Vision Revealed (6 page)

litter reeks of is deceit,” another male yelled from the crowd.

At one time, Jin would have stepped forward, willing and eager to play mediator and

sniff out the truth among the feuding litters. Right now, with so many emotions packed

into the bar, it was impossible to smell the truth. Although she was grateful for the mixed

smells in the air when a gamut of her own feelings made her stomach clench. Giving up

being a hunter was damn near the hardest thing she’d ever done in her life.

Well, almost the hardest thing. Taking down her sire and making the world believe he

was dead was the hardest.

“I’ll escort you to where you’re staying.” Dover wrapped his fingers around her arm,

again showing her not to underestimate the strength of an owl.

He pushed her to the door before she dug in her heels. Ignoring the pain that streaked up

her leg, she gritted her teeth together and turned on him. “If you want to know where I’m

staying, just ask, owl,” she said, not surprised when she stared up at him and didn’t see

any change in his relaxed facial features. “I’m not running with my tail between my legs

because hunters might be showing up.”

“They’re already here.” He grabbed her again, pulling her away from the door as easily

as he pushed her toward it.

A moment later a rush of cold air surrounded her when the door swung open and a

couple of male leopards entered. Once again her heart was in her throat when she stared

at Tore Mann and Race Ogden. They were in the middle of the fight before the door

slammed closed behind them.

“Your message will fall on ears more willing to hear it if you give it when they aren’t

distracted with someone else’s problem.”

Jin couldn’t decide if his calm tone annoyed her or reassured her. His uncanny way of

knowing something would happen a second before it did bugged her.

“Why are you protecting me?” she asked.

“An owl always protects an injured species. We aren’t as addicted to blood as your

species is.”

“We aren’t addicted to blood. We’re just not afraid to fight for our honor,” she hissed,

immediately defending her own kind.

“There are others ways to maintain honor.”

Picking a fight with him wouldn’t get her anywhere. She didn’t care about his opinion on

honor, but arguing that talking to Tore or Race right now would be pointless held its

weight. Jin turned, not responding, and focused on the backside of the two male hunters.

They were both mated males, and although she’d done some regrettable things in her

past, drooling over another female’s male wasn’t one of them. Odd though how once

upon a time she found both incredibly attractive and now they dimmed in comparison to

Kane.

“Give me your message. I’ll relay it when the time is right,” Dover suggested, lowering

his head slightly and speaking with his disturbing calm tone into her ear.

“It’s a message I must give myself,” she told him honestly, but sensing the owl offered

with good intent, she glanced into those large gray eyes. The oddest sensation that he

looked beyond her face, deeper into some crevice of her mind that she didn’t want

explored, made her tummy flip. “You honor me with the offer,” she told him, her mouth

suddenly dry. “I can’t allow anyone to appear to stand in my corner when I know I stand

alone.”

Dover nodded once, not reassuring her he would stand with her but simply allowing her

to make her own decision. He straightened, returning his attention to the dispute waning

in the middle of the bar, giving all signs their conversation was over.

Tore Mann, an oversized leopard, did most of the talking. Race stood by his side,

looking ready to attack either litter if anyone made a sound. As Tore announced he would

hear either side, listening to each litter howl their complaints in a quieter environment,

the crowd in the bar grew quiet, listening to the hunter state the terms.

Race Ogden began escorting one of the litters out of the bar, and the whispers of those

surrounding Jin started tickling her ears. She didn’t move or try shifting her weight to

hide behind Dover when Race reached the door. Their eyes locked and she smelled his

anger and curiosity spike.

Her heart pounded so hard it drowned out the sounds in the bar. But this was why she

was here. This was the moment she’d imagined ever since deciding she would take the

steps to restore her honor. Jin offered him a small smile, hoping she looked as coy as she

always had. The other hunters needed to see her as they always had, believing everything

about her was the same. It was the only way they would hear what she had to say.

And it was imperative it be said.

When Tore spotted her, he stopped, narrowing his gaze on her before shifting it to

Dover. He brought up the rear of the two litters and continued pushing them out the door,

giving no indication he would say anything. Race walked out of the bar, leaving the cold

air to rush over her exposed flesh. Tore paused, close enough to touch her.

It was a year ago she sat in the living room of his small cabin here in Kenora,

humiliating herself as she begged him to let her go. Run and disappear. She’d promised

never to show her tail around here or anywhere again. One look into his pissed-off

expression and she knew he remembered their conversation. He’d questioned her then,

demanding to know if Leo Pard were really dead or not. If his female hadn’t shown up,

irate over another female being in her male’s den, possibly she wouldn’t be going

through this right now.

Then wasn’t the time to reveal the truth. Time had passed, leopards had healed and

started living the aggressive, dominating life they were born to live. The suppression that

threatened so many of them was gone. She would share the truth to ears that would hear

her now.

“I need a meeting with the hunters,” she said quietly, although she knew he heard her.

Tore looked over her shoulder. “Dover, don’t let her out of your sight.”

“Tore, wait a minute,” Jin said, hurrying out of the bar after him. “I need to talk to you.”

“I’m a bit busy.” He turned his back to her, although she smelled more than indifference

on him. More than likely he was dying to know why she was here.

Race stood down the street, watching as the litter he’d escorted out of the bar loaded in

their cars and pulled out of the parking lot. Jin wrapped her coat around her, shielding the

bitter night air from her body, and watched as both litters took off.

Glancing across the street, she felt an eerie sensation rush over her, as if she were being

watched. There wasn’t any doubt Dover stood behind her. She smelled him. If she tried

leaving he would stop her. But it wasn’t his presence that bothered her. Something

darker, more carnal and intense crept toward her.

