Bella came to check on her a few times, once even moistening a washcloth and holding it against Mara’s forehead. The air elemental didn’t speak, but something in her eyes was almost kind.
Mara’s thoughts turned to Cade. If only she’d had more time. She wished she’d told him that she was falling in love with him. It didn’t matter now. She felt worse than ever. Worse than that last terrible night before she’d freed him. She didn’t think she could speak even without the scarf tied between her teeth. Her tongue was plastered to the floor of her mouth, stuck. Her lips had cracked and bled. She was certain her eyelids were made of sandpaper for all the pain each blink brought her.
Hours had passed. Katerina, Jeremy, and Bella murmured quietly in the next room behind the closed door. They were probably plotting Cade’s death. She thought someone might have left the room once or twice, but she couldn’t be sure.
The opening of the door made her flinch. “How are you doing, sister?” Katerina asked. A warm hand touched her face, pulling open her eyelids. Everything was a blur. Black hair, hazel eyes, red lips.
Mara tried to moan, but all that came out was a croak. The gag was pulled down and she strained to loosen her tongue. “Aaahhh-errrr, aah-eerr,” she begged. Water. Water.
Those black brows narrowed. “You do not look well.”
Mara could only manage the barest shake of her head and tried to ask for water again. Her sister stood, held a glass under the faucet, and the blessed sound of water reached Mara’s ears. But when she got a look at the glass, she wanted to cry. Two tablespoons at the most. The disappointed whimper that escaped her throat had Katerina chuckling.
“Do not think me stupid, sister. Did you expect me to give you a whole glass?” Water dribbled over Mara’s lips and tongue. She was so dehydrated that she couldn’t swallow. At least her tongue managed to lift slightly.
“More. Please,” she managed. “Dying.”
“I don’t disagree that you look terrible, but this will all be over in two hours. Listen to me. When we get to the park, you will sit quietly. If you try to run—not that I think you could manage it—I will torture your dog before I kill him.”
“You’ll . . . torture him . . . anyway,” Mara said hoarsely.
Katerina shook her head and her long black hair floated around her shoulders. Her voice was almost sad. “I miss Phoenix. I hate this fucking city. The rain, the constant cold. I’ve lost business, even lost friends. I want to end this. Now. I promise you, Mara. If you help me, I will make his death quick. When the sun comes up, I’ll have enough strength to incinerate him instantly. He’ll barely feel a thing.”
Her gentle hand stroked Mara’s hair. She was in so much pain that the comforting gesture shattered her. She leaned into the touch and dry sobs wracked her body. Cade was going to die and it was all Mara’s fault. Why had she left? Why hadn’t she put aside her fear of Liam and the pack and stayed?
“Shh, baby girl. It’ll all be okay. The dog will die, our mother will be avenged, and we can heal. You see that now, don’t you? We can heal together. When it’s done, I’ll take the charm off of you. Maybe you’ll forgive me enough to see that I did all of this for both of us. Everything.” Katerina rubbed Mara’s neck, working away the knots that had formed from lying on her side in a tiny tub for hours. “Will you help me, Mara?”
She glared up at her sister, the kind words and gentle massage not fooling her for a second. “Go to hell.”
The boy, Jeremy, came to haul her out of the bathtub. He threw her back into the black van and it bumped around along the road for so long that Mara was lulled to sleep—or perhaps unconsciousness—by the motion. When she woke, they had stopped and Katerina sat next to her with a cell phone to her ear.
“Dog, listen to me. Gas Works Park. Come alone and come now.”
“Let me talk to Mara.”
The phone was pressed to Mara’s ear. “Don’t come,” she whispered.
“Has she hurt you? Besides the charm?”
Mara’s cheek burned where Jeremy had slapped her. Her back ached. The blood that trickled from her split and cracked lips was a sour, coppery tang in her mouth. But Cade had to stay calm if there was any hope of him surviving. “No.”
“I’m on my way, honey. All I want is to see you one more time. To make sure you’re going to be okay. Hold on for me.”
