22. Hunter
Hunter
Iplay with strands of Cherry’s hair as I stare at the TV. I’m not even sure what we’re watching, and my mind is somewhere else completely. Being reminded of what Cherry went through, and that one of the people responsible is still out there, plagues me.
I need Blaze dealt with. We all do.
Glancing over, I see Gage furiously typing away on his laptop. Hopefully, he finds something. Needing to get out of my head a little bit, I ask, “Any ideas, Gage?”
He looks up at me, his eyes wide. Then he glances at Cherry.
“What is it?” she asks, sitting up a little. She must sense something in him because he slowly turns back to his screen as he licks his lips.
“I think I found a way to defeat him.”
“Really? How?” I ask, leaning closer and resting my chin on Cherry’s shoulder.
“As you know, Maddox took one of Dr. Jay’s notebooks from the lab. I scanned the pages and converted them to text so I could search them more easily.”
Of course he did, I think with amusement.
“It talks about what he did to Blaze to turn him into—Well, whatever he is. Anyway, I’ve been researching everything about what he did, and I think… I can reverse it.”
We all just stare at him in stunned silence for a moment before Maddox finally speaks. “Really? You’ve never played with chemistry before, are you sure?”
Gage glances back at his laptop and nods with a little more confidence in himself. “Yes, I can do this.”
“You’re amazing!” Cherry says, leaning forward to throw her arms around him.
“Seriously, that’s amazing,” I tell him with a smile.
Cherry pulls back as Gage goes into some details that explain further, but we don’t understand. “I need a few supplies, but I think I can have it done within a couple of days. I might even be able to make enough that we can all keep it on hand.”
“We’re back,” Chase says through the bond right before the backdoor slides open. Chase and Bain walk in, completely naked, since the clothes they were wearing are currently lying in shreds around us. Chase winks at Cherry as they head down the hall, presumably to get dressed.
Gage starts to mumble to himself about different vessels for what he’s calling the B-Serum. When Chase and Bain rejoin us, now fully dressed, we fill them in.
“That’s amazing, bro,” Chase says as he grabs a couple bottles of water and starts to pass them out.
Someone's phone starts to ring, and we glance around trying to figure out who it is.
“It’s coming from there,” Cherry says, pointing to Chase’s shredded pants.
“Oh, that must be mine!” Chase says, grabbing his ripped jeans and fishing his phone out of his pocket. “Hello?” he answers. Then, immediately, his eyebrows raise in surprise as a look of worry covers his face. “Yeah, we’ll help. We’ll be right there.”
He presses the end button as I ask, “What is it?”
“Apparently, the animal sanctuary is on fire.”
Cherry gasps, “Oh no! Those poor animals.”
“Cherry, you stay here with Gage and Bain. The three of us will go help,” Maddox instructs.
She shakes her head, turning to face him as she argues, “I’m coming too! I want to help.”
“It’s too dangerous, sweetheart.”
“Not for me.” She points to her chest as she adds, “Phoenix, remember?” When Maddox just purses his lips, she adds, “I promise to never leave your side. Pleeeaase alpha?”
He groans a little before taking a deep breath and closing his eyes. When he opens them again he looks slightly more composed. “Fine, you don’t leave my side, not for anything, you understand?”
She nods her head quickly, then we move to leave.
It’s a little strange driving out of Starfall Haven, although we recently did it when going to rescue Cherry. I was getting used to our new home, and I liked that humans weren’t around. I felt more like I could be myself.
“Look at that smoke,” Gage says, leaning forward to point out the front windshield. Sure enough, above the canopy of trees is a large amount of smoke rising high into the sky.
“How are we going to help?” Cherry asks. “Don’t they need water, like from a firetruck?”
“There is water inside the sanctuary,” Chase tells her. “I think they wanted our help using buckets to try and douse it.”
We all stare at the smoke as worry fills me. “It might be too late for that.”
And as the sanctuary comes into sight, I realize I’m right. Thankfully, there are multiple firetrucks along the front of the building, hoses out as the firemen fight the flames.
“Over there,” Bain says, pointing to the side. As Maddox pulls over, I see our friends standing at the side, looking heartbroken.
Finn, Alaric, Philip, and Jon stand at the side, black smudges of ash covering them as they stare at the building in dismay.
I grab Cherry’s hand, making sure she stays close, as we climb out of the vehicle.
“Hey!” Chase yells, jogging up to them. “What happened? Are you guys okay?”
“It just happened so fast,” Jon says, shaking his head.
I glance around the parking lot, realizing who’s missing. “Where’s Dante?” I ask in worry, since he’s the only one I know who works here.
