by L. L. Raand
“There,” Drake said, pointing to the far end of the room. “Isolation cubicles.”
Sylvan stalked down the aisle. Drake, Niki, and Gray followed. The first cubicle was empty. Bright lights shone in the second, spotlighting two rectangular glassed-in cages. The occupants were small, wide-eyed, helpless. She could not scent them, but she didn’t need to. Their eyes were wolf eyes, searching hers. Sylvan roared, cracking the glass of the isolation chamber with one furious stroke.
“Newborns,” Drake said, her voice wintry cold.
Sylvan backed up a step, her fury too large to contain. If she touched them now, she would frighten them. “Get them out.”
Drake began opening the latches on the cages, murmuring softly to the pups. Sylvan turned away, rage narrowing her vision to laser points. “Niki, see to them. Jace, Jonathan—sweep the floor. Gray, with me. Everyone dies.”
“Sylvan,” Drake murmured, “if—”
“No, there are no innocents here,” Sylvan roared. “Find the mothers.”
She headed for the last door on the floor. The one that opened opposite the isolation cubicles. Before she reached it, she smelled the Vampire and the human. Finally, she had found the enemy.
The lock gave with her first punch. The room was dimly lit, a large comfortable space with a thick patterned carpet and carved wooden bookcases and a sitting area with a large sofa. The contrast to the arctic room she’d just left fired her fury.
A flicker of movement to her right, a glint of silver. She blocked the blade sweeping toward her head and gripped the wrist holding the short sword. For an instant she stared into the fiery eyes of the last Vampire. The Vampire hissed and struck at Sylvan’s throat with razor-sharp nails. Sylvan yanked her closer and the blow glanced off her shoulder. They were face-to-face with barely an inch between them.
“You have been found guilty,” Sylvan whispered and thrust her hand into the Vampire’s chest. She gripped the pumping heart and squeezed, watching the shock in the Vampire’s eyes slowly turn to emptiness as she pulled the organ from her body.
“No!”
A shot rang out. Sylvan dropped the Vampire and spun around. A wild-eyed human swayed beside the sofa, a gun in her right hand pointed at Sylvan. Gray’s wolf sprang, striking the human with unerring accuracy. She dragged the screaming female to the floor by the neck and slowly clamped her jaws together until silence filled the room.
“Gray,” Sylvan ordered, “leave your kill.”
The wolf swung around, a low growl in her throat. A second passed and she shuddered. Gray rose naked and staggered to Sylvan’s side. “She was the one. The one who took us.”
Sylvan grasped her nape and pulled her close. “I know. And now we are done.”
*
Jody raced down the hall, leaving the carnage behind. Francesca would know the rear was blocked and her vehicles destroyed. Even with the sun coming, if she escaped out the front, she was old enough to tolerate it until she found shelter or stole one of their vehicles.
A roar shook the building to its foundation. Jody skidded around the corner into the main foyer, her bloodied sword in hand. The Hound’s massive body blocked the shattered doorway and the exit to freedom. Francesca was trapped between the two of them.
Francesca looked over her shoulder at Jody with a wry smile. “We are still Vampires. Still the same. Would you choose the others, the weaker, over one of your own?”
Jody strode forward. “You are not one of mine.”
“You would give me to the Hound?” Francesca mocked, her eyes laughing. “You are not your father’s daughter.”
“No.” Jody raised the sword above her head in both hands. “I am not.”
Francesca’s gaze widened as the sword arced. A furious scream rent the air, and a crescent of blood streamed from the blade as if it were a brush painting the walls in a crimson sunset.
No body fell.
Jody stared where Francesca had been. The Hound growled, and an instant later, Torren stood in the doorway.
“Is she dead?”
“She should be.” Jody sagged to her knees. “If she endures somehow, she will be alone and powerless. For Francesca, that would be worse than death.”
Chapter Thirty-six
Sylvan’s first stop was to check with Callan. Assured all was secure, she headed to the infirmary. Most of the less seriously injured had been treated in the Rovers on the way back to the Compound and were already in the mess hall eating or the barracks sleeping post-shift. Max needed more than just fuel and time spent in pelt. He lay on the treatment table, Andrea by his side. Elena cleansed a series of deep rips on his chest and hip with hemostatic solution.
