by Nina Croft
“My father said she was broken. Perhaps she wanted it all to end. Maybe she’s dead after all.”
Kael’s fists clenched at his side. “No,” he growled. “She wouldn’t kill herself.”
“You can’t know that for sure.” Caleb sighed. “The pack would never speak to me of her, but now Ethan’s dead, I’ll find out what they know. Where she was last seen. It will give us a starting point.”
“I never felt her,” Kael said. He rubbed a hand over his forehead. “Why would I not sense her presence?”
Caleb shrugged. “Maybe she didn’t want you to.”
Kael turned away. He strode to the edge of the clearing and stood staring into the darkness. After a few minutes, the tension drained from him, and he turned back.
“We’ll find her, if she’s alive.” His eyes looked beyond Caleb to where the pack waited. “We want you to join the Council,” he said.
“What? Why?”
“We decided it’s not good to leave the wolves outside the supernatural community. We still don’t know exactly what your father was involved in, but whatever it is we don’t want it to happen again.”
Caleb stared at him, eyes narrowed. “I’ll think about it.”
Kael smiled slightly at the answer. “Good. Now what was going on here tonight?”
Regan stepped forward. Kael’s eyes dropped to her near naked body. She scowled, then whispered a word and was fully dressed in black pants, boots, and a black sweater. She held Kael’s shirt, and she handed it to him; he was too distracting half naked.
She thought for a moment, getting the facts ordered in her mind. “Ethan was working with someone. I think he must have been working with them for a long time, at least before Caleb was born.”
“He was given your sister as payment for his loyalty,” Caleb said.
“So, whoever it is must have some connection with the fire-demons, as we know Kyla was taken by Sorien,” Kael said. “But you don’t have any idea who it could be?”
Caleb turned to Regan, one eyebrow raised. She ignored the look. “No, we don’t know who he was working with.”
“Don’t you?” Caleb asked, and she swung round to stare at him.
The truth was—she couldn’t know for sure, and until she did, she wasn’t saying anything.
She glanced across the clearing at the pyre. A bonfire on Samhain night to call someone from another world. Who would come through if she lit that fire tonight? She looked back to find them all watching her.
“No, I don’t know,” she replied.
Caleb shook his head but didn’t say anything further. Kael looked at her, then shrugged.
“Okay. We’ll head back to the Council and go over everything in detail. We’ll find something.”
Catrin came to stand beside her. “Do you want to know that spell now?”
“What spell?” Regan asked absently.
Catrin sighed loudly; she clearly hadn’t forgiven her yet. “The spell to reverse the werewolf bite.”
Regan glanced up and saw Caleb watching her. “You’re going to reverse the bite?” he asked.
He sounded shocked, and she frowned. “I told you Catrin was looking for a spell.”
Something close to betrayal flickered in his eyes, and a jolt of guilt stabbed her. But she couldn’t think about this now. Caleb turned away, and Regan swallowed down the words to call him back, to apologize for something she hadn’t even done yet. She’d never lied to him about looking for the spell. He knew all along that she had no intention of remaining a wolf. Still, the guilt filled her mind as she watched him walk away toward his pack.
“I take it you don’t want the spell right now,” Catrin said following her gaze.
“Later,” she muttered.
Regan wandered away from Catrin toward the bonfire. She couldn’t shake free of the idea that had planted itself in her brain. She needed to know for certain. How could they fight someone if they had no clue who or what they were fighting?
Glancing down, she spotted Ethan’s lighter where it lay among the pine needles on the forest floor. She bent and picked it up, flicked it on, then off, ran her fingers through the blue flame.
She looked up to find Catrin watching her.
“What are you doing?” she asked.
“I need to know,” she said. “This thing is not going away. If he doesn’t come through tonight, then he’ll find another way.”
“Then let him.”
She shook her head. “Once I know, then I can work out how to fight this thing.”
She looked across the clearing and Caleb caught her eye. He looked from her to the bonfire and then came on over.
