by Morgan Wylie
Enock nodded and pulled out his cell to contact Imogen, the leader of the coven. The witches didn’t live on site, but they still considered themselves a part of the PAC. They enjoyed the protection Rylen and his team offered them, and in return, they offer their spells and magic when they were needed.
“Poppy, I need everything you can give me on those letters—anything that can be a clue. We don’t want to overlook anything.” Rylen stood back up and continued issuing orders. He noted how Lucius gently helped Gracie to her feet then guided her over to a chair to sit in. Good, she needed someone to care for her, and he couldn’t be the one to do it now. He had to save his mate. Rylen sucked in a deep breath then slowly exhaled as he considered his next moves. “I want all shifters with me. We need to try and follow Alana’s scent. Be discreet in the lobby upstairs, but we need to find her trail. Maybe she can lead us straight to Fairfax.” He looked around the room, noting who was there and available to him. “Lola and Vi, please go into Alana’s room and see if you can find which spell she used so we can have the witches evaluate it. They nodded and took off.
Mai stood quietly in the corner of the room, her arms folded across her stomach. She looked sick, worried. Rylen approached her slowly. She took note of him and glanced away quickly, trying to keep him from seeing the grief in her eyes, but it was too late. He had seen it. Standing just feet in front of her, he could see the lines and dark circles of exhaustion under her eyes. Not saying anything, he examined her from her expression to her stance. Everything she was emitting just now told him volumes about how she had acted lately, and it served to confirm his suspicions. He opened his mouth to say something, but she shot her eyes to his, shaking her head only slightly, just enough for him to see and understand. Not here. She glanced her eyes to a spot over on the wall near the door. Concern pinched Rylen’s expression. He carefully shot his gaze to where hers had gone moments before. There on the wall was a tiny spot. Scrutinizing it, he realized it was another one of those tiny spiders that had recently infested his Lair.
Wait. That was it. The Lair had been infested and not by any kind of bugs, but spiders. Spiders! Furious, Rylen turned from Mai and mouthed “later,” to which she lowered her eyes in submission. He was getting to the bottom of this… now.
“We have a lot of work to do. Let’s get after it. I need to find my mate,” Rylen growled and stormed out of the room, but before he left the doorway, he swung his fist into the wall, smashing the insect that dared to invade his territory. “Mai’s with me, meet back in the Den in fifteen!” he called back over his shoulder. Mai followed him out, at first tentative, noticing the confused expressions of several near her, but then she regained her stature and found her pride once more, strutting shoulders back and head held high.
Chapter Seventeen
“Poppy?” Mather asked quietly, sticking his head inside the door.
“Come in, Mather,” her voice called to him from inside Headquarters where he could hear her scurrying around the room.
Mather surveyed the scene before him. Poppy had taken over the entire room, relegating poor Tom to the top row of the theater seating with his laptop and stack of files. He gave Mather a sheepish shrug and a wave hello. Mather nodded his head in return and frowned at all the paperwork and tools scattered across the desk. Poppy was usually very tidy and efficient when she worked, but this was chaotic.
“What’s going on, Poppy?” Mather bluntly questioned.
She whipped her head around at his tone and frowned. “What does it look like? I’m trying to get better results on those blasted letters for Rylen. Keyword is trying,” she voiced with frustration. Her red curls were piled high on her head in a sloppy ponytail and Mather could see her hand tremor slightly when she reached for a different tool, which she used to tighten the machine she had created to read magical energies.
“Can I help? You seem frazzled.”
“No.” Poppy stopped and closed her eyes, taking a brief moment. She looked at Mather, and her eyes softened, but still she gave him a tight smile. “No, thank you.”
“Why do you think I’m up here?” Tom mumbled, but Mather could hear him. Apparently, Poppy heard him as well, if her glare in his general direction meant anything.
“While the other shifters are getting ready, Rylen sent me to help you. Maybe I can help distract you for a minute,” Mather said as he strode closer and placed his hands on her shoulders, intent on relieving some of the strain she held there.
