Dammit. As happy as he was to have more backup, Bill was the last guy he wanted armed.
“I can’t hear shit!” yelled Bill.
Bane rubbed his ears as well. “Where did you get that thing?”
“What?” repeated Bill, giving him a look that said he was fine with his bad behavior. “You have girlie hair and a girlie voice right now, monkey-boy.”
Flipping him off, Bane glanced at Lance. His beast thumped madly at him, wanting him to run in search of Galiena. It didn’t care if that meant he ran in circles, so long as he was making an attempt to find her, not standing around in a club full of creature entrails. “I need to go after my woman.”
Bill reached into the inner breast pocket of his jacket and withdrew a cigar. Grinning, he set the launcher down and proceeded to dig around in his other jacket pockets.
“Anyone got a light?” he yelled, his hearing still impaired.
Bane rolled his eyes. He couldn’t leave Bill unattended and armed. There was no telling what the man would do. It would be the same as letting the creature roam free upon the human population. Hell, Bill might be worse. “We need to go! Where’s Silent Gus?”
Bill fumbled around in his pockets more and then pulled out a stick of dynamite. Bane couldn’t even begin to imagine where the man had gotten it. Lance rushed the small man and disarmed him at the very moment Bill found his lighter and started to try to light up.
With a worried look, Lance held the explosive far from Bill. He then turned to Bane. “Your human needs a leash.”
“What?” yelled Bill. “Hey, anyone want one of these cigars? They don’t have just tobacco in them, if you know what I mean. If not, and you’re one of them asshats who needs shit spelled out for you, I’m talking about LSD.”
Rubbing the bridge of his nose, Bane had to fight to get control of his gorilla enough to think clearly. It wanted him to move, to do something, anything but stand still. All it understood was its mate was in danger. Bane wanted to get to Galiena too, but he knew clearer heads had to prevail.
“Hey, you all right?” asked Lance.
“Do you have any idea where Helmuth would take Galiena?”
“Yesterday, I’d have taken a guess, but after seeing him change into whatever the hell that was with wings, I don’t know anything about him.” Lance sniffed the air and stepped back, still holding the stick of dynamite. “Hybrids are closing in on this location. They smell like rotting meat.”
“You with them or against them?” asked Bane, unsure if Lance even knew where his allegiances lie any longer.
Lance tucked the explosive into the waistline of his jeans, spun around, put his arms out to his sides, and let his hands shift forms. Black fur coated his hands and forearms. He snarled, sounding very much like a cat-shifter, but when he met Bane’s gaze once more, his eyes had flecks of red and black in them, and his teeth weren’t shifter teeth—they were a cross between shifter and vampire. “Go find your mate. I’ll keep these guys occupied.”
Bill puffed on his cigar, a shit-ass grin on his face as he reached into his jacket and withdrew another stick of dynamite. “I’ll help. Gus is driving our getaway vehicle.”
“Oh, for fuck’s sake,” shouted Bane, worried the little crazy man would blow himself to kingdom come before Bane had a chance to get him safely back to Casey. “Can you not do anything else stupid?”
“Can’t hear a word you’re saying, monkey-boy.” Bill winked and turned to face the back of the club. “Time to party. Go find your woman. We got this shit.”
With that, he lit the end of the stick of dynamite and threw it down the hallway.
Chapter Thirteen
Galiena kicked Helmuth, her foot connecting with his jaw as he held her pinned in the back of a stretch SUV. He moved back slightly, but not enough for her to gain anything close to the upper hand. Rather, he positioned himself in a way that left her virtually no wiggle room, let alone space enough to kick him again. That didn’t stop her from making another attempt.
From the moment he’d taken her and left the club, she’d tried everything she could think of to get away from him, but he was strong.
Very strong.
Backhanding her, his eyes blazed with rage as pain exploded through her face. She cupped her cheek, positive it was bleeding, though her fingertips came away blood-free.