Katerina pulled the phone away and Mara strained her head, desperate for one more minute with him. “No,” she moaned and Katerina slapped a hand over her mouth.
“There’s a large metal structure in the center of the park. Climb the westernmost tower. That’s where we’ll be. Because I love my sister and I hope one day she’ll forgive me, I’ll even let you say goodbye before I turn you to ash. But if I see or smell a single member of your pack, then Mara comes back to Phoenix with me until she realizes why I did all of this. Do you understand?”
“Yes. Please, let me tell her—” Katerina ended the call before Mara could hear the last thing Cade wanted to stay to her.
On Jeremy’s shoulder, Mara was lugged through Gas Works Park. It was a large, lush park with rolling hills and metal structures that had been part of a gasification plant that closed down in the late fifties. It was now on the National Register of Historic Places and was a popular spot for watching the fireworks on Lake Union. The scent of the lake refreshed her slightly and she found she had enough strength to lift her head and look around. A scorched ring of earth circled a chain-link fence around a collection of rusted tall metal towers. Part of the fence was melted away, providing access to the gasification towers. Jeremy complained bitterly as they climbed metal stairs up three stories of the tallest tower.
“I hate this. I’m not strong enough up here,” he whined.
“You’re not staying,” Katerina said gently. “You’re going to be down on the ground. I don’t need you touching me. Your amulet can send me your power as long as we’re close. Set her down.”
Mara crumpled to the floor on one of the catwalks. They hadn’t gagged her again, thank the Goddess, but her hands were numb from being tied behind her back for hours. She forced deep breaths into her lungs, but even the slightest movement brought shooting pain through her entire body.
Jeremy’s clunky footsteps plodded down the stairs and Mara watched him and the air elemental, Bella, take up a position between the scorched earth and the old fence. Katerina stood over her, arms extended and palms glowing. “I call upon the fire deep in the earth,” she chanted. Flames licked at her fingers, bloomed in her hands, and licked up her arms. She flung the fire towards the ground and the burnt strip lit up. Whether she’d used an accelerant or her element was that strong, Mara didn’t know, but nothing was getting through those flames. The heat rose, battering her body further. She couldn’t even sweat to cool down.
The air in Seattle had turned exceedingly dry in the past few hours. Still, the lake was only a few hundred feet away. Its dull hum whispered to her, like a quiet siren song welcoming her home. It would be easy now. Let go. Stop fighting.
Her eyes rolled back in her head. Death was a welcome respite from this pain and the agony of knowing the man she wanted to love—might love—was about to die.
“Mara!”
Forcing her eyes open, she focused on a blurry form running across the grass. Cade. “No,” she said. He skidded to a halt before the flames.
“I’m here, bitch. Let me see Mara!”
Katerina backed up, putting a few feet between her and Mara. She flicked her hand and the flames parted. Cade leapt through the opening and it closed almost immediately. “Come up, dog. But stop on the top step or I’ll be forced to cook you where you stand.”
Mara shuddered, pain arcing through her skull. Her vision blurred, sharpened, and blurred again as Cade’s footsteps pounded up the metal stairs. One flight. Two. Three. She caught his scent over the smoke and tried not to whimper.
“Mara, honey? Look at me.”
She forced her eyes open again. When did I
close them? Cade looked terrible. Dark circles surrounded his sunken and bloodshot eyes. His tousled hair was stringy. He was barely holding onto a shred of control.
“Say something,” he begged.
“Why?” It was all she could manage. Why had he come? Why had he given himself up? His life was over and she could do nothing to save him.
“I love you.”
She had no tears to shed for the words she’d longed to hear. Nausea roiled through her. Heaves wracked her body but there wasn’t anything left in her stomach. She was so dehydrated, she couldn’t even manage bile.
“Please,” Cade said to Katerina. “I’m dead. I know it. Let me hold her. Give me this one last thing.” He dropped to his knees, bowing his head in submission.
Katerina looked down at the air elemental on the ground. “Bella, any sign of his pack?” Her words were spoken at a normal volume, but the air elemental apparently heard for her own quiet reply floated up moments later.
