Another woman hurried forward, her blond hair scraped back from her pale face into a ponytail that made her look about sixteen. She too was all in black, but her weapon was strung on a strap behind her back.
“Nobody comes with us, till Nora checks ’em out for transmitters.”
“We know the drill,” Finn told her. “But they’re clean.”
“Yeah, we’ll just check for ourselves.” Chris held that gun a little higher, staring them down, and Deidre was more than nervous. Traffic still streamed across the Key Bridge not a hundred yards from them. They were all standing in the dark on the banks of a river that rumbled and roared in icy fury.
Chris moved in closer to their group as backup for the witch heading for the women hoping to be accepted into Sanctuary. Deidre felt the tension of the moment and caught herself easing up beside the refugees to silently offer her protection.
“It won’t take long,” Chris told them, shifting her gaze to the men in the group warily.
Joe caught her eye. “It’s okay. I’m used to people being nervous around me.”
Deidre smiled, but Chris didn’t. Her gaze locked on the tall blond man. “If you’d been hunted by men with guns, you’d be a little ‘nervous’ too.”
He gave her a half smile and a brief nod of acknowledgment. “As it happens, I have been hunted by men with guns. Most lately ’cuz I’ve been saving witches’ asses.”
“Point taken,” Chris said with a nod. “Tough times for all of us.”
“No shit,” Deidre murmured.
Chris’s gaze turned to her. “You’re one of them, aren’t you?”
“One of who?”
“The chosen.”
Her heart jolted in her chest. “What?”
Chris held her gun steady as she shifted for a quick look at where Nora stood checking out the women. “Finn and I go back a ways. He told me about you.”
“Is that right?” Deidre’s gaze turned to him.
“You think there are secrets in Sanctuary?” Chris grinned and shook her head. “Hell no. Witches stick together. And we all know about the chosen ones.”
“Great.” Everyone knew all about her. Everyone but her, that was. Deidre suddenly felt like she was on display. All eyes were on her and she was torn between the desire to hide and the urge to lift her chin and glare right back. She saw the expressions on their faces. Some were filled with curiosity; others, like Marco and Tony, were suspicious.
“Drop it, Chris,” Finn told her in a deep, unyielding voice.
“Look, all I wanted to say,” Chris murmured as if understanding the position she’d just put Deidre in, “was to get it done. Okay?”
“Sure.” Deidre hunched deeper into her jacket, battling both the cold and the uneasy vibes suddenly spinning around her.
Joe was still watching her thoughtfully, but she ignored it and focused instead on Nora as she swept her open palms over one of the rescued women.
“What’s she doing?”
Chris answered. “Nora’s gift is manipulating metal.”
“Hey, me too.”
The other woman laughed. “Good to know. Nora’s looking for implanted transmitters. The bastards in the camps have been getting slicker—tagging some of the witches with transmitters in case they get out. Hell, I heard in Alabama last week, they actually released a tagged witch and followed her. Eventually, with nowhere to go, she went to a local coven. The feds got them all.”
Out of control, she thought. The whole world was out of control. Ten years ago, a woman who hadn’t realized she was a witch accidentally killed her abusive ex with magic. She had been the first witch put to the stake. And since then, the majority of people on the planet were determined to wipe out witches.
The worst part was that witches weren’t using their powers against civilians. They hadn’t intentionally hurt anyone. But fear and raging paranoia had turned even ordinary citizens into rabid vigilantes.
Deidre watched as Nora moved her hands over the women, each in turn. Her palms bristled with energy that anyone close enough could feel, but Nora never touched the women, just hovered an inch or so above their skin while she scanned them thoroughly.
“How we doin’?” Chris asked as the first two witches were cleared and escorted to the waiting van.
“Fine,” Nora said, then stopped and looked over at Tony. He gave her a wicked smile and a wink. She chuckled, shook her head, and said, “This one’s clear too.”
