Jordan

 

 

Jordan was sitting on the bed thinking about what had just happened downstairs. He was embarrassed by the way he acted. He was so new to everything, that he was projecting his emotions on everyone around him, especially Duncan. Maybe he was angry with everyone for holding things back from him. But he valued human life, to think that Bronx would have sacrificed his mate to free him. He couldn’t have asked his best friend to do that, not for him. But then again, maybe that was why Duncan could have asked Bronx to do it, he had no emotional attachment to Bronx’s mate. Jordan knew for certain that it was hard to ask his friend to hand over his mate. The door to their room opened and the twins burst in.

“Hey, guys,” he said, putting his depressing thoughts to the back of his mind.

“We are going to Grandma’s for the night,” Benjamin said.

“Yeah, so we have to pack our bags, can you help us?” Maddison asked him as she pulled his arm forcing him to get up.

“Grandma?” Jordan said, confused. “Duncan’s mom is here?”

“No, silly,” Benjamin said, shaking his head.

“Grandma Ayumi,” Maddison corrected Jordan. “Grandpa Laxus said we can sleep out in the backyard like you used to do when you were a kid,” she added.

“Oh,” was all he said. He’d forgotten his parents told them to call them Grandma and Grandpa

“Come on, Daddy.”

Jordan froze when Maddison called him that. Her tiny fingers slipped from his fingers, she and Benjamin continued walking out of the room, not realizing that he wasn’t following behind them. Daddy. His throat felt tight, and he was having a difficult time breathing. He had no idea where that came from. Did Duncan tell the kids to call me that now that we are mates? No, they still call him Uncle. Jordan sat back down on the bed, covering his face in his hands. I’m not going to cry, nope, I’m not. Am I overthinking this? Maybe, it was a Freudian slip? He tried to ignore the leaking from his eyes that fell into the palms of his hands. They want me as theirs. They’ve accepted me.

“Dad, where are you?” Benjamin’s voice rang out in the hall.

Jordan quickly wiped his wet cheeks to mask the fact that he was touched by the twins saying one simple word. He looked up just as Benjamin walked back into the room. His sweet little face smiling at him. His blue eyes shining with excitement and mischief. He was an innocent child, unbeknownst to the things happening around him. Their lives had changed, and they were handling things better than he was. Jordan knew for sure that he would do anything to protect Benjamin and Maddison, no matter what. Then it hit him. Gods, I’m so fucking stupid. Duncan was trying to do the same thing for me.

“Are you okay?”

He looked away from Benjamin and his eyes connected with Duncan’s, he had a very worried look on his face.

“Yeah.” His voice cracked, and he masked it with brushing invisible lint as he got up from the bed. He walked over to his lover, going to his toes and gave Duncan a chaste kiss. “I love you,” he whispered against Duncan’s lips. He looked up at Duncan and saw the shock in his eyes mixing with lust simmering below the surface. Jordan didn’t give Duncan a chance to respond, he grabbed little Benjamin’s hand. He looked down at the little tyke who was sniffing his Uncle. “What’s wrong?” he asked.

“I smell something weird and it’s coming from Uncle Duncan,” the child said with honest innocence.

Duncan shifted his stance the same time Jordan burst out with laughter.  Leave it to a child with a superb sense of smell to draw attention to his uncle’s discomfort. He looked at Benjamin, he had a very confused look on his face as to why they were laughing. “Come on,” Jordan told Benjamin once he was able to get his laughter under control. He kissed Duncan one more time before walking out of the room with Benjamin, to help him pack his bag for the night.

Later that night Jordan walked out of the bathroom, wrapping a towel around his waist. After seeing the twins and his parents off, he had excused himself from the others. He needed to get prepared to leave with everyone else. Duncan was still downstairs with Ryland, the three brothers, Bronx, and three of his coven members, along with the eight nyxians that had come back with him.

The town sheriff was also added to the “need to know” group, along with two of his deputies who would be keeping their eyes open for suspicious activities around the island. They were coming up with a plan to raid the hunters’ compound before they got the chance to clean up the evidence and leave. According to Hayato, one of the nyxians that had helped Jordan escape, the hunters would need hours to break down their equipment and hide all of their evidence. It took them months to set up properly.

Aoi, who Jordan finally learned was Laxus’s little brother, explained things better to Duncan and everyone else about what was really going on. He told them exactly how his evil-as-fuck grandfather was able to make the tainted drug. Aconite. It wasn’t harmful to Jordan and his people, hell, they could eat it if they choose, but once it was introduced to a lykosian’s or sanguine’s system, it instantly turned into poison, killing them. There was no antidote that could cure them. Aoi also explained how Bergstrand’s hatred for lykosians and other shifter sects pushed him to do despicable things. Jordan and the others found out that his birth father was not the first or last lykosian his grandfather tortured and it was by accident he found out exactly how potent and deadly aconite was to a lykosian.

It was Bergstrand’s idea to approach the hunters in aiding them to rid the world of the foul creatures. Aoi and the others believed Bergstrand started working with the hunters right after Laxus and Ayumi got away. He also tried to employ the help of the witches and elfkins who turned him down. He was angered by that, but even Bergstrand wouldn’t be foolish enough to go up against those two sects. Aoi told the group that he feared that Bergstrand had a secret weapon, something or someone he acquired a while back, but he’d kept it close to his chest. It was then they found out that the hunters and Bergstrand had been capturing members from sects and using them as test subjects to build their army of super soldiers, which also included his own people.

