by Rye Brewer
I looked at Sara for the first time since we’d gotten there, really looked at her. She wasn’t crying anymore. She jutted out her chin the way she always did when she was being stubborn. She wouldn’t let Malory see her cry any longer. She would withstand it.
I was glad she could. I wasn’t so sure about myself.
“Are you ready?” Malory asked.
I steeled myself, staring straight ahead. I wouldn’t let her know it bothered me in any way. When she tipped my head back, I looked at the ceiling—well, what I could see of it. It was too far above my head to see anything but blackness. I wondered how far away it was.
Her teeth pierced my skin, and I gritted my own teeth against the cries bubbling up in my throat.
The throat Malory was draining my blood from.
Chapter 13
Jonah
I burst into my penthouse, out of breath with panic. I’d have coursed here, but that would have left me without any energy. I’d have been no good in a fight. Coursing was not to be taken lightly. It left a vampire drained and needing to refill, both energy and blood.
“We have to help her.” I looked around, from one of them to the other.
“Why do I feel as though we’ve already had this conversation?” my sister asked, standing by the fireplace.
I could tell from their body language that I’d interrupted an uncomfortable conversation. About me, most likely. So be it.
“It’s not like that,” I insisted. “I followed them—Anissa and her sister. Werewolves took them.”
“Werewolves?” Scott looked slightly more intrigued.
“Yes. The same ones from Saturday night. I’m sure of it. We have to help them. They took the girls to a cottage in the woods. I know it was a witch’s cottage, I could feel it.”
“You’re relying a lot on your feelings right now, big brother.” The sarcasm in Gage’s reply was heavy, evident. He’d never been so angry with me before.
What had I done to rattle him so much?
“It doesn’t matter what you feel right now,” Philippa advised. “This is dangerous, and what happened to them has nothing to do with you.”
“Nothing to do with me? I can’t believe you would say that.”
“You can’t?” She looked at my brothers, brows raised, like she couldn’t believe what she heard. “Jonah, I love you, but you need to think this through. See it from our point of view. You have no connection to this creature, this Carver. She’s nothing to you. She did nothing for you but lead you into trouble time and again. She almost got you killed, then almost killed you herself. And still, you think you owe her something?”
I sighed when I realized she was right. On the surface, I owed Anissa nothing. I had no reason to put myself in danger for her sake. And yet…
“I can’t let it go. I can’t. Not when I know she could be in serious trouble. What she did, she had to do. She did it for her sister. Wouldn’t one of you do that for me? I would do it for any of you.”
They looked at each other. Even Gage’s face bore a guilty expression. “You see?” I asked. “She can’t be held responsible. She had a job to do—and let me remind you she didn’t do it when she could have. She might have killed me when we escaped the werewolves. She might have killed me after we brought her sister out of that dungeon. She could even have said I killed the guard if she wanted to. She didn’t. Anissa’s not a murderer. She’s a sister, with nobody else in the world but her one sister.”
“All right. You don’t have to overstate yourself,” Philippa muttered.
“I think I do! None of you seem to get it! That girl has everything against her. She needs help. I won’t sit here in this penthouse and try to ignore that I know she’s in trouble.”
None of them made a sound.
I drew a deep breath, a resigned breath. “Fine. Then I’ll go on my own.”
“What?” Philippa flew to me, taking my arms in her hands. “You can’t be serious!”
“Do you think this is a game? Or some sort of, I don’t know, whim? You should know me better than that. I don’t work in half-measures, and I don’t care that way, either. She needs help, and I’ll give it to her. Understand?”
“But it’s not just you,” she insisted. “The day you took over leadership of our clan, it wasn’t about you anymore. It’s about all of us—everyone in this room, everyone living in this building. The Bourkes. Your clan. What happens to us if something happens to you?”
“Nothing will happen to me.”
“Don’t be obtuse, Jonah.” She frowned, her eyes full of sorrow. “You know what might happen. If the creature the girls were taken to is, in fact, a witch, any number of things could happen. A witch can’t be trusted—especially one who has werewolves doing the dirty work for her.”
“I can’t leave her there.” I stared into my sister’s eyes, willing her to understand. “I can’t, and I won’t.”
“What happens if you don’t make it to the League on Friday? You just finished telling us only days ago that you know Marcus wants you away from it. And we know how serious he is—otherwise, why would he send a slayer for you? What happens if you’re not there? We lose everything we’ve worked so hard for, everything you were entrusted with.”
I couldn’t deny the overwhelming conflict building in me at my sister’s words. I still wanted to go to Anissa. I still had to—I couldn’t ignore her any more than I could ignore my duty to my clan. They weighed equally heavy in my chest, and I couldn’t have explained why if I tried for a year. I didn’t know Anissa. She had tried to kill me. But something about her grit, her spunk, her wit made me respect her. The way she had sacrificed again and again for the sister she loved made me like her. Her beauty stirred something in me that hadn’t stirred in a long time—decades, maybe. I’d lost track.
