by Patti Larsen
I didn’t do it for you, I sent.
Mean? Totally. So?
I intended to find a small room to use for my base of operations and keep a low profile while I figured out what to do. Didn’t go so well. Within moments, the hotel lobby flooded with witches, all come to stare at the visitor. Most didn’t speak English and, though I did my best to be polite, playing gracious guest wasn’t on my list of things to do at the moment.
Isabelle tucked her cold body next to mine after about twenty minutes of chatter and the beginnings of a tension headache. She spoke to the coven in Ukrainian, translating in my head as she did.
Your welcome is most kind, she sent/said. The Coven Leader is honored to be among you. But she is weary from her travels and must rest.
Nataliya clapped her hands abruptly, eyes wide. Reached for me.
Our forgiveness, most revered, Isabelle translated as the witch spoke. The feast can wait.
My stomach growled. Feast?
Isabelle’s eyes met mine. You’re to be made an honorary coven member, she sent.
How sweet. Just get me out of here, I sent. Weariness settled over me, the despair returning.
Within moments, I was moving up the broad staircase, hand running over the blackened wood of the railing, into the darkness of the upstairs. An ancient elevator carried me the rest of the way to the top floor and a giant suite of rooms. The place felt like a Goth girl’s dream and made me think of Mia. The arching ceiling heights paired with dark walls. A black canopy loomed over the massive four-poster. Deep gray upholstery of the furniture and heavily patterned area rugs and morbid paintings rounded out the Halloween atmosphere.
I firmly turned my back on Nataliya after three curtsies and a few farewells, letting Isabelle handle the woman while Gwendolyn and Finlay stood together, one of his big hands on her shoulder, watching me.
Isabelle turned after closing the door, leaning against it with a sigh. Again, I found it odd vampires, breathless, used such mundane habits despite themselves.
“They are lovely,” she said, a smile lifting her lips. “I’d forgotten the people of my homeland can be so wonderful.”
“Charming.” Sarcasm came easily as I rubbed my temples with my tense fingers. “I take it pinning my ass to the ground was part of the plan?” They had, effectively. Yes, I could ride the veil out of here, but any attempt to leave would be noticed, and fast. And I was positive now that an entire coven kept their power locked on me, if only out of curiosity. Their attention would lure Applegate’s if I stepped out of line.
Gwendolyn’s face fell, whether from guilt or hurt I didn’t know. Or care. “We will return shortly,” she said. “The coven will protect you.” Guard me, she meant. Finlay’s little smirk told me as much. “I promised you we would do everything we could to return Charlotte to you. And we will. You just have to trust us.”
“Frankly?” I was this close to snapping her in half for being such a freaking idiot. “I don’t believe a word you say. Have zero reason.”
Gwendolyn’s lower lip trembled.
I refused to feel sorry for her. Time to slam them face first into the truth about Applegate and see what shook loose. “Your Council Leader is under the thrall of the Brotherhood.” The young witch flinched, but didn’t argue. “And you know it.” Again, she didn’t fight me. Neither did Finlay. “You allow a thralled Leader to dictate your policy and threaten peace between our territories, not to mention the safety of your people.” Gwendolyn rocked with every word, as though I struck her physically, while Finlay’s lip curled into threatening snarl.
“That’s enough,” he growled.
“Not by a long shot,” I snapped back. “But I’m done with this conversation considering the fact you’re both clearly too weak-minded and brainwashed to actually wake the hell up and do anything about it.” I turned my back on them. “You both make me sick.” How could they know and not act? How many of the people in this territory knew and did nothing? I clenched my arms tight around my body, shuddering with the need to smack the both of them. “Get out of my sight.”
I felt them go. Unwound long enough to kick the back of an antique sofa. The wooden frame cracked, the heavy piece flying across the room to slam into the wall.
Didn’t help. Worth a try, though. Maybe breaking a few other things would do the job.
“I have my own investigating to do,” Isabelle said. I spun to face her, startled. Forgot she was there. Her frown of curiosity triggered a memory and broke my fury in half.
