Shadowed Valor (Daughters of the Vieux Carré Book 3)

by Rhys Rowlyn

  Leaning against the wall, Bram rubs his chin. “What are we going to do with our criminal once we catch him?”

  “I say we get the location of the girls and then hand him over to the cops. We can make him talk faster, and our methods won’t be as legal.” Normally I wouldn’t even think of doing something like this, but we need to find Tara, and there’s no guarantee the cops will get the job done. I’m not willing to take that chance.

  Bram’s smile turns sinister, and it has me wondering if he’s done this sort of thing in the past. “I like the way you think.”

  “If he doesn’t show up, I’ll call the wolves in, and maybe they can track his scent.”

  We both turn when the garage door opens, and a tall lanky man with shaggy brown hair walks in. Bram grabs him by the neck before he can even whimper, and the man’s eyes dart to the cage.

  “Yes, she’s gone, and now you’re going to tell us where the others are.” I growl in his face, showing a bit of fang.

  The man claws at Bram’s hand, twisting and turning. “My pet! You let my pet out!”

  “Quiet, you piece of dung. Now where are the others?” Bram shakes the man, then pulls him closer until they are nose to nose.

  “I will never tell where my pets are. They’re mine!” The man shakes his head and closes his mouth tightly.

  “The cops will be here shortly. Let’s take him home. We can put him in the basement. It’s soundproof.” I peek out of the garage, checking to see if anyone is around.

  Bram hits the man, knocking him out, and I find a bag to put him in. Thanks to our kidnapper, there is a handy body bag available.

  We leave the garage and use as many back alleys as possible. I’m extremely happy Giselle and I bought houses in such a quiet area of the city. Otherwise, we may have caused some raised eyebrows at carrying a body around. Then again, it is New Orleans, so who knows?

  We walk in through the back door, and Kyle starts bucking and yelling. Fleur and André are sitting at the kitchen table and look up with wide eyes.

  “What are y’all up to?” Fleur pokes the bag but jumps back when the man yells out.

  “We’ve caught the creepy cab driver and found the girl. Isn’t Rebecca here?” I hope she’s not having any trouble compelling the girl and getting her to the cops.

  “Haven’t seen her. So what are you going to do with him?” André grabs the man’s feet to help hold him.

  “Lock him in the basement and make him tell us where the other girls are.” I take out my phone and send a text to Rebecca.

  Me: Everything good?

  She immediately responds.

  Rebecca: All good, on my way home.

  Fleur pushes my phone down, her mouth drawn in a straight line. “What other girls?”

  “He has a collection, and we need to find them.” I open the door to the basement and lead the way down the narrow stairs into the dark, dank room.

  We rarely come down here. It’s where the furnace, water heaters, and air conditioner are located. At one time, we thought to keep the famille down here, but it’s been known to flood, so we scratched the idea. Also, the previous owner did some strange stuff down here, which I know will benefit us today.

  “How are we going to contain him?” Wrinkling her nose, Fleur picks up a dirty piece of cloth with two fingers and flings it to the corner.

  After digging in a box in the corner, I find a chain and metal collar. “How about this?”

  “Why do you have that?” Fleur wrinkles her brow, looking from me to the chain.

  “This was left by the previous owner. I’m not sure, but I think he had some weird fetishes. There are metal hooks located on the wall and ceilings.” I point them out, and Fleur’s mouth drops.

  “Whoa, when did y’all buy this place, and are you sure he wasn’t a criminal?”

  “No, he was dead, so I honestly don’t know what he was up to. We bought it in the early nineteen hundreds.” I shrug, but Fleur is looking at the room as if something may jump out and grab her.

  Bram nods at the chain. “I believe that will work.” He takes the bag off the squirming man, and André holds him as Bram places the collar on his neck.

  I run the chain through a hook in the wall and place a lock through the links. “That should hold him.”

  Fleur stares at the hook and chain, her hands on her hips. “I can’t believe you are so unconcerned by all this. What if there are bodies buried down here?”

  Hugging her shoulders, I laugh. “There weren’t, nor was there blood. We can sense those things. I think it was only a weird sex cave.”

  “Eww, I don’t know what’s worse.” She grimaces, doing a full body shudder.

  Kyle notices Fleur and runs toward her until he reaches the end of his chain and is jerked back. “It’s you. I found you. Why did you run from me before?”

  Fleur steps behind André, glaring at the man. “What do you mean, why did I run from you? What did you think I was going to do, allow you to kidnap me?”

  “But you’re mine! Mine!” Kyle reaches his hands out toward Fleur, pulling against his chain.

  “I think we may need to subdue him, or he’s going to choke himself. Fleur, why don’t you leave…” I find an old chair, and Bram forces Kyle to sit. We wrap ropes around him to hold him in place.

  Bram looks into his eyes deeply. “Tell me where the girls are.”

  Spittle drains out the side of Kyle’s mouth, and he shakes his head vigorously. “No, nooo, you can’t have them. They are mine.”

  “Why didn’t it work?” I glance at Bram, dumbfounded. I’ve never not been able to compel someone.

