by Elle Thorne
Hawke couldn’t sleep. It was the break of dawn. Everyone had gone to a guest room to crash after being up all night making plans and arrangements.
He was unable to catch any shut-eye. Maybe because he spent that time hibernating. Maybe because his bear was restless. Maybe because he felt like he was in an unsettled place. He padded to the kitchen in bare feet, without a shirt, figuring no one else would be around.
Ilse had been moved to the basement, set up in a cocoon. Fiona and Jonah had made arrangements for someone from the Shifter Council to pick her up and make sure she was delivered to the Witch Court to answer for her actions.
If he never saw her again, he’d be happy. He’d almost be tempted to say if he never saw another witch again, he’d be happy.
But that would be very untrue. He couldn’t push Alannah from his mind. He wanted to know everything about her. Her favorite color. Her favorite animal—he hoped that was a bear. Her favorite position—okay, maybe that was pushing it a bit. He couldn’t help it, though. He had an early morning raging hard-on that wouldn’t quit. The kind you wake up with that hurt so badly, the pain was exquisite and could only be quenched with pleasure.
Stifle it, he urged his bear. And his body. Damn.
This morning was weird for him. Every night since the day Vengeance had become a part of his life, she’d slept in his room.
This night, of all nights, when he’d told her he was going to his room to crash, and invited her to hop onto his shoulder, she’d turned around and cast a line to the kitchen’s ceiling, then ridden that line to a shelf, where she’d backed herself into a corner, facing the basement door.
Maybe she was worried about Ilse getting loose. But that couldn’t be, could it? She’d never done that with any of the other witches that he’d imprisoned in one of her cocoon cages in the basement.
He opened the fridge door and took out the milk jar and downed half of it in a few long swallows. Putting the jar back, he damned near had a stroke.
Fuck.
“What the hell? Where’d you come from?”
Alannah was in a corner, watching him, silently, her green eyes were unfathomable depths that gave nothing away.
Glowing dots on her shoulder meant one thing.
Vengeance.
I get that Ven rode on her shoulder while I was out, but what the hell? First, Ven refuses to come to my room, now she’s hanging out with a witch?
Granted, a very hot witch that he’d like to get to know better, but still, what the hell? Where was the loyalty, Ven?
“I’ve been standing here.”
“The whole time?” Now, he was ready to chastise his bear. First, Ven, now the bear doesn’t even let him know there’s someone else in the room. More disloyalty?
Surely you heard the heartbeat. Surely you felt her presence.
The bear was silent.
Oh, I see how it is. Gang up on Hawke day, is it?
More silence from the bear. And in the corner, lips full, eyes wide, Alannah watched him, also silent, with Vengeance’s glowing eyes on him.
He didn’t need to stick around for this. He knew just the place to go where he had friends. His birds.
He slipped on his shoes and grabbed a flannel shirt hanging nearby.
“I’ll be back in a while.”
“Wait, Hawke.” Alannah’s voice was barely above a whisper.
He froze, hand on the door knob.
Chapter Nineteen
Alannah didn’t know what she’d done to him. It was as if she’d pissed him off, and yet, she couldn’t think of a single wrong she’d inflicted. Didn’t he realize she had nothing to do with this hatred thing he had for witches? Didn’t he realize she had nothing in common with the witches he believed had killed his sister?
All of these thoughts, her complete reaction to his treatment of her did nothing to diminish the flurry of emotions creating a blizzard around her.
When he walked in, no shirt, pants fitting just right, and—God forbid—she’d seen an erection outlined in those jeans, my-oh-my, what an erection that had been. In the darkness, she felt a blush heating her cheeks and fought the urge to turn away. He couldn’t see that, surely. She’d heard of shifters’ sensitive sight and hearing, but her blush wouldn’t be visible, not in this dimness, of that she felt comfortably sure.
Sort of comfortably sure.
