[Kassandra Lyall Preternatural Investigator 03] - Bloody Claws

by Winter Pennington

  "Where is she, Sheila?" She leaned back, smiling with malice. "If you have truly claimed her, Kassandra, find her yourself."

  "I didn't come here to play games with you." I forced myself to breathe past the agitation of my beast.

  "But it seems you are playing games with me, Kassandra." The look she gave me was anything but friendly.

  I crossed my arms over my chest. "And what gave you that idea, Sheila?"

  "Stop saying my name like a curse," she said, eyes narrowing in hostility. "If you are not playing a game then set your cards on the table. Come and greet me as your alpha."

  I didn't mean to laugh, but I did, and I wasn't sure if I was feeling the wolf's emotions at the idea or my own. Maybe it was a combination of both.

  "You're not my alpha, Sheila. I'm sure as hell not going to greet you as such."

  She stood and came toward me. The last time Sheila had touched me, I'd nearly lost my temper. I so didn't want her to touch me again. In the heels, she was taller, not as tall as Zaphara or Lenorre, but taller than me. As she moved toward me, she used all her height to try to make me feel smaller. Unfortunately, when you're petite like I am, you get used to people trying to do that.

  A warning growl built and trickled out from between my half-parted lips.

  She hesitated. "You would threaten me?"

  "She's not threatening you, alpha." Carver, gamma of the Blackthorne pack moved from the large group and out into the open. His white blond hair fell over his blue and gold eyes. The white shirt he wore was only a shade lighter than his hair.

  "I wouldn't be so quick to side with her, my third."

  "I'm not siding with anyone," he said, showing no sign of fear while Sheila glared at him. "But you are threatening her with your body language."

  One of the female wolves gasped. I wondered where Claire was, but didn't try to find her. I was too busy watching the alpha female in front of me.

  Sheila shook with rage, her fingers curling into fists. Heat emitted off her. The anger of her beast brushed my skin, calling to mine in an unspoken challenge.

  I took another deep breath, this time through my mouth.

  "Then you come to me."

  "Why?"

  "I am the alpha of the Blackthrone pack. If you will not greet me as your alpha, you will greet me as one wolf greets another, Kassandra. If you don't…" She shook her head. She didn't need to finish her sentence to make the implied threat clear.

  "You'll what?" I asked, tilting my head. "Sic your wolves on me?"

  "You are a stray," she said nastily. "I am within my rights to punish a stray that has wandered into my territory."

  A violent wind whipped through the clearing, extinguishing the torches. I shivered, suddenly cold. If it hadn't been for the fey blood in my veins, I would've chalked the gust up to the late December night. As it was, a tendril of power tainted that one breeze and I knew it was more, tasted it like candy on my tongue.

  Zaphara's magic filled the clearing, making my breath fog on the air. She was one of the Daoine Maithe, a woman of the Sidhe and faerie people, and aside from shape-shifting, I didn't know what kind of powers she possessed, but I knew she was capable of some elemental control and manipulation, and I knew without a doubt that somewhere out of sight, she'd called her power.

  A thin sheen of frost crackled across the ground.

  The light of the crescent moon rendered some color to my night vision, though the colors were dull.

  "On the contrary." It wasn't Zaphara's voice that whispered from the darkness. It was Lenorre's. "Kassandra is here at your request. You are the one who sent her the invitation."

  Lenorre stepped into the clearing as if she had just materialized, but I knew she hadn't. It was either a trick of her power or Zaphara's that made it appear that way.

  "Lenorre." Sheila made her name a growl. "This is wolf business."

  "Ah." Lenorre smiled with distaste. "I am here only as a reminder."

  "A reminder of what?"

  "Of your allegiance to the vampires. Do not make this our business."

  Sheila trembled with rage. Her hands clenched back into fists.

  If we were playing a game of seeing how many times we could piss Sheila off, I was pretty sure we were doing remarkably well.

  "I'm not making this vampire business."