“How is he?” Sylvan asked.
Before Elena could answer, Max growled, “Fine. I’d be better if these two would let me get up.”
“Be quiet, Max,” Andrea said, fingers lightly working through his hair. “Let Elena work.”
Max’s scowl faded and Sylvan smiled.
“He’ll be fine,” Elena said. “Half a dozen cracked ribs, some muscle tears, a bruised lung. It won’t slow him down once he shifts.”
Sylvan gripped his shoulder and glanced at Andrea. “Any word?”
“The wet work team is done at the lab. The AG should be arranging the warrant right about now. My team is set to go as soon as they receive it.”
“I told you to go with them,” Max said grumpily to Andrea.
“They don’t need me to take down a civilian like Nicholas Gregory. He’ll probably still be in bed when they get there.” Andrea continued to stroke Max’s hair. “Besides, I’d rather not be identified in any official capacity. His arrest will put a dent in HUFSI, but it won’t put an end to it. This is just the beginning.”
“The case against him is solid?” Sylvan asked.
“The link between him and that lab is the connection we’ve been waiting for. What’s even better, we have preliminary evidence the funding goes all the way back to some very influential politicians.” Andrea smiled a smile like that of a wolf contemplating prey. “Believe me, before we go to the grand jury, it will be airtight.”
“He has powerful friends,” Sylvan said.
“All the better.” Andrea’s growl was worthy of a Were.
Sylvan said to Max, “Do as Elena orders.”
He grumbled even as he ducked his head and settled back on the table.
Sylvan continued through the infirmary and into the nursery. Drake was just coming out of the newborn area.
“Well?” Sylvan asked gruffly.
Drake slid an arm around Sylvan’s waist. “They’re healthy. We’ll want to monitor them, but I can’t find any evidence that they’ve been…”
“Experimented with?”
“Yes.” Drake sighed. “They’ve been tested—there’s evidence of blood drawing, but nothing more that I can see.”
Sylvan watched through the doorway as Sophia lifted one of the newborns and handed it to Niki. Sophia took the other, and they sat side by side to feed them.
“There’s no trace of the mothers,” Sylvan said. “According to Tamara, the pups were sired by forced matings with Bernardo’s lieutenants. They’re dead too.”
“The pups have a Pack now,” Drake said gently, running blunt claws up and down Sylvan’s back. “We couldn’t have gotten there any sooner, and it was time enough.”
“I can’t help feeling that I failed them,” Sylvan said.
“I know, because that’s who you are. But you have to trust me when I say that you didn’t. They’ll be fine. They just need care and love, and they’ll get plenty of that in the Pack.”
“Yes, they will. But they need something more.”
Drake studied her intently. “You’re their Alpha. You know what’s best.”
Sylvan kissed her and slipped quietly into the room so as not to disturb the feedings.
Niki started to rise.
“Stay there.” Crouching down beside Niki and Sophia, she studied the blue-eyed
pups. Both females, both blond like so many of the Blackpaws. Like Sophia and her parents. “They look hungry.”
“They are,” Niki said. “And strong already too.”
Sophia looked up, eyes glowing. “You should name them, Alpha.”
“No,” Sylvan said, “you should. The two of you.”
“I don’t understand.” Sophia glanced at Niki.
Sylvan said, “They won’t need to stay here very long, but they’re not big enough yet to join the other pups. Take them home.”
Sophia’s hand slid onto Niki’s thigh and tightened. Niki covered it with her own and met Sylvan’s gaze. “Our home?”
“Yes. They need connection to the Pack, but they need more than that. They need parents.”
“Yes,” Sophia said softly. “They do.”
Niki grasped Sophia’s hand. “We are honored, Alpha.”
Sylvan laughed. “You say that now. Wait until they’re a little bigger and start driving you crazy.”
Niki swallowed hard. “Thank you.”
Sylvan kissed Sophia’s cheek, gripped Niki’s neck, and whispered in her ear, “I can’t think of a finer home for them.”
*
“Now,” Drake said to Sylvan as they crossed the Compound to headquarters, “we can put our energies into unifying our Pack and building our future in the light.”
“We will still need to negotiate with the humans.”
“Yes, but at least now you will not be fighting a war as well.”
