by Casey Lane
She shook her head. “I don’t know. I don’t know if we’ll ever get that figured out. Are you okay with it?” Snuggled in his arms, she waited for his answer.
He sighed. “If I have to be okay with it, then I guess I am. Does that work?”
“Yeah.”
“Get clear, Megan. I don’t want you in the fight tomorrow night unless you know, one hundred percent, that I love you. That I claimed you, just as you claimed me. I’m not letting you go. Not for an instant.”
“You’re saying you want me to keep a clear head.”
“At the very least. If the mating threads haven’t convinced you, I don’t know what will.”
She drew him to her, kissed him deeply, and something inside her settled down and purred with contentment. She’d found her mate.
“I’m sorry, love. Call it nerves, or something. You’re right, I’m yours, just as much if not more than you are mine. Forever.”
“Let me just remind you…” Raven rolled on top of her, his cock pressing against her.
Joy spread through her body. “Oh yes, please. As often as you need to.”
He nipped her neck, sucked the place he’d claimed her, and her body responded. She moaned, clutched him to her.
Take me, my wolf. For I am yours.
Raven snorted. Damn straight you are.
Chapter Six
The nightclub pulsed orange and blue, the music loud and the bodies gyrating. Derek pushed his way through the crowd to the stairs that led up.
He never took a stair that led below ground. Not anymore.
The upstairs was less crowded than the scene below. He headed to the almost empty bar.
Erick stood there polishing beer glasses. His eyes sharpened when Derek approached.
“So, you’re alive. After all these years.” Erick’s hand hovered just out of sight.
Derek sighed. “If you can call it that. Bourbon. Double. Water back.”
“You know my orders, De Luca.” He picked up the phone below the bar. “I need to make a call.”
“Hey. It’s my last drink. I’m here, aren’t I? Not going anywhere. You know we can’t get drunk easily. Give me bourbon. Double. Water back.” Derek repeated his order and tossed a fifty onto the bar. “I’ll give you another fifty for some conversation before you make that phone call.”
Erick fingered the bill, tucked it into his shirt pocket, and put the phone away. Poured the bourbon and water back, set them on the bar.
“So talk.”
“There’s a certain doctor in town that has been considering an offer from Mengele.” Derek watched as understanding cleared the puzzlement off Erick’s face.
“Yeah? So?”
“She’s got a friend. Indian. From a reservation in Arizona. You might not know about it, since you don’t get out much.”
But Erick’s jaw ticked, and Derek knew he had him.
“What about her friend?”
Derek downed the bourbon. “Hit me again.”
Erick poured. Derek drank, wiped his mouth. “Her friend wants a one-on-one with Veronique. Apparently, someone used her name out in the field.”
Erick’s head twitched. “So what does Veronique and the Indian have to do with this woman doctor and, uh, Mengele?”
“She won’t agree to be a partner with Mengele unless her Indian gets a chance with Veronique. That’s all.” He finished the bourbon, gave his dead-eye stare to Erick. “And considering how badly our mutual friend Mengele wants this particular doctor’s participation, anything we can do to make that happen will make us…sorry, my apologies, wrong pronoun.” He put a hand to his heart and gave a pithy little bow before he continued.
“Anything you can do, Erick, to make this happen, to make Doc Megan work for Mengele, will make you a superstar in Mengele’s eyes. You know I speak the truth.”
“I do.” Erick considered the proposition. “And what of Veronique?”
Derek shrugged. “Is she important to you? If she is, then give her a heads up. If she’s not? Just set her up. You know how. I taught you well.”
Erick relaxed against the bar. “Okay. I’m in. How’s this going to work?”
Derek gave him a lazy smile and laid another fifty on the bar. “Give me another double, and I’ll lay it all out for you.”
“Behind you.”
The words, and a stray reflection off the bottles behind the bar were the only warnings he got. In a flash, Derek had the flame-haired beauty bent backward over the bar, the knife in her hand clamped in his, their mouths a whisper apart.
