Paranormal Magic (Shades of Prey Book 1)

by Margo Bond Collins

  Annie had barely enough time to turn her head before a claw came down on her face, slamming her so hard into the bedside table that blackness immediately filled her vision. As she lost consciousness, she could hear Huck yelling for her.

  Awww, poor little Beta, a familiar voice said. It was David. Someone had set him free. It’ll all be over soon.

  Annie’s last thoughts were disbelief at how quickly it had all happened. They were just talking about releasing David and Julia, and now, five minutes later, he was standing there. Was it a trap?

  Then the blackness overtook her.

  CHAPTER 10

  Something was wrong. Gemma could smell it in the air.

  “Adam?” she asked. She looked over at his white face and he nodded. He could sense it too.

  They were lounging in one of Carmichael’s private suites, Adam sitting on the sofa with Gemma’s head in his lap. His hand kept trailing absently up and down her belly. After keeping an eye on Bradley and Huck yesterday, Gemma had spent the rest of that day with her mate. She had told him her pregnancy news, and they had celebrated with a romantic dinner and in other ways later that night. Adam wanted to get married right away and they had discussed ideas of places where they could elope.

  It had been nice, and she didn’t think that anything could go wrong. Not yet. She had thought that Annie and the others would have a few more days of respite while they figured out what to do with David and Julia. Lord knew she and the boy needed it. Gemma had never seen such a tired-looking young woman.

  Gemma got up and was about to go to the door when Mark threw it open. He looked as scared as she felt.

  “I got a call from Huck!” he exclaimed. He took out his phone and replayed the message Huck had left him. When it ended, Mark frowned and had a look of helplessness on his features. “I tried calling back, but they’re not picking up.”

  “What?” Gemma asked.

  She pushed past him and out into the hallway where she found Carmichael huffing as he stormed towards them.

  “What the hell happened?” she demanded. “I thought they were supposed to be safe!”

  Carmichael shook his head. “We was betrayed,” he said. “I jest got news that David 'n Julia ’scaped.”

  “Gavin?” Adam snarled next to her.

  Carmichael nodded sagely.

  Gemma cursed inwardly. Adam had flagged the Houston wolf as a potential threat to Bradley. Gemma, though, didn’t believe that Gavin would turn against them on Carmichael’s territory. Then again, she couldn’t believe that people were willing to kill a boy to gain power as pack leader. Even beyond the fact that Bradley’s life was at stake, if someone stooped that low to gain power, were they really good for the pack?

  “Was it just wolves from the Houston pack?” she demanded. “Or were our own wolves in on this as well?”

  Carmichael gestured helplessly. “It could be any ‘o them.”

  “Get your best trackers,” Gemma commanded him as she started storming down the hallway. She was furious with everyone, herself included. How could she have been so blind? “If that boy dies, it’s all on our heads.”

  “Gemma!” Adam called after her.

  “They trusted us, Adam,” she said, whirling on him. “And I’m not going to let them down.”

  He put a hand on her shoulder to steady her. “We’ll find them.”

  “I’ve got me best trackers on it,” Carmichael called after her, and while he was trying to sound soothing, his own fear edged into his voice. “We’ll find ’em, Gemma.”

  No one voiced her biggest fear: If we’re not too late.

  ***

  Someone was slapping Annie awake. She groaned and lolled her head to the side. She had a splitting headache and her entire body hurt like she had been put through a giant juicer. Someone was saying her name. Her jaw felt like it had been dislocated and put back together. She gingerly worked at her jaw, wincing in pain. She tried putting her hands on her face, but found that they were bound behind her, as were her feet. The person slapped her again, this time even harder.

  “Rise and shine, Sleeping Ginger. We have a score to settle.”

  Julia.

  Through the pain in her jaw, Annie gritted her teeth and growled at the other wolf, who still smelled like a Gamma. So David hadn’t upgraded her again. Annie took some form of pleasure from that—it must hurt Julia’s pride that she was now a lower rank than Annie. Even before all of this, Julia and Annie hadn’t gotten along.

  “Marital problems, Julia?”

