“That was you?” I said startled by the revelation.
“You know about it?” She asked as surprised by my knowledge as I was by the information.
“Yeah. Infact, my Lycan’s and I took that facility from Arnold’s pack. It belongs to me now. I’m kind of a badass.”
“You would have to be in order to take a huge underground facility away from Arnold. Will you help me?”
“I want to, but I need some things from you in return,” I said.
Scarlet looked down at her hands and began fidgeting. “So you want to use us like Arnold is?”
“No, it’ not like that. Look, I don’t want to exploit you, your brother, or your family. I’m fighting a war against an enemy much stronger than me. More than thay, he’s been a part of this world of Lycans and Magic for longer than I’ve been alive. Last month I had no clue this was real. I will help, but I am not demanding anything in return.” I felt a mental nidge from Izzy, but chose to ignore it and keep going.
“I’m asking you to help me find an edge, a way of not being destroyed when Arnold decides he’s tired of me and my antics.”
“So you will help find my brother?” Scarlet asked.
“Yes.”
“And the most it will cost me is some answers, but you would like some help as well. Anything beyond the answers would be voluntary though. Is that right?”
“Yes.”
“I have one more question,” Scarlet said. She leaned forward so our faces were a few inches apart. “Why should I help beyond answering your questions?”
“As a Tuatha, that’s what I am, I have people I am responsible for. If I fail and Arnold wins, they all die or worse. I’m asking for your help so I can provide a future for my pack. I don’t know if you and yours will be enough, but I will take all the help I can get for the sake of the people I care about.”
“I want to believe you. I’ll make a deal with you. Save my brother, take me along, and I will see if you are a man of your word. Prove to me everything you said is true and you will have a family of Hydro Mages on your side.”
“I don’t like this deal one bir,” Izzu thought to me.
“I know this might be a big ask, but please trust me.”
She sent a long mental sigh. “Trust in you, is not the issue. Damn it Gringo, I want to make sure you are doing the right thing for all of us.”
Izzy walked through the door in her shifted form. The razor sharp edges tire her shirt and the remnants of it hung from her tight jeans. Some shell ridges ran down her leg and I hadn’t noticed those before.
“Look at me, Chica,” Izzy said. Her voice was unchanged and the changes to her face were so minor they were barely noticeable.
A wide eyed Scarlet turned her head to do as she was told.
“This form you see is the result of Terry’s power. I am not familiar with the Mage Hunter you speak of, but I have no doubt Terry fits the bill. If you do anything to deceive him, you will have an army of Lycans unlike any you have ever seen knocking on your door. Do I make myself clear?”
“Yes,” Scarlet said in a high squeaky voice.
“Laying it on a little thick, aren’t you?” I sent through our mental link.
“I am simply stating a fact. If Scarlet, or anyone fucks with you, they will feel our wrath.”
More than her words came through with that statement.”You’re not after Lassiter because of the compound under the cemetery, are you?”
“Drop it, Terry.” Izzy looked down to the seated form of Scarlet. ‘I may not be a mage, but I understand the power of a mage’s sworn oath.” Izzy bent over and grabbed Scarlet by her chin. “Without the oath, you don’t walk out of here.”
Scarlet cried out and threw herself back. A wall of ice rise up between her and Izzy. My turtle activated Clubbed Fists and smashed through the ice like it was paper.
Izzy grabbed Scarlet’s short and pulled her close. In a voice that was calm, and dangerous, she continued. “I am not fucking around this is your last chance.” She held up her fist and the armored shell created by Clubbed Fists slid over her hand.
Darkness took us. Izzy stood before me looming over the unexpected form. A thin woman with breasts that looked a little oversized for her frame kneeled before me. Scarlet’s eye swelled with tears and she begged to join us, to help us.
“No!” I shouted with anger radiating off of me. “Not like this. One day when we have earned our mutual respect, I may consider this. For now…”
I sent them both from my mind and continued my sentence in the real. “For now, say the words of your oath. That will be acceptable.”
