“Why kidnapped?”
“Because they’d rather kill her.” She took a deep breath. “She left the coven years ago for killing a shifter under their watch. I need…I need your help rescuing her.”
Silence.
Then Henrik nodded his head.
“I’m in.”
CHAPTER EIGHT
Henrik had often thought there was nothing in this world that could shock Dylan into speechlessness anymore, considering the shifter leader had probably heard all types of requests there were in the world. But Henrik's request obviously touched a chord as Dylan merely stared at him while he explained the situation and what needed to be done, ending with Red's actual request.
Henrik sat back in his chair, as still as a statue while he waited for the verdict. Dylan openly brooded, his blond hair swinging around his ears as he obviously tried to absorb it all.
He leaned forward after a few minutes.
“Let me get this straight. The woman you've been after for who knows how long, the woman you've been chasing through the ends of the earth while you went missing on us...it turns out she was innocent in all this?”
Henrik tried not to wince, instead keeping a poker face as he nodded his head. “I promise to pay whatever consequence you give out when I return.”
Dylan ignored that. “And her sister was also innocent?”
“Compelled to do the killing. Innocent, if you can call it that.”
Dylan frowned. “So now you want to search for Red's mother to give you answers...and she's being held hostage by a bunch of shifter-hating witches?”
Henrik nodded solemnly. “And vampire-hating.”
Dylan's left eye twitched. “And they belong to a coven that you want to infiltrate.”
“That is correct.”
Silence.
Then the wolf shifter sighed and rubbed his forehead.
“Well, since you put it that way.”
Dylan stood up, going over to his bar at the corner of his office and arranging two glasses of scotch. Henrik watched the motions with the calm of someone on a leisurely stroll. He’d left Red with Sophia in his room, a precaution in case some shifters attacked her again—though Dylan assured that Hans and his ways had been dealt with accordingly already.
You never knew with Hans, considering his ego the size of Texas. Probably larger.
Dylan finally returned to his seat, placing one of the glasses in front of Henrik.
“Thanks,” Henrik said.
“So when exactly are you planning to do this infiltration?”
Henrik glanced at his watch. “The next flight to Russia is in three hours. Sources say they’re having a gathering there.”
“I see.” Dylan took a sip of his scotch, then decided better on it and gulped down the whole thing. Henrik raised a brow, but didn’t say anything.
Finally, Dylan sighed again. “Right. If you must go, then go.”
“Wonderful. Thank you, Dylan.” Henrik proceeded to stand up.
“But Henrik?”
“Hmm?”
“Sneak out. I don’t want to know anything about this unless we’re in direct danger.”
Henrik nodded again, knowing the political game already.
“Of course. Consider us invisible.”
*****
The travel was a long one—approximately eleven hours, to be exact, with Red and Henrik stuck in seats next to each other. He still hadn’t gotten over her pleading for help—something that he knew took a lot of guts on her part, considering the Red he remembered never asked for anything. She had been the prideful one in her relationship with Malik, while Malik had been the one who flowed well with everyone.
Thoughts of Malik returned, and the sadness that always came along. Time had been peaceful when Malik had been leader, back when shifters and vampires barely interacted, and witches were still not as aggressively hateful. That wasn’t to say he wasn’t in agreement with the alliance between shifters and vampires right now—in fact, he had to applaud Lucinda for her effort to make it stronger, even before she’d met Finn.
They had a free flight meal of salad, smoked sausages, potatoes, and yogurt, and Henrik ate everything in one sitting. Upon finishing, he noticed that Red barely touched hers, only taking a bite of each before settling on her yogurt listlessly.
Fifteen minutes later, he realized that what he first thought was listlessness were actually nerves. Her back was held rigid, and he sensed every muscle in her body tensing. Red was reading the plane’s magazine that was also a travel guide, but her eyes hadn’t moved beyond the first page.
He sighed.
“Okay, what’s wrong?”
“Nothing’s wrong,” Red replied quickly, almost as if she was expecting the question.
A small smile flitted on his face as she abruptly turned the magazine to page two. Quickly, he snatched the magazine out of her hands and kept it out of reach as her gaze whipped up at him.
“I said nothing,” she blurted out.
She reached out for the magazine, but he took her wrist in his hand instead, forcing her to face him. Henrik leaned forward until their faces were inches away.
Gray eyes widened, and he was momentarily mesmerized by the color. She always had beautiful eyes, he thought. He inwardly shook his head at the thought.
“Now, tell me what’s wrong,” he murmured.
Silence.
Then Red finally sighed.
“Did I really love Malik?”
The words served as a reminder of who she was, and Henrik took a mental step back. He kept his gaze on her, however, when he responded.
“You did. With all your heart.”
She bit her lip. “I don’t remember feelings. I remember him, I remember everyone…but I don’t remember how I feel about them.”
“It will come back in time, I’m sure,” he assured her. He thought over his words, looking for the right one. “You gave him joy, Red. That’s what I saw when I saw you together.”
