by R. E. Butler
She unlocked their apartment and held the door while he maneuvered the box and walked inside. “Thanks,” he said dryly.
“If you’re sure?”
“I am. Maybe you’ll find out something interesting or helpful about Valkyries. Then you can tell Grace when we meet with her on Friday.”
“For our first ultrasound! I’m so excited.”
Since she’d be officially two months along on Friday, they were having their first imaging done, and then there’d be weekly ultrasounds to ensure the baby was developing on time. “I can’t wait to see our little one.”
“Me too.”
He plated her meal and joined her on the couch while she ate, and they talked about their respective evenings and what the following night would bring. While the protective male inside him didn’t want her going anywhere without him, he could tell how excited she was at the prospect of finding out information about their baby, and he didn’t want to put a damper on that.
“Just promise to keep yourself safe,” he said. “And send me lots of texts and pictures of what you find.”
“I will.” She leaned over and kissed him, and he caught the taste of lobster and steak on her lips.
“I love you, kitten,” he said, tucking a lock of hair behind her ear.
“I love you too.”
Chapter Seventeen
Aeryn bounced on her heels in the club's underground garage while waiting for the security team to check the SUVs they were taking to the archive. Kelly stood next to her, with her little dragon Aram holding a bone like a cigar out of the side of his mouth.
“He’s so cute,” Aeryn said.
“Yep, he’s my scaly little baby. Gets in the way a lot though. He likes to be underfoot all the time.”
“Sounds like a dog or cat.”
“Pretty much, except he can breathe fire and fly.” Kelly smiled. “I don’t know if Merrix explained it, but the archive is a secret.”
“Oh?”
“Well, not in the family, but the location is a secret outside of the guards and the family members. We’re not going to blindfold you or anything, but obviously, you shouldn’t tell anyone where it is. Not that anyone would ask, of course. It’s only recently that we started calling it the archive. Before I came along as the curator, it was just the building where Mishka stored his antiquities.”
“He likes to collect things?”
“Pretty much anything related to vampires and supernatural creatures. It’s not just books that he collects; there’s armor and weapons, jewels, manuscripts, and he’s even got some interesting magical items like potion bottles and rare herbs. I think I could work there for a hundred years and never fully catalog everything, not to mention that I’m mostly working on my stuff now.”
Aeryn knew from Merrix’s memories that Kelly was a descendant of the most famous coven heads in vampire history—Aram and Napor. The Aramnapor coven had hidden a vast wealth somewhere only their descendants could get to, and she was in the process of transferring the books, artifacts, and other items to the archive for safekeeping.
“Thanks for letting me know about this.”
“Of course. When Mishka asked me, I thought I’d seen something about Valkyries, so I did a quick search last night and there are some mentions. I think you’ll be able to find what you need with the catalog. You can’t remove anything from the building, but you can take pictures, scan, or copy what you’d like.”
“Awesome. Eynd has been really helpful, but she hasn’t carried a Valkyrie herself, so she only knows so much. Her mom is on vacation in some out of the way country for another couple of weeks, so I can’t talk to her until she’s back. Of course, no one is sure what a tiger-vampire Valkyrie is going to look like, so I’m hoping there might be some information in the archive that might shed some light on things.”
“You’re so lucky,” she said. “I can’t wait to meet your baby.”
“Me too.”
“We’re ready,” Bellamin said.
“I’d offer to let you ride with us, but Aram is particular about who sits with us.”
“That’s fine,” Aeryn said.
“Aeryn, over here.”
She looked and saw Rage standing by one of four SUVs.
“See you there,” Aeryn said to Kelly.
“Sure thing,” she answered.
Aeryn joined Rage. “Hi.”
“You’re going to ride with Temple and me. Merrix asked if I’d go along for the ride as part of your entourage, and I said I’d be happy to.”
“I hope it’s not taking you away from anything important.” Aeryn climbed into the SUV and greeted Temple, who was behind the wheel.
“Nah. I’m glad to get out of the club for a while.”
He shut the door and climbed into the passenger seat.
“There are a lot of SUVs going with us.”
“For security,” Temple said. The first SUV headed out of the garage, the second following a minute later. When it was their turn to go, he added, “We’ll drive around a lot to make sure we’re not being followed before we head to the archive. We’ve had the church put trackers on our vehicles and follow us in the past, so we’re really careful now.”
“They should just leave you guys alone,” she said. “I don’t understand them. If they don’t like vampires, why can’t they just not live where there are covens?”
“Because Jason is an asshole of the highest order,” Rage said. “His family was killed in a skirmish between covens, and Harmony killed his sister when she was abducted. He was already a crackpot before he lost his sister, but now he’s even worse. He sent his brother, Sean, to take over the Cleveland branch after we cleared it out with the police’s help. Sean’s just as nuts as Jason, but he’s a follower, not a leader, so he doesn’t do anything without Jason’s permission.”
“It’s too bad about his family, but it’s not fair to blame every single vampire for the actions of a few.”
“Paranoia and prejudice will make people act like that, regardless of what they are. I’ve seen equally paranoid and dangerous vampires and shifters, but Jason is like a cockroach and will simply not go away.”
