“Good.” From what they’d learned, their enemies had recruited blessed warlocks and witches—those who had active powers, like Daric—into their cause and turned them into mages which proved to be an advantage to them. Mika herself had encountered a mage who could control water and nearly drowned her.
“That means no teleporting either,” Sofia observed. Another thing they’d learned—mages could somehow transport themselves over relatively short distances, but only if there were at least three of them to activate the spell. “But there’s still too many of these guys.”
“Daric went to get help.”
As if on cue, the air around them shimmered, and the warlock himself appeared in front of them as well as about a dozen other Lycans from GI. “We’re here.”
“Take Sofia and the pups,” Mika said, though Daric already had his hands stretched out. As he disappeared with the children, she glanced around. “Crap.”
Four dozen men dressed in combat gear and armed with automatic rifles had surrounded them. But everyone who had arrived had seen their share of skirmishes, and they didn’t need to wait for the signal to attack.
“Fire at will!” someone shouted.
Their enemies raised their weapons, but the Lycans were too fast. A few giant wolves leapt into action, taking as many as they could down as bullets whizzed by. Mika stayed in human form, preferring to fight hand-to-hand, plus, she had to be ready to issue commands if necessary which would have been difficult in her Lycan form.
“Motherfucker!” Pain shot down her left leg as a bullet ripped through her flesh. No matter, it would heal. Rage filled her as she stalked toward the man who still had his weapon pointed at her, and her inner wolf was reaching for the surface. His eyes went wide as she let out a loud growl, and he pulled the trigger again.
She braced for the impact of bullets, shutting her eyes tight as she leapt forward, ready to release her wolf. However, the only impact she felt was a strong, vice-like grip wrap around her stomach and pull back.
“What the—” She opened her mouth wide, trying to suck in the air that had been knocked out of her. When she was able to breathe, she realized everything had gone dark, like someone had turned off all the street lamps, the signs, even the moon and stars. There were silhouettes and forms around her, but it was as if a blanket covered her head. It was strange because as a Lycan, she could see pretty well in the dark. Her hearing, too, was muffled.
“Martinez!” she screamed as she recognized one of her agents. But he just ran past her as he lunged for one of the humans, like he didn’t see or hear her.
What was going on?
Something pulled her back again until she was pressed against something hard. A wall? No, it was warm and—oh, dear Lord, that scent. Damp grass, smoke, and something she couldn’t name, except it was like … pure dark sex.
“Stay still, cher.”
The damned Cajun. Though she wanted to struggle away from him, her body wouldn’t obey. Hands gripped on her arms sent shocks of electricity through them.
“You are not used to the shadows.” His voice was like warm honey, and her knees buckled.
“Th-the shadows?”
“Yes. It’s my … ability.”
Ah yes, Nick told her about this. The power he possessed. “You have the power to go into the shadows?”
She felt the slightest brush of his cheek against hers. “Somethin’ like that. But don’t move too much. I don’t want to lose you in here.”
God, his presence, his voice, the warmth of his muscled body at her back made her want to melt into a puddle. Need clawed at her, and her inner wolf, which had been ready to fight and rip up their enemies just moments ago, suddenly found him very interesting. Its ears were perked up, full attention on him. “What the hell …?”
The meaning of it all hit her so fast, it was as if the wind was knocked out of her for a second time.
Oh no.
No. No.
Despite all the chaos around them, her mind had pieced it all together. How could she ignore it when she’d heard it all her life? The stories of her parents, her grandparents, and the rest of the Lycans in their clan? The electric shock on first touch, the delicious scent that called to them, the way their wolves gravitated toward that one person like an irresistible force? There was only one person in the world who could elicit all that.
A True Mate.
“Are you all right?” he asked.
Was she all right? Goddamn him! “I’m … what the hell is happening? I mean, how come Martinez just blew past me like he didn’t see me?”
“They can’t see us here, in the shadows,” he said. “You’re safe.”