  "Are you so sure? The wolf you hold in your custody is one employed by me." Lenorre's eyes burned liquid silver with power as she made her way toward Sheila. Eris and Maddox stepped out of the shelter of trees and entered the clearing. Eris's cloak swayed around her body. Her eyes burned with power like the crashing waves of angry green sea. Maddox's eyes were as deep and fathomless as empty space. That vampiric energy rode the breeze like the scent of cold stone and moist air.

  Sheila glanced cautiously at the two vampires. Lenorre continued, her voice taking on a haunting and purring edge that caressed my senses like a flitting breeze. "Where is Rosalin, Sheila?"

  "That's none of your business, vampire," she said the word vampire like it was supposed to be an insult.

  Lenorre gave a cutting smile. "She no longer belongs to you, Sheila."

  "Then have your wolf prove who she belongs to!" Her face contorted with rage.

  "Kassandra," Lenorre said, "find Rosalin, seek out your wolf."

  I stood there, wondering if I should go for my gun. The wolf reflected my emotions, pacing with agitation and uncertainty. A part of her just wanted to knock Sheila on her ass, but I ignored that part because logically, with Sheila's entire pack present, we were outnumbered.

  Lenorre was flaunting her power. I didn't have a warrant to execute Sheila. I didn't have any evidence to back up drawing my gun and pumping her chest full of silver bullets.

  I was about to confess that I didn't know how to find Rosalin, when a thought came to me. Surely, the wolf would know what to do? I lowered my shields slightly, like parting a curtain open. The night was suddenly more vibrant in my vision. I met Sheila's furious gaze and felt a responding anger.

  Rosalin, I thought, inhaling through my nose, exhaling through my mouth. The smell of wolf called to the beast and I had to focus on exerting my will over hers. Where was Rosalin? Why couldn't I sense her?

  Sheila said, "Calling your beast to your eyes doesn't prove anything, Kassandra."

  Carver made a noise low in his throat and fell into a crouch. He crawled on his hands and knees toward me, his beast riding just beneath his skin. I knelt placing both palms on the ground, and when he was close enough to slide his cheek across mine and whisper in my ear, I didn't protest.

  "Claim me as your wolf and I will tell you where she is." His voice was thick and rumbling with that edge of wolf. "It's a trap. You won't find her on your own."

  The crisp scent of his aftershave and cologne burned my nostrils. Mingling with that scent was the smell of rich earth and fur. "How?"

  Sheila yelled, "No!"

  Her footfalls on the earthen floor seemed louder than they should've been. I blocked her path, standing in front of Carver. She growled at me and though nothing physical about her changed, the heat of her beast brushed mine like a flame.

  "He is my wolf, not yours!" She screamed the words into my face. "You will not stand between me and my wolves!"

  "If you threaten to harm them, I will."

  She stepped into my personal space, her energy biting my skin. "Will you protect them unto death, Kassandra? Each and every one of them? Do they mean that much to you?"

  "They should mean that much to you."

  Sheila put her hands on my shoulders and shoved. Carver caught me with an arm around my back and kept me from hitting the ground. "You are siding with her." She stared at him when he caught me, surprise written across her features. "Rosalin told you Kassandra didn't mean to claim her. She doesn't deserve to be punished and all you're doing is looking for a fight. You're antagonizing her, not the other way around."

  "Do you feel antagonized, Kassandra?"

  "Is that a y
es or no question or are we talking on a scale of one to ten?"

  "Fine," she said, "we'll do it your way." She went back to her throne, unnervingly calm. "Those of you who wish to be claimed by Kassandra"-she swept her hand out to gesture at me-"step forward."

  I got to my feet. "Not only do I not trust your little offer, Sheila, but I didn't come here for your wolves. I came here for Rosalin, remember? If you don't want to lose Carver, to lose your gamma, tell me where the fuck she is."

  "If she was truly your wolf you would be able to find her, to sense her. You bear the mark of an alpha, Kassandra, but you do not even know how to harness the power of it."

  "You're a fucking bitch."

  Sheila smiled, pleased with herself. I didn't think about what I was doing. One moment I was standing by Carver and the next I had my hand wrapped around Sheila's throat. I shoved her back against her throne and growled in her face.

  "Where is Rosalin?"

  Sheila continued to smile while I choked her, making no move to protect herself.