The woman heaved a grateful sigh and scurried across the cold ground to the waiting van. Joe glanced around the clearing anxiously. Shauna stood at the van, talking to one of the guardian witches. Finn watched over the scene while Tony and Marco stood on either side of the rescued witches, protecting them.
Nora cleared another witch, glanced at Tony again and this time frowned a bit in response to his flirtatious smile. “It’s weird, but I’m getting—”
Still smiling, Tony shot her.
Blood spatter shot into the air and sprayed across the rocky ground. Nora dropped, dead, before the echo of the gunshot had faded away. Someone screamed. Deidre took an instinctive step forward before Finn grabbed her and pulled her behind him. At the van, the refugees were crying and the guardians had their weapons up and ready to roll.
Instantly, Tony swung his gun barrel around, aiming at Chris. He shouted, his voice carrying over the roar of the river to everyone in the clearing. “Everybody. Drop your weapons. Just stand still. Move and I swear to God, I’ll kill every witch I can. Starting with Chris.”
“Tony,” Joe demanded, “what the fu—”
Deidre looked out from behind the wall of Finn’s back, to the van where the women were huddled, clearly terrified. Shauna and the guardians laid their weapons down reluctantly.
Chris moved slightly and Tony smiled. “Don’t try it. I will kill you as dead as that bitch.” He kicked Nora’s body. “If it was up to me we’d kill all of you. But they want you alive.”
“They?” Finn’s voice came harsh, furious.
Deidre felt the rage pouring off him in thick waves. It sizzled and snapped as it fed off the power he held within his massive body.
“Bureau of Witchcraft,” Tony said, then added, “Drop your gun, Joe. I don’t want to kill you.”
He did as he was told, then straightened as he said, “Never figured you for a traitor, Tony.”
“Me?” He laughed. “I work for our government. You’re the traitor. Big Navy SEAL and what do you do with your training? You help witches? What the hell is that?”
“You didn’t have to kill her,” Deidre said quietly.
“No,” he agreed. “I didn’t. But it was fun.” His gaze narrowed on her and he laughed. “And you. You are the bonus of the century. The president’s daughter? A witch?” Another delighted chuckle came low and deep. “You are gonna get me a fat promotion, sweetie.”
A chill of fear snaked along her spine and beside her, she sensed Finn’s restrained fury.
“You’re not taking her anywhere,” Finn told him.
“You can’t stop me.” Tony looked him up and down and narrowed his eyes dismissively, but Deidre could read the fear on his expression. He used his free hand to pull a cell phone from his pocket. “You’re fast, but not faster than a bullet.”
“That’s where you’re wrong.” Finn called up the flames and flashed out in a wink. He appeared again behind Tony, grabbed the man’s head with both hands and snapped his neck in one easy move. He dropped the body and never looked at it again as he crossed to Chris. “Get the women out of here.”
“Well damn,” Marco murmured just loud enough to be heard, “that’s a handy skill to have.”
Deidre looked down at Tony’s body and, she was almost ashamed to admit it, felt nothing but relief. Immediately though, a voice in her head
took over. He could have ruined her life. Her mother’s life. He had killed Nora and threatened everyone else. Why shouldn’t she be glad he was dead? she argued with a conscience that was suddenly flatlining.
“Can’t,” Chris was talking to Finn. “There’s still one woman Nora didn’t check. Hell, one of your own men was compromised. I can’t risk Sanctuary.”
“She’s right,” Deidre told him.
“Yeah, she is, so you’ll have to do it.”
She blinked at him. “How?”
“You said you manipulate metal.” Chris looked at her. “Just focus on finding it. Your magic will home in on any metal if it’s there. Nora told me it felt like a buzz against the palms of her hands. And silver feels warm. They tend to use silver in the implants, because it enhances a witch’s magic—probably gives their transmitters a boost, too. Open your mind and trust your instincts.”
