Sinister Pretty (Alexa O'Brien Huntress Book 11)

by Trina M. Lee

  I braced myself for the hit. Even though I doubted she’d do it, she wasn’t the type to bluff. “I was trying to keep you out of danger. You have no idea what that place is like. Trust me, you don’t want to know.”

  “You never bothered to tell me Shaz had been taken. That’s fucked. We’re family, Lex.” Storm clouds raged in her grey eyes. “You have no right to shut me out or make decisions for me.”

  “I didn’t want you to worry. I knew we’d get him back. But you’re right. I should’ve told you. I’m sorry.” Every time I opened my mouth, I expected her fist to close it.

  She was understandably furious. I didn’t have to protect her; she could handle herself. She’d been living a cozy small-town life for a while now, complete with a husband and a teenager. I didn’t want my bullshit to ruin that for her.

  “Good. You should be sorry.” Following my gaze to Shaz, her voice softened. “Would you mind making some tea? Chamomile please. Water for Shaz. I’m going to try to convince him to take a warm bath.”

  I nodded, choking on the lump in my throat.

  I stood in the hallway outside my bedroom where Shaz lay curled up in a ball of agony, shivering violently despite the furnace running. He remained as I’d left him: in the fetal position, breathing hard. Sweat adorned his brow. Blood trickled from his nose. In the last twenty-four hours since leaving the old haunted hospital, he’d gone from bad to worse.

  Arys and I couldn’t get close enough to touch him without causing more pain. So I’d called Kylarai for help, knowing she would do anything for him. He seemed to find comfort in her presence.

  It killed me that I could do nothing but stand there and watch him suffer. Worry sickened me like a plague, infecting every thought, every action, until it infiltrated all of me. My blood ravaged him. If he died, I would burn the FPA building to the ground.

  If Arys didn’t beat me to it.

  If we lost Shaz, all the vengeance in the world wouldn’t be enough to right that wrong.

  Willow had come by just after sunset, at my desperate request. His mere presence sent Shaz into a screaming fit. Willow proclaimed Shaz would have to ride it out, just as I had when I took Falon’s blood while still mortal. Power raging through me, unchecked, taking over, it had fucked me up. Now my blood was doing the same to Shaz. Willow believed Shaz’s role as keystone for Arys and me left him hypersensitive to metaphysical energy since Dayne hadn’t been similarly affected.

  Of course Willow couldn’t tell me if Shaz would come out of this unscathed. Words like ‘withdrawal’ and ‘long-term effects’ passed Willow’s lips. His assessment, little more than surreal gibberish to my numb brain, made Shaz’s condition feel even graver.

  Yet I couldn’t go to him, comfort him, hold him, heal him. I couldn’t even cross the threshold into my room without adding to his suffering.

  Kylarai grabbed me in a warm hug before I turned to go. Stroking a hand through my hair, she whispered, “He’ll be ok. He’s fighting so hard in there. Nothing short of the end of the world could make that wolf leave you.”

  A haze of red blinded me, and I blinked back blood tears. “I hate this so much. I can’t even touch him.” My voice cracked, and I hugged her tighter, wanting to sob my guts out but somehow holding back.

  She patted me gently, offering the maternal comfort she’d always been known for among those who loved her. “You are helping him, Lex. You’re doing all you can, and for right now, that has to be enough.”

  But it’s not.

  She gave me an encouraging smile before turning to go back into the bedroom. I started down the stairs, pausing on the landing to gather myself. Jez and Arys were talking in the kitchen. Their voices carried, reaching me where I stood fighting back an emotional outburst.

  “Come on now, don’t give me that shit,” Jez chastised. “Since when does the almighty Arys take guilt trips? You’re way too arrogant for that self-pitying crap.”

  I could almost see the frown I knew Arys had to be wearing.

  His tone was somber when he replied, “When it comes to those two, I live with a lot more guilt than I’ll ever let either of them know.” Arys paused to clear his throat, his way of stifling emotion. “She wanted to go after you both that same night. I wouldn’t let her. Hell, I fought her. But she was right. We shouldn’t have waited.”

