by Lily Graison
Turning to Victor, she said, “I’ll do it.”
Garrett’s hold on her tightened until she gasped. “Keep quiet,” he growled. His voice was tinged with that garbled, harsh vibration of the wolf. He glared at her, his jaw clenched tight. “Don’t say another word.”
Rayna cringed at the look he gave her. “There’s too many of them here,” she whispered.
“Do as I say, Rayna.”
“Lover’s quarrel?” Victor asked.
Garrett took a step toward Victor, pushing Rayna behind him. She watched those around her, glancing from face to face. They wore eager, expectant masks. They were waiting.
Victor leaned his head to one side, studying them both. “It doesn’t have to end in bloodshed, Garrett. I can see by your appearance you’ve come with that intention.”
“I came for my mate and I’ll take her by any means. Either you let her leave with me or I’ll fight our way out. You’re choice.”
“I’m sure those in the hall you disposed of were caught off guard. The shifters in this room won’t be. Surely you don’t want your mate to see you ripped apart in front of her.”
Rayna grabbed his arm, squeezing it to get his attention. He never looked her way or acknowledged she was there. The shifters in the room were grinning. They were enjoying the show. She glanced at Sabriel again. His gaze was intent, focused on her.
“And what makes you so sure that will be the outcome?” Garrett asked. “The only reason you’re still breathing old man is because I don’t want my mate to see me kill you.”
Victor laughed, his eyes watering with the effort. “I like you, Garrett.” He shifted in his seat and twirled his cane between his fingers. “I was skeptical when your name was first mentioned to me as a potential member of our little group but we could use someone with your gumption in the Collective. You could teach the others how to be wolves instead of sniffling little pups.”
“If you can’t teach your pack how to be real wolves, that’s your problem. As far as your Collective goes, you can rot in hell for all I care.” He turned and grabbed Rayna’s arm, walking with her across the room at a quick pace. Victor’s laughter followed them to the door before commotion at their back signaled the others moving.
When Garrett thrust her forward and yelled, “Run!” she did as he said and didn’t look back.
Bodies littered the hall, blood staining the walls and floor. She ignored them, racing through the darkened house. The sound of fighting reached her when the front door came into view.
She slowed and looked over her shoulder. She saw Thaddeus, running hell bent toward her. She gasped and quickened her pace, wondering if Garrett were coming as she raced for the door.
* * * *
Garrett slashed at the werelion in front of him, his claws digging into soft flesh. His wolf had surfaced the moment Rayna left his sight. The other shifters in the room followed his lead, their beasts breaking through their human forms, attacking on Victor’s command, as the last of the change took him. He hadn’t had time to prepare for the onslaught. There were too many of them.
He fought his way clear of the shifters and lifted his head, looking for Victor. The old werewolf was still on his throne, watching the mayhem with a smile on his face. Garrett turned to the wolf beside him and swung, grunting when something stabbed him in the back.
His vision blurred as he turned to look behind him. Another wolf glared at him, saliva dripping from his fangs, his claws painted red with blood. When Garrett lunged for him, the creatures around him all jumped at once.
They overpowered him in seconds.
Dragged from the floor, they carried him to the front of the room, kicked his feet out from under him and forced him to his knees before Victor’s chair.
Victor stared at him for long minutes, amusement dancing in his eyes. “Do you feel better now?”
Garrett lifted his head. “No. You’re still breathing.” Something passed behind Victor’s eyes. It wasn’t fear but Garrett knew his words weren’t taken lightly.
The old man watched him in silence before laughing. That wheeze he’d heard earlier turned into a hacking cough. When Victor caught his breath, he sighed, his shoulders lifting with the effort. “You are a delight, Garrett.” Victor raised his head, looking out into the crowd of shifters in the room. “Some of you could take lessons from this one. Outnumbered and he still faced you without fear. How many of you would do the same?”
Garrett watched the Breed leaders around him with a careful eye. In their shifted form, he couldn’t tell who was who. Not that he knew any of them to begin with. He didn’t care about preternatural politics. He never did. He wasn’t even sure who the Breed leader of his region was. Malcolm had never feared the leaders and didn’t feel the need to inform the pack of anything. Maybe now was a good time to acquaint himself with the order of things.
He focused his gaze back on Victor when the old man shifted in his seat. Their eyes met and Garrett held his gaze.
“I do hope you know you’ve only prolonged the inevitable.”
“Rayna is gone,” Garrett said. “You’ll not capture her a second time.”
“Are you sure of that?”
He wasn’t and that’s the part that scared him. Getting her away only stopped them for the time being. He had no doubt they’d keep trying until they’d succeeded in their plan. They’d search for her until they got what they wanted.
There was only one solution that he could think of.
Staring at Victor, he said, “If you’re so intent on doing this, I’ll do it in her place.”
Victor’s eyes glistened as he watched him. Garrett knew he was considering it… hoped the old man would take him up on his offer. Not that he was looking forward to being shot down like a rabid dog but if it saved Rayna from the same fate, he’d do it.
“That’s very generous of you. But I afraid Ms. Ford will have the most success.”