The doctors, working with the hunters, designed a drug with the blood of the various sects they captured and introduced it to the hunters system without completely changing their DNA. They would always remain human, but were given imaginable strength and other abilities such as perfect eyesight and hearing. Some of the hunters died, but their leader didn’t seem to care. The man even experimented on his sons. Aoi wasn’t sure, but he was certain that one of the leader’s sons was poisoned and the only reason he was still alive was because his mother begged to spare his life. While Aoi was speaking about the hunter that was poisoned, Jordan noticed the pensive expression on Bronx’s face.

Everyone understood the reason why the hunters hunted the sects. They were human and hated things that weren’t like them. No one understood why the hunters would willingly augment their DNA with the blood of the very people they were trying to eradicate. It still begged the question as to why Bergstrand hated shifters with an unmitigated passion. When Jordan asked Aoi and the rest of the nyxians, they couldn’t give him an answer.

People were dying thanks to Bergstrand, and yet, no one knew why. Anyone could speculate that it was because someone he loved died because of a shifter. True or not, Jordan couldn’t stop wondering what else was coming.  The bedroom door opened, pulling Jordan from his thoughts. Duncan walked in and closed the door, leaning his back against it. They were staring at each other.

“Hi,” he said to Duncan.

Jordan looked Duncan up and down, admiring the beauty that was his man. The towel loosened and fell from his body to the floor of its own accord. Duncan licked his lips and took a deep breath, scenting the air that was no doubt filled with lust and arousal. He stalked over to Jordan and grabbed him by the back of his neck, pulling his head back. Jordan gasped as Duncan bent his head and went right for the mating mark on his neck, he growled low and it almost sounded feral. It vibrated through Jordan, sending goose pimples all over his entire body. He nipped on the mark and Jordan closed his eyes and purred.

“Did you mean it?” Duncan asked, his lips caressing Jordan’s mating mark. He didn’t have to guess what Duncan was asking about. He knew it was about the three sweet words he’d whispered. He’d never told anyone those words before, not even Bronx. And yes, he most certainly meant them, but he was unable to answer. Duncan was driving him so fucking crazy he could not think straight.

Jordan pivoted his hips, seeking friction from his mate. He whimpered when his cock brushed against Duncan’s jean-clad legs.

“Answer me,” Duncan growled, applying a bit of pressure to his neck. It should hurt but it felt glorious to Jordan, and he wished the other man would do more. Jordan gripped the front of Duncan’s shirt, digging his fingers into his chest when the man sucked on his mating mark. His body visibly shivered.

Duncan backed him up to the wall, and he hissed when his hot skin touched the cold surface. Duncan sandwiched his leg between Jordan’s legs. He couldn’t help it, his body had a mind of its own and it wanted Duncan. He rotated his hips, grinding his cock on Duncan’s leg, riding him like an animal in heat.  

“Duncan,” he whined, grinding his hips faster.

Duncan reached down and grabbed his hips with both hands, stopping his movements. Jordan whimpered in frustration. Duncan raised his head but not before licking Jordan on his mark. “Look at me,” Duncan whispered. Slowly he opened his eyes and connected with blue eyes that were filled with so much love that it took Jordan’s breath away. “Did you mean it?” he asked again.

“Yes,” he finally answered. “I meant every word.” He circled his arms around Duncan’s neck. “Now shut up and fuck me, please.” Jordan knew they didn’t have time for it but he needed Duncan’s reassuring touch. He needed to reconnect their bond after what had happened earlier that day. He brought Duncan’s face down to his. He moaned when their lips touched. It felt like forever since he’d felt his man’s lips on his. He didn’t realize how much he enjoyed kissing until he was with Duncan. 

Jordan reached down and slipped his hands down the small of his back then to his butt, grabbing a handful of Duncan’s ass, pulling them closer together if that were even possible. Duncan groaned as he trailed kisses from his lips to his neck, and lower until he had a nipple between his teeth. He leaned his head back on the wall and closed his eyes. “Oh shit,” Jordan moaned. His body quivered, when his man tweaked and pinched his other nipple.

Duncan’s lips traveled lower leaving wet trails on Jordan’s chest. Soon he was on his knees in front of Jordan. “Oh sweet gods,” he moaned deeply when Duncan sucked his leaking cock into his mouth.

One of Jordan’s hands instinctively went to the back of his neck and the other on his shoulder, holding on for dear life. His knees felt weak and threatened to buckle because of the sweet pleasure he was experiencing. Duncan’s mouth was like hot lava. Duncan sucked his cock like an expert, paying close attention not to use his teeth.  He leaned back against the wall and widened his legs. Duncan used the opening to reach under and parted Jordan’s butt cheeks and pressed his finger against his hole.