  The Gamma wolf responded by decking her again. Annie cried out as Julia’s fist hit her tender jaw, probably dislocating it again. She had to fight speckles of black from her vision.

  “Oh, don’t pass out again, Annie,” Julia said. “Otherwise you’ll miss the big event. And my David is so ready to become pack leader,” she sneered. “As am I.”

  Annie managed to laugh. “You realize that he has left you as a Gamma for a reason, right, Julia? You’ve failed him. And once he’s pack leader, do you really think that he’ll want to be associated with his failure of a mate? I think you’re Gamma for life. However much longer that will be.”

  Fear passed across Julia’s face. Annie momentarily felt pity for the wolf—it was not altogether an uncommon occurrence between mates that if one lost rank, the other would refuse to be that one’s mate. And since werewolves mated for life, well usually shortly afterward some sort of calamity would happen to the fallen mate.

  “Sorry,” Annie muttered, although she didn’t know why exactly. After all, Julia was the one who had tied her up. Still, she couldn’t help but feel bad for the Gamma wolf. Time was as short for her as it was for Annie.

  Annie’s ears pricked up to the sound of someone crying—she searched with her good eye to take in their surroundings. They were in the middle of nowhere. It was nighttime, although how late, Annie didn’t know. Without a moon, it was as black as pitch out on the plain, but she could still see clear enough.

  Before her was some sort of caged-in area that appeared as if it might be meant for a fight. A faded sign indicated that it had once been county fair carnival in a small town in Louisiana. It was both a ridiculous set up and a theatrical one. They were far from prying human eyes, which made it the perfect venue for an all-out brawl.

  In the middle of the caged ring under a huge spotlight, Bradley sat, wide-eyed. His arms and legs were bound. He was watching Annie, as pallid as death from terror, but he didn’t say a word. He only cried.

  Annie’s heart leapt into her throat. She didn’t know what she could do—what they could do about the situation. Yelling out to Bradley would only make it worse. She tried pleading him with her eyes to not say anything, although it was hard when only one worked. She didn’t even know if Bradley could see her beyond the spotlights around him.

  “David always had a flair for theatrics,” Julia murmured thoughtfully. “I suppose it’s fitting.” Her fear was gone, replaced by bravado. “You’re about to see history in the making.”

  Annie swallowed her fear. She scanned what she could in her limited field of view. A bunch of wolves were there, many she recognized from her own pack. Some were in their human form, others were in their wolf form. Fury swelled in her chest. They were all here to see the death of a child, one whose parents had been respected in the pack, one who was practically family to all of them.

  She finally spotted Huck on the opposite side of the ring. He was still unconscious and bound by two silver chains. Two burly men were holding him up, but he slumped between them. He was scratched and bleeding from multiple wounds, evidence that he had fought savagely before they had been captured.

  Some protector I am, she thought.

  No. She wasn’t going to let them win. Somehow, she was going to get them out of this mess.

  Huck stirred, opening his eyes. She held her breath, trying to will him to look at her. He lolled his head from side to side. Then he found her. Their eyes connected across the ring—he str
uggled for a moment before one of the wolves subdued him.

  Please don’t do anything stupid, she thought.

  “Wolves!” David stepped out into the ring like a circus master. He was shirtless, showing off his rippling muscles for the entire crowd. “You’re about to see history in the making. A new leader will rise for our pack!”

  Several wolves howled in agreement.

  Annie’s mind reeled at the possibilities, of what she could do to stop this from happening. She could try to appeal to their sense of humanity, to see if they really wanted to kill a child, although she doubted that would work. She couldn’t break her chains and run away, and even if she could, she couldn’t rescue Bradley. She remembered what Adam had said about her challenging Gavin. She scanned the crowd again, looking for the tall, red-haired man. Would he come all the way out here to see this?

  After a few more moments scanning the crowd, she got her answer. Gavin stood on the opposite end, his arms crossed over his chest, looking out on the arena with smug pride. Her senses tingled. He was Alpha, the only one here other than Bradley.

