Outcast (Hunter: A Thieves Series Book 4)

by Lexi Blake

  “Are we ever safe around a Hell lord?” Liv asked.

  “We do this one job for him and Trent gets to come home. Or I can fight him on it and he very likely goes to the king and complains about the fact that we’re out here playing around with a couple of kiddos, one of whom is his.” I thought I should point out all the salient facts of our conundrum. “If he can keep Lupus Solum off our asses, I say we do the job.”

  “The question is how can he keep them off our asses,” Casey shot back. “Unless he’s working with them and this is all one big old plot.”

  “To do what?” I agreed with him, but I couldn’t see what Sloane got out of it. I understood that he wanted whatever prophecy the witches could give him. Gray’s contract was ironclad. He couldn’t be forced to descend. So he was safe. Sort of. If Sloane murdered me, the king would come down on his head and Gray would be a mightily angry dark prophet. If he’d wanted to kill Trent, he could have done it.

  I couldn’t see his end game so even though I knew it was going to bite me in the ass, I had to play the odds and protect my father. And Fen.

  I needed time to figure out how to ensure that Lee’s soul was hidden and that Fen’s issues could be solved with therapy and a couple of foster parents.

  Or maybe three. Sometimes fate takes these twisty turns and you just have to go with them.

  “Gray said if I leave the king behind he shall destroy.” I looked to Trent. “Maybe he wasn’t talking about Daniel.”

  “Bind the king in friendship and he will find the light,” Gray said from the doorway. He looked so much better.

  “Fen is the king.” It was insane to think it, but I’d had that dream.

  “The glow of her love will make or break him. The crown is twofold. Never let them tell you there can be only one.” He said the words with a smile, letting me know I was on the right path.

  If there was a vampire king, there could be a wolf king. If Fen grew up protected and cared for by the members of the Council, he would be a great asset. If he didn’t, if he was left alone, he would likely challenge Daniel later on.

  I wasn’t sure about the glow of her love, but there had been a wedding in my dream. Or perhaps the glow of her love meant me. Perhaps this was about me being able to open my heart to a child I hadn’t borne.

  I was rapidly learning my heart was a mighty thing.

  Trent sat down. “A Lupus Rex. I’m struggling with it.”

  “He controlled you,” Gray reminded him. “We weren’t even close to him and you couldn’t move. All those natural wolves out there, they followed him. And I’ve never seen any wolf who could manipulate his body mass the way this one can. That kid weighs maybe sixty pounds soaking wet, but I would swear that wolf weighs at least three times that. Maybe more. I think that’s all the proof I need.”

  “But his father was human,” Trent argued.

  “DNA is an odd thing,” Liv reminded him. “But there’s no doubt in my mind that kid in there is something we haven’t seen before. I have to wonder why Lupus Solum is trying to kill him. I would think they would drag him in and start fucking him up. According to everything you’ve told us, he’s exactly what they’ve spent hundreds of years working toward.”

  “Thousands. But there’s a problem. He’s not pure,” Trent explained. “They would call him an abomination. They would think of him like the Christian anti-Christ.”

  “That word got thrown around a lot while we were hanging with your mom,” I admitted. I moved over to Gray because he was standing on the outside. I needed him close. Something was happening with him and we needed to figure it out—together. All of us. “She was certain she wanted Fen destroyed. I don’t understand. If what we believe is true, Fen is the son of one of their own. I get that he’s got some human in there, but this feels like they’re looking a gift horse in the mouth.”

  I wasn’t totally sure why you shouldn’t look at a horse’s mouth since it was there and everything, but I did know the phrase meant some bastard was being ungrateful.

  “I can help with this,” Gray said. “I think the problem started with the initial prophecy. When I became a prophet, I discovered I somehow have access to many prophecies. I can give you Haldor’s original words.”

  “He was really a prophet?” Trent asked, and it was easy to see his world was getting rocked.

