by Katie Reus
“Moving in behind you with Rhea and Solon,” Gabriel murmured through his earpiece. “Leaving a team of three in the yard and four others infiltrating the house.”
“Good.” Finn looked at Lyra as they descended the long flight. From the yard this would have been difficult to spot, but Lyra had seen it from her aerial view. He stopped in front of what had once been a door.
A giant hole had burned away most of it, leaving only hinges and scraps of wood hanging from the frame. The smell wasn’t sulfuric. Not demonic fire. It was unique.
“What did this?” Lyra whispered, though he didn’t think she was looking for an answer. Right now she was practically vibrating with energy. Her grayish-violet eyes were bright with hope and stark fear. Next to him Lyra tightened her grip on her blade and nodded at him. Go, she mouthed.
Tense and alert, he stepped through the opening. With his shifter-sharp eyesight he could see another opening about twenty feet in front of them, but he wanted to make sure the area wasn’t rigged with traps. There were new smells in the stone hallway. A wet, cold scent and underneath it was sulfur. Not from the fire though. The sulfur lingered in the air and it was getting stronger the farther they moved in.
The narrow stone hallway had a high ceiling, probably around twelve feet. Likely went all the way up to the bottom of the house. Once they reached the end of the hallway, his wolf was clawing at him, begging to be set free.
The sulfur was almost overpowering now but all down the hallway he’d smelled roses too. It permeated everything, making his most protective side flare to life in a way he’d never imagined possible. The need to protect his child was making his wolf insane. Vega was here. Or had been.
Carefully, he stepped through the entryway, his gaze sweeping the surroundings of the underground area in seconds. It was one big stone room with candles everywhere, on the walls, the floor, various pedestals. Some were knocked over, extinguished while others still flickered.
And in the middle was a fucking hell gate.
Dark mist swirled in a perfect circular formation, a big black area that looked almost viscous smack dab in the middle of the room. Floating in the air. Only a curved quarter section of the black circle was open, in the shape of a crescent moon. Wisps of smoke curled out of it in addition to that God awful sulfuric stench.
Blood had been smeared on the ground in different designs he didn’t recognize, but he could guess what they were for.
“Akkadian ritual spells. I can’t believe he’s really opening this,” Lyra murmured as she stepped past him, eying the floor in horror. Pain and rage rolled off her in equal measures, mirroring his own feelings. Where was Vega?
He wanted to stop her, to shield her from all this, but kept pace as she moved around the hell gate toward the other side of the room.
“Everyone be careful.” Just because the gate wasn’t fully open didn’t mean anything. He’d never been in a situation like this before and wanted his packmates safe. For all he knew it could split wide open at any second, without the coming eclipse. He hated the uncertainty.
No one said anything, but he heard them moving behind them. As they moved, he spotted a door completely melted away on the other side. The scent of roses was strong, permeating the air.
“Vega,” Lyra said, moving into action before he could stop her. With a burst of speed, she was across the room in a heartbeat.
He was right behind her, moving through the entryway only a second after her. He froze at the sight. There were three cells. Arm and leg chains from two of them had been burned off the walls and a hole burned through the middle of two connecting cells and through one of the prison doors.
He could smell Vega all over the room. Lyra let out a cry as she ran to the front of the middle cell. Clutching onto the bars, she crushed them to dust as she stared inside. “She was here. Something bad happened here.” Her voice was broken.
Finn pushed down his own pain and fear as he reached for her. She didn’t shove him off. Letting out a sob, she turned her face into his chest and clutched onto his shirt. “This is all my fault,” she whispered, the raw agony in her voice a knife through his chest.
He wrapped his arms around her, crushing her to him. She felt so small in his embrace, so delicate even though he knew firsthand just how strong she was. The wolf demanded he protect his female, do whatever it took to erase her pain. “No it’s not. And we’re going to find her.” Or he would die trying. He hadn’t scented Vega in the yard, only once they reached the hallway, but that didn’t mean anything. They had a big group and would hunt the entire city for her. “There are still hours until sunlight.”
Lyra immediately straightened at his words, wiping the pinkish tears from her face as she pulled back. “You’re right.”
If they didn’t reach her by sunrise, they’d only have one more day and night to find her before the eclipse. After that…he couldn’t even go there.
Chapter Thirteen
Lyra picked up a vase on the nightstand and hurled it across the room. It shattered into a million pieces, the blue porcelain glittering on the hardwood floor like rain. The destruction might not serve any purpose but it made a small part of her feel better.
A second later, the door flew open. Finn stood shirtless in the doorframe, looking ready to kill. He scanned the room and stilled when he saw the remains of the vase. He scrubbed a hand over his face, clearly as exhausted as she felt. Probably more so considering he’d been running on no sleep.
They’d scoured the city until Lyra had been forced inside by the damn sun. Finn’s pack owned multiple homes in New Orleans. One in the French Quarter and two in the Garden District. He’d brought her to one in the Garden District then left immediately, continuing in the search for Vega. She was thankful he’d continued to hunt, but she hated feeling helpless.