Scarlet sniffed and fought back her tears. “I, the daughter of magic and wedded to the Hydro, do swear my loyalty to you and your cause.” Her eyes took on a blue glow. “My power is your power.” Her words reverberated through the air. “My life is your life.”
Chapter 13
Izzy drove us back to the and city. While our stake out hadn’t garnered the results we wanted it had given us a new ally. Or maybe just a person we could use as a tool. I hoped she was an ally and not just an instrument.
Scarlet and I were in the back seat. Since she spoke her oath she hadn’t said a word. While she wasn’t crying she didn’t seem like the same person I saw before we took her.
“Are you all right?” I asked.
She shook her head in the negative.
“I’m sorry about the way we treated you. I hope you can understand that we are fighting for our lives. Arnold and whoever he is working with will destroy me and everyone I love and care for. I’m just trying to keep them safe.” I lowered my gaze as guilt reared its ugly head. “I haven’t done a great job so far.”
“I understand,” Scarlet said. I felt Izzy’s interest peak as the newcomer spoke. “I was responsible for keeping my brother safe. I failed him and now I have to save him.”
I took her hand in mine. Scarlet’s head snapped up with a snarl on her face. I removed my hand and held it up in a, I come in peace gesture. “We are going to save him. I will do everything in my power to help.”
An idea hit me then. “Hey Izzy, let’s get some food with Dris and the gang.”
My Turtle acknowledged me then I called Dris and we picked a place. A few minutes later a handful of motorcycles sped by. They slowed and formed a circle around us. They had been close the entire time Izzy and I were back in the city.
For reasons I don’t understand we ate at Denny’s. With the black card in my pocket we could have gone anywhere.
“Why are we here?” I asked.
“The food is edible, and we won’t draw any attention,” Dris said.
The large man sat across from me. Izzy was next to him and Scarlet sat next to me. No one said anything as the waiter walked up with a large tray and a folding stand. Once the food was dolled out and he left, we continued.
“So what do you have in mind, boss?” Dris asked before biting into his burger.
“Scarlet, can you tell us where to find your brother and what we can expect?” I asked.
“I don’t know, but I can use a spell to locate him, kind of.”
“Kind of?” Izzy asked.
“I can use a water spell to show me his location. It points the direction to his water. That’s the best I can do.”
“What about distance?” I asked.
“That’s tricky, but doable. The closer I get the stronger a connection I can feel,” Scarlet said.
“What’s the nature of this connection?” Izzy asked. Her distrust of the woman was a thick wave of apprehension that hit me and made to hard to think straight.
“It’s like sending a ping on a computer to another computer. Justa sort burst to test signal strength. The closer I am the faster the return ping and the stronger it feels. Does that make sense?”
“I get it,” I said. “What do we need for the spell, or whatever?” I asked. Izzy gave me the side eye.
“It just takes a moment to set it up. I can do it here and now
. No flashy stuff, just a glass of water and a toothpick with a dash of magic. It will work like a compass.”
“Let’s do that after we eat,” Dris said. “I don’t want anyone getting ideas about running off before I finished eating.”
No one had a problem giving Dris the time he needed. With the exception of Scarlet, we all suffered from over active metabolisms and need a good amount of food. We quickly ate, ordered seconds, and thirds, then paid and left. Scarlet spent most of the meal gawking at us with her mouth open.
“Where do you put it all?” The mage asked after we left Denny’s.
“We’re Lycans,” Dris said. “Rearranging the body’s structure takes a lot of fuel. So does maintaining the increased strength, speed, stamina, and senses. We could all go back in and put down another plate or three. We learn how to balance eating and living.”
“Should we really be telling this woman so much about us?” Izzy asked as we walked to our rides.
“Terry seems to think she is Okay, that’s good enough for me,” Dris said. “If I can’t trust one of my Alphas, who can I trust?”
