Chapter Five
T he tavern pulsed with wild energy, the air a swirling mix of boisterous laughter and the relentless beat of the music.
Behind the bar, Miguel was a force of nature, pouring drinks with the precision and flair of a maestro commanding an orchestra.
Sin & Steel served as the den for the Salvador wolf pack, but its doors stood wide open for any daring soul bold enough to enter.
A handful of patrons were perched on stools at the counter, devouring their meals like it was their last. The tavern didn’t have a large menu, but with Cesar manning the kitchen tonight, the aromas wafting out could tempt even the toughest critic.
Now Miguel was starving. In a moment, he was taking a break to sink his teeth into chicken wings and fresh-cut fries.
Cesar kept his seasoning blend a closely-guarded secret, but whatever he used, it turned any dish into an irresistible craving.
“I’ve been standing at the other end of the bar for ten damn minutes,”
barked an impatient blond, his voice dripping with entitlement.
Miguel strolled over, tossing the bar rag over his shoulder, and fixed the guy with a cold, penetrating stare.
“You gonna take my fucking drink order?”
His eyes flicked to the scars carved into the right side of Miguel’s face, a permanent reminder from last year’s brutal bike crash. Most days, he forgot they were even there, until some asshole forced him to remember.
Planting his palms firmly on the counter’s edge, Miguel leaned in close. “You hit the other end exactly two minutes and thirty seconds ago.”
“What does that have to do with anything?”
The guy slapped a twenty down with a defiant sneer. “Just do your job. A round of drinks for me and my buddies.”
Miguel closed his eyes when he felt them begin to glow. He was a heartbeat away from dragging the human over the counter when his phone buzzed in his pocket, pulling him back from the brink.
“Is there a problem?”
Matias. Just fucking perfect. The scars made everyone assume Miguel needed protection, but he resented being seen as vulnerable, even by his own pack.
“Your coworker needs to learn some manners,”
the blond snapped, oblivious to the danger right in front of him.
Miguel was a heartbeat away from shattering the guy’s jaw. His eyes flew open, fury barely leashed. “Get the fuck away from me, or I will end you so fast even your ghost will think twice about lingering.”
The human sized him up, as if questioning Miguel’s seriousness, before his eyes narrowed into razor-thin slits. “Did you just threaten me?”
he sneered. “I demand to speak to the owner.”
Miguel chuckled darkly as he pulled out his phone. “Watch how fast my service is now, you little bitch.”
He jerked his chin toward Matias, who looked like he wanted to rip the guy’s throat out. “You wanted the owner, now you’ve got him. Though I doubt you want his attention.”
With a smirk, Miguel pressed the phone to his ear. “Salvador’s Madhouse.”
“Got baby sheep on my six and hungry eyes on my nine. Could really use a half dozen or more shepherd’s hooks right now.”
“Tell me where your pasture is located and I’ll see what’s in the shed.”
Seconds later, Miguel’s phone buzzed with Suero’s coordinates. He killed the music and whistled sharply, the room falling into a hush. Matias strolled back in after “escorting”
the blond punk out of the tavern. Miguel pocketed the twenty still lying on the counter. It was his fee for dealing with the asshat. “Suero’s in deep. He’s got two little sheep with him, whoever they are.”
“We ride,”
Matias declared. “Diablo and Santiago, hold it down until we return. Don’t let the mates out of your sight.”
* * * *
Suero had never seen a car held together with duct tape and metal hangers. Jared was driving a straight-up death trap. It was a miracle the thing even worked.
If he’d known just how dangerous this vehicle was when Kia drove it, Suero would’ve taken away the keys.
He didn’t even know where to begin troubleshooting. Neon pink electrical tape wound around two hoses, and a wire coat hanger was securing the radiator on one side.
It was a safe bet that if Suero looked under the car, he’d find more of the same chaos.
“Still with me?”
Miguel asked through Suero’s Bluetooth.
“Yes, but unfortunately, I’ve got two balls of yawn resting in my saddlebag,”
Suero replied.