Useless.
She was going crazy not knowing where Vega was. Where had she been taken? Or gone to? That scene in those cells was too strange. After Lyra had almost had a breakdown she’d eyed the area more critically. With the way the bars had been melted, it was clear something had broken out. After burning through Vega’s chains.
The scent of Vega’s blood still taunted her. Was it from being burned or from being drained? Either way didn’t matter because neither option was good. Now some of Finn’s packmates were guarding that mansion in case anyone else showed up. He’d called in more reinforcements from Biloxi once they’d gotten a good look at that hell gate.
“I’m sorry about the vase,” she muttered.
He shook his head. “It doesn’t matter. Have you slept at all?”
“No.” She kept seeing Vega in pain when she closed her eyes. Her imagination just conjured up all sorts of bad things.
He looked out into the hall, then back at her and she could see he was torn. “I need to recharge. My wolf is threatening to take over and unless I get a couple hours of sleep I’m going to do something I won’t be able to take back.”
She understood. With his lack of sleep for so many days, he might be likely to turn into a wolf on a crowded human street. That wouldn’t do anyone any favors. “Sleep. I won’t make any more noise. I swear.” She needed to try again too. The sun would be setting soon and when it did, she was heading back out there.
He shut the door behind himself and stepped farther into the room.
She frowned. “What are you doing?”
“We need sleep and we’ll find it easier with each other.” As he spoke he stripped off his clothes.
Beyond surprised by his assumption, she stepped back. “Are you kidding me?” Even if she did feel safer in his arms she didn’t want sex right now.
He pinned her with that gaze. “Do I look fucking hard to you? I just need to sleep and for some reason both me and my wolf rest better with you in my arms.” His words came out as an angry growl.
She sucked in a breath at his admission. The truth was, she did too. Always had. Seventeen years hadn’t diminished that. Wordlessly, she turned fr
om him and headed toward the queen-sized bed. As she slipped into bed, she felt him move right in behind her.
The sheets were soft and cool, but he was like a furnace, warming her from the inside out as he pulled her back to rest against his chest. His muscular arm wrapped snugly around her, his breathing steady as his chin settled on the top of her head. She could feel his warm breath on her hair.
Despite the panic and fear living inside her, his hold was grounding. Comforting.
“I never wanted to end things between us. My uncle had been growing more unstable and…I think he suspected I’d met someone. He’d had me followed a few times. For a while it was easy to lose my tails, but it was getting harder and harder to meet up with you unseen.” Finn’s deep voice filled the silence of the curtain-darkened room.
His words took her off guard, unraveling her at the seams. When he’d ended things between them, they’d fought bitterly. She remembered it as if it was yesterday. Even then he’d told her that he hadn’t wanted to break up with her, but hearing the words now demolished the rest of the wall she had surrounding her heart. She swallowed hard, not sure how to respond. But she tightened her hand over his where it lay across her middle.
“Living without you was hell,” he whispered. His grip tightened as he pulled her close. “I took on any challenger our pack had. It was like I was possessed with the need to destroy. I was just so damn angry you were gone.” His harsh laugh was tinged with bitterness. “Ironically that’s when I started gaining supporters in the pack and what ultimately gave me the strength to challenge him.”
“Was it hard to take over the pack?” Finn had always been so damn strong. Stronger than even he’d realized. But she’d known it years ago and could definitely see it now. He was a true leader who looked at all angles. He cared about what was best for his pack.
“It was rough for a few years trying to figure out who could be trusted. Once I weeded out those with archaic ideals, it was easier to start growing all of our businesses. My uncle had kept everyone in the dark about finances, kept everyone working for pennies. Now the pack owns everything equally. It’s the way it should be.”
If all the homes his pack owned and his hotels she’d seen on the way into Biloxi were any indication, they were clearly doing well. “I really am sorry I never told you about her. I just…I didn’t know what the right decision was back then. You’d been so sure we couldn’t make it and…even though I was angry at you and wanted to deny what you said, I was afraid. I’d been sensing your growing fear of your uncle and I was terrified for our child. I already knew she’d have a hard enough time being a hybrid.” She could still remember the fear and pain she’d experienced the day she’d been kicked out into the human world on her own. She’d been more sheltered than she’d even realized. Reality had been a swift punch in the face once she’d had to hide that first day for shelter from the sun.
His grip tightened. “No more apologies. I don’t know what I’d have done in your shoes.”
“Finn—”
“No more. I don’t hate you if that’s what you’re worried about. I’m angry that I’ve missed so many years of Vega’s life, but we’re going to find her and I’m going to make up for lost time.”
Yes, he would. He deserved it and would have been a wonderful father to Vega all these years. While she was grateful he didn’t despise her, he hadn’t mentioned any other feelings. Not that she really expected him to. But she could hope, even if that hope might kill her. “Can I ask you something?”
“Yeah,” he murmured, his voice a deep caress wrapping around her.
