The kid should’ve been able to shift and heal but hadn’t.
A curl of unease increased the sense of wrongness she picked up when she entered. She’d blamed it on nerves. Inhaling deeply, she couldn’t detect a threat, couldn’t see any overt danger from the crowd. She wished she could believe she saw trouble where none existed.
A commotion at the other end of the room erupted. The boy. She knew it even before she saw his face. Five women surrounded him, heckling and caressing him. He stood there, a frozen smile plastered in place, tolerating the touch. Tolerating but not enjoying.
Then he flinched. His smile became strained, the women’s laughter more wild. The boy’s eyes hardened but he kept still, enduring the obscene fondling and cruel taunts.
She scanned the crowd. A few people snickered at his discomfort, a few looked away, pity leeching the life from their eyes. But no one protested.
Then the man who had accompanied the boy stood to his full height. The muscles of her back loosened, and she eased back into her seat, unaware she’d half risen to her feet. The big man would keep him safe. But instead of rescuing the boy, the Ogre turned his back and pushed his way to the bar.
A lump grew in her throat at the unwanted attention the boy endured. Memories of similar situations from her past cut into her mind, blurring reason until fury burned along her face.
Stillness settled inside her, burying everything but the need to do something, the need to prevent the past from repeating itself. Before she knew what she was doing, she moved.
The closer she came, the more she sensed his unwillingness and his resignation. She stopped outside the circle of women. Their gazes collided. Recognition sparked, and his gaze latched on to hers.
Pleaded.
It was a mistake coming here tonight, but she couldn’t leave without knowing he’d be safe. Couldn’t stop herself from rescuing him.
“He’s mine.” She reached through the circle of women, clamped down on his wrist and pulled him to her side. He came without a word of complaint, his head lowered, a small smile on his lips that barely lasted a second. His body trembled slightly before he controlled himself.
“What do you think you’re doing?” A blonde in strappy, three-inch heels stepped forward, drink in hand and a determined expression on her face. A woman who always got what she wanted.
Raven wasn’t impressed. “We’re leaving.”
As she turned, herding the boy in front of her, the woman’s talons dug into her arm.
Reacting on instinct, Raven spun and thrust out her palm, slamming her hand into the blonde’s chest, releasing some of the pent-up power that swirled inside in response to her anger.
The impact lifted the woman off her feet. She sailed over the table, one heel flying. Her mouth dropped open in moue of surprise, while her drink spun and sprayed her friends.
Conversation slowed, people turned. No one touched the woman as she staggered to her feet. Raven braced herself and scanned the crowd.
No one stepped forward to detain her or the boy.
“Is there a problem?”
Tiger.
He broke through the wall of people who circled the small group. Broad shouldered, lean but roped with muscles, he easily drew attention to him and it had nothing to do with the elegant clothes or wildly untamed mane of hair. The combination should’ve looked ridiculous but only succeeded in making him appear all the more dominant.
It gave him a dangerous air. An aura of bored arrogance seeped from him, but Raven knew differently. Power thrummed beneath his skin at his annoyance for being disturbed. The beast roamed close to the surface even in his human form.
“No, sir. The lady here claimed me, and Miss Jackie objected.”
“A challenge?” The tiger’s eyes sharpened in the muted light, his attention never leaving her face. He brushed against her shields, then shoved against them as if surprised to find resistance. The intensity increased, seeking a weakness. Her eyes narrowed. Usually only vampires or very powerful alphas had such strong mental ability.
Protocol dictated certain rules, and he broke them by probing her without permission. They both knew it if his sudden, impudent smile was anything to go by. If he pushed harder, she’d retaliate. She refused to let him enter her mind, refused to let him harvest all her secrets. It was too dangerous for either of them.
