He’d been married? To the first destroyer? She pressed her hand against her stomach sure she was going to vomit. The feeling roiling in her gut felt too much like betrayal.
“You used me.”
“No.” Trent reached for her hand, but she pulled away. “I care about you, Sophie. What we’re building between us is real, I swear it.”
She shook her head, tears forming.
“This wasn’t part of the deal,” said Virginia.
Sophie turned toward her grandmother. “You knew?”
“I knew he survived the Alberich, and that he could help you.” Nana glared at Trent. “You should've told me Sophie was some kind of weapon. I’m gonna read Queen Patsy the riot act!”
“We weren’t sure,” said Trent. “We knew that when Laura died, her power would pass on to someone else. Once the spell is enacted, it always finds hosts. Not that it mattered. We always believed the Alberich had been defeated. But one found you, Sophie. And you vanquished him.”
“And almost died,” yelled Nana. “Did you forget that part?”
“This doesn’t make sense. How did a power find me a hundred years after your wife passed away?”
“I don’t know. I believe the power found you because the Alberich have returned. Maybe because you were the first of our kind to be attacked by one since we drove them off so long ago. It’s just a theory, but even if it’s wrong, it doesn’t change anything. You are the destroyer.”
“So, just dumb, bad luck? Bullshit. Someone did this to me, and I want it undone.”
“It doesn’t work like that, sweetheart.” Trent stood up. “We need you, Sophie. I need you.”
“Sooner rather than later.” The new voice sounded a lot like Patsy.
Sophie looked over her shoulder. Patsy and Gabriel stood in their hotel room. Well, why not? How had this day started out to be the best in a very long time and then turned into the worst?
“We don’t have much time,” added Gabriel. “There is already an Alberich in town. And four others prowling our borders.”
“I don’t know how to be the destroyer,” said Sophie. She hated that she sounded whiny. She didn’t want to be that person. She wanted to be strong and brave, but her previous encounter with the Alberich had scared the crap out of her.
“I’ll help you,” said Trent. “We’ll do it together.”
Somehow, the idea of facing the problem with Trent eased her rising panic. Get on your big girl panties, Soph.
She nodded. “Okay.”
She would do this for her friends and the town. But once the Alberich had been defeated, she and Trent had a lot to discuss. If she decided she was still talking to him.
* * *
REN HELD MECKENZIE’S upper arm and guided—and by guided, she meant hauled—her down a narrow hallway. He’d had the audacity to handcuff her, and even though twelve ways to get out of the cuffs had already occurred to her, she hadn’t tried. With his werewolf strength and vampire agility, Ren could totally whoop her ass.
They stopped in front of a transparent plastic door. When he opened it, she noted the floor-to-ceiling white interior and the single, narrow bed. On the back wall, there was a closed door that she hoped led to a bathroom.
“Way to hold a grudge, dude,” she said, laying on the sarcasm. Deep down, her feelings were hurt. The fact Ren had no reason to trust her (you know, that whole lying and conniving she’d been doing) was not the point.
But Ren was obviously not a leap-of-faith kind of guy.
He waited, pinning her with his gaze, and she felt her lungs slowly deflate. His nostrils flared. His lips curled with just enough snarl to remind her that somewhere inside him lurked a wolf.
“I can tell you why I did it,” she said.
“I am not sure that matters.”
“The why always matters,” she said, offering another wisdom gem dropped by Mom. Mary Braith had been smart and kind and deserved a better daughter. She tried to be that but kept failing. Yep. She was pretty damned good at failure.
“Go ahead. Tell me why.” Ren’s voice was tainted with anger.
She flinched inwardly but held steady. “Ena has my mother’s soul. She promised to release it if I got her into Broken Heart.” She’d skip the part where she’d also bargained for her life. Seemed like Ena’s poison was going to take care of that, anyway.
Ren’s gaze widened in surprise, and she heard him mutter something in French under his breath.
All she had left was the truth and the very tiny sliver of hope that Ren might help her honor her mother’s memory. “A year ago, those fucking shadows killed my mom. They took her soul and gave it to Ena. That’s when I became her bitch.” She swallowed the knot in her throat. “My mother was a good person. She deserves to move forward into the next life, or wherever good people go.”