“Well, hello Veronique. What a pleasure to see you again.” Her body against his no longer had the power to excite him. He’d spent too many decades in exile because of her.
She hissed at him and glared at Erick. “Have you made the phone call?”
“Do I look like an idiot?” Erick emptied the dishwasher of beer glasses. “Go away, Veronique. We’re chatting before he gets picked up.”
“I could kill him here, and handle it. I’d probably get favors for it,” Veronique purred.
Derek twisted the knife out of her hand and released her. She sprang at him, but he kept the knife pointed at her heart.
“Go ahead, sweetheart. Or go away. I’m dead either way, and you know it.”
Blood tears stood in her eyes. “You broke my heart.”
“You tried to kill me. You had me banished for life. What did you expect? Besides, yawn, it was all so long ago.” Derek leaned against the bar. “That doesn’t mean I wouldn’t love to stick this where it would hurt the most though, V.”
“Go on, get out of here, Veronique.”
The sultry vamp leaned across the bar, captured Erick’s face with her hands, and planted a deep kiss on his lips. “See you at home, lover.”
Sending a haughty glare at Derek, she sashayed her way to the staircase and disappeared from view.
Derek turned to his friend and raised his eyebrows. “Seriously?”
Erick shrugged. “Between her, Debra and I, we do okay. We’re kind of a family.”
“But…”
“But,” Erick continued, “I’ve been in love with Debra forever. It would be nice for it to be the two of us.”
“So you’re okay with my proposal?” Derek threw down two more fifties.
The bills disappeared into Erick’s pocket, and he sent an easy smile Derek’s way.
“Looks like it.”
“Sounds like you don’t expect your girl to win.”
Erick’s smile grew bigger. “If she wins, it’ll be celebrations all around. If she loses, I’ll have my Debra to myself. That’s what I call a win-win situation.”
Derek laughed. “Pour me one more before you make that phone call, and let’s discuss this.”
Megan checked her weapons one more time. Katana to hand, plus all she could utilize from the Fae side…fire bolts, surges of the ocean, weaves of the air, rumbles of the earth beneath them. Her hair was braided the way she had been taught by her mother’s people, and she wore her fighting leathers. She was as ready as she could be.
Next to her, Raven had gone through a similar check, but with a lot more weaponry. A Tanto on his hip, with a wicked curved blade and tip split into two. Two wrist knives, and a belt that held six throwing knives.
They were hiding in a shallow cave not far from the vampire cave. Megan had received instructions, and a cell phone, that morning. The two of them had been in preparation mode ever since. When the call came to give them a place to meet, they had set aside preparations, and just spent time together.
She’d bathed them both in sacred silence, taken him to her bed, wove about him as much love protection that she could with her body, her heart, her soul.
Felt him do the same with her, though without conscious effort, and she had yearned for more time with him, to teach him what he truly was, to learn from him who she truly could be.
Lunch with the Caines, in place of dinner, had been a lively affair, one she had come to cheris
h. If all went well, they’d see their friends again before dawn.
Now there was nothing to do but wait.
“Stay in human form for as long as you can.” Raven murmured the words against her cheek as they sat side by side in the cave. “If you change, you can’t change back until we have won, so please, wait. If I lose, run. Hide.”
“You—” Her voice broke, and she tried again. “You won’t lose. We’ll do this as we had planned. Teamwork.”
“I’m going out first. We agreed. There’s no guarantee Veronique will be alone, and if she’s not, then you come out. But only as a distraction.”
“I know.” She thought about a precaution she had taken and sat up straighter. “Remember, they’re fast. You have to be faster.”
He chuckled. “Remember to not get in the way of my knives, my love. We triangulate her, not flank her if it comes to that.”
Another thought struck her. “What if she has a gun? With silver bullets?”
“You told me you know how to bind her hands with a weave of air.” He hauled her into his lap and kissed her.