“That’s why I have to be careful when I do,” I explained gently, taking Philippa’s hands in my own. “But I have to go. I just do. I can’t describe what I’m feeling. I wish I could. I want you to understand. Pip, please.”
She sighed one last time, the nickname probably got to her. “I understand. That’s the problem. I do understand.” She turned away from me to look at Scott, then Gage.
“I’m with you,” Scott announced, almost cheerful. He pointed at me.
Gage’s head swiveled in his direction. “You’re what?”
“I said I’m with him,” he replied, sounding resigned but happy. “I won’t let my brother face something like this alone. Besides, it’ll be an adventure. When’s the last time any of us had one of those?”
Philippa smirked. “My adventure days are past, thanks very much. I’ve had my fill and then some.”
He shrugged. “Suit yourself. More fun for us.”
I could hardly believe Scott was coming with me. I’d hoped, but I hadn’t dared imagine. “Thank you.”
He grinned, shrugging.
I turned to Gage, whose expression wasn’t so relaxed or understanding. Not at all.
“And you? Will you come?”
He turned away instead of answering.
I wished I could get through to him, but there wasn’t time.
Scott spoke up, breaking the tension. “I think we should first go and get an idea of what we’re working with. How many are inside? How big is it? What will we have to do to get them out of there?”
I nodded. “Good idea. Let’s go—we don’t have much time.”
I looked at Philippa once more before leaving.
Her face was like a mask. I would have read Gage’s expression, except he had his back turned to me, staring into the fire.
I felt sorry that it had to be that way, but didn’t have the time to worry about it.
Chapter 14
Jonah
“So you really like her, huh?” Scott shot me a teasing smirk.
“Shh.” We made our way through the woods, with me trying to focus on retracing my steps. It had been easy to follow the werewolves, since their scent was so pungent. I coul
d have found them with my eyes closed. But their scent was beginning to fade, so I needed to concentrate on the route I’d taken before.
“There must be an enchantment on it or something, right? Or else we’d be able to find it easier.”
“I know exactly where it is. I only walked around five minutes after finding the shack. It isn’t far.”
“If you say so.”
I rolled my eyes at my brother’s inability just to go along with a command. Still, he was the only one who’d come with me.
“You never answered my question.” Scott was persistent, if nothing else.
“What question?” I looked around. Yes. Forward, toward the direction the sun was slowly sinking in.
“You like her, don’t you?” He hopped over a fallen limb with no difficulty.
“I guess I do,” I admitted. “Is that such a crime?”
“No crime at all,” he said, still grinning. His happy-go-lucky attitude was normally contagious, but not just then. “I think it’s pretty cool that you like her. The girl who tried to kill you and all.”
“She never got close enough to kill me,” I reminded him. “Had she tried, we might have a bigger problem. But she didn’t. Keep it straight, please.”
“Yes, sir.” He gave me a mock salute.
We moved another ten steps, then I stopped, raising my arm to stop him. My fingers landed on his chest, halting his progress.
There it is,” I said.
The clearing. My chest swelled with relief—there was a moment when I wasn’t sure we’d find it. The little cottage sat in the clearing, looking as inviting as something out of an illustration.
“You know,” he whispered, eyes glued, “I don’t often remember things from our human lives. Do you?”
“Not often, no. Why?” I cocked my head at his odd choice of a conversation.
He nodded toward the cottage. “That looks just like what I always imagined the witch from Hansel and Gretel living in. Remember when the nanny would read it to us, and all the other stories?”
I did, vaguely. Our trusting, sweet nanny never thought it strange that our parents always had top-secret business to attend to. She never thought it strange that they were pale-skinned and never ate the food humans eat. If she did think it strange, she never said a word.
“I do remember when we’d circle around her in the nursery and listen to the old stories,” I said. I wondered how long she’d lived. She’d left us when we were at the age where we could care for ourselves. The humans I’d left behind had been easier to forget.
“Doesn’t it look like something out of a book, though?” He shook his head, like he hardly believed it.
“Are you sure you’re going to be able to do this with me?” I asked, frowning, concerned about his concentration on mundane matters.
“Oh, sure, sure. You would think I’d be better with finding out there are certain things that exist outside of books.” He smiled a little, then we continued to close in on the cottage. We finally stopped at a row of thick-trunked oak trees.
“All right. What next?” I appreciated the way he always deferred to me, even when he had ideas of his own.
“There aren’t any guards outside right now,” I observed. “I think we should wait until at least one comes out, then get him alone and ask him the questions we want answers to. I think we could find out what we want if we ask in the right way.” We exchanged looks, and I could tell he knew what I meant. We’d leaned how to control our blood lust over the years. We’d both learned to temper our passions. When we let go and gave into our animal natures, we were fairly fearsome.
And it helped that we both hated werewolves. Most vampires did. In fact, all the vampires I knew did.
We didn’t have to wait long, either. We both picked up the scent almost at the same time, as it drifted to us on the breeze.
“Ah, hell,” Scott whispered. “Why don’t they bathe, at least?”
“It’s not their way. Besides, it works in our favor. It’s like putting a bell on a cat. You can always tell where they are.”