“I am sorry about your mother,” he said.
“Please, Ren. If something happens to me, will you make sure Ena releases my mom’s soul?” Her stomach had started cramping right after he cuffed her hands, and she thought maybe it was a combination of nerves, and the annoying propensity to give a damn about what Ren thought. Or, you know, it could be the poison coursing through her bloodstream.
She turned around and wiggled her fingers at him. “You wanna remove the jewelry?”
He removed the cuffs, and Meckenzie walked into the cell because she was the biggest fucking moron on the planet, and Ren shut the door. She heard an ominous snick. She slowly turned and found him watching her.
Pain stabbed her like a thousand hot knives. She doubled over, gasping, clutching her stomach.
The agony drove her to her knees, and sweat beaded her skin, the moisture dribbling down her temples. Her lungs constricted; she didn’t have the ability to scream, and she wanted to. Boy, did she want to.
“Meckenzie? Is this a trick?”
She shook her head, and it felt like she had a skull full of razors rattling around in there. She squeezed her eyes shut and tried to breathe.
Ena’s goddamned throwing knife. Knowing that bitch, whatever had coated the blade was freaking nasty.
Shit, she was dying.
She opened her eyes. Her vision was fuzzy, gray. She rolled onto her side, but the new position offered no relief. She curled into a ball as sweat poured off her and fear raked icy claws down her spine.
She didn’t think this was how she’d go.
Her vision started narrowing, dimming.
She vaguely heard the door opening and Ren’s footsteps as he hurried toward her. He crouched down and grabbed her shoulder. “Meckenzie?”
“My mom’s soul,” she said. “Don’t forget.”
Then she fell into the soft quiet of dark oblivion.
Chapter Twelve
SOPHIE AND TRENT returned to Broken Heart via Patsy and Gabriel. Nana had been transported to Betty Lee and Howard’s home in Las Vegas before the older woman even had a chance to protest. At least Nana would be safe.
They arrived at Patsy’s house, and it became immediately apparent that the main living room had been designated the war room. Vampires, werewolves, were-cats, and several fae were studying maps, scrolling on tablets, and talking in hushed, concerned voices. Sophie felt her stomach clench.
I can do this.
“What the update?” asked Patsy.
“The Alberich’s big, fat face broke my sword!” Jessica, a curvy brunette wearing black clothing and a pissed-off expression, lifted one of her famous Ruadan swords. The tip had been snapped off. “Brigid made these. How can a weapon forged by a goddess break?”
Sophie ogled the unbreakable broken weapon. Maybe I can’t do this.
“We can fix it, love,” soothed her husband, Patrick. The 4,000-year-old vampire and the son of the first vampire drew his wife into his embrace and kissed the top of her head. Jessica was immediately comforted and lost some of her anger.
Oh, how Sophie longed for that kind of relationship. But it required a deep level of trust. She glanced
at Trent and found him watching her, his gaze wary. Right now, trust was rarer than a fairy wish—which is apparently how the Alberich and the witch Ena had managed to enter Broken Heart. It was starting to feel like upside-down and inside-out day.
She broke eye contact with Trent and moved further into the room.
“The kids?” asked Patsy.
“Elizabeth and Tez escorted them t’ the underground safe house. It’s sealed up tight. They’re safe as can be,” said Patrick.
“Good.” Patsy’s eyes flashed red. “Let’s get to work.”
Sophie listened as several people told how the Alberich had been pushed back from destroying downtown by vampires, werewolves, were-cats, and Sidhe. This had been a remarkable feat if only because the Alberich was resistant to most magic and hard to wound, much less kill. However, Ena was vulnerable to magic and weapons and had abandoned the Alberich almost immediately.
“We got him down to the graveyard, I don’t know how long we can hold him off,” said Jessica. She stared forlornly at her broken sword. “If I get ahold of the bitch-witch, I’m going to shove my sword right up her--”
Patrick wrapped his arms around his wife. “I’ll hold her over the side of a barrel so you can get a proper angle.”
