V for Vindictive (Hunter V #2)

1. Wingman

Chapter 1

Wingman

T wo weeks had gone by, and I’d finally settled into my new routine with the pack and Sloan. Mainly, hanging out in the cave day in and day out and prepping for my imminent future: a clash with a certain Dark Fae.

Sloan somehow procured materials for me to learn all there was to know about creatures frequenting this plane— still a difficult pill to swallow —and he spent a good portion of each day training me for fights. It was the continuation of what we started in Austria, except now I had a pack of Shifters as backseat fighters.

Lucky me.

Nigel and Topher were the worst, always correcting my stance and telling me where I went wrong. You know, because Sloan kicked my ass every fucking time we trained, and it was really starting to piss me off. But the parroting Shifter duo were the most annoying, particularly because I rarely saw that patronizing side of Nigel. Not even when we were partners had the dude been this obnoxious. Until Phillip, Nigel never talked down to me or went out of his way to correct something I did.

Mansplaining took on a whole new form—werewolfsplaining.

Before hell unleashed on my life, the Shifter was considerate, gentle, and never condescending. But I guess those days were long gone now. The mask had come off. The facade melted away, and this was the new Nigel.

I mean, why not? He wasn’t trying to win my affection anymore. Maybe this was Nigel’s real personality.

Then again, back when we fought together, I hadn’t been worried about a Dark Fae with the power to attack me with magic either. And in all fairness, most of Nigel and Topher’s criticisms were valid.

I’d learned that Nigel was much older than he looked. Much, much older. Like fifty years older. Turns out, Grams altered some of the memories of my childhood and school life to fit the story I was told. So, I’d never truly know if the life I lived up to this point was a total fabrication, or pockets of real mixed in with lies. Not unless one day I got the chance to talk to Grams again.

It was another betrayal that sat in my throat every time I thought about her. It was the other shoe dropping to realize my life was just a stream of carefully crafted lies, but I was dealing. Not that I had much choice but to get over it and move on.

In a surprising turn of events, vampires and Shifters were from the same realm and natural-born enemies, much like the stories told. That, however, didn’t stop them from getting down and dirty with each other it seemed.

A tidbit I was unfortunate enough to stumble across when Claude reminisced about some of his past lovers—two men and a woman. All vampires and all who made it their personal crusade to kill him someday.

Talk about bad exes .

Honestly, Claude was a real basket-case. But for some reason, people still found him unbelievably alluring. In an odd, sort of deranged kind of way, it made sense. Not that I was one of them.

Thankfully, vampires couldn’t procreate the same way Shifters could, so hybrids weren’t a thing until the Organization went and played around with their genetics. Now we weren’t terribly sure what sort of beasts they’d created. With what might possibly reside in my blood, I wouldn’t be surprised if some werewolf-vampire Frankenstein monster was out there somewhere.

So, I continued to learn whatever I could from the materials Sloan gathered and from the stories the pack told. I asked questions. I pried into their pasts, because any distraction I could manage after a shitty few months was wholeheartedly welcomed.

Unfortunately, it didn’t ease the pain or worry I carried in my heart about the man I’d left behind. While Sloan did a good job of keeping me distracted by conversation, and I was given plenty of time to get to know every person in Nigel’s pack, nothing could ever truly keep my thoughts away from the Austrian who neither Sloan nor I had heard from since we fled Austria.

And it was far from the only thing I worried about.

Sloan had been a distraction in plenty of other ways. His sexual prowess couldn’t be denied, and it made my mouth water when I thought about all the things we still hadn’t done. His kiss inspired fantasies of what his mouth could do to other parts of my body. What would I discover about the Brit if he just touched me a little bit? Would the pleasure compare? Would I lose myself in his touch the same way I lost myself in Phil’s?

I’m the worst .

It wasn’t a question anymore if I was sex-addicted. I’d come to terms with my insatiable appetite in the bedroom, but I couldn’t quite accept how quickly I moved from one man to the next. I was a Hunter, so relationships were complicated right from the start. But to think I was capable of wanting two men at once was not something even I knew about myself.

It begged the question: was I really this heartless?

Worse, Nigel hadn’t surrendered his sultry attention either; made clear after the first day of our stay. He may not be pushing like before, but it was still there. He definitely hadn’t given up wanting more between us. So now I was caught between a weird shuffle of three men—one dude I wasn’t even sure was still alive—and it was a nightmare of my own making. I didn’t have anyone else to blame.

