Love And Honour (Book 2)

Chapter XXIII

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Hunter returns to the cottage and finds it empty. He searches each room, looking for a note or a clue to where his brother could possibly have gone. His fingers rake through his hair as he stands motionless in the kitchen, panic settling in the pit of his stomach. He should never have left; he should never have stormed away. He remembers Zara's words. She questioned why he was not protecting his brother. Hunter groans. Did she know something that he did not? He should have returned in that moment. He should have thought over her words.

Hunter grabs his bow and arrow and marches outside. He pauses, unsure of which direction he should head off to first. He turns towards the Ricell manor; it seems to be the obvious choice. He keeps his eyes peeled for any suspicious behaviour but no one appears to be out around here at this time of the day. Then he spots someone with their back to him. They seem to be muttering to themselves. Hunter strides over, grabs the man's shoulder and spins him round to face him. The man jumps, his glasses slipping from off his nose and falling to the ground.

"You heard of Logan Usani?" Hunter asks, his eyes glinting. The man nods and tries to pull back but Hunter has a good tight grip on the front of his shirt. "Have you seen him coming this way?"

"No." The man shakes his head and glances down, checking his glasses have not been trodden on or broken.

"Put him down!" A small voice orders. Hunter briefly glances its way and he releases the man. "Frederick, are you well? Did he harm you?" She quickly questions the young man who rolls his crystal blue and quickly retrieves his glasses. He slips them back onto his face and regards Hunter warily.

"Is this another of your Usani friends?" He ignores her questions. Dawn chews on her cheek as she looks at Hunter. There is no doubt in her mind that he was the one that left her in a deep slumber at the edges of the forest. She tries to convince herself that she should not fear him but his dark aura makes it difficult. He would have done it to defend Logan but she was not a threat.

At least he did not kill her.

"He...erm..." She exhales softly. "Not exactly." Frederick frowns and touches her arm. "You were there the night Logan escaped were you not?" She asks Hunter.

He nods. "I was, I apologise for my actions but you should not have seen us."

Frederick's eyes widen as he realises what had happened. He nudges his glasses up again. "Dawn and I must go. I hope you find Logan Usani." He takes her arm but she shakes him off, her tiny nose wrinkling up with annoyance. She does not particularly want to be manhandled.

"You are looking for Logan? I can take you to see if you wish." Dawn speaks and Hunter accepts. She whistles and her dog comes charging over to them from quite a distance. Hunter immediately crouches down and plays with Tommy. Dawn smiles at the dog's excited whining and little barks. Tommy rolls over, pushing up his belly. Hunter grins, a genuine grin that makes his hard features softer and quite stunning. Then he remembers his intention and stands and gestures for Dawn to show the way. From the way he spoke Logan could not be in any danger.

Dawn leads him closer to the manor but stops at the foot of a nearby hill. "He should be still up there." She comments quietly before turning and walking away.

"Thank you." Hunter calls out to her and she offers a bright smile in return. He trudges up the hill until he gets to the top. Logan kneels down on one knee his head bent beside a grave. Hunter slowly walks up, careful not to be disrespectful or distracting. He stands off to the side and waits. He reads the engraving.

Jasiel lies here, a cherished son and a beloved brother.

Hunter bows his head. Logan stands and pats him on the shoulder. Hunter lifts his head and sees the sadness in Logan's eyes. "I never got the chance to come here before. I just wish I could have saved him." Logan glances back at the stone. He gulps. "He did not deserve to die so young."