by Bianca D'Arc
Dedication
This book is for the fans who have waited so patiently for new books from me. You’ve stood by me in my darkest hours and I will be forever thankful for that.
Prologue
Something was very wrong in the early dawn of the Rocky Mountain foothills. Wyoming was a place of big sky and endless wonder, and the forest was a haven for many of the goddess’s beloved children, both magical and mundane.
But this day, evil stalked the woods. Evil that walked on two legs and hunted the most innocent of the Lady’s creatures. Evil that carried shotguns and plotted ways to bring about the end of days for all beings of the Light.
Danger permeated the primeval forest, but hope fluttered among the leaves and pine boughs. Hope for the coming of a new blend of magic. Magic that was ancient in form but modern in delivery. Magic that could renew the woodland—if it finally accepted its birthright.
Hope was coming, but would it be in time?
Chapter One
“She’s here! She’s here!” Carly raced into the front room, glad the sun had gone down more than an hour before. She’d loved her house aboveground before she discovered the twin layout her new husband Dmitri had built beneath over a century ago. The home they now shared underground had all the same amenities with one major exception. No windows. And for good reason.
Carly had never been happier than she was with Dmitri, but she missed her friends. She’d moved out to Wyoming, thinking she’d only be there while doing an installation job at the local university. Dmitri’s love had convinced her to stay. He was the Master Vampire of this region and, though only a novice vampire, Carly, for better or worse, was now its Mistress.
The wolves had been a big help. Befriending the Pack’s Alpha, a hunk of a man named Jason Moore, had been a stroke of good luck. As it turned out, a number of his Pack members had the computer and office skills Carly needed to relocate her headquarters from California to Wyoming. The Pack had also had the carpentry expertise to expand the old farmhouse she’d purchased. There was a new wing of office space for the squad of werewolf geeks and their vampire boss to work.
“Calm, my love.” Dmitri’s hand landed on her shoulder a moment before he came up behind her. He cocooned her in his presence, his strength becoming hers as he watched with her out the window.
There was indeed a pickup truck moving down the lane. She’d sent one of the wolves to pick Sally up from the airport in the ranch’s new truck. Now that she had the cooperation of the local wolf Pack, she’d opened up the unused farmland on which her home sat, for raising a few crops and animal herds. The wolves managed it all for her, of course. And they took a commensurate share of any profits. Together, the vampire Master and Mistress were forming a true alliance with the wolves. That was something, Dmitri told her, that hadn’t been done in centuries.
Carly liked it. Working together, both supernatural races could achieve great things.
But politics would wait for a while. She had a friend to greet. An all-too-mortal friend who was about to be set among wolves. Carly had to stifle a giggle at the thought.
“From everything I see about Sally in your memories, my love…” Dmitri told her mind to mind, “…I think she’ll be more than able to hold her own.”
“I almost pity the wolves,” Carly agreed with a rueful grin. Sally was, without a doubt, the most formidable of her college friends.
Dmitri chuckled as he walked with her to the door. The pickup pulled to a stop and Carly nearly dove down the porch steps to greet her friend.
Detective Sally Decker barely managed to get the pickup’s door open before Carly was there, arms out, pulling her from the cab into a huge bear hug.
“Watch it, Carl! You’re about to break ribs,” Sally joked, returning the welcome. It’d been too long since they’d seen each other. Of the old college study group, Sally had always had a special place in her heart for Carly, the eternal geek.
“Sorry!” Carly pulled back, an odd sort of fear on her face. Sally was perplexed by the reaction, but then, Carly had always been an odd duck. It was endearing.
“No harm done. I was only joking.” Sally held her at arm’s length. “Let me get a good look at you. Man, Carl, you’re looking good. Best I’ve seen you in years. No dark circles under your eyes and your skin glows, though you’re a bit pale. You need to catch some rays.”
