Hell Fire

by Lia Davis

  Moving my lips to his neck, I returned the favor, biting him. His rich blood filled my mouth, and his thrusts went from slow and sensual to fast and desperate. He managed to hold off long enough to bring me to a short, fast orgasm before he gave in to it, moaning into my ear.

  When he finished, he walked us to my bed, collapsing naked on top of it.

  My worries and fears returned as he dragged the blankets out from beneath us and covered us up. Where was Peter? Was he hurting? What was she planning, and why the hell had she targeted me?

  Chapter Fifteen

  "Peter!" I screamed at the top of my lungs. He kept walking away from me, though, through the woods I'd woken up in beside our dorm. "Would you stop?"

  I hopped over tree branches and small brush, increasing my speed. Peter was a lycan, and they were fast, but I was a hybrid. There weren't many vampires in the world that could match my speed. I didn't even think my sisters could, since they hadn't trained as much as I had. But no matter how fast I moved, he stayed ahead of me at a brisk walk through the woods. Something wasn't right.

  Laughter floated through the woods, heavy in the air. The sultry female voice was unmistakable. "Calista, you bitch, I'm going to rip your damn throat out." I stopped, looking around me and listening. "Where are you? Are you afraid to confront me one-on-one?"

  Her voice, carried by the wind, grated at my ears. "I have no need to confront you directly, Meda. I'm getting exactly what I need from you already." As she spoke, my fire came to my fingertips, but I hadn't called it. It flowed out of me in a line, but it didn't move like normal. It was sedated, low. My fire was nearly an inferno when banked and controlled. When I got riled up, it turned into pure hellfire, hotter than any fire on earth. But as it exited my hands, it was a small line of flame, almost demurely snaking and looping away. I followed it, hoping it would lead me to Calista.

  The flames moved toward Peter, and I found myself in the same predicament again. I ran, pushing my muscles to take me faster than ever. The trees and rocks around me blurred as I pushed my legs faster and harder, until even I couldn't differentiate one from another. I'd never faster in my life, but still, I couldn't catch up to Peter or the edge of my fire.

  Slowly, inch by painful inch, I moved closer. I must've been running for a good twenty minutes before I was close enough to distinguish the hairs on Peter's head.

  Calista appeared in front of him, halting his progress. I stopped, feet from him, my fire surrounding the three of us like an untightened rope, circling, more and more strings of the subdued flames flowing from my fingers.

  Frozen in place, I watched Calista smile, the corners of her mouth lifting into a mask of pure evil.

  "Stop," I said, feeling the inevitability of what was coming. She was about to hurt him, I was sure, but my limbs were heavy and tight, as if I'd been encased in sand. "Stop," I repeated frantically as Calista leaned forward, her eyes on me, and opened her mouth.

  All of the and lethargy lifted suddenly as she struck, biting into his neck and drinking deeply. I lunged forward and opened my hands to dig my claws into her head, ready to rip it from her body, but she was gone. They disappeared, leaving me alone in the woods

  "Peter." I screamed, the animals in the woods taking flight or running from the frustrated sound that erupted from my mouth. They recognized the sound of an angry predator and didn't want to be anywhere nearby.

  Turning in circles to look around for them, to see if there was any indication of where they'd gone, suddenly I fell, the ground disappearing under my feet.

  When I landed, I sat straight upright, screaming Peter's name and confused. I was in bed, beside Dorian.

  He jumped out of the bed and fell into a defensive stance, waiting to battle whoever or whatever I was screaming at. He turned in a fast circle in the middle of my room then fixed his gaze on me. "What happened?" His eyes were sleepy and confused, making me feel bad for waking him up.

  "Dream, I’m sorry." I crawled out of bed and moved toward the door. "I’m going to get some water. Go back to sleep."

  I felt Dorian’s eyes on me as I left the room. His concern flowed through our bond, and I worried that he felt my fear. It was no wonder I’d had a nightmare like that. I’d had mates for, like three days, if that. I hadn’t even had time to get used to having them at all before one of them was ripped from me.