  Gray shoulders came down, his body relaxing. This was how he was supposed to work. It was meant to be an easy flow. “Haldor was touched. It’s how we refer to beings with true psychic connections to the thread. That’s what we call fate or destiny. Sometimes these beings can touch the thread and their prophecies come from these moments. It’s usually when they’re closest to the thread, at times when they touch death or women giving birth. That’s when particular beings who are not actual prophets can produce true prophecy. I can tap into them. Haldor’s words are running through my head. Become clean. Only the purest emotion will bring about Lupus Rex, the Unbinder. Slaves will be freed. The wolf will rise and two shall rule the new world. The fang and claw will stand on their own, but finally be united.”

  We kept coming back to those words. The crown is twofold.

  And he’d mentioned the new world. Jacob had said it. Something about Fen would bring about a new world. Maybe one where the wolves and vampires weren’t in constant turmoil. Maybe the crown being twofold would mean those two mighty supernatural tribes would get along.

  But in my dream the new world had begun when Fen and Lee met.

  I forced down a growl. I didn’t get the prophecy stuff. I would tell the academics and let them go over all of it. They could wrack their big, beautiful brains to figure out if the universe was trying to tell me something or if I’d just had a crazy dream. But I did know a few things, including the meaning of words. “According to the prophecy, you think Lupus Solum is right. You think Fen can’t be the king because he’s a half blood?”

  Gray looked down at me, his eyes softer than before. “I think there are many meanings of the word pure. I don’t think that word merely refers to blood.” His eyes tightened. “That’s all I can say.”

  “Only the purest emotion will bring about the Lupus Rex,” Liv said. “That’s not the purest blood.”

  Trent huffed. “Yeah, that’s the way the prophecy goes in our religious texts. They conveniently left out the word emotion. For centuries the alphas and priests and priestesses claimed only the purest werewolves would bring about the wolf king. They built an entire religion based on DNA and breeding, and all along what was required was love. Pure love.”

  “Likely between two creatures that shouldn’t be together.” Liv’s eyes had a sheen to them and she glanced back at Casey. “Hester and Christopher fought everything to be together, including her instincts.”

  “Some supernatural creatures don’t have the same instincts as others,” Casey said quietly. “Even those of their own kind. We are not all alike.”

  “But you have to understand, Lupus Solum won’t believe us. Not even if we bring Gray to the compound and have him tell them all the truth. They won’t believe anyone who isn’t of the faith. They’ll call him a false prophet and they’ll attack like they did earlier today.” Trent looked a little green. “That wolf that attacked me, that was my brother. And they all want to kill Fen. They’ll come after him. They’ve got to know we took him with us.”

  I looked to Liv. “According to Meredith, Fen should be dead given the bullet he took. Is there any way we can fool them into thinking he is?”

  “They ward against magic,” Trent said.

  “But there are things they can’t ward against.” My mind was working overtime. “How close would Casey have to be to wipe their memories?”

  Among his academic skills included totally being able to make people forget stuff he didn’t want them to remember. It didn’t work on other vamps or demons, but it worked on werecreatures.

  “Whoa,” Casey said. “You want me to walk into a crazy, creepy fucking cult and convince them
an entire afternoon didn’t happen? That’s a lot of…yeah, I can do that. I’ll probably die, but I can do it. Uhm, does anybody have an address because I don’t have a great sense of direction.”

  I looked to where his eyes had gone and Liv was staring him down.

  “If you don’t get every single one of them, it could cause greater problems.” Trent stood up. “If even one of them retains the memory, they’ll all know a vampire messed with their brains and they’ll go to the Council. They’re paranoid. Casey would have to go deal with the sheriff and he would have to go into the woods and figure out where your stepfather is or that plan will backfire on us. The pack doesn’t often use the Council rules, but they will in this case because it serves their purposes. Casey will get in trouble the same way I did.”

  “Casey isn’t a murdering son of a bitch,” Gray said suddenly, and then his jaws clenched. “I didn’t mean to say that. God, I didn’t even think it.”

  Liv stared at Gray for a moment. “When did you start feeling this way?”

  Gray chuckled, a humorless sound. “When Trent killed my brother.”

