The Tower

by L. A. McGinnis

Gabriella bit her lip. She had to make the call, yet Mir was nowhere around. “Fen, I’m going to have to do a C-section. It’s something Celine and I discussed early on, but I’d hoped…”

  Her rushed explanation was cut off by long fangs and a lupine snarl on the face that leered scarily near to hers. “You are not cutting into my mate with a knife… You will not…”

  And…then she was flattened against Balder’s shirt as he barricaded himself between her and all those long, shiny whites.

  “And you are going to get out of my woman’s face, brother mine. Back off, or I will back you down, do you understand?” A definitely evil growl answered back, and Gabriella braced herself against Balder’s flexing back as Fen shoved them backwards. “Fen, listen to me. Listen to her. Gabbie and Celine discussed this, and it’s time for it to be done. Let Gabriella save the baby. Stop fighting this.”

  Balder shoved back a foot. Two. “Stop fighting me. Don’t be such an idiot, you moron.”

  But it was Celine’s hread, weak, “Fen, cut it out and come sit down” from across the room that finally sent him scrambling away.

  Turning, Balder searched her face before wrapping his arms around her and for once, Gabriella buried herself into him. Let herself—just for a moment—take something from him. Because if she didn’t do everything exactly right…

  Oh, what if she didn’t? What if she failed?

  Balder set her firmly onto her feet, his hands gripping her arms, and stared hard into her face. “Stop doubting yourself, Gabbie, you can do this. You can save them both. I know you’re afraid right now, but you’re the only one with the knowledge to perform this surgery. You’re here for a reason, and I know you can do this.”

  He didn’t let her go, just kept talking, his face set, his eyes steady. “Celine needs you right now, and her best chance is you. Fen and the baby need you. Now get in there and do what needs to be done.”

  And so, she did.

  Twenty minutes later, she laid a huge, screaming baby boy on Celine’s chest, let Fen shakily cut the umbilical cord, then carefully sewed her back up, one layer at a time.

  When everyone was clean and happy and mostly pain free, and the baby was nursing and Fen wasn’t quite so growly, she ducked into the first room she found and wept until she fell asleep.

  27

  Somehow Gabriella woke up in her own bed.

  Well, in Balder’s bed, but close enough. For weeks they’d been sharing this bed. Weeks. And it never felt as intimate as it did right now, with him next to her, his arm thrown over her, his big warm body crushed up against her. Of course, she’d never let him get as close as she had yesterday.

  This is what happened when you let people wiggle into your life with their feelings and their puppy dog eyes. Then the next thing you know, they’re camped up in there, and you can’t pry them out with a crowbar.

  Closing her eyes, she wondered if she really wanted to.

  Which was why when Hunter burst into the room, streaming panic and disaster all over the place, Gabriella was a bit resentful.

  “Balder, Tyr needs you downstairs. Now. It’s bad, get your ass out of bed. Oh hey, Gabriella, great job delivering the baby yesterday.” She waited only a second before continuing, “Balder. Get up, damn it, and get downstairs. We need you.” When the door slammed shut, Balder sighed.

  “I knew it was too good to last.”

  “What?”

  “My dream. I was warm and happy and nobody was waking me up.” He sighed again and tightened his arm around her. She didn’t, for some reason, resist. It was entirely possible she could get used to this. “Or slamming doors. Or yelling.”

  “Well, the dream is over, and unless you want Hunter back in here, you’d better get downstairs. How did I end up in bed, anyhow? Last thing I remember is going in somewhere and putting my head down.”

  “Found you and carried you up here.” She moved under the weight of his arm and realized they were skin to skin. Which was because she was almost naked. “Had to take your clothes off, they were covered in blood…and other stuff.” The words came out in a rough mumble against the pillow. “Sorry, you were out, and I didn’t want to wake you. Figured you needed sleep more than you needed clothes.” The mattress shifted as he got out of bed. Bent over, he pulled a pair of jeans over his spectacular ass while smiling over his shoulder.