  I was right? It was nothing short of a miracle to hear Arys admit such a thing. Too bad I’d much rather be wrong.

  “You kept Alexa from rushing in when Winston expected her. For all we know, that could have saved her life. Mine and Shaz’s too. Tormenting yourself with ‘what ifs’ won’t change anything. You need to let go of that shit and just be glad we all made it out alive.” Jez paused, and I heard the slide of a drawer followed by the tinkle of utensils. “Not everyone who went in there did.”

  Her words rang true. We had to be grateful to be alive.

  Arys and Jez didn’t often spend time alone together. They hardly ever engaged in serious discussion. I found encouragement in their current conversation. Hard times should bring us together. So often they divided.

  “I just can’t shake this nagging thought that if I’d followed her lead, Shaz never would’ve been a lab rat.” Sounding dejected, Arys muttered something else beneath his breath that might have been, “I fucked up.”

  Again I found myself marveling at the strange relationship Arys and Shaz had formed. It brought a painful smile to my face, giving me the strength to continue into the kitchen.

  Arys glanced up from where he sat at the table, staring at his clasped hands. Leaning against the island, Jez shoveled ice cream into her mouth. She eyed me with curiosity, likely wondering if I’d been eavesdropping.

  “Kylarai sent me to make tea.” I didn’t know what else to say.

  I busied myself with the task, needing to keep moving. The silence that fell was comfortable, yet it made me uneasy. I could feel Arys’s gaze following me from the kettle to the cupboard and back. Since leaving the city, we hadn’t had a chance to talk much. Shaz had dominated our attention.

  Jez stuck her ice cream bowl in the dishwasher and stepped in to grab the mug of tea. “I’ll take this up.”

  Clearly she hoped to give Arys and I some time alone. I wasn’t sure either of us could handle that yet.

  “Oh, some water too. I almost forgot.” I turned to grab a glass.

  Jez hip checked me. “It’s cool.” She shot me a pointed look before inclining her head in Arys’s direction. “I got it.”

  Shuffling over to the table, I sat down across from Arys. Our eyes met and pain squeezed my chest. He couldn’t hide the guilt or the self-loathing that filled him. With his gaze averted, he studied the swirls of light and dark in the laminate floor.

  Jez made her way upstairs, leaving me to rack my brain for the right thing to say. After several strained minutes, I determined that no such thing existed.

  “Arys, none of this is your fault.” There. I put it out into the space between us because it had to be said by me.

  He bowed his dark head, nodding, still staring at the floor. “You heard that huh?”

  “I didn’t have to hear it; I can feel it. You can’t blame yourself. Once Shaz was in FPA custody, we had no way of knowing what they’d do.” I reached across the table to take his hand, finding comfort in the slight spark that warmed my palm. “This is all on the sick fucks that can’t see themselves as the monsters they are because they’re too busy pointing fingers at us.”

  Arys slid his fingers between mine, holding tight. It seemed to take great effort for him to look at me again. “If we’d gone in sooner, it wouldn’t have happened. We could’ve gotten him out of there before they…” He waved his hand in the air, at a loss for words. “I fucked up.” Misery tainted Arys’s aura. Whatever Shaz had come to mean to him, it was greater than I’d realized.

  “We did what we thought best. Now we have to move forward.” I swallowed hard, refusing the tears that threatened. “Shaz will be ok. He’s a figh
ter. You know that.”

  Arys searched me, finding my fear hidden behind my forced optimism. Knowing I was scared to death seemed to crash his pity party. “I do know that.” He nodded and ran his free hand through his mess of black hair. After the last twenty-four hours of craziness, it was messier than usual. “You’re right. He’ll be fine. You’re always right.” A hint of a smile graced his handsome face.

  So many times I’d lamented Arys always being right. It was infuriating. Yet I’d take being wrong for all eternity if it meant never seeing such sorrow in his eyes again.

  Footsteps on the stairs drew our attention. Jez reentered the kitchen, deep furrows in her brow. “Hey guys? Hate to have to say this but Kylarai thinks you should leave before sunrise. Maybe spend the day at Arys’s house?” To her credit, Jez looked like she hated having to kick me out of my own house.

