by T. A. White
I raised one hand and squished those features together.
A song started playing and Caroline appeared over my shoulder. “It’s our song.”
I bounced in place. “We should dance!”
“You’re not dancing,” Brax told Caroline.
“Watch me. You’re not the boss of me,” she said, lifting her chin stubbornly.
“Hate to break it to you, sweetheart, but I am,” Brax said in a sardonic voice.
Caroline got a stubborn look on her face as she shook her head emphatically. “Nope. The bookstore’s shopkeeper is my boss. You’re just a bully with fur.”
Brax’s expression turned scandalized at Caroline’s denial. I chortled, unable to contain my amusement at the sight of Caroline giving the alpha hell.
She stalked off before he could stop her, heading for the dance floor.
Brax’s furious eyes came to rest on me. “I blame you for corrupting my wolf.”
I snorted. “That happened way before you came into the picture.”
Brax didn’t respond, stalking off without another word.
“I’ve never seen the alpha look so out of sorts,” Nathan drawled next to us. “If you’re not careful, he may decide to keep you two separated in the future.”
“He can try,” I said, twisting out of Liam’s arms. The action upset my precarious balance, sending me staggering into the bar. I draped myself over it, resting my hot cheek on its cool surface.
“I think I need water,” I groaned. That was still a thing, wasn’t it? I vaguely recalled it being necessary from the nights of drunken revelry back when I was still human.
As if by magic, a glass of water appeared next to my head. I lifted my face off the bar and gave the bartender a hazy smile.
This man was a stranger. Dahlia was at the other end of the bar taking care of customers.
“Thanks,” I told him, grabbing the water and trying to wrap my lips around the straw. It kept evading me, taking several attempts to capture.
Liam gently tugged me away from the bar. “That’s not what you need.”
“How did you even find me?” I asked, my path slightly meandering.
I was drunk. So very, very drunk.
I didn’t even remember the last time I was this drunk. I was definitely going to regret this tomorrow night. Meh. That was tomorrow Aileen’s problem. Tonight’s Aileen was going to embrace the madness and suck all the fun out of the night that she could.
“Nathan couldn’t have followed me.” A thought occurred to me and I jerked out of his grip. I held my arm up between us, outrage on my face. “Are you using your microchip again?”
A while back, Liam had lain his mark on me—unasked for, by the way. An oak tree that was slowly filling in with leaves, roots beginning to appear at the bottom, tangible evidence of the link between us.
I knew he could use it to track me, but I thought it was difficult and something he did rarely.
“You assume I’m here for you,” he said, bending a censorious look on me that turned devilish. “This is just a happy coincidence.”
I stared at him, my eyes narrowed as I sifted through the different possibilities, trying to decipher the level of truth in that statement. The amount of liquor in my system didn’t make that task an easy one.
“Is this part of the reason you asked me to look at you earlier?” I asked.
He gave a small huff. “Ask me again in the morning.”
“Okay, I will,” I said, giving him a small nod for emphasis. Detecting doubt on his face, I widened my eyes. “I will.”
Another song came on, one that made my body sing and begged for me to dance.
“I love this song,” I declared, jerking out of his hold and zigzagging through the bar to where a small dance floor had appeared.
Caroline was already there, dancing with wild abandon, her hair flying and her hips keeping rhythm with the pulsing beat.
It had been years since I danced in public. Occasionally, I turned the music up and danced alone in my apartment.
This was different. So much better in every way. You could feel the electricity in the air, taste the vitality as the crowd came alive, carried by the wave of sound and energy.
I put my hands above my head, rolling my hips in a provocative glide as I joined Caroline, the two of us dancing together as the magic in the air invaded, lending each movement a tantalizing promise.
This was what I’d been missing in my life. I felt alive in a way I hadn’t felt in a long time, the pulse of the crowd around me buoying me up and pulling me in its wake.
I caught sight of Liam watching me, a dark light of promise in his eyes, the shadows wrapping around him in a loving embrace.
Brax joined him, the two of them using lethal glares to scare anyone foolish enough to attempt to join Caroline and me as we danced.
Unconsciously, my dance turned seductive, beckoning him to join me. I needed him, wanted him with a sudden ferocity that stole my breath.
I turned as he glided forward. His hands settled at my hips, pulling them against him as he caught my rhythm, rolling his hips against mine.
“You’re playing a dangerous game,” he whispered in rough voice against my ear.
The sensation sent delicious tingles down my back. Desire rose in delicate waves as I turned against him, letting my chest brush his as I gave him a sultry smile, my fangs peeking out.
“Those are the best kind,” I said, my gaze locked on his lips.
I glanced up at him in invitation, drifting closer, pulled in by his magnetism.
His chest expanded with a deep breath as his eyes turned nearly black with suppressed passion.
Suddenly, I wished we weren’t surround by people, that we were somewhere private and I could indulge in all the thoughts currently running through my head.,
My eyes caught and lingered on the vein in his neck, my fangs tingling. I’d noticed passion for vampires often involved blood in some way. I knew from prior experience just how good he would taste too. The faintest bit of pressure, and the decadent taste of his blood would send me to dizzying heights.
