by Sydney Addae
He nodded, took her hand and helped her stand. “Don’t you owe Miriam a date?” Hawke asked Damian.
“Yes, maybe dinner and a movie tonight.” Damian looked at him and held out his hand. “I’ll need some money, thank you.”
Barticus dug in his pocket and placed two large bills in Damian’s hands. “Take her someplace nice.” He winked.
Hawke grinned at Damian’s pleased expression.
Asia shook her head, the spoiling started already. They left the pack lands and headed toward Lyrill.
Chapter 29
By the time they cleared the guards and drove a mile into Lyrill, Miriam had heard of their return and met their car before they reached the town limits. Her four-door Mercedes blocked their path in the middle of the road. Both vehicles stopped even though it was abundantly clear she had eyes for one person, Damian.
Miriam slid out of her car and walked to the side where Damian sat in the back. He opened the door and stood next her. “Hi.”
“Hi, when did you get back?” She glanced at the SUV and then at him.
“Just now, where’s Wulfgar?”
Miriam’s eyes widened. “Is that her?” She pointed at Asia seated in the passenger seat.
Damian smiled but didn’t answer. “Where’s Wulfgar?”
“At his home, I guess.” She grabbed his hand and walked toward her car. “Ride with me.”
Damian glanced at Hawke with a slight smile that clearly asked, what else can I do?
“She asked him if you were Amynta. Are you ready to take off the mask?” Hawke asked.
“Yes. If a bounty hunter wants to gun for me, or someone thinks they can take me like they did before, let them shoot their best shot.” She shrugged. “But I’m not going to allow my pup, Sarita, to see me other than I am. No more hiding.”
He brushed a kiss across her lips. “No more hiding.” They followed Miriam’s car and soon pulled into a similar driveway. He scanned the area, two full-bloods.
Asia looked around, frowning. “Is this where we came the first time?”
“I think so, but it was dark. Maybe.” He stepped out and assisted Asia from the car. Miriam stood next to her vehicle, talking to Damian.
Hawke chuckled. “She wants to go on their date now instead of coming inside. I told him to have fun.”
Asia looked over her shoulder as the two slid back into the Mercedes and drove off. Amynta and Barticus met them at their car. “I see she got him to go play,” Barticus said as they walked to the front door and knocked.
Hawke shrugged. “He did promise her a date.”
The door opened and a large, bald male full-blood in beige satin pants and matching shirt opened the door. “May I help you?”
“Yes, tell Wulfgar, Hawke is here to see him.”
The man’s eyes flicked over Hawke. “I will inform Master Wulfgar, of your presence.” He turned and walked off, leaving them on the porch.
“Pompous wasn’t he?” Amynta said through their link.
Asia smiled. “Wulfgar has a male lover, you know that right?” She didn’t want her mam to be surprised at seeing her brother.
“Yes, I heard he ran off with my betrothed, always wondered about that,” she said.
The bald gentleman returned and opened the door. “Please come in. May I offer you refreshments?”
“Nothing for me,” Hawke said as they entered a large living area.
“Me neither,” Asia said.
Her sire and mam didn’t respond. Instead they circled the room studying various photos while she and Hawke took seats together to watch the reunion. A few moments later Wulfgar, dressed in an emerald green jumpsuit and his hair immaculately groomed, strode into the room with tears in his eyes as he reached for Amynta. They hugged tightly for a few moments and then he kissed both of her cheeks.
Asia tried to gauge her mam’s feelings through their link but couldn’t get a clear understanding. Amynta’s emotions were all over the place, so Asia stopped trying.
“Thank you, thank you, thank you, for finding her.” He looked at Amynta again, his eyes filled with tears as he pulled her close again. Turning slightly, he glanced at Barticus and frowned. “What are you doing here? Why did you bring him here?” he snapped, and pushed Amynta behind him.
She laughed and stepped aside. “I don’t know why people feel the need to protect me from anything, I assure you I’m capable of taking care of myself.” She met Asia’s gaze and winked.
