Phoenix Burn (From the Ashes Trilogy Book 1)

by Karina Espinosa

  “They hunted and killed my people. I know, Tristan told me.”

  Killian’s eyes widened and I could tell he was surprised Tristan had revealed the information.

  “Did I shock you?” I chuckled.

  He laughed. “Just a little. I thought the vamp would have kept that tidbit to himself.”

  “But you were more than happy to drop that bombshell, weren’t you?” I smirked icily. “He’s not playing a game, Killian. None of them are. So, if you’re just messing around, I suggest you think twice about it. My life is on the line, here.”

  Killian was pensive for a moment and the quiet encompassed the cabin. As the silence expanded, I heard the sound of animals scurrying outside in the woods through the open windows.

  I didn’t trust the Alpha enough yet to tell him the truth about myself, but maybe he needed to know how high the stakes were. This wasn’t just about who would end up with the phoenix, but who would keep me alive and safe.

  I still didn’t know Killian’s motives, but maybe this three-day trip would help me understand. He claimed he wanted to teach me about the phoenix, but why? No one did anything out of the kindness of their heart. That much I knew.

  “Does this have to do with the man who attacked you at NightCrawlers?” he asked after a while. “Not Roberto, the other one, the human.”

  I nodded. “I killed him today. That’s who you so kindly cleaned up for me. But he was only an errand boy. We don’t know who he was working for.”

  “And that mystery person is still after you?” he asked, eyeing me carefully.

  “Yes.”

  I didn’t get into specifics as to why, because technically I didn’t know yet. I knew I was supposed to replace a great-great-great-great-grandmother of mine who recently died, causing her phoenix to transfer to me, but other than that, I didn’t know the why.

  “Was that the first time you ever killed someone?” he inquired softly.

  I gulped. My eyes stung and I blinked rapidly to keep the tears at bay. “Yes,” I croaked.

  “And why are you telling me this?” Killian asked suspiciously.

  I didn’t know why he was so wary; if anyone needed to be apprehensive, it was me. “Because you need to know that none of us are playing around. This isn’t a game, Killian,” I repeated. “Tristan isn’t trying to one-up you or anything. This has nothing to do with you and your pack’s relationship with the vampires whatsoever. So whatever you’re thinking, unthink it.”

  In that moment, I acknowledged something I hadn’t realized the whole time I’d been with Tristan. In some way, I’d grown to trust him. Just a little.

  The doorbell rung and Killian got to his feet. “That must be the pizza.”

  For the rest of the night, he didn’t say a word about our conversation. After we ate, he excused himself and went to bed, leaving me alone by the fire.

  I slept in the next day and woke refreshed, my body seemingly recuperated from the last few eventful days, particularly the last two. The moment my head hit the pillow last night, I crashed.

  Relaxing my guard wasn’t a smart move since I was essentially in enemy territory, but my body and mind could take no more and shut down on me. I couldn’t stop it even if I wanted to.

  Sunlight streamed in through the window, nudging me further awake, and I meandered to the bathroom where I took a long, hot shower. When I emerged smelling fresh and feeling considerably less grimy, I dressed in a pair of jeans and a cream-colored sweater with boots. I pulled my red hair into a high ponytail and cracked open the bedroom door, listening for movement but hearing none. After seeing no one in the living room, I walked down the stairs and saw another living area and the kitchen. A hallway connected several closed doors, but the cabin appeared to be empty.

  I grabbed a jacket hanging on the coat rack and shrugged it on before stepping outside. In stark contrast to the emptiness inside, the front of the cabin held lines of cars with people bustling about carrying luggage and mounded trays of food. I was surprised I hadn’t heard all the commotion from inside the house.

  Now that it was daylight, I could see the peaked roofs and trailing smoke curls from other log cabins scattered around the one where we were staying. I leaned against a log pillar on the porch and watched as Killian’s pack unloaded their cars and settled in for the next couple of days. At least I assumed it was his pack.