“Fuck, Duncan…” He found it difficult to finish what he wanted to say when a finger entered him and brushed against his prostate. Jordan clenched his ass together, holding onto Duncan’s finger. Duncan moaned at the action, sending vibrations from his cock through his entire body. Jordan came in Duncan’s mouth before he had a chance to warn his mate. Jordan sagged against the wall, feeling as if he just had his life sucked out of him. Before he could say anything, Duncan released his cock from in between his lips, he slowly removed his finger, and stood to his feet. Grabbing Jordan by his legs, he lifted him up. His legs wrapped around Duncan’s waist. Duncan took quick short steps to the bed and threw Jordan down.

“Need to be in you.” Duncan undid the fastenings on his jeans, pushing them below his hips. Jordan could do nothing but nod. He would give Duncan anything he needed in that moment. Duncan kneeled between Jordan’s open legs, grabbing his hip with one hand and the other on his cock and entered Jordan, stealing his breath from him like it did every time Duncan was inside of him. Duncan pistoned his hips, fucking Jordan with zeal. Jordan couldn’t help but watch the pleasure on Duncan’s face.

“Fuck, you feel so good,” Duncan groaned. “Need you, so much.”

Jordan arched his back, wrapping his legs around Duncan’s hips, and dug his heels into his mate’s ass, pushing his cock deep inside of him. He grabbed his renewed cock and stroked it. Duncan growled and Jordan could see the points of his canines and knew his mate was close to coming. Duncan opened his eyes and stared down at him with lust-filled eyes. The blue of his eyes was so blown they seemed to cover the white of his eyes.

Jordan released his cock, reaching up he ripped the T-shirt Duncan had on down the center, revealing olive sweaty skin. He pulled his mate down on top of him, before rolling them over. He hissed when Duncan’s cock slipped out of him, but he was not deterred from what he wanted.  He kissed Duncan’s neck all the way down to his belly button.

Duncan’s fingers grabbed his hair, pulling him back up and attacked his lips with vigor. Jordan tasted his cum on his mate’s tongue and lips, and he moaned. He heard the pleasurable rumble coming from Duncan and the tight pressure of his hands on his head as they kissed. He nipped at Duncan’s bottom lip before he got on his knees with one hand on his mate’s chest for leverage. He reached behind himself, taking his lover’s hard cock with one hand, positioned it to his stretched hole, and slowly slid down on it while rotating his hips. Duncan grabbed onto his hips and pushed up as Jordan came down.

The sound of the lovemaking was music to Jordan’s ears. The coarseness of Duncan’s jeans rubbing against his legs added to the pleasure of his mate’s sharp nails digging into his hips. He was going to come again. He leaned forward, resting his forehead on Duncan’s chest, the pleasure was too much to bear any longer. He felt his second orgasm mounting from deep inside him and he knew he wasn’t going to hold back.

Jordan threw his head back and yelled, cum spurting from his cock all over Duncan’s chest. His mate was not far behind him. He fell limply on top of Duncan, breathing heavy from pleasurable exhaustion. Duncan peppered lazy kisses on his cheeks and forehead. He was aware that sooner or later he would need to get up, but Jordan didn’t have the strength to move and Duncan didn’t seem as if he were in a rush.

“You ruined my favorite shirt,” Duncan chuckled, wrapping his arms tightly around him.

Jordan sighed and patted Duncan’s chest as a yawn overtook him. “I’ll buy you a new one,” he hummed.

They were quiet lying in the same position. “Hey,” Duncan whispered.

“Hmm...” Jordan acknowledged without lifting his head. He was too tired and it would take too much energy to move even an inch.

“I love you,” he heard Duncan say.

“That’s good, we love each other. Now let’s get some sleep,” Jordan mumbled before dropping off to sleep.

Duncan chuckled and kissed Jordan’s forehead before gently rolling Jordan off him. He sat up and roughly scrubbed his face. He looked back over at Jordan’s sleeping form and a pleasant smile crossed his face. Making love to Jordan wasn’t his plan when he walked into the room, but his brain short circuited when he saw his mate naked and freshly showered. Beads of water droplets on his creamy skin, he just wanted to lick every inch of Jordan’s skin.

He got up from the bed, pulling up his jeans and shucking his ripped T-shirt, throwing in the direction of the trash. He walked into the bathroom and looked at himself in the mirror. He was shocked to see a smile on his face. He was happy, for the first time in a long time. After his sister’s death, Duncan wasn’t sure if he would ever feel this happy. He was shocked when Jordan had told him he loved him.

Duncan wasn’t sure what brought it on and he didn’t care. Just hearing the words set his soul on fire. Getting a wash rag, he warmed it up, walking back to the bedroom and gently cleaned Jordan up. He leaned in and kissed his lover. He needed a quick shower before he left. He was going to have to bribe his friends to secrecy. If Jordan found out that the guys were still in the house and heard them having sex, Duncan would be in so much trouble. He rushed through his shower and got dressed in all black.

He left a note for Jordan, letting him know that he had to take care of a few things and would be back when he could. Duncan hoped he would be back before Jordan woke up. Where he was going, he didn’t want his mate anywhere near it, even though he promised Jordan that he would be a part of what was to come. But Duncan wanted to protect his mate in any way possible.

He went downstairs, expecting to see everyone waiting for him. The only one still hanging around was Harrison. Duncan promised himself he was going to try and be nice to the blood sucker. Jordan and his parents considered the man a treasured family friend. “Where’s everyone?” Duncan asked.

“They are waiting outside, except the two nyxians that have decided to stay behind to protect their new prince.”