Asia nodded, remembering what she’d done at the temple.
“Barticus is my mate, Wulfgar, I’ve been with him all the time. Well, we’ve been in contact most of the time since he snatched me away.”
Wulfgar’s jaw dropped and he took her hand, leading her to the sofa. “Tell me everything. I do not believe you are happy with this defiler of children, this murderer of the innocent. He killed our sire and Wulfrik, how can you trust him?”
Amynta frowned and then patted his cheek. “There are things you don’t know and shouldn’t be so quick to judge. He is my mate, we are mated and blessed by the Goddess. Feel however you please about him, but do not slander his name in my presence.” She waited a moment but did not release his gaze. “Is that clear? Or do we need to leave now?”
Wulfgar bit his lower lip and nodded. “I will try not to speak ill of the one who destroyed our pack and my birthright.”
Amynta stood. “Wulfgar.”
He took her hand, looked up at her. “Sorry. I apologize and promise to be good. It’s just… hard after all this time. This is not how I envisioned our reunion. He’s been the enemy for decades, try and see it from my point.”
“That’s why I am still here. But I cannot allow you to continue. We will return when you can be civil,” Amynta said in a strict tone.
“No, no, please, sit, talk to me. I have missed you, we are the only two left. The others are gone. Talk to me. What have you been doing? What’s going on?” He looked around. “Bola, champagne, the best bottle, we need to celebrate.” He kissed the back of her hand again and placed it against his cheek. “I am not alone anymore. My sister has returned.”
Asia’s brow rose at his comment considering he lived with his lover. She looked around and realized they never met the former prince. He’d been missing during their first visit.
The servant walked in with a bottle of champagne on a tray with wine glasses. After popping the cork, he poured and gave each of them one. Asia smiled at the bubbles and raised her glass along with the others for the toast.
“To my sister, Amynta, the best of the best! Welcome home.” Wulfgar raised his glass and tossed back his drink, held it out and Bola refilled it. The drink tickled Amynta’s nose but had a light, sweet taste that she enjoyed. When Bola offered to top off her glass, she allowed it and continued to drink.
“You drove the old man crazy because you were headstrong just like him,” Wulfgar said to Amynta.
“Strange, he wanted us to be strong and then penalized us for being strong, that was the problem,” Amynta said, draining her glass. “Do you miss him?” she asked her brother, leaning against Barticus.
“No. Sometimes... I miss the pack, the few fun times we had with the competitions. You beat everyone in the last race, do you remember that?”
Amynta smiled and nodded. “Father was so angry, I thought he’d kill me.”
“That’s when you started staying away from the house. Things were never the same after that. Father was a tyrant, I don’t miss him. I do miss Wulfrik. Everyday actually. He’s never far from my thoughts.” Wulfgar took another glass from Bola, this one looked like water, and he upturned it. “Did you know he wanted to be Alpha? I remember we had a conversation about it one night. I think Barticus had just taken you from the village and he asked father if we would go after you.” He looked at Amynta and shook his head. “Well, father being the asshole he was, refused, saying you somehow caused your own kidnapping.” He scoffed.
“The man had anger issues.” Amynta took
Barticus’ hand in hers and kissed the back of it.
The easy connection between her parents delighted Asia, they were special. After all this time they accepted the other for themselves. She had that with Hawke and wanted to kiss the back of his hand as well. In her mind she touched him, but her eyes grew heavy, it was all she could do to keep them open. She tried hard to follow the buzz of the conversation.
“Wulfrik thought the honorable thing to do was to chase behind you and bring you home. He left that night, alone, looking for the two of you.” Wulfgar pointed to Amynta and Barticus, who sat with their eyes half-closed.
“Three days later they brought him home, broken. He’d fallen down a ravine and remained there, unable to shift because a limb from a tree impaled his arm. I watched him struggle to breathe, watched our sire rant and rave about disobedient pups instead of offering comfort. In that moment I hated like I’ve never hated before. If I could I would have broken the old man’s neck.”