“Whateva,” Izzy mumbled before split away to go to the driver’s side of hr sedan.
“Maybe you need to buy her a car to help her loosen up some,” Dris whispered to me.
“I heard that!” Izzy outed before closing her door. Her reaction caused Dris to break out in raucous laughter.
Scarlet sat up front with Izzy. he held a paper cup half filled with water. A toothpick broken in half floated in the cup and pointed to our destination. We traveled north leaving the city. We came t a smaller town named after the large rock sitting on top of a hgh just outside the town next to the interstate, and Scarlet told Izzy to exit.
Looking over the seat I saw the pick turn as we grew closer to the exit. It moved from facing north to east. We came a stop st Scarlet’s insistence and the bikes took up a perimeter guard around the car.
“What now?” I asked.
“Two things,” Scarlet replied. “I need to send another ing, and I want to recalibrate the spell. It’s not necessary, but it helps to strengthen the reading and make it a lot more accurate.”
“How much more?” Izzy asked.
“Um, think of it like a longitude latitude thing. The more numbers you have in the coordinance the loser you get to the destination. My recalibrating is like me getting an update on the address that will give me a bigger set of numbers and narrow down the search area.”
“That’s kinda cool. We ready to go then?” I asked.
“Let’s go. Keep heading east.”
The exit spilled us out on Fifth Street. Our journey west let us see Fifth become Highway Eighty Six. When we came to a small town named Franktown Scarlet spoke up again. “He’s here. Somewhere inthi town. I need to top and recalibrate. I think this will be the last time.”
“There is a gas station,” I said. I could go for some road snacks while she does her thing.”
“Me too, and it will be good to go into this with a full tank.”
I walked with Izzy into the station for our snacks. My Turtle grabbed a bottle of water then stood in front of the isle holding a large variety of chips. Her eyes took on a thousand yard stare as se looked at the selection. I didn’t need to feel her emotions to know something was bothering her.
“What is it?” I asked as I stepped close.
“I don’t like this. It’s bad enough we had to deal with a Necromancer, now we’re playing taxi for a water mage so we can rescue another water mage. Having all those Lycans around was bad enough, this is too much.”
“You’re telling me. Don’t forget that everyday I’m running into something new. Hell, if not for you and the others I would probably be in a looney bn right now thankful to be drugged out of my mind. But I’m sane, or I think I am, and I’m getting stronger every day. Because you are with me. Because all of my pack is with me.”
“We are never alone?” Izzy asked finally taking her eyes of the treats t give me the stink eye.
“Exactly. As corny as it sounds, it’s still true.” I slid my hand into her’s. “You are never alone Detective Rodriguez, not as long as I draw breath. If we run into danger, then know I have your back, just like I can count on you to have mine. I…”
Izzy put her hand on my mouth. “Don’t say you love. I don’t need to hear it. You’ve said enough to make sure I am onboard what the mission.” She snatched a bag of chips off the stand and walked away.
But did I say enough for you to know that I really do love you? I thought.
Scarlet waved to us as soon as we left the store. She looked excited and scared. We rushed over thinking something was wrong. I wonderedif maybe her magi failed and she was going to tell us we were going in the wrong direction from the start.
“I know where he is,” carlet said. “I know exactly where.”
“Don’t leave us in suspense, girl,” Dris said from the other side of the gas pump.
“There.” Scarlet pointed to a building across the street. There sat a one story nondescript building with a sign that read McCleary Building Group. A few cars sat outside and I saw someone walk by a dark tinted window.
“You’re sure?” Izzy asked.
“Yes. He is in there. The needle is pointing there, and my ping says he is real close. Close enough to be there”
“What’s the plan?” Dris asked.
“We should circle the building and move in from the rear,” Izzy said.
“Yeah, yeah, I like it,” Dris replied. “I’ll get the boys to move into position. You ing to take the back door then?” Dris asked.
“Yes, but…” Izzy trailed of looking in my direction. “No,” She said.