“Okay. I’ve got no idea how to do that, but I’ll try.” She hurried over to the woman, who had inched away from Tony’s body, and said, “It’s okay. I just have to see if you’ve got any metal on you.”
She nodded and turned wide, blank eyes up to Deidre. “Do it. Just clear me so we can get out of here. Before more of them come.”
But no pressure. Still, Deidre told herself, shouldn’t be too hard. She’d watched Nora do it. All she had to do was let her instincts rule the magic.
She buried all thoughts of Nora’s death, of Tony’s betrayal and the price he’d paid for it. She didn’t let herself think about the cold, dispassionate look on Finn’s face when he’d killed a member of his own group. She didn’t think about any of it. Her hands shaking, she reached for her magic and swept her hands over the trembling woman in front of her. As she worked, she heard the others talking.
“How long do you think we have?” Chris asked from behind her.
“Not long.” Joe cursed quietly. “Nora probably sensed a transmitter on Tony. And if he’s been bugged this whole time . . .”
Deidre heard that and her worry grew. If Tony had been bugged, then everyone he worked with would already know who she was. What she was.
She straightened up as she finished checking the woman. She hadn’t found a thing, so the woman was either clean or Deidre sucked at the whole testing thing. Either way, she had done all she could. Deidre waved the woman to the van and as she scurried off, Deidre looked to the small group talking not ten feet from her.
Finn shook his head and said, “He wasn’t bugged. I’d have sensed that.” He paused and looked around at his group. “Secret’s out. You know I’m more than human. So trust me, using magic I would have known if he was bugged. If anything, he probably had a GPS locater on him. The same thing they’ve been implanting the witches with.” He glanced at Deidre as she walked up to join them, then turned to look at Chris and Joe. “Which means they know where we are, but they don’t know Tony’s been taken out. They could be waiting for a signal from him. In which case”—he paused for a dark smile—“we’ve got all the time in the world.”
Chris slanted a look at the women in the van, awaiting salvation. “But they could also just decide to drop in on us now. Scoop up the people they can.”
“Yeah.” Finn agreed with a sharp nod. “And that means, we gotta move.”
“How long was that guy with you?” Chris asked.
“A week. He came in to replace Jermaine.” Joe scowled at the memory. “He probably told his superiors about the tunnels.”
“How?” Finn asked, shaking his head. “He hasn’t been out of the tunnels since he got there. He was never alone and the rock walls kill electronic transmissions.”
Joe smiled. “You’re right.” He looked at Deidre and shrugged. “Can’t tell you how many times I tried to use a cell phone when we first moved in down there and got squat for my efforts.”
Finn reached out and dropped one arm around Deidre’s shoulders, pulling her in close to his side. “That’s the main reason I chose those tunnels.” He looked at Chris. “I’m sorry about Nora.”
She bowed her head briefly before answering him. “Thanks. Me too. But Nora knew how dangerous the refugee runs could be. We all do what we have to do.” She watched two of her guardian witches as they carried Nora’s body to the van and laid her gently in the back.
Behind them, the boats creaked and the river roared on. Deidre leaned into Finn, drawing on his strength as well as his warmth. Not too long ago, she had briefly entertained the thought that he might be her enemy.
Now she knew the truth.
He was just what he claimed to be. The warrior standing between her and those who would kill her. But for how long? a voice in her head whispered. He’d come to her out of nowhere—would he go the same way? Was he here simply to train her and leave? Was he going to be a part of her future? Too many questions and not enough answers.
“We have to get the women to safety,” Chris said and held out one hand to Finn, then Joe. “Good luck to you and thanks for bringing the women to us. And, Deidre—good luck. You need anything, you come to Sanctuary. Finn can tell you how to contact us.”
She hoped she wouldn’t need to take Chris up on that, but it was always good to have options. “Thanks.”
“Watch your back,” Joe said.
Chris flashed him a wide smile. “Always, honey.”