“What?” It was only three steps to cross to her side. She shook her head as I came to a stop in front of her.
“The Czar you just met,” she said, “is not the Czar I remember.”
“You left a long time ago,” I said. Hadn’t she?
“I did,” she said. “But Yure Danko has been leader of the Black Souls for most of my life and I have a very good memory.” She ran her hands through her golden hair. “The brilliant sorcerer I knew, the dangerous man, is gone.” She shook her head. “I wasn’t told he’d begun to lose his mind and I’d like to know why.”
“I’ll come with you.” It was clear she had somewhere else to be, likely somewhere I might find answers about Charlotte.
Isabelle stepped away, shaking her head in a tight motion, eyes sparking with white flame. “This I must do alone,” she said. “But I will return, Sydlynn Hayle. With the information we seek.”
She shuddered into shadow and vanished before I could grab her. My lunge as she shifted to darkness sent me through the place she’d been and forward, stumbling into a chair. Where I swore. For a long time, swear words I’d learned from friends, from enemies, on and on in a vile string until I clenched my hands into fists and let out a tight shriek.
Are you finished? My vampire sighed. Really, Sydlynn.
Leave her alone, my demon sent. I have a few more for you to try out, if you want.
I could feel Shaylee blushing. Sighed myself as I turned and sank into the chair I’d almost fallen over, shoulders slumping as I collapsed into the seat.
Sorry. Wasn’t really. But the response was automatic.
So, what now? Shaylee’s voice quivered. We can’t just leave her there.
We’re not, I snapped. Cooled off again. But if Gwendolyn and Finlay can free her…
They would have already, my demon growled.
We wait, my vampire sent, the voice of undead reason. A war between territories will only feed the needs of the Brotherhood. And while we all know Applegate is under their control, if there is a way to defeat her without bringing hardship, we need to take that path.
First Charlotte, I sent. And then we deal with Applegate. This couldn’t go on any longer. Not while witches in Europe knew full well what was happening and no one acted.
Agreed. Three egos hugged me, the family magic rising to swirl around us while the sorcery beneath me shivered with the need to feed.
We’ll give them twenty-four hours, I sent. Then we go get Charlotte and to hell with Applegate.
Murmurs of acceptance. I thudded both fists down on the arms of the chair, so hard I almost missed the knock on my door.
I know I was supposed to be nice and everything, but visiting hours were over, thanks. I strode to the door to banish whoever was behind it, jerking it wide just as a wave of black crashed over me. My alter egos gasped even as the black blossom of my sorcery opened, but too late.
The darkness washed over me as my anger burned, crackling with irritation I’d fallen into a trap.
***
Chapter Fourteen
I came out of the dark as angry as I went in. It felt like swimming to the surface of a boiling lake, freezing cold beneath, flaming hot at the top. My demon practically leaped from my body when we surfaced into consciousness, pulling me upright, amber fire scorching the air around me.
Surrounded, blackness everywhere, the hum of werewolf energy, the pooling dark of sorcery. Yure Danko obviously had more he wanted to say to me.
And I had so much more to tell him. Though I would let my actions speak.
Let's see what a long, painful death did for his sense of godhood.
“Please, wait.” My eyes tried to focus, heart pounding in time with my demon's pants, my vampire's hissing loud in my head even as the ground beneath me rumbled, Shaylee sharing her unhappiness. “We're not your enemies.”
What a load of—
Hang on. No one attacked. In fact, I felt magic retreating. No way would the so-called Czar and his people give me the chance to get my feet under me, to shake the delirium of the black from my head. I staggered upright, the family magic begging to be released even as I smothered it further. If this was a trick, some means to make me use my power and give Applegate a reason to ban me from Europe, I wasn't taking the bait.
Not yet, anyway.
And it wasn't just dark because I was having trouble with my vision. Wherever I now found myself, there was very little light. My reaching hands, searching for support, met flesh, strong fingers, a powerful grip, firm but gentle. His sorcery connected with mine, but that was all. Just a touch to let me know he was there.