  Where was he? I tried to tap into his mating thread and came up with nothing. It was like...well I couldn’t reach him. The thread wasn’t just muted. Since I’d had the dream it was gone. How was that possible? That shouldn’t have been possible.

  In the kitchen I pulled a glass out of the cabinet and stared at the running water, fighting back tears. I’m not a damn crier. I filled my glass, sipping it as I moved across the apartment to look out the window. Why hadn’t Sterling checked in?

  "I’m here." I sagged in relief at the sound of Sterling’s voice in my head. "Don’t let Calista mess with your head. We’ll find Peter."

  "I know, but I can't stop the worry." I finished the glass of water and took the glass to the sink.

  Sterling sent me a mental hug through our bond. I sighed and sent one back, wishing he was there so I could hold him. "I love you, my mate."

  The words flowed to him as if it was the most natural thing. I meant them. We may not have had much of a courtship, but he was mine and part of my heart. Just like Dorian and Peter were.

  After a brief hesitation, Sterling said, “Love you too. Now go back to sleep. I’ll be there in the morning." His feelings of love and affection flowed through the bond, cementing his words.

  My heart filled with love and still ached for the loss of Peter. Okay, he’s not gone forever. We will get him back.

  Returning to bed, I found Dorian sitting on the bed. "You okay?" he asked.

  "I guess. Just worried about Peter."

  He stood and wrapped his arms around me. "Me, too. But right now, my job is to stick with you."

  "Thanks. It’s not lost on me that you barely know me, not really. And you came without any hesitation to help me. I know we’re mates and all and that means something, but still."

  "Meda," a whisper came from the common area.

  "Let me go see what my sister wants," I told Dorian. He looked at me kind of funny but shrugged and flopped down on the bed. "Come to bed soon. Get some sleep."

  After popping a kiss on his lips, I went out to the common area.

  "Meda."

  Turning in a circle, I looked to see who the hell was talking to me.

  "Meda, if you want to see Peter again you will come to me. And come alone or I’ll kill your mate."

  Calista.

  I growled low in my throat, and my fire roared inside me. Before I could send a thought back to the little demoness, my body started moving on its own. How was she strong enough to take control of me like that?

  Struggling against her, I grabbed the couch, trying to hold on, but my hands unclenched from the attached cushions and my body turned. I tried to open my mouth and scream for Dorian, but my jaw was clamped shut and wouldn’t unclench. Son of a bitch. I slammed a block around my mind, but I couldn’t totally cut my mates out. Part of me wanted to scream in my mind for Sterling, but if he followed me, she might hurt Peter.

  Then, I finally felt him. Peter! Only it wasn’t really him. Calista had somehow tapped into his link to me to take control over my mind. Panicking, I lifted the block I’d put to try to keep anyone from knowing what was happening and tried to send a message to my other two mates and my sisters, but I was blocked. I screamed as loud as I could through the links to Dorian and Sterling, but I was sure they couldn’t hear me.

  Thrashing around inside my mind, I made all the commotion I could, but nothing happened. No response from my mates and my connection to my sisters was barely there. I was already down the stairs, going out the back door.

  Just as I opened it and stepped outside, Mom yelled my name from across the quad beside the dorm. Tears rolled down my chee
ks as I fought to say something. Anything.

  Then again, this could be a good thing. I sucked in a deep breath and rolled my eyes from side to side, trying to see who all was around. Mom would wake everyone up and send out an army. And I’ll lead them straight to Calista.

  I walked into the dark forest. Normally, I’d never be scared or intimidated by the quiet busyness of the forest at night, but at the moment I had no control over my senses. If I didn’t find a way to break free from her hold, she could make sure I was eaten by a wild animal or something.

  I tried to stay alert to my surroundings but couldn’t break Calista’s hold on my mind. Walking past tree after tree without being able to take my mind back made me angrier and angrier. She might have control of my mind, but she didn’t have my fire, not like the dream. I felt it growing hotter and hotter. When I got to her, I’d just have to find a way to release it, and she’d be toast. Hell, as hot as I was, I’d probably end up burning down the whole damn forest.

  Let it burn.

