Even though it felt like eons, his transformation took less than a second. His hands turned into paws before they hit the wooden floor, and he licked his fangs with the hunger for revenge gnawing at his gut.
Alan’s eyes opened wide, and he took a few clumsy steps back before turning to run.
Byron pounced and sank his teeth into the traitor’s shoulder. Bitter blood filled his mouth, bringing little satisfaction until Alan’s whispered pleas for mercy filled his ears. Mercy is only for the weak, the wolf growled in his mind. He’ll only destroy everything you hold dear.
His jaws clamped around Alan’s throat and ripped it out. A few wet gurgles popped through the bubble of blood that appeared from his last breath. Then, his enemy grew still.
“Holy shit, Byron!”
Greg’s voice soothed some of his rage. He spat the remnants of Alan’s flesh from his mouth and looked at his pack-mates. A sharp feminine cry from the far bedroom stabbed his chest like a knife. “Help me get the damn door open.”
Both men bolted when the Alpha gave a command, even if he didn’t speak it. As a wolf, he didn’t need words. He just needed the bond of the pack to express his thoughts to them. Pete rammed the door once, and the wood splintered.
Byron’s paws danced with impatience. He could smell Lana’s blood and fear from the other room. Her pain called to him like a silent scream. He had to get in there before Klaus destroyed her like he had Eddie.
The door burst open just in time for him to see the vampire’s fangs pierce the flawless skin of her neck. His vision turned red. He leapt over Pete and barreled straight for Klaus. The force of his blow broke the bloodsucker’s seal over her vein, and Lana fell to the floor like a limp rag doll. The faint pulsations of her heart filled his ears and formed a rhythm for his attack as he snapped his jaws.
Klaus’s face twisted in an animalistic snarl, and the fire in his pale eyes illuminated the darkness. He grabbed one of Byron’s front legs and yanked him close enough so his needle-like fangs could reach the tender flesh of his shoulder.
A yip of pain tore from Byron’s throat. He frantically twisted his body to break free and bite his attacker.
The vampire’s sucking drained more than his blood. It depleted his strength and whispered thoughts of defeat in his mind. “You’re too weak to save her. You’ve failed everyone—Eddie, Lana, Espe, the pack. Death is more merciful than the shame you’ll have to live with if I let you go.”
A bitter taste filled his mouth. Byron struggled against Klaus’s whispers, unwilling to surrender so long as Lana still lived. He couldn’t fail, not now, not when he was this close to having his revenge.
He heard the faint sound of a chair scraping across the floor over the pounding of his heart. Pete and Greg must’ve grabbed Espe.
Byron glanced over at Lana, and his chest tightened. She barely showed any signs of life. Why did she have to suffer for his failure? Why did she have to die because he was too slow, too weak, too careless? He should have chased after her the second he saw her run up the stairs.
Anger raced through his body. Like hell he’d give up without a fight. This was Lana, his mate. He wouldn’t let this bloodsucking bastard have her. Possessiveness augmented his rage and tightened his muscles. He wrenched his body around and swiped his paw across the vampire’s face.
Klaus lifted his head with a howl of pain, and Byron bit into his neck, determined to rip the bloodsucker’s head from his body.
“Move!” a shrill female voice ordered.
He jumped to the side as Espe used all her slight weight to plunge a stake into Klaus’s heart. Dust and ash filled Byron’s mouth where flesh used to be, and the vampire disappeared.
His rage evaporated with the speed of mist in the hot desert sun. He crawled closer to Lana and allowed his body to slide back into its human form. Just as it did every month, the transformation left him naked and exhausted. He pulled Lana close to him and listened for her pulse. It fluttered like a hummingbird’s wings under her cold and waxy skin. She still lived. Relief tempered the pain his body felt, but it did little to ease the ache in his heart at seeing her in this condition.
“Here.” Pete handed him a piece of his torn shirt to press against her neck. “I’ll call an ambulance.”