  “He’s deranged… so his mind must not work like a normal person’s, so compulsion won’t work.” Bram runs his hand through his hair, stepping away from the man.

  I scrub my hands over my face, knowing we’re in for a long night.

  Cassie

  It’s been a week since we captured Kyle Johns, and he’s given us nothing as to the location of the other women. Hollis and a couple of his wolves came by and got his scent but have had no luck in finding his hiding spot.

  Kyle did confirm Tara was one of his “pets,” and when we tried to remind him they would starve if left alone, he assured us they had food and water. I pray he isn’t lying.

  The sisters have been trying to work up a locater spell, but without a personal item from the missing girls, they’re not having any luck. We are learning magic doesn’t work well on someone as dark and deranged as Kyle.

  I’m taking a break from the questioning to work at the club. I have been remiss in my duties lately and have left things up to Giselle. Her and Phillipe are away for the weekend, so I’m making an appearance.

  “Why are things so wild out there?” Bram is sitting across from me, whittling a figurine out of a small block of wood.

  Rolling my eyes, I take my feet off the desk and sit forward. “It’s wolf night.”

  He raises his brows, looking up from his project. “Wolf night? What does that mean?”

  “Every year, we allow the young, unmated wolves to come to town and play for a night. It’s always the new moon after Halloween, which is tonight, and is the reason I didn’t stay home and continue questioning our prisoner.” I rub the back of my neck when I hear something break in the other room.

  Bram laughs, going back to his woodworking. “I take it they’re too wild to come out any other time.”

  “Yeah, they cause too much damage.”

  A large crash has me on my feet and rushing out the door.

  When I reach the main room of the club, I find the mirror behind the bar has been smashed and there are broken bottles everywhere. Four of my guys are trying to subdue one young wolf, who is slinging them around like rag dolls.

  “Stop!” I jump into the fray but suddenly the wolf is yanked away from me.

  Bram has him by the neck and is holding him against the wall. “Don’t touch her,” he growls, shaking the guy.

  “Bram, it�
��s okay. I’m sure Wilder is calmer now.” I grab his arm and pull until he releases the wolf.

  As soon has Bram’s hand falls, Wilder lunges for me, and Bram hits him in the jaw. I cringe at the sound of bone breaking, and the wolf falls to the floor, unconscious. His fellow packmates rush forward, but Bram turns to them with a snarl, and they all back off with their hands raised.

  “Well, that’s one way to calm him down. It’s a good thing wolves’ heads are hard.” I turn toward the packmates and order them to sit. They all find chairs and line them up against the wall, and Wilder moans on the floor.

  “Let me call Hollis to come get them.”

  “Aw, Cassie, can’t we just grab Wilder and go? Why ya gotta call Hollis?” whines one of the pups.

  “Any of you have the money to pay for the damages?” I look at their pale faces. “Yeah, that’s what I thought. Bram, grab troublemaker over there, and we’ll keep him in the office in case he wakes up.” I point at each one of the guys. “You stay here until Hollis arrives.”

  “Boss, you want me to close?” Hank, my head of security, straightens from where he’s leaning against the wall. Hank has a fourth of wolf in him, so he knows about the supernatural in town and is no stranger to wolf night.

  “Definitely.” Shaking my head, I leave the room.

  Bram dumps the boy none too gently onto the sofa in the office. He moans but doesn’t awaken. “I may have hit him harder than I meant to. I lost control when he charged you.”

  “It’s fine. He’ll be all right. He’s usually wild, but he was out of control tonight. I wonder what’s wrong.” I pick up my phone from the desk and text Hollis to come get his pup and bring plenty of cash.

  “Something is going on. I noticed the wolves acting strangely aggressive toward Kyle when they came for his scent.” Bram takes a seat in the chair he vacated earlier.

  “The wolves are very close-knit. If there’s a problem in the pack, they keep it to themselves, and they never ask for help. I’ve been out to their compound once in all the years I’ve lived here and was only there for an hour or so. I heard a rumor something happened years ago between them and some witches. I don’t know the details, only that it was bad.” I have thought about asking Hollis throughout the years but lost my nerve every time.

  After a brief knock, the office door opens. “Cassie, I hear my boy is causing problems.”

  “Come on in, Hollis.” I stand and meet him halfway into the room by shaking his hand. “Hollis, this is my mate, Bram Svenson. He may have hit Wilder harder than he meant to, but he charged me.”

  Hollis’s eyes widen and his face pales. “He charged you? Why, you wait till he wakes up.”

  “It’s fine. We both know if Bram hadn’t taken him out, I would have. Look, he was acting out of control, more so than usual. What is going on?” I ask.

  Running his hands through his hair, Hollis paces the length of the room and back. “Joey is missing.”

  “What? For how long? Why haven’t you said anything? We could have been helping in the search.” I lead him to the chair in front of the desk, then glance at Bram. “Joey is Hollis’s daughter.”