Miguel cursed. “I thought you tossed them down the road?”
Suero seriously hated using code at times, but with hyenas nearby, it was necessary. They probably already knew Kia and Jared were in the car, but Suero was in protective mode, and code was his go-to in tight situations.
“Pitching arm gave out.”
It was the only thing he could think of to describe Jared’s car. He couldn’t tell Miguel that his pitching arm was a death trap waiting to claim victims.
Who cobbled this thing together? Suero couldn’t imagine Jared under the hood. The cheetah seemed more like someone who showered in a rainbow and spritzed his way through life.
“I’ve been around Percy too long. I’m starting to think like him.”
Miguel chuckled in his ear. “Rainbow analogies?”
“I think this engine is giving off fumes.”
Suero noticed movement just inside the tree line. Either the hyenas were waiting for everyone to leave so they could get back to their shady activities, or they were about to make their move.
“How deep are you?”
He moved to the driver’s side for a clearer view while pretending to focus on the jumbled mess of the engine.
“A dozen,”
Miguel replied. “ETA in roughly five minutes.”
Suero cursed when his phone slid off the frame and hit the ground. Despite having a cover and screen protector, the phone was too pricey to be dropped on asphalt.
Bending to retrieve it, he heard a sharp ping sound. He looked up to see a cylindrical dart embedded in the hood, right where his head had been moments before.
A chill ran through him. “Get down!”
he shouted to Kia and Jared as he dropped to the ground.
“Suero, what’s going on?”
Miguel demanded.
Instead of answering, Suero flattened himself and peered under the car, ignoring the dangling wires. Three men were moving strategically through the woods, one carrying something that briefly glinted in the sunlight.
A gun.
Reaching up, Suero tried to open the door, but the handle was missing. Jesus fucking Christ. “Open the door and crawl out. Stay low,”
he instructed. “They’re shooting tranquilizers at us.”
“We ride in there, we’ll make easy targets,”
Miguel said. “We’re pulling over to devise a plan. How many can you see?”
“Three,”
Suero replied. He helped Jared and Kia crawl out, guiding them to the ground and toward the rear tire for better cover. “Stay low,”
he whispered. They nodded quickly, fear visible in their eyes and in their tense movements.
Suero wasn’t sure if they knew about the danger of the tranquilizers, but he was determined to protect them from getting hit.
It had been almost two months since Diablo had been tranquilized, and he was still unable to shift into his wolf or lycanthrope form. As much as he sympathized with Diablo, Suero didn’t want firsthand knowledge of how it felt to have his beasts trapped inside of him.
He didn’t want Kia or Jared to get hit either. Suero had witnessed moments when Diablo struggled, believing no one was watching him. He would snarl, sweat, and curse as he tried to force them out.
If your phone hadn’t dropped, that dart would have struck you. Suero pushed the frightening thought aside.
“Is help coming?”
Kia looked up at Suero with hope in his bright green eyes, his body slightly trembling.
Jared moved closer to his cousin, clutching Kia’s hand. “They would’ve been here by now.”
His gaze darted down the road, searching anxiously, as if willing them to appear.
“They’re already here,”
Suero reassured them. “My pack is just figuring out how to reach us without getting hit.”
“Hit with what?”
Jared asked, his eyes widening in alarm.
Clearly, the man hadn’t been paying attention.
Small pebbles brushed against Suero’s palms as he crouched down, its roughness biting into his skin as he scanned for any signs of the hyenas.
The field stretched out before him, the grass standing tall enough to conceal someone. A low rustling breeze whispered through the stalks, the kind of sound that normally wouldn’t raise alarms. But now? It crawled beneath his skin.
He watched for any unusual movement in the tall grass, but the breeze caused the blades to sway, making it difficult to tell.
Somewhere to his right, a branch snapped. Not loud. Not close. The kind of break that didn’t happen unless something stepped wrong, signaling the presence of something dangerous nearby.
