by Lea Jade
“Are you crazy? I did not try anything. The salve only works that way on shifters. Last I looked, you’re not a shifter!” he snaps.
“That’s not what you said earlier,” I shout back at him. “Is that why you murdered those witches, because they wouldn’t sleep with you? Did you try and drug them too?”
There’s a loud bang.
A door slamming. Bringing me back to my senses. Startling me.
With my heart threatening to jump out of my chest, I stare wildly at Caleb.
A voice calls from the hallway. A deep voice. An octave lower than Cal’s. “Is anyone here? Cal, you home?”
Cal frowns, and then bows his head, air leaving his chest, rubbing at his temples. “My brother… he’s here,” he says, by way of explanation.
And then, in walks another shifter. Taller, leaner, but still built like an over-stuffed marine. He has the same mouth and chin as Cal, but shorter hair. And odd eyes; one hazel, the other pale yellow.
“Cal, what the hell. The witch is still here?” He looks at Cal and then me, a sly smile creeping over his face at me standing with my hand on Cal’s shirtless chest.
Cal has an expression that I can’t fathom. He sighs again and opens his mouth to say something, but then shakes his head as if there’s nothing he can do.
The taller shifter must get it now because he looks at me and frowns, taking a step forward. He glances at Cal. “What does she know?” Half his words are lost in a growl.
It’s then I realize, I can’t take on two of them.
But, I’ll damned well try.
I shove my fear deep down where I can’t drown in it, and glower at the other shifter. “Stay back, or he dies. You know what I can do.” I hope they know, because if they don’t this is all going to go horribly wrong.
“Haile, you need to calm down. We’re not here to harm you,” Cal speaks slowly and level-toned, like I’m prey ready to bolt.
The other one takes another step toward me. “Witch, do as he says.”
Cal suddenly growls at the other shifter. “Trey, for fuck’s sake, leave us will you?”
“What…”
“Just leave us. I’ll call you later. I’ve got this.”
“Doesn’t look like you have.” Trey glares at me and takes yet another step closer.
“Stay back!” I yell. “Or I’ll zap him.”
“Look, Haile. I have your phone. It’s in my pocket if you want it.”
Cal has my phone? I turn my head to him a little. I don’t want to take my eyes off his brother, but something in Cal’s voice makes me want to see his face as he speaks.
If he has my phone, then the location tracker I sent yesterday could still be active. It should lead Esme or the coven right to me. All I need to do is grab it, deal with dumb and dumber here, and then hide and wait for them to find me.
Problem is, I can only use my necromancer magic on one of them. In my head, my martial arts instructor is shouting instructions to me—Go for the throat, the nose and the balls. Guys can’t handle the balls.
“Do you trust me, Haile?”
I give Cal the death stare. If he thinks I’m going to just trust him, after he brought me here and drugged me. He’s got it wrong.
“She’s really mad at you, brother. Whatever you did she’s not happy about.”
“Trey, shut the fuck up.” Cal scowls at his brother, then looks at me. “Haile, It’s in my pocket, your phone. Take it and call whoever you want to come and get you. Leave if you need to. I won’t stop you. I’m not here to hurt you. My job is to protect you.”
How dare he. As if I can’t defend myself. I lift my chin and glare at Cal. It’s men like him who make me furious. Thinking all women need protecting. The kind of protection that involves kicks and blows. The kind that leaves women hurt and afraid.
Or dead.
Keeping my hand on Cal and eyes on both, I lean forward and carefully ease my phone out of Cal's pocket, slipping it into mine. He’s staring at me, eyes bright yellow, like a cat’s. Beneath the hand I have on his chest, his life force simmers. I can feel it burning, getting bolder. Any moment, it’s going to burst out. Instead of ignoring it, soothing it and pushing it away, I take hold of it.
“Haile, what are you doing?”
A tiny crackle of it sparks at my fingertips.
“Haile, don’t.”
My eyes meet his. My other hand curling into a first.
Don’t tell me what to do.