Vengeance was moving about on Alannah’s shoulder. Her little feet lifting then dropping, though she wasn’t really changing spots, more like changing positions.
Why so restless, little one, Alannah wondered.
His back was to her at the door, the flannel shirt hiding the muscles she’d seen before. She thought of the other things his shirt hid. A chest that was broad, muscular, and remarkably sparse of hair.
Lickable, as her friends would have said.
Very lickable, Alannah agreed with her own assessment.
And arms, too, nice thick arms that could hold a woman securely.
She bit back the sigh that threatened. What’s the point of being infatuated with a guy that seems to hate your guts right about now? A guy who dislikes you so much, he’s running off into the daybreak.
Still, she owed Vengeance this. Because deep down, Alannah couldn’t shake the idea that Vengeance hadn’t been born a spider. And she wanted to take her with her to New York to have this Desideria take a look at her, maybe even check her to see if she was something else.
He was waiting. She’d asked him to wait. Had done it for Vengeance, though Ven didn’t even know what Alannah was up to.
“What’s up?” He raised a brow and asked when she didn’t immediately tell him why she’d asked him to wait.
“I was hoping to talk to you.”
He shuffled his feet as if unsure what to say. “I’ll be back later, if it can wait.”
She didn’t want to wait. Later, there would be others around. Later she might lose her nerve. Later— “Maybe I could join you?” Did she really just ask him that? She had no clue where he was going or what he would be doing. And he was the witch hunter, after all.
He frowned. “It’s cold out there. And I—”
“Please.”
He didn’t say a word. Took a hoodie off the hook by the door. “Put this on. It’ll keep you warm and protect Vengeance. Since I’m figuring she’s coming along.”
Alannah glanced at the spider. She supposed Vengeance was, she hadn’t really given it much thought, assuming that perhaps the spider would sit on the perch she’d been on when Alannah first walked into the kitchen a couple of hours ago.
She took the hoodie from his hand, careful not to let their fingers touch. Goodness knew, she didn’t need that, not in her heightened state of awareness to his sexiness.
Vengeance leapt from her shoulder to his and Alannah pulled the hoodie over her head, releasing her hair. No sooner had she done that, Ven jumped back onto her shoulder.
Alannah glanced at Hawke to gauge his reaction. His face was immobile. A statue had more emotion than he did. She was going to apologize but realized how silly it would sound. What was she to say?
I’m sorry your spider seems to like me better today.
Yeah, not.
“Ready?” His voice was huskier than a moment ago, and it made an undercurrent run through her that left her weak in the knees.
She felt Vengeance making her way across her shoulder and onto her back, then into the hood as if it was something she regularly did.
She wanted to ask what they were going to do, but never got a chance. Before she knew it, the door was open and he was ushering her outside, closing it behind them with a slight click that wouldn’t disturb anyone inside.
Moments later, they were heading toward a shed on the side of the property, the ground crunching beneath them slightly with the slight snowfall that had graced the fields the night before. The sun was just rising, creating a sparkle in the white snow, making the scenery surreally beautiful. She breathed out in amazement at the beauty before them.
/> “I see why you like it here,” she told him, her breath left light puffs in the cooler temperatures.
He glanced sideways at her as he pulled the door of the shed wide and sat on a four-wheel all terrain type of vehicle.
Where are we going?
She didn’t get to ask, the roar of the engine filled the air. He jumped off and closed the shed door, then resumed his spot on the vehicle and looked at her expectantly. “Well?”
She nodded and climbed on behind him.
With a lurch that made her gasp, he took off. She would’ve wondered if that was on purpose. This was the time for kneejerk reactions and quick reflexes.
She grabbed him, wrapping her arms around him, pulling up close to him, before she could be ditched.
And that was a bit of a mistake. Oh yes, quite the mistake.
Feeling the warmth of his body heat against the front of her, the muscles beneath her fingertips that were flexing and unflexing with every turn.
They flew through paths and trees, darting left and right.