Ten weeks ago, she’d have cried if someone struck her, cowered in fear, and waited for one of the bouncers Jinx employed to handle whoever had dared harm her. While it had been rare in the past, it had happened. This was different. There was no bouncer to step in. No client to be removed from the safety of a club. This was forever, and she was alone
And she was pissed off.
Furious, wanting a pound of flesh from Helmuth for having dared lay a hand on her, her darkness beat at her from within, demanding independence. She feared her darkness, but was smart enough to know she needed its help.
Closing her eyes, Galiena allowed her darkness the freedom it so desperately sought. It rushed up and through her, making all of her extremities tingle and buzz with power. Static energy lifted her hair and crackled in the air around her. All of her senses intensified, on edge and ready. She felt like a coiled rattlesnake, ready to strike to protect itself. And strike she would.
She was a doormat no longer.
She sensed Helmuth’s hand coming at her face again. She didn’t scream or flinch.
Reaching out, she caught hold of his wrist, stopping his strike in mid-motion, right before it reached her face.
When she opened her eyes, she saw everything in more vibrant colors, could make out the rapid beating of his heart by way of his blood rushing through the veins in his neck. She felt every bit the predator his scientist had made her, and now he was her mark. Her toy to do with as she pleased.
The urge to go for his neck with her teeth was great, so much so that she nearly gave in.
He looked at her and his eyes widened. He attempted to pull his hand back but she held firm, applying pressure, feeling his skin harden beneath her touch. She didn’t let up. Didn’t stop squeezing. It felt as if she were gripping marble, but she didn’t care. Something deep within told her this meant nothing to her—that she could still hurt him.
That she could do damage.
She applied even more pressure, and he winced before crying out and ripping his now gray, rock-hard, heavy hand from her.
As her mind processed that his hand was stone, she looked up at him.
“What are you?” she demanded, her darkness still riding high.
“The same thing you are now,” he said, cradling his hand to his chest. An evil smile spread over his face. “The others will learn what you are. Do you think your shifter will want you when he learns you’ve got my DNA in you? That you’re part gargoyle?”
Gargoyle?
Jinx used to tell stories about them, speaking as if they were fables, myths—stories one told others to make them behave. In Jinx’s stories, she’d mentioned how they were known throughout the supernatural community as watchers. As a balance between good and evil. And as such, they had the ability to instantly sense a man’s true nature. If they were good or bad.
Gasping, Galiena thought about the power she’d developed since the testing had started. About how her darkness could now seem to tell if someone was evil or not. She tipped her head, raw emotions slicing through her. “You made me a monster!”
Helmuth grabbed her by the hair and ripped her head back, forcing her to look up at him. “I made you mate material.”
His mouth slashed over hers and she kept her lips closed. She didn’t want his kiss. She didn’t want anything to do with him. Pushing on him, she tried and failed to budge him.
“Boss!” the driver yelled, a second before the SUV swerved severely and rocked, feeling as if it was going to tip. It slammed into a fire hydrant, sending water far and wide. Galiena bounced on the seat, as did Helmuth, and he fell onto her once more, grabbing at her, trying to get her d
ress up, his hands everywhere at once.
Screaming, she hit at him, doing her best to inflict as much damage as she could. Everywhere her hands hit turned to stone momentarily, before quickly shifting back into skin. His crazed gaze was locked on hers.
“You will submit, whore!”
The door to the SUV was ripped off and flung outward, vanishing completely.
Unexpectedly, Bane was there, his form filling the opening. “Do not call my mate a whore!”
He was alive!
“Bane!”
He seized hold of Helmuth and ripped him off Galiena. He dragged the man out of the vehicle and threw him before turning and putting his back against the opening, as if to keep himself between her and Helmuth.
He couldn’t possibly understand what he was dealing with. Helmuth was the stuff of legends. He was something that the supernaturals feared. She sat up and tried to right her tangled dress in order to be able to move. It took her longer than she wanted, and in that time, Bane and Helmuth had collided, locked into battle in an abandoned parking lot close to the disabled SUV.