Carly laughed and put her arm around Sally’s waist, pulling her toward the stairs where a tall, dark, and too-good-to-be-true handsome man waited. The professor, no doubt. Damn, the geek had done good.
“You must be Dmitri,” Sally said, holding her hand out as they mounted the three steps to the porch. “I’ve heard so much about you.”
His grip was strong and his smile genuine as he shook her hand. “It is good to finally meet you, Sally.” His slight accent was to die for as well. Carly really hadn’t been exaggerating in her descriptions of this man. If anything, she’d been holding back. He was gorgeous and his gaze, when it turned to Carly, was filled with love.
Sally was a good judge of character and always knew when someone was faking emotion. It’s part of what made her a good cop. She’d bet her last penny that the professor was every bit as in love with Carly as she was with him. One less thing for Sally to worry over. At least part of her trek out here had been to be certain that her geekiest, nicest, closest friend in the universe wasn’t being taken advantage of. With just one look at them together, Sally could put those fears to rest. The professor had it bad for the geek, and that made Sally smile for the first time in a very long time.
“Please, come inside. Carly arranged a little welcome party for you.” Dmitri’s accent rolled over her again, sending a little shiver down her spine. She wasn’t completely immune to his charm, but aside from the Greek god good looks and powerful air, he really wasn’t her type.
Sally noted the young woman who stood on the porch, near the door.
“This is my top programmer, Amy,” Carly introduced her, patting the woman’s shoulder in a fond way. “She’s been a godsend these past months as we set up the new headquarters.”
“I was glad to be of help,” Amy said, smiling at Carly then extending her hand to Sally in greeting. “Your friend here is a lot of fun to work for. Welcome to Wyoming.”
Sally returned the woman’s handshake with a grin. “Nice to meet you, Amy. Thanks for keeping my buddy, Carl, out of trouble in this strange and foreign land.” Everyone chuckled at her little joke.
Sally was impressed by Amy’s natural beauty. Sally had met more than a few of Carly’s staff back in California and not a one of them looked like this budding supermodel. In fact, as she peeked in the doorway, everyone inside the house was tall, muscular and had nicely chiseled features—the men and women alike. They were all beautiful. Not a single balding fat guy in sight. Weird.
A random sample of people should have more variety than this. Maybe they were all related to some line of supermodels married to sports stars. Sally smiled at her train of thought but kept the wacky idea to herself as Carly introduced them all. Oddly enough, they were Carly’s new staff of computer geeks and office gremlins.
And they definitely knew how to party. A drink was placed in her hand and platter after platter of absolutely scrumptious hors d’oevres were passed around as they chatted. Music played softly in the background and the mingling commenced. Carly rarely left her side, but Sally noted Dmitri holding court in one corner of the room, his eyes seldom leaving Carly as he sipped a glass of red wine. Good lord, the man could smolder. Sally felt warm just from the glances he kept throwing at her friend.
“Is he as good as he looks?” Sally asked in a whisper while she and Carly were alone for a moment.
Carly answered with a blush that told its own st
ory. “Better.”
“I’m so happy for you, Carl. You deserve every happiness and if I don’t miss my guess, that man is it for you.”
“He is. Oh, Sal, you have no idea.”
Sally knew that look. The geek had a secret she was dying to tell.
“Spill,” Sally dared her.
Carly bit the side of her bottom lip between her teeth. “I wish I could, but not here. Not now.”
“All right.” Sally let her off the hook for now. “But soon.”
“Soon,” Carly agreed.
Sally brightened as she turned her gaze to the gathered crowd. “So how did you find all these beautiful youngsters to work for you? I mean, there’s not a plain one in the bunch.”
Carly looked worried but smiled as best she could. Sally hadn’t made detective by being unobservant. There was something going on here, but Carly was as straight an arrow as they came, so she doubted it was anything sinister. Still, something had her old friend on edge at Sally’s question.