  “I borrowed some of Morgane’s stuff for you, it’s on the nightstand. Hope it fits, she promised me it would.” He slipped a shirt on, covering up even more gorgeous acreage while she got tingly. “Gabriella, you did great yesterday. Better than great. Whatever secrets you’re keeping, whatever it is you don’t want to tell me, I want you to know it can’t possibly be as bad as what you think.”

  Hunter yelled up something from downstairs.

  “And I said, I’m coming,” Balder yelled back. “Stay in bed, come down, do whatever you want. This will probably take forever. Tyr will sharpen his knives. Mir will have lists. Freyr will have a million stupid jokes. If I’m back by lunchtime, I’ll be lucky.” His gaze skimmed over her, and she swore his eyes darkened. The tingling intensified dramatically. “If you want to talk when I’m done, I’m ready to talk. As a matter of fact, I’m ready whenever you’re ready. And I’ll wait, Gabbie, until you’re ready too.”

  After he left, she flopped over. She couldn’t give him the truth. Not that. Why, oh why, couldn’t she just be normal? A nice, normal girl from anywhere in the world who lived a nice, bland, normal life? Or anything that might pass for normal.

  The door to the library stayed shut most of the day. And part of the night.

  And when she woke up halfway through the night, wondering where he was, she found him outside the window, staring up into that fathomless sky. She only hesitated a second before she pulled in her clothes and went out to stand beside him.

  For a few minutes, that’s all they did.

  Stood there.

  Had it been normal times, and they’d been normal people, she might have stayed quiet even longer, but shit, nothing was normal. “How bad is it?”

  “It’s bad, Gabbie. Something was spotted in the city, something big. Freyr couldn’t even describe it. And now we’re trying to figure out how to safely move everyone north. How soon can Celine travel?”

  “A couple of days, maybe. It’s the middle of winter, in case you haven’t noticed, and she just had surgery.” She was trying to make light of it, but when Balder spun to her, she knew she’d made a mistake. A grave one. Never had she seen such a look on his face. It was the haunted, desolate look of someone who had no hope and was down to his very last option. Which she realized with a jolt, they probably were. “I’m sorry. I thought…”

  “We need her ready by morning. You, Lilly, Celine, and the baby are in the first truck out of here Pack everything you need. As much as the truck can hold. I’m giving you an address, it’s three hours away in Wisconsin. We have a cabin there, it’s rustic, but it’s stocked with provisions and solar. It’ll hold you through the winter. You’ll go and wait this situation out, do you hear me?”

  Her mind whirling, she nodded, only paying half attention. “Fen? What about Fen?”

  “We need Fen here. Celine requires your medical knowledge, as does the baby. You’re going. The three of you and the baby. All I care about right now is keeping you safe.”

  She balked at the note of command in his voice. “And then what?”

  “And then nothing. You go. We remain here and fight.”

  “I understand getting Celine out of the way. Even Lilly. But if something’s coming, I have a right to know.”

  “Not this, you don’t.”

  “Oh really, and why not?” She stopped. “It’s because I’m a woman, isn’t it? You’re getting the women out of the way, aren’t you? Well, what about Morgane and Hunter and Sydney? Are they leaving too? Or do they get to stay?”

  “Morgane, Syd, and Hunter have skill sets we need. Your skills are best utilized taking care of Celine and the ba
by.”

  She chafed. “Oh, so now I’m no better than a freaking nursemaid?”

  “No, you’re a doctor—at least, that’s what I thought you were?”

  She bit her lip, torn between the truth and a half-lie. “I’m more than a fucking doctor, Balder. I can fight too…when I have to. Please don’t send me away in the middle of the night, like I’m helpless. Too weak to help, too weak to fight, too fucking weak to do anything.” Somehow, all this anger was coming from somewhere outside of herself, rising so fast she was shaking like a leaf. Just the thought of leaving—of being separated from him—was making her panic.

  “You’re going, and that’s the end of it. You are getting in that truck in a few hours, Gabriella, so help me…”

  “So help you what, Balder? What exactly are you going to do if I don’t get in that truck tomorrow?” she asked sweetly, pretty damn sure she was not getting in any fucking truck to any fucking where. He growled, an honest to goodness deep, feral growl that would have made Fenrir turn green with envy, and then?

