Circle of Dreams (The Quytel Series Book 1)

by Jane S. Morrissey

  “It’s bad, Bri,” he cautioned. “Are you ready for this?”

  She pushed past him into the darker interior of the forest, staring in horror at the mangled mess of Mack’s large body only a few feet in front of her. Bile rose in her throat as she surveyed the multiple holes puncturing his chest and stomach. Blood had hardened and crusted around open wounds too deep to heal quickly, or maybe at all. His breathing remained shallow, barely there.

  Mack. Choking on tears, she knelt beside him and ran her hands over his face.

  Cole settled in next to her and they set to work. Turning him over, they washed the dried blood from Mack’s skin and carefully cleaned and bandaged each wound. He’d been lucky; all the shots had gone clean through.

  Finally, Cole sat on his heels, wiping his forehead with the back of his hand. “Bri, we can’t stay here much longer. Two of them got away, and they blew up our only vehicle.”

  She refused to look up at him. “We can’t leave him here.”

  Mack’s left leg twitched. She dropped a bloody towel on the ground and grabbed his hand.

  “Mack. Mack, can you hear me?” She ran her other hand over his ageless face, willing him to open his eyes.

  A groan met her question and relief poured through her. “Don’t try to talk right now, we’re here. We won’t leave you.”

  “Must.” One word, weak, came out through cracked, dry lips.

  “Give him some water,” she ordered.

  Cole grabbed the water bottle from the medical kit and held it to the Warrior’s mouth, letting a thin trickle moisten his lips and throat.

  “Must what, Mack?” Bri prompted him gently.

  They waited. He struggled to speak, fighting the pull of unconsciousness threatening to consume him.

  “Must . . . go . . . go west . . . Vancouver . . . a safe house . . .” Each word slurred, an effort for him to produce. Eyes closed, his split lips barely moved.

  “Okay.” Bri nodded. “We’ll get you to that house and call Jonah . . .”

  “No!” he bit out forcefully, startling her with the strength of his grip. “Go now . . . Leave me . . . Bri,” he insisted, pushing the words out. His eyes still hadn’t opened, and his expression twisted in pain.

  “I’m not going to leave you. They might send reinforcements or the other two could return. It’s too dangerous.” Bri shook as she protested, fighting tears.

  Mack moved his head slightly to one side. “Go. Now.” Despite the weakness of his voice, the command was clear, strong.

  Cole eased closer. “Bri, he’s right. We have to leave. It’s not safe here,” he said gently.

  Mack stirred. “I’ll be . . . okay . . .” he whispered. “I’m not . . . safe.”

  “What do you mean?” Anxious now, she searched his face for some clue of what he was trying to tell her.

  His eyes snapped open then, the usually brilliant gold dulled and glassy. His breath rattled in his lungs. “If I lose consciousness,” he started, and then paused, swallowing. “My energy will become unstable.” He closed his eyes. “You can’t . . . be . . . here.”

  Cole placed a hand on Mack’s shoulder. “I’ll get her out of here and keep her safe.”

  Mack closed his eyes again. “Thank you,” he murmured and his body twitched.

  Before Bri had time to react, Cole stood and swept her away from the scene in one smooth motion, nearly dragging her.

  She struggled, but his hold on her was too strong. With his arm solidly around her waist, her feet barely touched the ground.

  “You heard what he said. He’s unstable and dangerous to both of us if he loses consciousness, which will be soon,” Cole urged as he rushed her to the house. “I don’t know what it means. I don’t want to be here to find out, and he doesn’t want that either.”

  His grip on her was gentle yet firm. She let herself be taken from the gruesome scene until her stomach finally caught up with her and she stumbled to a stop. Bending over with her hands braced on her knees, dry heaves shook her body.

  Cole pulled her hair away from her face and rubbed her lower back, comforting and surreal when reality kept tilting and she couldn’t stop it, couldn’t quite find her bearings.

  Drawing a shaky breath, Bri stood and focused on his eyes, silvery-gray and reassuring. Compassion was reflected there too, along with the pain of their decision. Navigating this world of magic and immortal warriors without a roadmap, they had to trust Mack.

  “I hate this too.” Cole cupped the side of her face with one hand. “I’ve never left anyone behind, but if there’s a chance you’ll be in danger if he’s unconscious, Mack wouldn’t want you to be here. He wouldn’t want you to risk yourself. We can’t make his sacrifice a waste.”

  She took a step away from him, and he tightened his grip on her upper arm. She wiped tears from her eyes and met his steady gaze. “I’m okay.”

  He nodded and grasped her hand, hurrying to the house.

  Chapter 11

  Moving quickly through the dense forest, Cole and Bri followed the road due east, keeping to the protective cover of the larger trees. This was his territory, his turf, solid earth beneath his feet; the protection of the forest. No one could harm them here. The wolf was different out in nature. His spirit soothed and alerted in a different way than in a city surrounded by concrete and buildings.

  A split second later, an explosion detonated, shaking the ground. Cole grabbed her and threw her down, his body blanketing hers.

  It had come from the direction of the house.

