Beside him, Quinn drew out his wolf in silence.
It didn’t take them long to find the men. Three of them, keeping to the shadows. Two had strong glamours. The other one held a Ruger, which should be no problem. Automatic weapons usually couldn’t shoot iron bullets with any accuracy. And iron was the only metal the grigori had no defenses against.
Gabriel motioned for Quinn to get behind the trio. Between the two of them, these three clowns didn’t stand a chance. He recognized one of the men from the strip club. The other two were new. That meant there were probably more of them somewhere, maybe down at the car. Still, not bad odds. Finish these three then deal with the others before they realized these were gone.
He never considered defeat. He’d do whatever it took to make sure his mother’s sanctuary wasn’t breached.
Because they knew each other so well, Quinn knew exactly what Gabriel wanted him to do. He attacked first from the rear, grabbing one man’s leg and disorienting them so Gabriel could come at them from the front when they turned to see what was biting them in the ass.
The fight was short and vicious and the invaders barely had time to defend themselves before Gabriel had slashed the throats of two and Quinn had torn out the throat of the other.
“Too easy,” he muttered. “Too fucking easy.”
Quinn growled low in his throat and shook his head, fur bristling at his nape.
“Decoys. Sonovabitch, they were decoys.”
The words were no sooner out of Gabriel’s mouth than Quinn shot off in the direction of the house, Gabriel close on his heels. They didn’t pass a soul, which meant there were no more…or whoever was in front of them was more powerful than he was.
The teen from the other day. It had to be him. Gabriel muttered a seeking spell as he ran, fitting an image of the boy into it. And damn if he didn’t find him. Close to the house. Not there yet and heading away at the moment.
Gabriel slowed and Quinn, attuned to his every move, dropped back to his side. He could see blood lust in Quinn’s eyes. He felt the same way, but they needed a plan before they could take this kid out.
Adrenaline pumping, Gabriel forced himself to stop and motioned for Quinn to do the same. He had to think, had to get around this kid, who probably already knew they were looking for him. Surprise wasn’t an option.
Gabriel bared his teeth at Quinn, who returned the grin. They’d give the guy what he was expecting. And let him screw up.
* * *
Serena woke minutes after the men left.
Rubbing her eyes, she sat up and gasped. “Gabriel! What’s going on?”
“Serena.” Shea hurried to her side as Leo flicked on the lantern. “We’re okay. Quinn found someone at the bottom of the hill. He and Gabriel went to check it out.”
It took the other woman a few seconds to register the information, pain still blurring her eyes. Then her lids descended and she raised a hand to rub at her temples.
“I should have known.” She shifted her legs over the edge of the rough bed, her green dress shimmering in the lamplight. “How could I not have known? I’ve got to get out there—”
Shea clamped a hand on Serena’s arm. “You have to stay right here. Gabriel left specific instructions. You go nowhere.”
Serena shot her a look designed to make her cower in fear. “Do not presume to tell me—”
“If you go out there, you could get them killed. I won’t let you do that.”
Her eyes widening, Serena looked ready to blast her and Shea hoped Leo wasn’t listening too closely. But then the other woman took a deep breath, as if she’d read her mind. Maybe she had.
“When did they leave?” Serena asked.
“I think about twenty minutes ago.”
“Where’s Leo?”
“Here,” he called from the other side of the room.
Serena smiled in Leo’s general direction, but when she looked at Shea, her expression turned serious and she spoke barely above a whisper. “I need to see what’s going on. Don’t worry,” Serena added when Shea opened her mouth to protest. “I can do it from here. I just need some water and a bowl. Leo, come here, dear.”
She didn’t raise her voice much above a whisper, but Leo padded over with the lantern.
“I’m going to turn off the light and, when our eyes are accustomed to the dark again, I’m going to show you a pretty cool trick, okay?”
Leo nodded and didn’t even flinch when Serena plunged the cave into darkness again. It didn’t take long to regain their night vision, helped along by a faint glow from above, probably an opening to the outside. Serena led them deeper into the cave, to what appeared to be a storeroom. Bottled water, packaged food and a few boxes of herbs and magical supplies. From one of the boxes, Serena withdrew a jug of water and a large bowl lined with abalone.
“Have you ever seen a magic mirror, Leo?”
Leo’s teeth flashed in the dark. “My mom showed me hers once. She said she was checking on Shea.”
Shea gasped. Her mother had kept tabs on her.
“Your mom was much better at using hers than I am, but I think I can make this work.”
Pushing thoughts of her mom to the back of her brain, Shea watched Serena pour the liquid into the bowl and set the bowl on the floor. Then Serena knelt, holding her hands over the bowl as she intoned, “Blessed Goddess, I entreat thee to show us those who would harm an innocent.”
