Dylan rubbed his cheek, squeezing his eyes shut beneath his glasses. “It’s the only plan we have,” he said. “But I agree with the others—you shouldn’t go alone. One of us should go with you.”
I did not like that addition to my plan, because it meant the pack would be gathered slower. “I should meet him alone.”
A muscle in Forest’s stubbly jaw ticked, tightening before he muttered, “The last time you had a grand plan involving Clay, he brought you somewhere else. What’s to stop him from doing it again?”
“This is the end,” I muttered. “There’s no point. I’m sure he just wants to finish this as much as I do.” The final showdown. The last stand. Whatever anyone wanted to call it, it was most definitely the end to mine and Clay’s story.
One way or another, this was it, and I’d do everything in my power to fight him.
To kill him.
When no one said anything else, I added, “What other options do we have?” We could always sit and twiddle our thumbs, wait for Clay to come to us, but that was basically just waiting to die. I would rather go down fighting, just like I knew the others would.
Sarah fumbled with something in her pocket. Her phone. “I can try to call Arthur, see if there are any updates—”
I nodded. “Good. Stay here and try to get him.” I looked to the others—to my mates, to my alpha. All watched me with bated breath, expressions heavy. “Everyone else, round up the pack.” I fought to keep my voice steady, not sure if it worked or not. After what Clay had done to me, after making me see things, dream things, after torturing me for days, I knew what he was capable of, and I knew the pain he could inflict with no hesitation whatsoever.
Knowing just made it worse, but I would not let it deter me.
This was the beginning of the end.
The next few minutes passed in a blur. I felt my mom hug me, heard her whisper comforting words, but I didn’t really hear them, didn’t feel her arms around me. I was already numbing myself for what was to come. Clay would make me hurt, I knew, and I had to be ready. What better way to be ready than to be numb?
Still bootless, I moved to the front porch, gazing out at the impeccably cared for lawn, glancing at the other houses on the street. Crystal Lake housed over two hundred shifters and their human mates. Caitlin and her newborn, Maze and Dylan, Landon and Forest, all the other shifters who were nameless to me but like family nonetheless.
I would fight for them all.
I could smell my mates exit the house behind me before I heard them. They all walked with a quietness, soundless predators. Their presence was enough to keep my mind off the fact that I had a twin, and that my twin was in danger.
One problem at a time.
“I should go,” I spoke softly, knowing the longer I remained here, the more likely it was Clay would lash out. As long as I was distracting him, well, at least I’d know he wasn’t hurting anyone else.
God, when the hell did I become so self-sacrificing? I didn’t want a hero complex, but it seemed I had one regardless.
What a crazy life I had, huh? First, I lived nearly twenty years of my life magic and wolf free, and then, with a sudden spurt of anger and a levitated book, everything had changed. I’d found out shifters were real, witches and warlocks were real. Then I found out I shouldn’t even be alive, since my father was the high warlock of power—one of only seven high warlocks in the entire world. All the mess between my parents and Odon…
My life was a whirlwind and a shit show put together.
Strong hands moved to my waist, spinning me to face their owner. The tall alpha himself, his blue eyes stern and just a tad on the irate side. “I don’t like you marching into danger, Addie,” he said, the timbre of his voice—rough and low and deep—sending tingles down my spine.
I could listen to him talk for hours, and that said nothing about how amazing his hands felt on my sides, his fingers pressing into my skin with just the right amount of pressure.
As I gazed up at him, I couldn’t stop thinking about how different this was. The last time I’d wanted to go to Clay, he’d tried to take back his actions and his words, tried to be a better man or some crap since he was older than me and kind-of-but-not-really had a history with my mom. Now there was no pulling back on his part, no take-backsies.
“Don’t worry, you’re not alone,” I said, reaching for his neck. I forced him down, pressing my lips against his cheek before pulling away. Maze, Dylan, Landon—I gave them all chaste pecks on the cheeks, quickly dodging their greedy hands before they could pull me back in and demand more. “You’ll get more after,” I told them. “A little incentive.”