  I was the High Alpha heir and Satan’s granddaughter! No one should be more powerful than me.

  Yet Calista was. Or she was pulling from a higher source. Maybe was using mine against me. That last thought sent a jolt of fear through me. Was that possible?

  Hell, at that point, I’d believe anything was possible.

  Finally, I came to stop in a small clearing that I hadn’t known was there. For all I knew, Calista could’ve just spelled the area to look like something else. As my eyes tried to see the entire space without moving my head, I realized the trees were cleared in a perfect circle. How had I never seen it before in my runs?

  The hold on my mind released, and I breathed a sigh of relief, calling my fire to be ready, just below my skin. The steam rising from my pores was a dead giveaway, but I didn’t care. I would’ve just let it out, but it would’ve burned my clothes off. Again.

  During my blackouts, I never remembered or was conscious of what was going on while she directed me wherever she wanted. But knowing and seeing it, feeling it was weird and unnatural. Since she couldn’t control me with the sub anymore, she’d had to use Peter, which left me in full control of my mind.

  Calista stepped out from behind a large tree and smirked. Her blonde hair was perfectly styled, and her makeup looked like it had been done by an artist, perfectly contoured.

  I fisted my hands to stop the fire from erupting and growled. My wolf nudged me then howled, sending me the impression of how good it would feel to use our jaw to snap her neck. My vampire was inclined to make her death slow and painful. The metallic taste of blood filled my mouth. She wanted to drain her slowly. I curbed both their instincts. First, our mate. "Where is Peter?"

  She laughed. "You’ll see him soon. He’s otherwise occupied." She licked her lips, running her tongue slowly over them. Had she sent me that dream? I’d thought it was just my subconscious, but how had she known to imply she’d drank from my mate?

  I narrowed my eyes and moved forward slowly, holding my hands out in front of me. My flames moved as if they knew exactly what I wanted. A fireball formed in my hand, growing with every step toward Calista.

  She looked at it in interest, completely unperturbed. "Pretty," she said simply. "Can you make it do circles?"

  My fury overtook me, and I hurled it at her, using my magic to keep it in line. I hadn’t known before that moment I could do that. Too bad Ami wasn’t there to put her wind behind it, then I could really make an inferno. We’d practiced using our elements to complement each other’s many times and were pretty good at it.

  As the fireball was about to hit Calista dead in her chest, she waved her hand and it dissipated. My jaw dropped. How had she done that? The fucking thing totally disappeared. Damn, I needed to work with Sterling more. A lot more.

  Just then my Niswi charged out of the treeline beside me and sentries poured out of the woods, surrounding us. I hadn't realized that the sentries and my Niswi could move so fast, or so quietly. How had they snuck up on me without me having a clue? I had so much more training to do. Sterling and Dorian rushed to my side, standing slightly in front of me. I stepped forward. They’d have to get used to not being able to protect me. It wasn’t their job, however hard that would be for them to accept. It was my job to protect them from threats like this. At least, eventually it would be.

  Crossing my arms, thankful the cavalry had arrived, it was my turn to smirk. "It’s over, Calista."

  She looked around at the sentries as they closed the circle around us. Shaking her head, she sighed. "This isn’t over. Not by a long shot. It just got more complicated, is all." Laughing, she turned back to me. "Enjoy." With a snap of her fingers, she vanished.

  "Where the fuck did she go?" I whirled around, hoping someone had an answer.

  Dad snarled beside me. I looked at him with an eyebrow raised. I hadn’t seen him so pissed since… Ever, maybe. "Teleported." He stilled and frowned, then his eyes darkened and lips curled to reveal his fangs. "Back to the dorm, now." Even though I was eighteen and now had three mates of my own, I bowed my head and turned toward the dorms. When the King of the vampires told me to move, I moved. I couldn’t help it, really. He’d used that damn power-voice bullshit.

  We moved as a unit, my Niswi, my mates, and I leading the sentries back through the woods. Now that I had full control of my mind, I realized she’d taken me much deeper into the trees than I’d realized. I was still a bit surprised I’d never seen the clearing before. Could she have created it just for the confrontation? Surely not.