Yes, very definitely not a good thing to be this close to him, but in so many ways, it was just the right thing. It had been a long time since she’d had her hands on a man, and never, ever, a man like this.
The scent of him the wind blew into her nostrils was earthy, sexy, woodsy, mixed with what might have been a hint of cinnamon.
How is a man like this single?
That was her first thought.
Her second thought was: Because he’s a killer of witches and it seems it’d be hard to maintain a relationship when you have to explain that there’s a big ass spider that locks women in magical cages in your basement.
True, that’d be hard to explain.
Outside a large fenced in area, he pulled into a pebble-covered parking lot. She glanced around but there was no signage to indicate where they were. On her back, Vengeance was shuffling, seeming to be digging deeper into the hoodie’s hood.
Hawke jumped off and gave her a hand to dismount.
Maybe he doesn’t hate me as much as I thought.
He pulled a set of keys out and unlocked a padlock on the twelve-foot high gate, matching the height of the fencing that enclosed the area as far as she could see into the wooded area.
“Watch yo—”
A screech interrupted Hawke. A shadow rocketed toward them. Unsure what was happening, Alannah dipped low and covered her head with her hands.
When Hawke laughed, she raised her head. The largest falcon she’d ever seen was perched on his arm. “Is it safe?”
That got another laugh from Hawke. “Jester, meet Alannah.”
The raptor turned his head then angled it, his eyes piercing her.
“Are you sure he doesn’t think I’m breakfast?” She wished she could control the shaking in her voice, but hell, she thought she was going to get scalped, at the very least.
“No. He doesn’t typically attack humans.”
She stepped closer, and felt Vengeance shuffling around in the hood. “Would he hurt your spider?”
“I don’t think Vengeance wants to give him a shot. She always hides in the hood. Though lately, it seems she’s made a new friend in you.”
Alannah grimaced. “Would you believe me if I told you that I used to hate spiders?”
Hawke smiled. “I’d say it was clear from the way you shuddered the first dozen times you saw her.”
“Oh.” Alannah clapped a hand over her mouth, feeling guilty, because what if Ven really was a human or a shifter under that spider skin. “Say, you’re quite the beast whisperer, aren’t you? Spiders and this falcon. Is that why they call you Hawke?”
“No. My surname really is Hawke. My mother was a falcon shifter. A bit ironic, wouldn’t you say. And now, here I am, with falcons.”
“Plural? There are more than one?”
As if to answer that question, another falcon circled around them lazily, soaring and shrieking. “That’s Erethra. She’s ready for Jester to give up his spot so she can visit.”
“Are they friendly? Why do you have them? Are they pets?”
“Pets?” He frowned. “Hardly. They come here when they’re wounded. Just show up. Sometimes not wounded, even. And they stay as long as they want. Until they leave.”
“How many are there? Do they ever leave?”
“A dozen, give or take. Not forever, they don’t. They might vanish, but they usually bring another one back with them.”
“So, they aren’t found hurt in the forest by people and brought to you?”
“I’ve had that happen with one or two, but most of them just show up or are brought by others.”
The bird made a soft sound and cocked his head, appraising Alannah.
“Hi, Jester. You’re a handsome fella, now, aren’t you? Can I touch him?”
Hawke shrugged. “I’d say do it at your own peril. They’ve never attacked a human.”
She put her hand out. Jester brought his hooked wicked-looking beak close, then tilted his head. She ran her finger over the smooth feathers on top.
“Do they ever see any other humans? Other than you, I mean.”
“I have a couple of guys that help me, that way if I miss a visit, the birds get whatever they need.”
“This is incredible.”
“Put your arm out. Here, parallel to mine.”
She did, and swiftly, Jester hopped on over. His talons squeezing but not digging in.
“I’d have thought this would hurt.”
“He seems to get it. They all do. It’s as if they know they could hurt us, and they spare us.” He smiled a crooked sexy smile that made her heart melt.