  “Two weeks. She came to town alone and hasn’t been seen since. Her car was found in the parking lot at the riverfront, but there’s been no sign of her. We have been looking everywhere.” Hollis’s shoulders droop, and he scrubs his hands over his face.

  “Do you think our cab driver may have her?”

  “Probably, but I don’t know. That’s why the wolves that came to your house were acting so strangely, and Wilder is getting more out of control the longer she’s gone. I started to cancel tonight but thought maybe it would help if they could blow off some steam. I was wrong.” He reaches in his pocket and pulls out a wad of cash. “Here, this should cover it. I’ll get Wilder, and we’ll go.”

  I push his hand and the cash back toward him. “Don’t worry about the damage. I’ll cover it. You just take him home and let me know if there is anything I can do. If I get any information, you’ll be the first I call. We’re trying everything to get him to talk, but nothing is working.”

  Hollis walks over to Wilder and throws him over his shoulder. “Thanks.” With a grunt, he leaves.

  Hank pokes his head through the door after a few seconds. “Everything is locked up, and the guys are gone. You need anything else?”

  “No. Thanks, Hank.” I wave.

  He closes the door behind him, and I hear him exiting the building.

  Bram sits on the sofa and leans his head back to stare at the ceiling. I walk over and straddle his lap. He lifts his head and raises his brows.

  “I’m sorry if I overstepped tonight, love. But when that young pup went at you, I couldn’t help myself.” He dips his chin, running his fingertips lightly along my thighs.

  Running my fingers through his hair, I brush it away from his face. “You didn’t overstep. I’ve come to the realization mates are supposed to look out for one another, and I think we make a good team. Also, I’ve realized my confidence isn’t so low that I can’t take you protecting me every now and again.”

  “Ah, so you like my overbearing ways.” He grins at me, displaying his dimples.

  Throwing my head back, I laugh. “I don’t know if I’d go that far, but I’ve gotten used to the idea.” I sober and meet his gaze directly. “Bram, I more than like you. I’ve come to love you. You care deeply, and I couldn’t ask for a better mate. Having a mate doesn’t mean giving up my freedom. It means sharing my life with my partner.”

  He pulls me to him and takes my mouth with his in a deep kiss. I grip his shirt and pull it up, and we break apart as I slide it over his head. Then I pull my own off. His eyes widen when he finds out I’m not wearing a bra, and he takes both my breasts in his palms.

  “I love you too, Cassie.” He kisses my neck. “You are my heart.” His lips find my chin. “And I don’t want to live without you by my side.” Taking my lips with his, he moves his hands to my waist and hugs me to him.

  I push off him to remove my boots and jeans, and Bram sits there watching me until I motion for him to get a move on. “Don’t you think you should get naked?”

  He jumps into action and strips in record time. I push him back onto the sofa and straddle him once more. After taking him in my hand, I slide him to my entrance and lower myself onto his hardness. We both moan as he’s buried deep within me. I move my hips slowly up and down, and Bram leans his head back, closing his eyes and letting me take the reins.

  Leaning forward, I whisper in his ear, “I want to bond.”

  His eyes fly open, and he stares at me. “Are you sure?”

  I nod and he cups my face, kissing me as I move my hips faster. Bram grips my waist, releasing my lips. He twirls his tongue on the spot where my shoulder meets my neck, and pleasure rolls through me at the pierce of his fangs.

  Dropping my head to his shoulder I bite into his neck, and the moment his blood hits my system, an orgasm to end all orgasms rolls through me. Bram stiffens below me, and I feel his release deep within. I continue to ride him until we both calm. Then I remove my fangs from him and lick the spot to heal it.

  I fall upon his chest and don’t think I can move… until I feel a stutter in my chest. I sit up. My heart is beating, slowly at first and then it picks up speed.

  Bram’s eyes widen, and he lets out a laugh. “I haven’t felt my own heartbeat in quite some time. I knew it would restart, but it’s still amazing.”

  “Yes it is, and I’m not sure what all this means, but I can hardly wait to see what the future holds for us.” I kiss him lightly and lay my head on his chest to listen to his heartbeat.

  “As long as we’re together, we’ll face whatever comes our way. I love you, astín.” Bram hugs me to him and kisses the top of my head, and I know he’s right.

  Together we can face anything.

  Also by Rhys Rowlyn

  Daughters of the Vieux Carré

  Shadowed Awakening

 
Shadowed Allure

  Shadowed Secret (Coming Soon!)

  The Forgotten Ones Saga

  The Forgotten Curse

  About Rhys Rowlyn

  By day Rhys is helping people as a nurse and during the night she’s creating characters and other worlds.

  Throughout the years she has honed her wicked sense of humor and mastered sarcasm down to a fine art. She has always had an avid imagination and now she’s putting it to good use.

  Rhys was told over and over she should write a book and she finally took the plunge, turning her stories into books. She loves creating complex characters and other worlds for others to enjoy. Her perfect day is sitting at her computer, spinning her worlds into words.

  When Rhys isn’t writing she’s spending time with her family or sitting on the beach with a book in one hand and a frozen drink in the other.