“Don’t let Jordan hear you call him that,” Duncan said jokingly. He was trying to like the man for Jordan’s sake, but years of not liking their kind were embedded in him. But it was time things change.

“Why?” Harrison said, shrugging his shoulder. “It’s what he is.”

“Well, first let him get used to all this shit before you give him a title,” Duncan told him. “Once others realize that he’s here, I’m sure there will be more nyxians knocking down our door for refuge.”

“I guess you would rather he stay home and play the little wife to the big bad Alpha and his two little pups.”

Duncan growled and grabbed Harrison by his collar. “What the fuck is your problem with me? I’m trying really hard to put our differences behind us, but you are making it very hard for me to do that.”

“Besides the fact that our kind hate each other,” Harrison said not backing down from Duncan or pulling himself away from his hold. “I hate you more because you have the one person I wished was my mate instead—”

“Of what?” Duncan whispered dangerously. “Me! Jordan is mine, get that through your fucking head right now!” he growled showing his canines. “But answer me this, if you hate your mate so much, why couldn’t you do it?” he asked, shaking Harrison. “Why didn’t you just turn him over to die or leave him to die the night you turned him?” The other man said nothing, he simply stared at Duncan. “I’ll tell you why.” He released him and pushed Harrison away from him. “Because fate and the gods rule our lives, no matter how much we want to deny it, and we can’t win against them. They are stronger than we are. You have no idea why the gods put him in your life—”

“Did you go willingly when you realized Jordan was your mate?” Harrison snapped, cutting off Duncan’s rant. “The last time I checked you liked women with large breasts. Don’t tell me you don’t miss having a woman in your arms.”

“No, I don’t! Since the day Jordan walked through that door, I haven’t been able to think straight. Did I fight my attraction for him? Yeah, I did.” Duncan pinched the bridge of his nose, hoping to calm his thoughts. “I even went on a fucking date and the entire night I felt as if I was cheating on my mate. Look, I don’t give a fuck what the hell you do with your private life. I hate that I asked you to choose between Jordan and your mate. But I also pity your mate, if you're standing here more worried about Jordan than the man the fates and gods gave you.” Duncan sneered. “It would do you some good to stop lusting after mine and figure out what the fuck you want. Now stop your fucking belly aching and let’s go.”

Duncan opened the front door, walking out of the house. Jerking the door open to one of the Suburbans parked out front and got in, slamming the door shut. “Let’s go,” Duncan commanded, he didn’t spare a glance at Ryland who was in the driver's seat.

“Um...are we going to wait for Harrison?” Ryland asked him.

Duncan grunted by way of answering, just as Harrison got in the back seat. He could see from the corner of his eyes as Ryland looked from him to Harrison in the back seat. The tension between the two men was thick; so thick that even cutting it with a sharp knife would do nothing. Seeing that neither man was going to say anything, Ryland shrugged his shoulders and started the truck. Duncan heard his Beta whisper something to the effect of “this should be a bowl of fun.” He would have chuckled if the situation were on the other foot. But no one would come between him and his mate, no matter how long they have known each other. Jordan was his and no one else's. 

Thirty minutes later they pulled up on the outskirts of town. They didn’t want to be too close to the hunters’ compound in case there were guards patrolling the area. The tall forest trees were covering the hunters’ compound. Aoi said the compound was being protected by nyxians, loyal only to the king. Duncan got out of the car and walked over to Aoi, who pulled out a large sword that was strapped to his back, hidden under his leather jacket.

Duncan cocked an eyebrow. “Planning on doing some major damage?”

Aoi looked at the sword in his hand. “I hate the fact I will be killing people I have lived and trained with. But it is something I must do to stop the king from wreaking havoc on the world. One day I would like to claim my mate and settle down in a world where we won’t have to worry if our children will be hated.”

Duncan nodded, he respected and liked the man since he’d met him. Considering they were family, since the man was Jordan's uncle. Other members of his pack, along with Harrison and a few members of his coven, joined them as well. Ryland pulled out a bag from the car and dropped it at his feet. Bending down he reached in and pulled out radios. “We will be using channel two, keep them open and no chatter—keep that for after we get rid of the fuckers,” Ryland said to everyone.

“Who died and left you in charge, dog?” Mikahel, a sanguine, asked, glaring at Ryland.

Ryland rolled his eyes. “Look,” he said, standing up. “I know this might be a bit late for it, but for now let’s call a truce. I’d rather have you watching my back than trying to put a knife in it. And I’m sure you all feel the same way.”

“I agree,” Jeremy, one of the sanguines, said and walked over to stand beside Ryland and put his hand on his shoulder, nodding his head. Others slowly nodded in agreement.

“Good,” Duncan said. “Now that we’ve got that all cleared up. Let’s split up in teams of three. Aoi and Harrison, you’re with me.” He didn’t wait around to see who got paired with who and started walking into the woods; he let them figure it out for themselves.

“Do you think that was a good idea?” Harrison asked.

“If what I think is coming our way does, they need to find a way to work together and if they see you and me do it, then maybe they will take the large chip off their shoulders.” He stopped and looked at Harrison. “I’m trusting you to get me back safely to my mate.” Duncan knew what he was doing, even if his head was telling him he was a fool to trust a blood sucker. Harrison nodded and started walking again. They moved slower the closer they got to the compound. He was able to see a few guards patrolling the area. He pulled and clicked the radio he had fastened on his clothes. “Okay, people, talk to me,” he instructed.

