Lilith Mercury, Werewolf Hunter Series (Boxed Set, Books 1-3)

by Tracey H. Kitts

  He walked with a smile to where I stood, shivering on the top step, and removed his coat. I could still feel the warmth of his body as he wrapped the jacket around my shoulders and pulled it closed underneath my chin.

  “You look good, Red.” He smiled and rubbed my forehead. “I’m glad to see the rock didn’t leave a mark.”

  “It bruised for about a day, but I covered it with my hair,” I said with a grin.

  “So, what did you tell him?” he asked about Alfred.

  “Nothing, he’s not here.”

  Marco raised an eyebrow at the comment and I elaborated, “He’s working with my father for a few days.”

  He placed his arm around me tightly and walked me to the car while he asked, “How is Jacob these days?”

  “Fine.”

  Marco smiled as if he knew a joke I didn’t and helped me into the car.

  When he slid in beside me across the back seat, my heart thumped painfully. The Dread Moon was close to the beach, and a good three hours from club Red so they wouldn’t be in direct competition. However, the beach was a fifty minute drive from my house, over an hour if there was traffic, and there I sat next to my greatest weakness since chocolate.

  “It’s all right, Red. I won’t let the press get their hooks in you. Once we get there, I’ll do the talking,” he said, obviously mistaking why I was quiet.

  I reached over, placed my hand over his, and gently stroked the backs of his knuckles. Even that simple contact was enough to thrill me.

  “Don’t feel guilty, Red,” he whispered. “You haven’t done anything wrong.”

  “It’s not what I’ve done that bothers me,” I confessed. “It’s what I’d like to do.”

  “Any time you’re ready,” he said as he squeezed my hand gently.

  I couldn’t speak. I wanted Marco, but what about Alfred? What had I done? I loved Alfred. Was being with Marco worth breaking Alfred’s heart? Of course not. I couldn’t deliberately hurt Alfred. So, there I sat, beside a man who wasn’t mine, but I was there because I couldn’t stand the thought of him belonging to anyone else. It was killing me.

  “Come here.” Marco wrapped his arm around me and I rested my head against his shoulder. “Things will work out somehow, Red. Don’t worry.”

  But I was worried. I was afraid that by the time I made up my mind, Marco wouldn’t be waiting around for me. “Then I’ll just have to kill his next mate.” The instant the thought crossed my mind it frightened me. Had it really gone that far? Was this the place I had brought myself in resisting so hard? I had killed Marco’s last mate, the alpha female of his pack. At the time I was being attacked, I had no idea who she was. Her obvious jealousy had given me some indication, and Marco later confirmed the truth. I had killed his alpha female, making me next in line for the position. Of course, I had not yet accepted Marco’s offer. But the more I was near him, it weighed heavily on my mind.

  “I’ll still be here when you make up your mind.”

  I looked down and realized I was still holding Marco’s hand. He must have heard my thoughts through the contact, because I hadn’t thought to block it.

  “I’m sorry,” I said, and tried to withdraw my hand.

  “No,” he said, holding me tighter. “It does me good to know you care, Red.”

  “I never said I cared.”

  He smiled almost sadly as he looked down at me and asked, “Can you honestly say that you don’t?”

  The answer was no, I couldn’t. But I didn’t say that. I didn’t say anything at all. I stretched upward and touched lips as warm and soft as I remembered. Marco pulled me onto his lap and held me tight, though the kiss remained gentle.

  “What am I going to do?” I whispered against his lips.

  “You don’t have to make a decision tonight, Red. Enjoy yourself, try to relax. Things will happen as they were meant to, with or without our consent.”

  “You sound just like Mathias,” I said dejectedly.

  “Funny, he’s the one who said it to me.”

  Someone knocked on the dark window which separated us from the front seat. Marco lowered the partition and Luther waved at us in the mirror.

  “We’re almost there, you two break it up,” he said, winking at me.

  I smiled and slid from Marco’s lap, trying not to blush.