At first, the water showed nothing but the darkness of the cave. Then slowly, shapes began to coalesce. Or rather, one shape, someone climbing the hill toward the house. Then the water clouded again and another shape formed in the glassy surface. This one was practically at the cave and headed straight for them. Shea recognized him as the teenager from the rest stop.
Shea heard Serena draw in a shaky breath.
Spinning on her heel, Shea headed for the stockroom again. She’d seen exactly what she needed there. When she returned, Serena stood in the middle of the room, arms crossed over her chest.
“What are you planning?”
Shea buckled the pugio’s sheath around her waist and positioned it on her hip. She liked the feel of the small blade in her hand, better for close fighting. “Take him out before he gets me.” She strapped a matching weapon on her left upper arm. “If it’s a physical fight, I should win. I’m hoping I can surprise him enough to get the upper hand and incapacitate him.”
“And if you can’t?”
Shea felt her lips curl back in a snarl. “Then I’ll kill him.”
She went to move past Serena, but the other woman stopped her with a hand on her shoulder.
“Are you sure you can do that? Teens have a lot of raw power and earlier tonight…”
She didn’t have to finish. Shea knew what she meant. But Shea knew something about herself.
“My father trained me, just as he would any grigorio. I can take him. I know I can. Don’t let anything happen to Leo.”
Serena nodded, but Shea wasn’t sure what she was agreeing to. Didn’t matter, because she wasn’t waiting for the other woman’s permission. She wasn’t Serena’s child or her underling or her anything.
Except…possibly her savior.
No, don’t think about that now. Don’t think about anything but what you have to do.
She turned to Leo, who gave her a steady look.
Knowing he had faith in her helped her pass through the wall and into the night.
* * *
During the past twenty years, Dario had rarely left Florida. But when Peter had relayed the latest message from his men in Pennsylvania, he’d decided the time had come to get out more.
Besides, if Peter’s men were right, he wanted to be there when they confronted the women. He told Peter to have the men wait for him before moving and to stay well away from the house until he arrived.
By the time his private plane landed at the tiny Reading Regional Airport, he knew Serena was close. Call it intuition.
Driving to the site, he didn�
�t bother to ask how the men had found her. Kelsey was with them. The boy had uncanny powers.
Of course, it helped that the boy was one of theirs.
“Have you located the house yet?”
Kelsey shook his head. “But I’ve got the perimeter mapped. There’s a web of spells and wards in place and the whole area seems to be sitting on a well of power.”
Dario smiled at the boy, who wouldn’t be a boy much longer. Already fifteen, Kelsey had the strength of five grown men. And a backbone beaten into him by Dario himself.
“You’ve done well. Come on then, son. Let’s find your mother and get reacquainted.”
* * *
Gabriel and Quinn caught up to one of their quarry just as he was about to discover the house.
Even though he couldn’t see his face, Gabriel knew it wasn’t the teen from the day before. This was a grown man, shorter but powerfully built.
Motioning for Quinn to move around and herd the man back to Gabriel should he run, Gabriel planned to come at him from behind. There was something about this one…something that didn’t feel right. Something evil…
Shit, the guy was Mal.
Gabriel tackled him, taking him to the ground and smashing the man’s head on the hard earth with a blow that should have knocked him unconscious. It didn’t. Instead, the man twisted to his feet and spun, landing a punch on Gabriel’s chin.
Smiling now, though the dark hid it, Gabriel swung back. Adrenaline flowed, better than the rush working a spell gave him. He needed a fight right now.
He let the man land a few, absorbing the slight pain, then he jabbed his fist into the guy’s stomach, encountering solid muscle.
It was a silent fight, except for the few exhalations of air when one or the other would land a good one, and for the most part, they were well matched.
The man was shorter than Gabriel, but he had the same build and packed a lot of muscle. And he was fast. Gabriel was no slouch, but this man moved with the ease of someone who had trained for years, decades even. Which didn’t make sense, because the guy couldn’t be much older than himself.
At that moment, the clouds obscuring the moon shifted and Gabriel finally caught a glimpse of the man’s face.
Holy shit.
Stunned, Gabriel stepped sideways, practically stumbling over his feet to put some distance between himself and the other man.
What the hell kind of trick was this?
The man froze and stared back, his mouth hanging open in shock.
“Who the hell are you?” The words flew out of Gabriel’s mouth before he could curb them, tightening his clenched fists until his knuckles cracked.
Shit, maybe he didn’t want to know.
No, there was no maybe about it. He wasn’t going to like the answer. He felt it in his bones.
Jesus, their faces…They could have been brothers, their features mirrored each other so closely.
The man lowered his own hands and retreated two steps, never taking his eyes from Gabriel’s face. “I believe that is the question I should be asking you. Who are you, boy? Who’s your mother?”