“We have four on the east side,” Ryland came back. “Two above and two below.”

“Charlie, what about you?” Duncan asked.

“We are clear on our side, but I would feel safer if we took the two top ones out just in case.”

“Sebastian, Parker, did you get that?” Duncan asked.

“On it,” they said together.

“Okay. Ryland, as soon as they take the top two out, your team moves in and takes out the ones on the bottom. Charlie, wait for us, we’ll meet you on your side.”

“Got it,” Charlie came back.

Duncan looked at the men beside him and nodded to Aoi to lead the way. “This way,” Aoi told them. They snuck over to the edge and saw Charlie and his group waiting for them.

“Now,” Duncan said in his radio. In less than a minute, Sebastian and Parker came back telling him the two on the top had been taken out. Followed by Ryland who told them the two on the bottom had also been taken out. “Move and kill any fucker you see. Parker and Sebastian, find the control room and everything you can about their super soldiers. I’m going after the king,” he told the group. No chatter came back. They moved in quietly, things seemed easy, but Duncan had no doubt that shit was about to hit the fan.

Jordan reached behind for Duncan’s hand to wrap it around him, to knock out the chill. When he came up empty, he sat up and looked at Duncan’s side of the bed and found it vacant. Creasing his brows together, he threw the covers back wondering where his mate could be. He stood and stretched, wincing a bit. His lower back reminding him of his earlier activity. A pleasant smile formed on his lips. Duncan really was amazing, and knew how to make him feel good each time they made love.

Age does have its advantage, especially in Duncan’s case, Jordan thought to himself as he walked over to his dresser and pulled out sleep pants and a T-shirt. He walked down the stairs and headed for Duncan’s office, expecting to see his lover at work. But his office was empty, he heard noises coming from the kitchen and went there. He was taken aback when two nyxian saw him and immediately went to their knees.

Oh shit! Why the hell are they doing that?

“Prince Jordan, how may we be of assistance to you?”

“First, you can get to your feet and never do that again. And second, have you seen Duncan?” Both men looked at each other before looking back at him. They were brothers, he could tell by their matching discolored eyes. He’d named them Thing One and Thing Two, because for the life of him, he couldn’t remember their names. “What?” Jordan asked when he saw the way they were staring at him. “What is it?”

“We thought you knew, Prince Jordan…”

“Okay, another thing, it’s just Jordan, not Prince or anything else, got it?” They nodded. “Now, finish what you were saying.”

“Well, P…” Jordan gave thing two a stern look, and he quickly remembered what he’d told them. “Jordan, your mate went to confront the king and the hunters. The rest went with him. We decided to stay behind and protect you.”

“He did what!?” Jordan yelled.

“We thought you knew; it was the reason he went to see you,” Thing One said.

Jordan was pissed, how could Duncan do that to him? The big oaf knew he wanted to be there when he confronted his grandfather. “How long ago did he leave?”

“Thirty minutes,” Thing Two answered quickly.

“Good, then we have time,” he said as he walked out of the kitchen.

“Time for what?” one of them asked. Jordan didn’t stop to answer. He ran up the stairs and burst into his bedroom, grabbing his cell phone. Jordan knew Blayze wouldn’t be with Duncan and the group. He was busy trying to find a way to counteract silver now that he knew exactly what was used. Blayze answered on the first ring.

“What’s up?”

“I need you to meet me at the house,” Jordan told him getting undressed and searching for a pair of jeans.

“For what? Are you alright? Is Duncan?” Blayze asked earnestly. “Did they get back already?”

“No, they are not back. And he won’t be alright when I get ahold of him, that’s for sure,” Jordan mumbled as he pulled the black long sleeve T-shirt over his head. “Listen, just meet me here in ten minutes, we have some ass to kick.” He hung up the phone before Blayze could ask any more questions. He ran back downstairs and bumped into Thing One and Two. “Okay, here’s the deal, when Blayze gets here we are going to find the hunters’ compound.” Thing One opened his mouth to speak but Jordan carried on. “Save whatever it is my mate told you to tell me. He knew I was going to be pissed.” Neither said a word. Blayze burst through the door and Jordan wondered how he made it there so quickly. He was looking at the two nyxians and Jordan very confused.

“Okay, will someone tell me what the hell is going on?” he demanded.

“Come on, let’s go. Blayze, can we take your car?” Jordan asked rather than answering his question.

“Um…I didn’t bring my car,” Blayze told him.

“Then how did you get here?”

“I ran,” Blayze answered. “But I still need to know why we’re going when Duncan specifically told me to be at the hospital in case he needs me.”

“I don’t care what he told you, he knew I wanted to help, but he left me here. Now we have no time to talk. We’ve wasted enough time as it is already,” he said, walking in the direction of the kitchen. “Come on, let’s go!” he yelled when he realized the others were not following him. He grabbed one of the keys off the rack and walked into the garage. Hitting the alarm, he found the car that it went to. He hopped in and looked in the rearview mirror and saw the three men standing there looking at him as if he’d lost his head. “Either you three get in the fucking car now or I’m going to run your asses over,” he growled, not even recognizing his own voice. They rushed to the car and got in before he had a chance to pull out.