“Only him.”
Where’s the pack? Goddess, did he come alone? He’s going to die. I’m going to die.
“Very well,” Katerina said. “One minute and then you let her go and walk back to the stairs.”
Cade’s arms came around Mara and he lifted her against his chest. “She’s burning up. Can’t you see how sick she is? Take the charm off. Please.”
“Forty seconds.”
He nuzzled her neck, kissed her cracked and bloody lips. “I’m sorry I didn’t protect you. Everyone’s sorry. They wanted to come. I had to plan to get here by myself. When you get free, they’ll find you. They’ll protect you.”
“They’re not . . . you,” Mara whispered. “I want you. Don’t leave me.”
His fingers threaded through her hair. When his lips brushed her ear, her eyes fluttered closed. “Never.”
The single word sent hope flooding through her. He’d turned her so that his body hid her bound hands from Katerina’s view. The scarf loosened.
“Enough. Put her down and walk away. On your knees on the top step.”
Cade met Mara’s eyes. “I love you, honey.”
He set her down on her side, facing the far end of the park. Movement caught her eye. The pack.
“I’m ready,” he said, shuffling slowly back towards the steps. He took a single step down when shouts echoed from below.
“Wolves!” Bella’s voice boomed, carried on a gust of wind from below.
Katerina screamed, sending a blast of fire directly at Cade’s chest. He sidestepped it easily and the fire hit the catwalk. Metal popped and creaked under the intense heat. Cade backed away. The flames licked along the railing and the grating under his Keds. Melted rubber oozed and the acrid scent made Mara choke and cough. The anger in Katerina’s face frightened her. Another blast of flame landed only a few inches from Cade and he leapt back towards the stairs. He landed with a thud and a shrill screech of metal.
The catwalk shuddered, throwing them all off balance. Cade grabbed for the railing, but the tube of metal was red hot. He screamed and stumbled back as a dull sizzle marked the burning of his hand. His foot missed the top step. It happened so quickly and yet, the seconds seemed to stretch out over an eternity. His legs flew out from under him and he landed ass-first on the stairs, tumbling head over heels. A sickening crack pierced the morning air.
More fire flew towards the ground. Wolves dashed back and forth. A great rumble heralded bits of earth and rock flying towards them and a mini-tornado surrounded the air elemental. Mara struggled out of the scarf that held her wrists and clawed along the metal grating. Fifteen steps loomed, and at the bottom, Cade’s broken body lay in a heap.
“Cade,” she screamed. “No!”
His eyes opened. Pain pinched his face. Mara forced herself to her knees, then her feet. Fire hit her in the backs of her thighs and she stumbled but didn’t fall. The denim burned and her foot slipped, sending her landing on her ass with a thud. She batted at the flames that licked at her legs and slid down the rest of the steps. Another blast of fire and her vision left her, but she fell onto her side, rolled, and crawled the rest of the way. When she reached Cade, she blinked away the darkness. “Cade.”
“I can’t feel my legs,” he panted. “Broke my back.”
“Shift.”
“I can’t,” he said, staring past her to Katerina. The fire elemental alternated between shooting flames at the wolves on the ground and advancing down the stairs towards Mara and Cade.
“You have to.”
Katerina grabbed Mara by the hair, and hauled her to her feet. “You, dear sister, are mine.” She looked down at Cade. “I’m taking her with me to Phoenix. A few months living inside my basement—it’s always over a hundred in there—and she’ll forget all about you.”
Cade growled and tried to reach for Katerina, but he couldn’t lift his torso more than a few inches before falling back down. Katerina shoved Mara down on the stairs and knelt next to her. She rested her hand on Mara’s temple. The scent of burned skin made Mara’s stomach protest. “Say goodbye to your dog.”
The seizure ripped through Mara’s body. Her head hit the metal and her arms flailed. Blood trickled down her neck. This was the end. A peace overtook her, in stark contrast to her body’s movements. She opened her eyes for the final time. Cade would be the last person she saw.