It was a drug I desperately wanted another taste of, even as a voice in the back of my mind warned me of all the reasons I shouldn’t.
I shut the voice off. Tonight was my night. Worry and regret could wait until tomorrow.
I swayed closer, brushing my nose along the side of his neck.
His hand tightened at my waist, squeezing and massaging as he groaned. “I think that’s just about enough of that.”
I ignored him, leaning closer, breathing in the scent of his skin, warm and male and oh so very Liam.
I was up in the air in a dizzying second, his shoulder under my stomach in an instant. I let out a small squawk of surprise.
“We’re leaving,” he said, sounding more composed than I would have guessed he could in that moment.
He took a step and then stopped. “Move.”
I craned my head to see what was happening, but didn’t make it far given the steel band of Liam’s arms wrapped securely around my thighs.
“All here are under my protection. You may not take them unless they wish it,” Dahlia’s voice sounded as cold as winter as it wrapped around us.
“What did you give her?” Liam asked, ignoring the inherent threat in Dahlia’s words.
“Nothing that would cause harm,” Dahlia responded.
“That doesn’t answer my question,” Liam snapped.
“Some fairy tears mixed with blood.” Dahlia’s voice remained calm.
Liam grunted, evidently finding the explanation satisfactory.
He advanced forward again and came to another stop. Again, I tried to see what was happening but settled down when Liam wrapped a warm hand around my upper thigh.
“Careful, djinn, you’re here at our sufferance. Your presence in this place can be revoked,” Liam warned, responding to something I couldn’t see.
Djinn? I lifted myself up and peered at the ever-pres
ent haze of smoke in the room. That made a strange sort of sense.
“Your threats do not change the facts.” Dahlia sounded coolly amused.
“She’s one of mine,” he said.
“Does she know that?” Dahlia asked archly.
Liam didn’t like that response, letting out a soft growl.
With alarm, I saw the black smoke shifting and slithering as it sank down from the ceiling. Visions of what happened to the witches stole through my head.
Before I could think better of it, I lifted my hand bringing it down on Liam’s ass with a loud crack.
The bar went silent, conversation screeching to a halt as I became the focus of several disbelieving pairs of eyes.
Liam went still, his muscles pulling tight under me until they felt like a tightly corded piece of steel.
“Did you just slap my ass?” Liam asked in a deceptively calm voice.
It occurred to me even in my slightly inebriated state that I’d just tap danced onto dangerous ground without concern for my safety or an exit strategy.
I hung there debating the merits of answering.
“Ah, yup,” I finally said in a falsely confident voice.
“I thought so,” he responded. To Dahlia, he said, “We’re done here.”
Then we were moving. As he strode for the door, I lifted my head and gave Dahlia a small wave. Her eyes danced with amusement as she bit her lip to contain her smile.
Glad someone was finding my situation hilarious.
I felt a little more sober as Liam stepped out of the bar, the darkness wrapping around us with cool arms. Now that the full repercussions of my actions were at hand, I was beginning to rethink this whole night.
CHAPTER SIX
The air was cool on my face as I dangled over Liam’s back, my thoughts quiet for the moment. I enjoyed the ride, the steady sway as Liam carried me through the parking lot, Nathan cackling as he trailed us.
I hummed, just enjoying the warm glow I was currently experiencing.
Sound poured outside as the door to the bar opened then slammed shut. Caroline appeared, Brax behind her.
Liam reached one of the ubiquitous black Escalade’s his people always seemed to drive around in. He lowered me to the ground and leaned me against the side.
“Why are all your cars black?” I asked, frowning at the car. “It wouldn’t kill you to add a pop of color every now and then.”
I blinked as Brax and Caroline joined us.
“Did you want a ride?” Liam asked.
“Please,” Brax said.
“Or gray,” I said suddenly. “Gray would be different. Well, most people have gray or silver, but for you lot it would be practically rebellious.”
Liam opened the door and helped me inside.
“I always wanted a car that was candy apple red,” Caroline said.
I nodded at her. “I could totally see you in something like that. I always thought I’d get a car that was burnt orange. Something stylish but fast.”
“You have a car,” Liam said as he slid in beside me.
Nathan got in the driver’s seat. Brax joined him up front.
I blew a raspberry at the vampire by my side. “That’s not a car; it’s a leash with wheels. Besides, it’s pretty much useless when you can’t afford to fill it with gas.”
Liam gave me a thoughtful look, grabbing me when I lunged forward with the intent to turn on the music.
“Stop that,” he ordered.
“It’s boring driving in silence. At least turn on the music,” I whined.
“Yeah,” Caroline echoed.
Nathan’s shoulders shook as Liam gave a long-suffering sigh.
Brax reached forward and flipped the radio on, turning it to a pop rock station. Caroline and I let out twin cheers, dancing along with the music as Nathan turned down a side street, winding his way in the same direction I’d come earlier in the night.
I bounced to the music, watching the neighborhood outside Liam’s window as I wondered why we’d taken this way. We reached a part of the song that I loved and I forgot about my question, belting out the lyrics with Caroline matching me word for word.
