Page 23 of Midnight Hunt (Wolves of Midnight #4)

22

VIOLET

“Nora’s going to kill me when she finds out I let you be here for this,” Kolton muttered, his gaze glued to the video monitor as the captive hunter slowly regained consciousness.

“No, she won’t. She knows how stubborn I am,” I replied. When Kolton softly snorted in agreement, I bumped his shoulder with mine. “Hey, I have a right to be here. This dude wants to kidnap me, and I want to know why. At least I didn’t insist on leading the interrogation.”

“Only because you know you couldn’t make him talk,” Griff said from my other side. I almost shoulder-bumped him too, then decided against it. Not because he was still healing, but because I’d woken up an hour ago still wrapped tightly in his arms and had never wanted to leave.

But we were safe now. The danger had passed for the time being, which meant that I needed to face reality again. The longer I didn’t, the harder this would be.

And so I simply replied, “You’re right. I would end up killing him the moment he could speak again.”

“Me too,” Griff said, glancing away from the monitor to look at me. It took all of my willpower not to meet his gaze, to share a moment of understanding with him, a moment he clearly wished to share with me.

Feeling like crap for intentionally avoiding him, I dug my nails into my palms, hard enough to break the skin.

It’s for the best, it’s for the best , I silently chanted, until he finally looked away.

Breathing a bit easier, I refocused on the video that showed us what was happening inside the cavernous underground room. Kolton had decided to interrogate the male at the bunker our father had acquired decades ago. The space was sometimes used to contain feral werewolves, allowing them a safe environment to calm down before they hurt anyone—or themselves.

Kolton himself had been held here not too long ago, and the shadows of that terrible time still clung to the place. So did the memory of my own time here a few months ago. I’d chosen to come here, though. Chosen to bear the pain of my heat alone by going somewhere no one would think to find me.

I could still hear the haunting echoes of my agonized screams. I’d writhed on the floor for hours until I’d finally passed out from exhaustion.

Knowing I’d probably have to endure that again in a few more months, dread shivered up my spine.

Griff looked at me again as if he knew where my thoughts had strayed, and my tension returned. I never should have told him about my time at the bunker. I doubted I would be able to slip away like last time now that he knew.

I silently cursed myself for my stupidity. Not just about that, but about the countless other stupid things I’d done this past week. The last twenty-four hours had been the worst, though.

Did everyone in my family know that Griff was my go-to for comfort? If they didn’t, they would soon enough. Even though I’d showered in the bunker’s communal bathroom and was now fully-clothed, I still smelled like sex. Like Griff .

Less than a day after being dumped, I’d fallen into bed with another male.

Not sure what that said about me, but it definitely wasn’t anything good.

A groan from inside the locked room saved me from further reflection, and all three of us drew closer to the video screen. Only Jagger was inside to interrogate the one-armed hunter, a decision we’d come to unanimously. Midnight Pack’s second in command had a way of drawing words out of people without uttering a single one himself. His eerie silence alone was torture enough sometimes, although I doubted the hunter would be so easily cowed.

Jagger had planted himself in a metal chair across from the hunter, deathly quiet and equally as still. Groaning again, the hunter lifted his head just enough to notice that his arm was missing. He bit out a curse and struggled against his bonds for a moment, then spotted Jagger and stiffened. Even as his eyes widened in fear, he managed to rasp, “Don’t bother. I won’t talk.”

Jagger didn’t say a word. The male cleared his throat and rotated his neck, clearly still in pain from the way Sable had treated him like a chew toy. Several minutes ticked by. The hunter coughed on occasion, his throat no doubt bone dry. Half an hour came and went, and he started to squirm under Jagger’s silent stare.

“Fifty bucks says he breaks in an hour,” Griff said under his breath, even though the walls were too thick for the hunter to hear him.

“One hundred says he breaks in the next ten minutes,” Kolton wagered back.

I scoffed at them both. “Two hundred says Jagger has to torture him for at least three hours.” Both males turned to me with incredulous looks, and I shrugged. “Jagger’s good, but these hunters aren’t betas.”

“Yeah, but they’re not hybrids either,” Griff pointed out. “If Jag lets Onyx take over, I bet the male wets himself and spews everything he knows without a finger being laid on him.”