Suero felt the tension building, the sense of being watched and stalked.
It was a game of hide and seek, and the stakes were survival.
As soon as he sat back down, Suero raised his arm and wrapped it around Kia. His kitten nestled against him.
“I’m scared,”
Kia whispered, gripping Suero’s shirt tightly.
He pressed a reassuring kiss to Kia’s temple. “We’re not alone. My pack has their eyes on us.”
“I’m not feeling very reassured.”
Jared dropped to his hands and knees, his eyes darting beneath the car. “We’re sitting ducks out here. Can’t your friends hurry up with their plan?”
“I need you to stay calm,”
Suero growled softly.
“How am I supposed to stay calm?”
Jared’s voice wavered, rising above the rustle of grass.
Their patience was becoming frayed. If his pack didn’t devise a plan soon, he feared one or both of them might do something reckless.
A shadow crossed just a little too close. Suero shoved Kia behind him seconds before a stranger rounded the front of the car, a gun aimed right at him.
Suero shot to his feet with a fierce growl. He had only one purpose—disarm the hyena shifter before he could fire the gun.
Charging forward, Suero knocked the weapon free from the shifter’s grasp, his other hand clamping down on the man’s throat. Slowly, Suero bent down and grabbed the fallen gun. He pressed the cold metal into the stranger’s side, then pulled the trigger with an unflinching squeeze.
“No!”
The guy kicked and screamed, causing Suero to release him. “What have you done?”
He yanked the tranquilizer dart out and flung it aside, staggering to his feet.
“The same thing you did to Diablo,”
Suero snarled, his voice a low, menacing rumble. “Maybe now you’ll truly understand the destruction you’ve caused.”
Matias, Cesar, and Miguel flanked him, while the others remained in the woods doing a sweep.
The hyena’s gaze darted between them, as if calculating an escape route. Suero stepped closer, his lip curled. “You tried to ambush me while I was with my mate?”
Miguel’s and Cesar’s eyes flicked toward Suero, but they remained quiet. Kia’s cheetah had chosen him, and in Suero’s eyes, they were mates. He wasn’t sure why his wolf was being so stubborn. Suero didn’t want anyone else. His kitty cat was it for him.
In response to Suero’s reveal, Miguel and Cesar positioned themselves closer to the cheetah shifters, adopting a protective stance.
“It doesn’t matter what you do to me.”
the stranger said with a dismissive shrug, but Suero could see the intense hatred burning in his eyes. “You’ll never be able to stop us. This is beyond anything your small mind can grasp.”
Suero moved toward him, ready to rip him apart, but Matias held up a hand. “Unlike his dead packmates, we’ll keep this one for interrogation.”
“You really think I’ll talk?”
The stranger glared defiantly.
Matias’s mouth twitched with a slight smirk as he turned away, calling out, “Miguel, Cesar, take our guest into custody. I’ll meet you guys back at Sin’s.”
Miguel grinned. “Are you going to come quietly, or should I hogtie you?”
The man scowled. “What happened to the side of your face? It looks like someone—”
Suero drove his fist with brutal force into the hyena’s jaw, a sickening crack echoing as a torrent of blood erupted outward from his nose. “You’re a dumb motherfucker for insulting the guy who’s dragging your sorry ass into custody!”
The hyena crumpled to the ground, eyes rolling back in unconscious defeat.
“Fantastic, now I have to lug him to the truck,”
Miguel snarled, shooting a glare at him. “I don’t need you defending me, Suero. You think I’m not used to people gawking and spewing crap about my face?”
“I hit the son of a bitch for trying to dart me!”
Suero shot back. “For putting my mate and his cousin in danger. So chill with your bullshit!”
Cesar intervened, lifting the stranger off the ground and slinging him over his shoulder. “Problem solved,”
he announced, then began to walk away.
“Sorry to interrupt all this emoting, but we have to get home.”
Jared gestured toward his car. “Do I need to grab some more tape from my trunk?”