  Women, children, and men of all ages were streaming all over the place, making it look like one big party. I felt out of place, since, you know, I didn’t know these people and I wasn’t a shifter. I expected to receive dirty looks or be made to feel unwelcome, but everyone smiled in my direction and waved as they passed by.

  “Not what you thought it’d be?” Killian asked as he walked up the four steps to the porch of the cabin.

  I rolled my eyes. “What’s your angle, man?”

  He shrugged. “No angle. I’m just trying to start fresh since I – what was it you said? – right, since I tried to disembowel you.”

  “That’s quite a first impression. I don’t know how you could possibly top that.” I eyed him suspiciously and peered back to the crowd of people.

  “I intend to try.” Killian jogged back down the steps and whistled, waving someone over. A beautiful woman with jet black hair ran over to us, her eyes a clear blue like the sky. My jaw slightly hung open as I took her all in. She was all grace and lithe movements. None of the things I was. “Mikaela, I want you to meet Octavia. Octavia, meet Mikaela.”

  “Hello!” She smiled brightly and I was momentarily blinded. “It’s nice to meet you.”

  “Likewise,” I said cautiously.

  “Mikaela, why don’t you show Octavia around and get some breakfast? She hasn’t had anything to eat,” Killian suggested, but I could tell it was more of an order.

  “Of course!” she beamed. “Follow me.” Mikaela waved for me to follow her and she made a path through the crowd of people.

  Killian nudged me to go. “Don’t worry, we don’t bite.” When he grinned, I wanted to slap him.

  I hurried down the steps and ran to catch up to Mikaela as she wound through the crowd of cars and shifters and made her way out of the fray. I struggled to keep up at first but caught up to her at the docks by the lake, far from anyone who could possibly see us. I quickly deduced we wouldn’t be getting anything to eat there. She lured me to this spot for a different purpose, that was for sure.

  I slowly walked behind her, not in any rush to meet her where she stood at the end of the dock.

  “Phew, finally got away from the crowd. If I have to hear my aunt Margaret tell me one more time how thin I am, I swear I’m gonna scream!” Mikaela nearly shouted as she stomped her foot on the wooden dock.

  I frowned. This was not what I expected.

  “She thinks you’re too thin?” I asked without thinking.

  She turned around to face me. “It’s not my fault I have a fast metabolism. It’s the damn wolf’s fault. I eat more than my weight a day.”

  My eyes widened.

  “Okay, maybe I’m exaggerating, but I do eat a lot,” she chuckled. “Anyway, family can get annoying at these gatherings. They want to be all up in your business.”

  I cracked a sad smile. How I wished we could switch places right about now. If she only knew. “Appreciate them while you have them. Because when they’re gone …“ I left it hanging and looked down at my feet.

  “Aw, shit,” Mikaela cursed. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to complain. How’d you lose your family?”

  I sighed. “It’s a long story. Not one I’m keen on telling right now, no offense.”

  “None taken.” She shook her head and plopped down at the edge of the dock, letting her feet dangle above the water. She patted the silvered boards beside her.

  Not sensing any ill will, I decided to play along. I sat next to her and dangled my boots over the lake. “So, how come you’re my babysitter today?”

  Mikaela threw her head back and laughed. “You think
I drew the short end of the stick? No way, all the guys were clamoring at the chance to escort you today while Killian did his Alpha duties. I wasn’t going to leave you with that bunch of nimrods.”

  For the second time, I smiled at Mikaela. She had an easy way about her that hinted it was okay to let my guard down, even fractionally. “So, you’re saying I should be thanking you?”

  “Precisely.” She grinned. “Anyway, I have very few friends in the Pack. I can always use one more.”

  I choked on my own saliva. “You don’t have many friends? I find that hard to believe.”

  She exhaled dramatically as if she expected my reaction. “And why is that?”

  “Well … because you’re gorgeous, for one, and you also seem really cool. I’d think everyone would want to be your friend.”

  She snorted. “Beauty only runs skin deep, and women like to compete with one another, no matter how evolved we like to think we are. I’m considered a threat to many women in the pack who want to mate—”

  “Because of your looks?” I interrupted.