“They live nearby and had the skills I needed. The university computer program is top notch. Unfortunately, the local market for computer science grads isn’t great, so I was lucky.”
“Are they all related somehow? I mean, they’re all tall, svelte and gorgeous. What happened to the stereotype of the computer geek that lives in his mom’s basement until he’s forty? These guys are buff.” She took a good long look at some of the young men standing a few yards away sipping their drinks and talking to two girls about their age. Pure beefcake, if much too young for a jaded cop like Sally Decker.
“Well, the athletics program is good too.” Carly didn’t sound convincing. No doubt she was trying to make up a story for some reason. Sally smelled a mystery and it got her Spidey Sense tingling, even though she was certain Sally could never be involved in something bad. Sally believed in her friend through and through. “In fact, Billy there is a senior and still plays on the school’s basketball team. Ryan was on the football team. He graduated about three years ago. The girls they’re talking to, Veronica and Jill, were a very successful volleyball duo. They graduated last year.”
Sally had been introduced to everyone and had spent a few minutes chatting with almost all of them before she’d cornered her friend. She’d had a long trip here and had been at the point of exhaustion both physically and mentally before setting out on her journey. Seeing Carly so happy and in love, though, really helped. A vacation was just the thing to restore her energy and she could only kick herself for not taking it sooner. She’d been wanting to check on Carly for a while now.
Ever since the truth about their friend Christy’s horribly abusive marriage had come out, Sally had felt a need to check on all of her old study group friends. She’d been able to spend a bit of time with each of the girls in California, but nobody had seen Carly since the wedding. The other girls were all married now and their husbands were hotter than hot. Each of the men in their lives had impressed Sally deeply and she’d seen the genuine love between the other couples. Seeing them all so happy had been the one bright spot in her increasingly burnt out existence back in California.
She still couldn’t figure why nobody else seemed all that worried about Carly, so she’d taken it on herself to make the journey and check on Carly. The other newlyweds were probably too caught up in their own happiness to worry. Sally had seen the brutality people were capable of in her years as a cop. She didn’t trust easily and she’d had a niggling, nagging worry about Carly—the woman she’d been closer to than all the others during their years in school.
If Carly wouldn’t come home to visit, Sally would have to get on a plane and go see how her friend fared for herself. And now, here she was. Her first impression was that the same incandescent love she’d seen between all their other friends and their new husbands blossomed between Carly and Dmitri.
Sally was relieved. She’d come here to see about her friend, but now that she was here, she realized more than ever how badly she needed some time away from the ball of stress her life had become. Of all their old college study group, she was the only one still single. She felt left out, though she didn’t begrudge any of her friends the happiness they’d found.
But didn’t she deserve a little joy of her own? Just a little? Sally tried not to dwell on it. She was a believer in karma and fate. If it was meant to be, she figured she’d find her Mr. Right. If not, she had a job she used to enjoy and lots of experience. If she couldn’t face going back to the force, she could always try to find some kind of private security gig. Something. Anything.
“What’s wrong?” Carly’s soft voice penetrated the funk Sally had sunk into. Sally shook her head, surprised she’d let herself slip. It wasn’t like her to let her mind wander.
“Sorry. I was woolgathering.”
“Come on, Sal. This is me you’re talking to. What’s up with you? You don’t seem very happy.”
“Hey, just who’s the detective here?” Sally tried to lighten the mood with humor.
“It won’t work. I saw that look on your face. We’re going to talk about this again before you leave, but for now, why don’t you let Seth pour you another drink?” Carly crooked her finger in a very regal way that almost made Sally laugh. Who knew her shy little geek friend would find her mojo in the middle of nowhere among a group of freakishly attractive nerds?
A very handsome young man sidled up to them at Carly’s beckoning.
“What can I do for you, Mistress?”
Carly shot him a warning look that Sally didn’t miss. Oh, yes, there was something funny going on here. Sally decided to be more amused than alarmed. The alcohol she’d already consumed could have something to do with her mellow mood, of course.
