I turned weary eyes toward the ceiling, taking a moment to gather my patience. He sounded like we were discussing a school project, instead of trying to save my best friend’s life. “Remember how to get back to where you were held?”
He raised an eyebrow. “You think Drake and the others are still there?”
We were going there either way. “They probably left behind some clues. They always leave clues behind.”
His eyes shifted to the floor. “If you say so.” He didn’t exactly sound convinced.
Before I could respond my doorbell rang. Jax leaned over and peered out the window. He pointed outside. “Do you know him?”
I pulled back the curtain. It was Drew. One of my late-night friends. I’d promised him money for a new pair of shoes. “I got this.”
“Hey, baby.” He wrapped arms around me the moment I opened the door.
I pushed him away. “Not now. I’m busy.”
He started to argue but stopped once he saw Jax. His jaw tightened, and his voice came out hard and accusing. “Busy? That what they calling it now?”
I glared at him, because now really wasn’t the time. My best friend was missing and he wanted to play the jealous card. I riffled through my purse and pulled out eight twenties, thrusting them into his hand. It was time for him to go. “You would’ve gotten more if you hadn’t acted like an asshole.”
His eyes went wide, voice indignant “You got another dude in here and I’m the asshole?”
I opened the door. “I’ll talk to you later.” He stared at me hard for a second then turned his attention back to Jax.
I let out a slow breath, trying to keep my cool. I needed him gone. We had so much to do, and he was only wasting time. Anyway, he knew who I was. He was acting like a boyfriend and I didn’t have one. A couple of friends, yeah. But a boyfriend? Never.
Jax got a little more comfortable on the couch and spread his arms out. “We were just having pizza and beer. Her treat. She is generous, isn’t she?” He sounded mocking and from the glint in his eyes he knew it.
Drew’s nostrils flared, but I pushed him out the door before anything could happen. “Catch up with me in a few days. We’ll have a good time. I promise.”
Jax watched me closely after he was gone. “You do get it in, don’t you? I like a woman who knows what she wants.”
Ignoring that completely, I pointed down the hall. “Guest room is second door on the right. The sheets are clean and the bed is made. Try to get some sleep. We pull out first thing in the morning.”
I was almost out of the living room, but at the last minute I turned back toward Jax. “I don’t know you, and right now I don’t trust you. The only reason that you’re here is so that I can keep an eye on you while we give my team time to get everything together to move in on Cam’s location. Don’t make me regret it. Oh, and if you come out of your room, alarms will sound. Just something for you to think about.”
2
The department had an abundance of undercover cars at its disposal, and so I’d decided to use one of them, rather than go on my own.
Jax sat on the passenger side. The expression on his face was inquisitive.
I paused from putting the key in the ignition and turned to him. “What?”
He let out a chuckle that said he couldn’t believe I was even asking. “You know what. Where’s our backup? Or are we just going to take Drake and his army on by ourselves?”
I started the car. “Are you saying you couldn’t do it?”
He licked his lips and sat up a little straighter in the seat. “I’m saying I’ll damn sure try. For what he did to me, to Cam. For the pain you’re feeling right now. I’ll kill him.” He sounded so sincere.
I started the car, not really wanting to examine why his words hit me the way they did. “Yeah, well, we got back up. They’re following closely behind. They’ll be there if we need them.”
“You sure? Because I’d be happy to take him and his whole crew out by myself. With your help, of course.”
He smiled at me and something dangerous flipped over in my stomach. I cleared my throat. “I’ll keep that in mind.”
We drove about three hours before pulling over for a food break. Neither of us had eaten breakfast, wanting to get to Cam as quickly as we could. It’d been a bad idea and both of us should have known better. We couldn’t fight on an empty stomach and right now the hunger pangs were ripping me apart.
I parked at a “Heel to Boot” steak house and got out. “We can eat here.”
The nonchalant smile on his face said it didn’t matter to him one way or the other. “Food is food. I eat everything. Never tasted something I didn’t like.”
I didn’t even bother to acknowledge that with an answer. I waited until he got out of the car and then locked the doors. We’d kept up a constant chatter all the way here, covering a broad range of subjects. He was easy to talk to, and the conversation flowed effortlessly between us.
“We need to get this to go. We don’t have time to sit down and eat,” I let him know.
The place we stopped at was full. I never ate at a restaurant with an empty parking lot. If no one was eating there, there was probably a reason.
“I want a steak,” he said, voice flat and serious.
Here we go again. “Okay…”
He waited for me to figure it out, and when I didn’t, he went on. “You can’t eat a steak on the road. In a car.” He shook his head. “It just ain’t right.”
He was being purposely irrational, but it still got a slight chuckle from me. “Okay. We’ll eat here, but we have to hurry. I want to get to Cam as quick as I can.”
The waitress sat us at a booth in the back, one of the only empty seats in the whole place. I ordered a T-bone, with a baked potato and broccoli on the side. Jax ordered a T-bone as well, plus a ribeye, New York strip, and a myriad of different sides and desserts.
I was sick just watching him. “You’re not going to eat all that.”
He cut off a chunk of his T-bone and dipped it into A1 and then ranch. “Watch me,” he said, shoving a forkful into his mouth.