“Thank you, dear,” Jessica said, mollified. She tilted her head to the side to accept his cheek kiss.
They knew each other so well. Patrick seemed to get Jessica, and watching them together made Sophie yearn even more for a love that strong. Could she have that with Trent? If he hadn’t hidden the truth from her, maybe. She stared at him from across the room. He stared back. Had he lied to her? Or just withheld? In this case, was there a difference? The big question Sophie had to ask herself was: If they survived the Alberich, would she be able to forgive him?
“Speaking of the bitch-witch, do you we have a line on Ena, yet?” asked Patsy.
Sophie was glad for the interruption of her dark thoughts. Broken Heart was a parakind town protected by a shield that kept the outside world out, so why didn’t they have better security inside the borders? “How in the heck is this witch moving around our town so easily?”
Patsy’s sister-in-law, Anise, stepped forward, her long moon-white hair twisted into a braid. She wore the dark, well-cut clothes of a warrior, and carried both guns and knives on a belt around her waist. “We don’t know. She is magic as well, which gives her some protection once she’s inside the town’s limits. It makes her very difficile to locate. But…we have another problem. This Meckenzie, she has taken ill. Lenette says she’s been poisoned.”
Lenette was one of three sister witches who ran the local bed and breakfast. Sophie adored Lenette’s chocolate croissants. “Who’s Meckenzie?” asked Sophie.
“The one who got us into this mess,” said Patsy. “Sophie, Trent, you’re up. We have to destroy the Alberich inside the town. Then we have to figure out what to do about the four crawling around outside the force field. Lord-a-mercy.”
“That easy?” Sophie said with a little more anger than she’d intended. Everyone in the room snapped their gazes to her as if she’d grown a third nostril.
“What?” Patsy asked impatiently.
“I mean, I don’t know how to kill this monster. I was unlucky enough to be attacked, and I barely survived.” She could almost feel the intense pain as she remembered the blade slicing into her flesh. “You all have known about this possibility, the coming attack, and you all knew that I could be the key, but no one in this town thought to inform me.”
Trent immediately went to Sophie and put his arms around her from behind.
She only resisted him for a moment. “It’s not all right with me that you kept me in the dark. Kept this big damn secret from me that affects my life. I could have been more prepared if you all had just told me from the get-go.”
She’d already been told that Damian and Kelsey had decided it was for her wellbeing to keep the truth from her. Better for her to recover the memories herself before she learned about her new ability as a destroyer. So, she’d expected Trent to try and placate her with niceties and “greater good” talk.
Instead, he said, “You’re right, Sophie. You should not have been the last to know. We had no right to keep it from you. I should have been honest from the moment I met you. I’m sorry, sweetheart.”
No excuses, no deflections, just a straight forward own-your shit sincere apology. Tears welled in Sophie’s eyes as she nodded. She grasped his arms as he tightened them around her. She leaned her head back against his solid chest. “I’ll do whatever it takes.”
Patsy scrunched her nose as if she were trying to decide what to say. She shook her head then nodded to Sophie, a new understanding between them. “Okay. Alberich managed. Next, Ena.”
“Patsy.” Anise hesitated. She looked as though she were debating with herself. Then she squared her shoulders. “We can use Meckenzie as bait. Draw out Ena and capture her. If the witch’s magic animated the Alberich, it’s possible she can be forced to de-animate the other four.”
“All right,” said Patsy. “Let’s get us some bad guys.”
* * *
“I’M GETTING TIRED of passing out,” said Meckenzie. She sounded like she’d swallowed glass shards followed by a fireball chaser. Her head felt stuffed with cotton. Good freaking God, there was a voluptuous redhead three inches from her face, and she was smiling. “Who the hell are you?”
“You’re just as charming as they said,” she replied. “I’m the witch who saved your life. I am Lenette.”
“Oh.” Meckenzie felt a lot less cranky toward her. “Thanks. Where’s tall, blond, and clueless?”