Incentive for both them and me, because after shifting, being one with my wolf, I wanted to ignore all of my responsibilities and spend the next few hours getting to know each and every one of my mates in every single way possible. The sounds they made, whether they liked it rough or gentle…I grew excited just thinking about it.
The moment before marching to my enemy was not the best time to make myself horny.
I took a step back from them, slowly moving down to the grass. No blood or body parts in sight. I stared at my group of men, my wolves and my mates, and my heart grew full. Happy. It was not a feeling I’d ever get used to, not something I ever thought I’d have, but I would fight for them, for my future self.
Honestly, Clay had no clue how many things I had in my life to fight for. Knowing I had a twin, a sister, was just another one.
“Let’s get this over with,” I muttered, mostly to myself, as I spun on my heel and started walking away, the grass coarse against the soles of my bare feet. One of them would probably follow me, but I would ignore them, pretend I didn’t know. It would be easier that way.
Marching headfirst into danger wasn’t fun, but it became easier as time went on. Hopefully this wouldn’t be my last time. With any luck, I’d live through this encounter and be able to march into danger again tomorrow, should the situation call for it.
Chapter Twenty-Five – Addie
My walk to the lake was both short and long. Short because a part of me still dreaded facing Clay again, and long because of the exact same reason. I just wanted to get it over with, tired of the waiting, more than tired of the constant danger that came with being in Crystal Lake while Clay was still at large.
The business with Clay had to be handled for once and for all, so I—along with everyone in the pack—could move on with our lives.
The thing I most looked forward to now was the claiming. Go figure.
My bare feet drew me through the park, and I slowed my pace when I came upon the wide shore of Crystal Lake. Its waters were clean and clear, sparkling with the sun overhead. Not a single drop of blood anywhere to be seen, but I knew that would change soon enough. The very same moment Clay showed his painted face, probably.
My feet in the rocky sand, I glanced around. I didn’t see anyone else, so I sluggishly drew myself to the dock, walking carefully on its wooden planks to avoid getting splinters. There was nothing worse than a splinter from old, weathered wood.
Well, except for mental torture, but that should go without saying.
As the breeze rolled by, I crossed my arms. I felt naked without my boots and my jean jacket, even though the temperature was nice and warm, comfortable in every way. Eh. I supposed my arms could use some sunlight, seeing as how they were usually hidden behind sleeves. I closed my eyes and waited.
I didn’t have to wait long, for the wooden dock creaked under me, and a new presence stood beside me, gazing out at the lake with eyes as black as night. “I always did think this place was too pretty for the shifters,” Clay said. “Wolves are predators. How can they truly appreciate the beauty of nature around them?”
I turned my head, stunned to see Clay beside me, wearing his usual black and red suit, but no face paint. His black hair, normally greased and slicked back like some biker wannabe, hung in a mess to the side. Without the black paint and the white stripe down his
face, he looked…young. Maybe late twenties.
“It sounds like you’re appreciating it,” I said, trying to keep my cool. Almost immediately, my wolf wanted to get out. I had to uncross my arms and have my hands hang so I wouldn’t scratch myself with my half-transformed claws. “And I’d call you a predator.”
“I am actually just a worker bee,” Clay said. “Not a predator in and of myself. Who I work for, now he is the true predator.”
My jaw tensed. “Odon.”
“Yes, Odon.” Clay let out a laugh, stilted as it was. “He’s not happy with me letting you go—although I did try to defend myself, but it was hard to stop you with a broken neck.” As if remembering, he tilted his neck to each side, cracking it loudly both times. “Like I said before, daddy’s not here to save you this time.”
He turned to face me, and I felt a growl rising out of my chest. As he turned to look at me, black enveloped his flesh, magic personified into color. So his black skin, the white line down its center, was not from paint, but from magic? I didn’t even have time to blink before his dark eyes flashed red. Clay reached a hand out, waving goodbye with his other, pushing me off the dock and into the water.