  "I heard she fucked you before you hooked up with the Countess vampire. Is that true, Kassandra?"

  I pushed harder. "That's none of your business."

  Sheila laughed and her laugh thrummed against my fingertips. She moved in a blur, shoving my arm behind my back and pulling me in against her.

  I hadn't truly known how Sheila had managed to dominate the rest of the pack, how she'd managed to put them in fear and to rule as their alpha. I had my answer. She was strong, a lot stronger than I'd expected. If the whole mark of the alpha thing was true, held against Sheila, I didn't feel it. The wolf paced somewhere inside me, considering.

  "You'd be a lot of fun to play with." She jerked my arm up higher behind my back. I groaned. She whispered against my hair. "The energy raised between two powerful Lykos in the throes of passion is amazing, Kassandra."

  Before I could move, someone grabbed Sheila and slammed her body unceremoniously back in her throne.

  Eris stood above her, holding her down with a grip on her shoulder. She smiled at me and I had a feeling that the whole thing just amused the hell out of her.

  "If anyone gets to play with Kassandra, it will be me, not you."

  "Never you," Lenorre said, suddenly standing behind Sheila's throne. She touched Sheila's shoulder and Sheila flinched.

  "I didn't make this your business."

  "Actually, you did."

  Eris leaned over to whisper in Sheila's ear. "You most certainly did."

  Sheila glared at Lenorre like a sullen child. "How?"

  Lenorre moved and held out a hand to me. I took it as she slipped her body behind mine, wrapping an arm loosely around my waist. She spoke over my shoulder. "As the humans say, you touched my girl."

  A flicker of startled excitement went through me and I leaned back against her, reveling in the feel of her, in the cool energy kissing my skin.

  "You can't mate her," Sheila said sourly. "You are a vampire. She is a wolf. It is not possible. If you plan on claiming her as your mate and setting yourself in a position to overtake my pack, it will not work. She does indeed bear the mark of an alpha, but she's yet to prove the power that comes with it. She can't even find her own wolf."

  "She will," Lenorre said confidently. "Kassandra, call your wolf."

  "I don't know that she's within hearing distance."

  "Claim Carver," she said. "One way or another, we will find Rosalin."

  "She has to find Rosalin," Sheila said. "You know the rules."

  "Ah yes, and you broke them by punishing a wolf that does not belong to you."

  At that, Sheila's lips pressed into a tight line.

  "Carver," I said and he came to me. It took me by surprise when he dropped to his knees. "Yes, alpha?"

  "Don't call me that," I said, glancing at Sheila to see the sour look on her face. "Do you want me to try and claim you, not just to find Rosalin?"

  He glared at Sheila. "I made the offer," he said. "If I don't follow through with it she will punish me."

  "Is that true?" I asked Sheila. "Would you punish him for protecting his beta?"

  "I'd punish him for following you."

  "Why?" I didn't understand it.

  "She punished us when we rescued you from her brother," Carver said quietly.

  A tidal wave of rage slammed into me so fast and hard that I shuddered where Lenorre held me.

  "What sense of satisfaction do you gain from hurting them?" I asked. "They are your wolves. You are their alpha. You are supposed to protect them, not abuse them!"

  "You don't tell me what to do."

  "Stop taking what your uncle did to you and your brother out on them, Sheila. Don't become the monster whose eyes you've looked into."

  She jerked her gaze away from mine as if I'd slapped her. "It's too late for that, Kassandra. Far, far too late."

  "That's a weak and pathetic excuse to avoid taking personal responsibility for your actions. You are whatever and whoever you decide to be." I stepped out of the circle of Lenorre's arms and approached her. "Do you want to be a good alpha or a bad one?"

  "And what will you do if I am a bad one? I am alpha, not you, Kassandra. Remember?"

  "That can change."

  The wolves behind us had mixed reactions. There were yips of encouragement and growls of protest, but a great many of them remained silent, as silent as the pack of meek puppies that Sheila had made them.

  "Now you are threatening me."

  "Yes, Sheila. Now I'm threatening you. If a hair on Rosalin's head is harmed, I will hunt you down and I will kill you."