“I have no right to ask, but…” Oh, God. Why was she asking this? “Is it true you haven’t taken a lover since we’ve been separated?” Seventeen years was long, but not that long to supernaturals. She truly had no right to ask, but Victoria’s words to her had been rolling around in her head for days.
“There’s been no one.” His words shattered through her.
She closed her eyes. Damn. She might have been hoping for that answer, but she hadn’t expected it. Not truly. Not for such a raw, sexual male like Finn. Knowing he hadn’t been with anyone else sent an unexpected rush of heat between her legs. “I haven’t either,” she whispered. In the beginning she’d been consumed with taking care of her child and hiding her true nature from the human world. But once she’d made a stable home for her and Vega, the thought of anyone else’s touch but Finn’s had made her skin crawl.
Behind her, he went impossibly still. She could feel his heart rate increase and it was impossible to miss the sudden push of his erection against her back. “You shouldn’t tell me that.” She barely heard his words.
“Why not?” she asked just as quietly.
“When I thought…you’d had a child with someone else, my first instinct was to hunt him down and kill him. My wolf was dangerously close to taking over.”
She might not have an inner animal to control in the same way he did, but she certainly had to control her baser instincts. At least where he was concerned. If she’d scented anyone on his sheets or in his bedroom…yeah, she didn’t even want to go there.
Finn’s hand played with the hem of her tank top, splaying across her belly. He moved across her skin slowly, almost as if he was asking for permission. The skin on skin contact made her nipples harden, the points rubbing against her cotton shirt.
His fingers slid lower, lower, until they dipped below the band of her thin sleep shorts. She wasn’t wearing anything else and when he realized that, he sucked in a sharp breath. His fingers skated over her bare mound until he was cupping her possessively. Her inner walls clenched and tightened, wanting him to fill her. But he didn’t go any farther or even stroke her folds or clit. He just held her.
“Tell me to stop,” he growled, but she could tell he didn’t want her to. His breath was warm against her neck, sending tingles down her spine. He rolled his hips against her once, pressing his hard length against her.
She should. They needed sleep and the sun would be setting soon. And once they crossed this line there would be no going back for her. The truth was, there was no going back now. She was completely lost over this male. “Don’t stop,” she found herself saying instead, the words torn from her chest.
Maybe she had a masochistic streak because there was no way things would ever work out between them and this would just make it harder to leave later. They were from two different worlds. Their people had a long, violent history of despising each other. Their relationship hadn’t worked before… Could it now? She was afraid to even hope.
This wasn’t about a relationship anyway, it was about finding escape until they could leave the house—that was the lie she was trying to tell herself.
It wasn’t that simple for her, but she couldn’t afford to assume this meant they had a future. She knew without a doubt that he still cared for her, probably loved her—otherwise, he’d have taken lovers since they’d been apart—but that couldn’t negate that he was an Alpha and she was a vampire.
He growled softly and nipped her ear. Everything else fell away as he slowly started teasing her clit with his middle finger. Her entire body jolted at the feel of the rough pad against her sensitive bundle of nerves. She pushed back into him, rubbing her backside over his hard length as he teased her. And he was definitely teasing.
He knew her body well enough to realize that his gentle touch wasn’t going to be enough. “Faster,” she demanded.
Instead of doing what she wanted, he pulled away. Before she could protest, he flipped her on her back. With her heightened eyesight she could see the hard planes and striations of his perfectly chiseled body. Straddling her hips, his cock curved upward in a thick, impressive display she wanted to taste and touch.
Keeping her gaze on his, she reached out and grasped her fingers around his cock. His thick length was hot in her hands. She stroked him once, twice, savoring the way his entire body trembled as she touched him.
“Lyra.” Her name was a praye
r on his lips, reverent and strained at the same time.
Squeezing, she smiled when he rolled his hips into her grip.
Taking her off guard, he grasped her wrist and pulled her hand away. “I’m not coming in your hand.”
Guiding both her hands above her head, he held her wrists in place in that impossibly firm grip as he bent his head down to meet hers. His lips brushed against hers, softly at first. With each stroke of their tongues, his kisses grew more demanding, hungrier. As if he wanted to completely devour her. To brand her.
Unable to move her hands, she arched into him, rubbing her breasts against his rock hard chest. Her nipples, already painfully erect, tingled with each contact, the friction making her crazy. It didn’t matter that she still had the tank top on, it was so thin it might as well not even be there.
Her inner walls were clenching out of control, desperate to be filled. But Finn had her pinned down completely with his large body, his cock resting against her lower abdomen as he continued kissing her. Her shirt had pushed up so she felt his erection against her bare skin. It was almost more than she could take. She didn’t want to feel him on her stomach, she wanted him claiming her in the way only he ever could.
She grinded against him, trying to encourage him to do more. The simple stimulation of her nipples was almost enough to send her over the edge. But it wasn’t just that. It was Finn.
He was on top of her, holding her down, dominating her the way he’d done countless times years ago. He was Alpha everywhere, including in the bedroom. Especially in the bedroom. It was the one place she didn’t mind his dominance. If anything, she craved it here. He always made her feel safe, treasured.
