by Kimber White
“Are you some kind of alien?” he asked.
“No,” I answered. “Not in the way that you mean.”
“You’re not human though.”
I hesitated. “No,” I said. “Not exactly.”
He sat on the opposite couch. His hands trembled. A vein popped in his neck. He pulled the medallion out from beneath his shirt.
“What is this?” he asked.
“It’s a key,” I said. “It opens up a portal.”
His eyes flashed as he glared at me. “Obviously. I figured that out, Zendra. A portal to where?”
This was the tricky part. How much could I reveal? Not lies. I made a vow to myself that I wouldn’t lie to him. Something told me he’d see right through it anyway.
“Zendra,” he said, his voice dropping. “That guy that came through. He wanted to hurt you. I felt it.”
“Yes,” I said.
“Who was he?”
I bit my lip. “His name is Olen. He...he’s been after the members of my family and me for a very long time.”
“Why?”
I shifted in my seat. “Most of it is political,” I said. “Where I come from, Olen’s family is very powerful. And we don’t see eye to eye. He wanted an alliance with my family. When he didn’t get it, things got dangerous. It got...very unsafe for me. So, I came here.”
True. All true.
“You’re not going to tell me what you are,” he said. I couldn’t tell if it was a statement or a question.
I couldn’t keep the tears from falling again. “Edward,” I said. “I really do want to trust you with all of this. You said you wanted to protect me. The thing is, I find myself wanting to protect you too. I can’t explain it. There’s something between us. Do you know what it is?”
He reared back a bit. I know he wasn’t surprised. I knew he felt it too.
“When you touch me,” I said. “I burn for you. When you’re near, I can feel your pulse. It’s inside my head. And I...I want you.”
He came to me. Careful not to touch me, he put his hands on his knees.
“You don’t have to be scared of it,” he said. “Of me. I meant what I said. I won’t hurt you.”
“I know,” I sniffled. “That’s the thing. I believe you. I don’t know why, but I do. Do you feel it too?”
“I do,” he said.
“What does it mean?”
Edward’s lip twitched. It seemed there were secrets he wanted to keep from me too.
He fingered his piece of the medallion. Mine was still in my bag on the floor at my feet. “What happens when we find the rest of this?” he asked. “I know there’s another piece. What I saw back at the shop wouldn’t have formed a full circle.”
“We?”
He met my gaze. “I think that’s why fate brought us together,” he said. “At least...one of the reasons.”
I put my hand on his thigh. That familiar warmth flooded me. I wanted his arms around me. I wanted to lose myself in him. My desire was so strong it threatened to drive out all reason.
“That portal,” I said. “My family is inside of it. When you almost joined these pieces, it allowed Olen to find a way in. Through me. I had no choice. If I hadn’t lured him here, he might have been able to find my family, and I wouldn’t have been able to warn them.”
“He would kill them?” Edward asked.
“I think killing them would be the least of what he’d do.”
“Is he dead?” he asked. “What you did back there. Did you send him back through?”
“I don’t know,” I said. “He was very weak. Like a newborn. Hopefully, I’ve at least bought us some time.”
“And you need all three pieces of this thing to get your family safe?”
Was it enough? Would Edward take that much on faith?
He gathered my hands in his. “Something like that,” I said, finding a weak smile. “Edward, will you help me? I don’t...I don’t know who else can.”
He squared his shoulders. “I think I have to,” he said. “Is Olen part of the Ring?”
I looked down. He had only scratched the surface. Telling him more skirted the line. I would be a betrayal of everything I was and everyone I’d fought to protect. But, as I looked in Edward Kalenkov’s eyes, felt the warmth of his touch and his strong, steady heart beating alongside my own, I began to realize everything I’d believed about myself was wrong.
Chapter Eleven
Edward
“Can I trust you to stay put?” I asked.