Espe pushed the other werewolves away and examined Lana’s wounds. “I need something I can use as a tourniquet on her arm. She’s losing too much blood.”
“I’ll grab some more of Byron’s clothes.” Pete disappeared into the hallway with his cell phone up to his ear.
Byron felt like a person watching a movie around him, still in too much shock to do anything useful. Espe wrapped shreds of material around Lana’s arm and neck. Red blobs of color expanded over the fabric like inkblots. Shallow breaths created a gentle rise and fall of her chest, and her heart raced under his fingers. Please keep fighting, my love. Help will be here soon.
“Just bite her already.” Greg’s voice snapped him out of his trance. “Turn her into one of us, and she’ll start healing herself.”
Espe froze. Her large brown eyes widened in fear, and she leaned away from him.
“No,” he growled and held her even closer to him. The cool dampness of her skin chilled him to the bone.
“She’s dying, Byron. And if she dies, so do you.”
“I said no! I’m not going to force anything on her. If she chooses this life, then it will be her choice, not a sentence given to her against her will like we experienced.”
“If you won’t do, then I will.” Greg’s lips curled back to reveal his teeth, and he grabbed her arm.
Byron backhanded him with more force than he intended. Greg fell to the floor, releasing Lana’s arm in the process. Blood trickled down his chin.
“I’m the Alpha, and what I say goes.” He clung to her limp body, his soul whispering to hers not to give up. He needed her like air, and the thought of life without her exceeded his notions of torture. If she died, he’d follow her. Such was the bond between true-mates.
Soft fingers covered his cheek. “She’ll pull through this,” Espe said softly. “Hunters like Lana don’t make it this far without being stubborn.”
For both their sakes, he prayed she was right. He closed his eyes and focused his love and energy into the woman who held his heart in her hands.
Chapter Fifteen
Lana floated in a grey void. All the pain vanished once the blackness had descended upon her, and a dim light floated off in the distance, chasing away all the shadows. Could this be the tunnel and the bright light I’ve heard about? If so, then why aren’t I moving?
“Lana, wake up.” The musical accent of the voice tugged her back to earth. She fell through the void like a skydiver without a parachute. Icy fingers pressed into her temples. She braced for impact but only felt the softness of a mattress under her.
“Open your eyes,” the voice commanded.
When she did as she was told, a pair of inhumanly blue eyes burned into hers. Magic rippled around her body and created a soft breeze. Her pain dulled while she remained hypnotized by the powerful witch leaning over her.
The woman removed her fingers, and Lana found her voice despite the desert in her mouth. “What are you doing here, Morwen?”
The witch’s bright red hair danced in the sunlight as she laughed. “It’s not often one of our best hunters ends up in the hospital.”
Lana glanced around, finally noticing the tubes connected to her body. They all looked like medical equipment, but the room lacked the sterile blandness of a hospital room. Weathered wooden beams supported the ceiling, and a faded patchwork quilt covered her body. “Where am I?”
“At Byron’s ranch. We managed to convince the hospital to release you to our care once you came out of surgery.”
Her gaze fell on the huddled form in the chair across the room. Her heart softened as she recognized the familiar angles of his face, despite the thick stubble that covered it. Byron.
“You seem to have quite a d
evoted lover in him.”
Lana sucked in a breath and held it. The board knew about her relationship with him. “We’ve only known each other for a few days.”
“And sometimes that can feel like a lifetime.” Her frigid eyes thawed. “Sometimes love sneaks up on us when we least expect it.”
“Don’t be ridiculous, Morwen. I hardly know him.”
“But your heart calls out to him just like his does to yours.” Her lips rose in her flawless face. “Don’t try to convince me otherwise.”
The witch’s ability to read her thoughts unnerved her, and she shifted in the bed to ease the sensation of thousands of spiders crawling on her skin. Although this was her second meeting with the Head Witch, it still felt like two meetings too many. “Did Klaus get away?”
