Feral (Wicked Nights At Lair Book 1)

16. Hale

I’m agitated but I can’t figure out why. It’s as if the air feels wrong.

“Does everything feel normal to you, Tiago?”

He glances up from the inventory list. “Yeah. Why?”

I shake my head. “I don’t know. Something feels off.”

He shrugs. “Feels fine to me. Maybe you’re missing your man.”

His teasing brings a smile to my lips, but… “It’s more than that. I feel uneasy.”

“Check in with him. I bet that’s it.”

“Yeah, okay. I’ll do that.”

Pulling my phone from my pocket, I walk to the other side of the bar and sit at a table before pressing the key to call Yannis. It rings several times, then goes to voicemail. I try again, but get the same outcome. My chest tightens and a lump of tension forms in my gut. Tiago was right. Whatever is bothering me is about Yannis.

“I have to go,” I say on my way out the door.

On foot, I head toward Yannis’s building, feeling him in my core. In mere minutes, I’m in front of his place, but I already know he’s not here. Tilting my head back, I sniff the air, catching a faint hint of him. I tear off in that direction, following the scent. I know I’m close, but the beast inside me is on high alert. We both know something is wrong.

I end up on a street that makes my blood run cold. The people outside study me critically, aware of the stranger in their midst. I focus my senses, trying to find Yannis. He must be around here somewhere.

“You looking for the white boy with blond hair?”

I turn around to see a woman leaning against a brick building. She’s smoking a cigarette and wearing what looks like a uniform of some kind. Bus driver maybe.

“Yes. Have you seen him?”

She nods, her eyes shifting around. “Alley two blocks over. The Bianchi crew roughed him up, but you didn’t hear it from me.”

I’m already running in that direction, desperate to find Yannis. I pass several alleys before I catch the scent of his blood. I find him on the ground behind a pile of trash bags.

“Gods.” I scoop him into my arms, brushing the hair from his forehead. His face is bruised and blood is crusted around his nose and mouth. “Yannis. I’m here, love. I’ve got you.”

He opens his swollen eyes a crack and attempts a smile but flinches. “I knew it.” His strained voice tears at my heart. “I knew you’d find me.”

“Save your strength. I’ll take care of you. The Bianchi crew did this?”

“I fought back. Stupid.”

“No, you’re not stupid. You’re so brave.”

As I get to my feet, Yannis groans with pain, stoking the flames of rage within me. My beast rises to the surface, threatening to break through, but I hold back. I have to get Yannis to safety first. Then I’m going to rain terror on the fucking Bianchi family.

I walk as quickly as possible without causing him more pain. When I get to his apartment, I take him inside and lay him down on the couch. He’s nearly unconscious at this point, but that’s probably for the best. While I gather his phone and a bag of his clothes, I dial the head of my coven.

“Yves,” he answers.

“I have a huge problem, and I need your permission for what I’m about to do.”

“What’s happening?”

“That Mafia family I told you about? They attacked my mate.”

“Your…mate? I feel I’ve missed an update.”

“I found him, Yves. My fated mate. He’s mortal, and right now, he’s wounded. I’m bringing him home in a few minutes, but once he’s safe and healing, I’ve got something to take care of.”

“Come home. I’ll call Viv and Viper to help. You shouldn’t do this alone.”

My jaw twitches. “I’ll happily accept help, but they have to die, and it has to be tonight.”

“I understand. They fucked with us first.”

“I can barely contain myself.”

“Focus on getting your mate to safety. We’ll be here waiting for you.”

“Thank you.”

I end the call and finish packing up his toiletries. By the time I’m carrying him down the stairs, a black SUV is tearing into the parking lot, coming to a screeching stop in front of me. The door opens and Thorn steps out. Kyson waves from the passenger side with a sympathetic look on his face.

Thorn opens the back door. “Come on, brother. Let’s get your man to safety.”

“How did you find me?”

“We’re connected, my guy.”

“Thank you.”

“No thanks needed. We’re family.”

Some of the tension eases as I gently lay Yannis in the back before joining him. His head rests on my lap while Thorn drives like the madman he is to get us back to our building. After a few minutes, Yannis’s eyelids flutter and he cracks them open.

“Hale,” he whispers.

“I’m here, love. You’re safe now.”

“H-hurts.” He flinches, groaning. “Fuck.”

“I’ll take care of you.” I lean down and press a kiss to his forehead. “I promise they’ll pay for what they did.”

“I…know. Safe now.”

“Poor guy,” Kyson says, glancing back. “He’ll be okay though, Hale. Thank the gods he has you.”

“Not the worst kind of boyfriend to have,” Thorn says.

Yannis smiles, just a little, but enough to notice it. “Boy…friend?”

My heart clenches from the mixture of joy and concern. “We’re so much more than that. I can’t wait to tell you when you’re better.”

“Not…leaving me?”

“Never.”

“Never,” he whispers, then falls slack in my arms, pulled under once again. The pain he must be experiencing stirs another wave of rage within me.

We make it back to the House of Orpheus and I carry Yannis upstairs, taking him straight to my apartment. I’m followed by the two witches, all of my brothers, and their mates. I lay Yannis down on the sofa.

“Can you do something, Viv?”

“Of course.” She rubs my arm. “Give us a few minutes.”

Viper kneels down beside him, holding her hands over him with her eyes closed. She starts at his head and moves down to his feet. As she moves back up, she hovers over his chest and then his face.