Zendra had spent a fitful night in the cabin. I’d let her take the bedroom. I slept on the couch. I had a few meager supplies in the backpacks I kept in the car, but we’d need more if we were going to stay here for any length of time. So, I’d have to go into town. And I’d have to check in with Payne soon before he sent a crew out to find me.
Maybe I should let him. In the back of my mind, I knew it was probably foolish of me to try and tackle this job on my own now. I probably wasn’t thinking exactly clearly where Zendra was concerned. I was in danger of letting my cock outthink my brain.
Because that was the truth of it. I wanted her. Badly. I wanted to take her fear and slay whatever monster came for her. I wanted to keep her with me and reach for her when she felt alone. I never wanted her to feel alone again.
It was crazy. I still didn’t know exactly what she was. The moment that thought entered my brain, I realized it didn’t matter.
Zendra was mine.
“Where exactly do you think I’ll go?” she asked. She looked sexy as hell in an oversized t-shirt she’d found in her backpack. It was one of mine. It hung down almost to her knees and I couldn’t help but stare at her toned calves and dainty, bare feet. Damn. I wanted to reach beneath that shirt and see if she was bare everywhere else.
I cleared my throat and sipped my coffee. It scalded my tongue and that was just the distraction I needed to get my mind off my dick.
“Well,” I said. “I mean, you did just open up a portal, Zendra. Seems to me you could go anywhere.”
“I can’t open it again as long as you have that,” she said, pointing to the medallion I wore around my neck. She’d found a length of string and tied her piece of it around her neck. Among other things, it was a reminder not to get too close to her.
“So,” I said. I took a seat at the small, folding table in the kitchen. Zendra stayed in the living area, perched on the arm of one of the couches.
“So,” she said.
“How many more pieces of this thing are out there?” I asked.
“Just the one,” she answered. “I mean as far as I know. I’m the one who broke it into three pieces. I kept the one with me. The others...no one was ever supposed to find them.”
“Hmm,” I said. “Where did you hide them?”
She hesitated. This was a secret she’d been holding on to for a very long time.
“Zendra,” I said. “I can’t help you get your family back if you don’t give me something to go on. I mean, that’s what this is all about, isn’t it? That’s what you want.”
Her eyes glistened. “Yes,” she said. “I thought it would be safe for them here. When I came through, it was only supposed to be for a little while. Just long enough for me to make sure no one had followed me. But when I went to retrieve the other two pieces of the medallion from where I’d hidden them, they were gone.”
“Funny how that happens,” I said. “So, where was it?”
“The one around your neck was at the bottom of Lake Erie,” she said. “I put it there two years ago.”
“How the hell were you ever going to find it again?” I asked, then stopped myself. She wouldn’t have to find it. It was drawn to its missing pieces like a magnet. Zendra would only ever need to hang on to that sliver around her own neck.
“Where’s the last piece?” I asked.
“I...I don’t know if you’ll believe me if I tell you,” she said.
I smiled. “Zendra, I’ve pretty much thrown my entire bel
ief system out the window where you’re concerned. I’m sitting here with part of a key to another realm around my neck. I’ve seen what it can do. I’ve seen what you can do. And yet, I’m still here trying to help you.”
She nodded. “You are.”
She rose from the couch. She paced with her arms crossed in front of her. “I put the third piece in place I knew no shifter could go. No witch either. Not even a fire witch.”
“I don’t think such a place exists,” I said. “Not anymore.”
“The third piece of the medallion is at the bottom of a volcano on Kilauea.”
I raised a brow. Two weeks ago, that news might have shocked the hell out of me. Now, it barely made a dent.
“Okay then,” I said. “So, we’re taking a trip to Hawaii.”
“Edward,” she said. “I can’t ask you to go with me. It’s too dangerous.”
“Well, I’m not giving you a choice. And I haven’t decided what happens if and when we find that third piece. I just know this thing needs to be hidden better. Wolfguard can help you with that. But for now, we’re going to stay put. I’m going to head into town and pick up some food and supplies. You are going to stay out of sight. Then we’ll decide how to get the rest of your medallion back.”