“Ah, so we turn to business now.” She sat on the edge of the bed with the grace of a woman from a 1930s film, even though she hardly looked a day over twenty. “I’m pleased to report that Espe got her first kill.”
“Good.” Lana exhaled and sank further into the pillows. “If anyone deserved to stake that son of a bitch, it was her. Is she doing okay?”
“A little anemic, but on cloud nine otherwise.”
“I’m glad.” She glanced down at the plaster casts surrounding her arm and leg and grimaced. “She’ll need to go somewhere else to train while I heal.”
“No, and that’s what I wanted to talk to you about.” Morwen stood. Her high heels clicked on the tile floor as she went to the window and stared out into the desert landscape. “She mentioned that Klaus said he was going to turn you. Is that correct?”
Snatches of the nightmare she experienced before blacking out filled her memory. “Yes, he said something about wanting to learn the secrets of the Foundation and that he was going to turn me to get them.”
Morwen’s face showed no emotion as the afternoon sunlight turned her pale skin a rich golden hue. “So, they think they can attack us from within.”
“Sergei?”
“And his sire, I suspect. We’ve been a thorn in their side long enough.” A weak smile formed on her face, but it held no warmth. “But they’re going to need bigger tweezers to get rid of us.”
She twirled on her heels and came back to the bed. “As for you, we’re removing you from Las Vegas.”
Lana’s heart raced, and her throat tightened. Her pulse pounded in her ears. “Removing me?”
“Yes. I have other uses for you, and Wade agrees it’s time for you to quit hunting after this escapade.”
“But what if I want to continue being a hunter?” If the witch thought she’d give in this easily, she had another think coming. Lana dug her fingers into the sheets and willed her pulse to slow down.
“Is that what you really want, Lana? To continue being a hunter and everything it entails?” She glanced toward Byron.
All her anger drained out of her when she stared at him. If she continued being a hunter, she’d have to give him up. Deep inside, she knew she couldn’t. He had become a part of her, whether she wanted to admit it or not. Could she gamble on a new life with him?
She licked her lips and turned back to Morwen. “What did you have in mind for me?”
“I’d like to make you the Foundation’s official liaison to the werewolves. They’ve straddled the fence between us and the vampires for too long now. It’s time they chose a side. Byron and I have spoken at great length about it, and he agrees that your temporary alliance proves how well his kind complements our hunters. If the two of you continue to work together, we can add some much-needed allies to our fight against evil.”
“You’ve spoken to Byron?”
“Yes. You’ve been floating in and out of consciousness for three days, Lana. It seemed the natural thing to do since we were both waiting for you to wake up.”
“And is he really what he says he is?” She held her breath again, unsure whether she wanted to know the answer to her question.
“You mean you don’t believe he’s a werewolf?” Morwen’s laughter grated her pride like sandpaper. “He’s the leader of his pack now, and he’s mourning the loss of two of his brothers at the moment. Be gentle with him.”
Lana nodded. A heaviness formed in the pit of her stomach when she thought about him suffering alone through this.
“I wish you a speedy recovery and a lifetime of happiness, whatever your decision is. Call Wade when you make up your mind.”
“About what?” She felt like she’d just been set free from prison and didn’t know where to go next.
Morwen paused at the door with an incredulous expression on her face. “About the new position. Personally, I think you’d be a natural at it, but that would involve more choices for you to make. Yuan will be staying here for a few days to speed up the healing process and monitor your recovery.”
As the sound of her high heels vanished, so did the heavy blanket of magic that hung in the room. The tension unwound from Lana’s shoulders, and it seemed easier to breathe. The only downside was the dull ache in her broken arm and leg that increased with each throb. She took a deep breath and tried to block the pain in her mind.
“I think they gave you a way to administer your own pain meds.” The rich timbre of Byron’s voice wrapped around her like a lover’s embrace even from across the room. A few seconds ago, he’d seemed to be passed out in the chair. Now, he was watching her with a mixture of fear and concern on his all-too-alert face. “It’s the clicker by your left hand.”