“What’s going on?” he asked, coming to stand beside them.
“We’ll never have a better chance to finish this,” she said. “We have a hoard of vampires and a pack of wolves at our back.”
Regan took a step toward the pyre, and Caleb reached out and grabbed her arm. He stared down into her eyes, searched her face, and then nodded.
She flicked on the lighter and touched it to the wood. The flames flared to immediate life.
They both stood back and watched as the fire took hold. Soon, a roaring conflagration reached up to the night sky. The scent of burning resin filled the air, and the heat of the fire warmed her face. For a minute, it appeared as though nothing further would happen. Then, in the heart of the fire, the flames darkened to deep crimson.
They gave out no heat now, and the night grew cold around them. Regan shivered, hugged her arms around herself, and inched closer to Caleb. His arm came around her, and he pulled her back against the warmth of his bare chest.
“Come away,” he whispered in her ear.
But she stood transfixed. As she watched, the crimson turned to midnight blue, darkening until she stared into a pit of blackness. Regan couldn’t look away, her eyes fixed on the shape that slowly materialized out of the flames.
A man on a huge, black horse leapt from the fire, a stream of hounds following, until the clearing appeared full of the wildly baying creatures.
Caleb forced her backward, and the horse tossed its head and pranced beneath its rider, while the pack of hellhounds swarmed about its hooves. The rider raised a hand and they fell silent.
Regan took a deep breath, forced her gaze upward, and her heart stopped beating.
For years, she’d dreamed of him, and in her dreams, he’d looked just like this. Golden skin, glossy black hair that fell to his shoulders, eyes a pale green flecked with gold and pupils slanted like a cat’s. He smiled down at her, and a sharp pain stabbed through her heart.
The horse danced beneath him, but he held it with ease, almost seeming at one with the wild creature.
“Regan,” he murmured, and his rich voice was filled with warmth. Then his eyes narrowed on her before shifting to Caleb, who stood behind her, his arms wrapped around her waist. The smile slid from his face, replaced by a cold, cruel mask of loathing. Regan fought the urge to pull free. Instead, she pressed herself back against Caleb, and as she felt him along the length of her body, a measure of calm returned.
“Sardi,” she said, “I thought you were dead.”
“Obviously not.” He glanced around the clearing, then back at Regan. “Where is Ethan Stone?”
“Now he’s definitely dead,” she replied.
He raised an eyebrow. “You killed him?”
“I did.” Caleb dropped his arm from her waist and stepped forward.
Sardi studied him. “Who are you?”
“Caleb Stone.”
His eyes widened. “You killed your own father.”
Caleb nodded.
“And now you think to steal my woman.”
“I am not your woman,” Regan ground out.
“And are you his? Think about this—you could very well be signing his death warrant.”
“I’m not anybody’s,” she snapped.
“You’ve changed,” he said, a frown playing across his features.
Regan rolled her eyes. “Well it has been two thousand years. Did you think I’d stay the same naïve girl?”
“You were sweet.”
“Well, I’m not sweet any longer.”
“No, I can vouch for that,” Caleb murmured from beside her.
Sardi frowned. His gaze left her and roamed around the clearing, obviously taking in the vampires and the wolves. His hands tightened on the reins, and the horse moved restlessly beneath him. He looked back at Regan.
“I loved you. I still love you. We could be together again as we were meant to be.”
She stared at him in amazement. That he could try and pretend he still possessed feelings for her—if he’d ever had feelings in the first place—was almost beyond comprehension. “You ordered a goddamn werewolf to bite me.”
“I merely wished to ensure that you would listen to me.”
She shook her head. “Well, here I am, and I’m listening. So, what would you like me to do for you this time? Let me guess—open the gates to Hell, perhaps? Same as last time.”
“And why not? What happened before was due to your mother’s interference. I know you would never have acted that way alone.”
