aHunter4Life (aHunter4Hire) (16 page)

Catal
shrugged and glanced over to Partlan. He nodded. Selena was a woman, and as
Hunters, they’d been trained to obey women. As much as he wanted to destroy
these men for the pain they’d caused Selena, he would abide by her decision. If
they did anything to harm Selena though, he would destroy them.

“As
you wish.”

Firbin
slowed the van down. It came to a stop and the front door opened.
Breanon
jumped into the vehicle. They were in a small
residential neighbor in Central Los Angeles. The house was a bungalow painted
lime green, with a link fence and gate across the front yard.

Partlan
looked at
Breanon
. “Have they left the house?”

“No.”
Breanon
turned around so that he faced the rear of
the van. “They were here when I started my surveillance. There has been
commotion in the house, but no one has come or gone.”

“What
kind of activity?”

“Packing.”
Breanon
picked up a rifle. “They have also been
burning stuff in their fire.”

“They’re
getting rid of the evidence.” Catal nodded. “We had best stop them.”

“Any
sign of the boys?”

Breanon
shook his head. “They seem to be alone. If the boys are there, they’ve hidden
them.”

Partlan
frowned. “
Firbin
you will stay with the vehicle. Pull
up alongside the house and wait for us. It is time we had some answers from the
Gordon brothers.”

“What
about me.” Selena leaned forward. “I should be there.”

“It’s
too dangerous.” Catal placed a hand on her arm. He wasn’t going to risk her
life until he was certain the brothers weren’t armed. “Once we have secured the
place, then you can join us.”

Selena
held his gaze for a second and then nodded. “As long as you let me question the
men too.”

“As
you wish.”

Catal
and the others left the van.
Breanon
took a position
near the entrance. The large front window provided a clear line of fire into
the house. The lights were blazing and the brothers could be seen inside.
Breanon
crouched down behind some shrubs that bordered the
front entranceway. Once the house and brothers were secured,
Breanon
would change his position so that he could defend
them from any intruders.

Catal
pulled his pistol.

He
eased his heart rate in preparation for battle.

He
and Partlan crept along the house to the rear. Malac and
Ranon
positioned themselves at the front entrance.

“
Go
.”
Partlan’s
commanded by mind connect.

In
unison, both teams broke open the doors at the same moment and rushed into the
house. Catal entered the rear first. He skirted past the kitchen and moved into
the front room. Malac was there ahead of him and held a gun to the head of
Nathan.
Ranon’s
knee was in Mike’s back as he held
him down on the floor. Partlan brought up the rear. He scanned the room and
then shut the front curtains. That was
Breanon’s
signal to watch for any intruders, including the police.

“Get
these two into chairs.”

Nathan
laughed. “It won’t help you now.”

Catal’s
eyes narrowed. He pulled Nathan up by his neck and backed him into the wall. He
held him up from the floor and tightened his grip on his neck.

“Where
are the boys?”

“I
don’t know what you’re talking about.” Nathan struggled to get the words out.
“You don’t frighten me.”

Catal
threw him down on the floor.

He
went to stand up, but Malac grabbed him by the arm and pushed him into a chair.

Malac
stood back and held the pistol to the side of his head. “Answer the question.”

Mike
was already being held in a chair by
Ranon
.

“You’re
too late.” Nathan grinned over at his brother. “You can do whatever you want to
us, but it won’t change a thing.”

“What
do you mean?” Selena’s voice pierced the air. “What have you done with the
boys?”

“I
mean we got rid of them.”

Catal
went to Selena. “We told you to wait.”

“When
the curtains closed, I knew you had secured the house.” Selena twisted in
Catal’s
arms. “The back door was open. I shut it so the
neighbors wouldn’t think anything suspicious was happening here.”

“Good.”
Partlan nodded toward the brothers who were being held in chairs. “It would be
best if you let us interrogate them first. It is not a proper place for a
woman.”

Selena
shook her head. Catal could feel the horror and panic that filled her body. He
eased his hold on her and stroked a hand down her back. He sent her a wave of
calm. They didn’t know yet what the brothers meant. It was best not to jump to
conclusions.

“Let
us handle this.”

Nathan
snickered. “Nothing is going to bring those boys back now.”

“You
killed them?” Selena’s voice was a hoarse whisper.

Her
legs gave way and she sank to the floor. Catal grabbed her before she fell. His
heart beat furiously as he watched all the life and hope go from her eyes. He
forced himself to push aside his anguish at her pain. It wouldn’t help get the
answers they needed. He held her close.

“You
said you still felt
Tarrin
alive.” His whispered into
her ear. “Hold onto that.”

She
nodded. She straightened her back and stood. She turned to Nathan. “What did
Tarrin
ever do to you?”

Nathan’s
face fell. His shoulders sagged. “We didn’t want to take him, but he wouldn’t
let Gates go on his own.”

“
Tarrin
was protecting Gates?” Selena shook her head. “You
had no right to take either of the boys. Gates was innocent too.”

“We
had no choice.” Nathan’s voice was defiant. “It was the only way to retaliate.”

Catal
led Selena to a sofa. “If you were angry with me or the Walters, you didn’t
need to take the boys.”

“Steve
Walters deserves everything he gets.” Mike spat the words out. “He broke
Nathan’s camera. He thought an apology would do, but that camera was
irreplaceable.”

“It
was just an object.” Selena’s voice was low with confusion. “He gave your
brother a new one, which was much more expensive than the one he broke.”