  “It’s really that bad.” It wasn’t a question but a declaration. Arys swore softly, then again with more vehemence.

  Jez glanced back toward the stairs and lowered her voice. “Even the frequency of the lights hurts him. The two of you, even down here, are just too much for him right now. Ky doesn’t think he’ll get any decent rest with you here.”

  Neither of us wanted to hurt Shaz further; we couldn’t bear it. Right away we were on our feet. I waited in the porch for Jez to fetch me some clothing and personal hygiene items. The urge to cry grew. I didn’t know how much longer I could fend the tears off.

  “I’ll stay and help Ky,” Jez said when she handed me my bag. She took one look at my face, and her green orbs filled with tears. “I know you don’t want to leave him, but he’s in good hands with Kylarai. I promise to call if anything changes.”

  I nodded, tried to speak, and failed. Accepting the bag and a hug that brought the tears spilling forth, I left my house with a wordless prayer to a God I didn’t know how to serve, despite being one of His Hounds.

  And a silent promise to Briggs that, somehow, some way, I would make him suffer as Shaz suffered now.

  When the sun rose, I lay in a pile of Arys’s pillow-soft blankets, safe in his darkened bedroom. With him curled up beside me, we lay there in silence, awake but lost in our own thoughts.

  Shaz’s absence left a gaping void. It all felt wrong. Something was missing.

  Not something. Someone.

  I recalled the most recent night the three of us shared in this bed, finding comfort in each other. Arys’s hand in Shaz’s hair had spoken volumes. Oh, how I longed to go back to that moment and just live in it always.

  Briggs had to die.

  His theft of my blood brought us to where we were now. To stave off my wrath, he’d put me in a horrible position. The justice Shaz deserved could directly result in Kale’s death.

  That piece of crap Fed still believed he could control me. So, sure, I’d work with him. I’d play along. For now.

  I reached to touch Arys, needing to feel his skin beneath my fingers. Together we reigned as the most powerful beings in this city. Together we would exact our vengeance on our enemies.

  Briggs was going to be surprised. Whether he wanted to believe it or not, he belonged to us. And we would make him suffer.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT

  Want to know who Veryl Armstrong worked for? 12:54am. Come alone.

  The cryptic text message from an unknown number was followed by an address. Right away, I noted the odd time. What was with that?

  I stood in Arys’s bathroom dripping, having just gotten out of the shower.

  Needless to say, my curiosity piqued. So did my suspicion. Considering I’d come to assume Veryl had worked for Shya, I found myself with a whole new set of questions.

  As I dried off and dressed, I gave my phone the stink eye, like it was in on this conspiracy and could no longer be trusted. I glanced at the closed door, wondering if I should tell Arys. He’d never simply let me go alone.

  Certainly not with Shaz still laid low.

  The moment the sun had set, I’d called Kylarai. She said Shaz had improved through the day, his exhausted, fitful sleep becoming restive. She’d managed to get some food into him. Much to my disappointment, she asked me to stay away a while longer.

  I’d cried in the shower, sobbing in silence while blood tears ran down my face, washed away by the hot spray. Now I stared at my reflection in the steam-covered mirror, wiping a spot clear so I could see to slap on some makeup. Another vampire perk, no red, puffy cry eyes.

  My heart still hurt though.

  Applying my favorite smoky-grey eye shadow, I mulled over the text message. Should I go? Was it a trap? Perhaps some down time would be better. With every passing moment, I came closer to deciding that I wanted to know who was behind the mysterious message. What the hell would I do with down time other than mope and worry about Shaz? By the time I’d combed my hair and left the bathroom, my mind had been made up. I’d be at the given address at 12:54 precisely.

  Arys sat in his favorite easy chair in the living room, pencil scraping lightly over the page of a sketchbook. Bare chested, clad only in loose-fitting pajama pants, he was easy on the eyes. I couldn’t help but stare at him as he worked, head bowed, brow furrowed in concentration.

  Feeling my gaze upon him, he looked up with a lazy grin. “Enjoying the view?”

  “Always.” I sidled closer, hoping to get a peek at what he drew. Sometimes he wouldn’t let me see until he’d finished.