  “No, I meant when did you start losing control,” Liv continued. “You’ve gotten worse since Trent’s been physically around. How long have you been taking that tonic?”

  “The headaches started when I became a dark prophet,” Gray explained.

  “But he wasn’t like this.” I would have seen something. Wouldn’t I? We’d been happy, Gray and I. There had been something missing because we hadn’t had Trent with us, but we’d been okay. Gray had been fitting in. It had been awkward at first, but he regularly went to family dinners and sat across the table from the men he used to try to arrest. He was part of my uncle’s poker nights. I understood that he hadn’t gotten over Nemcox’s death, but he hadn’t run around angry all the time.

  “The headaches are worse,” Gray admitted. “When I was around Jacob, I was more in control. He told me when I decided to come back to the Council that it would be worse. It can take years for a prophet to truly learn control and become comfortable. He worked with Henri to make the tonic. I’m not worried about it. Jacob would not betray me. Neither would Henri. I also think we’re coming to a turning point, a place in time that I can see the outer edges of, but not how it will end. Something big is about to happen, but it won’t come to me. It’s like I know there’s a city somewhere, but I’m stuck in the suburbs. I can see the lights, but I don’t know how to get there.”

  “Something’s happening and you think it affects her,” Trent said, but he held his ground. He didn’t move to join us.

  Gray was silent.

  “The closer you are to the prophecy the less you will be able to see,” Casey said. “You know that, Gray. We have no idea how the events playing out around you are going to affect you personally. Prophets aren’t known for being family men, if you know what I mean. There’s a reason Jacob is mostly solitary. He takes on a traveling partner from time to time, but from what I understand all of his physical relationships are one-night stands.”

  “He’ll spend a weekend with a woman,” Gray said. “But no more than that. He doesn’t get involved. Believe me, I’ve had this lecture, Casey.”

  “He’s not trying to lecture you,” Liv said. “He’s trying to get to the heart of the problem. The reason you’re making yourself sick is you’re trying to save Kelsey. I get that. The question is why is it so much worse now that Trent is here. You’re acting irrationally.”

  “Don’t you think I know that?” The question shot out of Gray’s mouth and he took a deep breath, trying to calm himself. I reached out and he took my hand, pulling me close. “I’m sorry, Kelsey mine. I don’t want to feel this way.”

  “I helped Henri with the tonic prep before we left. It’s white magic,” Liv mused. “Your father doesn’t think it will work long term on a dark prophet. He thinks you would be more stable if you spent time on the Hell plane.”

  “Something’s wrong with me.” His eyes came up and he looked to Trent. “I was going to leave you. Twice today. I walked out this morning with every intention of spending the day repairing our relationship. I enjoyed last night, Trent. Last night was the most at peace I’ve felt in a long time. But even taking the tonic Henri sent, I feel restless now. I can’t stop thinking about what Trent did to my brother.”

  “I’ll check and make sure Meredith is mixing it together correctly. But first I’d like to make sure there’s not a spell on you,” Liv explained. “Your father was at the Council headquarters when all this began.”

  Our fathers were starting all kinds of shit. Even Lee’s dads were causing problems.

  Not that Lee wasn’t doing some of that on his own. He ran by the door, a huge grin on his face. Fen raced after him and he was in wolf form again. His massive paws slipped on the marble and he went sliding, making the sweetest yelping sound before he barked happily again and I heard the sound of claws tapping on the floor as he chased after Lee.

  Eddie raced after them as Lee giggled like mad. The demon was slightly out of breath as he stopped in front of the door. “I am sorry, mistress. They consumed a dozen cupcakes. The sugar seems to have had an effect on the boys. I will…I do not know what to do, mistress.”

  Trent sighed and strode across the room. “I’ll take care of them. I suspect I’ll be taking care of Fen a lot in the near future. My mate has that look in her eyes. Who thought I’d be raising a Lupus Rex? Fen, Lee, no running in the house.”

  He and Eddie walked out of sight.

  Liv put a hand on my arm. “I’m going to grab a couple of things I need to build a protective spell around the space we’ll use later on tonight. I’m also going to make wards for all of us. I don’t like the idea of being the thirteenth for a dark coven. Do we trust Sloane? He said he would take care of Lupus Solum.”