“I still have no fucking clue what’s going on,” Blayze said while shaking his head. “And when in the hell did you get so fucking scary?” he asked.

Jordan didn’t answer him, he couldn’t. The only thing he could think about was getting to his mate. He had a very bad feeling in the pit of his stomach that wouldn’t go away.

Duncan ducked behind the wall, using it as a shield from the bullets coming his way. They had made it into the compound unnoticed, until they tripped a silent alarm when they walked further into the building. He looked at Aoi, who had the same look of surprise on his face. He lost contact with Parker and Sebastian, but he could sense they were fine. From his hiding spot, he looked around the corner to see Harrison effortlessly ripping off the head of a hunter. He’d lost sight of Ryland and Charlie and realized he needed more ammunition. He also had yet to see anyone that resembled Bergstrand, from the description Jordan and the others had given him. “Fuck!” Tossing his gun to the side, he stripped, shifting into his third form: a large, two-legged beast with a thick silver mane around his neck, showing his Alpha status. That way he would remain cognizant of everything that was going on around him. With a window-shattering howl, his pack knew it was time to shift.

 

He took a quick glance around the corner of the whole area, spotting every gods-damn fucking hunter that stood between him and their leader. Duncan recognized him, and things began to come together on who was trying to buy large shares of stock in his company a few weeks back. Pushing that aside, with a burst of lightning speed, he was on the first of many hunters in the room. With a low growl, he plunged his claws into the man’s throat, piercing through his esophagus and grasping the hunter’s spine. Duncan was pleased to see that the hunter looked terrified in the split second before his death. He made quick and gory deaths of a half-dozen other hunters, the smell of their fear, blood, and death mixed in the warehouse air.  

Before he could pounce on his next target, he felt a sting and then another shoot through his right shoulder. He spun quickly to see three men aiming their rifles at him. He growled as he lunged at them, gripping the first by his face and slamming the base of his skull onto a meat hook that hung just above them. The crunch of bone, tearing of flesh, and the sound of grown men screaming filled his ears. One of the men attempted to run, while the other fired several panicked shots in his direction. Duncan separated the man from his arms, as easily as one would pull paper from a notebook. He went after the next man, who continued to pull the trigger, emptying his rifle. He swung his powerful claws at him, slicing through his Kevlar vest, and poly-wool clothes and flesh, opening the man’s torso enough for his intestines to spill to the floor before the life left his eyes.

Duncan roared when he felt a sharp stab in his upper right back, in the same spot he was shot, sending him to his knees in pain.  He struggled to his feet, breathing heavy, as his opponent swung the blade at him again. Duncan grabbed the blade as it sliced toward him. With his other hand, he swiped his claws at the hunter, just making contact with his flesh. The hunter smiled, taunting Duncan. It angered him more, and he made a second attempt, that time plunging a claw into the man’s eye and batting the sword away with his other hand. The man screamed, but his injury did not deter him. That hunter was not like the others, his strength rivaled Duncan’s. He was taking each hit just as much as he was giving Duncan his own. Duncan was losing strength, the bullets and the sword had been made of silver. Duncan swatted at the hunter who rolled and grabbed his sword.

Fucking hell, I’m going to fucking die.

Just as he’d thought that, there was a loud crash. Duncan thought he was seeing things, just as a blur swooped into the compound crashing into the hunter he was fighting and flinging him across the room. The hunter was back up before Duncan could figure out what was going on. But it didn’t slow down the new person the hunter was fighting with. Duncan blinked a few times as he shifted back to his human form, and that was when he noticed the white hair of the man fighting with the hard-to-fucking-kill hunter.

What the fuck is Jordan doing here?

Jordan and Blayze arrived at the hunters’ compound that Thing One and Thing Two directed them to. It looked like an old meat packing warehouse. Figures hunters would be so damn predictable.  

“Are you sure about this?” Blayze asked.

“Hell no,” Jordan answered.

“Fuck, Duncan is going to fucking kill me once he sees that you’re here,” Blayze mumbled to him.

“We’ll worry about that later,” Jordan assured him. Blayze didn’t look convinced, but Jordan could worry about that later. “Do you hear that?”

“Of course, I can fucking hear that,” Blayze groused.

“Then what the hell are we standing out here arguing about, let’s go,” he said as they took off towards the warehouse. Jordan kept his eyes open for anyone that might be outside trying to stop them, but there wasn’t anyone.  Thing One and Two got in front of him somehow and he was surprised to see swords in their hands. He had no idea how they kept them hidden, the clothing they were wearing didn’t leave room for the long swords they were carrying. They snuck inside the building, following the noise of the fighting. Jordan had no earthly idea what he was going to do. He’d never been in a fight in his life. The closer they got, the louder the noise was. Adrenaline was pumping through his veins. He could hear the fast thumping of his heartbeat in his ears.