Asia noticed the tenor of his voice changed and tried to speak, but her tongue wouldn’t cooperate. Her mind couldn’t think clear enough to give her body instructions.
“Hawke?” No answer.
“Hawke?”
“Hmm?”
“Call Damian.” She passed out.
Chapter 30
Damian noticed Miriam drove in the opposite direction from the castle and smiled. Obviously she didn’t want anyone to know what she had planned. She placed her palm on his leg and rubbed his thigh, each time her hand rose closer to his crotch.
When she smiled at him it reminded him of Randi the night she seduced him in Athens. That thought deflated his libido and caused him to re-evaluate the drive to the other section of Lyrill. He’d been duped once, which was more than enough. They entered a wooded area and his wolf took notice. Hair rose on his neck as they traveled further into the bush. He grabbed her hand and squeezed tight.
“Ow,” she said, glaring at him.
“Stop the car.” He squeezed her hand again.
She pressed the accelerator. The car shot forward.
Damian released her hand, opened the door and fell out. She slammed on the brakes, and backed up. He rolled to the side, missing the tires by inches.
“Damian,” she called, looking out the passenger window and then opening the door. She looked around for him in the overgrowth without fully exiting the car.
He wiggled beneath the vehicle, feeling extreme heat on his back from the underbelly, to the driver’s side. Inhaling, he sensed movement and two full-bloods headed in their direction.
“Damn you, Damian, stop being difficult,” she snapped as if he should cooperate with being taken someplace against his will. Stooping next to the driver’s door, he took sips of air as his back healed. The skin regenerated instead of stitched together, and it hurt.
He peeked through the window and noticed she had one foot in, the other out of the car while holding onto the assist grip in the ceiling as she looked around. He opened the driver’s door, jumped in, and took the steering wheel. Turning hard, she fell backward into the car as he spun in the opposite direction with her half in and half out of the car.
“Stop, stop before you kill me,” she yelled, grabbing the bar with both hands, trying to pull her legs all the way in.
He looked in the rear view mirror, saw two men with guns and pressed the gas. A bullet whizzed pass the car.
Miriam screamed, reached to the side and closed the door. She looked behind her and ducked. “They’re shooting at me,” she yelled as if he didn’t know about the shot.
Damian ignored her remarks and turned the wheel. He had no idea where they were but kept driving. A bullet blew out the back window. Damian ducked and looked behind him. The two altered full-bloods chased them. The glint of their neck braces made him groan. Full-blood machines, which meant they wouldn’t stop until they were dead. He glanced at Miriam and wondered what she planned to do with him? Obviously she hadn’t come out here for sex, what then? Something must be in the car.
Inhaling deeply, he smelled it. The base drug that coated the speckled bluebirds’ fingertips lay somewhere in the car. “So you were going to drug me and what?”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” She looked behind him, he followed her gaze and saw no one. Which meant they were gathering forces or getting in front of them.
They turned a corner and he slammed the brakes.
“What are you doing? Drive or let me drive before they come after us,” she screamed, her face void of color as she looked behind them.
Ignoring her, he felt around the front seat, following it around until he found the needle where she’d dropped it. He palmed it, smiled at her and stuck it in her arm.
“You are such a bitch.” He had moved so fast she didn’t realize what he planned until the needle protruded from her arm.
Her eyes widened as the realization hit. “No, that’s for you,” she whispered as the drug took effect, making her movements sloppy.
“You were going to meet them. Well, have fun.” He hopped out of the car and took off into the forest until he found a series of high trees. Women. Twice he had been used.
“Hawke?” He waited to hear from his sire. After a few seconds he called out again.
Soon the rumbling sound of an engine split the air. From his vantage point in the tree he watched the two full-bloods walk to the Mercedes and look inside. They stepped back and shot all four tires before walking the area and moving through the woods in his direction.
Damian cursed Miriam for her meddling and sat still in the tree. He had run past this tree and then jumped backwards to confuse anyone following. He waited to see if his ploy worked. The full-bloods passed his tree.