  She shook her head. “That doesn’t help, but mainly it’s because of my animal; I’m a wolf. The men only look at me because they want to strengthen their bloodline by taming my wolf.”

  I gaped at her in open disgust. “That’s horrible! What does Killian say about it?”

  “He protects me,” she nodded, “and in exchange, I keep a low profile and stay out of trouble.”

  Well, if she was trying to sell me on Killian being a good guy, it was sort of working. What she had to endure was rough. I couldn’t imagine living like that, forced to sleep with one eye open around those women. Maybe even the men, too.

  I mean, technically, Killian wasn’t the one who tried to kill me, or almost turned me into a shifter. That honor belonged to one of his pack members.

  No. I refused to justify his actions. He had still been willing to barter for me like an object, but so was Tristan. Ugh. Thinking was hard.

  “So, I’m stuck here for three days. Care to enlighten me on what’s supposed to happen during that time?” I asked, hoping to dig for information since Killian hadn’t told me much.

  Mikaela leaned back and looked up at the sky. “There will be lots of drinking, for one, so be prepared for a ton of drunk shifters. And fighting, lots of fighting. Oh, and storytelling. You’ll hear the stories of our people.”

  The drinking and fighting parts were alarming. I resolved to stick by Mikaela since she knew how to keep a low profile, but I was interested in hearing their stories. I guess Killian was right when he said I was too curious for my own good. I wanted to know more about them. I knew so little about this new world, and I would feel safer if I was prepared. I was thrown into this supernatural life with zero information, entirely dependent upon what few tidbits Tristan allowed me, which was crumbs compared to what was really out there. I decided to secure it from the source and take advantage of the fact that I was here.

  “Well, then I guess that means you’ll be my tour guide for the next few days?”

  She smirked. “Only when Killian doesn’t snatch you up.”

  We left the dock and headed for the village to get some breakfast. On our walk, she told me more about the pack and how it functioned, which was interesting. I learned there was a hierarchy within the Pack. Killian was the Alpha, below him there was a Beta, then a third, a fourth, and a fifth in command. If I was lucky, I wouldn’t get to meet them. Her words, not mine.

  After stuffing our bellies, we trudged back to the cabins and I decided to show her around the one I was sharing with Killian. We ascended the stairs that wound around the outside and stepped onto the second-floor deck. I pulled open the door and came to an abrupt halt when I saw two men playing billiards at the pool table.

  Leaning on a cue was a guy with spiky, gray-white hair, his eyes closed from laughing at whatever his friend was telling him. His blond friend was sitting on top of the table, his heated hazel eyes looking right at me.

  “And what do we have here?” the blond one purred as he motioned to us. “What are you doing here, Mikaela? This isn’t your cabin.”

  “I brought her.” I peeled off the borrowed coat and hung it on the peg by the door. “You have a problem with that?” I questioned, raising a brow.

  The silver haired one laughed. “No problem at all, Ms …?”

  “Octavia,” I said, eyeing them carefully. I didn’t recognize either man from the few encounters I’d had with shifters. “And who are you?”

  “What a demanding creature she is,” the silver haired one smirked. “My name is Kai, and this is Gideon. It’s nice to meet you, Octavia.”

  “What are you doing here?” I asked, ignoring the pleasantries. Mikaela tried to nudge me, but I steadfastly ignored her. If I was going to be sleeping in this cabin, the last thing I wanted was random people coming in and out at all hours of the day and night.

  Kai smirked. “Well, we sleep here, Octavia. Why else would we be here?”

  “It’s what I was trying to tell you,” Mikaela whispered in my ear.

  Gideon chuckled, no doubt hearing what she said. “Is there a problem with that?”

  I narrowed my gaze on them. “None.” Spinning on my heel, I stormed out of the room and headed toward the master bedroom with Mikaela hot on my trail. I could hear Kai and Gideon laughing as we left.

  When I shut the door behind us I wanted to scream, but I somehow managed to keep my cool. “Who the hell were those guys?”

  Mikaela sighed and sat at the foot of the bed. “Those are the third and fourth in command. Sorry, I honestly thought it’d just be you and Killian in the cabin.”