Suddenly, Cal’s energy jumps and I wrench his life force, his animus, to me, as I hard as I can.
Draining power from him and pulling it into me.
Flooring us both.
There’s a roar in my ears and all around the room. The air is electric, and I can’t feel my legs or arms anymore. The world is white and sharp. My body is on fire, an inferno of pain and power, ready to erupt and release. So much energy, too much, pouring into me and nowhere for it to go. But I can’t let go. Someone is screaming. I think it’s me.
I yank my hand back, a second before I take too much, and roll away.
There’s a buzzing in my ears and my skin feels tight and prickly. But, I’m on my feet, running. Another roar behind me. I don’t stop to look back. I just keep running, clutching my burning hand to my chest.
I don’t make it to the front door. Something heavy barrels into me from behind, knocking me sideways, winding me senseless. My head cracks against the wall, and for a split-second I see a pale, yellow eye. Then I black out.
I come to with a moan. Head pounding. A few hours or minutes later, I can’t tell. And I’m being tied up.
It’s not Cal, it’s the other one. His brother. Fixing a cable tie around my wrists, binding them securely to my ankles, and making me cry out.
Trey, I think his name is, looks up from what he’s doing and peers at me, his paler eye not quite meeting mine. The side of my skull throbs, and I feel hot and shivery. Cal’s animus is still swirling inside of me, looking for a way out. It tingles and burns as it hits the boundary of my skin, over and over. I think I’m going to be sick.
“Don’t scream,” Trey orders, and shoves something fabric into my mouth, making me choke as I go to hurl. Tears stream down my face, making me blink. On the floor behind him is the bulk of Cal’s body, unmoving, lying where I left him.
I tried to stop in time. I thought I did, but he’s not moving.
His brother makes no move to help him. In fact, he steps over him a few times as he goes about the kitchen, and then into the bedroom, coming out with what looks to be my ruined clothes and a crumpled bedsheet.
“You did me a favor back there.” Trey smirks, coming to a standstill in front of me. “Taking him out like that. Now I have you all to myself.”
Fresh fear floods my veins.
“You’re burning up like a shifter,” he remarks, as he gathers me up in his arms like I weigh nothing, carrying me outside. The air is bitter, cold, a welcome zephyr on my hot, scalding skin. I’ve never drained a shifter before. I’ve no idea if this is normal. Trey hums as he puts me in the trunk of the car on top of a thin bedsheet. It’s the one from Cal’s house. The one I slept in.
He leans in close. I can’t help but shy away as he sniffs my skin and pushes his nose into my hair and inhales. “Mmm, you smell so good, but don’t worry, we’ll cover your scent so no one will follow us. When they find his body, they’ll think you killed him. Stopped his heart cold and ran. After I scatter your clothes in the woods covered in vamp poison, they’ll assume one of them got to you.”
My heart is racing. I zapped the wrong shifter.
His hand reaches out to touch my neck. I struggle as he fingers my necklace, staring at it lovingly and then lifts it over my head. He puts it on, both eyes glowing yellow the moment he does. He grins as a set of claws slide out of the knuckles of one of his hands. Like he’s one of the X-men or something.
“Fuck, it works. They said the stone would unlock my beast, but I had no idea of the power.” He g
ives me an insane look. “You didn’t know how powerful this stone could be, did you? I’ve been using a shard of it this whole time, but now, with this, I can fully shift into my beast. Oh fates, I can’t wait to see what he will do to you.”
He’s a monster.
I try to kick and scream but he just laughs. He holds my head down while he wraps the silken sheet around me, cocooning me like a bug. The hood closes, locking out the light, leaving me with the smell of gas and oil and the scent of Cal’s sheets all around me.
There’s a rumble and then we’re moving. I struggle against my bindings, trying to get them loose. There must be a way out of this. Think, Haile, Think! Being tied this way makes it difficult to use my magic, but if I can get some slack. I pull at the bonds enough to wriggle my knees inside my arms, so I can see if at least my phone is still in my pocket.
It’s not.
