Eventually, Hannah had agreed. So here she was in Brooklyn, in a stranger’s home, with two annoying canines—Blayne and Abby—and the cutest little kid she’d ever seen in her entire life. Then again, if the kid grew up looking anything like his father, then he’d probably end up the cutest adult, too.
Blayne charged down the stairs and stopped. “I can’t find Abby anywhere.”
Hannah looked away from the kid and pointed at the dining table. Blayne crouched down and gazed under the table.
“What’s she doing under there?”
“Why does everyone seem to think I can read her mind?”
“Because you’re friends. I can totally read Gwenie’s mind. I know when she’s about to House Cat somebody or when she’s about to go Irish on their ass.”
Nope. Hannah would not be suckered into asking what “House Catting” someone entailed. She honestly didn’t want to know.
“Come here, Abby. Come here, girl.” When Abby refused to come out, Blayne stood. “Dez has to have Milk Bones or something around here.”
“Wait. You’re actually going to try and coax her out from under that table with Milk Bones?”
“You think I should use peanut butter?”
And that’s what Hannah got for being suckered in. Again!
“Or maybe some steak,” Blayne went on. “Dez is living with a lion male so she has to have some meat around here, don’tcha think? And my God what is that noise?”
“Your phone.”
“My phone’s been ringing? Why didn’t you get it?”
“I’m not going in your bag.”
“You couldn’t call me and tell me that my phone was ringing?”
“How’s that my job?”
“How can I help you, Hannah, if you won’t help me?”
“Help you by fetching your phone? I’m only half dog, Blayne.”
“I didn’t mean . . .” Blayne frowned, thinking. “Wait a minute. I’m half dog!” Blayne stomped her foot. “It was easier talking to you when you didn’t respond.” She picked up her backpack from the floor and placed it on a chair. She began digging through it while demanding to know “And what is that noise?”
“The house phone.”
Her head snapped up. “You didn’t answer the house phone?”
Hannah shrugged. “It’s not my house.”
“Goddamnit, Hannah! That’s probably Dez and she’s going to flip the fuck out because I didn’t answer the phone . . . again. And this is what I’m talking about! How can you hope to make any friends if you’re always so bitchy? I mean, maybe if you were feline you could get away with it, but they never take bitchy from canines or bears. Our feet and shoulders are just too big for that. Although not mine. I have cute, dainty feet. And something else,” she went on while digging deep for the stupid phone. Abby pressed up against Hannah’s leg, and that’s when Blayne suddenly stopped talking. Since she never stopped talking of her own volition, Hannah immediately knew something was wrong.
Hannah stood. “What—”
She didn’t get to finish her question, Blayne silencing her with a raised hand. Then she pointed at Marcus.
Hannah was just reaching for him when they kicked in the front door.
“Run, Marcus!” Blayne yelled and the kid took off running, heading for the back of the house, Hannah and Abby right behind him.
It was Abby’s first instinct to run away and never look back. As long as she could remember, she’d always made sure to look out for herself and only herself. But as she watched Hannah—unfriendly, could-care-less-about-anyone Hannah—go after little Marcus like he was her own and Blayne taking the knife she kept on her all the time these days to the first guy who came through the door, cutting his throat, and immediately going to work on the others—many others—Abby knew she couldn’t run for it. She couldn’t leave them.
Instead, she ran after Hannah and Marcus. Hannah swept the boy up into her arms and hard charged for the back door in the kitchen. But before she reached it, they kicked that door in, too, the dogs that Mace and Dez had kindly put in their kennels losing their minds as they tried to get out and protect Marcus, but no one pulled their weapons.
Abby dived over Hannah and ripped into the first guy she could get her paws on, forcing him back and into his friends. She flipped him over the back stairs and into the yard, tearing his throat out until he stopped screaming.
Hannah barreled down the stairs, holding on to Marcus. Men from all sides came at her. Abby knew they didn’t want to hurt the boy, because one man grabbed the screaming child and pulled while the others battered Hannah with fists and knees, trying to get her to release Marcus.
Blayne ran out of the back door and jumped into the middle of it. A male backhanded her, sending Blayne flying. She hit a tree, bounced off it, and ran forward again. Another male caught her around the waist and they both went down. Blayne brought her blade up, but he caught her hand and turned the blade back on her, shoving it into Blayne’s side.
She howled in pain and Abby rushed forward as they finally pried an hysterical Marcus from Hannah, fists flying as they beat the sow to the ground.
Abby ran up to the man holding Marcus and, when she was only a few feet away, she shifted to human. Startled, the man stumbled back and Abby laid him out with a right cross, yanking Marcus into her arms and dashing for one of the trees. Using the power of her legs, she leaped onto the closest branch and scrambled up.
“Get that bitch!” someone screamed. “Kill her if you have to!”
Dee hit the brakes and the car stopped right in front of Desiree’s house. NYPD had already arrived and Dee had them secure the area, keeping the neighbors out of their business and the non-shifter NYPD away from all this. Lord knew, they’d only make it worse in their attempts to help.
Dee and the others moved toward the house, their weapons drawn. The front door had already been kicked in and they went through it.
Guns raised, they entered the house. They heard yelling and Desiree sprinted toward the back.
“Malone!” Dee called out, following Desiree. “Side of the house! Daddy, take the top floor!”
They went through the kitchen door and Dee only had a moment to spot movement before she caught Dez by her dress and yanked her back and out of the kitchen, dropping them both to the floor as bullets riddled the door.
“No!” Desiree screamed out, trying to get out of Dee’s arms. But Dee knew they wouldn’t risk hurting the boy. Matilda, who’d they’d left duct-taped in Van Holtz’s closet, with her complaints of Mace’s “betrayal,” would never allow damage to a Llewellyn male cub. Not when she still had use for him.
Yet, explaining that to a panicked mother would be ineffectual and a waste of her breath. So Dee held on and waited until the gunfire stopped.
Eggie heard the gunfire below, but he didn’t let it directly affect what he was doing. He had no doubt that his daughter knew how to handle herself and this situation.
Silently stepping onto the roof, Eggie pulled his knife and eased up behind the two full-humans who’d been placed there. He slit the throat of one, and when the other turned to him, he buried the knife in his eye.
He yanked the blade out and pushed the body out of his way. He settled down in a good spot on the roof and put his rifle together. Once he was set up, he looked through the scope, picking out good targets who were nowhere near the boy or the hybrids trying to protect him, and did what he did best—he started the killin’.
Ric saw that the front door had already been kicked in so he, Lock, and Mace went around the house to the back. He had Sissy Mae and Mitch, who were unarmed, wait for the teams that were only seconds behind them to tell them what was going on. If there were extra weapons they wanted to use, they were more than welcome to join.