Chapter one

Ronny

Ihold the precious cargo in my arms as gently as possible, happy that these cats aren't squirming or trying to jump out of my arms. As soon as I'd seen the two of them, I knew I had to do something. One of them was just a baby and the other had a terrible limp. As I look down, I notice their leg is bloody.

"You poor thing," I murmur softly, holding them in one arm and using my free hand to pet their head. "Don't worry. I promise I'll take care of you."

As I carry them upstairs into Axel's apartment, I can't help but wonder if I should be calling a local vet or animal shelter. But the idea of giving these cats to someone instead of taking care of them myself fills my stomach with dread. I can't do that. It has to be me.

Being a hunter, I know a thing or two about basic first aid. I'm sure I can take care of this leg myself. I'm not only good with computers. Though if I'm honest, I'm not mad that I'm usually left in my camper instead of heading into the thick of hunts.

Our group's leader, Jeff, was recently turned into a vampire. He's come through the transformation with grace and more self-control I didn't even realize he possessed, and on top of that, he also has a vampire mate named Axel.

Mates are kind of a weird concept for me since I'm human through and through, but I can see the way these two have fallen for each other. Hell, Jeff was willing to do anything to protect Axel. A tiny part of my chest longs for something like that, a love so firm it transcends all understanding. But being a human means that's probably not something I'll ever experience. But a boy can dream.

My finger slides over the cat's head over and over until I'm not sure if it's more soothing for them or me. They lean into my touch which in turn, makes me smile.

I step into Axel's apartment, finding the living room completely deserted. There's a woman here, Star, smiling at me like she was waiting for me. She's a midwife who came to help Axel and Jeff bring their baby into the world. She feels special to me somehow but I can't really put my finger on it. Call it hunter intuition but I would be shocked if she was actually human.

I give her a smile, feeling a little out of place with her here. She deserves my respect, more so than a stranger. Not that that makes a lick of sense, but here we are.

"Found something outside, dear?"

I nod my head. "A couple of strays."

"You're not the only person I know who collects strays," she says with a wide smile. "And in their case, it worked out quite splendidly. I have a feeling this time will be no different."

"Umm," I murmur, not really knowing what I'm supposed to say to that. "Thank you?"

"You're welcome. And when the time is right, I'll find you again," she adds with a tiny wink before going into the bedroom. I follow behind, wanting to meet Jeff and Axel's new baby. At least, that's what I assume is happening in the bedroom.

"Ronny!" Martin greets, "Come meet Lily!"

I look around at my team, all gathered around the bed to meet our newest crewmate when the tiniest meow comes from the hoodie in my arms. I feel my face flush as all eyes point towards me.

"I umm, I might have found some new friends," I say sheepishly, just barely keeping myself from rubbing at the back of my neck, knowing that could lead to me dropping my precious bundle and that's the last thing I wanna do right now.

Carlos, the youngest of our hunting crew, steps over to me and I take a step back out of instinct. I'm not sure what the heck is going on with me right now. I know Carlos would never hurt an animal but everything inside of me is screaming for me to protect these cats, even from him. "Sorry," he says gently. "Just wanted to see."

"That's okay. Just be careful, they're hurt," I say, wanting him to understand. When Carlos nods, I gently pull back my hoodie, letting him see the cats.

Carlos' body goes tense before he's murmuring, "Ronny, they're--"

I cut him off. "Hurt. I know. I found them outside and I couldn't just let them go. So I grabbed them. I'll take good care of them." I look down at the cats, a small smile forming across my lips. I gently touch the adult cat who meows at me in response.

"Are you sure you wanna take them on the road with us, Ronny? I heard you found us a new job," Jeff says from his place on the bed beside Axel.

I nod my head, my brows furrowing. The idea of leaving these cats here makes me sick to my stomach. I can't leave them, I just can't. "I can take care of them, no worries, bossman."

Speaking of the job, I think back to the research that I've been doing. There's been some stories online about a wishing well that truly grants people's wishes. Which is all well and fun until someone wishes that someone's dead, or wishes that someone gets sick and it actually comes true. This will be a quick job by my calculations. We can find the well and put it through a cleansing ritual to destroy the magic being used to make these wishes come true. In and out as long as nothing complicates things.

In my experience, there's a solid fifty fifty chance of things being more complicated than they seem so we'll do our best to be prepared for anything.

I'll have to get Cooper on research as soon as possible. Cooper is our lore guy. He has books upon books upon books in his library. He's constantly adding to his collection with every single city we visit. He's not only book smart, but also fit to be out in the action if needs be.

If there's anything that could bring a wishing well to life, Cooper would be able to find it.

The newly made parents look down lovingly at their baby and something like longing hits me in the chest. I've never really been someone to dream about a partner and kids, but seeing how happy they are sparks something inside me. Maybe I would be a better dad than my own. Maybe I'd fall into the same supernatural trap that he did.

I shake my head, looking down at the cats tucked in my arms. The little one lets out a little snore as he sleeps while the adult cat stares up at me with wide, green eyes. I sneak out through the same door I'd come into, quickly finding Axel's bathroom.

"Okay," I whisper, looking through his cabinets and finding some cleaning supplies and some bandages. It seems Axel, despite being a vampire, had everything he might have needed to help someone in need. That's perfect because right now, that's exactly what I need to help my little furry friends.

I lay them both in the sink, making sure my hoodie cushions them nicely before getting to work cleaning up the wounds on the adult cat. I'm careful as I move, doing my best to make this as painless as possible. The poor thing has been hurt enough, I don't need to accidentally add to that.

"There we go," I whisper, using the bandages and wrapping them around the cat's paw. "All better for now. We'll check it in a few days and clean it as needed." I feel silly talking to the cat but I can't stop myself from doing it, hoping they'll somehow understand my intent. "We're gonna be loading you up into my RV for a road trip. I hope that's alright."

Those giant green eyes meet mine and I swear they give me a nod in understanding. I tilt my head to the side and they copy the gesture. Huh. Weird.

Before I can think more about it, Martin is knocking on the door to check on me. After assuring him that everything is alright, the four of us, Martin, Carlos, Cooper, and myself, head back to our RVs for the night to give the new parents some privacy with Lily.