I turned, my eyes finding the moon outside a cracked and filthy window, teeth chattering all over again as shock and the cold set in. My demon sniffed around this stranger, not sure if she believed him friend or foe. I almost pushed him away, but the moment I moved to free myself my knees buckled and it was only his arm around my waist keeping me from going down.
“I'm sorry.” His voice was low, a soft British accent not nearly as noticeable as Gwendolyn's adding a lilt to his voice. “We wanted to be sure you didn't give us trouble before we made it out of town. Are you all right?”
My vampire's spirit magic raced through me, burning away the last traces of whatever drug they'd used to knock me out. The flare of sorcery of the initial attack had clearly only been a way to distract me so the drug could take effect. So noted for the future.
Spirit power sizzled in my veins, waking me the rest of the way. I became acutely aware of the way this body felt against mine, the subtle scents of coffee and mint. Even in the low light coming through the windows, I made out his features as he looked down at me.
Damn it, why were all the cute ones so tall? Long blonde hair hung over one of his shoulders, his perfectly arched eyebrows raised over large eyes pale in the moonlight. High cheekbones framed his angled face, mouth a tense line as he gently let me go. I shivered, hugging myself, my wool pea coat no match for the freezing night air.
“You'd better have a damned good explanation for kidnapping me,” I said, letting my demon out to growl while Shaylee shook the ground again. “If I don't hear something I like in five seconds, I'm not taking any prisoners. So start talking.”
My captor shrugged his wide shoulders, floor-length greatcoat reminding me of Kristophe and his stupid wardrobe. Only on this guy, it looked great.
Damn it.
“I'm more than happy to do so,” he said, bowing a little. “But I'm afraid it will have to wait.” He glanced out the window with a tight expression before turning back to me. “We didn't make it nearly as far as I'd hoped before you began to wake.” Was that admiration in his voice? “If we are to steal away to a safe location, we need to leave immediately.”
“And what,” I stiffened, fighting the cold for control, “makes you think,” teeth chattering did nothing for my tough-girl act, “I'm going anywhere with you?”
“Because, Sydlynn,” he said, offering his hand again. “I'm the only person who can help you free Charlotte Girard.”
Someone eased closer, a shadow in the dark. When he turned his face, the moonlight touching familiar features, I sagged into the truth. Raoul looked back at me, misery in his eyes, the former wereguard of the Dumont family—Charlotte's father—looking as upset as I felt.
“I beg you,” he said. “For my daughter, if she was ever your friend, as she claims. Trust these sorcerers. They are her only hope.”
I hadn't seen Raoul since he abandoned me, just after Mom was arrested. Ran like a scared rabbit, leaving his daughter to pick up his slack. So much for werewolf honor. And yet, looking at me with his mix of worry and guilt added a thin layer to my growing trust.
Fine. I'd follow along with sorcerer boy. Until tall, blonde and yummynom proved to be either a liar or a major pain in my backside. The second he proved to be a liability or a threat, I'd be kicking his handsome ass.
Two other sorcerers and a handful of werewolves moved closer, guiding us out the back of the abandoned house and into a waiting truck. The rusted thing looked like the 70s called and wanted their beat-up disaster back. I was hustled into the truck bed with a boost from cutie patootie I really didn’t need. And was he just looking at my ass?
Boys.
Turned out they got me under the cover of the makeshift tarp just in time. Empty-feeling power rolled over me, shielding and disguising me as a pair of blue flame flares burst into view overhead. I held my breath, knew the Enforcers had to be looking for me. Word of my kidnapping wouldn't have made it far past Applegate's awareness. And the idea I was out here, somewhere, unsupervised had to be yanking her chain.
This was the moment. If I wanted to be rescued, get away from Raoul and whatever his sorcerer friends were up to, all I had to do was say the word. Not that they were a threat. I wasn’t getting threatening vibes from scrumptiouspants who hovered next to me, cheek practically pressed to mine as we shared the view. But I wasn’t sure I was really interested in their agenda, aside from my need to get Charlotte back.