She tried not to stare at his mouth, but when she looked at his eyes, she felt like she was being sucked into a place she didn’t ever want to leave.
The shadow above moved in a different pattern, and in a split second, Erethra had taken Jester’s spot.
“This is Erethra. She’s the queen of the roost.”
The falcon on his hand shook her feathers, then splayed her wings, flapping majestically.
“See. She agrees.” Hawke smiled at the falcon.
Alannah melted. This man would be way too easy to fall in love with. She needed to get out of Russia quickly.
“What?” he asked.
“Nothing.” She shook her head. As if she’d tell him how damned hard he was to resist.
“Something put that expression on your face.”
Time to switch subjects. “Actually, there was something I wanted to discuss with you.”
She told him about the raids, the scavengers, the transformation spells, and how she had a feeling Vengeance might be one of those who had this done to her.
“You think so?” It looked like he was still trying to process this all. “And you think maybe my sister wasn’t killed?”
Chapter Twenty
Hawke knew hope was a dangerous thing. It could lead him down a path where he’d actually believe there was a chance Renee wasn’t dead.
Fuck.
That would be the end all, be all of his dreams achieved, having his sister alive.
He looked off into the horizon. “It can’t be. It would be so amazing.” He muttered the words and realized he’d said them out loud. He’d have a new focus. He wouldn’t hunt witches. He’d renew and put all his energies into researching that raid, into finding who and where any live captives were taken, into finding who participated in the raid and what information they had.
“Hawke?”
He glanced at the woman who’d come to mean so much to him in such a short time and realized he’d been in his own world and not talking to her. Clearly she’d asked him something.
“Sorry. What?”
“Did you hear what I said about Vengeance?”
“What’s that?”
“About taking her to New York, to see Desideria. To find out if it’s possible that she’s a human or even a shifter, or who knows, maybe a witch.”
That would mean
I wouldn’t have her with me anymore.
Vengeance had been the closest thing to a best friend he’d had all these years.
Then again, it’d be mighty shitty and selfish to keep her prisoner in a spider’s body if that’s not who Vengeance was. He figured Vengeance was a female, though he had no idea what made him think so.
“Yeah, I don’t want to be unfair to Vengeance, but I’d sure like to find out about my sister. Going to the United States would throw that schedule off. Our family was living in Europe when—” He didn’t want to say the words out loud. “—when my family was attacked.”
Ven might prefer to live with her, not me.
Now why did that make him sad? Why was he sad over a hairy legged little—maybe not so little—spider?
“Let’s have Jonah ask Mikhail if Desideria can visit. Then you don’t have to leave.”
“Jester, Erethra, why don’t you two give us a few moments of privacy. Plus, her arm’s probably about numb from holding it up.”
The birds flew away.
Alannah gasped.
“What’s wrong?”
“It’s not normal. What just happened isn’t normal.”
“What do you mean?”
“You just told them to leave. And they did. As if they understood.”
“Maybe you’re right. Maybe I am a beast whisperer.” He laughed at that joke. “Alannah, I have a favor to ask you. You have every right to say no, considering what I put you and your sister through.”
In the rising sun’s rays, her green eyes were iridescent, her hair glinted as if on fire. “What?”
“It would be a lot of help if I had a witch on my side while I’m trying to learn more about the raid on my family, and maybe what might have happened to my sister, if she was taken, or if she died.” Plus, I can’t imagine not having you in my life, daily.
She studied him, and on her shoulder, Vengeance appeared, hiding under the cover of her burnished copper hair, spindly legs twitching as she settled into a comfortable spot near the crook of her neck. “Well—” She took a deep breath. “I mean…”
He regretted asking. He put her in an awkward position. Clearly, she wanted to decline.
“I shouldn’t have asked.” He kicked at the dirt and snow with his shoe. He was such a fool. What made him think she’d want to traipse throughout Europe looking for answers for the guy who kidnapped her and her sister. “I’m sure you have enough to do.”