Galiena practically fell out of the vehicle. She stood slowly, got her footing, and then ran in the direction of Bane and Helmuth. She opened her mouth to shout and headlights splashed over her. Turning, she saw a black SUV coming right at her.
Without hesitation, her darkness kicked in, jolting power through her. She crouched and then leapt straight up in the air. When she came down, it was on the top of the vehicle that was screeching to a stop. “Whoa,” she said, rocking on the balls of her feet, unsure what the heck had just happened.
The doors of the SUV opened and Bill was the first person she spotted as he got out of the driver’s side. He stared up at her and smiled. “Nice moves. You give knock-‘em-down blow jobs and leap tall buildings. You’re like my version of an erotic superhero chick.”
Thor was next out of the SUV. He stormed around to the driver’s side with determined strides, opened the door, and then came away with a set of keys in his hands. He pointed at Bill, his face reddening, his breathing fast. “You just shaved like a hundred years off my life!”
“Shut up,” Bill blustered, shaking his head. “I’m a way better driver than Bane, who fucking ran here. Alphas always have something to prove. Totally dim-witted.”
Thor looked past Bill and into the backseat of the vehicle. His gaze locked on something or someone she couldn’t see. “No. I’m not going to calm down! Stop shouting at me, and stop calling me Lance!”
No one had said a word, that she’d heard.
Everyone is crazy.
Galiena glanced up in time to see Helmuth throw Bane high into the air. Her breath caught in stunned horror as she watched Bane going higher and higher. Shifters tended to be hardy stock, but very few of them could walk away unscathed from high falls. She wanted to run and attempt to break Bane’s fall, but she’d never make it in time. Not to mention, with their size difference, she’d do little to stop him safely.
Helmuth sprouted wings again, looking like something out of a horror movie. Zeroing in on Bane’s falling body, Helmuth slammed into Bane and the pair careened into an old building, breaking through the wall, bricks crumbling everywhere.
Fear lanced her and she touched her chest, as if she’d truly felt the impact of Bane going through the exterior wall of the building. Crying out, she lost her footing, falling off the top of the SUV. Strong arms wrapped around her and she sucked in a big breath, positive she was about to turn someone into ash without meaning to.
“Hey, easy there,” said Thor, holding her tightly against his body. He set her on her feet with great care, and then took a small step back from her. “Are you all right?”
She stared up at him, shocked he was in one piece after making direct contact with her. “I didn’t turn you into a mummy.”
He stilled, as if he’d forgotten what she was capable of, and then his eyes widened. “No. You didn’t.”
She grabbed him, catching him by his band shirt. “Bane! You have to help him. He can’t stand against Helmuth alone. He’s a gargoyle!”
“A what? Those aren’t real,” said Thor, shaking his head.
“That flying lizard-bat thing begs to differ,” said Bill with a calmness that caught Galiena off guard as he opened the back of the SUV. He withdrew a black bag and then proceeded to pull out something that looked a lot like a rocket launcher.
As she realized the weapon was a rocket launcher, she ran to stand in his path, hoping to block his ability to shoot. “No! You could hit Bane.”
“Maybe.” He offered a nonchalant shrug of his shoulders. “But maybe I hit the flying freaky dude instead.”
She twisted, pleading with her gaze for Thor to stop Bill.
“Shit,” said Thor, moving for Bill. “Give it to me. I’ll take the shot.”
“Hey, you’re stealing my glory here, Norse God Guy. Is that the All-Father I hear calling? Must be your bedtime. Bye-bye.”
Thor flashed fang. “They’ll never find all of your body, human.”
Bill grunted. “You guys always threaten to eat me. Not one of you actual has.”
“Yet,” added Thor, running his tongue over one of his fangs.
Bill relinquished his hold on the weapon. “Fine. Here.”
Thor met her gaze. “How bad are your wounds?”
