Chapter 10
Franklin woke to Axar going stiff in his arms. He could sense trepidation through the mate bond.
"What's wrong?" His voice was nothing more than a hoarse whisper.
"They're coming. Neoma woke me."
Franklin grabbed his phone and called Elvin's number. He put the phone on speaker and rushed over to his closet, where he grabbed some underwear. He still hadn't made up his mind about whether ghosts were real, but he wouldn't risk an attack because he refused to listen to one.
"What?" Elvin sounded more asleep than awake.
"They're here."
"Fuck. On my way." Then the call disconnected. Axar gave him a wide-eyed look. Franklin scanned the room. Did he have hearing protection anywhere? In the garage.
He met Axar's gaze again. "How long until they're here?"
Axar looked to the side. There was nothing but empty air there, but he nodded as if he were in a conversation with someone. "They already are. They parked farther down the road and are walking up the flagstones now."
Shit, no time to go to the garage.
"Cover your ears." Franklin stalked toward the hallway. Would they come through the front door? Were they so sure they could take Axar from him? So brazen they'd come knocking?
Unlocking the door, he stepped out on the landing dressed in nothing but boxer briefs. They froze, or Axton and Mrs. Dusan froze when they saw him. Addox's gaze was on the surrounding forest. He must've sensed Franklin coming, and judging by the others' reactions, he hadn't told them.
Franklin filed it away for later. He didn't think Addox was an ally, but maybe he was a neutral party. At least when he could be.
"Good morning. To what do I owe the honor?"
Axar's mother gave a soundless snarl, then she focused on him. "Give me my son back."
He sensed the command in her voice, but like last time, he shook off the greasy feeling.
"He's mine now, and you're trespassing, so I have to ask you to leave."
Fury glowed in her eyes. "Axton."
"Mrs. Dusan, I'd prefer if I didn't have to kill any of your sons."
Addox winced, and Franklin wondered if he could sense he meant it. He didn't want to kill Axar's brother. He simply wanted them to go away and not bother them again.
"Axar! Come here."
Fuck! Was he covering his ears? A jolt of reluctance traveled through the bond, then Axar emerged from inside the house. Naked.
"Axar, tell Mr. Cyng you want to go home."
As if saying those words would change anything. Franklin looked at Axar. His face was scrunched, and his mouth opened, but no sound came.
"Axar, do as I say." Her voice was like a whip, and Axar swallowed, but no words left his mouth.
He was struggling, Franklin could sense it through the bond, but instead of interfering, he flooded their connection with calm.
Axar could withstand the command. He believed it, and he allowed him to feel it, gave him as much support as he could.
"No." Axar's voice was low and shaky, but he'd said it. Franklin grinned and wrapped an arm around his middle before giving him a quick kiss.
"Well done, darling." He spoke against his lips, hoping the others wouldn't hear him. Or he guessed Addox would, but he didn't care about Addox.
Mrs. Dusan screeched. It was a horrible sound, and Addox's legs folded underneath him. Shit.
Axar stiffened in his arms.
"Come with us, or Addox will move into your room."
A whimper left Addox, and Franklin frowned. What was wrong with Axar's room? It was facing the street, but if Franklin had understood Addox's skill correctly, he'd have heard the traffic anyway.
When no one moved or spoke, she let out a piercing cry, loud enough to hurt his ears, and Addox curled into a fetal position right there on the ground. His hands covered his ears, but it didn't appear to be helping when she kept on letting out high-pitched shrieks.
Then a howl flew over the treetops, and Franklin grinned. It was answered by another howl from the other side of the forest. "The pack is here."
Mrs. Dusan paled a fraction. Then she looked at Axton. "Get him." She gestured at Axar, who stood frozen next to Franklin. Did she seriously think he'd let them take him?
The next moment, she rushed over to where Addox was curled up on the forest floor. "Get up and get Axar."
It was painful to watch as a pale Addox clawed himself up on his feet and took a stumbling step toward them.