My heart sinks in my chest. It must have slipped out when I fell down. I continue to fumble around in the dark, groping for something, a weapon, anything. But the trunk is empty.
I can’t breathe, and I try to draw air into my lungs in short, sharp gasps. The sheet melds itself to my face as I as pant. I kick at the hood, the sides of the trunk, and shout as best I can with the rag stuffed down my throat. In case someone, anyone can hear me.
Deep down, I know no one is coming. No one knows where I am.
I’m on my own and it’s my fault.
Maybe I should have trusted Cal instead of punishing him for making me need him—Instead of killing him. A sick feeling invades the pit of my stomach. I want to curl up into a ball or throw up. Anything to shake the feeling of emptiness and dread.
Oh Goddess, he’s dead. And I killed him.
I stifle back a sob.
The energy I stole from him reacts within me, humming at first then building up until it hurts. It thrashes under my skin like a wild thing wanting to come out. I’ve never taken this much before. Usually it dissipates or merges with my own energy. My practice sessions have always involved taking small amounts, never enough to floor a full-grown shifter. Heat burns through me as sparks flare from my fingertips and light the interior of the truck. Each one taking me by surprise, making me jump and yelp.
Ok, what the hell do I do with this much power?
I take a moment to calm myself, close my eyes and breathe. My fingers curl into tight fists as I focus on flowing all the spare heat and energy of Cal’s into the bonds that tie me. The smell of burning tingles my nose as the plastic ties start to stretch. Okay, good, now how far apart I can work them loose? Within in minutes, the ties aren’t so taut anymore. I can wriggle one hand free and then the other. My legs follow soon after until I’m no longer trussed up like a turkey.
Then I yank off the sheet wrapped around me, pull the rag from my mouth, and lie panting and sucking down air in the dark.
I’ve never channeled like that before, changing one type of energy to another. It gives me a rush.
Now to get out of here.
The car is still moving. Every bump and jolt sends me sprawling to one side and then the other. I fumble around until I find the catch which opens the boot. Honing my new-found power into it until it pops open.
The sheet flies away, revealing a runway of speeding woodland behind us. Great. Another moving vehicle to jump from, and no warlock—correction, prince shifter—to save me this time. There’s an ache in my chest at that thought, but I squash it down. No time to be a sap. I can panic later, much later. This is easier than the cab, right? All I have to do is jump and roll. Oh, and try not to break a leg.
Piece of cake, Haile. Get going then.
I gather and haul myself up by the sides of the boot. The vehicle is taking the turns too fast, but I hold on for dear life as we race around them. When we get to a straight, where the road is littered with leaves, I tell myself this is as good as it’s going to get.
It’s not so much a jump, more throwing myself painfully on to the dirt road. I tuck and roll, protecting my head as the concrete scrapes chunks of skin off my legs and arms. I’m wincing, winded, cursing the Goddess in all her glory, when the car, ahead, slams to a halt.
Damn. He must have seen me. I don’t wait around to find out. I scramble to my hands and knees, then to my feet, and run like the wind into the middle of nowhere.
Chapter 8
CALEB
There are moments when you’re on it. Senses heightened. Beast and body aligned, entwined together until you can’t tell either apart. The beast in human form. Powerful. Unstoppable.
Unfortunately, this isn’t one of those moments.
A pulse in my temple and a churning in my stomach draws me awake.
Eyes shut, I waver between fuzzy sleep and restless existence. I can hardly move. I’ve never felt so weak, so goddam helpless. I inhale sharply, hearing myself growl. Trying to ignore my lion fighting to come out. He doesn’t like this. He wants out. Now.
Okay. Shift.
Nothing happens. Fuck.
Okay, breathe. At least I’m not dead. I’m not dead, right? Where the hell am I?
Despite the chill in the air on my skin, I scent the familiar woodland of home. It all comes back. Haile, that’s her name. Haile sucker-punched me with her witch voodoo power. And that’s why I can’t move—or shift. And why every part of me fucking hurts.