  Sticking the pencil in to mark his page, he closed the sketchbook and gave me a studious onceover. “Going somewhere?”

  I perched on the chair arm and leaned in to kiss him. The silver ring in his bottom lip was cool against my skin. I nibbled it gently, loving the soft groan he graced me with in response.

  “I’m going to head into the city for a bit. Just need to take my mind off things. You should go to Lucy’s Lounge and hang with your poker buddies. Just take it easy tonight.” I squealed when he tossed his sketchbook aside and pulled me onto his lap.

  “Trying to get rid of me?” He knew me too well. “What are you up to, my wolf?”

  “Nothing,” I insisted, squirming to position myself comfortably atop him.

  “Oh yeah,” Arys said, hands gripping my hips. “Do that some more.”

  Despite my emotional upheaval, he coaxed a laugh out of me. “You’re bad.”

  “You love it.” He captured me in a mind-melting lip lock.

  Hell yes, I did. Just touching him brought me to life in a way that rocked my world. What I wouldn’t have given to wrap myself in his dark power and hide there all night.

  “I can’t,” I said when he grabbed the hem of my top and pulled. “I’d love to, but I need to have a clear head tonight, and nothing about you leaves me with a clear head.”

  My comment had pleased him, but doubt cast his face in shadow. “Where are you going, Alexa? The truth.”

  So much for slipping out with no questions asked. Tugging my phone out of my back pocket, I showed him the message. “You can’t come with me, Arys. I need to do this. I need to know. I want to.”

  His face expressionless, Arys let out a heavy sigh. “Not even one night without some kind of craziness?”

  “It’s ok. I need the distraction. And I’ll be fine. I’m sure of it.” And I was. I carried so much pent up pain and emotion, anyone fucking with me would soon find themselves on the receiving end of it.

  “You better be.” Arys pulled me against his chest, just savoring the way it felt to have our two energies become one. “I can’t have something happen to both of my wolves. The murderous rampage would level half of Alberta.”

  My eyes widened as I envisioned how horrific such a thing would be. Arys was one of the strongest people I knew. To think that harming Shaz and I could compromise him in any way made me feel ill. We were each other’s greatest strength and worst weakness. I didn’t think I’d ever get used to that.

  “I’ll be back before you know it, and we’ll continue this.” In an effort to wipe bad thoughts from
both our minds, I kissed him with all the love and need I could muster.

  Content to stay in for the night purging his emotions onto the pages of his sketchbook, Arys watched me go with a seductive brow lift that made it hard to leave.

  Once in the car I again asked myself if I were making a mistake. Then I recalled the many questions I’d had for Veryl that had gone unanswered. I put the car in drive.

  The address I’d been given was in the downtown district. However, it wasn’t in the busy heart of downtown but the shady back streets, among abandoned buildings with boarded windows. Nobody in their right mind dared to walk these streets. That didn’t instill much confidence.

  One of these abandoned, shuttered buildings matched the address. A little nervous but mostly curious, I turned off the engine. I sat in my car, watching the clock. When the clock struck 12:54, I got out.

  Since there was no way in hell I’d let myself into the beat-up old building, I stood outside and waited for someone or something to show themselves. The weight of the Dragon Claw in my hand lent me confidence. I buzzed with power, gathering it close in case of an ambush.

  I felt the air ripple and immediately my gut clenched. Not a fucking demon.

  For a moment nothing else happened. Then a strange sensation behind me had me whirling dagger first.

  The blade crashed against another as Falon revealed himself. Sword in hand, he smirked while I cussed him out.

  “Was that really fucking necessary?” I shouted.

  He shrugged and slid the sword into the scabbard at his hip. “Just keeping you on your toes. Gotta make sure you’re not getting soft.”

  “What are you doing here anyway?” Gaze narrowed, I searched him with suspicion. “Is this some kind of set up?”

  Falon scoffed and rolled his silver eyes. “Oh, get over yourself. We have a meeting to get to.” He shoved past me to the front door of the ramshackle building.

  After knocking three times slow and two times fast, a small slot opened so a pair of demon-red eyes could peer out. Upon seeing Falon, the slot closed and the door opened.