They made it to where everything was happening and stood behind the glass wall, peeking inside, gauging who was winning and if he could spot Duncan. There in the warehouse was an unimaginable scene, the bodies of the hunters were everywhere. Some were crushed, some missing body parts, others a combination of the two. It was the most gruesome thing he had ever seen. Jordan saw Ryland, Aoi, and Bronx each holding their own against whoever they were fighting against. He did not see his grandfather in all the chaos.   In the middle of the chaos, there stood a massive, black beast on two legs that he’d never seen before. The thing looked as if it could literally swat him as if he were an annoying bug. He shivered hoping never to come across that thing ever in his life. He was searching for Duncan while his eyes kept going back to the large brooding black beast in the center of the room.

The beast was fighting with a man smaller than him, but seemed to be holding his own against the animal who was also bleeding. He was mesmerized by the whole thing. When the beast swatted the man, who rolled on the floor, grabbing a sword and went to swing at the beast who’d opened his eyes, Jordan saw the flash of cobalt blue eyes and knew that was his mate. Without thinking he ran, crashing into the room, not caring of any danger to himself. The only thought on his mind was saving his mate from having his head chopped off.

On instinct he raised his hand in the air and waved it as a gust of air came into the room, throwing the hunter back from Duncan. That worked out well, he did the same movement, sending a few other people back. The first man got back up to his feet and charged at Jordan. He blocked the attack then grabbed him in a bear hug, squeezing him and waiting for the crack, breaking his spine and dropping him to the floor. He had no fucking idea what he was doing, adrenaline was coursing through his veins and he felt stronger than he’d ever felt before.  He backed away and turned around, seeing Duncan on the floor naked and lying still on his back. He ran over to him and kneeled at his side. Gods, please don’t let him be dead.

 “Duncan, talk to me,” Jordan said, hovering over his mate.

Duncan opened his eyes and smiled, then furrowed his brow. “What are you doing here?”

“We’ll talk about that later,” Jordan answered, seeing a pool of blood surrounding Duncan.

“No…” Duncan started before he passed out.

“Duncan, come on, baby, please open your eyes. Don’t do this to me, not now. Please!” Jordan screamed. He looked around for Blayze but he couldn’t see him through his tears. He couldn’t lose Duncan, not when he’d just found him. “Somebody, please help me!” he yelled then looked back down at his mate, seeing more blood pouring out of his mouth. He raised his head again, wiping away the tears from his eyes as he was about to scream when someone blocked his view.

“Prince Jordan, I need you to get out of the way so that I can help him.”

Jordan had no idea who the person was that spoke to him. He looked nyxian, and he didn’t know if he could trust the man at all. He growled, ready to attack thinking that the man was going to hurt his mate further.

“My Prince, I mean you, nor your mate, no harm,” the man said in fear. “I’m a doctor and I was there the night you were born, My Prince, please, let me help him,” he said hurriedly

That stopped Jordan from attacking the man. He looked down at Duncan, sweat coated his skin and he was breathing heavily. “You can help him?”

“Yes, we need to get the bullets out of his back quickly or it will be too late to save him,” the man explained.

Jordan moved back. “Help him, but I will be watching you, make one false move and I will not hesitate to kill you.”

The man nodded and rolled Duncan over.  “We can’t move him, so I will have to take care of him here,” the doctor told him.

Jordan winced at the injuries on his mate’s back. Blood was pouring out and Jordan prayed that he wouldn’t die from bloodloss. He wasn’t going to leave Duncan alone; the doctor would have to take care of Duncan right there in the middle of the heavy fighting. He ran his hands through his hair, worrying his bottom lip when he watched the doctor stick a medical tool into Duncan’s chest and arms, causing him to scream out in pain. He pulled out three bullets from one hole before moving on to the next, pulling out four more. Jordan’s stomach turned thinking that his mate was holding up against one of those super soldiers in such a state. The doctor reached into his pocket and pulled out a small bottle and handed it to Jordan.

“Make sure he drinks that,” he ordered.

The liquid was clear, and he wondered what it was. “What is it?” Jordan asked.

“It’s aconitum, it will counteract the toxins of the silver and make him heal quicker. But he will have to shift to speed up his healing.”

Jordan nodded and uncorked the bottle, he put it to Duncan’s lips, pouring the liquid slowly into his mouth and massaging his throat, forcing him to swallow. He sighed in utter relief when the doctor told him that the holes in Duncan’s back were starting to close up. He couldn’t lose the man he loved, not after they just found each other. The sound of metal clanging against each other, and animal growls brought him back to why they were there. He looked away from Duncan and scanned the room. He spotted Bronx, or what resembled his best friend, his face looked nothing like the handsome man he’d known for years. Anger written all over his face, blood running down his chin, his canines bared with one of his hands wrapped around the neck of the man he was fighting with.

Jordan looked away from Bronx and around the room just in time to see Ryland who was still in his human form fall to the floor with a gash in his chest. If he hadn’t been watching he wouldn’t have believed it. Blayze screamed in horror, seeing Ryland hurt before he shifted into a dragon and breathed fire at the hunter that had hurt Ryland. Jordan was taken aback as was everyone else, who started to run out of the room. Blayze’s form took up almost half of the room. Blayze let out a loud roar, and the sound was deafening, Jordan had to cover his ears to block out the noise. He kept his eyes on his friend who picked up Ryland’s lifeless body, as he flapped his powerful wings and flew out of the warehouse.

