The low ceiling brushed against his mane as he silently moved down the hall, ignoring the open dark doorways. He could hear a voice from below, identifying it as the male who’d yelled from the house.
“That moron cop is fucking with me,” the male raged. “He’s going to get the both of you killed. I know he’s got my boys. He’s probably waiting for SWAT to drive here from somewhere else.”
Lash paused, hoping to hear a response. That would mean at least one of Mary’s parents were still alive. There wasn’t one.
Rage burned through him. What if the male had already killed them? Humans could be unstable and murderous.
He reached the top of the stairwell and peeked downward over the railing. It showed the front door and an open area. Nothing moved down there.
There was a thump, something hitting wood. “That fucking cop is lying to me about those New Species having Darren, too! I saw them haul him out of that cunt’s apartment and put him in one of their black vehicles. I didn’t dare follow since it was night, but they headed out of town, right toward that fucking place they live at.”
The voice came from the right, on the lower floor. There was a large archway Lash could see when he moved a little. A light was on in there. Lash thought about leaping down but it would be loud. He frowned at the stairs. Some of them could make noises.
Lash studied the thick wood running along the stairwell, with metal bars holding it up. Humans used them to hold on to while walking up and down stairs, to avoid falling. After a moment’s hesitation, he lifted his leg, putting his ass on top of it. His loincloth was between the wood and his skin.
He paused, keeping his gaze trained on that archway for movement. He waited.
“I’m not going to wait around for SWAT to get here. I just want my fucking sons. Brad was always an idiot, but that’s his mother’s fault. She let him be friends with that dipshit Johnny. I warned my ex that kid was fucked in the head. He had a hard-on for lifers in prison, thinking they were cool.” The male thumped something hard on wood. “Telling my boy they get fan mail and lots of chicks wanting to marry them.”
Using the leg still on the ground, Lash slid along the thick wood, inching down. He balanced with his toes, keeping most of his weight off the steps. It was slow going but he didn’t make a sound.
“Brad needs treatment for being stupid. Not prison time. Darren understood that. We just wanted to find Brad and take him home. Is that too much to ask? Fuck no! But it turned tits up.”
The male made another cracking sound. Lash was halfway down the stairwell when he finally caught a glimpse of movement. He froze.
It was an older male, his back to the archway. He held a long, thin baton in his hand. He hit the floor with the end of it, accounting for that cracking sound, before talking again.
“I’m going to kill you both if they make me! I don’t care what happens to me, but my boys are all I’ve got. I’m a good damn father. See how far I’ve gone trying to find Brad, and now Darren? This is really that dipshit Johnny’s fault. I know he talked Brad into trying to kill those New Species. The little fucker killed a cat when they were teens. I should have guessed he’d grow up to be a killer. He couldn’t just go get himself sent off to prison for life alone. He had to talk my idiot son into going with him!”
Lash spotted a gun sitting on the shelf above the fireplace. It was within reach of the old human. He wasn’t holding another gun. Lash could see both of the male’s hands when he grew more agitated while he spoke. One gripped the baton but the other was fisted.
“They’re going to make me kill you,” the old human raged. “That fucking stupid cop! All he had to do was bring me my boys and that was it. Simple. Why in the fuck can’t anything be that way anymore? I’m going to shoot you in the chest, Zack. Maybe pushing you out the door and seeing you bleeding will light a fire under his ass to get me my boys. For all I know, he’s got them close by already. That asshole cop is the type to get off on being a controlling prick!”
There was a soft whimper that came from the room.
“Would you like me to shoot you first instead? Don’t shake your damn head at me, woman!”
Lash twisted and dropped the rest of the way to the floor below. It made a small thump sound.
He roared, rushing forward toward the old human.
The male jumped, tried to spin around, but then began to fall. Lash hit the top of his head on the low archway but ignored the slight pain, grabbing the male before he could fall and shaking him.
The baton dropped to the floor.
Lash glanced around the part of the room he hadn’t been able to see. Two humans were lying on the floor, ropes around their bodies to keep their arms tight to their sides and their legs smashed together. He couldn’t see part of their faces, since thick material was covering their mouths. Terror showed in their eyes.
The female looked a lot like his mate with her coloring, including her eyes.
He tore his attention from them to the weak male struggling in his hold. He saw terror in that male’s eyes, too. Feeble hands swatted at him.
Lash opened his mouth, flashing his fangs, and roared right in his face.
The male’s eyes rolled upward, and he went utterly limp.
Lash kept hold of him. He stormed to the front door and tried to open it. Locks prevented that from happening. He figured out how to twist them and yanked again. The door opened and he stepped outside, dragging the male. He dumped him none too gently on the porch.
“Come get your bad human,” he yelled.
Then he reentered the house, not waiting for a response. He locked the door to stop that male from trying to escape back inside the house if he woke up and Lash marched into the room where the two humans were tied and gagged.
He paused, watching them wiggle around on the floor. Both were wide-eyed, reeked of terror, and the female whimpered behind the cloth over her mouth. The male inched closer to the female. It seemed as if he was trying to put his body between her and Lash.
“You’re acting like prey,” he muttered. “I am not surprised. You are Mary’s parents. I’ll take you to her. Don’t die from fright. I’m her mate. I won’t hurt you.”
He marched toward them and crouched by the male. He had brown eyes and light blond hair with some gray. “My name is Lash. Stop wiggling.” He studied the ropes. They were knotted in various places and would need cutting. He didn’t have a knife, and it would probably bruise the humans if he used his claws, since cutting the ropes would cause serious tugging.
He sighed and reached for the male. “Don’t struggle.” He sniffed, not picking up any blood from either of them. He didn’t see any injuries either.
*
Five minutes earlier
Mary felt sick to her stomach as she clutched Mel’s arm. They huddled against each other next to the barn her father used to store old furniture and his riding lawn mower. Snow was at their backs. He’d threatened to grab her if she tried to go near the house. It kept her from attempting it. It was one thing for Lash to touch her. Mel’s husband still scared her a bit.
Lash had left her to go after her parents.
She didn’t know if she should feel thankful or terrified out of her mind. He could get killed. There was a crazy asshole inside holding her mother and father hostage. That gunshot going off had her mind imagining the worst. One of them could be shot. Lash might be next.
“I’m going to puke.”
“Don’t do that. It will make you feel worse,” Mel warned. “Nothing is going on yet. Just Brass running over to Sheriff Cooper and staying there. Maybe they’re arguing about the New Species taking over. Or Brass is telling him about Lash going in the house. I bet he’s mad.”