  He kissed her.

  The part of her that seethed with rage a second ago went perfectly still. While other parts turned to liquid. In fact, she became molten, as if part of her was not connected not to this earth at all—but to Balder—to the graze of his lips against hers, to the warmth of his breath caught in her mouth.

  “Balder, I…”

  He pressed his mouth against hers harder, silencing whatever she was going to say. The denials, the explanations, the words. Words. Words meant nothing against this delicious pressure or the exquisite agony coursing through her. Oh God, it had been so long, and she’d never felt anything this intense—not this fierce need slamming into her, with his thumb caressing her cheek, his other hand crushing her hips against his. Gabriella trembled as he grazed her skin with his teeth, at once sharp and gentle, needy yet tender.

  She couldn’t turn away from him, so she turned into him instead and gave herself over to him.

  “Oh fuck…” Balder’s head snapped up, and in an instant, he curled himself around her. Scanning the dark emptiness beyond the brick wall that enclosed the yard, he shoved her toward the house. “Run. Get inside. Right now.”

  At first, she saw nothing but an endless sprawl of white snow disappearing into the night, but there was something else out here with them. A pulsing, menacing something out there in the dark. Maybe it was her imagination, but she thought she heard raspy breathing.

  “Get in the godsdamned house, Gabriella.”

  “I am not leaving you here alone, Balder.”

  He whipped out a knife so huge she could barely believe he’d had it on him this whole time and she hadn’t noticed. She did, however, move behind him, since she didn’t have a weapon, away from that throbbing presence out there in the dark. “Godsdamn…” Which was the only word Balder got out before the darkness forged itself into something else entirely. Something worse than anything she’d ever seen before. Something with glinting teeth and a whole lot of towering muscle came storming out of the shadows, death on four legs shooting hard and fast, straight for them.

  Dimly, she admired the easy, practiced way Balder balanced his knife, the way he shifted his weight, prepared himself for the impact of the thing when it hit him, full on, head down, like a rhino hitting a wall. Practically felt his bones break as the creature tossed him backwards and the deep, echoing thud as he landed. She heard the last—didn’t see it—because her eyes were fixed on the shaggy monster as it finished its skid, swung its head over, and found her. Tiny, yet intelligent eyes focused and registered her as prey, while as its too-huge jaws hung open, showing those horrendous teeth. She took a slow, careful step to the side, then another.

  Stooped down, she picked up the impossibly heavy knife, hefting the blade in her hand, evaluating the fit of the pommel, settling her weight to her heels, balancing her body in readiness, feeling her calves scream in resistance.

  You wanted to fight—well, Gabriella, here you go. Here’s your big freaking chance.

  The thing quested the air, head raised, and she took the opportunity to inspect its exposed neck. Tendons—arteries, too. Skin looked tough. Thicker than a rhino’s, by the look of it, but within that neck, those folds…not so tough, maybe. She sidestepped to get a better view and considered her options. The house was too far. The snow was too deep, she’d founder in those first few steps, and the thing would take her to the ground. She could still hear Balder breathing. He was alive, so there was that.

  But it was night. No one inside was awake, which meant this thing would kill her and Balder, then go for the house. Once it got in? She did a mental count of how many people were in there. No, she’d finish this out here. The thing’s flexing claws dug in the snow. She gripped the pommel with both hands, wrapping her fingers around the hilt, interlocking her pinkie and thumb.

  Stability. She needed it to charge, and she had to avoid those deadly claws, and she needed stability. All she required was one good, long, deep cut. That was key.

  Its eyes narrowed and dilated, as it decided, and then she braced herself. The thing came fast, so fast she barely avoided the first swipe, and its claws caught her arm, throwing her slightly off balance. Tumbling, she curled and twisted, thrusting upwards while its thick neck passed over her, and drove the knife in. The momentum of the beast dragged her along the ground, where a clawed foot crushed her forearm in its trampling passage, before she was able to yank the knife out, roll over to her stomach, and watch it slide into a scrambling stop fifty feet away.

