Chapter 5
CHAPTER
FIVE
Iwatch the female wearing my coat. I don’t know why I offered it to her other than I couldn’t stand to see her naked and surrounded by strangers. She looked at us as if she dared us to judge her, but I sensed vulnerability under that.
My shifter instincts roar at me, demanding I let the other side of me out. I cannot.
I am a shifter, but I do not shift. I haven’t in years, not since . . .
Well, since then.
It’s dangerous for all, hence why I’m here with hunters. I left my own kind before they could ask me to, and I wanted to save them the trouble and my animal the dishonour, but I knew I could never rejoin my kind. I was left wandering until I found Tate.
After one look at me, she knew I was lost and she welcomed me. It wasn’t easy, since I was the first, but when I glance at Elara again, I know she was the reason why, though I cannot explain it.
It’s the reason I do what I do next.
My voice is rusty from disuse as I step forward and open my mouth. “I will help.” Every gaze swings to me. They have been trying to get me to speak to them for months, ever since I became the first supernatural hunter.
Every single jaw drops open, all but Elara’s. She gazes at me curiously. I’m a stranger, so why would I offer to help her? I can practically taste her distrust.
“Oh, now he’s talkative,” Ronan scoffs. “I’ve tried everything for months, but one look at Miss Feed On Your Lust over there and he’s practically a poet.”
Fang sighs. “Three words make him a poet?”
“In his world? Yes.” Ronan laughs. “Yo, big guy, now that you’re talking, what’s your name? Aren’t you sick of us just calling you ‘big guy?’”
“You wish to help?” Tate asks, interrupting her mate’s questions.
I incline my head, and she eyes me, a knowing smile on her lips, but my attention is drawn to Elara as she steps towards me, blocking their view. She’s small compared to me, but her posture commands attention, making me feel as if I’m standing before great royalty.
No wonder she is a queen.
“Why would you help me?”
Licking my dry lips, I find myself speaking yet again. “Everybody deserves a home, and yours was stolen from you.”
She startles, as if she didn’t expect that, and something in her eyes cuts me deeply, as if she can see my every flaw. She is a being of lust, and yes, she’s undeniably the most beautiful creature I’ve ever seen, but her eyes hold me captive.
The pain in them echoes mine.
“What is your name?” she asks softly.
“Corbin. My name is Corbin,” I answer truthfully.
“Motherfucker. Is it because she has a vagina? This is sexist as hell!” Ronan yells, throwing his hands up.
“I have a vagina and I asked his name with no response,” Fang scoffs.
“You don’t count. You have bigger balls than Addeus,” Ronan mutters.
“My balls are very large,” Addeus remarks, and I roll my eyes at their bickering. It’s always like this. It filled the void that was left after leaving my home, but it never felt right. I felt like I was an invader in their land, even though they insisted I was welcome.
I had to fight my way in, of course, since not all hunters were happy to have me on board, but I proved my worth and earned my place. One look into Elara’s blue eyes, though, and I know I would give it all up to be at her side.
My animal huffs as in agreement.
“Elara, Corbin is one of our best fighters. You would do well to accept him,” Tate comments, and I nod my head to her in thanks.
That is high praise from her. Tate Havelock is the best hunter on the entire planet.
Moreover, she has a soul of steel. She has survived death, and I respect her a lot, even though she is a human.
“I will if you are willing.” She nods at me then looks at Tate. “But even with him, it won’t be enough. They have an army—”
“You have a dragon,” the naked man mutters. He’s the reason we came, because he activated the cameras, but when we approached him last night, he warned us away and told us to wait for her to wake.
I understand those protective instincts now.
“You do not need an army, Elara, just the right beings willing to fight for you. Trust me on that. You have a dragon and Corbin, but you are right. You need more. I cannot offer you my own family, we have somewhere to be, but I know of many who could help you.” There’s a knowing grin on her lips, and I recall her story.
She was tasked with hunting down her team when these creatures became her mates. Is she offering Elara the same choice?
It seems Tate feels a kinship with the beauty.
“I know someone too,” Fang states and stands. “How do you feel about an incubus?”
“I have never really met one.” Elara shrugs gracefully, and even that soft movement of her shoulders leaves me hard and wanting.
“Well, he’s looking for a home. If you offer him the chance of finding one, he might help you.
He came to me when he heard I was a succubus.
I do not know his story, but Tate assured me he’s trustworthy, and she’s never wrong.
” She winks at Tate. “He is a wanderer, but I heard he settled in the city where he can feed while he figures out what to do.” She grabs some paper from the table and scribbles on it before holding it out to Elara.
“Find him. Together, your powers would be unstoppable.”
“He isn’t your only option, but Fang is right—he’s powerful if you can harness that.
There is another . . . I was tasked with killing him, but I couldn’t bring myself to do it.
He’s not evil . . . just misled. He’s chained deep within one of our black sites while I try to figure out how to save him, but I think you could.
If you can and earn his trust, you would be more powerful than any other queen before you.
” Tate tosses a phone over to Elara. “Those are the directions to the black site, but beware, he will test you. He ripped me apart with his mind and almost killed me, but he has his reasons.”
“Four men and me . . . Will it be enough?” Elara whispers.
“What about five?” the dragon says, clearly not happy about it.
“Do you know of someone?” Elara asks hopefully.
“Not someone, something,” the dragon grumbles. “It could get us killed if we find it, but if you need more power, it could end the world in a blink. They call it Eversor. It means destroyer.”
I frown. “I’ve heard tales, but they are just children’s stories.”
“No, Eversor is very real,” the fae says casually. “I even met him once. Mean bastard.” He grins. “I barely survived the encounter.”
“I have wandered the world for a long time. It is not a tale, but the truth. He resides deep within this earth. It might not be worth the risk.” The dragon frowns.
“But is Eversor that powerful?” Elara asks.
The dragon nods as if he’s unable to resist answering her. “More powerful than any court or any of us put together. Some would call him a god, but he is not. He is more of the devil, as the humans call him. He’s the bridge between both.”
“You know where to find him?” Elara asks.
“No,” the dragon replies.
“I do,” the fae calls. “Like I said, I met him once when they were looking for a cure for my madness. He told my sister to kill me, then he tried. It was his domain, I believe. You said you would give anything for your people, and he will test that, but if you are mad enough to look for him, then head to the black sand beaches at the farthest edge of this land and then keep going. Through the storms that never stop is a forgotten island. Deep within that isle, you’ll find him. ”
“Of course he couldn’t just be in London or something,” Fang scoffs. “Supes, you’re all so dramatic.”
“Am I dramatic, mistress?” Tem asks.
“Yes,” Tate answers without pause. “Elara, it’s your choice. If you still do not feel confident with them at your side, then you can wait for us to return from our mission and we can help—”
“I cannot wait that long. With every second that passes, my people suffer and die. I will take those men, use their powers, and end this. This is my fight, not yours. You have helped as much as you can, but it’s my turn now.” Elara looks at me again. “Are you sure you want to assist?”
I incline my head, and she turns to the dragon. “You brought me here, but you owe me nothing.”
“I go where you go,” the dragon says.
Sighing, she nods. “Okay then, where do we begin?”