“Broken ribs and nose,” she says. “Lots of bruising, but his organs are good.”

Relief washes over me. “Thank fuck.”

Vivienne is mixing several liquids in a bowl. She sniffs it then adds a bit of powder, making it swirl and bubble. “It won’t taste good, but it’ll do the job.” She puts her hand under Yannis’s head, lifting him gently.

His eyes barely open through the swelling, but he focuses on her. “Angel?”

She smiles. “No, sweetie, but I’m here to help. I need you to drink this.”

“Hale?”

“I’m right here, Yannis.”

He nods without looking in my direction. Viv holds the dish up to his lips and he drinks it down, his face twisting from the taste.

“Fuck.”

“Sorry,” Viv says. “It’s awful but it works. You’ll start feeling better quickly.”

“Thank you.”

Viper is still doing something with her hands that seems to settle Yannis. His face relaxes and he sinks into the leather.

Yves, standing beside me with Damiano, grips my shoulder. “We’ll go and let you get him comfortable. We’ll be waiting in the common area for you.”

“We’ll stay with him while you’re gone,” Vivienne says. “He won’t be alone.”

I nod, focusing my attention on Yannis. Once they leave, I head to the bathroom to get a warm cloth and soap, setting it in my bedroom before returning to the living room where I strip off his bloodied clothes.

The more bruises and cuts I reveal, the more my anger rises, burning through me like an out-of-control fire. I’m going to tear those fuckers limb from limb and enjoy every second of it.

After cleaning him up and carrying him to my bed, I tuck him in and put his phone on the nightstand.

“Yannis? Can you hear me?”

He opens his eyes, and already the swelling is going down. “Hale.”

“Yeah, it’s me. You just rest. I’m going out, but you won’t be alone. Viv and Viper will be here.”

He squeezes my wrist. “No. Dangerous.”

“My love, remember what I am. They don’t stand a chance.”

He huffs. “Want to see.”

“See what?”

“You hurt them.”

His reply surprises me. “You want to see what I’m going to do to them?”

“Yeah.”

“I’ll save one for you then. Do you know their names?”

“Vito and Pippo.”

“Vito. The one who came to Lair?”

“Yeah. He said I had to pay for trespassing on his street or something. I got a few punches in.” He chuckles but flinches.

“Rest, sweetheart.” I kiss his forehead. “You’ll feel better soon, and I’ll be back before you know it.”

Before I can leave, he grabs my wrist. “Wait.”

“What do you need?”

“Wait for me.”

“No, love. You need to rest.”

He shakes his head, opening his eyes fully. “Whatever she gave me is working fast.”

I frown. “But you’re still hurt.”

“I don’t care, Hale.” He pulls himself upright. “I want to go too.”

“There’s going to be a lot of violence.”

His eyes harden as his jaw twitches. “They tried to kill me. I want to be there for what you do to them. I’ll stay back, but I’m going too.”

As much as I’d like to shield him and keep him safely locked away, the fight in him is a massive turn-on. “You’re sure you’re up to it?”

He nods. “I can handle it. I’ll sleep when we get back.”

“Very well. I’ll help you get dressed. I grabbed some of your things from your apartment.”

A genuine smile pulls at his lips. “That was thoughtful.”

“All I think about is you.”

Yannis flips the blankets back and carefully climbs out of bed. He’s moving slowly, but whatever was in that drink Viv gave him is definitely working. He manages to get himself into a pair of jeans and a t-shirt and I help him get his shoes on. His beautiful face is marred by cuts and bruises, but I can tell he’s feeling stronger overall.

“Let’s do this,” he says.

“My family is waiting for us.”

We head out to the common area where everyone is gathered, and they all stop talking, more than surprised to see Yannis upright and walking.

“He wanted to go with us.”

Vivienne whistles. “Wow. You’re a tough one.”

Yannis shrugs. “Thank you for helping me. Whatever that was is working.”

“You still need to be cautious,” she says. “You have some cracked ribs in there.”

“And lots of bruised organs,” Viper adds.

“I’m not doing anything but watching my man rip those fuckers apart.”

Thorn cracks his knuckles with a maniacal grin on his face. “Fuck yeah. Let’s go spill some blood.”

Yves is watching me and Yannis with a concerned look on his face. I think I know what he’s thinking.

“Yannis knows what we are.”

Yves nods. “I see.”

“It doesn’t bother me,” Yannis says. “I think it’s cool.”

I rub his back, smiling briefly before getting back to the issue at hand. “We’re looking for two men, Vito and Pippo.”

“Vito started it,” Yannis says.

“Vito is the one who showed up at Lair with a gun,” I say. “That one is mine.”

Syn grins at me. “Vengeance looks good on you, brother.”

I wink at him.

“Maybe we’ll get lucky and find the whole crew,” Midnight says. “It’s been a while since we hunted without a client attached.”

“Keep your ears open,” Yves says. “We need to learn who’s in charge of this outfit.”

“And introduce them to who really runs this city,” Damiano says, nuzzling Yves’s cheek. Yves returns his affection with a heated look.

For the first time since I met them, the obvious love between the men and their mates doesn’t leave me longing. My mate is standing next to me, and I’ll never leave him without my protection again. I can’t wait to tell him what we are to each other.

“I’m ready. It’s time the Bianchi family finds out what real power is.”