I had more important things to worry about than Jax’s food choices as my mind once again turned to Cam. Pressure built behind my eyes, but I took a deep breath trying to expel it. I wouldn’t cry. Not here and not now. Cam deserved better than that. “I’m going to the bathroom,” I said after I’d eaten a little over half my meal.
Jax had eaten everything and was now demolishing a large bowl of ice cream. He was all solid muscle, and I wondered how he could stay that way and eat the way that he did. I’d never met anyone with his unique ability, so maybe that tied into his metabolism or something.
He hardly seemed to know I was there, eyes so focused on the food in front of him. “I’ll be right here,” he finally said.
I’d just washed my hands and exited the restroom area when a hushed voice called me back.
A young woman, with straggly brown hair, and whose clothes were more off her than on, stood by the exit doors just behind the kitchen. She waved me over.
I checked back to where Jax sat at the table, licking his fingers, and drinking a glass of water. I turned back around. “What do you want?” She didn’t seem to be here to eat.
Her eyes blinked at me, big and scared as she pointed toward the back exit. “They got that boy bad. I’m afraid they gonna break his legs. They got ‘em on the ground. He a skunk. One of your kind.”
I hung my head low. I didn’t have time for this, but damnit, I couldn’t leave another skunk in the lurch. Sometimes it pissed me off how easy it was to target us. Sadly, this wasn’t the first time I’d run into something like this, and probably wouldn’t be the last. Still, I knew to stay on my guard as many of us had been trapped this way as well.
I’d never been taken and was pretty sure I could handle myself, so I’d step out real quick, and then Jax and I could get back on the road.
One of the things that hurt us was that we were so easy t
o identify. All those with skunk DNA had black bushy hair that curled at the ends, with a large white stripe down the middle. Nothing we could do about it. We couldn’t dye it. I’d tried many times, as had others. Not believing our parents when they’d told us that our hair could never be changed.
We could cut it all off, though, and some skunks did. I just hadn’t reached that level of extreme yet, but I damn sure wished Cam had. Especially if it meant it kept him safe and out of harm’s way.
I caught Jax’s eye and gestured to let him know I’d be right back. He gave me a thumbs up and then shoved half a pie in his mouth. I couldn’t help but laugh just a little. What in the world was I going to do with this guy?
The hot summer sun hit me the moment I stepped out the door. It was so damn humid that my clothes were starting to stick to me. I swept the sweat from my brow and walked to the dumpster where a bunch of guys were gathered with sticks. Except… I turned to the girl. “Where’s the skunk?”
She pulled out a small baton, her face now hostile. “Right here, you stinky ass bitch.” She made a move to punch, but I saw it coming and ducked. Before she could try again, I delivered a hard uppercut to the side of her face.
She flew across the concrete, landed hard up against a car, and then fell to the ground. I wanted to question her. Find out what her game was, but a bat to my knees dropped me in an instant. What felt like a firecracker exploded through my legs, and hot, raw pain took my breath away.
By now my adrenaline was flowing, and I was more than ready to rumble. I loved to fight, something few knew about me, but found out quickly enough once they’d challenged me.
The guys with sticks closed in on me. One dragged his on the ground, a menacing look on his face. Another repeatedly beat his into his right hand, looking cocky and self-assured. The other two simply held theirs at their sides but kept a steady pace with their partners.
I breathed thiols at the one dragging his bat. His eyes bugged out of his head, and he grabbed at his throat as it became harder and harder for him to breathe.
I still had the other three to deal with and they were coming straight at me. I aimed thiols into the eyes of the one who was beating his bat. His hands flew to his eyes and he let out a howling scream. “I can’t see. I can’t see. Fucking skunk bitch blinded me. I can’t see.”
I cracked my neck and turned to the other two. “Still want to try me?”
Pissed now that I’d already taken out three of them, they both charged me, yelling and screaming all the awful things they were ready to do. I bombarded them with more thiols, I didn’t know why they thought I wouldn’t.
Before I could direct it though, cold metal wrapped around my neck, cutting off my air supply. My arms windmilled in front of me as I tried to break free. I couldn’t breathe. Damnit. I couldn’t breathe.
“You punch like a bitch, bitch.” The woman whispered in my ear, her breath coming in short spurts from the effort it took to choke the life out of me. I should’ve hit her harder, or at least made sure she was down for the count. A costly mistake on my part.
The men were still caught in the thiols, but without me to control it, it soon dissipated, freeing them up to come at me. “Gonna take you straight to Drake. He knows what you’re up to,” the guy on the right said.
My body started to give and I realized I wouldn’t be able to fight them off much longer. One of the guys punched me in the face, rocking my head back and causing my eyelid to split open.
Blood rolled down my cheek, but there was nothing I could do about it. I knew backup usually traveled thirty to forty minutes behind, but I thought they’d had time to catch up.
The chain grew tighter and I wondered how many skunks they’d trapped this way. Was Cam one of them? Were these punks the reason he’d been captured?