  “We’ve got to keep moving.” Hauling Bri to her feet, he set a brisk, steady pace away from the sound of the blast.

  “What was that?” she asked, a little winded.

  “No idea.”

  “Mack?”

  He remained silent. There wasn’t anything to say. Either Mack had caused the explosion or had been caught in it. All he knew is that they had to get away, and fast.

  The backpack Cole carried was heavy. They’d hastily filled it with necessities, a pair of compressed sleeping bags, a few days’ worth of food and water, and the first-aid kit. The damn pack rattled with every step. Cole cringed at the excessive noise. They didn’t need to draw any more attention to their escape.

  He halted about thirty minutes later when he felt they were far enough away. “Just a minute.”

  “What’s wrong?” Bri spun, watching the surrounding woods with wide eyes. She’d been lost in thought, no doubt replaying the scene with Mack and second-guessing herself over leaving him.

  Dropping the pack to the ground, he unfastened the main zipper. “This damn thing is making too much noise.”

  She knelt next to him, her scent mixing with the already heady pine and crispness of the mountain air, a potent combination.

  Fishing around in the pack, he found the clanging culprit; the first-aid kit and a can of kidney beans. Rearranging the contents, he re-zipped the main pocket and slung the pack over his shoulders.

  “Do you want to talk about it?”

  Bri rocked on her heels and stood with him, a sheen of tears in her eyes. “Why are you doing this?”

  She appeared too fragile and vulnerable. Yet a lot had been thrown at her in the last twenty-four hours, and she was still standing. He admired that.

  As he adjusted the pack, he made the mistake of looking into her deep green eyes. Desire slammed his heart against his ribcage, and the pearl—which had been blessedly silent since he’d found her—did a triple backflip in his diaphragm. If he needed any more proof that his intense reaction to her had some enchantment behind it, he’d found it.

  “I won’t leave, Bri, don’t worry,” he assured her when he could speak. He tore his gaze away from hers and started walking.

  “Why?” She tried to keep up with h
is ground-eating strides. “Because of what Jonah made you promise?”

  “This has very little to do with your father.” He slowed his pace so she could stay abreast of him.

  “Father?” she scoffed, taking a deep breath, in and out. “I have no idea who he really is, and he left me with you.”

  She had a good point. Truth be told, Cole didn’t feel comfortable with the arrangement either. What father, especially one with as much power as Jonah, would leave his daughter in Cole’s hands? Unless he had a good reason. And it wasn’t long after Jonah had left that the house had been attacked. Where exactly had he gone?

  Cole couldn’t figure what the hell was going on and it didn’t sit well.

  They walked in silence for quite a distance. Bri’s breathing became more rapid. Cole finally stopped, pulled a water bottle out of a side pouch in the pack, and held it out to her.

  She gulped a long drink and handed it back to him. “Thanks.”

  As he drank, she put her hands in the back pockets of her green corduroys and looked up at the sky through the treetops. The arch in her back pushed her small, perfect breasts forward. Her pants fit her like a glove, and the snug cream sweater left little to his imagination. His mouth went dry.

  “Cole?” She waved a hand in front of his face.

  He lowered his head, tucking the water bottle into the pouch, feeling like a teenager caught staring at his teacher’s cleavage.

  “How long have you been doing this?” Bri asked as they continued their trek.

  “Doing what?” He surveyed the trail ahead to avoid ogling her.

  “Being a private investigator,” she clarified. “Using your abilities to solve cases.”

  “Why did you become a reporter?” he countered, earning him a headshake that set her long, blond ponytail bobbing.

  “I’m just making conversation,” she muttered under her breath. “Look, I’m sorry to pry. It’s fine if you don’t want to talk about it.” She gave him a sidelong look.

  He shrugged and frowned. The woman had a point, and he wanted to at least share something with her. He wasn’t used to talking about himself or his life to anyone. He’d give her the watered-down version.

  “I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do after college,” he began. “I thought about law school, business school. Nothing seemed all that satisfying. My twin sister had the idea. She’s brilliant and was studying forensic and computer science.”

  “Smarter than you?” Bri teased, glancing up at the thick canopy of trees overhead.

  “Much.” He smiled. “She met Jay in one of her classes. He’s a telepath and knew a couple of other people with different psychic abilities. We all had reason, at one time or another, to . . . operate outside the law. We had similar values and an interest in solving mysteries no one else could even understand. We formed a company about a year later. Courtland, Incorporated.”

  Bri was about to respond, but tripped on a branch across the trail and stumbled into him. Cole grabbed her around the waist to stabilize her. Electricity arced between them.

  “Sorry about that,” she mumbled, gazing up at him, and a flash of desire went straight to his groin. “I’m okay.”

  “You will be.” He knew it to be the truth. Bri was tough and smart, and she might have been knocked down, but she wasn’t out. Cole set her away from him and dropped his hands, instantly feeling the lack of warmth. He had to stop touching her before he drowned in those eyes.

  She offered a wider smile and stepped out of his arms. They started off again, hands occasionally brushing as they walked.

  “Tell me about your ability,” she prompted.

  He studied the underside of the tree canopy for a moment and sighed. He wanted to tell her, and if they were in this together, she deserved to know. “I am connected to the earth.”