Safe? Right. “I … we need to help.”
“You are injured.” His voice was tight, as if he actually cared.
“And I’ll heal, you know that.” The bullet had gone through her leg, but she could feel the bleeding had stopped. “We need to help.”
“They are fine. The humans are already pulling back.”
Though her eyes strained to see clearly through the dark fog around them, Delacroix was right. Only a handful remained of the human forces, and even then, half of them had been sacrificed so the others could jump into their vans and make a getaway. Unfortunately, their side seemed to have suffered injuries, though no casualties.
“Mika …” His lips were so near the shell of her ear, his breath hot on her skin. Lust crackled between them as if she could see the sparks. When did he plant his hand on her hip? Even through her clothes, the heat from his touch branded her as his fingers ran up the side of her stomach, leaving a trail of fire in its wake. Knuckles brushed below her breasts.
“Let me go,” she whispered. “We should—”
The blanket of darkness over her disappeared as if it had been yanked back. She drew in the cool night air desperately into her lungs, and quickly broke away from Delacroix’s grasp. Perhaps there was also something about being in the shadows with him that had amplified what she was feeling because out here, the pull to him felt dulled. It was still there, just less intense. Ignoring her wolf’s yowling protests, she marched toward the tall figure standing in the middle of the street.
“You all right, Arch?” she asked, wincing as she saw the wound on his arm.
Arch Jones’s unusual violet eyes twinkled as he flashed her a weak smile. “Yeah, it went through. And you?” He glanced down at her bloodied leg.
“Same. Dry cleaning bill’s gonna be a bitch.”
He glanced around at the carnage they had caused. “Same with the cleanup here.”
She gave him a wry smile. “Well, that’s why you’re in charge of making sure the humans don’t suspect a thing.” Arch was not only their best agent, but also a smooth talker and born diplomat. He often liaised with authorities to help keep humans in the dark about their secret. That particular task had been increasingly difficult because of all the skirmishes with the mages, but he’d managed the task brilliantly so far.
“I’ve already given the police commissioner a call. The forgetting potions are ready to be administered to any humans who may have witnessed anything. Daric’s transported the worst of the wounded to medical, and Cliff’s getting everyone rounded up.” He jerked a thumb behind him where Cliff Forrest, the head of their combat division, was kneeling down to check on one of their guys. “Are the pups safe?”
She nodded. “Thank God, yes.” Adrenaline was slowly leaving her body, and exhaustion was creeping in.
He brushed a stray lock of hair from her forehead. “Are you sure you’re okay.”
“Yeah, I—”
A low growl from behind made her freeze. “Shouldn’t you be headed to the doctor, cher?”
The hum of possessiveness in his tone sent a bolt of lust all the way to her core. Summoning up her annoyance, she turned to Delacroix. “I told you, I’m fine.”
His scowl deepened when his gaze flickered to Arch, his lips curled into a half-snarl. “This senseless war …”
&
nbsp; “Senseless?” All feelings of lust dissolved, and she was reminded of his flippancy this morning. Good. It was best to remember what a good-for-nothing slacker he was with no moral compass. “They just tried to take two of our pups. Do you know what would have happened to them? To this clan if they succeeded?”
He reached out to her. “Cher, I—”
She slapped his hands away. “Stop. Just … get away from me.” She couldn’t think, couldn’t breathe when he was around. Her damn body—and wolf—focused on him, only him.
The shrill ring of her cellphone made her sigh in relief. Fishing it from her pocket, she didn’t even bother to check who it was. “Westbrooke.”
“Everyone all right?” came the tense voice of Lucas Anderson, Alpha of New York.
She winced, and Arch raised a brow at her. “Yes, Primul.” Hearing her use the formal title for their Alpha made him step back. “No casualties on our side, but a few of them got away.”
“I want those motherfuckers hunted down. No one gets away with trying to take my mate and son.”
“We’re doing our best, but we need to tend to our injured.”