Megan sank into the kiss. Held him close, felt his heartbeat under her hand. When their lips finally parted, she put her head on his shoulder. “I do know. You’re right. I need to remember who I am.”
“The whole of you. Megan, from everything the Caines said at lunch today, you are one strong woman. Don’t you forget that.”
“I won’t.”
“Come out, come out, wherever you are.”
The sound of a female voice carried on the still night, and Megan shivered. She slid off Raven’s lap.
You ready?
He sent her a grim smile. Never been more ready in my life. Remember, hang back until we know what we’re dealing with.
Right. She hated this part, but he was right.
He stood, shook the sand off his dark pants, and ducked out of the cave. She peered out.
They’d picked that particular spot because it hid between two folds of the cliff, giving them some needed cover. When he did become exposed, he had a place to retreat to, if necessary.
Megan watched her mate stride out to meet the vampire who had killed his sister, the wonder of the mating threads sparkling in the dark. She whispered, and they dimmed. Unfriendly eyes would not be able to see.
Veronique hovered in the air, rotating lazily as she scanned the beach, her blood-red halter dress hugging her breasts before flowing in a froth around her knees.
Raven saw his chance and sent a throwing knife toward her unprotected back. Knew satisfaction when it hit the target, causing her to lurch forward and lower to the sand.
Snarling, she whirled around. “Not very sportsmanlike, are you, wolf?”
“You’re not human anyway, so what does it matter?” He kept his limbs ready. “You take babies from women’s wombs. Which makes you less than the lowest life form around. Oh, wait, you’re not alive. That’s right.”
Surprise lit her face. “Oh, were you her lover? Were those pups yours? Sorry to say they didn’t make it…but they made a lovely snack.” She licked her lips and grinned.
Fury had him raining knives at her, getting closer to her with every step, but she was adept enough to evade all but the last, which plunged into her thigh. Blood seeped down from the knife, drawing a crimson line down her pale thigh.
She sighed. “You’re trying my patience, wolf.”
“You’ve outlived your welcome, Veronique. Time for a permanent nitey-nite.”
“You have no clue who you’re dealing with.”
“Said every cheesy villain in every cheesy flick ever.” He shrugged. “Bring it.”
She chuckled. With a leap and a somersault, she landed on Raven’s shoulders, her thighs tight around his neck.
Raven held still, options running through his mind as her thighs tightened around his throat.
“Hm. How shall I kill you? Quickly, by snapping your neck? Or slower, by asphyxiation? Or maybe I should just bleed you to death like I did your lover.”
Her sultry laugh was cut off when Raven leaped up a bit and dove head first into the sand, into a somersault of his own, slamming her down into the sand and dislodging her.
He rolled to his feet while Veronique struggled to hers. “She was my sister. Bitch.” He punched her in the face before she could stand, sending her tumbling once more.
Blood poured from her nose. “That wasn’t gentlemanly.”
“Not a gentleman.” He launched at her, wrist knife sliding into his hand. She slid sideways to his right. He caught her shoulder, jammed the knife into her side and danced away before she could grab him.
They faced off once more, the vampire no longer smiling.
“That’s three knives in you. Hm. Wonder who’s winning this fight?”
Blood dripped slowly from Veronique and landed on the sand. “I’ve just been toying with you until now.”
“Yeah?”
“Yeah.” With a grin, she rose into the air again, and made a slashing motion with her hands.
Cuts appeared across the leather jacket.
“How cute. Is that made of wolf hide?” She grinned and slashed again, her hands a blur of motion.
When she was through, his jacket was in shreds; his t-shirt may as well not exist. Blood flowed from a dozen places on his torso. Veronique cackled with glee at the coppery scent on the air.
Raven caught his breath and wiped his mouth with his wrist. “Not wolf hide, no. Though I’d be happy to wear something made of vampire hide.” He raised a hand to the heavens and shot a lightning bolt at her. “But I rather think you’re going to be a crispy critter.”