  Bri remained silent for a minute, and he could easily sense the wheels spinning as her mind tried to assimilate more new information. “What does that mean?”

  Cole hadn’t ever tried to explain it to anyone outside of his team, and they never outright asked. They all accepted what the others could do without getting into the nitty-gritty of how it all worked. “It’s as though the earth is a living being to me. I can ask for information, sometimes ask for movement or disruption.”

  “As you did at my house? Is that how you found the safe room?”

  “Not how I found it, how I opened it, yes.” He nodded, but before he could continue, she put her hand on his forearm and slowed to a stop.

  “I’m sorry,” she stated quietly, “for what I said to you last night. It was uncalled for.”

  She’d called him unnatural. Despite the highly questionable circumstances, he had to admit getting to know a woman he was attracted to, who knew about his wolf, was an entrancing prospect. He’d never had the opportunity before. It made him feel oddly lighthearted, and given their situation, that meant he was in serious trouble.

  The wolf stretched languorously. You’re no help.

  A pinprick of anxiety at the back of his neck told him danger was practically on top of them. “Apology accepted.” She held him in place with her gentle, warm palm on his bare skin. “We need to move.”

  Suddenly Bri clapped her hand over the side of her neck as if swatting a mosquito. Her eyes drifted closed and she dropped like a stone to the ground. Instinct took over. Cole moved fast and caught her almost as soon as she hit the ground. Scooping her up in his arms, he barely stopped moving, racing with every ounce of superhuman speed to the protection of the trees. There was no blood, and he could feel the slow rise and fall of her chest as she breathed. They’d hit her with something that had knocked her out.

  Rage such as he had never felt swept through him, ice cold and hard. He would find who did this and bring them to justice . . . his kind of justice.

  Concealing Bri’s limp form as best he could, Cole called on the shift, leaping into the body of the wolf, bones and joints snapping and reforming. Never had it been so painful, the pearl clanging in protest as he landed on four padded feet, bounding away from his prize.

  As the wolf, his thoughts came more in images and somehow he was able to shove aside the part of his psyche that screamed at him to stand over Bri and protect her. He forced his mind and body to follow the earth’s guidance, appearing as impulses, heat sources in his mind. Where are they? His human mind became fuzzy and drifted to the background. The pearl seemed to finally understand and ratcheted down a notch, joining the fight, at once a part of him. Unified, Cole followed the trail created for him in the soil beneath his feet.

  He circled around the far side of an adjacent hill, rock and dirt guiding his movements as he silently slid through the darker shadows of the forest. He caught the scent of human sweat and anticipation a few meters in front of him. In his large black and silver wolf form, Cole covered the distance quickly and silently, crouching in the cover of the thick foliage and a tree trunk to observe the attackers.

  Two men, dressed in green camouflage with black utility vests over the top, handguns and knives strapped to their waists, concealed themselves in the shelter of an old oak tree. Each carried a long-range rifle. He recognized them as the ones who’d escaped from the house after Mack had gone down.

  Cole couldn’t figure why he hadn’t sensed these men on their tail. Maybe they were psychic and had masked their presence from him somehow. Either that, or he’d been too distracted by Bri to feel danger when it was right on top of them.

  He didn’t have time to waste. The men were heavily armed and after Bri. His gun had been in the waistband of his jeans, a spare in the backpack. He’d have one chance to hit them both, before they separated or managed to shoot him. He paced silently, parallel to the attackers as they made their way to the clearing where they had hit Bri. It wouldn’t take them long to find where Cole had hidde
n her. The taller of the two men held up a hand. Both stopped and slowly crouched low.

  “We shot the woman, the man got away,” the shorter one whispered.

  In the next instant, the ground moved under their feet. It started as a gentle shake which cracked the earth. A split opened, widening between the two men.

  “Holy shit!” the taller one shouted as he shot to his feet.

  “What the hell?” The other stood unsteadily, hands out to find his balance as a chasm about two feet wide opened right under him.

  Cole leapt from behind the trees with lightning speed and a resonant growl. Both turned at the same time, reaching for weapons to defend themselves. Cole went for the short one who was the closest and hit him square in the chest with his powerful front paws, teeth sinking into the tender flesh of his neck. One vicious shake of his head and the man was dead before he hit the ground. Using the falling body as a springboard, he launched himself at the taller man, who had a gun aimed straight at his chest. The earth gave another violent shake as the gun fired. The bullet missed him literally by a hair.

  With a swipe of his powerful paw, Cole knocked the gun out of the man’s hand. Claw marks left bloody streaks. Weaponless, the man held his wounded arm in front of him as he warily circled Cole.

  Then, baring his teeth Cole lunged, front paws hitting the man in the middle of the chest, knocking him backward to the ground with a satisfying crack of skull meeting solid earth.

  Reassuming his human form, Cole wrapped a strong hand around the man’s throat, pinning him to the ground.

  “What do you want with her?” he asked quietly, playing on the guttural quality of his voice mid-shift.

  “Go to hell,” the man bit out between painful gasps of air, clawing at the hands holding him down.