  “Can you help me with this?” He held up his bowtie.

  “Well,” I said as I slid back onto his lap in order to get the right angle, “I don’t know if I’m the best person to attempt this.” I buttoned up his shirt and gave it my best shot. To be honest, I had more difficulty buttoning up his shirt than I did with the bowtie. It just seemed a shame to be putting his clothes on.

  As we drove up I slid back onto my side of the seat and looked at the waiting swarm of flashing cameras and people. Nausea hit me like a brick. “Holy shit.” My heart fluttered again in a much more unpleasant sort of way.

  Marco squeezed my hand and I felt my pulse begin to come under control. His presence soothed me almost like a drug.

  “Hold onto me,” he said.

  He had shared with me before that my touch did the same for him. Something told me as much as we both hated having to deal with the press, we’d be clinging to each other. As we slowed down, a soft rain began to fall and Luther handed us an umbrella from the front seat.

  Luther pulled up directly in front of the club. An area was roped off leading straight into the building. Along this rope were several heavily muscled bodyguards who I’m sure were pack members. Good, the press couldn’t get too close.

  Marco put his hand on the door. “Ready?” he asked.

  I nodded, and he opened the door. Marco got out and opened the umbrella before taking my hand again and helping me to stand. I was nearly blinded by the dozens of cameras flashing in my face, almost immediately. While Marco answered a few questions from some reporters to his right, I looked up and saw the sign hanging above the door. “The Dread Moon” was spelled out in large dark blue letters, and beside this hung a crescent moon. I liked it.

  “Ms. Mercury, are you dating Marco Barak?” This rather sudden question being directed my way snapped me back to reality. However before I could answer, we were both bombarded with more questions.

  “The head of the new H.A.V.O.C. organization dating a werewolf, isn’t that against the rules?”

  “Mr. Barak, are you in love with a woman who was so recently your sworn enemy?”

  “What it’s like having sex with a werewolf?”

  “Is he an animal in bed?”

  “What does this mean for the future of H.A.V.O.C.?”

  Marco finally managed to interrupt. “What this means is Lilith Mercury and myself,” he began as he paused to smile at me, “are friends. Before I was turned years ago, we were colleagues.”

  “So, you’ve known each other for years?” someone shouted from the crowd.

  “That’s right.”

  “Were you involved while she was a werewolf hunter and you were a werewolf?”

  He laughed. “First of all, I’m still a werewolf, and we are not involved.” He continued before anyone else could interrupt. “To answer your earlier question, what this means for H.A.V.O.C. is that if we can get along with each other, no one else should have a problem.”

  I had to say, Marco handled himself well, especially since I knew how nervous he was. Standing there, smiling for the cameras, he was the perfect spokesperson for the werewolves. Sexy, rugged, and completely tame. At least, that’s what they thought.

  We turned for the door again and I pulled him close enough to whisper, “You owe me, big time.”

  “Is that what they call it these days, getting along?” I knew that obnoxious voice. I turned and saw Lola standing behind the blue velvet rope. “I take it you liked that picture I took?”

  “The picture you took?”

  Then it dawned on me who had been watching me the last time I went into town. Lola worked at the video store, and was apparently moonlighting
with the local piece of crap newspaper. She and I had known each other since high school, and my opinion of her had not improved over the years. I refused to let her embarrass me.

  “Actually, that’s my favorite t-shirt,” I replied.

  “Do you like it as much as wearing the werewolf’s coat?” she asked with a sneer.

  “No,” I said provocatively. “This is much warmer.”

  “Lilith!” This voice I recognized also and I was glad to hear it. Kat and Elijah were standing a short distance away behind another section of rope. I ignored whatever remark Lola had been about to make and walked toward them. From the corner of my eye I saw Marco pull one of the bodyguards close and whisper, “Don’t let her in,” as he looked toward Lola.

  Chapter Seven

  Before I got too close, I could hear Kat and Elijah arguing. Apparently she still wasn’t satisfied with his driving.