  “If it helps him, he’ll do it,” Gray affirmed.

  She looked back at Casey. “Come on. I need Meredith for some of this and she responds better to you.” Liv turned somber eyes up at the vampire. “Is she feeding you? I don’t know what’s happening tonight, but I think you should be as strong as possible.”

  His jaw went tight. “I have never and will never feed from her, Olivia.”

  “She’s a companion. Her blood can make you strong,” Liv insisted.

  “And you and I have different definitions of strength.” Casey sighed. “Let’s go. I do need to feed. I’ll do it before dinner. Eddie’s got my supply in the kitchens. Could you go easy on the salad tonight? It’s so gross.”

  He walked out and Liv had turned a brilliant scarlet color.

  I sent my BFF a “what the hell” look.

  “We’ll talk later,” she promised. “I’ve got to get ready for tonight. And I’ll tell Eddie we’ve got a bunch of guests for dinner.”

  We had a lot to talk about. Of course, we had to survive the evening first.

  When I was alone with him, Gray turned to me, resting his forehead against mine. “I’m sorry. I could have hurt him today. I don’t want to, but the impulse is so strong.”

  I leaned into him. “We’re going to figure it out.”

  His arms went around me, hauling me close. “I know this is hurting you. Hell, I don’t want to hurt Trent. I can’t seem to let it go. Every time I try it’s like a fucking lance through me again. When we get home, I’ll work with Liv’s coven and see if there’s anything they can do to ease this impulse. We have so little time.”

  I was worried Liv wouldn’t be able to find a spell and Lord Sloane was right. I was stuck in a corner and I didn’t feel like there was a way out.

  “Kiss me, Kelsey mine. It’s the only time I feel like everything is right.” He lowered his lips to mine and the kiss was brief and sweet. “I promise I won’t hurt him. Hurting him means hurting you. If I can’t solve this, I will descend. I’ll love you forever, but I can’t hurt you like that.”

  I held on to him and prayed we could find a way through this.

  * * * *
>
  “Are you sure you want to do this?” Trent asked.

  He stared down at us. Gray and I were cuddled on the bed. It was almost nightfall and I could smell the barbecue Eddie had been cooking all day long. We were dining with the Hell lord and his main witch before we trooped out to the forest for some fun prophesizing time. I was going to be their main bouncer, trying to keep a rabid wolf from devouring them all. What they didn’t know was that wolf was probably going to be watching Disney movies and eating some popcorn with his new best friend. Not that I could tell them that.

  And I wasn’t sure I believed it.

  “Of course I don’t want to do this,” Gray replied, rubbing his cheek against mine. “My father’s up to something and you need to be on your guard. But if Lucifer is truly pushing him, he needs to give that demon what he wants. As bosses go, Lucifer is not one you want to displease. I worry about what happens if my father gets desperate. He seems confident, but his place in the hierarchy is everything to him.”

  “He said something about how he lost standing when Nemcox died.” I didn’t want to go there, but I had to. I had to understand what we were walking into. I was letting Liv stand in a dark circle, serving a Hell lord in order to protect a bunch of people I cared about, including Trent. I needed to understand what the stakes were on all sides.

  I wasn’t foolish. I knew Sloane would try something, but I wasn’t sure there was a way out. I was going to walk into the trick, but that didn’t mean I had to get caught in the trap.

  “Yes,” Gray agreed. “I don’t think he realized how much value Nemcox brought to the family. His power was considered soft. He couldn’t give my father intelligence the way I could even before I turned.”

  Before he’d been a dark prophet, he’d had prophecy powers. In some ways it had been easier on him then. Of course, he couldn’t see when the world would change, but when he focused super hard he could see some important events and give advice to those around him. He hadn’t had some crazy mystical thing that stopped him from talking. Of course the most he’d been able to do was see things like our wedding night or how a couple of demons would screw over his father, but he also hadn’t had the fate of the planes shoved into his brain.