“Distract me?” She whirled on him and her eyes blazed. “I can hardly get you to look at me sometimes. Now, you want to distract me when those monsters might have another one of us held captive?” Poppy pulled out of his grasp and turned back to her work. “I have to find the key to this magic, Mat. Can’t you understand? I have to do this. I have to save Alana.”
“Because it was you,” Mather said with compassion and understanding.
“Yes. And now it’s my turn to save her. I wouldn’t have gotten out if it hadn’t been for her, Mat.” Poppy’s voice and demeanor had softened slightly. She turned to her work but paused and dropped her shoulders. “I don’t know if I can figure out anything more from the letters. Whoever did this is good,” she admitted.
“You’re better.” She smiled back at him. Mather stepped forward. “We’ll get them, Poppy. And we’ll find Alana, hopefully, before Rylen loses control of his beast.” Mather frowned, lost in thoughts of another time when someone other than Rylen lost control of his animal.
Poppy’s face scrunched up with concern at Mather’s shoulders tightening, his eyes staring into the distant past, unseeing anything directly in front of him, including her. About to bring him out of his memory, she heard an echoing sound erupt from outside the door and down the hall. At the same time, Mai came bursting into the room, slightly out of breath, “Mather, they need you in the Den.” Mai turned and left him, knowing he’d follow.
“He sounds like a tortured cat, Mather. Go help him.” Poppy inhaled and watched his face change from wherever he just was to that of a warrior on alert. Mather studied her for longer than he should have, conflict crossing his eyes as if wondering if he should stay. “Go. I’ll be fine. I’m going to try a few more things. He needs you.”
“Do you?” Mather whispered lower than what he thought she could hear, but her shoulders tightened, suggesting she had. Her head started to move back around to him, but he turned to walk out the door before the look he saw in her eyes could stop him from ever leaving this room, at least for the next hour, anyway. She was right, he had a job to do and a best friend to contain. They had better find Alana soon. Rylen’s beast had waited far too long to have a taste just to have her ripped away from him—it would drive him mad.
~~~~~
Mather walked into the Den to find his brother, Luc, and Enock restraining a wild-eyed Rylen. Not only was his panther clawing to escape its confines, but Rylen’s power flooded the room. Mather slowed as he entered, taking in the rest of the room and shooing out the final stragglers who had gotten stuck in the corner. Once everyone else was gone, Mather examined the situation, spying the out-of-place sheen of sweat glistening on Enock’s forehead and the strain of tightness in Luc’s eyes.
“His magic is having some kind of reaction or flare-up,” Enock began to explain, “and it’s driving his cat bat-shit crazy.”
“Call in the witches, Mat,” Lucius instructed.
Mather nodded. With one last look at Rylen held up against the wall—murderous rage piercing through his eyes—Mather grimaced. His leader and friend had more control of his beast and his magic than anyone else Mather knew. For him to be this side of complete loss, Mather couldn’t imagine the stress it was causing. Rylen wasn’t one of the big guys, but his beast—enraged by the intensity of his missing mate and the amount of magical energy pumping into him like an adrenaline junkie—was enough to cause Enock and Luc to strain their own strength. He hoped the witches would be able to come up with something to stabilize Rylen’s ma
gic or, at least figure out why his magic flared up in the first place. “This is the last thing we need right now,” he grumbled under his breath as he strode out the door he had just come through.
“Hang in there, man,” Enock coaxed as the door shut, muffling the end of his words.
Mather spun on Lola and Vi standing in the hallway pretending they hadn’t been trying to peek in. Mai was leaning against the wall, not far behind them, watching and listening. Clearly they hadn’t completely left when they exited the Den. His eyes narrowed on each of theirs. “What happened in there before all hell broke loose?”
“It was so strange, Mather.” Lola looked down the hall to make sure no one was close. “Vi and I were on our way back from Alana’s room. He had just been talking to us about scouting the areas and checking in with the street networks to see if anyone had seen her on the streets or heard anything new going down.” Her eyes traveled to Vi’s then back. “It was Lacy. She did something.” Lola breathed and shook her head. “I didn’t know her magic could do something that would set off Rylen like that.”
“I didn’t either. I mean, I knew she had magic as one of the witch apprentices, but she’s never done much with it and always stays away from things we need it for. I just thought maybe she wasn’t any good at it.”