And that was what made him blinded enough to hate her without stepping back. He had seen Malik so happy, all taken away in the span of a day as his eyes became lifeless. Then, seeing blood on Red’s hands, and having no one to blame.
They looked at each other again, a silent understanding hanging between them at what wasn’t being said.
“Were we friends, Henrik?”
An image of Henrik teasing her came to mind, of her husky laugh filling the air. He nodded slowly. “We cared about each other.”
Red smiled, her face lighting up at the thought. Then she sobered again. “Henrik, these witches…I know what they’re like. I’m going to have to act completely different around them. And you won’t like it.”
“I get it.”
“Just promise me you won’t say or do anything rash until we find my mother.”
He nodded. “Right. So what’s our alibi?”
“I’ll handle it,” she said confidently. “Just trust me.”
And she left it at that, snatching the magazine again out of his hands and succeeding this time. The camaraderie between them had shifted from animosity to something else, something similar to how it was before. The thing was, they were close—unlike Finn and Robbie and Charlie, who had only mostly met her in passing. He’d been the one who Malik confided in about his decision to marry her, and so Henrik had done his best to accept the situation and make her feel welcome.
Guilt washed over him again, and it didn’t settle well. Red had started eating her food, and Henrik stared at the floor.
“Red?”
“Hmm?”
“I’m sorry.”
Her hands stilled while forking a potato.
“Don’t worry about it,” she said, her voice holding some warmth.
Henrik smiled to himself and closed his eyes.
Then he settled himself to sleep for the rest of the flight.
*****
Russia was a beautiful place for exploring, and they pretended to do so while they
searched for clues to the coven’s actual whereabouts. It wasn’t hard to catch on to her enthusiasm as she pretended to be fascinated with everything, but he didn’t miss the vibration of power she used to search for whatever it was she was searching for.
It surprised him to realize how much power he was sensing inside her. Charlie mentioned once that she was powerful when he’d met her a while back after she’d been missing, but he hadn’t been present to witness it after she’d forgotten her memories. Now, with Sophia’s restoration, it was back with a vengeance, and it made him aware that perhaps she was one of those rare witches that didn’t need spells to make use of it.
And he was sure she hadn’t tapped into all of it yet.
They slept in a motel at night, using separate rooms adjacent to each other when the first day of searching was rendered unsuccessful. The next morning, they had breakfast in a café, with Henrik staying quiet as Red tapped into her power again and concentrated.
Half an hour later, she frowned at him.
“It’s not working,” she said with a hint of impatience in her voice. “We need to regroup.”
Henrik nodded calmly. “West or East?”
She hesitated before replying. “South.”
South.
Meaning the less-than-stellar side of this country.
Henrik nodded again. Then they set off via foot, reaching the town she declared in less than an hour. Here, there were fewer tourists and spots, with a darker scenery greeting them as they passed the streets. Red let her power flow out again, following a path that only she knew as she took twists and turns that he was unfamiliar with. Her gray eyes were glazed, and at one point he had to yank her wrist hard as she almost got flattened over by a car.
“Easy,” he grumbled.
He had her face him, but she wasn’t even looking at him.
“It’s near,” she said in hushed words. “It’s near.”
Then she started running in the opposite direction.
The swell of power had become so large, he was worried someone else was going to detect it and cause trouble. With a curse, Henrik went after her, eyes following her blurry shape before finally catching up to her. She really needed to get a hold of this; else they were going to be discovered—
“So you’ve found us.”
A man with the smoothest face and the silkiest black cloak was standing in the middle of the road—and Red was standing in front of him. The man looked at Henrik in a scrutinizing manner, then returned his gaze to Red questioningly. There was a visible scar on his left cheek, red and fresh.
“He’s not a witch.”
“He’s my prisoner,” Red responded coolly, the glaze in her eyes now gone as she stared at the man levelly.
“And you’re here for the recruitment?”
Red tilted her chin up. “I don’t need recruitment. Tell your leader Red Denver has arrived.”
There was a noticeable change in stance as the man’s eyes widened. Then he bowed deeply, body trembling. “Of course, of course.” Then he was rushing off, entering a narrow street and disappearing out of sight.
Henrik was about to ask Red what that was about when he felt it: magic surrounding him, her brand. He looked at her questioningly.
Then he gasped in pain as she yanked, almost like stabbing him. His instinctive reaction was to shift…only nothing happened when he did. Then he felt it—his dragon leaving his body, an empty vessel of nothing.
It was the most unnerving and painful feeling in the world.
Henrik’s head whipped in her direction as shock filled him. He could literally feel the strength ebbing out of him slowly and transferring towards her.
He took her wrist, bringing her closer.
“Red?”
She shook her head, her eyes glazing over again—but not before he saw the regret and determination glinting in them.
“I’m sorry, Henrik, but it’s necessary.”
Then he felt something cold touch his head, like a bludgeon.
And he was falling into darkness.
