The Breed Casstiel's Vow (33 page)

           
“Slowly cut ties? What kind of a piss poor plan is that?” she spat at
him. 

           
“I was going to tell you guys I was studying abroad to finish my degree. I
would have stayed in contact for years,
then
pretended
to move permanently, and slowly we would have grown apart,” he recited his half
assed plan.

           
“That would have worked for about six months,” she was spiting with rage,
“before we came out to visit you and it would have blown up in your face.”

           
“I know,” he sighed, defeated, “it was the best compromise I could come up with
at the time. I love you guys, but I had to join the Breed; I finally felt like
I was home. Even after all the torture from the hunters, I still don’t regret
joining.”

           
Feel like I’m home…like I belong here
. Hadn’t she just said those words
to Casstiel last night? Didn’t she feel the exact same way about the Breed?

           
Some of her anger ebbed as she realized her and Quinn had somehow chosen the same
path in life, the universe catapulting them into an otherwise unknown world
together.

           
“That’s how I feel about Casstiel,” she whispered quietly.

           
Meeting him and using her gift had given her those exact same feelings; she
wasn’t ready to let go of her anger yet, but slowly she began to understand his
reasoning.

           
“Don’t give me that look, I’m allowed to be with whoever I want,” she poked her
finger at him when she noticed the sour ‘big brother’ look on his face.

           
After a moment of stubborn silence they both broke into peals of laughter,
finally breaking through the stiff tension they had been enduring.

           
Unable to stop herself, her laughter quickly turned to tears.

           
Quinn wrapped his arms around her, but she pushed and struggled viciously
against his hold. She wanted to hate him forever for all the pain her family
had endured, but the more she struggled the tighter he hugged her, until she
finally gave in and sobbed against his shoulder.

           
“Balor tried to erase your memory, but I knew your mind would be too strong.
After I got over the sickness of the first transformation I was going to come
back and explain everything, beg one of the shelters to take you guys in so we
could still be a family, but before I was well enough to even walk the hunters
ambushed our pack,” he squeezed her too tight, and she was reminded of the bear
hugs he gave her while growing up.

           
“After I escaped I wanted to find you guys, but I had the tracking device in me
and couldn’t get it out myself. Every time I stopped running they found me
within hours, if I had come anywhere near you I would have just been handing
you over to them,” his voice threatened to break as he spoke, “I wasn’t strong enough
to protect you from the hunters alone, and I had no idea there were embassies
out there. In my mind, it was just a matter of time before they killed me. I
told Cass to tell you I was dead because I knew it wouldn’t be long before I
really was, and I wanted you to move on with your lives before it happened.”

           
She cried until she had nothing left. Her body and mind were exhausted and she
was only vaguely aware of her brother rocking her soothingly.

           
“Feel any better?” he gently bumped his chin against her forehead.

           
“I should blow my nose on your shirt,” she smiled through watery eyes. 

           
He would probably need to do a few weeks of ass kissing before he could make up
for what he had put her through, but at least they had the opportunity to move
forward.

           
“So what’s the plan for you
now
that you’re seeing
this guy?” he gave her another sour look, clearly unused to her having a
boyfriend, “what does mom think about him?”

           
She stretched and began telling him everything that had happened to her since
he had been gone, starting with her life at the shelter, then her friendship
with Nora.

           
“What?” she asked, noticing a strange look pass over his
features.

           
“What?” he shot back defensively.

           
“You just had a weird look on your face…” she tilted her head at him, trying to
identify the emotion.

           
He shrugged and she dismissed it, thinking he was probably embarrassed by the
two encounters he had had with Nora, neither of them showed him in a
particularly good light.

           
They continued to chat in an easy flow, their sibling bond ever so slowly
returning.

Until she got to the subway.

           
“You got shot?” he exploded in anger, “those mother fuckers shot you?”

           
He cracked the arm rest of the sofa in half as rage rumbled through his chest.
The hair on the back of his neck stood up as his eyes changed shape, growing
red.

