Page 37 of Hunter

“Fine.” He blew out a resigned breath. “But you’re not going without me.”

Willa gave a sad smile, her heart tightening at his words. Always protective, always her Julian. “You’ll be in danger.”

“We’ll be in danger,” he replied.

“I know I fucked up. But these humans…when you see a child…”

“You’ve always had a big heart.”

“Hell will put a bigger bounty on our heads if we are together.”

“It’s been over a hundred years. Let em’ come at me.”

“The Fae. Some of them won’t like that I walked away.”

“You didn’t walk in and out. No, it sounds like that’ll be on the Alpha’s head if any of them have a problem with it. Besides, now that you’ve been in Hell, they’re not going to just let you go anyway. I don’t know what demons got hold of you, but they’ll want a taste. You’re like retribution for our entire species.”

“We could make a deal with a Fae. They could bargain on my behalf,” she suggested.

“It’s like dealing with the devil. No. You’ll owe them forever. We need an ally. Someone who has the ability to wield dark magick but hasn’t quite gone all bad.”

“How about a vampire?”

“We’d need an ancient, but I don’t know if we should do that. They can be just as dangerous as demons.”

“Hunter rescued someone in Hell. He’s here. He actually was there…outside with us just now.” Viktor. Willa inwardly cringed, immediately regretting her suggestion.

“What did you just say?” His eyes widened at her statement.

“It’s why Hunter went to Hell. He was there for Viktor.” Who drank my blood? Better to leave out that tidbit of information. “He’s friends with him.”

“I don’t like the idea of it. They can be dangerous.” The corners of his lips drew upward into a devious smile. “But I do know a powerful witch who owes me a favor. She can help us give something of value to the demon, something better than you. The only reason Hell wants us is because the Fae is pissed about something our ancestors did a thousand years ago. If we can appease them, we’ll be free to live as we want.”

“I’m not sure I would live any different.” Willa reflected on her solo travels, her kindness toward humans. “This world needs our help.”

“We are all born as we are. Humans must walk their own path. But if we do this…go to this witch, we can at least have a choice again.”

“I’ve got to go to Guatemala first. I need to erase any trace of what I’ve done with my blood. The plant alone, though…the research must continue. I have to make sure it falls into the right hands.”

“Where’s your research?”

“In the jungle.”

“What about these rogues? Do you remember anything else? Something they may have said?” he asked, changing the subject.

“I don’t know. The only person who knew about it in the village was Yoselin and she’s dead. But I know full well that a miraculous recovery would stir people to talk. The only other person who knew about the plant is a colleague of mine in New Orleans, but it wouldn’t make sense that she told anyone. Scientists make plant and animal discoveries all the time where there is potential to cure disease. I guess what I’m saying is that it’s nothing unusual. Nothing that would scream paranormal to a human. It’s not like we talked often. Obviously, I don’t have my phone here, so I haven’t been able to try to contact her. I’ve been in Hell for a month. I could ask Hunter if I can use his computer and log in to my email. Even if she was the one who outed me, it’s likely she’s dead. It’s not like the wolves or demons are going to leave her alone.”

“We’ll worry about her later. I agree. First, we’ve got to get rid of any evidence you still have that you used your blood. So, if it’s written down somewhere…”

“It is. You have to understand. I was doing research. I wasn’t stupid enough to leave the papers in my house though. I have them hidden.” Willa turned to him, knowing he wouldn’t accept the Alpha in her life. “I’ve promised he could go with me.”

“What are you thinking? If you’ve got some idea about you and the Alpha, you know we can’t mate,” Julian stated with no emotion in his voice.

Willa noted the sadness flickering in his eyes. He quickly recovered, the hint of his pain disappearing as if it had never existed. She knew all too well the familiar sense of loss. She’d long ago accepted her fate, but her entire world had shifted last night within the Alpha’s arms.

“Our lives have been fulfilling, yes? Whatever we have done has been our destiny.” She deliberately withheld sharing her suspicions about the Alpha. Mate.

“It’s been too long, Willa. I’ve missed you.”