We’d just hit the final chorus when there was a whoosh of sound. Glass shattered and the Escalade flipped.
Caroline screamed, a short burst of sound as we went weightless for a stomach-churning moment. Then we hit, the side of the Escalade crunching. We went airborne again, landing on the roof.
Liam grabbed me, his arms hard bands around my chest and waist as he tried to keep me from careening all over the car.
My arm flew up, hitting the roof. Something snapped in the wrist, a brief spot of pain that stole my voice.
Several seconds of terror and confusion later, the Escalade slid to a stop on its roof, the metal screeching in protest.
I lay there stunned, thanking my lucky stars I was a vampire and that Liam was there to keep me from breaking my neck. Had I been human, the crash might have been the end of me.
Caroline flipped herself upright, her eyes flashing amber as her wolf pressed close to the surface. I stilled, remembering when Caroline’s wolf had tried to kill me.
She had a lot more control over her other side now, but while hurt and in pain, there was no telling what the wolf might do.
Caroline reached out and touched my hand, the wolf receding as concern appeared. “Aileen, are you okay?”
“Think so,” I said, wiggling in Liam’s arms. “Liam? You still breathing?”
His eyes flashed open, power giving them a slight glow as he looked me over. For a moment, I froze, painfully aware I was in the presence of an apex predator, one that was as deadly as it was unpredictable.
We remained still, locked together as I waited. He blinked, one hand coming up to run along my back as if to reassure himself I was still in one piece.
“I’m fine thanks to you.” I patted him on the arm even as I winced. I hadn’t lied. He’d protected me from a lot, but I still had several bumps and bruises that were just now making themselves felt.
“What the hell happened?” I asked, pushing out of Liam’s hold. He didn’t relinquish his grip immediately, his hands tightening before sliding away reluctantly.
“I would like to know as well,” he said.
We hadn’t been going that fast, and the way we’d rolled, it hadn’t felt like Nathan had hit a curb.
No, we’d been hit by something. The glass had shattered before we’d started our roll. Whatever it was, I doubted it’d been another car. At least I didn’t think so. There’d been no headlights, no sound to indicate an oncoming car.
“Brax,” Caroline exclaimed, she crawled forward under the seats.
I finally noticed what I should have before. Blood, the scent of it cloying in the small space. The alpha made a high whining sound of pain.
His side of the car was crumpled and bowled inward, like a giant fist had tried punching through the metal.
His head was bloodied and I suspected he also had some kind of laceration on his side or lower body.
“Brax, can you hear me?” Caroline asked, her voice slightly panicked.
“Yes,” he said, his voice tight with pain.
“We need to get out of the car,” Liam said.
I nodded. I had a sneaking suspicion that whatever had done this might figure out they hadn’t completed the job and return while we were vulnerable.
The car groaned and then spun as something rammed it again. A groan of pain came from Brax as his door peeled back. The fingers of a mud-covered hand speared through the metal.
An animalistic growl came from Brax as he swiped a hand turned furry at the fingers.
“Out, out now,” Liam ordered.
Nathan yanked Brax’s seatbelt apart, releasing him from the restriction. Brax’s upper body thunked onto the roof of the car, his leg still caught in the twisted metal under the dash.
Nathan leaned forward, punching the metal several times before reaching in and grabbing a piece, tw
isting it out of the way. It gave under his hand with a screech. Brax’s leg came free. Nathan grabbed him by the shoulder and hauled him out through the driver’s side door as Caroline and I crawled out after Liam.
I spilled onto the asphalt on my hands and knees, skating back as a giant hand the size of an SUV sprouted up from the ground to reach under the car and toss it into the air.
Liam grabbed me by the back of my shirt and hauled me up, dragging me away as the car crashed down. Caroline scrambled after us.
Guess that answered the question of what caused the crash.
We’d crashed near one of the small, hidden ravines that riddled this part of the city. They were an unexpected gem for those who lived here, a remnant of a time when the river hadn’t been quite so stationary, water carving into the rock and leaving a small slice of nature in the middle of Columbus.
Something or someone had taken advantage of that fact, creating whatever this was. It smelled of Earth with the tangy bite of magic. Made from dirt and leaves and twigs, the hand looked like something that belonged in the deepest parts of a forest, one steeped in heavy magic and prone to giving life to odd dirt creatures.
“What is that?” Caroline asked, a touch of horror in her voice.
“It’s a magical construct,” Liam said, his voice distracted as he examined the thing, analyzing it for weaknesses.
“Guess we know for sure the witches are involved,” Nathan said in a sour voice.
Liam made a small sound of agreement.
We were arranged defensively facing the hand, watching to see if it would try anything else since its first attempt had failed. It was odd to be so afraid of an appendage, less so when it was nearly the size of a house. It looked like a giant’s hand, if that giant was submerged under the ground and was trying to claw its way out.
There was a stillness to the night, the insects silent as if they too recognized how unnatural this thing was.
The power animating the hand felt dark and ominous. Its presence skating along the nerves as it whispered of death.
A countless number of green lines the color of plants ran from the hand into the dark surrounding it. They wound around and through it, like a puppet master’s string, controlling each flex of the fingers and swipe of the palm.