“This is my problem,” she said.
“Not anymore,” I said, my voice rising. “Zendra, your plan didn’t work. The only reason I have this thing in the first place is because agents of the Ring got to it. For all we know, they’ve already been to Kilauea. Face it, someone out there knows who you are. They know what this is. And you can’t go it alone anymore.”
“How do you know you can trust these men? Wolfguard?” she asked.
“Because I can,” I said. “We need to let them know what’s happened. If your family is innocent and in danger from the Ring, Wolfguard will help.”
“If they’re innocent?” she said.
I grabbed my keys off the counter. The last thing I wanted was an argument. But, I needed a hell of a lot more information before I agreed to help her unleash...what, exactly?…into the world. And there was still the not so small matter of the bastard who did come through that portal. There was no way he could have survived that. I took it as one small blessing that Zendra and I were able to work together and quickly through that chaos. Still, I would have preferred a capture over a kill. I had too many questions and not enough answers.
“Remember,” I said. “I’m on your side. I know this medallion is powerful. I’ve seen what it can do. And I’ve seen what you can do. If you think I’m going to let either of you fall into the hands of the wrong person, you’re wrong.”
I wanted to go to her. My urge to pull her into my arms thundered through me. She was scared. That was plain. And she was alone in the world except for me.
“Just,” she said. “Edward, let me go with you.”
“The fewer people who see you, the better,” I said. “I won’t be gone long. I promise. The nearest town is only five miles down the road. I’ll be back in less than an hour. I promise.”
“I’ll stay in the car,” she said. “The windows are tinted. Nobody will be able to see me. Besides, don’t you think I’m safer by your side than five miles away?”
I opened my mouth to protest, but it died on my lips. She was right. When she saw the change in my posture, the corner of her mouth lifted in a smile. Damn, I’d just been outplayed again. I had half a mind to tie her to the damn bed. The minute I let that thought enter my imagination, a wave of lust hit me so strong, my wolf nearly ripped out. I covered, turning my back to her. I fumbled with the keys.
“Fine,” I said. “Have it your way. But you stay put.”
“I promise,” she said. She quickly grabbed her bag and followed me to the car.
I drove out to the main road. Zendra sat quietly and more or less content. We were growing easier with each other. I realized her trust in me mattered more than I was willing to admit, perhaps even to myself. I hoped it wasn’t clouding my judgment.
“What are you thinking?” she asked.
I hesitated. “I’m thinking about family,” I said. “I’m thinking about what I’d be willing to do or sacrifice if mine were at risk.”
“Is it large? Your family?”
I nodded. “I have a brother, Erik. I have many cousins. My Uncle Andre is the pack leader to the largest, most powerful pack in Russia.”
“Why don’t you live there?” she asked.
“He brought me, my brother, and my cousins here when we were teenagers. It’s a complicated story. A rival pack took over for a time. My parents were killed. So many others. But that’s all over now. Uncle Andre is back in control.”
“He must have sacrificed a lot to get you out,” she said. “Taken you away from everything you knew.”
“Yeah,” I said, turning to her. It seemed we had more in common than I realized.
“You were lucky,” she said. “To have so much family left over.”
“I am,” I said.
“Do you ever want to go back? To Russia?”
“I go when I feel homesick. Which isn’t too often. I’ve never wanted that life. I’m more of a lone wolf. Pack life doesn’t interest me. Wolfguard is my calling.”
“How did you know?” she asked.
“That it was my calling? I don’t know. I suppose that’s the thing with callings. You just...know. It felt right. A path opened up for me and I knew I could do good work. I knew my place. Where I was needed. I don’t claim to know what the Ring has in store, but I know there’s a bigger war coming. I want to do my part.”
She grew silent. The color drained from Zendra’s face. She knew something. She was still holding back so much.