“Yup,” I replied. I took Scarlet’s hand and pulled her along causing her to drop the cup. “You guys do all that stuff. I’ll meet you inside,” I shouted back.
“What are you doing?” Scarlet asked in a frantic voice.
“Damn it, Terry! What do you think you are doing?” Izzy thought to me in an unfriendly tone.
“Taking the front door,” I said to Scarlet while sending the thought to Izzy.
“Have a little faith in me,” I sent ot Izzy.
“Fine, but if you get killed, I’m going to fucking cut you.”
“Notted.”
“Should we be doing this?” Scarlet asked. She was resisting, but each step closer to her brother had her putting up les of a fight. When we reached the road she was walking at my pace with no resistance.
“What’s your brother's name?” I asked.
“Oh, I never said. His name is Daryl.”
“We are going to go over and see if Daryl is around.”
“We already know he is,” Scarlet said. “Why can’t we go with the plan they set up?”
“Because I’m the Alpha and I’m tired of slinking around. I’m going in head first to do what needs to be done. If that’ stalking, great. If it’s fighting, that’s fine too. Either way, we leave with Daryl.”
“I understand,” Izzy thought to me.
We reached the door and found it to be open s we let ourselves in. “Welcome to McCleary’s, how may I help you?” Said a pretty short blond behind a desk two feet from the door. Lycan.
“Are you supposed to be here?” A tall man with broad shoulders asked as he stepped not the lobby from a side room. Lycan.
“Yes t you, young lady, and yes to you, sir. I’m looking for a friend, and I was told he may be here,” I said.
Another man came in from the door the first man had. He was the next to speak. “I am sure that your friend isn’t here. Why don’t you go back out the way you came?” He was also tall and broad, but his arms were twice as thick as the first guy. Lycan.
“I’m sure this is the place,” I said. I looked down to Scarlet and she nodded confirming my words. “We are looking for a young man named…”
“Daryl!” arlet shouted as a third man entered. He was shorter than the other two and had a thin build.
&
nbsp; “Scarlet? What are you doing here?” Daryl asked.
“Who is this girl?” The female behind the desk asked.
“It’s my sister Scarlet,” Daryl said.
“The mage?” The woman asked.
“Yeah.”
The three Lycans shifted once Daryl confirmed Scarlet a his mge sister. Scarlet screamed loud enough to drown out the snarls and growled of the wolves.
“We could have done this the easy way,” I asid.
Chapter 14
Putting my arm up I pushed Scarlet back behind me. Then I pulled twenty percent from my pack. I wpuld end this fight quick so Izzy wouldn’t have to help. I needed my turtle to trust my judgement.
As I jumped at the closest wolf I activates shell. Hardened keratin plates spread across my skin an instant before impact.
I completed a superman punch against the female wolf’s jaw. Her head snapped back and her legs gave out. I stumbled over her, my legs getting tangled in her limbs. I landed face first against the biggest wolf’s chest. He swiped at me with massive claws.
Before he could wreck my face I pulled sixty percent. With my pack the size it had become anything over fifty percent activated the slow time effect for a short time. It gave me the edge and I met his wrist with my hand. My fingers closed on his wrist, and I turned sending him flying over my shoulder. The maneuver was executed with brute force, not technique. I really needed to train. How much of a bad ass could I be if I had proper training and and the power of my pack?
The wolf slammed into his buddy. I was on them before they hit the ground. My fingers tangled in the fur on the back of their heads and I slammed them together like a couple of coconuts. A second slam sent them both to sleepy land.
The door opposite the one the brutes used slammed open. A group of hybrid wolves and one very sexy wereturtle hybrid rushed into the room.
Snarls and growls became looks of wonder. “What?” I asked.
“We thought you were in trouble,” Izzy said.
“Turns out these wolves were the ones in need of help,” Dris added.
“Why did you rush off?” Izzy asked. She shifted back grabbing the shirt from her pocket and sliding it over her head.
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