Veronique dodged it, but not quite fast enough, and the hem of her dress sizzled with the contact. Screeching, she flung it off, hanging in mid-air completely naked, with Raven’s three knives still in her body.
Panting, she turned around. “Bastard.” She slashed across his face, three cuts along the left side.
Blood dripped down his neck. “Bitch.” He tossed another lightning bolt at her, grinned at her screech as she dodged it.
“Your sister’s spawn wasn’t worth this, wolf. Go now, and take your playmate with you.” She glanced around the area as if searching for someone.
He laughed. “I’ve got you hanging in the air, naked and afraid. Why should I pack up my toys and leave now?”
“Because if you don’t leave Veronique alone, I’ll kill Megan.”
Raven stilled but didn’t turn around. “Derek. How kind of you to join the party. Set us up, did you? Well done, mate. Well done. Step to where I can see you, please.”
Derek carried Megan in his arms, her body limp. “She’s merely conked out. You can sense her heartbeat. You know she’s alive.”
It was true. The mating threads were muted between them, but they were still there. Raven took a breath and backed up so he could keep both Veronique and Derek in sight.
“What do you want?”
Derek gave a short laugh. “What don’t I want? Freedom. Love. Anything is better than the life I’ve been living, hiding in plain sight from a madman who did me no favors when he changed me, then abandoned me because I was flawed.”
“Derek.” Veronique’s sharp voice cut through Raven’s confusion. “Don’t get into ancient history. Not now.”
“Not now?” The words ripped out of Derek on a howl. “Then when? I know I’m slated for disposal because I’m defective, on top of you getting me tossed out. What the fuck do I have to lose?”
The suave and controlled vampire dissolved into one wild with grief and rage.
“Give her to me, Derek. If you need revenge, kill Veronique. You can, you know. I can feel your strength.” It was true, Raven realized. His Fae powers let him gauge the strengths and weaknesses of his opponents in a different way than his wolf powers.
“Veronique is the stronger. Besides, I have loved Megan longer than you have.” Derek clutched Megan to his chest, and she let out a low moan.
A dark s
treak blurred the air until another vamp settled beside Veronique and handed her a black trench coat. He cast a sharp look at Derek.
“Why are you even here?”
“I want her. You can have him.”
A roar from the cliffs had them all looking that way.
Raven took his chance and sidled closer to Megan. New shapes dropped down from the sky. Three big demons landed and roared. Out of the dark came fireballs directed at the vampires.
One of the fireballs caught Derek’s feet. With a yelp, he danced back, Megan bobbling in his arms.
Raven saw his chance and snatched her from him as he ran for the ocean. He pulled her to him and was startled when her eyes flew open. She blew him a kiss. Relieved, he set her on her feet. “Go get ‘em, baby.”
He turned to the fight on the beach. More vampires had swarmed down the cliff and were battling the huge demons.
One used his tail as a whip, slicing a vampire in two. Quickly, Raven called down a firebolt, and the vampire’s remains went up in flames.
Raven, out of knives, shifted to his wolf. His nose stung with the scent of vampire and he sneezed before leaping up and grabbing one by the throat and taking it down to the sand.
The vampire screamed and died with Raven’s teeth still in its neck. He dropped the vamp and sniffed at it.
What the hell?
Bewildered, he noticed that, one by one, the demons took down the vampires with little trouble. Was that the power of the demon, or something else altogether?
Pulling her katana from her holster, Megan moved toward Veronique and twirled her sword.
“Wanna play?” With a rush, she slashed at Veronique, leaving a line across the vampire’s chest.
The vampire squealed and flew up into the air while slashing back with her hands.
Blood dripped from Megan’s face and hands. Cuts appeared in her uniform.
“I’ve had enough.” She chanted a quick weave, and Veronique’s hands were bound together tightly.
Enraged, Veronique dove for her, a full body-slam. The two tumbled to the ground. When they stood, the vampire’s hands were her own again. She grabbed Megan by the throat and lifted her off the ground.