“Our
father gave that camera to Nathan.” Mike’s voice cracked. “He’s dead now and
that was the only thing we had to remember him by. So Steve can apologize all
he wants, but now he’s lost something that is irreplaceable too.”

“There’s
no way you can compare a child with a camera.” Her voice held a hint of
hysteria.

Catal
sat on the couch beside her and touched her arm. A sizzle of electricity went
through him as he sent comfort and reassurance to Selena. He was a man used to
killing, but he couldn’t understand how anyone could harm a child or cause a
woman pain. It was against everything he held sacred. These men needed to die,
but not until they found out what they had done with the boys.

Selena
looked up at him, begging him with her eyes to help. His stomach clenched at
the anguish there. He brushed a strand of hair from her face just as her
shoulders started to shake. Her tears came in a flood of grief and he pulled
her close to his chest. He felt her devastation and he rocked her back and
forth trying to ease the sorrow Mike’s words had caused.

“Where
are the boys?”
Partlan’s
stern voice boomed through
the room.

“I
don’t have to tell you anything,” Nathan said with a sneer. “I don’t even know
who you are.”

“You
know me.” Selena pulled away from Catal. “How could you hurt young boys?”

“We
didn’t injure anyone.” Mike’s voice was apologetic. “Honest. We don’t have the
stomach for it.”

“What
did you do then?”
Catal’s
voice was a roar.

He
jumped up from the couch. His patience was at an end. These men had taunted and
pained Selena enough. They spoke in riddles, and he wanted answers, even if he
had to kill one of them to get at the truth.

Mike
shrugged. “I know my rights. We’re not speaking to you without a lawyer
present.”

Catal
picked Mike up from the chair. He grabbed his neck and pushed him against the
wall. His fingers bit into the man’s throat.

“We
are not the police.”
Catal’s
voice was a low threat.
“You have harmed a child and the code we live by says I have the right to shake
you until you’re dead. Maybe your brother will talk when I throw your limp body
at his feet.”

Mike’s
eyes bulged from his face. He struggled in
Catal’s
grasp, but there was no release. His fingers pulled at
Catal’s
hands, but it was futile. His feet were at least a foot from the floor, and he
tried to kick out at Catal, but he evaded him. His face was blue before Nathan
yelled.

“We
sold them.”

Partlan
who had been watching with his arms crossed, frowned. “What does that mean? I
did not think you had slavery in this country.”

“Oh
my god.” Selena’s body shook.

Catal
glanced at her. Horror and disbelief were written over her face. He dropped
Mike to the floor and went to her side.

He
clasped her close. “It means they’ve sold them to people who will probably harm
them.”

“Explain.”
Partlan continued to look at Catal.

Catal
cleared his throat. He glanced down at Selena and smoothed a hand across her
back. She sighed and turned her face away from the brothers. He knew the others
would find it impossible to believe. It was something that was foreign in
Cygnus, yet all too common on Earth. He had never understood how a being could
do that to another, especially a child.

“The
boys will probably be traumatized for life.”

There
were several seconds of silence before Partlan spoke. “Is this true?”

Partlan
leaned over Nathan. He was inches away from the photographer and his stance was
threatening. Selena shivered beneath his hand. The brothers were monsters. Only
the fact that they still needed information from them, kept Catal from ripping
them apart with his bare hands.

Malac,
who was rummaging through the brother’s suitcases, pulled out a black backpack.
“Here is the ransom money.”

“So
they are the kidnappers.” Selena’s voice was weak.

That
settled it for Catal. There was no denying the guilt of these men. They had
taken the boys, extorted money, and sold them. They were going to die.

Ranon
shouted from the dining room. “I’ve found their computer. They’ve been
receiving a number of suspicious emails in the past few days.”

Partlan
stood away from Nathan. “Move and I will kill you.”

Nathan’s
eyes bulged. “You can’t hurt me.”

“I
am not the police.” Partlan spoke in a soft voice. “My job is to kill.”

Nathan
looked over at Selena. “You can’t be serious?”

Selena
nodded. “They are mercenaries that I hired. Now that I know what you’ve done
with my son, I don’t care what they do to you.”

“And
we will get the boys back.”
Catal’s
voice was a
menace. “It was foolish to try and run. There is nowhere in the world that you
can hide from us.”

“The
FBI wouldn’t just let you come here and do this. I’ll sue you.” Mike rubbed his
neck. “Good luck trying to get any information from us. The boys are lost to
you forever.”

“I
might as well kill you now.” Catal grabbed his gun from behind his back and
pointed it at Mike. He cocked the hammer back and aimed.

“Stop.”
Nathan’s screamed at the top of his lungs. “The name of our contact is in one
of our emails. He didn’t give us his real name, though. That’s all we know,
honest.”

Catal
lowered the gun. “Where did you meet him?”

“Los
Amigos Mall in South Central LA. It’s on East Jefferson Boulevard. That’s where
we set up the exchange. We couldn’t let the boys go home because they knew who
we were, and we couldn’t kill them.” The words spilled from Nathan.

“So
you thought you’d sell them?” Catal didn’t hide his disgust.

“At
least they’d be alive.” Mike’s voice was gruff.

Catal
fought the urge to strangle the man. Instead he prodded Nathan in the back with
his gun “When did you give him the boys?”

“Today.
He met us at our storage unit. We don’t know where the guy lives, honest.”

“And
you thought you’d got away with it?” Selena shook her head. “How did you expect
to live with yourselves afterwards?”

Mike
shrugged. “That’s a lot of money. We could live like kings in another country.
Then we would be the ones people would look up to and follow around.”