  “Run, Gabriella, run.” Balder’s breath was coming in short spurts, and she risked a quick glance his way. He was crawling for her. Slow and clumsy, but at least he was moving. As was the beast.

  The huge beast hefted itself to its feet, shaking its head, legs twitching, but the damn thing was up. Maybe she’d missed. Searching the snow, she saw the long, dark streak of blood left behind. She hadn’t missed, but maybe its hide was too thick or it couldn’t be killed by anything as simple as a knife. Climbing back on its feet, she did the same and braced for another charge, tipping the knife up, squaring her stance. This was it, then. When it turned its head to her again, those eyes narrowed completely on her. She kept her voice calm, and her command to the point.

  “Balder. Get to the house. They don’t know, they don’t know what’s happening, and if it gets inside…” She would have said more, but the thing had begun its charge, and she braced herself, feeling every heavy footstep like a thundering heartbeat. And then the creature tumbled into a heap not ten feet away from her.

  Dissolving into tears wasn’t her thing, really, but that’s exactly what she did. When Balder finally crawled to her, she cradled him in her arms and held him like she’d never let him go.

  28

  Following a limping, pissed off Balder into the house, Gabriella knew she’d made a mistake.

  Never mind the fact she’d probably saved both of their lives, never mind the fact that a steaming, leaking hulk of a monster lay dead in the snow behind the house. Never mind any of that. Her secret was out.

  Maybe, she reasoned, she could work this to her advantage. Maybe the truth wouldn’t get out, if she could just…

  “Care to explain what in the holy hell just happened out there?”

  Okay, so that would be a big, fat no. “I’m a doctor, Balder,” she explained calmly, wiping dark blood onto her pants before deciding that, too, was a big mistake. “I wasn’t thinking clearly, I guess. I just picked up the knife and when that thing came at me, I just stabbed at it.”

  Those shrewd eyes of his narrowed dangerously. “You mean to tell me you picked up a knife that was clearly too large for you to wield, balanced yourself perfectly for the creature’s attack, neatly dodged three swipes of its claws before driving said weapon up into its carotid artery, and then rolled the fuck out of the way of its driving hind legs? Then you were up and primed by the time the thing turned?”

  Somehow, he made it sound so much
more impressive than it was. She winced and displayed her shredded left arm. “Clearly, I didn’t dodge all the swipes.”

  The fact that he didn’t immediately come to inspect said injury gave her pause, but not as much as the mocking smile that curved his lips. “Clearly you didn’t. Clearly you miscalculated on several fronts tonight, Gabriella Mendoza.” He waited for a moment while she stood there, stock still.

  “If that’s even your real name.”

  He was bleeding, but when she took a step toward him, he held out a staying hand. Heart sinking, she knew she’d have to come clean. “Who are you?” he demanded, his eyes slightly wild. “And why are you here?”

  “I’m a doctor, just like I…”

  “Stop with the lying,” he roared. “It stops right now. I have lived thousands of years…thousands… And to think I didn’t see straight through you from the beginning… To think I kissed you. Fell for you.” He shook his head. “Tell me the fucking truth about everything, or you can go out in the snow, right beside that monster.”

  Her heart was beating so loudly, she wondered if he could hear her over the thumping. “Okay, I’m not an actual doctor… At least, I don’t have a degree from some fancy university.” And for once, for the first time, maybe, she told the truth, exactly as it stood. “To understand who I am, you must first know who my father was. And for that matter, who my mother was.”

  “Don’t toy with me, Gabriella. The truth—who are you?”

  “My father,” Gabriella continued, as if he hadn’t spoken, “was Manuel Mendoza. An alias. You’re right, I have no idea if Gabriella Mendoza is my real name, but the only other one I ever answered to was Angel, and I won’t ever be called that again. My father was born in the slums of Peru, rose through the ranks of the cartels, and became a killer for hire to the highest bidder. As a result, I grew up here, in Chicago. We came here to work—for the Domenic family.”

  Balder didn’t say a word, though his eyes remained locked on her.