“Why?”
“Because her face is well known. The public knows her and they trust her. She’s our best chance at this.”
Garrett shook his head. “You’re wrong. It doesn’t matter who does it, the humans aren’t going to just accept you.”
“You sound like Ms. Ford now.”
“Well, unlike the majority of you here, Rayna isn’t an idiot.” He saw the wolf beside him move and didn’t have time to brace himself for the blow. His head rocked back with the impact and he was glad he hadn’t still been in human form. The knock to the head would have split his skull.
When he lifted his head again, Victor was scowling at him. “I’m beginning to dislike you.”
“The feeling is mutual.”
“Regardless of that fact, Garrett, you’ll soon thank me.”
“Thank you? For what exactly?”
Victor regarded him with a gleam in his eye. “For allowing your pack to live.”
Garrett stared at him and wondered what he meant by that. He didn’t have time to contemplate the thought. Victor looked toward the back of the room. The shuffling of feet pricked his senses and Garrett didn’t even have to look to know it was Rayna. He picked up her scent the moment she entered the room. She hadn’t been able to get away.
“Excellent,” Victor said, grinning. “Bring her to me.”
Her very presence agitated Garrett. It meant he’d failed to protect her as he’d promised to do. When she stopped beside him, her arms held tightly behind her back, a growl worked its way up his throat when he glanced up at her. She was staring at Victor, eyes flashing gold, and her features set into a mask of stone.
“It’s nice of you to rejoin us, Ms. Ford. I was just discussing your future with Garrett.”
She lifted her chin smugly. “You’ll not get away with this.”
“Oh, but I will.” Victor grabbed his cane and crawled slowly to his feet. “It is unfortunate your fate will be grim but rest assured your mate will be safe and well cared for.” He grinned and something in the look on his face said he wasn’t tell
ing them everything. “Provisions for Garrett, and the rest of your pack, have already been seen to.”
“What is that supposed to mean?”
“It means they’ll live. Your mate’s future has already been decided. Had been decided before all of this began.” He stepped down from the raised platform his chair sat on and stared at them both when he was steady. “Now, since this interruption has caused me more problems, I must talk with the others and re-plan. Enjoy your last night of freedom, Ms. Ford. Come tomorrow, the world will see your gift.” He turned and started out of the room. “Take them to the pit. I’ll not have them escaping again.”
“What about Sabriel?”
Victor stopped and turned, looking at Sabriel. He studied him for long moments before those hard eyes narrowed. “Him as well. He’s useless to us now.”
Chapter Fourteen
Bryce stood in the shadows, his gaze following Lydia. She’d roamed the house for two days now and he knew she was searching for something. She’d glanced curiously into every room she passed, and opened every shut door she saw. All but one. The one she was currently standing in front of.
The office door was normally shut. None of the pack members ever went inside. There was no need to. The room held nothing but an ancient computer with no Internet connection, a telephone and a few books. It was useless as far as an office went. Besides, Malcolm’s scent still clung to the drapes and carpets. No one wanted to be reminded of him. The room should be gutted and refurbished. He’d put that on his list of things to do once Garrett returned.
Lydia glanced down the hall in both directions before slipping inside the room. Bryce waited until she shut the door behind her before detaching himself from his hiding place and crossing the hall.
He listened for long moments for movement inside but she didn’t make a sound. He waited a full five minutes before opening the door to see what she was doing.
Her back was to him when he entered the room. She was bent over the desk and his gaze was drawn to her backside. The jeans Judith had found for her fit like a second skin and Bryce would have had to be dead not to notice her rounded bottom. He wanted to gouge his eyes out the minute he looked.
As much as he tried to deny it, he was attracted to her. How could he not be? She was curvy in all the right places, had a long mane of curly hair he wanted to sink his hands into and lips he wanted to taste every time she looked at him. His skin heated when she was near and he found himself seeking her out. For that alone he wanted her gone. Well, that and the fact he hated vampires. They were the reason he sought out the wolf who infected him. Begged him to turn him into a werewolf so he’d live long enough to destroy the creatures who took everything from him.
The anger returned in an instant when those old memories resurfaced and Bryce directed it at her. The girl across the room who had bewitched him. There was no other reason he’d feel the way he did if she hadn’t done something to him.
He crossed the room, grabbed her and flung her against the wall, holding her in place. “What the hell are you looking for?” he asked, invading her personal space. “You’ve been sneaking around this house for days now. Why?”
She stared up at him, a look of confusion on her face. Bryce glanced at her lips and bit his tongue. There it was again. That familiar heat, the need to taste her. He growled and tightened his hold on her arms. “What are you doing to me?” When she didn’t answer, he shook her. “Tell me!”
“I’m not doing anything to you.”
“You are. There’s no other reason for what I feel.”
Her eyes widened a bit then, her gaze locked with his. The corner of her mouth twitched into what he thought was a smile but it vanished as fast as he saw it. “What do you feel?”
The moment she asked, the sensation of soft hands caressing his flesh left goose bumps dotting his arms. The heat intensified in his limbs, tremors danced up his spine and his cock hardened within seconds. “Please stop,” he whispered, lowering his head and closing his eyes. The sensation died in an instant.