  "What is it?" I sensed Dad’s anger and fear as if it were my own. We hadn’t had that good of a connection before, so he must’ve been projecting hardcore.

  When we emerged from the forest, my question was answered. Students lined the quad, my mom and the few sentries that had stayed behind with her facing them, their backs to us. The entire crowd was frozen. Everyone knew that the first move anyone made would create an enormous explosion of fighting.

  I studied the faces of the students, not totally sure what they were doing or why. Then I saw him. Peter was front and center, a smile on his face. "Peter," I whispered.

  Apparently, that was the damn signal. As soon as I uttered the word, the students rushed forward. My Niswi left me and threw themselves in front of my mom.

  "Jillian, get to the back," Paw yelled as he waited on the students to reach us. It didn’t take long. They were all paranormal, after all.

  Calista had bewitched nearly the entire student body, and every one of them was about to attack us. That fucking bitch.

  Chapter Sixteen

  "Don’t kill them!" I screamed as I ran forward to the first skirmishes. The Niswi and their sentries exchanged blows with people I’d gone to school with my entire life. "They’re not in control of their actions," I yelled, trying to get all the sentries to hear me as I fended off my first attacker. Cole, I think his name was. He had a brother, but I wasn’t friends with them and couldn’t remember his brother’s name as I tried to think of a way to subdue him.

  "Dad!" I yelled.

  "Yeah?" I heard his voice but couldn’t see him as I dodged Cole’s fists. "Try to do that power thing on the vampires with your voice." I heard him commanding someone to stand down, and the power in his voice reverberated throughout the field, as far as anyone could hear it.

  "Nope," he said loudly. "Didn’t work at all."

  "Listen up, sentries," I shouted as loudly as I could as Harper cut in front of me and took over the fight with Cole. "They’re innocent in this. Do not deliver killing blows. Wolves and vampires can come back from grievous injuries. Disable them, but don’t kill!"

  "What about the witches?" Noah shouted.

  Sterling answered him. "Try to funnel them toward my parents. They’re on the south side of the quad and are putting witches to sleep but they can only do one or two at a time." I heard the sentries repeating the information about the magic users so that everyone knew it. I whirled around, searching for a way
to help. If only Calista would show her too-perfect face.

  Spotting Peter not too far away, I walked slowly toward him. "Peter, try to fight this. I know you’re in there somewhere." Instead of heeding my words, Peter growled and charged at me. Damn it. I dodged him, not wanting to hurt him. It’d be a lot easier if I were fighting demons or someone in control of their own mind. Then I’d use my fire magic and just wipe them out quickly.

  But I couldn’t.

  I dodged to the right and then left while grabbing Peter’s arm, twisting my body, and then throwing him over my shoulder. He landed a few feet away but quickly got to his feet. I bent my knees and waited. When he snarled at me, I rolled my neck and flexed my hands. Okay, Peter. I don’t want to hurt you, but I gotta knock your ass out.

  He charged again, and I launched myself up and over his shoulder, grabbing hold of him so that I whirled around in midair and landed on his back. Throwing my arm around his throat, I squeezed hard enough to cut off his wind supply, but not so hard that I’d snap his neck. That would take him too long to recover from.

  Sterling tapped into our bond. "We need protection over here." He broke the connection almost immediately. While I waited for Peter to pass out from oxygen deprivation, I looked around, using his height to help me see over the heads of the crowd. Peter bucked and fought, trying to get me off his back, but I was stronger than he was, of course. What good was being a hybrid if I wasn’t stronger than everyone else?

  "Harper," I called. She was still trying to fight Cole without hurting him, but his brother had joined them.

  "Stop it, Dylan," she yelled, slapping the brother’s hand away. Dylan! That was his name. "It’s a good thing most of these students haven’t been trained in any real fighting," she said over her shoulder. "They’re easy to dodge, but how the hell are we going to get them to stop trying?"

  Peter finally crumpled, and I landed on my feet as he hit the ground. Standing over his body, I wiped my hands on my pants and looked around. "Take a handful of sentries over to help Sterling’s parents. They’re knocking people out, but the students are attacking them.