Eclipsed Hearts

Unmasking Gino

[Ian]

Gino’s confident, condescending mask slipped, and I could see the person underneath for a moment. It didn’t make him any less of a disgusting pedo aѕѕhole. It didn’t mean he was worthy of saving or redemption. No amount of remorse for a single hit was going to change anything about how I felt.

“That’s my thinking. I’m one of them when I’m on a hunt. You were hired to kill a family?”

“My first, not my last. I got better as I went on. It should’ve been easier to not see them as people, though. They were hunters. Damsons if my intel was correct, which it always was. Not the name they went by, though. An adult male, adult female, teen female, and adolescent female. No other hunters lived nearby.

“It seemed like a setup. Over the course of a week, I observed them closely and learned their schedule, just like I did with you and your family. They were your average family, and I never saw them hunt once. They were just ordinary people, but a bit more alert.

“For a while, I thought I had the wrong family, but my contact gave me the info about when to go after them. It happened just like they said, so I knew it was definitely them. They had a visitor and I did it after the guy left their house.

“The girls went to get ready for bed, Dad went to take the garbage out, and Mom washed dishes. Some people would’ve gone for the dad first, but I knew better. I went after Mom in the kitchen.

“She fought back but didn’t scream until I managed to get a hit in. It was enough to bring Dad running, but I was ready for him. His wife was knocked out and he didn’t have any trained backup. At that moment, I wasn’t a hired gun. I was the vengeance of all the werewolves they’d killed when they weren’t playing happy family.”

He described the rest of the attack, but I tried not to listen. For all that I thought I would want to hear about a hunter family getting killed the same way they killed our people, I kept thinking about the twins and Mari. She had to have been the same age they were and had done nothing but be born into a hunter family.

“The older sister begged after I finished with the parents. She said she’d do whatever to get me to leave her little sister alone. Said the little girl never harmed anyone and begged for her sister’s life. I’m not entirely heartless. I made the older one help me take the parents to the place I was supposed to dump them. Then I made sure she paid for her sister’s life for a few hours before I killed her too,” he chuckled darkly and adjusted himself, his hand lingering longer than it needed to for the task.

Goddess, there was no way Mari knew about any of this. I wouldn’t be the one to tell her that. If it happened to one of my older siblings, I wouldn’t be grateful for that knowledge.

“What made you regret that one? You said this is the one you regretted.”

“I regretted taking my time with big sister. On my way back to spend a little time with baby sis before offing her too, I was contacted and told three was enough. As I approached, I noticed cars in front of the house. I regret not getting the chance to eliminate their entire family. I realized I needed to prioritize work over pleasure. After that, I didn’t screw up again. Every target I was after met their end,” Gino replied.

He plotted to rape and murder my mate, possibly using the same tactic he used on her sister. Mari had no idea how lucky she was.

Hunters might be heartless aѕѕholes, but they didn’t do that. At least, I’d never heard of it from the hunters I hunted with or the werewolves I’d encountered. I felt disgusted at even being near the bastard.

“You let her get away?”

“I kept tabs on her for a while, but the person who took her lost me when I was tailing them. She’s gotta be a few years younger than her mom was when I killed her. I wonder if she’s as hot. Too bad I won’t get to be the one who kills her,” he said wistfully.

“You know that for a fact?” I asked.

“Yeah. I’ve heard things. She’s got a bounty on her head again. When it comes to killing, I’m no longer in the game. Time to settle down with Violet and Jaden. So tell me yours. What kill do you regret?”

I hesitated for a moment, considering my response. There was one kill that still haunted me, even years after the fact. The only one I really regretted.

“Ianto Thornwood. I regret killing him and taking his life. I regret living as a hunter and becoming a monster like you. If I could go back in time, I wouldn’t have done it,” I answered honestly.

Any other answer wouldn’t have worked. I’d always ensured that I didn’t do anything that would make me a true traitor to my people. I never attacked packs or families. Usually, they would buy it if I told them about a personal conflict or logistical conflict.

“A monster like me?”

“I said what I fuсking said. You have a problem with that?” I asked, looking out at the water.

“No. I know what I am. Looks like you know what you are. So, why are you really here? Following me? Here to threaten me? Wanting to scare me off?” He chuckled darkly.

“It was time to make contact now that I’d observed you long enough. It’s what you would have done. Right?”

“True. I figured I’d be reaching out to you soon if you hadn’t reached out to me. Now, I want you to tell me honestly, are you even slightly considering my proposal?” Gino pressed.

In the distance, I could see the island coming closer. Peace came over me and I breathed in deeply. There was only one chance to make him believe this. I prayed to the goddess to help me.

“There’s a chance. Your answer pissed me off, but I can understand it. You do what you have to do, but I don’t like that you used that girl and were planning to use a child the same way. If you’re going to join my pack, you’ll need to show me that you’re going to be a good and faithful mate to Violet and Jaden. As my Beta, I’ll need to trust you.

“I’m going to need to test you a little more. You know how hard it is to trust other people after being on your own for so long. This isn’t going to be a quick process. If you can do it, then perhaps you’ll join us. But if you screw up, you’ll be back on your own.”

I watched Gino carefully, gauging his reaction. When I’d said it, I put every ounce of my belief in it. He seemed to consider what I was saying.

“Yeah, I think I can do that,” he replied. “I’ll prove myself and you’ll get yourself the best Beta in the country. Now, what’s my next challenge to prove myself to you?”

“I’ll need to think about that a little. I have to assess what you need to show me to prove that you’ll be a good Beta. There’s no one for you to fight for that position, so I can’t have you challenge for it like you normally would.”

He nodded. That definitely made sense to anyone who hadn’t been in the pack system for a long time. He didn’t realize that we didn’t meet the minimum for a full pack. We only had our pack bond because me and the pups had all been in the same pack and stuck together.

Stringing him along like this would be good. I hated the idea of letting him think I would let his sick aѕѕ anywhere around Violet or Jaden, but I had to do it to lure him where we needed him. The plan would have to change, but this could be a very good thing.

If I could get him into a position where we could kill him without risk to our lives… no… my life. Without a risk to my life.

Suddenly, I realized that my answer to the most regretted kill question was going to change in the coming weeks. After what Gino told me about killing Mari’s family and his plans for her, I knew what she suffered. The thought of killing her hurt me more than it had in the last few days.

If a werewolf hadn’t killed her family, would she even be a hunter right now?

I looked down at the lower deck and saw her sitting on a bench, reading a book, and acting as if she wasn’t freezing her aѕѕ off. She stretched her back, turning her neck to the left and arching. Goddess, she was beautiful.

The callousness I’d had earlier was gone. Mari was still a threat to my family, but I wouldn’t do anything else to harm her. She still had to die, but it would be quick. It was the least I could do.