“We don’t know,” Finn says, narrowing his eyes as he stares at the flames. “We couldn’t find him or Zane.”
“Zane?” I ask.
“He was the security guard. Everyone else got out, but we couldn’t find them before the fire got out of control.”
“What about the animals?” Cherry asks, gripping my hand tightly.
Philip glances at her. “They’re okay, we got them all out. They are in the emergency vehicles over there.” He points to the far end of the parking lot, away from the fire and flames.
“Thank the Goddess,” Cherry says with a sigh.
I watch as the flames lick up the side of the building, seeming to resist the firefighter’s effort. “You think Zane and Dante could be inside there?” I ask with worry, but Finn surprises me by shaking his head.
“No. We searched it before the flames got too bad. They aren’t there.”
“But they are missing,” Alaric adds. “As is my cousin.”
“Casper?” Cherry asks in surprise, sounding dismayed.
Alaric glances at her and nods before turning back to the flames.
“Does he work here or something?” I ask.
“No, but I haven’t seen him much lately. He’s the one who called me to tell me about the fire.”
That surprises me. So Casper was here when the fire started, and now he’s missing, as are the other two. He must be connected somehow.
“How did the fire start?” Gage asks, but Philip is already shaking his head.
“We don’t know. As soon as we got here, we prioritized getting the animals out and searching for any people. But the staff who are still here had already called the fire department, so when they arrived, they forced us out here.”
“They must have left,” Finn says.
“I’m sure they had a good reason,” Cherry says, trying to be helpful, and I pull her into my side, wrapping my arm around her shoulder as she rests her head against me.
“I just wish I knew what it was,” Alaric says. “Casper… he’s not like us. He needs guidance. He’s a good guy, maybe the kindest person I know, but sometimes he doesn’t understand the ramifications of his words or actions.”
“Oh shit,” Chase says with raised eyebrows, before lowering his voice. “You think he might have started this fire?”
Alaric is silent for a minute before he finally speaks again. “If he did, he’d have a reason that would sound rational to him. I worry he’s gone into hiding.”
“It’ll be okay,” Finn says with a nod. “He can take care of himself. Besides, he might be with Zane and Dante.”
Alaric just presses his lips together in a tight line, like he doesn’t agree but doesn’t want to argue.
“Shouldn’t Cody be here? He’s the police chief, right?” Chase asks, glancing around the parking lot.
Finn sighs, shaking his head. “He hasn’t left his house ever since he took that Dr. Jahan back there.” That surprises me. Cody had never been to a facility before, and yet it seemed like his grudge was personal. I don’t want to think about what he’s been doing with him this whole time.
We stay with them for hours, until the fire is finally out. It looks like about twenty-five to thirty percent of the building was damaged beyond repair. I don’t envy the people who work here and have to face fixing this all up.
“Who runs this place?” Maddox asks.
“That’d be Clarke, he’s over there, the one with the blue dress shirt and rolled up sleeves,” Finn says, pointing to a man speaking with the firefighters. Maddox nods and gestures for Gage to follow him as they cross the parking lot to speak with him.
We watch as Maddox shakes his hand and speaks.
Whatever Maddox is telling him, Clarke looks surprised.
He runs his hands through his hair, turning to face the sanctuary before clasping Maddox’s hand and shaking it hard as he clasps him on the shoulder.
He shakes Gage’s hand, too, then takes a card Gage passes him.
After a few more words, the two of them head back over to us.
“What was that about?” Chase asks the moment they are close enough.
“We offered to pay for whatever their insurance doesn’t cover to get this place back up and running.”
“Seriously?” Finn asks, sounding surprised.
Maddox nods, glancing back at the burned building. “Yeah, this place is important. They do great work here. Plus, without it, we never would have found Starfall Haven.”
A piece of paper hits my leg and I pick it up, seeing something about a county fair and shoving it into my pocket.
I lift my gaze back to the building and shake my head. I didn’t expect moving to Starfall Haven to be so eventful. But glancing at our new friends, I have to admit it’s brought some pleasant surprises too.
Rubbing Cherry’s arm as I hold her tighter against my side, I think about everything that’s happened since we arrived. Besides our motorcycle picnic, we really haven’t had the chance to do much outside the home with Cherry.
My poor mate was literally caged for a decade and stuck in wolf form half that time.
I know we’ve been lying low, trying to deal with her enemies, but now it’s only Blaze out there, and although he definitely poses a real threat, he’s still weaker than us, even if he can resurrect.
And with Gage’s new B-Serum, maybe it’s finally time we start giving Cherry what she deserves.
A life filled with happiness and fun.
Slipping my hand into my pocket and grabbing the flyer I shoved in there, I smile, knowing exactly where to start.