Page 18 of Bear the Burden

The air was thick with the scent of blood, sweat, and marijuana, causing Hyett to take in shallow breaths, which didn’t help with his heightened senses.

Despite the dark interior, Hyett could see just fine. It was a normal living room. The place hadn’t been tossed, something he’d expected after that chilling call from his mate.

What he hadn’t expected was an older man huddled on the floor, shivering like crazy even though it was muggy inside the house. Sweat had matted his dark hair to his head in a tangled mess. Blood trickled from his nose and dripped onto the floor.

Killian and Ryker entered the living room after searching the house, appearing like two giants in the narrow hallway.

“Didn’t see anyone prowling around.” Killian glanced at the trembling human who had started making strange noises in the back of his throat. “Do we know who he is and what’s wrong with him?” Hyett’s brother squatted with a look of compassion for the guy.

“I’m thinking he’s Wesley’s dad, but I know about as much as you do since we got here at the same time.” The floorboards under Hyett’s booted feet creaked and groaned as he walked around the living room trying to catch a strong enough whiff of his mate’s scent.

But the overpowering stench of weed, coupled with Jackson’s sickly-smelling sweat, was messing with his senses.

What was wrong with the human?

“I’ll call an ambulance for him.” Quinton pulled out his phone then started talking with emergency services.

Hyett gave up trying to find his mate by scent. Instead, he yanked the couch away from the wall, but his mate wasn’t behind it. “Check the rest of the house.”

“But we didn’t find anyone,” Ryker said.

“Check under beds, in closets, in crawl spaces. Hell, look under the bathroom sink,” Hyett snarled. “We don’t stop until we find my mate.”

As his brothers and dad searched the house, Hyett stood trying to think. Wesley had said he was at home. It had taken seventeen minutes to get there. What if his attacker had snatched him?

Hyett still couldn’t figure out why a demon had been here. He would have thought his mate was somehow mixed up with the preternatural, but you couldn’t fake the shocked reaction Wesley had had when Hyett had revealed he was a bear shifter. His mate had simply walked out into that field in a daze, no specific destination in mind.

Hyett had too many questions and jack shit for answers.

When he turned to go help with the search, something caught his eye. With his brows furrowed, Hyett walked over to the front door, which they’d left wide open when they’d barged in. Closing it, he discovered a closet behind it.

Inside were hanging coats and jackets and two rows of neatly lined shoes on the floor. To the right, the closet extended farther back. There was a stack of large plastic containers filled with what looked like Christmas decorations.

That’s when Hyett spotted an oddly angled shoe on top of the stack.

His heart raced with panic as he frantically tossed everything from the closet until he discovered his mate. Wesley must have climbed on top of the containers then slipped headfirst behind them to hide himself. “Found him!”

His father and brothers thundered into the room. Killian cursed as Quinton and Ryker snarled. Hyett heard an ambulance’s approach moments before the room was bathed in swirling lights.

“Don’t move him, son,” his dad advised. “You don’t know the extent of his injuries. Let the paramedics help him.”

Jaw clenched, Hyett sniffed deeply as he wiped away some stray tears with the back of his hand. “My mate is lying in a tangled mess on the floor of a closet, and you want me to just leave him like this?” he ground out.

He couldn’t even get a good look at Wesley’s face because he was too far back, but there was no mistaking the metallic smell of blood.

“Hyett, little bro, you have to move so the paramedics can get through the door. You’re blocking them.” Ryker tried to help him up, but something in Hyett’s mind snapped. He lunged to his feet and swung at his brother as pure impotent rage consumed him.

Ryker crashed into the wall behind him, creating a massive crater and causing drywall to crumble in a cascade of dust and debris. Framed pictures hit the floor as large cracks extended in every direction.

Bulky arms shackled Hyett from behind, locking his own arms at his sides. He tried to fight against the hold, but they were like bands of unrelenting steel. There was only one person who was capable of immobilizing him that swiftly and effectively.

“Reel your shit in,” his dad snarled close to Hyett’s ear.

“He was already disabled!” Hyett screamed, though the culprit wasn’t there to hear him. “You didn’t have to hurt him!”

Fire burned through his veins, leaving him feeling like scorched earth. Every muscle was taut and tense with only one outlet.

His bear was about to break free.

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