They watched as she strode across the ground, shouted, “Fire it up,” and leaped into the passenger seat. She lifted one hand out the window as the black panel van disappeared into the tree line.
“Will they make it?” Deidre’s whisper was almost lost in the icy wind.
“Hell yes, they’ll make it,” Joe said. “That woman should have been a SEAL.”
“She’s going where she needs to be,” Finn told him and added, “Which is just what we need to do.”
“Got it. What’s the plan?”
Deidre deliberately avoided looking toward the spot where Tony’s body lay. Instead, she focused on the two men and Shauna as she moved across the clearing to join Marco by the boats.
“Back to the tunnels,” Finn told him.
Right now, even the tunnels sounded good to Deidre.
“Get the rest of the team together. Tell them about Tony and ramp up security.”
“Right. We’ll meet you there.” Joe turned to join the others, then paused and gave Finn an interested look. “I’m guessing you won’t be needing a ride?”
That’s right, Deidre thought. More secrets than just hers had been spilled tonight. Finn had told her his people didn’t know the truth about him. Well, that wasn’t true any longer.
Finn stiffened. “About that.”
Joe shook his head. “Never mind. Don’t need to know. Probably better if we don’t.”
“Right,” Finn said with a nod. “Okay then. You, Marco and Shauna head back, meet up with the others. Make sure you’re not followed. Dee and I will be there in a few days.”
She looked up at him in surprise, but he didn’t say anything more.
“We’re leaving Tony here?”
Finn looked at the body and his eyes went to pewter as he answered Joe’s question. “Let his masters find their dog.”
“Good call. And like I told Chris, watch your back—and hers.”
“Count on it.”
“See you, Dee.” Joe winked at her and ran to the closest boat. He shoved the boat into the water, then jumped in to join Marco and Shauna.
In moments, they were well on their way to the other shore and Deidre and Finn were left alone in the cold emptiness of a clearing stained with death.
“You ready?”
Deidre looked up at him. She knew he was asking her more than if she was ready to leave the clearing. He was asking if she was ready to accept who and what she was. What they were, together. And she gave the only answer she coul
d give.
“Yes.”
He called on the flames, gathered her in close and flashed them out.
Chapter 17
“Fucking dog.”
Kellyn kicked the dead hellhound so hard, it flew across the room and slammed into the wall. “Never send a puppy to do a full-grown hound’s job,” she told herself in disgust.
Walking to the minibar, she poured an ice-cold vodka shot and drained it in one gulp. Not only had the damn hound gotten itself impaled by silver, but it had come straight back to her like it was on a bungee cord. If anyone had followed it . . . They hadn’t, of course, but now she would be forced to change hotels again, just in case. Irritation upon irritation.
“Fine. Lesson learned. No more damn dogs.” She grabbed the cold bottle of vodka and walked with it to the wide sweep of pale blue sofa nestled on a Persian rug in shades of gold and red.
The hotel was nice, but she was tired of living in them. She wanted her own place. Something, she thought with a smile, palatial. On a cliff, overlooking an ocean. Something with a view.
But she wasn’t going to get that until the damn Awakening was shattered. She’d already lost the first two witches. Sneering, she pictured them and their Eternals cozied up inside Haven, laughing at her.
But they didn’t matter anymore. She still had time. After all, she hadn’t clawed her way out of Hell and possessed the body of one of the chosen witches for nothing. She lifted one hand and checked her manicure. Deep within, she heard the whispered voice of the witch whose body she inhabited. Poor fool was screaming to get out, screaming for vengeance.
“Not gonna happen, bitch,” Kellyn assured that small voice. She had trapped her host’s Eternal at the bottom of the sea and set herself up to mangle the Awakening and claim the power for herself and she wasn’t going to stop until she was successful, damn it.
Taking a deep, cleansing breath, she had another sip of cold vodka. The third Awakened witch was still up for grabs. And, this time, she would have help. Not that she required help or wanted to share in the prize, but desperate times/desperate measures and all that crap.
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