Lenette laughed. “If you’re talking about the guilt-wracked Ren, I sent him in search of a very rare herb I didn’t need. He was driving me crazy with all his pacing and questions.”
“Really?” she perked up. “Worried, was he?”
“Massively.”
“Good.” She slowly sat up, and took the glass of water that Lenette offered. She drained the glass and put it on the nightstand next to the comfy four-poster bed. “Where am I exactly?”
“The Three Sisters Bed and Breakfast Inn. Ren brought you here about an hour ago. I managed to detox the poison and heal with you some magic and herbal remedies.”
“Thank you,” Meckenzie said. “A lot. Being alive is better than the alternative.”
“Well, there's more than one alternative, at least here in Broken Heart,” she said. Sorrow edged her green eyes, and Meckenzie had the oddest feeling that sadness was for her.
She was a little shaken by Lenette’s you’re-so-doomed-Meckenzie vibe. “You want to tell me what’s up?”
Lenette’s smile disappeared. “The Alberich is running rampant, and Ena has disappeared. We’re dealing with the Alberich, but we want you to draw Ena out.”
Meckenzie studied the witch’s face. “You’re being kind. I’m sure Patsy phrased it differently. This isn’t my decision, is it?”
“No.”
“Hoo-kay then. I suppose I owe Broken Heart that much.” She shoved the covers back and got out of bed. She had a woozy moment then the world righted, and she took a couple tentative steps.
“Are you all right?” asked Lenette.
“Oh, yeah. I’ve felt worse, believe me.”
“You’ve dealt with being poisoned before?”
“No, but I’ve done my share of tequila shots.”
Lenette laughed. Then she held out her arm, and even though it made Meckenzie feel like a sissy la-la, she took it. They hadn’t even crossed the room when Ren appeared in the doorway, his expression zipping from worried to furious.
“What are you doing?” He strode inside, shoved a paper bag at Lenette, and then scooped Meckenzie into his arms. “You are not well. You cannot leave the bed until you are fully rested.”
“Um, you’re not the boss of me,” Meckenzie said. “Queen Patsy is. Besides, I screwed up your little haven. It’s only right I try to help fix it.”
“Ren,” said Lenette, her tone sympathetic. “We don’t have time. You must take her to the location now.”
“Yeah,” Meckenzie said. “And I don’t need to be coddled.” However, she liked the feel of his arms around her, how warm and safe he made her feel. But so what? Even if Meckenzie survived the encounter with Ena, she and Ren were not ever going to be anything to each other. She had never been the get-married-have-kids-live-normal-lives type. Having your only family murdered, your mom’s soul trapped by an evil witch, and getting yourself turned into said witch’s minion made those kinds of dreams impossible.
Though, she found it disconcerting that she could imagine being with Ren as … well, her forever guy.
“What are you waiting for, vampire boy? If you’re going to set the trap, you need to put the bait in it.”
He nodded, and before she realized what was happening, gold sparkles filled the air. She felt like she was being pulled from the inside out, and then she heard a sucking noise.
Oh, hey, darkness. Again.
* * *
SOPHIE AND TRENT had changed clothes. In the black cargo pants, T-shirt, and boots, she looked the part of a warrior.
But she still didn’t feel like one.
“It’s all right,” said Trent, grasping her shoulder. The warm pressure of his hand calmed her jitters, and she offered him a smile of thanks.
Now, they were hunkered down behind a stone crypt watching as super-powerful beings threw rocks and sticks and designer shoes at a seven-foot-tall green, warty giant who stomped around like a toddler in a temper tantrum. Their combined efforts to keep him distracted were working for the moment, but Sophie knew her and Trent needed to go in there and stop the Alberich once and for all. But all she could think was: We’re all going to die.
Trent’s hand found hers. They twined fingers, and Sophie felt the anxiety and fear melt from her.
“We’re okay,” he said.
Sophie took a deep breath to settle her mind. She looked at him, taking in the now golden brown of his irises as he hovered on the edge of turning. “I guess you better give me the short version of how to operate our Wonder Twin powers.”
Lycan on the Edge: Broken Heart Book 13 Page 9