“Onyx isn’t that scary,” I grumbled.

Griff chuckled. “Sounds like someone is jealous.”

“Hey, Sable is fierce . She’s terrified plenty of people.”

I felt her preen at that, obviously pleased by the compliment.

“Yeah, but do they wet themselves?”

Cheeky boy , Sable huffed.

Annoyed, I shoved Griff’s shoulder. He stumbled sideways with a laugh.

“Careful. I still have boo-boos.”

“ Boo-boos? ” I repeated, throwing him a flat look. “Are you forever going to talk like you’re five?”

“If it gets a rise out of you, yes.”

“A rise? Seriously, Griff. You’re such a child.”

“Ah c’mon. You love it when I tease you.”

I opened my mouth, but at the mention of the word love , all of my witty comebacks flew out the window. Trying and failing to regain my mojo, I huffed out a sigh and muttered, “Let’s just focus on the interrogation. Two hundred still says this’ll take hours.”

We lapsed into silence after that, but I could feel both males side-eyeing me. Great. They could sense that something was up with me. The days ahead were going to be painful, that was for sure.

“Water,” the hunter abruptly croaked, drawing our gazes back to the screen.

Jagger was silent for another few minutes, then finally said, “Tell me why you’re abducting females, and I’ll give you all the water you want.”

The hunter’s laugh quickly turned into a hacking cough. “You think I’ll break”—cough cough—“that easily?”

“I think you’ll break the easy way or the hard way. Which one it will be is up to you.”

“Ooh, now we’re gettin’ somewhere,” Griff said, rubbing his hands together.

“I could still win,” Kolton commented.

“Not a chance. Jag wants to play with him a little first.”

My brother grunted but didn’t argue. It was clear that Jagger was taking his time with the dirtbag.

Tired but not willing to miss a second of the interrogation, I hid a yawn by glancing up at Kolton and murmuring, “Thanks for finding us. We wouldn’t have survived much longer if you and Jagger hadn’t arrived when you did.”

He looked at me, then at Griff, saying, “We feared the worst when we learned of the plane crash. Thank you for keeping each other safe. I don’t know what I would have done if something had happened to either of you.”

At the vulnerable look in his eyes, I turned and wrapped my arms around him. He blew out a sigh and hugged me back, then reached around me to drag Griff into the embrace. Griff readily locked his arms around us both, sandwiching me tightly between their hard bodies. Any tension I’d been holding on to instantly drained from me.

Wedged between two of the strongest hybrid werewolves in existence, I couldn’t get much safer than this. And maybe that’s why I kept my mouth shut and shoved down my growing guilt, clinging to the comforting moment instead.

I would face reality tomorrow. But right now, I needed this. I needed one more moment to feel like the innocent little girl I used to be, surrounded by her boys.

Several more minutes passed by, and it became clear that the hunter wasn’t going to take the easy way. He was practically hacking up a lung but refused to accept Jagger’s deal. Without a word, Jagger rose from his chair and approached the bound male. The hunter stiffened all over, his eyes going wide again.

“What are—” Cough cough. “What are you doing?” he wheezed, craning his neck around as Jagger stopped behind his chair and began to untie his remaining arm.

“Setting your arm free so I can more easily remove it,” Jagger bluntly replied.

“Oh, snap ,” Griff exclaimed, choking out a laugh.

Yes, do it , Sable morbidly encouraged. Finish what I started .

“Wait,” the hunter said, his voice filling with terror as Jagger’s words sank in. “You’re seriously going to leave me armless? ”

Jagger ignored him, his movements calm and unhurried. Unfeeling .

“Wait, wait! ” the hunter cried, fruitlessly beginning to struggle.

“He’s breaking. He’s breaking ,” Griff whisper-yelled.

“I-I’ll tell you why we’re taking the females. Just don’t rip my arm off.”

Jagger paused, then resumed untying the arm.

“Hey! I said I would tell you!”

The binding fell away, and Jagger firmly gripped the arm, placing his other hand on the hunter’s shoulder to hold him steady. “Speak quickly, or the arm comes off,” was all he said, then gave the limb a sharp tug as if to test how strong it was. Or weak.

