering, Shay sat back, still too pale for Tyler’s liking. Taking a deep breath, she got to her feet. “We need to go.”

  Leith didn’t look happy, but Tyler shook his head as they followed her back to her bedroom.

  He closed her door in Leith’s face. “Shay. Baby. Talk to me. Where are they?”

  She hesitated with her shirt halfway over her head. Her shoulders slumped, and for a second, he thought he saw devastation and heartbreak written all over her face. “A basement.”

  Pushing his hand through his hair, Tyler leaned back against the wall. “Okay, anything else?”

  She shoved her feet into a pair of black boots, then pulled her hair into a low braid.

  “He’s sure I’m going to come to him.” Swallowing hard, she finished off her all-black look with a hoodie. “He has Hayden, too. Deacon is going to go nuclear on this town when he finds out.”

  “Shay.” He growled low and savage enough to snap her out of her manic speed-dressing. Her gaze flew to his, and he had to clench his fists to stop himself from grabbing her. “Why does he think you’re going to go to him?”

  For a second, he didn’t think she was going to tell him. The growl was already back in his chest before she turned to look up at him, so much misery in her eyes it nearly cut him off at the knees. But instead of hiding or refusing to talk, she marched toward the door, pulling him with as she headed past Leith and Deacon toward the living room.

  Garret, who was sprawled on the couch, sat up slowly when they all entered the room. “What’s going on?”

  Shay moved to the center of the large area rug. “Jackson Fairweather has them, and he’s holding them hostage.” She swallowed hard. “He’ll let them all go, in return for me.”

  No one spoke as she told them about her dream, every gritty detail, and by the time she was done, she looked exhausted and terrified, like she was waiting for them all to start screaming at her.

  Instead, Leith shook his head. “I’ll get the weapons.”

  Deacon nodded, looking as unstable as Tyler felt. “I’ll start making phone calls. There’s only a few barns around here.”

  Glancing between them all, Garret straightened his shoulders. “I’ll go help the big guy with weapons and, uh, leave you two alone for a minute.”

  When everyone had filed out of the house, Shay stood where she was, staring at his chest, and refused to meet his gaze. He didn’t blame her. He knew what she’d see if she glanced up, and the last thing he needed was to terrify her even more. But holy fuck, he was losing it.

  A kid. They had a kid, and this fucktard thought she was selfish enough to give up her friends to have that future. “You told me— “

  “I’m sorry.” She sniffled and lifted her hand, but instead of touching him, she let it fall uselessly to her side. “I know I should have just left, should have snuck out to go save them, and instead, I’m putting all of you at risk.”

  “No, gypsy.” Her head snapped up at his low bellow. “You did the right thing, all right?” Leaning down, he kissed her with all the desperation and gratefulness he had inside him. “We’ll get them back and kill this douche lord, and nothing else is going to get near you ever again.”

  “Wade. We’re ready,” Leith said from the doorway.

  Tyler closed his eyes, and pressed his brow to hers. “I’ll be back, gypsy.”

  Without another word, refusing to let her be afraid or in danger for another second, he turned and walked out.

  CHAPTER 20

  Tyler made it to Leith’s Suburban before he changed his mind. With a quick stop at his truck to grab for the special guns and knives he wanted for the hunt, he ignored the nagging worry about letting Shay out of his sight long enough to rescue Mal and the other women, and tossed his duffle into the back of his partner’s SUV. He even managed to climb into the back seat and rest his head as he stretched out, before he cursed. Giving up any pretense of not being about to crawl out of his godforsaken skin, he exited the vehicle and started toward her house.

  It didn’t surprise him any that she was already halfway to him, a look of furious determination on her beautiful face.

  “If you think I’m staying—.” She grunted as he threw her over his shoulder. She braced her hands against his back and tried to lever herself up. “What are you doing?”

  Leith held the back passenger door open for him so he could toss Shay into the s
eat. Tyler followed her in, crowding her space.

  Twisting in her seat as Leith closed the door before rounding the vehicle to get behind the wheel, she blinked up at Tyler. “I thought you were leaving without me.”

  “I was.” Less than amused by her surprise, he hooked his arm around her waist and lifted her onto his lap. “Decided better of it. Knowing you, I’d get back home to find the place swarmed by zombies.”

  She stilled in the act of settling against him, her eyes widening. “Home?”

  Christ. He hadn’t even realized what he’d said. But no way was he leaving this girl. She’d stormed into his life like a goddamn hurricane, blowing apart everything he thought he wanted, and putting it all back together in a way that made sense, finally.

  She was fucking perfect for him.

  She was also glaring at him.

  “None of what happened yesterday was my fault.” She shifted on his lap so she could poke his chest. “You can’t blame me for it all.”

  He snorted.

  “Watch me.” When her eyes narrowed with temper, he blew out a low breath. “I’ve had enough scares for a while, gypsy. I don’t know if I’ll survive anymore. Not where you’re concerned.”

  The indignation melted out of her. Curling up against his chest, she pulled his arm tighter around her waist. “About my dream…?”

  A scowl furrowed his brow. “What about it?”

  “His name was Noah,” she whispered, her eyes fluttering closed. “And when Jackson appeared, he knew. He knew I’d sacrifice anything to have that future with you. To have you.”

  “Ah, baby.” He wrapped his fingers around the back of her neck and put just enough pressure to have her looking up at him. “Is that what you’re worried about? That you’d sacrifice your friends to have a future that may not ever happen?’

  She didn’t look thrilled with him for putting it that way. Sitting up on his lap, she crossed her arms over her magnificent chest. “I don’t mind being selfish, Ty, or fighting for what I want. But it wasn’t about my needs. It was about us. About you needing me just as desperately as I needed you. That’s what I want.”