“Hawke?”
“Damian, help.”
He froze. “What happened? Where are you?”
“Help.”
Damian looked down, no sign of the full-bloods, but as soon as he moved they’d be on his trail. “Are you at Wulfgar’s?”
No answer.
His mind raced with the possibilities. If Hawke had called out to him that meant Asia and the rest of them were in trouble as well. Had Wulfgar done the same to them as Miriam intended to do to him? If so, the man deserved an award for acting, he had all of them fooled.
Rather than dwell on Miriam and Wulfgar, he searched the woods for his attackers and the best way to defeat them. Think, Damian, think. He’d seen Hawke take on four of these things at once, but he’d never been successful with more than one at a time. Somehow he didn’t think they would wait and take turns.
He looked in the direction of the car again. What if Miriam had more than one vial of the drug? Chances are she had at least two. He could use one on a full-blood, knock it out to even the odds. The wind changed directions and he sensed they were a distance away. But given how fast they moved, that wasn’t too reassuring.
Easing down a bit, he jumped to the next tree and clung to the branch. He waited to see if they sensed his movement. When nothing happened, he jumped to two more trees and clung tight while catching his breath.
Another thought occurred, maybe he’d find something in the trunk of the car to use as a weapon before those two came back. And it was just a matter of time before they returned, he needed to prepare. Outrunning them in the unfamiliar woods wasn’t an answer. He inhaled, and then scanned the area. One heartbeat. At least the drug didn’t kill her.
Balancing on the branch, he leapt forward, spun in the air and landed on the side of the car. Stooping low, he opened the door searching for more of the drug and found two more needles. He pocketed them and popped the trunk. Inside he found an iron tire bar. Smiling he hefted the heavy equipment in his hand.
He moved to their jeep and peeked inside. No keys. There was a way to start these vehicles without keys but he didn’t know how. Damn. Still no sign of the full-bloods. Rather than wait for them, he took off in the direction of the castle, praying for guidance and depending on luck.
&n
bsp; After an hour, Damian admitted he was lost. The tire iron felt stuck to his sweaty palm. Plus, he hadn’t been able to reach Hawke since their last transmission. Hands on his knees, he bent forward sucking in air while scanning the area.
“Fuck.” His grip tightened on the iron bar as he moved to the balls of his feet. The ground shook beneath him. Obviously they didn’t care he knew they were coming. Their scents preceded them seconds before they crashed through the grass in front of him. He waited until the second one passed and verified there were no more scents before he moved.
The two stopped and turned too late. Damian slammed the tire bar over the head of the nearest full-blood, splitting his skull in half, sending blood, bone and gray matter in every direction.
Damian stared at the blood on his shirt, surprised by the large amount and thickness. The next moment he flew backward, a large tree broke his fall. The bar dropped from his hand as his vision blurred. Moving slowly, he bent to pick up the bar but was yanked forward before he reached it and tossed across the field.
He landed on prickly bushes. They pierced his skin and burned at the entry points. “Damn,” he whispered feeling the impact in every part of his body. The full-blood jumped, and would have landed on top of him, making him a pin cushion in the forest, but he jerked up and rolled aside at the last second, partially landing on the ground with a loud groan. Half of him remained entangled on the bushes but the full-blood missed him completely. The full-blood struggled to free himself, Damian pulled out one of the syringes and plunged the contents of the vial into his thigh.
The full-blood grunted and continued to pull free from the prickly bushes. His movements made it easier for Damian to gain complete freedom, he hit the ground and remained on his knees until the pain eased. The full-blood’s movements slowed and then stopped.
Arching his back, Damian pulled out the remaining thorns from his body before his skin knitted and sealed them inside. Once done, he moved forward and patted the full-blood’s pockets, searching for the keys to the jeep. “Fuck.” He turned and looked at the dead full-blood on the ground. His stomach lurched at the sight of the headless…thing.