Bryce took several deep breaths, trying to will his erection away. He wanted to kill her for stirring him, for making him feel anything for her at all. For making him want her. When her soft, “I didn’t know,” reached him, he opened his eyes and looked at her.
The vibrant green of her eyes looked different to him now. They were tinged with gold, her long sooty lashes making them appear larger than normal. “Didn’t know what?”
She smiled at him and the small action nearly staggered him. “That we share a connection.” She lifted her hand and touched his cheek, her fingertips grazing his face. “It’s a wondrous thing.”
The way she was looking at him stole his breath. The brush of her fingers on his face leaving a path of heat behind. He stared down at her, his gaze roaming her face until he was once again focused on her lips. “I need you to stop. Whatever it is you’re doing, stop.”
“But I’m not doing anything. Not intentionally.”
The anger returned and his hands gripped her arms tighter. “Stop lying, Lydia. I can feel it. I feel it every time I look at you.” She continued to caress his face and he asked himself why he was letting her touch him. Why the feel of her fingers on his skin felt so good. “Is this some kind of vampire trick?”
She smiled at him and he saw her small, dainty fangs. “No trick.” Her gaze flittered across his features. “I thought it was only me.”
“Only you, what?”
Her fingers brushed against his lips. “I thought it was only me who wanted you. I didn’t realize the connection was there.”
She wanted him? Bryce stared at her for long moments before the last of her comment registered. “Connection? What connection? What are you talking about?”
“Bryce!” The sound of his name being yelled from the front of the house startled him. He stepped away from Lydia, staring at her and felt the loss of her touch. His body still craved her, ached to have her near.
He turned his head, looking toward the door when he heard the sound of footsteps hitting the floor at a rapid rate. Someone was running.
Giving Lydia a final look, he reluctantly turned and crossed the room before stepping out into the hall. Charlotte was running toward him. The look on her face told him something was wrong. “What is it?”
“Come see.”
Bryce followed her. Most of the pack filled the foyer. The front door was open and he could see people outside on the lawn. A trickle of fear crawled up his spine. It had to be Carmen.
He slowed his gate and tried to think of how Garrett would handle this. He smiled to himself. Knowing Garrett, he’d just kill Carmen where she stood and go about his day like it didn’t happen.
When he reached the door, he stepped out onto the porch. A quick glance at those on the lawn caused his apprehension to die. Carmen wasn’t among them.
A man in his late twenties stepped forward. He was tall and lanky, his dark hair unkempt. He looked nervous and cleared his throat before speaking. “Jacob has been hurt.”
The mention of Jacob’s name and Bryce searched him out in the crowd. He didn’t see him. “Where is he?”
“Here,” the man said, turning back to those in the yard. They parted and Bryce saw him then. He was sitting on his knees, his head lowered. A woman was by his side; her hand on his shoulder.
Bryce crossed the porch and stepped into the yard. Those present moved as he walked toward Jacob. “What happened?”
“Carmen.”
Reaching Jacob’s side, Bryce knelt in front of him and reached out, lifting Jacob’s head. His face was slashed, dried blood crusting his eyes and cheek. His shirt was torn, more scratches showing the extent of his injuries. “Why?” Bryce asked. “Tell me everything.”
The man who initially approached him came forward and knelt beside him. “She had Jacob followed and was told he’d been seen talking to your pack leader. When she questioned Jacob, and he wouldn’t tell her anything, she did this to him.”
> Bryce sighed and lowered his head to see Jacob better. “How you doing, man?”
Jacob gave him a weak smile. “Had better days.”
“Think you’ll live?”
Jacob laughed, then coughed and held an arm over his ribs before nodding his head. “Yeah. That old bitch is getting slow.”
Bryce grinned and stood. “Let’s get you in the house.” Turning to the man he’d been talking to he asked, “What’s your name?”
“Danny.”
“Help get him into the house.” Bryce turned and noticed the others in the yard staring at him. He counted seventeen and wondered why they were all there. Surely it didn’t take so many to bring Jacob to them.
When Jacob was in the house and settled on the sofa, Bryce pulled up one of the side chairs and sat down. He glanced at the others, the people who brought Jacob to him. They were all crowded near the doorway. One look at their faces and he knew they were scared. Their eyes were too wide. They stood too close together.
Turning back to Jacob, he looked at the boy, man, lying there staring up at him. “Okay, Jacob. Tell me what happened.”
“Is Garrett here?” Jacob asked.
Bryce shook his head. “No. He found Rayna and went after her.”
Jacob sighed and closed his eyes. He was quiet for long minutes before opening them back up. When he looked at him, Bryce knew what he was about to say wasn’t going to be good. “She’s working for the Collective. She left this morning to join them.”
“Working for them how?”
“I don’t know. She said we’d all pay soon. That Garrett would do exactly as she said once everything was done. Whatever it is, her reward for helping them directly affects us.”
“How so?”
Jacob shook his head. “All she said was, that soon we’d belong to her. That Garrett would belong to her.”