“What did the slut do?” Mather growled between his teeth.
“It seemed normal enough—for Lacy that is—she flirted and tried to get close to him,” Lola’s eyes took on a distant gaze as if she was remembering all the details in retrospect. “Rylen asked her politely to move on.”
“She didn’t,” Vi interjected, folding her arms across her chest and tilting her head to the side with attitude. “She is one bitch of a witch if you ask me.”
“Again. What. Did. She. Do?”
“Rylen was on edge anyway, but she got all up in his space and ran her finger across his chest. I can’t believe he didn’t snap her finger. I was about to,” Lola snapped offensively. “Alana will have to put that bitch in her place if she’s still here when A returns.”
At the coronary that looked ready to explode on Mather’s face, Vi touched Lola on the arm, focusing her thoughts. “Right. She really didn’t do much. Actually, it looked as if he was almost enjoying her attention”—Lola frowned—“but then he shook his head as if coming out of a daze. I think she tried to spell him.” Lola’s eyes went wide. “Oh. My. God. I bet that’s how she got him to get in her skanky-ass pants.” Certain of her new findings, Lola’s eyes flipped between Vi and Mather to confirm her suspicions.
“I wouldn’t put it past her,” Vi said thoughtfully.
“What happened then, Lo?” Mather redirected their thoughts.
“His face contorted with a rage I haven’t seen in a while. He was definitely fighting his animal more than before.” Lola checked the hallways for eavesdroppers once more and her voice lowered to a hush. “He kicked her out of the Den.”
“After she grabbed her stuff and hurried out of the Den, he got real stiff and his eyes began to glow that greenish color they do when he’s shifting,” Vi continued. “He looked like he was in pain. His face scrunched up, and he reached for the wall like he was about to fall over.”
“He shouted for everyone to get out and told me to get the guys. Luckily, they weren’t far, and I grabbed Lucius, who called for Enock. I don’t know what happened, though. He seemed in control and fine one minute and then crazy insane about to lose control the next. What could she have done to him? I mean, he’s the most powerful magic user I know. It’s not like she could take him out with a single touch or spell… could she?” Lola folded her arms then fidgeted with a string on her shirt and then threw her arms down in exasperation. “What the fuck is going on around here, Mat?” Her big eyes pleaded with him to do something, to fix it. If only he could, he just didn’t know where to begin. “Did she dupe us?”
“I’m not sure. I think it was just the push that carried him over the edge from what was already happening. Circumstantial timing and all that.” Mather frowned. “I need to get the witches to see if they can stabilize his energy surge.”
“Enock reported it could take a while for them to get here. What if he can’t hold out that long?” Vi asked, concern etched in her beautiful, flawless face. “They should stay with us, especially right now with all this shit happening.”
“But one of them is here, remember? Ambrosia chose to stay here to get away from their drama. Let’s go get her,” Lola offered, excited to do something helpful.
“Good. Lo, take me to her room.” Mather paused for thought then faced Vi. “Vi, please get Doc, too, just in case there is something he can do—not over the intercom, though. Let’s keep this as quiet as we can for now.”
With a plan of action, little though it may be, Vi took off sauntering as fast as she could in her three-inch wedges in one direction while Mather and Lola went toward the guest rooms.
Not even minutes later, Mather rushed back into the Den with Ambrosia on his heels. She was approaching her thirties, petite, with spiraling golden locks down most of her back. She had deep dark blue eyes that held mystery and intrigue, or so Mather thought—he had been told it was a witch thing. Their wisdom and respect for magical energies registered in their eyes more so than in any other race of paranormal being encountered thus far. Ambrosia held herself with confidence as they entered the room, and Mather allowed her to digest the scene before saying anything. The guys were exactly where he had left them moments ago, though their appearance showed the increased strain Rylen’s magic was having on them. The room was thick with the magic. It covered every surface like a heavy quilt snuffing out all possibilities of a chill.