           
“Quinn calm down, your eyes
are
turning,” she panicked.
She had yet to see her brothers’ transformation, and was honestly hoping to
keep it that way.

           
He paced around the penthouse like a caged animal, taking in savage breaths in
an attempt to calm himself.

           
“Tell me they killed them,” his shoulders roiled with rage and tension.

           
“They did,
then
I went to Remy and was healed. No
injuries, no scars, I can hardly even remember it, so just relax, you’re
scaring me,” she warned. 

           
He continued to pace for what felt like hours, before his eyes finally faded
back to their natural green and she felt like she could relax again.

           
They sat in a comfortable silence, each lost in their own thoughts, before she
forced herself to ask the last question she had on her mind.

           
“So now what are you going to do?”
She had just gotten
him back, and didn’t want to go through saying goodbye to him again.

           
“I have to find my pack,” he said with determination, “the
hunters
having them is
like them having mom or dad.”

           
He wasn’t bullshitting her, his pack was now a part of their family.

           
“Why don’t you stay here and work together with Cass? You guys are going after
the same target, so why not join up?” she asked hopefully, not in a hurry to be
apart from him again.

           
“That’s what he suggested, and for now it’s the best option I have,” he sighed
looking down at his watch, “I gotta go meet up with the guys or they’re gonna
leave without me.”

           
“Wait a second,” she called after him, “don’t you feel like going out tonight
is a bad idea? I mean, what’s the rush?”

           
“I feel like anytime the hunters are involved in anything it’s going to be bad,
but that can’t stop me from going out to fight,” he smiled warmly at her, “call
mom and dad for me, tell them I’ll be there to see them soon.”

           
“Quinn, are you sure you’re up for this?” Cass asked, as everyone in the room
stared a hole through him.

           
Most of his superficial wounds had healed, but his arm was still slung in a
cast, his ribs still broken, and no one missed the heavy limp he was walking
with. Just yesterday he had come to them beaten nearly to death and today was
back for more, they weren’t convinced of his skills yet, but they would never
question his heart.

           
“Look, I know you guys don’t know or trust me, but I’ve got fight in me,” he
addressed them fearlessly, “it’s my pack that’s missing, and nothing could stop
me from taking an opportunity to find them. Wounded or not I’ll hold my own.”

           
“I wanna know about that thing you turned into yesterday. Before we take you
out with us, I want to make sure you can control yourself,” Kain eyed him
appraisingly as he shook his head.

           
“I can control it just like every other werewolf, but the angrier I get the
harder it is,” he replied, and Cass was happy to see he wasn’t intimidated by
Kain’s suspicion, “I only changed yesterday because I was so wounded. My
survival instincts took over and I lost it, but it didn’t help that you decided
to fire a warning shot that barely missed me.”

           
“I wanted to make sure you got the message,” Kain smirked.

           
The two sized each other up like prize fighters getting ready for a bout.

           
Cass was impressed with Quinn’s determination, the man standing in front of him
was not afraid of death or pain, and that was exactly what he was looking for
in a soldier. 

           
“Can you shoot?” Jax asked, “Have you ever had any weapons training?”

           
“I’m better with my right hand but I can manage with my left, and the only
training I’ve had is what I’ve taught myself, but it’s been good enough to take
down three hunter compounds and everyone inside them,” he replied confidently.

           
“When we get back I’ll start training him,” Memphis volunteered, and Casstiel
had a pretty good idea as to why. If Nora had to be bonded to someone, Memphis
would want to make sure that someone was the best man he could possibly be.

           
“Alright good, until you get the ropes and are trained in combat you’re
partnered up with Memphis, understood?” if Quinn wanted to go on missions with
them, Cass needed him to have a higher skill level before he trusted him on his
own. 

           
“I’ll start you out with basic weapons training, guns and some knife sills. The
longer you’re with us, the more advanced I’ll train you,” Memphis informed him
while Kain and Casstiel opened the weapons safe and started handing things
out. 

