Banewolf (Dark Siren Book 2)

by Eden Ashley

  “I’ll get right on it,” War said but didn’t move.

  Shannon blinked, jerking her head sideways to Kali. “Those reports, please.”

  Kali sipped at the hot liquid and nodded, totally confused by the bizarre exchange. Her new supervisor finally strode away, turning heads as she crossed the office space.

  “Who let her out of the loony bin?”

  Apparently, War had muttered the question before Shannon was completely out of earshot. The intern threw another glare over shoulder. War responded with a friendly wave.

  “Why did you do that?”

  “Rhane said I couldn’t punch anyone, so I’m trying to hit her with kindness. But it isn’t nearly as satisfying.”

  “I meant—why did you come over?”

  “Oh.” War shrugged. “I didn’t like the way she got in your face.”

  Finding his concern genuinely touching, Kali smiled and patted his cheek lightly. “I think she’s harmless.”

  War nodded but looked hesitant.

  “What is it?”

  “She kind of reminded me of Cal.” He wrinkled his nose.

  “Now I’m confused. What are you talking about?”

  “I shouldn’t say. Maybe it’s nothing, but…something seems off about her.”

  Kali recalled how Shannon’s bright blue eyes had darkened with hatred just before the bus driver stabbed her. “Okay. This also might be nothing, but…” she edged closer to War, “I think Shannon might know what I am. We know she schemed with Mack to sell me to the Reapers. But she said he’d done it to save lives…millions of lives. Then Mack had second thoughts because he was afraid I might get hurt…” Her voice trailed as she remembered the night in the hotel room and how tortured Mack had been. Go figure. The guy actually had a conscience that almost stopped him from selling her to the highest bidder like a kidney on the black market.

  “Okay. That isn’t ‘nothing.’ Didn’t you tell Rhane all of this?”

  “No, not really.” Kali sighed. “I told him they were responsible for arranging the deal. But then we thought Shannon was dead, so the rest didn’t matter. But then Wes said they’d found her alive and she was babbling stuff about monsters.” Kali realized she was probably explaining things too fast but couldn’t slow down. “Shortly after that, I was attacked in the woods and really freaked out. Then I eavesdropped on your secret meeting and started getting really frustrated with Rhane for not being honest with me. After that I found the book and Gabriel came to town and crap got out of hand and then Rhane was gone.” She took a deep breath. “I’ve been back, but I’ve been so busy trying to get my life together to some semblance of normalcy that I haven’t thought about that panicky little conversation with Shannon.” She poured another cup of coffee and tried to make her hand stop shaking.

  “I think I got all of that,” War joked. Then he brushed his fingers across the top of Kali’s hand. “It’s okay. I’ll tell Rhane, and we’ll handle it.”

  “I know you guys want to charge in and investigate. But before you call him, give me a chance to talk to her. Watch us as closely as you want to, but I need to do this. I am going to do this.”

  “Kali—”

  “Come on, Red. Just give me a couple of days.”

  War was leaning over to collect the trash, but stood up abruptly as she’d called him “Red.” He shook his head slowly. “I can’t do that. I’m already in hot water with Rhane. I can’t screw this assignment up.”

  “Wait until the end of the day. That’s only four hours,” Kali pleaded.

  He bit his lip. “Officially, I advise you to stay away from her. But I won’t make you. Rion and I aren’t checking in until an hour before your shift ends. When Rhane calls, I’ll have to tell him.”

  “Okay.” She smiled and continued to do so even as War went to find Shannon’s trash bin. Three hours wasn’t a lot, but maybe it would be enough.

  Chapter 32

  Kali walked down the hallway to Mack’s office, precariously balancing a cup of coffee while she pondered what to say to Wesley—the man who had been her closest confidant since the death of her real parents. He was on the phone when she entered, looking as if he belonged in Mack’s chair, but not in a good way. Worry lines and stern creases had surrounded his mouth and eyes, aging him ten years. Kali couldn’t remember ever seeing him so stressed.