Franklin pushed Axar behind him before Axton could grab his arm and snarled in his face. Claws formed on his hands, and he showed off sharp teeth.
He'd gut anyone who tried to touch his mate.
Axton smacked a hand against Franklin's bare chest, but it was only a maneuver to get closer to Axar.
Then everything happened at once. Axton curled his fingers around Axar's wrist, Elvin broke through the tree line in wolf form, and Addox reached the stairs.
Franklin could feel the mate bond cut off. Shit! Axton must be more powerful than their mother was, or maybe it was the proximity. Axar moved out from behind him, ready to follow Axton anywhere.
A snarl left Franklin. "Elvin, take Addox down, but don't hurt him." He pointed at Addox in case Elvin couldn't figure out who was who. The names were confusing as hell.
Then he wrenched Axton's hand off Axar. A gasp sounded as the connection broke, and relief mixed with shame and disappointment flooded Franklin through the bond. He'd deal with it later.
Elvin jumped Addox, who crumbled underneath him. It was clear he was overwhelmed by everything going on. The moment he was on the ground, Elvin put his weight on him, like a dog who figured using its daddy as a mattress was a good idea.
Addox stilled, and Elvin met Franklin's gaze. He had him under control.
Time to end this.
Franklin spun Axton around and buried his claws in his abdomen. Shock traveled the bond, and he hoped Axar would forgive him. Then he focused on Mrs. Dusan instead of the mate bond. "Do you want your son to live, Mrs. Dusan?"
Axton stood stock still, most likely too shocked to do anything. Blood was trickling, the fabric of his shirt soaking up some of it.
Mrs. Dusan stared.
"Right now, my claws are buried in his gut, but I haven't scratched around in there.
I could, and you'd be in for a fun time, or I can gently remove my claws, allow you to rush him off to the hospital, and he'll most likely live a normal life.
Maybe he'll lose some of his intestines, might need to make some dietary adjustments, might need to be tube-fed for a while, but he'll be good as new in a few months.
Your call. Needless to say, should you ever come near me, my pack, Axar, or Addox again, I'll end him. Are we clear?"
Mrs. Dusan stared open-mouthed. It wasn't until Axton whimpered, she snapped out of it.
"You'll regret this."
"No, see." He gestured with his free hand at Axton's belly. "Still buried inside your son. Do you want him to live?"
She nodded.
"So we have an agreement then? You'll leave us alone."
She nodded again.
"Say it."
"I'll leave you, Axar, and Addox alone."
"And my pack. No revenge on any of my pack members or Axton's life is forfeit."
"We won't touch the pack."
"Good. Now go get the car because once I remove my claws, there will be a lot of blood, and you'll want to be on your way as soon as possible, not have to walk to where you parked it."
Chann walked out between the trees in human form. He was dressed in a pair of jeans and nothing else, his bare feet moving soundlessly over the frost-covered ground.
"Make sure she doesn't disappear." He met Chann's gaze and nodded to Mrs. Dusan, who was rushing down the road.
Franklin let out a breath and glanced at Axar. He was pale, and his eyes were wide, but he didn't look as if he was about to interfere.
Time moved at a snail's pace. When headlights finally slid over them, Franklin allowed some tension to melt away.
Chann appeared next to the car when it stopped and opened the passenger door. "Ready."
Franklin nodded, walked down the stairs while still holding Axton close to his body. He spoke low near his ear.
"What I told her goes for you, too, understood?"
Axton gave one short nod.
"It would be a pleasure to kill you after what you've done to Axar.
A pleasure, I want you to remember that.
The only reason you're alive is because Axar would be upset if I ripped your guts out.
You don't deserve his empathy, but he's a kind man.
The biggest fault of kind men is how they care about people despite them not deserving it. But I'm not a kind man."
Then he removed his claws from the flesh, and Axton screamed. Franklin helped him into the passenger seat and gave Mrs. Dusan one last look before closing the door.