  "I can physically overpower you, Kassandra."

  "I'll take my chances." I turned my back on her, trusting Eris to keep her from touching me again. I lowered my shields another fraction and said, "Carver, if you would be my wolf, come to me."

  He came and took my hand. I didn't know how to claim him, but I remembered how I'd claimed Rosalin. I'd offered her my protection.

  "You saved my life once. I don't think I ever said thank you. I will take you as my wolf, if you would be it."

  "I will be it," he said and a shock of energy jumped between our clasped palms.

  My skin grew warm.

  "Kassandra." It was Claire's voice. She pushed through the meek crowd of wolves and approached me. She smiled awkwardly, her hazel eyes bright and confident. Her brown hair was pulled back in a low ponytail.

  Claire held out her hand. "Had I known you were taking applications I would've put mine in when you guys picked me up from the station."

  "This isn't something I planned," I said.

  "If you don't want to become an alpha, Kassandra, why are you claiming them?"

  I turned back to Sheila. "To protect them."

  "From?"

  "You."

  "Will you claim every last one of them?"

  "I will claim the ones that want it, Sheila."

  She laughed, looking out over her wolves. "Not too many seem eager to join forces with you," she said.

  "That is their decision."

  Claire caught my hand in hers, skin against skin. "Will you have me?"

  "If it is your will," I said.

  "It is my will." As Carver had, she slipped to her jeaned knees on the dirty ground.

  That same tingle of energy tapped my palm, sailing up my arm and warming my skin further.

  I made eye contact with various wolves in the pack and only a few of them refused to meet my gaze. They would avert or lower their gazes for Sheila, because she was their alpha, but not me. I was an outsider. The wolf inside me understood that it wasn't a sign of disrespect.

  I met Trevor's brown eyes through the eyes of my wolf. He, like so many of the others, stank of fear. Though Isabella, his girlfriend, was one of Lenorre's Prime vampires, there was something young and carefree about Trevor. Now his usual carelessness was gone. He looked like he wasn't sure what to do, and since he wasn't sure, the wolf and I turned away from him.

  We would no
t take the uncertain.

  Sheila's wolves parted, and Zaphara strutted up through the middle of them. Her voice whispered through my mind. I will help you find your wolf.

  I gave the slightest of nods, a nod that others might take only as an acknowledgement of her presence.

  "Eris," Lenorre said. "Maddox."

  "Yes?" Maddox grumbled, watching the pack carefully.

  "See to it Sheila and none of her wolves interfere."

  "I will take you to Rosalin," Carver said, raising his white T-shirt above his head and tossing it to the ground.

  Claire removed the jean jacket she wore, letting it fall to the ground before following Carver and removing her shoes.

  "Will you run with us?" she asked.

  I unbuttoned the black coat and handed it to Lenorre with my gun and holster. She offered her arm and I braced myself, kicking off the boots. The wolf wanted to run with them, wanted to bond with them, wanted to find Rosalin. I dropped my shields and flung open the doors that held the wolf inside. Generally, my shifts were slower and more careful. If they were fast, I still felt them, felt my bones popping, spine lengthening, felt every part of my body changing, but this…it was quick, so quick. One moment my body was changing, clothes tore, and the next I rose on all fours, white paws stark against the ground. Carver's blue and gold eyes met mine from the black mask of his wolf's face. Claire bumped up against me. Her fur was a rich brown with sprinkles of cream and white. Her eyes were the color of pine.

  I pushed up against Carver, encouraging him to lead the way. He threw his head back and howled, turning on all fours like a horse about to charge into battle. He lowered his snout, and darted in the opposite direction that I'd entered. I followed him, the earth gliding under my paws, my nails ticking on twigs and bits of grass.

  Someone grabbed my tail and I spun, growling a chastisement.

  Claire gave a little whimper, but practically skipped around me.

  I lowered my head and snapped at her ankle. She bolted ahead, catching up with Carver.

  Carver led the group at a full out run. We darted through the trees, low enough we didn't have to worry about hanging branches.

  I was passing a tall oak when something hit my side, slamming me up against the tree.