  When Wes spied her with the coffee, his entire face lit up. Five of the ten years yielded to a boyish smile and his charming blue eyes. Kali put the mug on the desk and took a seat. She wondered if those charming blue eyes had been lying to her all along. Nothing happened in the office that Wesley didn’t know about. Yes, he’d said Mack had been very secretive about the deal for The Siren’s Heart, but if Shannon knew, how could Wes have not? And if Wesley had known Mack’s intent to sell her to the Reapers, then he had been complicit in a scheme that could have ended her life. Kali shook her head.

  No. It wasn’t possible. Wes was her friend. And he had been her father’s best friend. There was no way he could have knowingly committed such an act of betrayal. Still…Kali got the feeling Wes knew more than he was telling. She pasted a smile on her face that didn’t reach her eyes as he hung up the phone. “This desk is really beginning to suit you.”

  He made a face. “If your expression wasn’t so grim, I might think you were paying me a compliment.”

  “Is it so obvious?”

  He nodded. “What’s troubling you? I’d hoped your first day back was going okay.”

  Thinking about Shannon, Kali shrugged. “It’s alright. My life is probably never going to be normal again anyway.”

  He forced out a chuckle. “Why would you say that?”

  “Why would you lie to me?” she blurted.

  Jerking away from the mug as if it had bit him, Wes’s mouth parted in what looked like genuine shock and confusion. “Kali, what’s going on? Tell me.”

  “Things are sorta finally starting to settle down and sink in. So, I’ve had time to think. And the more I think about you and your role in things…the less sense it makes.”

  Very carefully, he set the mug on the table. “You’re still not telling me anything.”

  “Wes, please be honest. Did you know Mack planned to sell me to those monsters?”

  “Monsters? Kalista, what on earth are you talking about?”

  Dang it. Too late she realized her blunder. Monsters probably hadn’t been the best word to use.

  “Kali?” Wes called softly.

  “At the airport and even before then, at the coffee shop, you were acting so weird. It was almost as if you knew something bad was going to happen.”

  “Kali, I told you how Mack was handling things, keeping me out of the loop. I told you about the secrecy. And I admitted that the situation gave me a bad feeling. But it’s all I had—a feeling. That’s why I kept warning you to be careful.”

  What he said was true. And it made sense. “But how could Shannon have known so much more than you? You know everything that goes on around here.”

  “Well, the answer to that is easy. She looks better in a short skirt.” Wes stood up. Walking to the other side of the desk, he knelt in front of Kali. “Had I known what Mack was really up to, there is no way I would’ve let you get on that plane.” His blue eyes darkened. “I would’ve killed the bastard myself.” An eerie calm crossed his features and for a moment, she believed Wes was truly capable of murder. He slowly rose to his feet again. “Kalista, I would never let anything happen to you. You’re like a daughter to me…well, a stepdaughter, because I have to pretend not to notice how incredibly attractive you are.”

  In spite of herself, Kali laughed. Wes always knew how to make her smile when it was the last thing she wanted to do. “You shouldn’t say things like that.”

  “Why not—because I’m old? I’m not even forty, you know.”

  “No. It has nothing to do with age.” She laughed again. “People around here could get the wrong idea.”

  “It doesn
’t matter what the minions think. I’m their boss now. I can fire them. I think the real person I have to worry about is that new boyfriend of yours. He can be pretty scary.”

  Puzzled, Kali frowned. “I didn’t know you two had met.”

  “We haven’t,” Wes said swiftly and turned away. Retrieving the mug of coffee, he took a long drink.

  “Then how could you think he was scary?” she prodded.

  “Well, you’ve told me about him when we’ve talked. I believe ‘tall and muscular, dark and handsome’ were your words of choice. He sounds exactly like the type of guy who all average Joes find scary.”

  “You’re not average, Wes. Your sense of humor brings you up to at least a six point five on the hotness scale.”

  “Gee, thanks.”

  The intercom beeped and Shannon’s voice invaded the room. “Mr. Eleazar is holding on line three. He said to tell you the matter was urgent.”

  A grimace replaced Wes’s easy smile. “Put him through to Mack’s personal line.”