Kane.

Jin sniffed the air, focusing on every dark shadow, searching both sides of the street with

her eyes. For a moment she swore she smelled him, his masculine, rich scent creeping

into her nostrils. But no matter how hard she scoured the street, blocking out all other

sounds and movement and allowing the more primal side of her to strengthen her senses,

she didn’t see anyone lurking where they shouldn’t be.

“What the hell are you doing here?” Tore’s fierce growl when he gripped her arm threw

her off guard.

Jin held on to her footing, ignoring the still-sharp pain when it fought to distract her and

returned the harsh glare. “Get your paws off me, male,” she sneered. “I’m not causing

trouble.”

“I suppose it’s coincidence that two litters suddenly howl infidelity and you just happen

to be present.”

Jin gawked at him, shocked he would think to link her to the stench surrounding those

two litters. “I don’t have anything to do with that,” she growled, her words almost

catching in her throat. “I’m here for an entirely different reason. Would you let go of

me?”

Tore started down the street, not letting go of her. It was all Jin could do not to be

dragged. He was much taller and stronger than she was and moved quickly. Race and

Dover moved silently on either side, forming a wall of testosterone mixed with

unjustified anger.

“Damn it, Tore. Cut it out,” she hissed, digging in her heels and then almost falling

sideways when he finally let go of her.

“Why are you here?” Race demanded.

“Because I need to talk to both of you, and Thad Pierce and Josh Bard. I want to meet

with all the hunters.”

“Why?” Tore growled.

“I’ll tell you when I have all of you together.”

“You’ll tell me now.”

“That isn’t how it’s going to work.”

“You have no authority, Jin,” Tore roared. “You’re no longer a hunter. You’ve disgraced

yourself and done your best to disgrace the title of hunter.”

“That isn’t true,” she said before she could stop the words. No matter how many times

she’d prepared herself for this moment, telling herself over and over again they would

howl cruelties toward her, it cut deep hearing it hissed in her face. If she successfully

pulled off her mission, impressing upon them the truth, then enduring this abuse would be

true. “Honor me with this meeting.”

“Honor you?” Tore laughed.

Race joined in, chuckling and shaking his head. “You’re going to need to come up with a

better reason for returning here, Jin,” he told her.

“I want a…” She didn’t get a chance to finish her sentence.

Tore lifted her off the ground, his fingers digging into her arm as he headed down the

street. “Hate me all you want, but you’re not staying in this town, Jin. Go back to

wherever you came from. I’m not going to have you stirring up trouble, which you have

an incredible knack of doing whenever you come sniffing around.”

“God damn it, Tore, let me down!” she howled, kicking and twisting and hating feeling

like a fucking rag doll as he continued storming down the street. Already coming here

appeared to be a nightmare, stinking with so many foul, repulsed emotions it turned her

stomach. “You’re the damn hunter. Tell me you smell a lie if you can get beyond the

stench of your own repulsed emotions.”

“How dare you!” Tore growled, appearing to grow before her eyes when he stopped at

the corner.

Jin’s boots touched the paved sidewalk and she struggled to take on her own weight and

put some distance between her and the irate leopard. It never occurred to her that any of

them would hurt her, and she put the thought out of her head now. But they’d insulted the

hell out of her and could just put up with a few insults tossed in their direction as well.

She held on to Tore’s furious glare, refusing to back down and determined to make him

hear her.

“How dare I what?” she snapped. “I came here for one reason. I have two of you but

must meet with all four of you. I know the other two aren’t too far south of here. You can

arrange the meeting. Or I’ll announce the location and you can show up if you’re male

enough to hear the truth when it’s howled at you.”

“She’s insane,” Race growled.

“She doesn’t smell insane to me.” Dover’s calm tone contrasted against the hostile

energy bouncing off the two leopards.

“Why is the owl the only one who can see through to the truth?” Jin demanded.

“I don’t need this crap.” Tore sliced his large hand through the air, stirring the emotions

that stunk around them when he made the movement. “Leave, Jin. There is no truth you

need to share. And you aren’t going to howl for all four of us so you can beg for your title

back.”

Jin snapped her mouth shut so she wouldn’t growl the first thing that came to mind.

Truth be told she would love to be a hunter again. But that wasn’t how it would be. She

accepted that, as much as she accepted male leopards were probably the most stubborn

creatures on the planet. And she had half a mind to tell them as much.

She spotted the shadow at the same time she breathed in the incredibly overwhelming

aroma of one pissed-off leopard. Tore and Race didn’t smell as angry anymore as they

did disgusted. Both emotions were annoyingly spicy, but the dominating, aggressive

scent that suddenly took over all other smells grabbed all of their attention.

Tore reached for her again but hesitated when he obviously picked up on the new smell.

By the time he turned around, acknowledging the new arrival, Kane grabbed Tore,

pushing him to the side.

“Don’t touch her again,” Kane snarled, forcing Tore to face him and then let go. Kane

moved closer until the two leopards glared at each other, eye to eye. “If the female wishes

a meeting, honor her request.”

Jin stared at Kane, aching to know where he’d been that gave him the privilege of

overhearing their conversation.

“You!” Tore roared. “You’re backing the wrong female, white leopard,” he snarled. “If

you’re sniffing after her, you’ll never obtain the title of hunter.”

“What?” Jin whispered, gawking at Kane.

The males ignored her. Tore and Race were braced to fight, and Kane looked ready to

give them one. Jin didn’t bother turning to Dover for help. He wouldn’t interfere in a

leopard matter. She’d never known an owl to start a fight or jump into one that wasn’t

their own. There were rumors they weren’t a species to cross, but she’d never seen an owl

fight.