Rage bubbled like acid in his gut. “Vaffanculo. I’m no boy and I don’t know what kind of trick this—”
“Believe me, it’s no trick.” The man’s voice turned harsher, colder and his lips pulled into a straight line as he continued to stare at Gabriel like he was a bug under a microscope. “Are you Amalia’s? Serena’s? Ah, yes,” he said, as if Gabriel had answered his question. “Serena. How did she do it? How could she have done it?”
The other man moved closer a step and Gabriel threw an uppercut before he realized he’d done it. The bastard dodged it with the dexterity of a pro boxer. Unnaturally quick.
From behind him, Gabriel heard Quinn growl, a growl he recognized. Something was wrong here, something really, really wrong.
Gabriel raised his fists again. “I don’t know what the hell you’re playing at, but after I pound you into oblivion, you’re going to explain.”
“Oh, I don’t think you’ll need to do that.” The other man raised his hands in surrender, which Gabriel didn’t believe for a second. “But I think you better brace yourself for a shock, son.”
No, no, no. “Believe me, you’d better brace for the shock, and I am definitely not your son.”
To his surprise, the man smiled. “Well, you can take another swing at me, but I’m pretty damn sure I’m your father.”
Chapter Twenty
Gabriel’s stomach plummeted, though he knew the guy was lying. He had to be. It was a trick, designed to make him drop his guard.
But if that was the reason, why hadn’t the other man struck?
“Who the hell are you?”
The man laughed, though there was no humor in the sound. “Ah, the more important question here is who are you? But answer this one first. How old are you?”
“I’m only gonna ask one more time, then I’m gonna take you out. What’s your name?”
“Gabe.” Quinn, in human form, appeared behind the man. Gabriel had missed Quinn’s change completely, and it pissed him off. “Fuck, man, he’s cursed. I can smell it on him.”
Gabriel shook his head. There was no way he could believe that. No way. He couldn’t…There wasn’t…
But somewhere inside, he knew. He steadied his arms when they wanted to shake, firmed his resolve and refused to believe.
There was a reason for this. There had to be a reason…
“I’m only gonna ask once more,” Gabriel said through gritted teeth. “What’s your name?”
The man laughed, though it was more like a choked growl. “Dario Paganelli.” He held out his hand, as if Gabriel would even consider shaking it, then let it fall with a shrug. “I’m pleased to meet you…Son.”
* * *
Shea paused before she left the safety of the cave. Scanning the surroundings, she saw no one, but that didn’t mean the teen wasn’t out there. She just needed to pinpoint his location before she moved.
Closing her eyes, she slowed her breathing until all she could hear was the forest. She didn’t need magic to listen to the sounds of the earth. She only had to open her ears.
A raccoon scurried in the brush somewhere to her left and several bats flew through the trees overhead, their leathery wings caressing the night air. A herd of deer grazed higher in the hills and light footsteps approached from the south.
Slowly, she opened her eyes and picked apart shadows in the darkness, starting to lighten though it was still a few hours till dawn.
There, to the right of the entrance. Something moved, something bigger than a fawn and smaller than a bear. Something human.
She couldn’t be sure, but since he was walking away from the entrance, she was fairly certain he didn’t know it existed.
Slipping from the safety of the rock, Shea moved without a sound. She hadn’t been kidding when she’d told Serena her father had trained her as a grigorio, even if she hadn’t realized it at the time.
And she’d been a damn good study. The boy didn’t realize she had him until she made her move. But even though she’d anticipated his strength and his speed, the burst of pure hatred that ran through him when she wrapped her arms around him from behind, made her falter.
He flooded her with hate, made her skin crawl. Snarled like a wild animal and tried to pivot. Locking her hands together at his chest, she wrapped her left leg around his and tried to take him to the ground.
He almost got away by twisting into the fall, but she anticipated and kept him flat on his stomach. She tried to wrestle his arms behind his back, but they were trapped under his body, so she needed another way to subdue him. Even though he was taller, they were evenly matched in weight.
It took everything she had to keep him down. He flopped like a landed fish, only a hundred times heavier and more determined. They fought silently for control, and at one point, he got an elbow free that he landed squarely on her cheek. Pain exploded behind her left eye, but she didn’
t fall for his ploy when he went limp.
Instead, she tightened her grip so he couldn’t slip away…and he hit her with a blast of power so intense it made the voices in her head scream.
She crumpled, hands clasped to her head, the pain blinding her.
The boy jumped to his feet and prepared to strike again. But he froze when Serena walked out of the cave.
The pain stopped, the voices died, and the boy very plainly said, “Hello, Mother.”
Spell Bound (Darkly Enchanted) Page 29