“Fine. But report to Fenrir as soon as you can. Adrianna and I will be here.”
“Will do.” After slipping her phone back into her pocket, she surveyed the scene before her—the destruction, the dead bodies, the Lycans who had transformed back into their human forms and were in various states of undress, not to mention the curious onlookers were starting to gather.
“Let’s get to work,” she told Arch. “And—” Oh. Delacroix was nowhere to be found. Huh. Figures. It was a good thing he’s gone, she convinced herself. There was so much work to be done, and it was going to be a long night.
“Tell us everything that happened.”
Lucas Anderson sat behind the large desk in his office, seemingly a vision of calmness. But there was no mistaking the power and fury he was trying to contain, his mismatched eyes—one blue, one green—blazed with a fire that could explode at any moment. Beside him, his twin sister, Adrianna, leaned against his chair, her fingers gripping the leather so tightly her knuckles were white. Her eyes too—same as Lucas’s but mirrored—were burning with a quiet rage, her lips pursed tight.
Mika tried to relax in her seat, but it was difficult to say the least. The atmosphere in the room was so tense she could cut it with a knife, the anger from the two Alphas coming off them in waves making it hard to breathe.
Of course, it was understandable. The mages had attempted to kidnap two pups—already considered a grave sin to Lycans as each child was precious—but not just any pups. Alessandro Anderson and Diana Corvinus were also future Alphas to two of the most powerful Lycans in the world, born to True Mates, which meant their blood was potent with power. Previously, the mages had tried to kidnap Adrianna and Lucas, hoping to use their blood in whatever ritual they had planned to take over the world. Had the mages succeeded in their attempt tonight, they would have drained both children until there was not a drop of blood left in their fragile bodies.
Beside her, Daric spoke. “Our source called me and told me about his vision. He said that the mages would come for the pups outside Muccino’s. I immediately located Mika and brought her to the scene, then proceeded to gather more of our men to help.”
Lucas’s gaze turned to her. “Why not get our fighters over there first? They were already in the training room. You could have gotten everyone there quicker and then taken Mika after.”
A tick in Daric’s jaw pulsed. “Our source was specific in his instructions. Take Mika first, and then everyone else.”
She turned her head toward him so quickly that a wave of dizziness passed over her. “Me? Why?”
He shrugged. “I don’t know. Maybe he saw you saving Sofia first.”
“Huh.” Yeah, that must be it. If twenty Lycans showed up, it would have been chaos and maybe no one would have thought to help the Lupa first.
Lucas threaded his fingers together and leaned back in his chair. “And then what happened?”
Mika cleared her throat and then proceeded to tell them about everything that happened the moment she arrived on the scene. “.…we’ve found the vans by the FDR, but it seems to be abandoned.”
“And what do we know about these men?” Adrianna asked.
“The men who came were trained well, just like the others we’ve previously encountered,” Mika explained.
Adrianna’s mismatched eyes flashed with anger. “Hired guns.”
“The best,” she agreed.
Aside from growing their own numbers, the mages also began to supplement their forces with human fighters, who while not possessing any magic or mystical qualities, had modern weapons and were well-trained. Mika and Daric had initially thought the mages found a way to amplify the power of the necklace of Magus Aurelius so they could control the mind of more than one person at a time. However, as they had discovered in the past year, the mages were simply hiring and recruiting from the best private military contractors around the world to build their army the old-fashioned way—with lots of money. Based on the information and analysis Lizzie had dug up, there was a powerful force behind the mages, one with a seemingly inexhaustible amount of wealth.
“And the pups?” Lucas asked. “Why them?”
“They either want their blood or they want to use them to bargain,” Daric said. “Whichever one it is, you know it has something to do with their final plan.”
Adrianna rubbed her temple. “We’ll have to step up security and keep the pups and Sofia at home as much as possible. And maybe Diana and Alessandro shouldn’t be in the same place until we can put a stop to this. It’ll make it more difficult for them to spread their efforts.”