“Detective Decker needs another drink. Why don’t you take her over to the bar and see what you can mix up?”
“As you wish.” Seth turned a downright wolfish grin on Sally. It would have been exciting if he weren’t so young. Too young for her, if truth be told, though he was one of the older folks in the room. It seemed like all of Carly’s new employees were still wet behind the ears.
Still, she let him take her arm and lead her to the other side of the large living room, where a fully stocked bar was tucked into one corner. He was polite enough and handsome as sin, but he just didn’t do anything for her. Although he was nice to look at. Definitely eye candy of the first order.
The selection of wines behind the bar was truly impressive. There was even a refrigerator-sized chiller with a frosted glass door just for the stuff. Sally recognized a few of the labels as coming from Atticus Maxwell’s winery and thought fondly of her friend Lissa, who had married the vintner not too long ago. She’d been to their house for drinks a few weeks back and was amazed by the opulent manor house and extensive vineyard. Marc LaTour and her friend Kelly had dropped by as well and the two blissfully happy couples had made Sally feel welcome. It had been a nice change from feeling like a third wheel among her police colleagues and their spouses.
Seth was good company. He teased her with a confidence you didn’t often find in someone his age while he mixed her drink of choice like an old pro. Not one for wine, she’d opted for a piña colada when Seth had offered to make a frozen one for her. She’d agreed more or less just to see if he could do it and he’d surprised her, drawing a crowd when the blender switched on.
A few of the other women were lining up for a slushy drink of their own when Sally noticed the front door open. Carly was there, greeting the most brutally handsome man Sally had ever seen. He reached out and grabbed her attention simply by entering the room. She knew she was staring, but was powerless to stop herself.
“Who is that?” she asked as Seth deposited the frosty glass full of frozen drink in her hand.
At her side, Seth visibly gulped. “That’s the Alpha.”
The man’s strong chin rose as he seemed to test the very air of the room. His gaze slid over everyone present before landing on Sally. Leaving a bemused Carly at the door,
he strode forward.
“The what?” Sally’s attention was focused on the man striding across the room toward her. His gaze was locked on hers like a heat-seeking missile and the rest of the room faded into the background. His grace, his gaze, his utterly devastating presence mesmerized her.
Seth melted away, as did everyone else. This man commanded authority. He looked only a little older than the others, but he was miles distant from their callow youth. He’d seen things. Done things. Some things he probably wasn’t too proud of and some things that had changed him on a fundamental level. Sally didn’t know how she knew it, but her instincts were something she’d learned to trust in her years as a cop.
“You’re Sally.” His gravelly voice touched something deep inside her and made it hum as he stopped in front of her.
“And you are?” Challenge seemed to be the best way to handle this man who reeked of authority. She’d learned not to back down while working the streets, and the strategy had kept her alive and made her the most effective officer in her division.
Some kind of fire lit behind his eyes and a crooked grin forced one corner of his mouth upward. He seemed both amused and enticed by her challenge. He held out one hand, a dare of his own. As if he were daring her to touch him.
He’d soon learn she wouldn’t back down. Especially not from something as simple as a handshake. She reached out and took his hand in hers, giving him a firm grip, noting how he tempered his obvious strength so as not to hurt her. He was firm, but not hurtful. A coiled spring respectful of her more delicate flesh.
“Jason Moore, leader of this little Pack of wolves.” She liked the humor in his words, even as she wondered at their meaning.
“Sally Decker,” she returned his greeting automatically, enjoying the warm strength of his big hand enveloping hers.
“I know.” His smile deepened. Drat. Of course he’d known who she was. And now he knew just how off-balance she was too. All thoughts of embarrassment fled as she noted the slight dimple on the left side of his face. Wow. She hadn’t thought it was possible for him to get any more attractive. “Carly has talked about little else since she found out you were coming for a visit. You’re the fuzz.”