Matthew (Mutants #8)

Chapter One

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“YOU DON’T GET IT,” Evan said. “They’re assassins. They kill people for a living.”

Matthew was amused. Evan wasn’t drunk, but he wasn’t quite sober, either.

He wouldn’t be talking about this in the middle of the bar if he’d been sober.

Thankfully, everyone in their small village knew about the council assassins, so it wasn’t a secret they needed to protect.

If it had been, Evan would’ve failed a few beers ago.

“They’re not bad people,” Hansen said as he patted his mate’s hand.

“I never said they were,” Evan argued. “But they’re professional assassins. Like, they kill people for a living.”

Matthew had encountered the assassins before.

He didn’t hold the same resentment for the council as Moore did, but he couldn’t deny that initially, they’d made him uneasy.

He hadn’t understood how someone could kill people for a living, as Evan had put it.

He still didn’t, but he’d seen enough things in his life to know that sometimes, the only thing one could do was kill the monsters.

“Moore doesn’t have a choice,” Hansen pointed out. “We need to do something to stop the hunters and close the labs.”

“What about the cops? We could call them,” Evan suggested.

Matthew and Hansen exchanged a glance. Evan had been in a lab, too.

Hell, he’d been in several labs, locked behind bars, tortured, and turned into a mutant.

It was sweet that he still believed the cops could do anything for the people in the same situation he’d been in.

Matthew hoped he’d never change and that he’d stay the sweet man he was.

Matthew and Hansen had seen too much, and it was too late for them.

After the time they’d spent in the labs, they decided to fight them and the people who worked there.

That had been even worse than being locked behind bars and experimented on.

It had shown them the worst humanity could offer, and if it meant stopping these people, Matthew was all for killing them.

“Well, Moore said he was going to pull in the council’s enforcers, not their assassins,” Hansen offered.

“Yeah, I guess they’re the cops of the supernatural world. You think they’re going to do something about this?”

“They don’t have a choice.”

Evan frowned before he picked up his beer and drank what was left in the glass.

Once it was empty, he blinked at it as if he was surprised it was empty.

He probably was. He’d been chatting since they’d sat down, and he didn’t look like he’d kept track of how much he was drinking.

It was a sign of how much he trusted Hansen and Matthew, and Matthew was glad. He wanted Hansen’s mate to trust him.

“When are they getting here, anyway?” Evan asked.

“Soon.”

It was all anyone knew. He supposed he could ask Moore, but people had been keeping their distance from him lately, including Matthew.

Moore might have called in the council, but everyone knew how much he disliked having to deal with them.

He’d do it because he wanted to help people, but he’d be vocal about how much he disliked it.

Matthew had had to deal with him ranting about the council for years.

He’d be happy to never have to listen to his speech ever again.

Evan blinked at something behind Matthew. Matthew started to turn to look, but Evan caught his arm and shook his head. “Don’t look,” he whispered. “It’s that guard.”

It took Matthew a moment to understand who Evan was talking about. “You mean Franklin?”

Evan nodded. “Yes, him.”

“He’s not really a guard.”

“He was wearing a guard’s uniform.”

“Yes, but he was in the lab for a good reason, remember?” Maybe he didn’t, considering how much he’d been drinking.

“He was looking for his siblings,” Evan murmured.

“He was.” Matthew turned and saw Franklin hanging by the door.

The man was looking around the room, almost as if he was considering turning around and leaving.

Maybe he was. He was a newcomer in the village, and some people didn’t want anything to do with him.

They couldn’t trust someone who’d worked in a lab, even though he’d been there as a guard and had only taken the job to find his siblings.

Matthew didn’t know if he trusted Franklin, but there was only one way to find out.

He raised his hand and waved, catching Franklin’s attention. Evan said something, but Matthew ignored him.

“I don’t know if I like him,” Evan said.

“Well, you’re about to find out.”

“I also don’t know if I’m comfortable with him.”

“We’re about to find that out, too.” Matthew turned fully toward Evan. “Hell, maybe you should go home. You’ve had a bit to drink.”

Evan glared. “I’m not drunk. I’m just happy.”