“You’re so wrong.” Regan looked around her to give herself some time to think. While she’d been focused on Sardi, the others had moved until the wolves formed a half circle behind her and Caleb. The vampires and other Council members had done the same in front of them, so she, Caleb, and Catrin stood facing Sardi in the center of a circle.
She looked back at Sardi, sitting his horse, and he smiled, a warm, seductive smile, and held out a hand to her. “Come with me, Regan. Remember how we were together, how good it was. It can be that way again.”
At the sight of that smile, something relaxed inside her, a tension she hadn’t even been aware existed. It came to her then—all this time, ever since she’d first suspected that Sardi might be involved—she’d been harboring the secret fear that she was still in love with him. That when she came face to face with him, all the old feelings would resurface.
She was aware Sardi believed she loved him, despite her having tried to destroy him all those years ago. That’s why Ethan warned Caleb that her loyalty might be in question. Besides, she could see it in the cocky confidence Sardi now displayed.
The truth was she felt nothing for him. Not even hatred. She was free.
She looked him in the eye, and his smile faltered. “I’ll never go with you,” she said. “I’ll never do what you ask. I’ll die first.”
The smile slid from his face, replaced by a look of fury.
“No,” Sardi replied. “You won’t die first. Perhaps your wolf will.” He looked around him, his eyes settling on Catrin’s small figure. “And maybe your sister. That would be a fitting punishment for your meddling mother as well. By the way, don’t expect her to be helping you this time.”
The horse lunged forward, straight at Regan. She tensed, her muscles ready to leap away, but at the last moment, someone shoved her hard in the side, and she crashed to the ground. She rolled onto all fours and looked up to see Catrin standing where she’d been just a moment ago.
“Catrin, move,” she screamed.
Caleb leapt toward her, but Regan was between them, and Sardi leaned down, scooped Catrin up, and slung her across his horse’s withers. Drawing a dagger from the sheath at his waist, he held it to Catrin’s throat.
“No one move, or I’ll slice her open.” He turned to Regan, and his lips curved into a malicious smile. “Oh, I think you’ll come to me, Regan. If you want your sister back alive.” He looked down at Catrin. “Say good-bye,” he murmured.
Catrin bit her lip. “I’m sorry, Regan. I just wanted to help.”
Regan opened her mouth to throw out a spell, but Sardi pressed the knife to Catrin’s throat, so a single drop of crimson welled up beneath the blade.
“Don’t,” he said, and the warning was clear.
She closed her lips tight then struggled to her knees. “Sardi—”
But he turned away before she could finish.
Regan had a last brief glimpse of her sister’s wide, staring eyes as the horse swung around. No one moved as it reared up once, and then leaped over the surrounding circle, galloped down the hill into the forest, leaving the sound of Sardi’s mocking laughter echoing in Regan’s ears. The circle broke and the hounds streamed after him. Regan watched in numb silence, hardly able to believe that Catrin was gone.
“Sardi!” she screamed out his name, but the sound was swallowed by the darkness.
Chapter Twenty-one
Regan stared at the gap in the forest where Sardi and Catrin had vanished. The sound of hoofbeats faded, but she could still hear the faint baying of the hounds in the distance. She bit her lip.
How could she have let this happen?
Caleb put his hand on her shoulder and squeezed. “We’ll get her back.”
“Will we? But at what price?” She shook her head. “This is my fault. I was so arrogant, believing I could control the situation. Why did he take her? He could have taken me; I would have gone instead. Why Catrin?”
“To cause you pain.”
Beside them, the bonfire dwindled, and she turned away from the forest to gaze into the glowing embers. “I should never have lit the fire.”
“You did what you thought was right.”
“It wasn’t right,” she said. “But then, I always think I know best.”
“Maybe that’s because most of the time you do.”
“Not this time, and now Catrin is paying for that.” She glanced up as Darius and Kael stepped back into the clearing.
“They’re long gone,” Darius said. He turned to Regan. “So I take it you know this guy?”