I gripped the wheel tighter.
“I want that too,” she said. “To fight on the right side. To…”
The rest of her words died on her lips. Light exploded in front of the car. The back end fishtailed. Then, we were airborne.
The car flipped three times, landing upside down. I managed to get out of my seatbelt first. Zendra was gone.
The driver’s side door was caved in. It took all my strength to bust it outward. I jumped away from the wreckage and dropped into a crouch.
“Zendra!” I shouted, my voice half growl. My claws came out.
“I’m here,” she said. She crawled out of the ditch next to the car. My heart started beating again. She was unhurt.
I started to run to her. Then, a cyclone of dirt kicked up between us. Zendra leaped to the side.
I shifted. A roar ripped from me as I tried to zone in on the threat. It was everywhere. Glowing purple eyes appeared in front of me. It was him. The man who’d crawled out of that portal back at the shop. He was alive. Whole. And unbelievably powerful.
“Olen, stop!” Zendra shouted. She tried to throw herself between us.
Olen was big. He wore what looked like a loincloth of sorts. He had a medallion dangling from his neck. Beside him, a shaft of blue light glimmered.
A portal. He lunged for Zendra. Good God! He would drag her through it.
Zendra raised her hand and scratched Olen’s face. He took a step backward. When Zendra moved to the side, I saw all I needed.
Olen could bleed. Zendra had opened up a cut above his eyes.
I leaped through the air, fangs out, claws out. Olen may have been powerful, but he wasn’t as fast as I was. My fangs sank into his shoulder. He let out a cry and fell backward.
Run! I shouted to Zendra inside my mind. She could hear me. I knew it. But, she didn’t obey.
She picked up a rock and lunged toward Olen where I had him on the ground. I think she would have caved in his skull.
But, Olen rallied. He rolled to his back. Blue lightning arched from his fingertips. He blasted Zendra in the chest. She crumpled to the ground.
I went in for the kill. Olen’s blood filled my mouth. It was unlike anything I’d ever tasted. Not human. Not witch. Not animal.
He let loose another blas
t of lightning; this one hit me in the shoulder. It was enough to knock me back but not out. I rounded, ready to go for his throat.
But, Olen jumped into the portal and took the light with him.
Chapter Twelve
Zendra
I heard their screams, but they were too far away for me to reach them.
“Kall!” My voice didn’t sound like my own. I was underwater. Under tar. My brother Kall’s eyes filled with blood, and then he slipped away.
“Zendra!”
Strong hands lifted me up. It would have been so much easier to just sleep. To just go wherever Kall went, but the fierce warrior-wolf in front of me demanded I open my eyes. I did.
“Zendra!” he cried. When the light finally flooded back in, Edward didn’t look the same. Terror etched deep lines in his face. His claws dug into my shoulders. He shook me hard enough that my teeth rattled.
“Stop,” I managed to croak. “I’m here.”
His face fell. Relief flooded his eyes, he pulled me to him. Gods, he was so warm. So good.
“What happened?” I asked. He pressed a water bottle to my lips.
“Slowly,” he commanded.
“I don’t know how he found us,” Edward said.
“Olen,” I said, sputtering as I took the first, slow sips of cool water. I felt instantly better.
“He was trying to kill you,” he said.
“No,” I whispered. “He was trying to do much worse.”
I sat up. My head spun a bit until Edward put a steadying hand on my arm.
“You...went,” he said.
I tried to. That was the thing I couldn’t bring myself to say. Even though I knew how dangerous it was, I almost gave up and led Olen straight to the rest of my family.
Was it a dream? I felt my brother Kall in the void. He was alive, but he was in pain. Or had it all just been a nightmare, a product of my heart sickness over being away from them all so long?
“You’re safe,” Edward said. “For now. Olen’s gone.”
I nodded. That much I remembered. I didn’t know how Edward managed it, but he’d been strong enough to throw Olen back through the portal he’d brought with him.