“At least we can outlive him,” she quipped.
“Good point. And he doesn’t have kids, so maybe things will die with him,” Temple said.
Aeryn settled back in the comfortable seat and sent a text to Merrix to let him know they were driving all over the place.
Thanks for sending Rage so I’d know someone.
You bet, love. I wish I could be there.
Me too.
“We’re leaving downtown now,” Temple said. “We just got the all clear.”
Aeryn smiled and looked out the window, watching the darkness blur by.
She woke sometime later when the SUV jerked to the side suddenly. She hadn’t realized she’d fallen asleep. Rubbing her eyes, she asked, “What’s going on?”
“We’re being followed,” Temple said. His voice was tight, and his knuckles were white on the steering wheel.
“The church?” she turned and looked out the back window. The coven’s SUV was behind them, but there wasn’t anyone on the road behind them that she could see. “How do you know?”
“Aram got antsy, which is a telltale sign that there’s danger around. The first SUV dropped back behind our group and noticed some vehicles were running parallel with us on an access road. We can’t get over to them to head them off, and we can’t turn around for another couple of miles.”
She called Merrix, who answered immediately.
“Hey, kitten, what’s up?”
“They think we’re being followed!”
* * *
Merrix felt panic tighten his chest. He dropped his tools and raced from the apartment, heading down to the lobby where Cyrus worked on the tile installation. “Aeryn thinks they’re being followed!”
“What?” Cyrus barked. He put his phone up to his ear and spoke quickly.
“Baby? What’s goin
g on now?” Merrix asked.
“I don’t know. Nothing yet, but Temple said we can’t turn around for a while, and they can’t get over to the access road to stop them.” Her voice was high. “I wish you were here with me.”
“Trust me, I do too. Let me talk to Rage.”
“Okay,” she said. “Rage, Merrix wants to talk to you.”
“Hey, Merrix. We’re fine for now. Trust me when I say I’ll keep her safe,” Rage said before Merrix could ask.
“Thanks. Is the coven sending support?” Merrix asked while pacing the lobby.
“Yes. Brone is bringing a contingent of guards with him. They’re about twenty minutes behind us. We can’t slow down to wait for them because we don’t know what the church is planning.”
Cyrus motioned at him. “Stay on the phone with Aeryn. Tell her help is on the way and to remember that if something does happen, she’s got your memories as her own and can draw on them if she needs to.”
Merrix nodded. “Thanks, Rage. Keep me posted. Let me talk to Aeryn.”
“You got it.”
There were some muffled words, and then a tearful Aeryn said Merrix’s name. “I shouldn’t have come tonight. You wanted to wait. I should have.”
“No, sweetheart, this isn’t on you at all, okay? Just calm down and don’t worry. You’re with the coven, and they’re not going to let anything happen to you.”
“I’m scared. I...I see them!”
“Who? Aeryn? Who do you see?” Merrix practically roared the words as his panic reached a fever pitch.
“Merrix!”
Her voice was cut off with a sharp scream as something heavy hit something else. “Aeryn!”
The line went dead.
He looked at Cyrus, whose eyes were wide but filled with the blue of his tiger. “Grab anyone available. We’re leaving in three minutes,” Cyrus said, his voice deep and tinged with a growl.
Merrix hurried back upstairs, shouting for the workers to drop what they were doing and get to the club.
“Where are we going?” Rytel asked as he raced alongside Merrix.
“To save the coven members under attack from the church. And Aeryn. Especially my Aeryn.”
Chapter Eighteen
Aeryn groaned and grabbed her head, feeling something sticky coat her fingers. She blinked to clear her vision and then screamed as someone grabbed her ankles and forcefully tried to pull her from the SUV through the broken window. She flailed her arms and managed to catch hold of the passenger seat to stop her momentum.
The SUV was turned over, resting on its hood. Temple and Rage were unconscious. Through the shattered windshield, she could see one other SUV on its side, dark smoke billowing from underneath. The hands on her legs jerked her hard again, and she screamed, digging her fingers into the seat to try to stop them. Something tore in her ankle, and she gasped at the pain that shot up her leg, causing her to lose her grip on the seat.
“Temple! Rage!” She shouted their names as she was dragged through the window, the broken glass cutting her skin. Her head hit the pavement, and her vision swam.
She had only a moment to see that she was being manhandled by a group of people wearing all black before something hit her head, and then everything went dark.
* * *
Merrix crawled partially into the SUV where Aeryn had been and roared in disbelief that she was gone. Next to him, Cyrus and the others worked to free the injured. Merrix inhaled, scenting Aeryn’s blood. He backed out of the SUV, finding her blood on the broken window glass and the pavement. And then the scent of her abruptly stopped.
“She’s the only one missing,” Brone said as he strode to him. “I’m sorry.”
Merrix pressed the heels of his hands into his eyes and tried to settle himself. He dropped his hands to his sides and asked, “What happened?”
“Bellamin will explain. Come.”
Merrix followed the big male over to an SUV on its side, where Bellamin was holding Kelly, who was holding her dragon. “Are you guys okay?” Merrix asked.