“I didn’t like it when Papa suggested the same thing, but now that I have Alessandro, it makes sense,” Lucas said. “But yes, we’ll have to tighten our security. Sofia won’t like it, but I can’t risk her getting kidnapped. I’ll talk to Astrid and Nick.”
“We’ll have our team work on this as soon as possible.” Mika stood up. “I’m already having the footage from Muccino’s and Petite Louve’s security cameras sent to Lizzie. Daric? Can you give me a lift to HQ? I left my car at the cemetery.”
Lucas frowned. “The ceme—” His face faltered. “Jesus, Mika, I’m sorry. I forgot what today was.”
Adrianna came around toward her, a hand going to her shoulder. “Why don’t you go home? It’s already ten o’clock You should get some rest.”
Despite the tightness in her chest, she managed a shrug. “It’s fine.” She turned her gaze to Daric. “Let’s go.”
There was hesitation in his eyes, but she sent him a silent plea to not question her. “Of course.”
In the blink of an eye, the Alpha’s office disappeared, and they were inside her office at the GI headquarters. With a sigh of relief, she thanked Daric, who only nodded before shimmering away. Walking around to her desk, she booted up her computer and began to type up the events of the evening.
When she first agreed to head the Alpha’s anti-mage task force, she didn’t think paperwork would be part of the job. But it was imperative she get down the details while they were fresh in her head, as any piece of information could be useful later on. Despite the disturbing events that had happened, she had to stay focused and get to the task at hand.
However, when she got to the part where she was shot and Delacroix helped her by taking her into the shadows, her fingers faltered over the keyboard. How was she supposed to relay what happened, not only how to explain how Delacroix’s powers worked, but how she suspected that he might be her True Mate.
Pushing away from the computer, she rose up from her chair. Fatigue seeped into her bones. Maybe I should go home and get some rest. Recharge, get up early, come back here and start afresh.
“Oh, crap.” Her car was still back at the cemetery. She supposed she would have to take one of the GI cars home for now and then have her car picked up tomorrow. Problem solved, she
headed toward the elevators and took one all the way to the garage level. Her mind was so pre-occupied when she stepped out that she collided into someone on the other side.
Damp grass, smoke and—
“You,” she hissed, pushing away desire threatening to bubble over inside her. “What are you doing here?”
Dark eyes blinked at her. “Cleanup is done, just headin’ home, boss.” He cocked his head behind him, where Jacob, Arch, and about a dozen of their guys stood.
Heat bloomed in her cheeks. “Right. Goodnight then.” She sidestepped them, and without looking back headed to the row of cars at the other end of the garage, determined to put as much space between them as she could. However, she didn’t get very far away when a hand wrapping around her wrist prevented her from taking another step. Electricity bolted up her arm.
“Let me go.” When his grip tightened, she turned to face him. “What are you doing?”
“We should talk.” The lazy, devil-may-care smile was gone from his face. Instead, those dark eyes stared back at her with naked desire. “About what happened in—”
“I said. Let. Go!” She yanked her hand away and raced toward the nearest vehicle. The door was barely closed when she punched the ignition button and the engine roared to life, then she put the car into gear and raced out of the garage. Moments later, the car broke through the magical wall that protected the entrance, and she drove as fast as she legally could to The Enclave, a group of buildings on the Upper West Side that the New York clan called home. It was a mini-city, consisting of several apartment buildings where most of the clan lived and protected by many magic spells that made humans ignore it.
She pulled into her spot under her building and cut the engine. Her legs felt like jelly so she didn’t dare move yet. Closing her eyes, she rested her forehead on the wheel.
This wasn’t fair. Joe was the love of her life. No one else could occupy her heart in that way again. That … that crude asshole couldn’t possibly be her True Mate. She couldn’t fall in love with him. If only Joe was still here. Or if only they’d had a baby—
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