After watching Blayze leave, Jordan put his focus back to Duncan, who had shifted in the midst of everything that was going on with Blayze. Bright blue eyes were staring back at him. He smiled, leaning down and burying his face in Duncan’s soft black fur. Duncan whined and Jordan smiled, his mate was going to be fine. Jordan’s head snapped up quickly remembering the other thing that brought him back to the warehouse in the first place. His grandfather. He wanted to confront the man and find out why he was causing all of the chaos in the first place, but the man was nowhere in sight. He looked around the room, spotting Sebastian, Charlie, and Parker. They were rounding up a few of the hunters that hadn’t died or run when Blayze shifted into a big-ass dragon. There were also a few nyxians that were captured as well. Jordan got up and walked over to one of the captured nyxians and grabbed him by the collar of his shirt.

“Where is he?”

The man knew exactly who Jordan was talking about, he didn’t miss the smirk on the man’s lips. “He’s long gone, and you won’t be able to find him,” he said right before he spat in Jordan’s face.

Jordan wiped his face off before elbowing the man in his chin, sending his head back. He released him and smiled. “Oops, my bad.” The man looked at Jordan as if he’d lost his mind and maybe he had, with the way his life changed in the course of a couple of months. He looked at the man with the bloody nose and sneered at him, feeling no sympathy. He walked back over to Duncan, who had shifted back into human and was sitting in the middle of the room looking around. He looked exhausted. Jogging over to his mate, he kneeled in front of him.

“How are you feeling?”

“Like someone decided to use my body as a fucking pin cushion.” Duncan snorted.

“Good. As long as you’re breathing then I’m good.”

“I need my clothes.” Duncan pointed behind him. “They’re back there somewhere.”

Jordan looked in the direction he pointed in and got up and jogged over to the column, seeing the black clothing thrown all over the place. He picked them up and brought them back over to Duncan, handing them to him. Jordan then helped him put them on, even though Duncan’s injuries were healed, Jordan knew he was still in pain.

“Where’s Ryland, I need an update on what’s going on.” Jordan winced and Duncan furrowed his brow, looking at Jordan. “What?”

“Do you want the good news or the bad news?”

“Just fucking tell me,” he sighed.

“Well, see there was this dragon and fire and then they were gone,” Jordan tried to explain, still not believing it himself.

“Wait! Did you say dragon?”

“Yup, I said dragon. Come, let’s get you home and I will explain everything to you. We can let Sebastian and the rest clean up here.”

“Okay,” Duncan said, holding out his hand, still looking at Jordan as if he’d lost his mind.

As they were walking to the door, Duncan leaned against him for support just as Bronx jogged over to them. Jordan felt guilty because throughout the entire thing, he didn’t think about his best friend, not even once. His focus was on Duncan and making sure that he survived. He hoped his guilt didn’t show on his face.

“Hey,” Duncan breathed. “What’s the status?”

“First, you could have told me you had a fucking draconem in your damn pack!” Bronx seethed.

“What the bloody fuck are you talking about?” Duncan shot back and winced, holding his chest.

Bronx stared at him as if he’d lost his mind. “Are you telling me you didn’t know that your fucking doctor is a draconem?”

“Wait, did you just say that Blayze is a dra…whatever you just called him?”

Bronx ran his blood-soaked hands through his hair. “How the hell didn’t you know anything like that, you can’t miss their scent!”

“No, I didn’t know. He told me he was a hybrid; he must have found a way to hide his scent. But what do I care if he’s a dragon or not? Apparently, you didn’t notice his scent either when you met him,” he snapped. “And he’s pack, and that’s all that fucking matters to me. Just tell me what else I need to know.”

Bronx backed down and nodded his head. “Well, we took some hits, I lost two of my best fighters. We recovered some data on the super soldiers, except for the ones we took out. The nyxian king got away along with the Blackburn leader. Sometime during the entire thing, the king opened a portal and stepped through it. Fuck, I didn’t even know they could do that shit,” Bronx told them.

“Wait,” Jordan said, “he opened a portal?”

“Yeah.”

“I wonder if my mom can do that, we would be able to track him.”

“We can ask her, but it’ll have to be later. I can’t do anything until I’m fully healed,” Duncan wheezed.

“Okay,” Jordan agreed.

They were getting ready to leave when Duncan stopped them and turned to Bronx. “Hey, man, thanks,” he said, holding out his hand.

“No problem.” Bronx took his extended hand and shook it. “But this doesn’t make us friends.” Bronx turned to leave then stopped. “And thanks for earlier.”

Jordan looked from Bronx to Duncan, trying to figure out what his best friend was talking about. It seemed they’d come to some agreement, and that was all good with him, but Jordan still wanted to know what they were talking about.

Duncan chuckled. “Anything you say, man. Come by the house in a couple of days and we will come up with a plan of action.”

Bronx nodded and turned away.

Jordan looked up at his mate. “Hey,” he said, getting Duncan’s attention. “I love you, tonight I almost lost you. Don’t ever scare me like that again.”

Duncan raised a hand touching Jordan’s cheek. “I’m not going anywhere, baby. For a minute, I was scared as well. But I knew I couldn’t leave you. I love you, too.” He leaned forward and their lips connected in the sweetest kiss. His man was alive, that was all Jordan cared about. If the world crumbled, as long as Duncan was by his side, he didn’t care about anything else.