Just when I think it can’t get any worse, a sharp buzz right next to my ear sends a shot of pain lancing straight through my skull. It takes everything I have to reach up and slap my hand around, until I find my cell, and answer it.
My voice comes out in a croak.
“You sound like you’ve died.” It’s Kaiser.
“Shit, what time is it?” I manage, not much louder than a whisper.
“Time you stopped fucking about. Where is she?”
“Who?”
“Don’t toy with me, the witch. You were supposed to bring her back to me this morning. It’s 11.01. Four hours after sunrise and I’m still waiting.”
“I think… I think I lost her.”
Silence from the other end.
“She was here.” I crack open an eye. “And now she’s not.”
“Then the deal’s off.”
“Wait—”
“Goodbye, Caleb.”
“I’ll find her.” But he’s already hung up. Fuck. This isn’t good.
Kaiser being mad at me is nothing I can’t handle. He’ll come around. I’m more worried about my inability to shift.
I lay there for a minute, resting a little longer while my body reboots itself. I want to try again, to shift, to heal faster, but if I do, damaged the way I am, there’s a chance I won’t be able to turn back. And no one wants a raging lion on the loose. The Council will lock me up and throw away the key for good if I turn rogue again.
I lie there a few minutes more. Breathing deeper, calmer.
I can still smell her on me, around me. Though it’s not fresh, she’s long gone by now, that I can tell. I don’t know what happened to her after she sucked the life out of me, but the longer I lie here, the more chance there is that something terrible has happened. That’s just how my luck goes.
She could be in grave danger.
Adrenaline spikes and surges, and my senses go on full alert. I feel my body temperature rise as I struggle to sit up. It pains to move and breathe at the same time. It feels like my ribcage has been run over by a steam roller and my skull hit by a speeding train. It feels like I’ve died and come back to life.
Trey was here. Where the hell did he go. I reach for my phone and press the auto-dial for his number. But he isn’t picking up.
Ok, what next.
That he’s not here tells me he’s either tracking Haile, or he has her. I can’t imagine a full-grown shifter, even without an animal form, could not catch a human female. But then, look at me. Down for the count with just the touch of her hand. Damn witches.
After several unbearable minutes, I’m able to get up and get out of the house, j
erking around like a damned zombie. Tracking her on scent alone. When I get to where Trey’s jeep is usually parked, it fades. Trey’s scent hasn’t, though. That’s odd.
I close my eyes, feeling exhausted. She could be anywhere by now. I should never have brought her to my place. I should’ve taken her straight to Kai, he would have done a better job of protecting her.
It’s like Sienna all over again.
I thought I could keep her, my mate, Sienna, safe, but I wasn’t there for her when she needed me. Too busy playing out political schemes. Keeping her in the dark about things. She called me on the day she died, a few hours before, and I didn’t even pick up.
This can’t happen a second time. I won’t let it.
I’m just about get my bike and follow Trey’s scent, the only trail I have to go on. When I hear the low approach of a four-wheel drive. Climbing the hill to my place. I turn around to see a matt black SUV with tinted windows, unmistakably one my father’s, careering around the bend, parking up where it stops.
Three lionesses exit the vehicle. Three of the Pride’s best warriors. Here to drag me back home.
I had a feeling this might happen.
“Caleb,” says Tasha, eyeing me. “Time to go.”
“Not the time.” I shake my head at her.
“Alpha’s orders, Caleb.”
“Fuck the Alpha,” I growl. My lion chooses at that moment to show dominance and roar himself hoarse through my human throat. It’s not a pretty sound but any female would get the message. Stay the fuck away.
Tasha snarls in response. She has orders. Even if I’m dominant to her, she will do what my father asks and bring me home. Even if it kills her.
All three strut forward, fanning out. Stalking me.
I pull myself up, standing my ground. I’m taller and broader than all three of them put together. Three lionesses aren’t enough to bring me down.
A second car pulls up, and three more get out. Damn my father. I can’t take six of them without a blood bath and my father knows it. I wouldn’t dream of hurting any female, especially a lioness. They are the Pride.