As I tumbled over, I heard a howl from the shore—Maze, trying and hoping desperately to come to my rescue, but it was too late. The water took me in, swallowed me up with no hesitation. My eyes were open, alerting me to the fact the water’s clear depths had turned a murky red, the color of the death priest’s magic.
I sank faster than I should’ve, and despite how hard and how fast I kicked my legs, I continued to sink. Something boney and hard grabbed my ankle, holding onto me with a strength I couldn’t deny. I moved my head in the water, kicking at whatever it was. To my horror, it was the hand of a skeleton. Eyeless, soulless, only moving in the water because of Clay’s magic.
The skeletal hand tightened, the fingers curling into my ankle with a strength that could probably crack bones. I would’ve screamed, but I was underwater, and drowning was not the way I wanted to go. I held in my cry of pain, fighting the skeleton with my free foot.
The water around me flashed a blinding red, and I had to squeeze my eyes shut. My other foot connected to the skeleton’s head, severing the head from the rest of the body, and still the skeleton held on. No matter how I kicked and moved, the hand around my ankle was like iron.
This was bad. Just like the last time I’d taken a dip in the lake—also unwillingly—I struggled for air. The only thing I wanted to do in that moment was swim to the top and breathe in a huge, deep gulp of air. The release of my lungs would be sweet. Unfortunately, it was the one thing I couldn’t do, the one thing the vast space of water around me stopped me from doing.
I tried to climb, but the skeleton would not let me go. And then, slowly but surely, I became aware of yet another thing that was trying to kill me. Not only did the water threaten to invade my lungs, but it also started to sear, its temperature rising until I felt my skin start to bubble. Clay was covering all his bases here.
Something innate took over—my wolf.
My skin, bubbling as it was, sprouted fur, the shape of my body shifting into that of my wolf, all within seconds. A tail, a snout, claws on my toes and fingers, which were now more like paws. I tore through my clothes as I turned, the shredded fabric floating down. Even after I’d turned, I kept my eyes squeezed shut in fear the water would fry them instantly.
Shifting into my wolf was all I needed to yank my foot away from the headless skeleton. With a vigor I didn’t know I was capable of, I kicked and swam towards the surface, the water temperature rising with each passing second. My fur felt like it was on fire, my entire body ready to either explode or give in, which said nothing about the state of my lungs…
My snout made it above the water, and through my nostrils, I inhaled a gigantic breath. The new air lent enough strength for me to climb onto the dock and shake myself off. I was slow, sluggish due to almost being boiled alive, but I was still here, and Clay would pay for that.
I claws dug into the wood, and I opened my eyes. My heart nearly stopped at the sight of Maze on his side and Clay slowly getting to his feet, clutching a blood-soaked dagger he hadn’t held onto before I went under.
The death priest’s arm was bloodied and torn up; Maze had a jump on him, but the advantage didn’t last long. I remembered how Clay could summon weapons from thin air; it was undoubtedly how he’d gotten the dagger.
And he’d hurt Maze with it.
Maze was in pain, and he wasn’t moving, his wolfish form completely still.
As I pictured all the ways I could tear the death priest apart, Clay straightened his back, turning to face me with a smile. His eyes were still red, and my ears heard the lake starting to evaporate behind me.
“Well, would you look at that,” Clay mused. “You managed to get out. I’d be impressed, if I wasn’t so damn annoyed at your persistence—” As he spoke, Maze whined, struggling to stand on all fours. “I give props to you though, if it means anything.”
With each word he spoke, I inched closer, my upper lip risen to bare my wolfish teeth. Tail puffed out, hackles risen; I was every bit a wolf now. An animal hellbent on protecting my mate, and—I could smell them in the air—I would not be alone for long.
“You know,” Clay added, “I think I’ll kill him, and then I’ll kill you.”
He was barely able to get the threat out before the pack arrived, multiple groups of strong, growling wolves led by Forest, who was immediately flanked by Landon and Dylan. Most of the pack’s adult males, a few smaller females from what I could see, all baring their fangs and looking as menacing as a pack of animals could possibly be.