“Good point.” We crouched low when we saw a werewolf, dressed in rags, walking around from behind the cottage. Why they couldn’t bother to dress in anything but rags boggled me, too. Maybe because they would shift and ruin their clothing, anyway. That was the only explanation that made sense.
I snapped a few twigs to get his attention. He turned his head in our direction. I cleared my throat, then rustled the leaves. He was too intrigued to find backup, choosing instead to follow his interest in what was making the noise. Scott and I waited to pounce on him, which we did the moment he was in striking distance.
I asked, recognizing him as one of the beasts who’d held me hostage along with Anissa. “How does it feel when somebody holds you down? How’s this working for you?”
“You?” He barked the word out, recognizing me.
“Yeah, me.” Far more quickly than he could react, I threw him to the ground, pinning him by kneeling on his throat.
Scott knelt beside me, ready to attack at the slightest provocation. I could feel the tension radiating from my brother. He just wanted the excuse to tear into a werewolf, especially one who had threatened me.
The werewolf was gasping for breath, trying to talk.
“Maybe not his neck.” Scott pointed.
I nodded. And moved my knee a bit lower, but ready to slide it over his neck again.
The werewolf coughed and gasped, seeking air. Finally, when he’d gotten enough, he said, “What are you doing here?”
“What’s she doing here?” Scott asked. “The girl, Anissa, and her sister. Why are they here?”
“Why did you take her in the first place?” I asked. “And for whom?”
His face, beneath the hairy scruff he called a beard, became pale. “I can’t tell you.”
“Then we’ll kill you and wait for the next one of your filthy, pathetic excuses for werewolf friends to come out.”
He shook his head. “No. Don’t do that.”
“So tell us what we want to know.” I bared my teeth and let my eyes turn crimson, fighting my vampire nature that wanted to kill and feed. The bloodlust was fierce in me right now.
The werewolf shook his head. “I can’t. She’ll find out, and she’ll kill me.”
“Who will?”
“Malory.”
Scott and I looked at each other. I’d never heard her name before, and from the look on his face, I could tell he hadn’t, either.
“You’re going to die either way,” I said. “Either by her hand later or mine now. Or you can tell us and run. We won’t tell her you told. And you will have time to get far away.”
“Besides,” Scott growled, “something tells me by the time this is all over, more than one of your kind will fall. You could just as easily have been any one of them. See what I mean?”
The werewolf’s eyes were cloudy with confusion.
“Something tells me he didn’t,” I muttered. Then I clarified. “You could always let her think you got killed.”
Understanding sparked somewhere in there. God, these creatures were dense.
“Oh, yes. Do you think she would believe that?”
I didn’t know, and I didn’t care. I nodded firmly nonetheless.
“All right,” he growled. “I’ll tell you what you want to know.”
“Why her? Why did you keep going after her?”
“Can you get off me?” he asked.
I glanced at Scott.
“All right,” he spat. “But if you make a move…” He flexed his fingers, where claws had sprung. “Understood?”
“I get it.”
I wondered why he wouldn’t shift—I knew I would have, if that were a weapon at my disposal. Then it hit me: she’d probably made it so none of his kind could shift while they were near the cottage. Otherwise, they’d be stronger than her.
So we let him up, and he sat against a tree, catching his breath.
I wasn’t on
top of the werewolf anymore, which was a relief—his stench would never leave my clothing and I’d have to burn it in the fireplace when I got home, but at least I could breathe a little more freely without him directly beneath me.
I didn’t have the patience for that—and I wasn’t sure Anissa had the time for it, either.
“So why her?” I asked again. “Why’s she’s so important to this woman you work for?”
“She’s part fae,” the werewolf said.
“She’s what?” Scott and I looked at each other, stunned.
“Malory says so.”
“Who’s this Malory?” I asked.
“She’s a powerful witch,” he said. “I’ve been with her for years. She uses us as her guards, her soldiers. We do things like tracking down the white-haired vampire girl. She wanted the girl because of her blood.”
“Her fae blood?” Scott asked.
“Right. Malory’s part vampire, too. I heard her talking to the vampire girl before. She wants her blood so she’ll be strong, the way the fae are strong.”
“She wants immortality,” I murmured. “Longevity.”
“Sure.” The werewolf looked from me to my brother. “Can I go now? I’ve seen her do terrible, awful things.” His voice and his scent carried fear.
One thought prevailed in me: Anissa was in there. With the witch that did terrible things. I couldn’t stop imagining all the things the witch was putting her through. It was torture. Which was what I was sure Anissa was going through.
“She’s feeding on her. I left when that started. I didn’t want to watch.” He shuddered, as though what we did was disgusting.
I could sense Scott tensing up again. Ordinarily, I would have agreed with him—only the creature Malory had been feeding on was Anissa, and I had a problem with that.
“We have to go in and get her,” I said to Scott.
“You and what army?” the werewolf smarted off.
“It will take that much?” Scott asked.
“Yes, it will.”
“There are that many of you?” I couldn’t imagine that many shifters.