Fuck my life.

Both Sloan and Nigel continued to steal glances my direction, and it didn’t help that sex was all I thought about these days. I hadn’t felt the warmth of someone’s body in a way that was pleasurable since the night Sloan and I kissed.

The night I betrayed Phillip.

I closed my eyes and swallowed around the knot of shame in my throat. Sat in a room full of people, all I wanted to do was feel Sloan’s lips on mine again, and I couldn’t pretend I didn’t anymore. I couldn’t ignore the dark, carnal desires anymore. Now that I had a taste of pleasure, I yearned for it in weak moments. Even when I shouldn’t. Even when I had a world of guilt weighing down on my shoulders.

But I wasn’t really at liberty to flee the building sexual tension. Not when it was evident anyone with an agenda against the Organization—or really anyone supernatural—planned to find and use me to do their evil bidding. It wasn’t the sort of popularity a teen girl dreamt about, but I didn’t get much of a choice in the matter.

Whether or not it was uttered out loud, it was clearly an unwritten rule that I shouldn’t go anywhere. Sloan didn’t give me permission to leave the cave, and everyone did their part to keep the area around it well guarded in case I had a sudden urge to flee. I wouldn’t, but I didn’t fault them for being careful.

Still, I couldn’t hide forever. The Organization would call on us again soon, and Sloan never explained how he’d kept them at bay for a full two weeks without a detailed report. Or how he’d explained Phillip’s disappearance.

My throat burned, the guilt resurfacing with the mere thought of my previous partner.

“Okay,” Tiff finally said, huffing and slapping her yoga-pant-clad thighs. “That’s it!”

The rest of the room shifted their eyes over to the she-wolf as she stood up, dragging me with her. She huffed again loudly and jerked her eyes over to Sloan, who was perched on a chair in the corner with a laptop.

Not totally off the grid.

“She needs to get out of this damn cave. I don’t care what you say. V is a powerful, formidable lady and she deserves to breathe fresh air!”

Sloan’s lips tilted alongside mine, and the rest of the group mirrored similar looks. “Is that right?”

Tiff lost a little bit of her gusto in favor of swooning, and I couldn’t help but giggle. When she heard it, she perked up and swung her arm around my shoulders, catching my cheeks with one hand. “Look at this sweet face. She’s had enough of this dour, sour, and yucky dark cave. She needs sunlight. Fresh air. The strong scent of pine. The freedom of the forest!”

After two weeks, I knew better than to interrupt this woman. No sense in trying to stop the runaway train that was Tiff. Once Tiff made her mind up, there wasn’t a single person who could derail her efforts, and I truly admired that about her. It was a quality I often lacked when it came to Phillip because his voice was always the most commanding in the room.

Phillip.

“Look at this sad face,” Tiff said, emphasizing her point by squeezing my cheeks, and I could practically hear Sloan’s amusement. “Risk a little. Take her out.”

Nigel stood up, but he wasn’t given a chance to speak.

Sloan quickly spoke over him, already on his feet. “You’re right.”

My mouth dropped open. I hadn’t expected Sloan to give in, and it showed on my face. “She is?”

“I am?” Tiff parroted, just as astonished as I was.

Go figure she said all that while not expecting in a hundred years for Sloan to give in. It made me smile against my better judgment to think she’d spoken so passionately for me without any hope it would work out.

The rest of the group managed to keep straight faces, and it was a serious wonder how they could with Tiff’s hilarious antics. The chick was comedy gold and full of energy. And I liked her more and more every time she talked.

Sloan brushed back his hair and swept his gaze over to Nigel before taking calculated steps towards us. “I was just thinking the same, to be frank. It won’t be long before we need to move locations, and I agree you need a proper day out.”

“I do?” My eyes dropped to Sloan’s mouth the second his tongue swept across his bottom lip. “Today?”

Nigel grunted and crossed his toned arms. Sadly, Nigel was still delicious to look at, and I didn’t hide my desire very well when his muscular body presented itself with glorious clarity through his clothes. I couldn’t even pretend for a second I wasn’t thirsty as fuck.