Happiness was something Evan hadn’t had for a long time. If he wanted to get drunk on beer for one evening, Matthew wasn’t going to say anything. Hansen was keeping an eye on his mate, anyway. He’d put a stop to it if things got out of hand.

“Hi,” Franklin said as he came to a stand next to their table.

“Why don’t you sit with us?” Matthew offered. “Unless you were looking for someone?”

Franklin shook his head and hesitantly took one of the empty chairs. “I just wanted out of the house for a bit.”

“Oh, I get that. I love that I have a place to call home now, but sometimes, it’s too big and empty.”

Matthew kind of wished the village had apartment buildings. He loved the little house he’d been given, but sometimes, it was way too big for him. He wished he could find a way to fill it, but he didn’t think he could have a relationship right now. Too much was still happening.

They might have closed many labs and saved a lot of people, but they weren’t done yet.

There were more labs and hunters, and until Matthew felt he was completely safe, he didn’t think he’d be able to relax and trust someone enough to have a relationship with them.

It might have been different if he’d fallen in love with a fellow mutant or if he’d met his mate, but so far, he hadn’t done either of those things.

He doubted he’d fall for a mutant anytime soon, either.

He knew everyone who lived in the village, and he considered the ones he was closest to like family.

He’d never wanted anything romantic with any of them.

That wouldn’t change, which left him meeting his mate, but how was he supposed to do that?

He was always either at the village training or out there raiding labs.

He glanced at Hansen and Evan, who were leaning close to each other. Hansen was checking in on Evan and pushing a glass of water in his direction.

Maybe Matthew still had a chance of meeting his mate.

Evan had been in a lab before they found him and brought him to the village.

He wasn’t the only one, either. Matthew couldn’t say that was his dream when it came to meeting his mate, but it meant he still had a chance.

He wasn’t drawn to anyone in the village, but he didn’t have to be if he met people through the labs.

“Living here has been an experience,” Franklin said softly.

Matthew frowned. “Has anyone given you any trouble?”

Franklin shook his head. “Not trouble, exactly. Everyone just keeps their distance, which is fine. I don’t expect anyone to be comfortable with my presence here, but it gets a bit lonely.”

“Well, a lot of the people in the tribe have spent time in labs. They know you were working there as a guard.”

“Only because of my siblings.”

Matthew nodded in agreement. “I know that, you know that, and everyone knows that, really, but it doesn’t make it any easier. Most of us have been through too much to be fully comfortable with it.”

“I know, and I understand. It’s why I’m doing this.

I don’t want my siblings to have to live through what some of the people here have lived through.

” Franklin glanced down at the table. “I’ve seen things while I worked in that lab.

I wanted to help, but I knew that if I did, I’d lose any chance I had of finding my siblings.

I know what some people have lived through, though.

I’ll always blame myself for not doing more, especially since I haven’t even found my brother or my sister yet. ”

Matthew wanted to tell him that he would, but how could he? He couldn’t make promises. No one could. None of them knew what would happen or if Franklin would be able to find his brother and sister. No one even knew if they were still alive.

For Franklin’s sake, Matthew hoped they were. For their sake, he wasn’t sure. It all depended on what they’d been put through while they were in the labs.

Matthew had been one of the lucky ones. He’d been tortured and hurt, but in the end, he’d say it had been worth it.

It had left him with an ability he could use to help and defend people.

He’d seen many of his fellow prisoners die, though.

He’d seen what had happened to them before they did.

Sometimes, death was more welcome than life.

And easier to deal with.

* * * *

ALAN ONLY REALIZED how late it was when his head started hurting. He blinked at his computer screen, his vision a little blurry. His phone was on his desk, so he glanced at it, surprised to see it was almost nine in the evening.

He’d lost himself in his work again. It happened often, but he didn’t think he’d ever stayed at the office so late. Victor was going to be angry if he found him there. He always told Alan to take it easy and to go home to rest, yet here Alan was, about to fall asleep on his desk.

He groaned and saved what he’d been working on.

He could finish it in the morning. That was, if he managed to wake up tomorrow morning.

It was late, and it would be even later by the time he got home.

Then, he was supposed to shower and eat dinner.

He didn’t know what time he’d go to bed, but it wouldn’t be anytime soon.