           
“Here,” Kain handed him a 9mm and two extra clips.

           
Anyone else on the team would be appalled to be handed only one weapon, but
until he proved his mettle, this is what he would be starting with.

           
“Ok, so since you two are partnering up, you’ll be going ahead of time with Jax
and Kain. Me, Ghost and Sebastian will meet you out there as soon as the sun
sets. Hopefully this isn’t just a waste of our time.”

~

           
Tessa wrapped her knuckles against the mahogany door frame and waited
impatiently for the sound of Nora’s slow shuffling.

           
“You look like shit,” she blurted out, as always, completely unable to follow
even the most basic of social codes.

           
“Thanks,” she received a prompt middle finger, “I couldn’t sleep last night,
what’s up?”

           
She didn’t care that her friend was cranky, and clearly in no mood for company,
she pushed her way inside and began pacing the floors.

           
“What?” Nora demanded.

           
No matter how she phrased it, she would end up sounding clingy and spastic, so
she simply dumped all of her feelings and concerns on Nora.

           
“Yeah that’s how I felt the first time Memphis went out to help them,” she
shrugged, “it’ll get easier as the time goes on.”

           
“They have no information on this place, or what the hunters have been doing
all this time,” she argued back, “with all the experimenting they’ve been doing
they could have invented some kind of unbeatable super soldier, they could be
working with the human government-”

           
“Or aliens,” her sarcasm stung.

           
“I’m being serious! Why is it a bad thing to want them to be a little more
prepared?” she wanted to pull her hair out in frustration.

           
“Tessa, they’re trained professionals, they are
always
prepared,” she
snapped, and the dark circles under her eyes seemed to deepen, “besides, I
don’t think they can make anything that your brother can’t handle.”

           
“Can you stop being such a crab ass?” she cut her with her eyes, “Just consider
what I’m telling you, really think about it.”

           
“Ok, what do you want to do? If you call Cass and beg him to turn around he
might, but he’ll be completely humiliated. Even if you ask the hunter about the
place they’re going to I’m sure you won’t get a straight answer, so just relax
and deal with it like the rest of us,” she ran some water and started lathering
soap on her face.

           
“The hunter that I questioned is still alive? I thought Sebastian killed him?”
her eyes glimmered with hope.

           
“No, I can still smell him,” she muffled through a towel, “he just got knocked
around pretty good, I’m sure they’re going to let Cass have the actual kill.”

           
“Can we go see him?” she tried to sound casual.

           
“No,” came the automatic response, “I’m done with you and your bright ideas, we
should have listened to him about the subways and stayed our asses at home, and
we should listen to him now and let them handle the Hunters.”

           
 She knew she was just being dramatic but she wanted something to ease her
jitters, and speaking to the hunter might actually convince her that she was
just being a nut case.

           
“I can’t believe that Ethel is going to let Lucy go on an adventure by
herself,” she sighed examining her nails, “and here I thought I had a partner
in crime for life… someone who would
always
have my back.”

           
“When we get caught and Cass loses his mind, you’re taking the fall for this,”
Nora jabbed an accusing finger at her.

           
“Of course,” she all but raced to the door as a smile over came her lips.

~

           
Quinn’s nerves were palpable as he watched the sun burning in the horizon. The
black SUV they were in was steadily flying down the highway, bringing them
closer to what he hoped would be his pack.

           
He knew they were alive and out there somewhere. No matter how dark their fate
had seemed he never lost faith in them.

           
Roderick would have laughed and said they were ‘too tough, and too ugly to
die’. He smiled as he remembered the big Scots roaring laughter.

           
“Alright get your shit together, this is it,” Kain barked as he pulled off the
freeway exit that lead to a dirt road.

           
“We’ll park a few miles away from the actual destination, then hoof it down on
foot,” Memphis informed him of a plan the others seemed to already know.

           
They reached a clearing in between the gnarly trees and killed the
engine. 

           
The area was overgrown, nothing but trees and weedy grass as far as he could
see, making him seriously wonder if the signal from the tracking device had
been wrong.