  “I did not nearly kill her!” Elijah yelled, his deep blue eyes growing darker with anger.

  Every time they got together, Kat and Elijah fought like siblings.

  “You nearly ran her over, Elijah!”

  “She was on the sidewalk!” he yelled.

  “Do you two want to get into my club?” Marco winked at Kat and she laughed.

  He looked at Elijah, and I realized they had never met even though they were at the same party last Halloween. I’m sure Elijah would never recognize the large black werewolf as the handsome man standing beside me.

  “Marco, this is Elijah Jasper.”

  “Of course.” He smiled and shook Elijah’s hand. But Marco already knew who he was. I’d dated Elijah briefly while Alfred worked on Terra for several months last summer, before Alfred and I started seeing each other. Some of Marco’s wolves had seen us in a club together one night and ran back to him with the story. He was a good actor, but I could tell Marco didn’t like Elijah.

  As a matter of fact, Elijah didn’t seem too pleased with the arrangement either. He looked at me, and for a second I thought I saw anger in his eyes before he smiled. He looked good. He was wearing a black suit that made his eyes seem more blue, and his dark blond hair appear almost brown. Elijah was the same height as Kat, though with the heels she wore, Kat was slightly taller. Ever since he moved into town a few years ago, I’d thought Elijah Jasper was adorable, even if he was a bit too innocent for my taste. All the same, his blue eyes always made me smile.

  “Shall we?” Marco reached in front of them and moved the velvet cord. Other people surged forward, but they were no match for the reflexes of a werewolf. He closed the area off again, and we entered the club together.

  The Dread Moon was huge. Club Red was not small, but this was even bigger. An enormous dance floor stood before us, already filled with people. As we moved farther into the room, I could see stairs to my left. Here, the dance floor extended four stories up with people dancing and looking down over the rails at the party below. To my right was another staircase that Marco leaned in and told me led to the VIP rooms and his office.

  The smooth Jamaican rhythm of the music was almost hypnotic.

  “Fuckin’ A,” Kat said, wiggling her way between us. “You got any hot Jamaicans around here?”

  I couldn’t help laughing, because a handsome man stepped over almost on cue. He had a creamy chocolate complexion and long dreadlocks. He was Marco’s height, though slightly more muscular. He wore dress pants and a vest, but no shirt.

  “This is Jeremiah,” Marco said. “Jeremiah, this is Lilith Mercury.”

  We shook hands and Marco informed me that Jeremiah would be helping him to run the place since he couldn’t always be there.

  “Eet was my sister dat ya saved las summer,” he said. I loved his accent.

  I remembered the tall dark woman in the parking lot of The Firestarter. I had rescued her from a gang who’d tried to rape her. Now that he mentioned it, I could see the resemblance. The truth of the matter was I’d been sent to kill her. But after taking in the scene, I was on her side. I refused to kill the woman for defending herself.

  “I moved here after de incident so I could keep an eye on her.”

  “Wauneta works here now,” Marco said, and pointed at the bar across the room. Sure enough, I recognized the bartender as the woman I’d saved. The men talked for a few more minutes while Marco introduced the Jamaican to Kat and Elijah. It was then that a streak of silvery gray hair caught my attention amongst the crowd.

  “Will you excuse me for a minute?”

  I slipped Marco’s jacket from my shoulders and followed the streak of gray hair onto the dance floor without waiting for an answer.

  “What are you doing here?” I caught Aldan Medwin by the sleeve.

  He was wearing a dignified looking suit with a long jacket that could almost be considered a frock coat, in place of the robes he’d worn at the ball. But with the long beard and hair, he looked more like a dressed up hippie.

  “My dear.” He placed a hand over his heart in alarm but he was smiling. “You startled me,” he said.

  “Don’t act like you weren’t watching me just now.”

  “All right, I won’t. How did it go with Mathias? I take it you passed along my greeting?”

  “Yes, I did.”