Suero looked at him in disbelief. “That car is going to revoke your existence if you keep driving it. Your engine is a patchwork of insanity that will flatline you.”
“It just needs a lot of TLC,”
Jared shot back. “And I don’t appreciate your snatchy tone, mister. I’ve just survived a nightmare, so figure out how to get my car running or I’m going to throw a major snit on this back road!”
Kia quickly stepped between them, placing a hand on Suero’s chest to stop him from going after Jared. “He doesn’t do well under stress,”
Kia explained. “Please don’t be mad at him.”
“If he talks to me like that again, his tape won’t be the only thing stuffed in his trunk.”
Suero pivoted and walked a few feet away. “ Me va a volver loco. ?Cómo puede alguien tan pequeno tener una boca tan grande? He matado hombres por delitos menores. ”
You’re going to drive me crazy. How can someone so small have such a big mouth? I've killed men for lesser offenses.
“While you’re having a meltdown, can you seriously fix his car?”
Kia called out.
Suero whipped around, jabbing a finger at the car. “You are not riding in that. Have you seen what the engine looks like?”
“They can ride with me,”
Miguel volunteered in an irritated tone, clearly still pissed at Suero. “I can call for a tow.”
Kia’s eyes widened as he stared at Suero, desperation seeping into his voice. “I have to get home, now. My uncle is expecting me for dinner.”
The day had been a relentless rollercoaster of insanity. Suero already knew the wrath that awaited him from Matias. Not only had he waited two hours to escort Kia to the border, but Matias had also discovered him with an extra cheetah like Suero was running a feline adoption agency. “I highly doubt my alpha will call yours to grant me safe passage.”
Kia frowned. “Why would you need safe passage if I’m walking home?”
Swear to god, his mate was going to shave a decade off his life.
“Because hyenas just ambushed us,”
Suero replied, as if it should’ve been obvious. “No way in hell I’m letting you walk home.”
Was Kia out of his mind? They might’ve taken down the ones lying in wait for them, but there could be more. They’d had tranquilizer guns on them. Kia and Jared wouldn’t stand a chance.
“If you make that call, Xavier will know I was lying,”
Jared protested. “He’ll know we were with wolves and will want to know why.”
He turned to Kia. “Xavier is going to put us on lockdown for a damn year without a chance of parole.”
“I need to get our prisoner to the tavern. What’s it going to be, fellas? Do you two need a lift back to Blackthorn or not?”
Miguel asked.
“I can’t afford car repairs.”
Jared let his head flop back and gazed at the sky. “I can’t even afford a tow.”
“We can have Luca take a look at it,”
Miguel suggested to Suero. “He’s a damn good mechanic. He’ll even tow it at no cost.”
“Free?”
Jared snapped his head around, his eyes lighting up with a sudden spark of enthusiasm as he grinned broadly at Miguel. “Now you’re singing my tune.”
The tune playing in Jared’s head probably had a circus theme to it.
Miguel turned slightly, angling his body so the scarred side of his face was hidden from Jared’s view. “I’ll make the call. You two hop in the truck.”
A year ago Miguel had laid down his motorcycle, leaving one side of his body scarred by road rash. Suero didn’t think it looked too severe, but he wasn’t the one bearing them.
“With the hyena?”
Jared looked at the pickup Cesar had driven closer, the sun glinting off the polished surface.
“He’s in the truck bed.”
Miguel started walking. “Let’s get moving.”
Jared quickly followed, glancing around nervously as though an army of hyenas would charge from the woods.
Kia looked up at Suero. “I’m sorry I made such a mess of today. If I hadn’t shown up, none of this would’ve happened.”
“Jared’s car and those hyenas aren’t your fault, gatito . Hurry before Miguel leaves without you. I’ll follow closely behind.”
He needed to figure out how to help Kia get out of the mess with his uncle. If it was in Suero’s powers, he would’ve snuck Kia and Jared at least to the outskirts of their town. He wasn’t trying to get either man in trouble, but as of right now, his hands were tied.