When he persisted, she twisted a strand of energy around his shields, using tremendous control to surround him instead of breaking through. Then she slowly tightened her hold. She let it rest there, let him feel her perusal, the threat. Her fingers trembled. Her stomach flopped like a fish out of water. It took everything she had to hold back more power and ignore the dangerous lure to crush the threat.
Then his aura fluctuated, rubbed against her own shield in a way that sent a shiver down her spine in a very pleasant way. Her blood heated, and she could almost swear she felt a purr from her core. From the startled look and the aroused flush to his face, the reaction wasn’t something he’d anticipated either.
Then he relented and retreated, bowing slightly in deference. “Please forgive my rudeness. I’m Jeffrey Durant, manager of Talon’s.”
She reeled in the string of energy, suppressing the unholy need to curse. A formal greeting. Rules of the pack dictated she reply in kind, supply her name at the very least, and the bastard knew it. She had to work with shifters. She couldn’t piss in the pond just because she didn’t want to do something. “Raven–”
“Do you know who I am?” Like a yippy little dog, the blonde charged forward, red blotches of anger coloring her face. Her eyes shimmered a yellowish-green with her emotions, but quickly reverted back to mud brown.
Part shifter.
A weak one.
Most males could shift no matter what percentage of animal DNA they possessed, but the women had to be at least half shifter for their animal to take form. That meant Raven could take this little dog.
Raven adjusted her stance, keeping the kid at her back and met the threat, damning herself for being a sucker. “I don’t give a shit. I know all I need.”
“Oh, do tell.” The rumpled blonde crossed her arms and smirked. “This should be good.”
“You’re too weak to be a pure blood. Not even quarter, if I had to guess. You surround yourself with people who are weaker so you have someone who looks up to you. You enjoy abusing the very people you’re supposed to be protecting.”
A fist flew at her face, and Raven caught it mid-air. Anger allowed her to easily lower the blonde’s arm. She lifted her chin, relieved to know she’d guessed right. If the woman had been a true shifter, her jaw would’ve been crushed. “Are you issuing a challenge?”
A slight murmur went through the crowd. It was the only thing she could think of to get them out of there fast. A challenge meant more than possession of the boy, it meant pack position and a fight to the death. Jackie would die. Raven would see to it. Although she relished a certain poetic justice if she let the little wolf live. It would force the bimbo to the bottom of the pack, where she’d have to earn her place in the hierarchy. And something told Raven it wouldn’t be so easy to step over the very people she’d been treating like servants.
Fury darkened the woman’s eyes, the brown splintered and specks of yellow appeared, then vanished as fast as they came.
“No.” She spit out the one word, a promise of retribution for this humiliation dancing in her eyes.
Giddiness trickled through Raven. Her unique gift remained secret. She’d been foolish to risk it over a boy. The need for fresh air pressed heavily against her, effectively caging her without the use of bars. She faced the tiger and raised a brow, doing her damndest to exude a calm she wasn’t feeling. “Then I believe I’m free to leave?”
A charming smile curled his lips, but the intent stare reminded her of his animal form. He was hunting.
And she was his prey.
“There’s no rush.” He edged closer.
Raven countered quickly, pul
ling the boy close to her back. “Nor is there a reason to stay.”
The beautiful way he moved drew her gaze, hypnotic and beguiling.
“Except to get to know one another.” The tone of his voice was deep and soothing. So inviting. The beasts at her core inched forward in curiosity.
A movement in the crowd snapped her to attention. The Ogre. Then the tiger’s words registered, leaving a trail of cold in its wake. Clever kitty. She’d bet he lulled many people the same way, using that luscious voice, subtle movements and just the lick of wildness to lure them to him.
“I think not.” Though she tried to rein it in, power burned along her arms at the thought of being held against her will. The beasts retreated, leaving all that power behind along with the dangerous urge to release it. The leather she wore usually protected those nearest her, but direct touch couldn’t mute the effects. Not even wearing gloves kept those around her completely safe when her dander was up.