Confused, she shook her head. “I don’t have any wounds.”
“I saw you get shot. At least twice.”
She rubbed her side. There was no blood or signs of injury through her dress. “I’m tender but fine.”
Bill tipped his head. “Gus says whatever the Krauss guy did to her, it changed her genetic makeup. Says it made her bulletproof.”
Galiena finally noticed Gus in the backseat of the SUV, looking off in the other direction. He’d not opened his mouth at all, and she was finding that less and less unnerving the more time she spent around him.
Thor moved away from her and lifted the weapon onto his shoulder. He lined up and then lowered it, cursing softly. “I can’t get a good shot. I’m going in.”
She turned just as Bane was thrown through the opening in the building. He landed on the ground with a thud and then pushed to his feet with a roar, looking battered but pissed. He swayed, clutching his bloody side.
He couldn’t stand alone against Helmuth. Going toe to toe with something supernaturals thought was a myth was going to leave him dead.
Help him, her inner darkness shouted, beating at her to free it.
Galiena shut off, ignoring Thor’s pleas for her to stop as she took off running toward Bane.
Helmuth flew out of the building and went right for her mate. Galiena let her darkness rush up and thrust herself in front of Bane. The tingling started all over her body once more and the next she knew, Helmuth was slamming into her—but she wasn’t moving. It was as if she were the one made of stone this time.
He fell backwards, appearing dazed.
Her darkness faded and Bane yanked her out of the way, putting her behind him. Snarling, he seizing hold of Helmuth by the neck and lifted him in the air. Galiena watched in astonished appreciation as Bane’s entire body increased in height and mass. His shirt ripped open, showing his back, and the scars on it, before dark fur covered the upper portion of his body. Lighter colored fur covered the rest of his back. It looked silver-ish.
He held Helmuth higher off the ground and grabbed hold of one of the man’s wings, ripping it off and casting it aside. Blood spurted freely from the wound on Helmuth’s back as his screams filled the air.
“Never fucking touch my woman again!” boomed Bane, his voice so deep that it no longer sounded human.
Helmuth hissed and then his eyes turned a deep purple, reminding Galiena of her own eyes now that Krauss had tested on her. Had Helmuth been telling the truth? Was she part gargoyle now too?
Long talons appeared on Helmuth’s hand that was currently dangling at his side as if it was injured. Her darkness flared, reading the
man and his intentions. He was going to rip Bane’s heart out the second the opportunity presented itself.
She shut off. Everything around her seemed to fade away as she yelled and put herself between the men at the exact second Helmuth thrust his clawed hand out.
He hit Galiena’s upper chest instead.
Ignoring Bane’s shouts, she seized hold of Helmuth’s face, yanking on him, pulling him lower, her power still riding high. She felt the difference in the energy then and knew that whatever was happening was related to her succubus side. It was working with her darkness, not against it. And shit was about to get real.
She didn’t want to fight what was about to happen. Fear of harming others filtered away from her, making room for total and complete acceptance of just how much of a monster she could be. Digging deep, she drew upon what Krauss had done to her, all while continuing to tap into the core of her natural-born gifts.
Setting her sights on Helmuth, she opened her mouth, breathing in his essence, his life force, feeding off his deep-set lust for her.
She didn’t stop, refused to budge even as she felt Bane trying to move her. She kept going, kept drawing Helmuth’s energy. His face sank in and his eyes bulged from the sockets. She still didn’t stop. She knew she was close to killing him and ending his reign of terror for good.
Something that needed to happen.
Suddenly, she was ripped away from him, and it took her a second to realize that Bane had a hold of her. He turned her away from Helmuth, putting himself between them.
Helmuth’s body fell to the ground, looking as if he was partway turned into a mummy. His glassy eyes fixed on her, and although he wasn’t a full husk, his arms and legs were draw in and up, his neck thin and his skin drawn back. He was on death’s doorstep, and she’d been the one to take him there.
She should have felt remorse.
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