  “And I assume he told you what he did?”

  “Yes. Actually, there’s something I wanted to ask you about that.”

  We made our way to the bar where I spoke to Wauneta who thanked me again for my help last summer. This made such a good impression on Aldan, he bought me a drink. We sat at the bar while I asked him to explain exactly what had happened with my ancestor and his sister.

  “So, Eric isn’t …?” I couldn’t bring myself to finish the question.

  “Mathias’ child? Heavens no.” He shuddered. “That’s my other sister’s son.”

  “But the red hair?”

  “It runs in my family,” he pointed out, smiling. “Were I not over five hundred years old, mine would no doubt still glow in the dark.” He chuckled and ordered a cola and rum.

  “As you’ve probably already figured out, my sister that Mathias seduced was Aurora, already married by that time to Joshua Mercury. When I realized what had been going on, of course it took me two hundred years to figure out my niece was not aging normally.” He paused and took a sip of his drink. “Well, I’m sure you can understand why I was so upset?”

  “Of course. So, what made you decide to speak to him? Have you really forgiven Mathias?”

  He smiled as he replied, “For the first time I was able to understand, if only for a moment, what my sister was up against.” He sighed. “I could no longer hold a grudge.”

  “So, this means that you’re my—”

  “Great, great uncle, yes. I’m sure you’ll learn to live with the shame of it.” He winked.

  Aldan and I talked for a long time while I watched Marco make his rounds throughout the club, talking to waiters, and speaking several times with Jeremiah. Kat and Elijah were arguing again, apparently they tried to dance and they both wanted to lead.

  “I did not step on your foot!” Elijah insisted hotly.

  “Did so, you’ve got a lead foot on the dance floor just like you do behind the wheel!” Kat screeched as they walked past us.

  “Charming friends.” Aldan smiled and his pale gray eyes twinkled.

  “They’re usually not like this,” I told him, unable to stop snickering at the exchange.

  “I see you get along pretty well with the local pack leader,” he said conversationally, but I wasn’t fooled. I didn’t respond and he continued, “I can understand what you would see in him. You know Jacob always liked him, before he was turned.”

  “How long have you known my father?” I asked suddenly. I found it strange that he should know about who my father liked and disliked. It wasn’t as if he spoke to everyone about Marco. For that matter, it wasn’t as if my father spoke to everyone, period.

  “Why most of his life,” he replied with a smile.

&
nbsp; “He knew you were his uncle?”

  “Of course.” Aldan shrugged off the question as he finished off his cola and rum.

  “Then why didn’t anyone ever tell me?!”

  “You never asked?”

  “Well, no. I honestly never considered I might be related to a wizard.”

  “Jacob, as I’m sure you know, is a visionary.”

  A visionary can see auras around people, and if they’re really good, they know what every different shape, color, or design might mean. This didn’t surprise me.

  “I’d figured as much,” I answered.

  “So, Jacob wondered how he’d come across this ability. He traced his family history, and found yours truly,” he explained, opening his arms wide with the statement.

  “What about Mathias?”

  “He has no idea about Mathias. You and I remain the only members of the family who know about that.” Something in Aldan’s voice said he wanted to keep it that way.

  “How do you know I haven’t told him?”

  “Because telling someone you’ve inherited the power of The Seducer is not something most people would do. I especially couldn’t see an attractive young woman telling her father this.”

  He was right. I didn’t plan on sharing the information with anyone unless I had to. I wasn’t ashamed of Mathias, I just didn’t want everyone to know. It was personal.

  Marco walked up then and flashed us both a wolfish grin.

  “Glad you could make it,” he said to Aldan.

  “You invited him?”

  “Yes.” He smiled again, giving us both a glimpse of his teeth and his charm.

  I didn’t know what to think of this news, but before I could respond Marco asked, “Would you like to dance?”

  He led me onto the floor, and a slow song began to play. Wasn’t that awfully convenient? I looked up at him questioningly.