“Two weeks is hardly enough time to sink under the radar. And what do you mean move locations? That’s news to me,” Nigel demanded in his pissed-the-fuck-off baritone.

Sloan didn’t look over. His gaze stayed with mine the entire time he addressed Nigel. “We’ll need to resume our assignments. The Organization won’t be appeased with any more excuses. Our service is needed in Sacramento, and it will take five hours to drive from here. We’ll be gone for a few days. Maybe a week. All depends on how quick we complete our assignment.”

“But Phil…”

Sloan’s smile rejected me the second it appeared. “I wouldn’t worry about Phillip. He’s clever, and if he hasn’t shown up, he has his reasons.”

“So he’s alive?” Nigel asked, voicing my own internal question.

The Brit sighed loudly, panning our group. “It’d take an army to get rid of that man, so yes, he’s alive.”

Relief hit like a cool breeze on a hellish day. “He finally made contact?” I asked, further prying and demanding an answer with a pointed stare at the other Hunter.

Sloan’s smile broadened. “ He did.”

“And he’s okay?”

One nod from Sloan was enough. He didn’t elaborate, which meant that it was likely Phillip had been injured to some degree. But he was alive. He’d gotten away. That was enough.

“We’re going back to the Organization?”

The Brit’s smile dropped, forming a thin line. “We can’t hide forever. Eros won’t come looking for you after what occurred in Austria. Not at least until the dogs have been called off, so to speak. The Organization is aware he’s been targeting you, and now he’ll be hard-pressed to fly under the radar anytime soon.”

Mia tossed her dark hair back over toned shoulders, her demeanor shifting from casual to alert. Even Claude wasn’t smiling anymore. In his usual weird attire—a shirt basically in tatters and a time-worn pair of denims—the wolf sat with one leg resting on the other and his arms bowed behind his head, silently regarding my partner. Topher had set his book down, appearing much too big for the chair he presently sat on. His eyes moved like silver bullets to where Sloan was, giving the other Hunter his full attention.

And of course, the most attentive was Nigel.

My once-close friend rocked his usual clean and chic look. His casual clothes were always freshly pressed, and I couldn’t help but admire how strong he looked in everything he wore. I might still harbor my fair share of resentment towards Nigel, but the dude would always be gorgeous to me.

After giving the room my own panning glance, I addressed Sloan, “So…the Organization knows?”

The other Hunter’s gaze swept across the room, and the room’s eyes were quickly on him. “They do. It doesn’t appear they were aware he was back, even after Phillip reported the first attack.” The gorgeous Hunter’s jaw worked slowly. “Our hunch about a high-level player seems to be the case. It was likely buried the first time.” The room quieted. “Phillip made sure this one wasn’t.” The violence in Sloan’s stare put everyone in the room on edge.

Everyone but Tiff, that is.

“Yeah. Okay. We’ve gone off topic. Would you please take V out and let her live for a day? Also, can I come with?” Tiff demanded, easing the tension immediately.

Taking another step, Sloan offered me a curious look. “Can I possibly ask for it to be alone?”

Tiff’s mouth clamped shut and Nigel visibly tensed, neither one sure how best to respond. The rest of the group was silent, or didn’t care, because no one else seemed to respond to the back and forth the way the other two Shifters had.

“A date?!” Tiff cried out, tugging me closer. “ Do it ,” she whispered even though we both knew Sloan could hear it. “Do it for those of us who can’t, lady. He’s so damn hot. I’d kill to be you.”

Tiff was a persistent as hell wingman.

Nigel cleared his throat. “I don’t think—”

“V?” Sloan interrupted. “Would you honor me by taking a stroll with me this evening?”

Tiff squealed in my ear, and it nearly drowned out the sound of Nigel’s teeth grinding. “He’s a literal dreamboat, V. Do it. ”

Oddly, this conversation made me miss Kate. She’d be doing and saying the exact same things to me. She’d encourage me to live a little. She’d say I’d never get an opportunity like it again. “Embrace that hussy side, giiiirl,” she’d say.

I flicked my gaze over to Nigel, then thought about the man I’d left behind who I hadn’t even been aware was alive until a moment ago. But then I remembered how close I’d come to dying. How close I’d come to losing Sloan. How I still didn’t know what caused that time stall. How every day could potentially be my last.

Lips lifting, I offered Sloan a sneaky smile. “I thought you’d never ask.”