The boy sucked in a sharp breath, and she quickly dropped her hand from him. She refused to look behind her, but she didn’t need to. She could see everything in the tiger’s reaction. The way he tensed slightly, the way his eyes flickered back and forth between her and the boy.
The crowd drew closer, pressing in on her from all sides, stealing the air around her.
She needed to leave.
The music grew louder, the lights brighter.
A bulb popped, glass shattered. Three more blew in rapid succession.
She took off at a run, dodging through the crowd, ignoring the shouts. The tiger quickly closed the gap between them. She could feel his breath against the back of her neck. Desperate for space, she thrust a burst of current into the crowd. A mass of confusion ensued as everyone received a nasty shock and started shoving one another. Lights flickered, plunging them in darkness. Electricity lashed out of the floor and up into her feet, the charge filling her with power.
She slammed into the door, out into the night and took off at a dead run. She should’ve known better than to be seduced into entering a slave auction by some innocent needing her help. She had a hard enough time staying out of trouble without the need to borrow someone else’s. She just prayed no one could tie this whole, rotten evening back to her or there would be no end of trouble to land on her doorstep.
Chapter Two
“Wait. Please!” The boy’s urgent shout pierced the blind panic consuming her. Raven’s steps faltered. Logical thoughts returned in fits and starts. The charge that danced up and down her skin fizzled, soaked into her body and bit angrily along her bones in retaliation for not being allowed freedom.
The labs had discovered she’d been born a conduit pretty quick. After a slew of painful tests and shock treatments, she’d adapted and began storing large amounts of energy at her core. Could manipulate that energy. Now her body automatically absorbed whatever it could, whenever it could. The only blessing was that when the energy was in control, the beasts at her core were leashed. It’s the only thing that kept her safe all these years.
She couldn’t detect that anyone else had followed them, but she needed to know for sure. She sent out a pulse of electricity, deflecting the energy that sought shelter in her body and used it to boost the distance she could read. Like a ripple in a pond, the wave reached out, passing through buildings and people. Anything with a heartbeat registered on her scale. To others, it was invisible. To her, an eerie, light blue wave expand out from her.
Besides the boy, only the Ogre had followed so far.
She could hold off, control the itch to release all that lovely power long enough to set the boy straight.
“Go home, kid.” She sucked in much needed air, trying to stop siphoning electricity. Her chest burned with indecision. Instinct shouted to run. Not get involved further.
“Send him away, and they’ll kill him.” The Ogre stepped out of the shadows, anger and disgust radiating from him like some age old god from Olympus who had judged and found her lacking. Her hackles rose.
If she were closer, she didn’t doubt he’d take a swing at her. “He’s done nothing wrong.”
“You claimed him in front of witnesses. He’s under your protection and considered your pack now.” He stepped off the curb and stalked toward her, his muscular legs eating up the distance between them far too fast for her liking.
She stood her ground on shaky legs. ‘Never run from a shifter’ wasn’t just hype. They loved the chase. A person just didn’t always enjoy being caught.
“The others won’t take him now.”
“There was no ceremony, sponsors or proof of pack status to support my claim.” Proof she couldn’t provide. Status no one alive but her knew about. Her gaze flicked to the boy. The pleasant expression stamped on his face belied the tension in his lanky frame. Shit.
“Normally, but you walked into an auction. Durant allowed you to leave. His permission was all you needed. Shifters receive five years on the market. If not claimed at the end of that time, they must head to a new territory or die. It was a last chance for those men. If anyone spoke a claim, they have thirty days to prove legitimacy in order to keep him or proof of the rogues’ unsuitability and death.” He jerked his head at the boy. His too perceptive eyes still locked on hers, demanding she do right. “Taggert’s yours for thirty days.”
“That’s barbaric.” Raven was appalled. She couldn’t take him home. Hell, she couldn’t guarantee his safety if she did. She grasped at the first excuse. “Suitable or not, what’s to keep anyone from killing them once they leave then lying about it?”