When the car drove off, he blew out a breath and dropped his shoulders. As he looked toward the house and Axar, he found him still standing naked on the doorstep and hurried over. He wrapped his arms around him. "Are you okay?" His skin was chilled by the night air.
"Will he live?"
Franklin held in a sigh. "Yeah, I'm pretty sure he will."
Axar nodded, but he looked lost. Franklin kissed his forehead. "I'm sorry."
He shook his head. "No, I...eh...get it. You needed to do something to make them stop." Then his gaze traveled to Addox. "He's overwhelmed. He needs to be somewhere quiet for a few days."
Elvin moved off Addox and shifted.
"Can he stay with you for a while?" Franklin met Elvin's gaze.
Elvin shrugged. "I guess." Then he focused on Axar. "Anything I need to do?"
Axar shook his head, then shook his entire self and stood a little straighter. "No, he needs not to be touched, not to be around sounds--no music, no TV, no people, and so on."
"As if he has a migraine?"
Axar pursed his lips. "I don't know. I've never had a migraine."
"No sounds, no lights, no nothing." Elvin nodded.
"He's fine with lights."
Addox still hadn't moved from the ground. Was he...catatonic or something?
"Can I touch him to move him?" Elvin's gaze moved between Axar and Addox.
"Yeah." Axar dragged it out. "If you don't, he'll lie there for a few hours." He glanced at Franklin. "Or we can carry him into the guest room."
Franklin smiled. "Elvin lives in the middle of the forest." He gestured in the direction of Elvin's house. "More in the middle of the forest than we do. There are no sounds other than forest sounds."
Axar gave a slow nod. "Okay, maybe it would be better." He grimaced.
"Can I borrow your car?" Elvin looked at Franklin. "I ran here."
Franklin walked past Axar into the house and grabbed the car keys. Then he helped Elvin get Addox into the car.
Chann offered to go check if Axton had gotten to the hospital, and Franklin agreed.
Soon, he was alone with Axar. There was tension between them, and Franklin didn't know what to do next.
"I'm sorry."
Axar shook his head. "No, it's their fault. If they hadn't come here..." He ended the sentence with a shrug, and Franklin pulled him into his embrace.
"I'm still sorry. I know you care about your brother."
"Yeah, but he's with Elvin now. He'll be fine there, right?" Worried eyes met Franklin's, and it took a few seconds before he found his voice. He'd meant Axton, but maybe Axar didn't care as much about him as he'd believed.
"Elvin is a good man. He'll do what's best for Addox."
Axar melted against him. "Good. I know it looks like I had it worse there, but I think Addox suffered more. Cuts and bruises heal, but he...She punishes him through his skill. Punishes him because she thinks he's weak. She's disgusted with what I can do, but she's angry Addox can't be of any use."
Franklin couldn't wrap his head around how anyone could punish their children for who or what they were. Instead of saying anything, he nuzzled Axar. "Why did she threaten to put him in your room?"
"Addox's room is soundproofed. Or as good as.
He still feels vibrations, but it's quiet enough for him to be able to relax.
Every surface is covered in soft materials.
My room would be a nightmare for him." He rested his forehead against Franklin's chest. "I'm sorry I couldn't break out of Axton's hold. "
"Hey." Franklin grabbed his shoulders and leaned back to look into his eyes. "It's not your fault. It's his skill."
"Yeah, but I could borrow strength from you to withstand Mother, but not him."
"It doesn't matter. I'll keep you safe should he ever come near us again."
Axar gave him a small smile, and Franklin kissed him. "But to be sure he doesn't try to steal you from me, I'm never letting you out of my sight ever again."
Axar snorted, but warmth bloomed through the mate bond. "You'll grow tired of me."
"Never." Franklin hugged him close. "You're mine, will always be mine, and I never want to be away from you."
Axar wrapped his arms around his neck and pulled him down for another kiss. "I don't plan on going anywhere."
"Good." Franklin walked them inside the house, locked the door, and more or less carried Axar to bed.
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