“We’ll be fine,” Bellamin said. “We’re so sorry she was taken.”
“Please tell me what happened.”
Bellamin inhaled deeply and groaned, holding his side. “We knew that there were vehicles on the access road. We couldn’t get to them because of the trees, so it was decided that the lead vehicle would move ahead and try to intercept them at the exit ramp, which was a couple miles ahead. But they weren’t waiting for the exit ramp. I don’t know what they used to take us down, but it was something like a flash bomb—bright, disorienting light with a piercing boom. As our vehicles tried to recover, we were simultaneously hit.”
“You said they couldn’t get to you from the access road,” Merrix said.
“They didn’t come that way,” Kelly said. “They came from behind us. They were going so fast it was like their vehicles had wings.”
“Sounds like they used the access road as a means to distract,” Brone said.
Merrix looked around. Their people had four SUVs, all of which were disabled. There were four other SUVs that had been used in the crashes.
“They abandoned their vehicles and got into the ones on the access road?” Merrix asked.
“We didn’t see,” Bellamin said. “I would guess so, but honestly, once we were hit, all I could focus on was Kelly and Aram. We didn’t know what the attackers were after.”
Merrix felt a crushing weight settle on him. He closed his eyes and tried to reach out to Aeryn through their connection as beloveds. While he felt confident she was alive, he couldn’t actually feel anything else. It wasn’t as if the beloved bond was some kind of supernatural homing device. Letting out a frustrated sigh, he opened his eyes and said, “I’m glad you guys are okay, and I’m sorry you were injured.”
“It’s not your fault,” Kelly said. “It’s that damned church. I hope you find Aeryn quickly.”
“Me too.”
Merrix left to check on the others. No one was seriously injured, which he was thankful for, even as he kind of resented the fact that everyone had been stunned or unconscious and hadn’t been able to help Aeryn.
Rage put his hand on Merrix’s shoulder. He and Temple had both been unconscious after the wreck, and it was no wonder since the damn SUV was upside down. “I’m sorry. I’m so damn sorry.”
“I’m here! I’m here,” a feminine voice said.
Merrix turned and saw five people walking toward them. “Who is that?” he asked.
“The one female is Elizabeth, and those are her two mates, Ash and Axe, and the male with white hair is Atlas. But the other one? I don’t know,” Rage said.
Bellamin and Kelly walked swiftly over to them and greeted them, then called Merrix over.
Kelly said, “Atlas is part of my family line, and Elizabeth, Ash, and Axe are from the bear den, and they volunteered to come to help out. But the person I wanted you to meet is Cassara.”
The young woman stuck out her hand and shook Merrix’s. “Sorry we have to meet under these circumstances.”
Merrix blinked in uncertainty. “I don’t understand.”
“I’m a tracker,” Cassara said. “I’m going to find where your mate is so you can get her home safely.”
“A tracker? I...what?”
Atlas, who Merrix had never met before, put his hand on his shoulder and said, “My friend, there is no one better equipped to help you find your beloved than Cassara. She’s unique to the bear den—a mixture of several were-animals and Wiccan through her family line that gives her an incredible ability to find people.”
“You can find Aeryn?”
She nodded. “Yep. I just need to peek at your memories and then head over to the access road.”
“Whatever you need, you’ve got it,” Merrix said, hope blooming within him.
Cassara smiled. “This is going to hurt a little. Well, a lot. Sorry,” she said before putting her hand on his temple, and then everything went dark.
* * *
Aeryn woke slowly, her mind foggy and her whole body aching. Opening her eyes, she blinked at the harsh overhead light. As her eyes adjusted to the brightness, she turned her head and realized she was in a plain room with no windows and one door. The space was empty, and she was on the tile floor.
She listened intently and could hear muffled talking.
Pushing herself gingerly to a seated position, she groaned as her head ached sharply. Pulling her hand away from her head, she saw flecks of dried blood. Quickly cataloging her injuries as she rose slowly to her feet, she nearly fell over with a sharp cry when she tried to put weight on her left ankle. She leaned against the wall and sank to the floor, pushing up the cuff of her jeans and tugging her sock down to see her ankle was a deep purple color and swollen.
“Great,” she whispered. “Head injury, busted ankle, and no damn cell phone.”
She reached for her tigress and felt her anger at being abducted. Join the club, sister, she thought.
The voices grew louder, and Aeryn tensed, wondering who or what would be behind the door.
A lock clicked loudly, and the door swung open. A group of people walked in, led by a man with shaggy, dark hair.
“You’re up,” he said. “Do you know why you’re here?”
“I don’t know where here is.”
He narrowed his eyes. “You’re in the presence of the head of the Cleveland chapter of the First Church of Humanity.”
Oh shit.
She debated playing dumb, but considering how he announced himself, he seemed like the sort of male who liked the attention. He was probably in his brother’s shadow a lot—second fiddle.
“Sean Finnegan,” she said.
And she was right. He preened like a damn peacock.
“So, you’ve heard of me, that’s excellent. Then you won’t be surprised by anything that happens.”
“Why did you attack us? Where are the others?”
“The others are dead. We left them at the side of the road.”