Cursed (Book # 3 of Hunted)

I Don't Understand

I didn't understand. I didn't understand how he could treat Ilian with such care after what they had done to him. I blinked. Had they...before I knew it, I was striding purposefully towards Ilian. He barely looked up at me.

"Byrnes," Jason warned and I shot him a glare. I rounded Ilian's chair and stared at his back. I could see the blood. Feel an echo of the pain. I reached out.

"What are you doing?" Andrew asked walking towards me. My fingertips barely skimmed the back of his scrubs, right over his right shoulder blade when he leapt out of the chair and spun around to look at me, his face a shattered mask of pain and rage.

I stared at him, and he stared back his chest heaving. I felt a sob building. I covered my mouth and hunched forward as it tore its way through my throat. It was true. Everything I had seen in my vision was true. I felt a hand on my back, heavy with metal mesh.

He patted me rigidly on the back and said, "There, there, little one." I looked up at him, at the stiff smile on his face.

"Did you See something?" Jason asked cautiously approaching. I shook my head and whispered, "How could they do that?" I reached up with both hands to caress Ilian's face.

"How could they do something like that to someone so beautiful?" I asked and he closed his eyes leaning into my hands.

"Hey! You're not supposed to touch him!" Jason shouted and I felt his hand grip my shoulder. I whirled around and caught him across the face with the back of my fist. He flew back several feet, landing roughly on the tile floor.

"You're a monster," I said, "Everyone here is a goddamn monster!"

"Hey--" Madeleine started and I snapped, "Not you! I mean the people running this place." I rounded on Andrew and said, "You cut off his wings. He was going to come peacefully, and you cut off his wings!" Andrew looked down at the floor in shame.

"Shit," Jana murmured with wide eyes.

"And the drugs?" I exclaimed, "Why is he the only one on them? I understand the gloves and even the muzzle but ketamine. Seriously? Why?" I shook my head in absolute disbelief.

"He's dangerous," Jason said pushing himself up off the floor.

"And they aren't?" I asked gesturing at the Wolfbloods and the Siblings. Jason was about to open his mouth, but I spoke over him.

"No. There's a reason why he needs to be constantly sedated, constantly restrained, constantly supervised and it's not because he's dangerous. It's because they are here of their own free will. You keep Ilian so stoned he can barely speak because you know he would try to escape if he weren't, and he would easily succeed."

Jason lunged forward, grabbed me by the collar and jerked me forward. He glared down at me and said, "He killed twenty-three people before we finally caught up with him. Over two weeks to run him down. It took an entire team to bring him in. We keep him restrained for everyone's safety including yours."

I stared up at him, saw the righteous fury in his eyes. I reached up and closed my hand around his wrist, digging my fingernails into his skin.

"Professor Hardwicke lied. Ilian didn't kill anyone. She tracked him down because he's rare. She brought him in so that she could study him. She lied," I hissed.

"How would you know?" he snapped, and my eyes narrowed. I pried his fingers from my collar and shoved him away saying, "Take a wild guess." I shook my head and asked, "Do you even understand how much pain he felt? How much fear? Do you know what it feels like to have a part of you ripped away?"

Jason's jaw clenched and his gaze fell to the floor. He knew exactly what it felt like. Before the Hunters found him, every pill he popped, every syringe full of poison...every pervert he sucked off and vampire he fed just for a few bucks...it was like a piece of his soul was being chipped away...until there was nothing left.

I sighed and closed my eyes, rubbing them with my knuckles. I should never have come here.

"Is there a reason why we're here?" Mykael suddenly asked.

"A question like that is between you and your God," Jason muttered as I opened my eyes. Mykael made a face and said, "I mean why did you bring us down here? To scare us? If we continue on the paths we're on...if we go 'rogue' or whatever...we'll end up here?"

"That's one reason," Jason replied.

"And the other?" Graham asked crossing his arms over his chest.

"To show you what you're dealing with, what's out there and why you need to join the cause. It's for your own protection," he said, and Garnet scoffed.

"Yeah, cuz I'm real scared of the sex monster, baby Einstein, her horny gamer boy bro, and the Teen Wolves," she said rolling her eyes. "If you really wanted to scare us you would show us something wild. Not your collection of zoo animals."

"Hey!" Nadir snapped and she glanced at him saying, "No offense."

At that moment a savage cry split the air. A cry of pain and rage that made the hair on my arms stand straight up. I knew that cry...

Jason smirked and looked at Garnet saying, "Looks like you just got your wish."

"What the hell is that?" Cadence asked reaching up to cover his ears as the creature screamed again. Jason gestured towards the door and replied, "Let's go see." He started towards the exit and the others followed, Garnet casting a last longing look at her Prada bag. I sighed and made to follow, but a hand closed around my wrist.

I imagined I could feel the heat of his skin through the small metal rings covering his fingers. I turned to look at him. His brow was creased in confusion, and he huffed in frustration.

"Can she stay, Andy?" he asked his gaze moving sluggishly towards Andrew, "Can she stay with me?" Andrew took a step forward and set his hand on Ilian's arm replying, "No, Il. She's a student."

"But I...I want her," he whispered his fingers constricting on my wrist. His words made my heart pound in my chest and sweat bead along my spine. Andrew pried Ilian's fingers from my arm and said, "You can't have her. I'm sorry."

"Please," Ilian's voice was barely audible, but the pain behind it was clear. I leaned towards him. I wanted nothing more than to ease his pain. The same cry rang out and I pulled away from him. I turned and ran to catch up with the group, leaving Ilian to stare after me, golden eyes glossy with the threat of tears.