“Me.” The growl in his voice bit into her skin. His teeth flashed, more a bearing of fangs than a smile.
“What?” All the blood drained from her head so fast the world tilted. For a second, her control snapped. Streetlights flickered, dimmed. Electricity hummed loudly, then the light flared bright. Energy coursed through everything, dancing closer, seeking freedom.
Seeking her.
She needed to calm down. She couldn’t absorb more, not here, not now, even if her body cried out for it, the craving so strong she ached. She could only hold so much before it seeped from her and infected others.
Fear blossomed, took root, and memories rose.
Some people had a natural talent to absorb a little energy. But with one little slip, she’d been known to blow pacemakers. Shifters were especially sensitive to her, transforming if they received an unexpected boost. Then there were the vampires. The extra hike gave them a delicious illusion of life. For them, it was like an exquisite brand of drug.
No one could know what she could do to either species. A spark in just the right places, and even the dead woke, pulled right from their grave. Images of decomposing corpses shuffling toward her flashed in her mind, and her throat closed tight.
A shadow fell over her, blocking the light. “You haven’t heard a word I said, have you?”
She jumped, and the streetlamps burst like fireworks, raining sparks and glass over them. The big Ogre arched over her, pushing her low, covering her. She scrambled away, unfeeling of the glass digging into her flesh.
Beneath the pavement, the dirt rippled. Current worked its way through the packed ground, through the road, then arched into her body. Fire burned along her nerve endings. Electricity funneled into her system faster than she could control the burn, preparing her body to fight.
“What the hell.”
The world around them went dark. Not gradually, not one light at a time, but completely black from one second to the next. When she glanced up, the big man was searching the shadows for a threat. The boy was on all fours, balanced on the tips of his hands and feet, his eyes gone neon green, his whole focus centered on her.
Knowledge danced in his eyes.
She didn’t know how, but he knew she’d caused this.
Tires squealed. Headlights raced toward her, gaining speed. The Ogre moved, and she scuttled backwards, crablike on her ass. The car swerved around her, slid sideways, settling between
her and the beast of a man and the boy.
The back door popped open. “Get in.”
Chapter Three
Dominic. “Thank God.”
Her car forgotten, Raven scrambled forward and dove inside. Even before her butt hit the seat, he took off. One glance out the rear window showed the boy sprinting after them, his face illuminated in the red taillights. There was no fear, no anger or pain, just sheer determination to follow her.
“I see you’ve made some friends.” Humor danced in Dominic’s dark green eyes when their gazes clashed in the rearview mirror.
“Shut up.” The voice in the back of her head urged her to turn around. If she left without the boy, they’d kill him.
Fool that she was, she couldn’t do it. She’d seen too much death to leave him. She’d find a way to keep him safe.
“Stop.”
When the car continued, she cursed Dominic and his protectiveness. She yanked up the corner of the carpeting, revealing some loose gravel and scuffed sheet metal. The floorboard quickly warmed under her hand. She closed her eyes, allowed her mind to stretch along the frame of the car, seeking the source of the power.
A spark danced at her touch as she located the cable between the alternator and the battery. She drew down hard. Current jumped at her command, streaking through the metal. Her fingers eagerly soaked up the charge.
The engine clunked ominously, then died altogether when the battery drained.
The car instantly slowed, fishtailing as it rolled to an abrupt stop. “What the hell do you think you’re doing?”
She pushed the door open and stepped out. Even with the distance between them, the kid continued to run at a steady pace toward her. A little part of her wondered if he would’ve eventually found her anyway if they hadn’t stopped. When he drew abreast, he didn’t say a word, but slipped inside the car.
In the distance, a truck took the corner on two wheels and jumped the curb, the engine screaming. The Ogre. Damn, but the man was relentless. Without another word, she jumped into the backseat.
Electric Storm (A Raven Investigations Novel) Page 2