  “So today,” David bellowed, gesturing to Bradley who only sobbed worse. Several of the wolves laughed in response. “I give you the current leader—”

  “I challenge Houston Alpha Gavin!” Annie yelled, interrupting him. Her voice was hoarse, but she hoped it was loud enough for the other wolves to hear her. She had to get the challenge in before David finished his challenge. She repeated her challenge as the commotion of the other wolves died down.

  “NO!” Huck immediately yelled at her, saying that he’d challenge Gavin in a desperate attempt to keep Annie out of the ring. But the damage was done—she had gotten her challenge out before any others. They’d have to complete her duel before there would be any others that night.

  David looked in her direction, trying to discern who had shouted the challenge. He grinned, smugly baring his teeth. “Ah, Annie. Always dependable. I knew you would try to delay the inevitable.”

  Annie swallowed again. This was for Bradley. “You know that you’ll have to step over my dead body to get to Bradley.”

  The kid started yelling her name, begging her not to fight. Huck looked stunned, unable to believe what was happening.

  David snarled. “That can be arranged.”

  Gavin let out a bark of laughter. “I accept. And I’ll enjoy it. You’ve gotten in the way of how a pack should work.”

  “So kill me then, in a fight,” Annie yelled back. “I’ve been wanting to tear pieces off of you since I met you, bastard.”

  Gavin was laughing. He neatly leapt into the ring as David opened up the door to the cage. Someone hauled Annie roughly to her feet and shoved her into the arena. David sneered at her as he undid the chains on her hands and feet.

  “I’m going to enjoy watching you die, runt,” he said.

  “Don’t let Bradley watch this,” Annie pleaded with him. “He’s too young.”

  “I’ll make him watch you die,” David sneered. “It’s only fitting.”

  In response, Annie spat in his face. He backhanded her so hard that she fell to the floor, coughing up some blood. David grabbed Bradley and left the ring with the boy. Bradley kept yelling her name, fighting with everything he had. Unfortunately, his struggling was no match for the Beta wolf.

  The cage closed, and she turned her full attention to Gavin, who was pacing in front of her, inspecting her, it seemed.

  This is for Bradley, Annie reminded herself, quenching the thrill of fear that threatened to envelope her. And for Huck.

  “You’ve had this coming to you,” Gavin said. “You betrayed your pack when you stopped them from their right to challenge the pack leader.”

  “Don’t you see that you’re telling them to kill a little boy, Gavin?” she asked.

  He shrugged. “It’s natural selection, Annie. Just like this duel will be.”

  That comment pissed her off so much, she lunged at him, transforming as she did. Gavin was ready for her. He transformed himself, catching her with his paws, snapping his jaws near her face. She fought against his strength, trying to get closer. He swiped a claw at her face. Surprised, she backed up.

  You’re no match for an Alpha, Gavin taunted. You’ve only just turned Beta. I’ve been Alpha all my life. What makes you think you’re going to win?

  Because she had something to fight for. She wasn’t going to let Bradley or Huck down. And she certainly wasn’t going to let herself down. She snarled at him as they circled each other, one smaller Beta against a huge Alpha.

  You wouldn’t understand, she said.

  You’ll die, you realize that? Gavin sneered.

  Not if I win.

  He took that moment to attack. He got a good bite on the scruff of her neck, causing her to scream. He pulled her to the ground, meaning to tear out her throat then and there, but she retaliated, using fear and adrenaline to dislocate one of his shoulders. She snapped her jaws down on his snout, raking her sharp teeth across his face before hurling him off of her. He landed in a heap, snarling in pain. He glared at her. One of his eyes was ruined and his snout was mangled.

  She was beyond pain now—her only objective was to kill this beast that was threatening Bradley. She snarled at him, and before he could react, she ran into him. Her speed was spurred by desperate determination—she simply could not lose. Not if she wanted Bradley to have a future. Not if she wanted a future herself.

  Being enclosed by the cage walls worked in Annie’s favor. She pinned Gavin against the wall. It would only take seconds for him to recover and overpower her again. She had to seize this moment.

  Annie grabbed Gavin’s throat with her teeth and pulled hard enough for him to know that she meant business. Gavin stilled underneath her. He got the message.