I couldn’t think on it any longer, as my vision blurred, and my head felt like it had rocks in it. I was losing focus. I knew I was choking, but I couldn’t remember why. All I knew was that I needed to break free. I needed…
I heard a loud grunt, and suddenly the pressure was gone, and I could breathe again. Relieved, I fell to my knees, rubbing my hand across my throat. There would be a burn mark there. I could already feel it forming. I coughed, and then winched. My mouth was dry as hell, and blood dripped from my lips.
I was wetter than I should have been, and from the smell, I already knew why. I turned to see Jax holding the woman’s spinal cord in the grip of his hand, a furious look on his face.
“There’s two more,” I tried to warn him, my voice scratchy and barely above a whisper. He nodded to where the two guys had decided to cut their losses and were now running in alternating speeds down the street.
I allowed myself to breathe a little easier. “What took you so long?” I asked before I passed out completely.
When I came to, I was on a hard mattress, and my whole body burned like fire. A small lamp sat on the table by the door, its light low enough not to be distracting.
Jax sat beside the bed, his hands steepled in front of him, eyes intense and focused.
“Water,” I said, hoping I was loud enough for him to hear.
He jumped up immediately, relief all over his face. “Hey. You’re alright.” He placed my phone in my hand. “It’s been ringing. I told Drena and the others where we were. But I didn’t tell them everything. I didn’t know what you wanted me to say.”
I nodded and then took a glimpse around. The room had one small, black mini fridge in it. Jax opened it and pulled out a bottle of water. “Figured you’d want this when you came to. I got it out the soda machine. Put it in there to keep it cold for you.” He sat on the side of the bed and opened it for me, pulling out a straw from the nightstand and sticking it in there. I was impressed and appreciative of his foresight.
I tried to move, but he placed a hand under my head and raised it slightly.
“Thanks.” I could only drink a little at a time, but he was patient with me, letting me go at my own pace and sip as I pleased. “Enough.” I finally said, after I’d had my fill.
He sat the bottle aside and leaned over top of me. “What can I do to make you feel better?”
“Skunk oil. My back.” I hoped he understood what I was asking.
He gave my hand a squeeze. “You sure?” he asked, his voice barely above a whisper.
“Do it,” I managed to croak out.
“It’s going to hurt a little,” he said softly.
I let out a breath. “I know.”
Grabbing an empty water bottle that he’d probably had earlier, he gently rolled me over and waited until I nodded okay before he began.
It started off slow but quickly sped up. It was a painful process no matter how you did it, and I found myself gripping the sheets to keep from screaming out and injuring my throat even more.
I clenched my teeth as a good deal of the liquid in my back was removed. As he did his work, and the pain worsened, I did end up sticking the covers in my mouth and biting down hard on them.
A tear rolled down my face as I thought of how this was being done to Cam daily, without his consent, and likely as violently and painfully as they could get away with.
A small bit of thiols leaked from my hands, but not enough to do any harm.
Finally, Jax announced he was done. He turned me back over and tried to give me a reassuring smile. “Be right back.” He made a dash for the bathroom and came back with a wet cloth in his hand. He sat back on the bed and began to wipe the sweat from my face. “I don’t know how to do this,” he confessed.
I figured he wouldn’t. Most people either shot skunk oil straight into their veins or took it in little pills that their drug dealers made for them. Unless they were using it for sexual purposes, which was a whole other case altogether. “Just rub it all over me. Specially my neck, ribs, and face.”
“Can I use this?” He held up the already damp rag. I nodded to let him know that that would be okay.
He carefully poured some on the washcl
oth and began a smooth massage of my neck. It was warm and soothing, and I could already feel it rocking me to sleep.
My eyes grew heavy as Jax continued to rub the liquid all over my body.
Somewhere in the back of my mind, I noted that I must trust him just a little, to be able to surrender so completely in his presence.
We decided to stay the night at the hotel. Drake had sent those thugs after me, which meant he knew we were coming. How he’d known what route we’d take I didn’t know, but I wondered if he had people spread out on all likely paths.
A scary thought, while I was still incapacitated on the bed.
We agreed that we hadn’t been alert enough. From here on out there would be no more separating. Wherever Jax went, I went, and vice versa.
There would be more coming for us, and after this failed attempt, I expected them to triple their efforts.
3
The next morning saw me fully healed and ready to get going.
“Know any backroads?” I asked once we’d settled in the car.
He raised an eyebrow. “If that’s what you think is best.” He didn’t sound too confident about it, but he didn’t try to fight me, so maybe he trusted my judgment. “Take a right at the light, and follow that street to the next light, and then turn left.”
I turned the car to the right, hoping this would keep Drake supporters off our backs. We didn’t have time to stop for a fight every couple of miles. Cam needed our help, and I was determined to get to him as quickly as I could.
Energy flowed through me, and if not for the urgency, I wouldn’t really mind letting off a little steam with a good street brawl. That’s the thing about skunk oil and why it was in such high demand. The effect was almost magical and it made you feel like you could take on the world.
My knuckles tightened on the wheel. I couldn’t wait to catch up with Drake and those who had hurt Cam. “How many people does Drake have around him on a daily basis?”
A Magical Reckoning: Magic and Mischief Book 1 Page 2