  “Done.” The intercom clicked off and Wes looked at Kali. “I’ve got to take this. Is there anything else?”

  “Oh. Uh…no, that was all.” She got up, feeling Wes’s eyes on her back as she walked to the door. She turned slowly and saw him leaning against the desk. He was as still as stone, his face etched with such a grave expression that Kali’s pulse missed a beat. “Wes?”

  He blinked. She watched his eyes gradually refocus onto her. “Is everything alright?” she asked.

  “No.” He sighed. “Kali, you should really go.”

  She nodded hastily and left. Once outside, she paused next to the door and closed her eyes. That was weird. Wes had given good explanations for everything. But something in her gut, and seeing the way he’d acted just then, made Kali certain that something very wrong was going on with Wesley. He’d been almost normal until Shannon paged him for the phone call with Mr. Eleazar.

  She glanced at her watch. Only two hours before War was due to check in with Rhane. Pushing away from the wall, she went down the long corridor leading to the main offices. Finding out who Eleazar was had just been added to her list of questions to ask Shannon.

  Chapter 33

  “Here are the reports you asked for.” Kali handed the files to Shannon fifteen minutes before Warren’s deadline. Instead of running straight to Shannon after leaving Mack’s office, she’d decided the best move would be to finish everything Shannon had asked her to do and hopefully ease into the intern’s good graces. At the very least, seeing everything completed might soften Shannon up enough to have an open conversation.

  The intern raised one perfectly waxed eyebrow. “That was three days of work from two different departments. Do you expect me to believe you got it all done in a single afternoon?”

  “I drank six cups of coffee in relatively short amount of time.”

  Instead of responding, Shannon folded her arms.

  Kali sighed. “It’s all there. And I promise it’s not rushed. You’ll find those reports concise and well organized, just the way Mack likes them.”

  “Liked.”

  “Excuse me?”

  “You said ‘likes’ as if Mack were still alive. He’s dead,” Shannon finished flatly.

  “We don’t know that.”

  Shannon lowered her voice so much, Kali had to edge closer in order to hear. “I know that not delivering what was promised is no reason to be kept alive.”

  “You were screaming at me before the crash, calling me a freak. You said Mack had regrets about selling me but you convinced him to go through with the deal anyway.”

  “You are a freak. And he did sell you.”

  “What was the deal?”

  Shannon turned away as if she’d lost interest in the conversation. Lifting the top folder, she thumbed through the pages. Her eyes scanned the information. “This is good work here.”

  “Thanks.” Kali cleared her throat. Playing nice was getting her nowhere fast. She leaned over and stuck her face directly into Shannon’s. “That’s the second time you’ve called me a freak,” she whispered. “That means you understand what I can do—what I’m capable of. Tell me what you know. I have a right to know.”

  “Ah.” A deliberate smile crawled onto the intern’s face. “The real Kalista steps forward.” Leaning back into her chair, Shannon crossed her legs. Scowling, she uncrossed them again. “I’m going to bet there is something else you would like to know just as badly. No doubt being the teacher’s pet you are, you were in the office when I paged for the call with Eleazar. So you probably saw fear in dear Wesley’s eyes at the mention of the name. I think you would like to know who Eleazar is.”

  “I only want to know about Mack.”

  “You’re lying,” Shannon half whispered, her voice dripping with menace.

  Kali met her eyes with an unflinching gaze, eliminating every emotion except cold will. It was a trick she’d learned from Rhane. After a long moment, Shannon looked away. “How about I make a deal with you? Tell me how you escaped us and I’ll tell you what you want to know.”

  “There were camel herders—” Kali began lamely.

  “Stop lying!” A few guys from accounting stared in their direction. Face reddened, Shannon lowered her voice to a harsh whisper. “How did you escape the desert? Tell me that or you get nothing.”

  Kali’s head buzzed in warning. She remained silent.

  “There were no camel herders. He came for you.” Something in Shannon’s eyes shifted. Or maybe it was a trick of the light. “Where did you go?”