  Do you yield, asshole? she asked. He struggled, but she held fast. DO YOU YIELD? she thundered again.

  Y-yes.

  The lone word came out as a stutter, but that was all Annie needed. She let him go, and he collapsed in a heap on the ground, unconscious. She was glad that she didn’t have to kill him. He was now a Beta, and probably for the rest of his pathetic life. Just the knowledge that he had failed was punishment enough.

  She breathing heavily, but she was going to be fine. She tried looking out into the darkness beyond the ring. She could feel her animal instinct swell with the increase of power. She had won and had once again moved up in rank. She was now an Alpha. Her wounds starting healing exponentially faster and she could now see out of her swollen eye. She would now be able to beat David in a fight if it came to it. Or any other wolf that tried to challenge Bradley.

  The wolves around the ring were deathly quiet.

  Are there any others? she yelled. I’m here to protect Bradley Thomas, the rightful leader of the pack. And if there are any who disagree, they’ll have to go through me.

  “And if you’re going to try anything, you’ll have to go through the Austin pack,” a familiar voice bellowed.

  From behind one of the cars surrounding the ring, Gemma stepped out, flanked by her ten wolves. Adam was at her side, as was Mark and Bernice. Gemma couldn’t keep the smile from her face, but Annie could tell that the pack leader was impressed.

  “An’ y’all have t’ go through th’ Dallas pack, too,” Carmichael said coming with her.

  The wolves fell back, acting like cornered dogs. They had nowhere to run. David’s face was ashen. He knew he had lost.

  Then the strangest thing happened, so quickly, that even with Annie’s wolf eyesight she had to blink furiously to make sure that what she had seen was correct. A small, white, furry body tackled David, snarling down at him.

  Bradley?

  Whether it was because he was old enough, or it was because his fright had caused him to mature quickly, the boy had finally transformed into his werewolf self. Even though he was small, he was an Alpha like his parents before him. And he was mad, something that the animal instinct inside of him magnified tenfold. If
he truly wanted to kill David, then he was going to. There was no stopping the young wolf from doing what he wanted.

  The boy snarled into David’s shocked face, too stunned to transform himself.

  Bradley! Annie called out. Bradley, don’t kill him. He’s not a threat to you any more.

  Why should I let him live? Bradley’s werewolf voice sounded a lot older than he did as a human.

  Because you are better than him, Bradley, Annie said. And there are things worse than death. Like exile.

  Bradley hesitated. David was still too shocked to move, as were the other wolves. Things hadn’t gone as planned and they were probably trying to find a way where they could get out of this with only their tails between their legs.

  But he’s chased us for so long now, Bradley said, sounding confused.

  Annie nearly sobbed in relief. At least she was getting through to him. David’s unarmed now. You’ve won, Bradley. And if you do this, you’ll kill him in cold blood. You’re better than that. He’s finished.

  Bradley stopped snarling and stepped back, looking up at Annie expectantly. The determination in the young wolf’s eyes was heartbreaking. She could tell that he wanted to kill that jerk so badly. Her heart swelled with pride.

  Emily, she thought, you did such a good job raising him.

  I don’t ever want to see your face again, Bradley told the bigger man. He turned back into a human, standing there huffing with anger. “You can take your mate with you and...shove it,” he said in his human voice. “Because if I ever see you again...”

  David nodded, scrambling to his feet. The man looked absolutely defeated.

  That’s the right thing to do, Bradley, Annie called out.

  She transformed back into a human, noting how her new status as an Alpha made her muscles feel a lot stronger, even as a human. Gamma to Alpha in a few days—she’d never heard of someone doing that before. Usually it took a victor a few months to get used to their new strength as a higher rank.

  But she had had something to fight for.

  From the corner of her eye, she saw a peppered gray streak of wolf running towards Bradley. NO! her mind screamed, recognizing the wolf. She hadn’t thought that David would stoop so low to kill an innocent child, even without a challenge. Bradley turned a second too late. It was all happening so fast, Annie couldn’t get there in time and Bradley couldn’t defend himself. Gemma and the others were too far away to do anything.