His eyes glowed. So handsome. My wolf. She held onto his eyes, gold flashing in the glacier blue. He shook with anger. His broken body twitched once and his lips curled. Goodbye. Darkness fell around her as her eyes fluttered closed.
“No!” The tortured scream turned into a deep, lupine growl. Fabric ripped. Katerina’s hand fell away and Mara’s body calmed. She gasped for breath and opened her eyes in time to see Cade’s wolf leap for Katerina. She crashed into the hard metal catwalk a few feet away.
Cade growled, his canines glistening in the bright dawn sunlight. Flames licked at his paws and he yelped in pain, but dipped his head and fastened his massive jaws around Katerina’s arm. Bone snapped. Katerina’s whole body flinched and a few tears escaped her eyes.
“You foul mongrel,” she spat through clenched teeth. “You’ll pay for that.”
The wolf flew through the air. The blast of fire sent him all the way to the neighboring catwalk, two feet below and fifteen feet south. He rolled and came up on his feet. His long muzzle waved back and forth, trying to determine his next move.
Mara pushed herself up. “Hide,” she croaked.
The flames gathered in Katerina’s palms grew larger by the second. When they shot across the distance, Cade ran around to the other side of the massive water tower.
Mara had to get away. She staggered down the last few steps to the second story landing, but dizziness overwhelmed her. She fell to her knees and stared down at the melee below.
Three wolves circled Jeremy. Rocks flew towards them, but no one seemed to care. They’d flinch when they were hit, but then advance some more. Liam—it could only be Liam—sprang, and a wave of dirt and grass rolled him away. It had all been a diversion. A smaller brown wolf raced forward and sank her teeth into the young man’s belly. He howled. Blood spurted. Intestines spilled out into his grasping hands and he fell to his knees.
“Jeremy!” Katerina called his name, her hands gripped tightly on the railing. “You fucking dogs. I’m going to kill every last one of you.”
Eleanor walked forward, hands raised, her gray hair billowing behind her. She sent Jeremy’s body flying into the chain-link fence. Bella sent a mini tornado for Eleanor, but the older woman threw up her own charm and laughed. “Foolish girl. I’ve got thirty years on you.”
Bella’s charm fizzled. She screamed in fear and whirled around, taking off for the edge of the park. Liam’s wolf turned to chase after her, but another wolf howled, a high-pitched painful noise that had Liam racing back towards the rest of the pack.
A growl pulled Mara’s focus back to the catwalk. Cade landed a few feet away. Katerina advanced, putting Mara betwee
n them. Cade’s pelt was burned. Blood oozed from his shoulder. One of his ears was scorched, but he stared Katerina down with the intensity of seven months of hatred. Seven months of dreams of her death, dreams of his own freedom.
“I call upon the fire of my mother, the fire of the earth, of my Goddess. I call upon the eternal flames of the molten core of the earth. Die!”
The flames shot out, heading right for Cade.
No.
Mara stood up, right in the path of the fire. Her sister’s eyes widened. The sun at Katerina’s back painted her in a golden halo. Mara’s shirt turned to ash. Her pants and shoes were next. When the flames hit her skin, she expected pain, but there was only nothingness. She was numb. Naked, unable to feel the metal beneath her, the air around her, or the flames that would consume her, she took a step towards her sister. Then another. Another. The high-pitched melody of her element mixed with a deep baritone hum. It was everywhere. Around her. In her. Under and above her.
“No more,” she croaked. Her arms came around Katerina, strength she didn’t know she possessed tightening her grip even as her sister struggled.
The all-consuming fire shrank and settled as a concentrated mass between Mara’s breasts. Katerina started to scream and her amulet glowed brightly. The red glass heated, turned white, and sizzled against Katerina’s skin.
“It’s too hot!” Katerina cried. “Goddess, mother, why?”
The scent of burnt flesh wafted into Mara’s nose. She stared into her sister’s eyes. Those hazel depths became glassy. Pupils dilated. Blood vessels burst. The whites of Katerina’s eyes all but disappeared. “Sister. Please,” she begged.
A Shift in the Water Page 28
