Page 30 of Hansen

“Hansen?Davey?”

“I don’t know, Evan.”

* * * *

THERE WAS ONE THINGto be said about Hansen’s ability—it was helpful to spy on hunters and sneak into labs, but it was less useful when you had to fight a bunch of hunters no one had expected to be there.

He punched a hunter coming at him and ducked when another tried to stab him.He turned to face the second hunter, but Teddy was already there, exploding the hunter’s hand with his ability.The man screamed and clutched his arm to his chest as he stumbled back.

Hansen grimaced.“Was that really necessary?”

Teddy gave him an unimpressed look.“Would you have preferred getting stabbed?”

“It’s messy.”

“You’re jealous you can’t explode things.”

Hansen grinned.“I am.”

Teddy smiled back, but it didn’t last long.They both turned toward more hunters coming.Hansen wondered if they were ever going to end.

He didn’t know what had happened, but the people in the facility they were in had expected them to attack.Maybe they’d heard about other labs the mutants had raided, or maybe they were protecting something big they did here.Either way, between the guards and the hunters, the mutants were in trouble.

It was a good thing they had tricks up their sleeves.If they hadn’t been mutants, they would’ve been defeated.As it was, they were holding their own, and if Hansen wasn’t mistaken, the tide was turning in their favor.It was just happening a little too slowly for him to be comfortable with.

He grimaced when a hunter mummified in front of his eyes.Davey used the water he’d stolen from the hunter’s body and wrapped it around a guard’s head, causing him to claw at his face to try to breathe.Hansen turned away.He’d seen this scene several times before, and it was never easy to deal with.It was necessary, but it didn’t mean he wanted to watch.

His ability wasn’t going to help him in this situation, and while he was doing a good enough job in his human form, he’d have an easier time if he shifted.He didn’t usually shift on raids because it made communicating with the others more complicated, but he felt that today was a good day to do so.It would be easier for him to defend his fellow mutants and himself if he had claws and fangs.

He kicked a hunter in the back of the knee as he walked past, headed for the corner of the room.He needed a few seconds to shift, and he didn’t want any of the hunters to attack him while he did so.

Olga nodded at him and punched a hunter.Thankfully, the man didn’t get back to his feet after he slumped to the floor, so Hansen had plenty of time to let his lion out.

He didn’t bother taking his clothes off.He was wearing one of the uniforms they wore on raids, so it wasn’t like he’d miss them.Well, he probably would once he needed to shift back, but that could be easily dealt with.In the meantime, he’d put his lion to work.

He roared as soon as he was shifted.He saw a few of the hunters jump and grinned, pleased when one of them whimpered and lost control of his bladder.That one wasn’t going to last long.Frankly, it was a small miracle that he was still here and hadn’t run away screaming as soon as he’d seen the mutants.

Hansen snapped his teeth at the hunter, who screamed and turned to run.Hansen disliked letting any of the hunters escape, but it would be better if he focused on the ones still fighting.

He caught a guard by the calf and pulled him away from Elsa.The man screamed as Hansen’s fangs sank into his flesh.Hansen disliked the taste of blood, but it was still satisfying to know that he was fighting hunters and avenging his mate.

There was no way to know if any of the hunters and the guards here had ever hurt Evan, but Hansen had decided that they might as well have.These people were all the same.They sacrificed human lives for money and their own interests, and that was enough for him to despise every single one of them.

Hansen lost count of how many hunters he dealt with.He worked his way through the room, helping the other mutants who needed it.He didn’t realize that meant he got separated from his group until he found himself stepping into a side room.

The room was lined with cages, most of them occupied.He desperately wanted to free the people inside, but he couldn’t do it now.They needed to take care of the hunters before they could help anyone because freeing them with so many hunters around would be dangerous.

Hansen forced himself to ignore the cries for help and turned to return to the main room when his gaze stopped on a guard.The man was standing in the middle of the hallway between the cages and pointing his gun at Hansen.He smelled like fear.

Hansen slowly faced the guard.He was wearing a uniform, like the others, but he was sweating, and there was a long gash on his arm that had cut through his shirt.He was bleeding, but he held the gun steadily.Hansen was pretty sure that if he tried jumping the guy, he’d get shot, and if that happened, Evan wouldn’t be happy.

He stayed as still as he could, wondering what he should do.He couldn’t talk the guard down in this form, and while he wasn’t looking forward to being naked as he tried to reason with man, it would be better than growling at him.

Hansen shifted back to his human form.He stood tall, not caring about his nakedness.He noticed the guard’s eyes widen, and the man quickly looked over Hansen’s shoulder.

“What are you doing?”the guard asked.

Hansen raised his hands.“I just want to talk to you.”

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