“Okay, okay!” the hunter shouted, the whites of his eyes clearly visible. “We need the females for breeding.”

My breath caught.

Jagger was silent for a lengthy beat, then jerked on the arm again, hard enough to make the hunter cry out. “Tell me more.”

“W-we’re outcasts. Packless rogue males. Too dominant for another pack alpha to accept us, so we formed our own pack. But we don’t have females.”

“So you’re stealing them?” Jagger growled, finally showing a shred of emotion.

“Yes. How else are we supposed to get them? The pack won’t grow and thrive without females.”

Jagger pulled his lip back in a silent snarl. “There’s more you’re not telling me. You’re targeting hybrid females specifically and going to great lengths to do so. Why?”

The hunter suddenly clamped his jaw shut. Jagger yanked on the arm again, this time with brutal force. The hunter’s mouth popped back open again as he released a bloodcurdling scream.

“ Tell me,” Jagger barked, his eyes flashing dangerously bright.

“I . . . I can’t.” Cough cough cough. “They’ll kill me!”

“Then give me names. Who’s your leader? How many of you are there? Where are the females being kept?”

“I . . .”

“Tell me!” Jagger thundered, then jerked on the arm so hard that it popped out of the socket.

The hunter screamed, and I reached up to rub at my own shoulder, phantom pain flaring in the joint. Griff noticed and moved closer to wrap an arm around me. When I felt him tremble with barely-suppressed anger, I leaned into him, accepting his comfort as well as giving my own.

“They’ll kill me, they’ll kill me,” the hunter continued to sob.

“Sounds like I no longer have use for you or your arm,” Jagger muttered. As he tightened his grip on the hunter’s arm, I braced myself, prepared to watch the limb get severed.

“No, wait. Wait! ” the hunter cried. “I-I can tell you a little more. We’re only taking unclaimed hybrid females, so your alpha female and the rest are safe. We only want the dark brunette one, your alpha’s sister. If you give her to us, we’ll leave Midnight Pack territory. We’ll—”

“Boss,” Jagger abruptly called. “I can’t do this anymore.”

“I’m going to kill him,” Griff seethed beside me, trembling almost violently now. His hold on me had tightened, just short of becoming painful. “I’ll tear his arm and legs off. Then his dick . Then I’ll tear off his head but not before cramming his puny cock down his throat .”

I nearly choked on my spit. I’d never heard Griff talk like this before, each word laced with pure hatred.

I should have eaten him , Sable growled, equally furious.

That’s disgusting , I told her. I don’t care how evil he is. We’re not carnivores .

Kolton pressed the speaker button and said in a deathly soft voice, “Knock him out, Jag.”

Faster than I could blink, Jagger punched the hunter, so hard that his head violently snapped to the side. As the hunter slumped forward unconscious, Jagger stormed toward the exit. On his way, he knocked aside the metal chair he’d vacated, and it soared through the air, crashing against the far wall with a loud bang .

Kolton moved to unlock the thick door, and when Jagger emerged from the room, his eyes went straight to me. He stared for a moment, then strode forward with purpose. As he approached, Griff’s hold on me tightened even more.

“Hand her over, Griff,” Jagger demanded.

A possessive growl rumbled from Griff, making me blink in surprise.

“I’m not taking her from you, idiot,” Jagger growled back. “I just want to hold her. I need to.”

Something about the words resonated with Griff, and with a begrudging sigh, he loosened his grip on me. The second he did, Jagger pulled me into his arms, hugging me so fiercely that I released a tiny squeak.

“Not a word of this to the others,” he gruffly said.

A small smile trembled on my lips. “Promise.”

He held me a moment longer, then abruptly let go. When he did, another pair of arms swooped in and took his place. Recognizing them as my brother’s, I squeezed my eyes shut and hugged him back.

“We won’t let them take you,” he said and pressed a kiss to my hair.

“I know,” I whispered, feeling tears sting my eyelids.

When he finally pulled back, Griff took me into his arms again. I didn’t complain, more than happy to soak up their attention. It kept me from freaking out over what the hunter had said.

They wanted to breed me. Breed me. What the actual hell?