Hunter Betrayed Read Online Free PDF Page B

thinking
at the moment and answered him. “Mine is Harley.”
    “Harley.” Her name whispered in his rich accent sounded
sexy, something she never thought her unusual name could be.
    “Now explain to me your fear of the Hunt, Harley.”
    Was he kidding? “Are we talking about the same one? The
spectral procession of hounds and horses riding across the night sky?”
    “Yes, that’s the one.”
    She chuckled, the sound bitter and sad even to her own ears.
“Then the answer’s no way, Calan. I’m not releasing another evil entity to
torture the world. There’s enough here already.”
    “That is because the Huntsmen are not in your world to
curtail the activity of the fairies’ creatures.”
    “Curtail?”She glared at him. “What are you talking
about? The Wild Hunt is known as a group of horseman who kill everyone in their
path.”
    He growled. “Lies. All lies. Not once in all the years we’d
ridden had we ever caused the death of an innocent on purpose.”
    “On purpose?” She shook her head. “And that’s supposed to
convince me you’re not one of the bad guys too?”
    “Come to me and see for yourself that I’m not the evil one.”
    She held his gaze and asked the one question she’d always
posed to herself. “Aren’t we all evil?”
    “Everyone holds the potential for corruption, but people
like us must struggle to maintain our honor.”
    “Easy to say. Hard to do.”She closed her eyes as the
years of struggling to remain honorable weighed on her. She was tired, so very
tired of everything. “Is that the reason you saved me? So I could release you?”
    A long moment passed before he ran a fingertip down her
cheek. Her skin tingled and warmth spread. He dropped his hand before the
sensation could consume her.
    “Walk toward the lake and you will find me. Don’t be afraid.
I promise you. You’re safe with me.”
    With his assurance given, he faded. She stared at the spot
where he’d been and sighed. He’d never answered her. She supposed that in
itself was one.
    She was a means to an end.
    Dammit, after the hellish life she’d lived, didn’t she
deserve more?
     

Chapter Three
     
    At the impatient knocking, Harley scrunched her brow and
pulled the throw blanket over her face. The pounding continued to reverberate
through her head.
    “Open up. I know you’re in there.”
    Unsure of where she was, she swept her gaze over the room.
Dust sparkled in the afternoon sun. A bucket and mop stood against the wall and
a take-out bag sat on the coffee table. Awareness returned with a rush of
memories—Raul, Bea’s body and her ghost man.
    Another rap to the front door and she jumped.
    “Dammit, Harley, it’s Ian. Open the goddamn door.”
    Ian . The tension drained from her limbs. She threw
the blanket off and stood. “Hold on.”
    She rubbed at her achy lower back and made her way across
the room. At the mantle, she stopped mid-step. Her gaze darted to the picture
above it, the one she’d looked at countless times and had never really seen—a
charcoal sketch of a group of horsemen and their hounds racing feet above a
burning landscape.
    The Wild Hunt.
    Harley had never really understood why her mother had bought
it. She’d usually collected obscure scenes and objects.
    “Harley? Are you okay?” Ian asked through the closed door.
    She forced her attention from the picture and the
implications of her mother’s chosen subject.
    “I’m fine. You just woke me up.” She shuffled to the door,
unlocked it and flung it open.
    Ian stood there with a bunch of grocery bags. Tall, wide
shoulders, thick biceps and a beanie—he could’ve passed for a redcap, but she
knew better than to let the thought take hold. Ian was a good guy, one of the
few left. His girlfriend should consider herself damn lucky to have landed him.
    “What are you doing here?”
    He arched a brow, several shades darker than the wavy,
russet hair on his head. “Half the town is already talking about your return.
It