CHAPTER NINE
The man came back with visible nerves and a stream of chatter about the coven and its journey in Europe, which she cut off by saying that she wanted to see the leader right away. This made the man babble even more, telling her that there was a meeting going on and they would be right with her shortly. To distract her, she was given great accommodations in a large tent, and a checkup inside made her see that the tent had furniture that looked expensive. Not particularly interested in that, she stepped back outside to observe the view.
Her tent was only one of the few in the area, which was sprinkled with tents that took up a large part of that area. The coven’s entrance was hidden inside a narrow pathway, just inside a door of one of the town’s abandoned buildings. Opening the door led to nothing, but with the man’s chants, it opened up to a portal that led to this side.
A flash of guilt racked her at what she’d done to Henrik. But it had to be done. She knew enough about this coven to know that serious consequences happened when a shifter of his caliber entered the magic portal, and it would not end well. In fact, she knew they would kill him on sight, and she knew him enough to know he wouldn’t listen and would still follow her inside.
Hence, her solution—to alter enough of his personality, taking away his shifting abilities and giving him nothing. Now he was a weak shifter who didn’t pose a threat, and he was her property.
And Henrik obviously didn’t like it.
The glares he kept giving her the moment they were alone were enough of an indication of how he felt, along with the anger radiating off him. He hadn’t spoken since, and she gave him a warning glance to keep it that way.
I’m sorry.
Then she switched her attention to the scene, surveying it with keen eyes.
She wasn’t sure if they were still in the same town, as there were more trees here than abandoned buildings. The area was filled with greenery, though there were also spots of burned soil and rocks—an indication that magic had already been at play.
There wasn't much of a crowd outside, just a sprinkling of young people who wore new cloaks and looked eager and nervous at the same time. She supposed these were the recruits, but it seemed so few. Curious, Red strolled around, taking note of the floating candles surrounding the grounds until she reached a clear area with a bonfire and some crystals in the middle.
“What's that for?”
Henrik's murmur beside her ear had her jumping, and she pinched at his arm in response. Then, mindful of the people surrounding them, she calmed down and spoke under her breath.
“Spell crystals.” She tilted her head towards the colorful ones. “They can make even the weakest human have a chance at casting spells and drawing magic. Those are very rare gems. The more colorful and bright, the more powerful the crystals are.” She then indicated towards the black ones. “Those are for the darker magic. Not for the weak.”
Henrik didn't say anything, keeping silent beside her as they kept strolling around. They found two tents larger than the others, bright red in color with an electric charge surrounding them and located on opposite ends of the grounds. She was pretty sure one of them held the meeting place, while the other...she had no idea yet.
Red was about to venture further in that area when a hand fell on her shoulder. She eyed the hand coolly, then looked at the man attached to the hand standing behind her.
He took his hand back, as if burned. Then the man, who was the same scarred man who'd met up with them earlier, nodded nervously again.
“They will see you now,” he said. He glanced at Henrik, almost coldly. “Only you.”
Red narrowed her eyes. “And where shall my prisoner stay?”
The man's eyes glinted. “We will take care of that, Miss Denver.”
She didn't like that answer, but there was nothing much she could do at this point except nod her head. “See that you do.”
As the man led the way, golden eyes met
hers. He subtly nodded his head, almost as if in support. She nodded back.
Stay safe.
Then she was entering one of the large tents.
*****
Josiah Long was a pleasant man who looked to be in his late thirties, with blond hair and friendly eyes that gave him the demeanor of a harmless, understanding person. As leader of this certain coven, he put that demeanor to good use, interviewing her about her whereabouts and appearing very concerned when she told him the tale of how she'd been in deep hiding after the very unfortunate incident of the murder of Malik Heard.
“We've heard a whole lot of rumors about that incident, but we never verified any of them. Unfortunately, you also disappeared, so it made things harder,” Josiah's wife, Lolita, was saying. Lolita was the perfect partner for the charismatic Josiah—affable, homey and every bit your favorite warm neighbor. It was unsettling how much the scene was so picture-perfect.
Almost like it was too good to be true.
Red did her best to match their pleasantness with her own, smiling. “I had to disappear, you know, until the right time. As it turns out, killing one of the shifter bastards will make them act like wounded…animals.”
Her statement earned a chuckle, and she was served cookies and tea as they chatted about the things she discovered about their enemies and the coven’s new recruits. Josiah became enthusiastic as he discussed how they’ve been recruiting for a couple of years now, slowly making their intention known—that of uniting against a common enemy that didn’t deserve a place in this world.
It was the same kind of hatred and prejudice that Red witnessed before, and that her mother had run away from. She wasn’t entirely sure how to bring her up, especially when doing so might arouse suspicions that she didn’t want roused. So she merely listened, feeling out the situation and pretending bright interest when Josiah volunteered to show her around so she could see their progress. After all, she was a much-welcome visitor, basically back from the dead.
“I would love that,” Red said sweetly.
They seemed to think that she had voluntarily seduced Malik into mating with her, so as to earn his trust and kill him later—not exactly a far-fetched theory considering the shifter world basically once thought the same. They also seemed to think they had a better chance at cajoling her into joining their agenda considering what she’d already done and her clean record so far.
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