           
Everyone piled out of the car and headed towards the trunk where duffel bags of
extra guns and ammo were hidden beneath the lining. He knew enough about guns
to be impressed by the arsenal they had brought with them, but knew next to
nothing about using any of them. Even when fighting the hunters he had usually
chosen to use brute strength to defeat them.

           
Maybe a little weapons training would do him some good, he thought grimly as he
looked around at the ease and familiarity everyone else had. None of these men
were amateurs. They had earned their skills the hard way; blood, sweat and
battles. 

           
After everyone had taken what they could carry Jax pulled out a map and laid it
flat across the bottom of the trunk.

           
“We’re gonna circle this place, breaking off into two’s,” Memphis began
delegating, “me and Quinn will start here and go around. We need to be thorough
on our counts of the hunters if we actually see any, and we need to be checking
every fucking leaf for a camera or surveillance system, who knows what they’ve
got hidden out there? Most importantly, remember we are not to approach them in
any way until we’ve got the whole team together and a plan.”

           
He looked specifically at Kain when he said this, and Quinn didn’t have any
problems guessing why.

           
Kain rounded his shoulders and shrugged, clearly not interested in a power
struggle or disobeying Casstiel.

           
As the men separated through the mangy land ahead of them, he was thankful that
he had finally shaken off the odd feelings of the night before.

           
After Nora had left he had tried to go to sleep, but found that it was
impossible.

           
Erratic bursts of fear had mixed all night with strong feelings of paranoia. It
was strange, but he almost felt like someone was attacking him. At times he
felt certain he was having a panic attack, but when he felt his heart beat
everything was normal, he couldn’t explain it but he felt like it all had
something to do with Nora. 

           
“Get your head in the game,” Memphis’ voice broke through his thoughts and
forced him to focus. The last thing he needed to think about right now was her,
especially when his pack could be so close at hand.

           
His boots squelched in the mud as he tore up grass roots to keep pace through
the barren wasteland.

           
Of all the guy’s he had come out with, Memphis seemed to be the most
experienced and he was glad to be under his wing, he needed to learn everything
he could.

           
The chill night breeze caressed his skin and sent a trail of goose bumps up his
arm. It held no human scent, and for the second time that night he questioned
whether they had come to the right place.

           
Up ahead he still couldn’t make out the outline of any building, but glimmers
of light reflected off of something, telling him that somewhere ahead lights
were on.          

The hunters were out there, and he was almost giddy with
excitement.

           
Had they figured out he had removed his tracking device? Were they smart enough
to know he had gone to the embassy for help?

           
Only one way to find out.

           
Quinn and Memphis moved stealthily through the woods, they both knew what those
lights meant, and how it changed their game.

           
When looking more than a mile ahead of
himself
it was
hard to tell what was just the rustling of trees, or moving of small animals,
and what could be the shadow of men. At any moment they could come across an
ambush waiting in the woods.

           
“Guys, can you hear me? Update me,” Casstiel’s voice came in crystal clear over
the head sets he had insisted they all wear.

           
“Yeah,” the four men whispered back in unison, as they crunched through woods
that were getting thicker with each step.

           
“Doing the rounds, lights up ahead, they’re definitely here,”
came
Memphis’ deep rumbling voice.

           
“Sun sets in fifteen minutes, we’ll be out then,” he barked, then his line went
quiet.

           
Quinn still hadn’t completely accepted Cass and his sister, but if she had to
be with someone he was glad she had picked the boss, and someone who could
obviously protect her from anything.

           
After another three miles, the outline of a building appeared. From where he
stood, it looked like a small abandoned warehouse or some sort of processing
plant, but there was no doubt this is where the hunters had hidden themselves
away.

           
“Oh fuck,” Jax’ voice came over the head set.

           
“What is it?” he watched Memphis’ spine stiffen in front of him.

           
“Yeah this is definitely where the hunters are, we’re looking at least a
hundred of them right now,” he let out a string of curses.

~