“Thanks.” She pushed the button, and the equivalent of 140-proof liquor flowed through her veins. The throbbing ceased, and her eyelids grew heavy. “How long will you be here?”
“As long as I need to be.” He pushed aside the blanket in his lap and slowly approached her. “How are you feeling?”
“Like I’m still under construction.” She tried to wave the heavy plaster cast in the air, but her muscles wobbled like loose rubber bands and refused to cooperate.
He gave her a wan smile and brushed her hair out of her face. “I’ve been worried sick about you, Lana.”
She heard the love in his voice and saw it in the way his hazel eyes never wavered from hers. Could Morwen be right about his heart calling to hers? She covered his hand with hers and let the warm glow of their connection envelope her. “I’m sorry, Byron.”
“No more hunting for you.”
She chuckled. “At least for now.”
“No, for good. I can’t risk losing you. You’ve become too important for me to let go.”
“Just because you control the pack doesn’t mean you control me.”
His grin widening, he leaned over to kiss her cheek. “Who says you won’t be joining the pack soon?”
Desire pooled between her legs from the way his breath grazed her ear. The man was pure sex sometimes, and it made it all too easy to give in to him. “Is that what I have to do in order to be with you?”
He rubbed his thumb along her cheekbone and looked at her like she’d told him to piss off. “No, but it would make things easier. I’ve managed to stay in control so far, but if I’m constantly worried about accidentally biting you when we’re together…” His face tensed, aging it almost ten years.
Could she become a werewolf if it meant a lasting relationship with him? Was it really her choice, or was it some inevitable fate she’d eventually have to come to terms with? “I’ll give it some serious thought.”
“Thank you, my love.”
“My love?” A head rush of joy hit her when she repeated those words. He loved her as much as she loved him, in spite of the insanity of their lives.
“Would you like me to call you something different?”
“No, I like the sound of that.” She lifted her head and beckoned him to come closer. Her lips hungered for his. One kiss would satisfy her for now.
He hesitated at first, handling her like a delicate Faberge egg. She threaded her fingers through his hair and pulled him closer. Her tongue traced the outline of his mouth and
silently begged to enter it. His lips parted, and the kiss deepened to the point where she never wanted it to stop.
With a heavy sigh, he pulled away. “I need to leave before the moon rises.”
“You’re leaving me alone?” She gave him an exaggerated pout.
A wicked grin spread across his mouth. “I don’t think you’re in any condition to do what I want to do, and even then, it would have to be quick.” He planted a final kiss on her forehead. “I’ve given Yuan a key to the house and ordered her not to let anyone in between sunset and sunrise for the next three days.”
“I’ll rest while you’re howling at the full moon, then.”
He paused at the door with a tortured expression on his face. “I’d love to have you join me. If I changed you, you’d heal quicker than anything Yuan claims she can do.”
Don’t make any rash decisions, her mind ordered. “Maybe next month.”
Chapter Sixteen
Lana tested her leg and waited for the pain to race up like it had the day before. This time, however, she didn’t even feel a twinge. Her cheeks bunched up in a smile.
“See, I told you I could heal you faster than those wolves.” Yuan crossed her arms and let her eyelids droop in a smug expression. “No need to have them gnaw on your bones when you have a competent witch in the house.”
“Too bad the witch likes to play with needles.” She managed to duck Yuan’s playful swat. After four days with her arm and leg encased in the heavy plaster, it felt good to move her limbs without the added weight. She was almost tempted to call Wade and beg for her hunter status to be reinstated.
Yuan finished packing the last of her supplies. “I’m going back to the city. I have to get out of here before I take one of these boys up on their sex-starved pity stories.”
“I had no complaints.”
She wrinkled her nose. “Yes, but that was before they spent three days running around the desert without a shower.”
Heart of a Huntress: The Kavanaugh Foundation Page 10