She nodded. “I did, a long time ago.”
“And you and he had a thing.”
“A thing?”
“You know, an exchange-of-bodily-fluids thing.”
Regan stared at him, eyes narrowed. “Have I ever mentioned the fact that I dislike you intensely?”
Darius grinned. “Once or twice.”
Kael shook his head. “I suggest we get back to the Council and decide exactly how we’re going to go after this man.”
Something cold and wet pushed against Regan’s hand. She jumped then looked down. Diablo pressed his nose against her. She stroked his huge head as something occurred to her.
“They must have been gifts from Sardi,” she said, looking at the two hellhounds. “I thought they were from my mother, but she would never admit it. Sardi must have sent them.”
“A gift from an old lover,” Darius murmured. “How sweet.”
She opened her mouth to say something then decided—what was the point? She turned to Caleb.
“Are you coming back to the Council?”
“Yes, he is.” Kael answered for him.
Caleb scowled but nodded. “Just give me a few minutes. I need to sort my wolves out, and then we’re out of here.”
Regan glanced around and realized that most of the wolves had returned to their human form. They were pulling on clothes while casting suspicious glances toward the Council. Regan was unsurprised; they’d probably never seen vampires before, and many of those vampires were eying the werewolves with hungry looks. She hoped Darius and Kael could control their people, or this had the potential to descend into a bloodbath.
Kael must have been thinking the same thing. “I take it you’ll travel back with the wolf,” he said, and Regan could tell from his words that he was far from accepting Caleb yet.
She nodded.
“We’ll see you back at the Council then.” He turned and melted into the forest. Darius gave her one last grin and followed him, the rest of the vampires falling in behind until only the wolves remained.
Caleb was talking to a tall woman with shoulder-length blond hair. Regan wandered over.
He turned to her. “This is Sophie. She’s the highest-ranking of the wolves that are left.”
Sophie didn’t look particularly pleased at the introduction. She’d been gazing at Caleb with adoration clear in her eyes. When she turned to Regan, the adoration slipped away, and her cold, blue eyes issued a challenge. Regan sighed. If the woman thought that being the highest-ranking wolf gave her some sort of claim on the new pack leader then she needed to rethink her ideas, and fast. If Sophie laid so much as a finger on Caleb, she’d get it bitten off.
Still, Regan had no wish to turn this into some sort of wolf pissing contest. She so didn’t need that right now. What she needed was to get back to the Council and start the search for Catrin. She stared at Sophie, reached inside herself, allowed wolf to peek out through her eyes and a growl to trickle from her throat. Sophie’s eyes widened, and her gaze dropped away. She took a step back.
Good.
Sophie might be high ranking among Ethan’s pack, but Regan’s wolf was way higher, and they both knew it. Hopefully, Sophie would inform the rest, and this little power play wouldn’t have to be repeated.
Regan forced a smile and held out her hand—who said she couldn’t be gracious when the situation called for it? Sophie took it with a frown of surprise. Then she turned back to Caleb.
“I’ll tell the rest of the pack,” she said. “We’ll see you for the ceremony tomorrow night.” She turned and joined the others, spoke with them briefly, and one by one they slipped away into the night until Regan was standing alone with Caleb.
“Ceremony?” she asked.
“To introduce me to the pack as their new leader. Give anyone who wants to a chance to object.”
“Is that likely?”
He lifted a shoulder. “It doesn’t matter—there’s no one strong enough to be a threat.”
“Good.” She looked at him in the dim light. “Have you slept with her?”
He glanced at her, his eyes widening in surprise. “Who?”
“Your little blond wolf.”
He grinned. “Jealous?”
“Maybe.”
He seemed surprised at her answer, then he shrugged. “I haven’t seen Sophie since I left the pack over twenty years ago.”
The tension drained out of her, and then she realized something. “You didn’t answer the question,” she said, staring at him suspiciously.