Ambrosia made a sound next to him that he likened to a school marm in a tiff. She even had the glasses to go with it. He questioned her with his expression. She practically rolled her eyes at him right there in the middle of hell in their Lair. “Do any of you have external magic? Or magic that you are releasing at this moment?” she sternly questioned Lucius and Enock without batting an eye at their glares toward her and at Mather for bringing her there.
“The rest of the witches are on their way, but she was already here. Answer her question,” Mather directed.
“No,” Enock answered her gruffly, his words arrested with the strain of his force used on Rylen. Luc stared Ambrosia down only to shake his head to also reply, no, he had not released any magic.
Ambrosia turned to Mather, as well, raising an eyebrow. “No, I don’t have that kind of magic, but Lacy was in here before he was set off. Lola thought perhaps she cast a spell,” Mather answered quietly, but not quietly enough. Rylen’s head shot up, his lip curled at hearing Lacy’s name. Clearly, she had done something.
“Someone else’s magic is here in this room. It is possibly Lacy’s, but I can’t tell for sure by myself.” Looking at Mather, she tilted her head in thought. “Or it’s in him.” Ambrosia nodded as if confirming her own suspicions.
“In him?” Lucius questioned, holding on to Rylen as tightly as he had since it first happened.
“Yes, it’s lecherous, almost as if it was his own but not. It has leeched onto his, masking its inception.” Ambrosia paused, unconcerned with the scowls from the large intimidating men in the room. Others were easily cowed by them, but she knew how to hold her own and was confident in her own magical knowledge. “Didn’t he have a run in with some lethal magic not long ago? If any bit of it did not get purged from his system, it could be causing this flare up if it was attempting to grow or control him in any way.” Her brows pinched together, and she bit her lip in concentration.
“What can be done about it?” Mather asked, taking charge.
“I need the rest of the witches. If indeed it is because of alternate magic, then I will need the combination of all our powers to stabilize him once more.” She looked apologetic that there was not a quicker fix. “Unless his mate is nearby… could she come and help calm him?” Ambrosia looked expectantly to each of the men
.
“If she were here, she would be in here by now,” Mather growled impatiently.
“Mat,” Enock warned while Ambrosia lifted her hands in peace.
Her attempt at placating him was fruitless at this point. They were all on edge. “I didn’t know she was not here. I apologize.” At her words, a strangled cry erupted from Rylen’s throat. His feline was desperate for his mate and wasn’t able to find the control necessary to find her. His cry was heart wrenching. Ambrosia’s face pinched with agony. At that moment, her pocket buzzed, and she reached in to grab her phone. “They’re almost here. I will inform them what they are walking into,” she explained as she strode quickly out the door.
“Flakey witches,” Mather spit out after the door closed.
“Mather. We need them right now,” Enock admonished, endeavoring to keep Rylen upright. “Come on, Rylen. Pull it together. Alana needs you,” Enock told Rylen, trying to get through to him. At the mention of Alana’s name, Rylen’s head shot up, the greenish-yellow of his feral eyes searching for his mate.
“We’ll find her,” Luc promised the beast.
Chapter Eighteen
Ambrosia led in five witches of various ages. Witch was a broad term that included most magic users, although the warlocks—similar to Rylen—classified themselves differently, not only because of their gender but also, to no one’s understanding, their magic worked slightly differently. The leader of the small coven devoted to the PAC stomped through the Den’s doors, a woman on a mission, seeking Rylen. The scowl on her face was accompanied with a glare of curiosity. If she didn’t understand what they were dealing with, her fierce expression didn’t give it away. In her high-end feminine black power-suit, three-inch heels, and sleek platinum bob, she was the most intimidating of the witches—which, of course, was her goal. The witches for centuries had had to deal with a bad image, and Imogen was anything but the old, frumpy woman with wiry, out-of-control hair, a big nose, ragged dresses, or any of the other witch stereotypes out there. She came across harsh at times, but Rylen respected her and even traded magic secrets with her. As for the other four witches who trailed in Imogen’s wake, they were dressed similarly but more casual than their fierce leader. The witches were all business. No words were spoken as they entered and formed a circle in the only open area in the Den. Ambrosia joined them, taking her place next to one of the other younger witches. Imogen approached Mather and beckoned him closer.