  I narrowed my eyes at my new friend. “Earlier, you told me hopefully I wouldn’t get to meet them. Why?”

  She rubbed her hands on her thighs, her legs bouncing up and down nervously. “They’re not bad, if that’s what you’re worried about. You’re safe. No one’s going to butcher you and dump your pieces in the lake.”

  My eyes widened. “Well, I wasn’t thinking about that, but now I am …”

  She rolled her eyes. “I’m just saying you need to be careful with Kai and Gideon because they’re tricksters. They like to play games, and it isn’t always fun.”

  “What about the fifth in command?”

  “He’s probably the most normal out of all of them, but he’s sort of like a quiet killer. You still need to be careful with him.”

  “And the Beta?” I gulped, starting to pace around the bedroom, taking in all this new information.

  “She’s scary as shit,” Mikaela whispered, leaning forward, her eyes as wide as saucers. “Stay as far away from that psycho as you possibly can. She will butcher you and throw your pieces into the lake.”

  “Is she going to be sleeping in this cabin?” I squeaked. If Mikaela was trying to put the fear of God in me, it was working.

  “Possibly. If the guys are, then she probably will. In that case, there’s no avoiding her. She’s really protective of Killian. Not in a romantic way, because she’s mated to someone else, but as his Beta, she watches his back. If she feels you’re a threat, that bitch will not hesitate to take you out.”

  I gulped. “Mikaela, you’re starting to freak me out.”

  “You should be freaked out. I’ll ask Killian if you can stay with me.”

  “Ask me what?” Killian walked into the room, his boots thundering against the wooden floor. “Why would she stay with you, Mikaela?”

  We looked at one another, trying to think of a plausible excuse that wouldn’t let Killian know we were gossiping about his scary-ass crew. The last thing I wanted to admit was that I was scared shitless of his Beta, whom I hadn’t even met yet. That was embarrassing.

  “We really hit it off,” I replied quickly, “and we want to spend more time together.” I pulled Mikaela to her feet and interlocked our arms.

  Killian raised a brow and I knew he wasn’t buying my flimsy excuse for one second. “She told you about the others
, didn’t she?” I practically deflated. “They’ll be on their best behavior, Octavia. You have nothing to worry about.”

  Mikaela and I looked at one another. Right.

  15

  Killian escorted us from the room and back out to the living room where Kai and Gideon were still playing pool. Their laughter died down as we entered, their attention turning our way.

  “I see you all have met?” Killian asked as he put an arm around me. He smelled of fresh rain after a thunderstorm and I wanted to close my eyes and take a deep breath. Rain was a luxury in Southern California. The scent was intoxicating.

  “We’ve had the privilege.” Kai grinned like he was in on some joke.

  “I told you all to be on your best behavior,” Killian growled. “Don’t make me kick you out of the cabin.”

  “Not necessary, Kill,” Gideon said as he put the cue away. “We were perfect gentlemen. Actually, why doesn’t Octavia join us for a friendly game of Man Hunt?”

  Mikaela stepped forward and tugged on the back of my cream sweater urgently. I knew something was off with his offer even before Mikaela’s heads-up.

  “I don’t know if Octavia is up for our version of Man Hunt,” Killian said, looking down at me warily.

  “Aw, come on, Kill, we’ll be gentle,” Kai pleaded with a saccharine smile. I didn’t trust him for shit.

  “I’ll go with her,” Mikaela offered. “I’ll make sure she’s okay.”

  Killian nodded at her while the others rolled their eyes. “Fine, but Octavia, come find me once it’s over. And be careful.” With that, Killian left the cabin.

  Kai strolled toward us with a cocky grin. “After you, ladies.” He waved toward the doors that led to the outside stairs.

  We grabbed our coats on the way out and headed outside, the guys following closely behind us. As soon as my foot hit the bottom stair, Gideon started yelling out to the crowd, quickly organizing a group of people to play. Roughly a dozen people volunteered, and we were split into two groups. Kai and Gideon were opposite me and Mikaela.