The only reason I didn’t cut and run.
Not like me to take the easy route anyway. I held still, waiting, watched the black-robed forms float overhead through the back window and out the windshield of the old truck before the same blue fire flashed and they were gone.
Sorcerer boy grinned at me, winked as he withdrew his protective black shield. Kissed my cold cheek with his warm lips, a little flare of flame waking my skin. “Thank you,” he said. “Now, if you’d like to take the place of honor,” he gestured with exaggerated aplomb at a ratty old car seat tucked in the front corner of the truck bed, “we have places to be.”
Well, since he put it that way.
***
Chapter Fifteen
Someone fired up the engine, the truck coughing once into the night before roaring to life. I heard others doing the same around us as I settled into the sagging seat jerry-rigged to the covered bed of the truck. My companion perched beside me on the curve of metal over the back wheel, thigh pressed to mine, one arm around the back of my seat while Raoul crouched, in perfect balance despite the roughness of the ride, his eyes glowing in wolfish intensity as the beast within him kept him stable.
“You're wondering who we are,” Blondie said as casually as though we sat over a cup of coffee, not bouncing our way down a rutted track through the dark forest in a rattling death trap so loud he had to almost shout to be heard. I peeked out the open back, missing the light of the moon, even as a pair of headlights flared to life right in my eyes from a following vehicle. I looked away, squinting, catching the smile on the young sorcerer's face, the speculation.
The nearness of his lips.
Wanted to smack him for the sultry heat in his grin.
What was it with me and the boys who took me captive? My demon friend, Rameranselot, and I met the same way. And even though I knew we'd never be a couple, he was still smoking hot.
Not going to think that way this time.
Not.
“What gave it away?” Ah, sarcasm. The last refuge of my need for protective irritation.
He laughed, leaned in further, stretching his long legs out in front of him while I huddled and shivered and wished he'd put his arm around me rather than the back of the seat.
For. Warmth.
Sigh.
“My name is Piers Southway,” he said. “And I'm with the Steam Union.”
The—
“About time you guys decided to
pull your hands out of your butts and take action.” Wow, I really hadn't meant to be such a bitch, honest. But all the frustration of dealing not only with Yure but the Brotherhood for all this time without help or a sniff of interest from the so-called good guy sorcerers surged to the surface in a wave of temper catching me off- guard. My demon hit him hard in the chest with a fist of fire while my vampire slammed him back against the side of the truck.
Shaylee wanted to help, but I figured shaking the ground while we were in a moving vehicle in as bad a shape as this one might be a risky idea.
Raoul didn't react to the attack, except to bare his teeth in what looked like a nasty smile. So, I wasn't the only one to think the Steam Union dropped the very large spherical object, was that it?
Piers gasped for a breath, but, to his credit, he didn't fight me. Just kept his gaze level and soft as he fought for air.
“—not—my—fault.” His eyes were beginning to bulge a little.
“Of course it’s not.” I smiled sweetly as my vampire tightened her hold, a waft of smoke rising from his jacket where my demon pinned him still. “It’s never anyone’s fault, is it?” I glanced at the silent, grinning werewolf. “What do you think, Raoul?” I sat back, my anger giving me the warmth I needed to speak without my teeth clacking together. “Buying it?”
More fang, a soft growl, shake of a head.
Yeah. Me either.
I let Piers go anyway, if only to avoid having an unconscious body to deal with. Or a dead one for that matter. Besides, he was right about me wanting answers and, at the moment, he was my only option.
“Okay, sorcerer boy,” I said. “Spill your guts.”
He drew three deep breaths before he could speak. “Trust me,” he said at last, “I've been as eager to act against the Brotherhood as you. In fact, I've been lobbying to offer you aid for almost a year now.”
So he said. The sincerity in his voice, the way he leaned toward me again despite what I just did to him, gave him at least enough credibility I didn't let my demon heave him out the back.