Clay narrowed his eyes at me. He didn’t even turn to look at the pack before he used his dagger-free arm as a spellslinger. With a single wave of his hand and a brighter flash of his red eyes, a great wall of red fire erupted behind him, spreading across the shore of the lake, effectively blocking out the large pack on the other side. Forest barked at his fellow wolves, stopping them from throwing themselves at the wall of magic. They’d only burn.
“Now, while I admire the thought, this is kind of too sweet for my taste,” Clay said. “I think it’s time to end it, don’t you?” He stepped closer to Maze.
No. He would not drain another shifter dry.
I ran for him, lunging for him once I was close enough. Clay whirled on me, dragging his dagger across my cheek as he used his magic to toss me aside. Pain shot down my face, a growl rumbling from my throat as I flew back.
I dug my claws into the rocky sand, stopping myself before I rolled into the magic wall of flames. It burned bright behind me, separating me from the pack, over one hundred feet high, brighter than the sun itself.
The pain from the dagger faded fast, the adrenaline pumping through my veins helping with that. All I could see was Clay hunching over Maze. He turned, glancing over his shoulder at me, waggling his fingers in a sort of toodle-loo gesture. The tips of his fingers had already turned part skeleton from his magic use, the lower parts of his fingers nothing but visible muscles and tendons.
I knew it in my heart of hearts: Clay was going to drain Maze to replenish himself.
I let out a growl, but bones erupted through the rocky sand, grabbing hold of my paws, keeping hold of me, not letting me rush to Maze’s defense. No matter how much I struggled, it was useless. The bones would not let me go, and I was not in a good position to fight them, laying on my belly.
I would’ve called out to Maze had I been human, but I wasn’t. I was a wolf, and I still wasn’t sure how shifting worked.
The pain I’d felt from the boiling lake was nothing compared to the ache in my heart as I pictured Clay taking Maze’s lifeforce as his own, twisting and stealing it. I would never forgive myself if I did nothing while Clay murdered him and made him number twenty-five.
I wrestled with myself, focusing on pulling back my humanity as I tried to shift. I was so lost in myself I barely heard Clay whi
sper a confused, “What the hell? What’s going on here?” He turned to me, standing and stumbling away from Maze, who remained injured but whole. “What did you do?”
His hand, I noticed, was still skeletal and ghastly. Even more so, actually. Almost as if…
Well, almost as if Arthur and Zak had pulled through.
The spark of hope rising inside me was all I needed to pull myself together, even with the pain. I shifted into my human form—almost instantly this time. The others weren’t lying when they said it became easier and faster.
I came to on my hands and knees, and the skeletal hands below the surface of the rocky sand released me the same moment Clay grabbed my throat with his disgusting, gory hand and hoisted me into the air.
“You…” Clay whispered, unable to say much more. The dagger he held onto faded into nothing, the wall of magic starting to dwindle as the further up his hand the loss of skin crawled.
“Looks like you’re—” I grimaced, struggling to get out each word. my feet were off the ground, and I kicked uselessly at the air, gasping for breath. My skin, at least, felt a little better after the shift, less boiled. I was naked, but now was not the time to freak out about that. “—not serving death anymore.”
As I spoke the final words, I felt my rage building. He was seconds away from sucking Maze’s life out; it was something I could never forgive. Claws grew out of my fingers, though I did not fully shift.
A partial shift, something I’d seen Forest do in the cabin’s clearing, when we were digging up the graves.
A partial shift was all I needed.
I brought my partially-shifted hand to his neck, digging my claws into his flesh. It gave way, as black as it was. Clay was too entranced in his hand, in his pain, to stop me. Blood sprayed out of the claw wounds, and he dropped me, moving his one intact hand to his throat, to try to stop the blood.
Catching myself on my feet, I glared at him. my claws dripped in his blood—weird, because his blood was red like everyone else’s, yet he always acted so special. Clay was nothing but a madman, and this was the end he deserved.
Crystal Lake Pack: The Complete Series: A Reverse Harem Shifter Romance Page 55