  “There were tunnels…” she began hesitantly.

  Shannon’s eyes glittered hungrily. “Go on.”

  “They followed an underground river.” Kali stopped. It was all she would say.

  “Very well then. I’ll answer your question. Mack sold you because Eleazar made it impossible for him to refuse. The deal was that if he didn’t turn you over, Eleazar promised to have Mack’s sister and her children killed, as well as his elderly father who is currently wasting away at Hope Manor.” She paused, considering. “I betrayed you because I was promised a cure. And I got it.”

  “What’s wrong with you?”

  “Nothing. I’m going to live forever.”

  Kali shook her head. As the conversation progressed, Shannon sounded more and more unstable. Maybe they had let her out of the nuthouse too soon. “Who is Eleazar?” she asked, trying to get things back on track.

  “For that, you will have to share another breadcrumb. The trash boy—how do you know him?”

  Revealing anything about the Warekin was not an option. “I only met him today.”

  “Well, that’s too bad.” Shannon sniffed. “If you can’t help me, then I can’t help you.”

  Deciding to risk her bluff, Kali started to walk away. She stopped when Shannon suddenly grabbed her wrist. “Who is the boy?”

  Kali gasped in surprise. For someone who probably weighed less than a hundred and twenty pounds, Shannon had a really strong grip. She pulled Kali close. Her voice changed to a raspy hiss. “Who is the boy?” she repeated.

  Kali winced. Her arm was really starting to hurt. “Let go of me.”

  “Yes. I know what you can do, dark one. But do you know what I am capable of?”

  “I’m not going to ask again.” Kali closed her eyes and began searching. She knew she would most likely regret what was about to happen, but saw no other way.

  “I do not fear you, you little—”

  Shannon’s eyes rolled back into her head as a surge of her spark drained into Kali’s aura. The energy was black and empty like something only death had ever touched. Kali gasped again, this time with pain, and the connection broke as Shannon’s fingers fell limply away. Stepping back from the desk, Kali waited until she was positive the intern was okay. Then she hurried off before the woman’s dazed confusion regained clarity.

  Halfway down the second stairwell, someone’s hand wrapped around her upper arm. Kali’s temper er
upted in a flash, and she spun viciously, prepared to fight.

  “Whoa! It’s me.”

  She forced the anger down to a boiling simmer. Inch by inch, her body relaxed.

  “You mind?” Rion pointed to her left hand.

  She looked down. A black ball of fire with swirls of gray burned in her palm. “Sorry.” With a thought, the flame was gone.

  “What the heck just happened back there?”

  “Something is terribly wrong with Shannon.”

  “Besides hormones?”

  “Rion, I’m being serious.”

  “So am I.” He looked incredulous. “I’m pretty sure I just saw you feed from her—without making out. How did you do that?”

  “It was self-defense. And I don’t know. I guess my abilities are maturing. But that is beside the point.” She pulled him to one side of the stairwell. “Shannon knows so much more than she’s saying. The accident did something to her. She was mean before, but now…now she almost seems inhuman.”

  “By definition, we’re inhuman.”

  Kali frowned. “Rion.”

  He threw his hands up, quickly waving them back and forth. “Relax. I get your point.” He glanced down at his watch.

  “There’s something else.”

  Rion raised both eyebrows as if to say “go on.”

  “She remembers what happened in the desert. She definitely knows what I am. And she asked questions about Warren.”

  He nodded. Then his gaze shifted. Kali followed it to the top of the stairs. War came toward them, taking the steps two at a time. “What’s going on?”

  Rion looked about as serious as Kali ever wanted see him. “It’s time to check in with Rhane.”

  Chapter 34

  Rhane waded through icy water, swearing under his breath. The river was cold, too cold. He clenched his teeth together to keep them from chattering. A bird screamed. A falcon. He and it had much in common. Both were ruthless predators possessing power, speed, and agility few enemies could challenge. In this moment, only circumstance separated them. The falcon circled high above, hunting prey for its next meal. A mile below the bird, Rhane was the hunted. But those who hunted him were much larger.