Sylvan closed the door to her office and pinned Drake against it. “How do you feel about another litter of our own?”
“I’m not in heat.”
“We can change that.”
Drake laughed and bit Sylvan’s lip. “I like the idea of trying very much. Are you ready now?”
“Always.” Sylvan grinned. “Give me five minutes.”
Drake pulled off her shirt, unbuttoned the top of her BDUs, and canted a hip against the edge of the desk. “I’m counting.”
Sylvan growled and yanked her cell from her pocket.
“How is Jody?” she asked when Becca answered the phone.
“Torren was kind enough to carry the idiot back here so she could feed and heal. What is the matter with you?”
“Uh…”
“Really, Sylvan,” Becca raged. “Must you macho types always be in the thick of things?”
Sylvan laughed. “I don’t think that term really applies to Weres and Vampires.”
“Then idiots will have to do.” Becca paused for breath. “She’s fine.”
“Could I talk to her, then?”
A moment later Jody said, “You are well, I take it?”
“Fine.” Sylvan rubbed her shoulder. The wounds had healed and the soreness would disappear after her first run.
“And your wolves?”
“None seriously injured. Your Vampires?”
“All recovering.”
Sylvan rumbled. “What about Francesca?”
Jody was silent for a long moment. “Francesca was one of the oldest and most powerful Vampires in existence. She might have had powers none of us knew of. I can’t say with certainty she’s ended.”
“Could she have gotten past Torren?”
“No,” Jody said. “And no Vampire I know of has ever been able to teleport.”
“You have a theory?”
Jody sighed. “Torren does.”
“That is worrisome.”
“Yes.”
“Tell me.”
“Passage between the realms usually requires a Faerie Gate.”
“Usually?”
“Some Fae can cross the realms without a Gate. The power expenditure is tremendous, which is why Torren wasn’t able to return to Faerie that way after her long period of imprisonment. But some royal Fae can.”
“But Francesca is not Fae.”
“Torren thinks a very, very powerful Fae might be able to transport others as well.”
“Did Torren say who those very, very powerful Fae are?”
“No, but she didn’t need to.”
“Cecilia,” Sylvan said darkly. “But we don’t know that?”
“No. And even if somehow that were the case, Francesca is still without power, without allies, without servants, without soldiers. She is no longer a danger.”
“So for now,” Sylvan murmured, pulling Drake to her side, “we have won.”
About the Author
Radclyffe has written over forty-five romance and romantic intrigue novels, dozens of short stories, and, writing as L.L. Raand, has authored a paranormal romance series, The Midnight Hunters.
She is an eight-time Lambda Literary Award finalist in romance, mystery, and erotica—winning in both romance (Distant Shores, Silent Thunder) and erotica (Erotic Interludes 2: Stolen Moments edited with Stacia Seaman and In Deep Waters 2: Cruising the Strip written with Karin Kallmaker). A member of the Saints and Sinners Literary Hall of Fame, she is also an RWA/FF&P Prism Award winner for Secrets in the Stone, an RWA FTHRW Lories and RWA HODRW winner for Firestorm, an RWA Bean Pot winner for Crossroads, and an RWA Laurel Wreath winner for Blood Hunt. In 2014 she was awarded the Dr. James Duggins Outstanding Mid-Career Novelist Award by the Lambda Literary Foundation.
She is also the president of Bold Strokes Books, one of the world’s largest independent LGBTQ publishing companies.
Find her at facebook.com/Radclyffe.BSB, follow her on Twitter @RadclyffeBSB, and visit her website at Radfic.com.
Books Available From Bold Strokes Books
Twice Lucky by Mardi Alexander. For firefighter Mackenzie James and Dr. Sarah Mackenzie, there’s suddenly a whole lot more in life to understand, to consider, to risk…someone will need to fight for her life. (978-1-62639-325-7)
Shadow Hunt by L.L. Raand. With young to raise and her Pack under attack, Sylvan, Alpha of the wolf Weres, takes on her greatest challenge when she determines to uncover the faceless enemies known as the Shadow Lords. A Midnight Hunters novel. (978-1-62639-326-4)
Heart of the Game by Rachel Spangler. A baseball writer falls for a single mom, but can she ever love anything as much as she loves the game? (978-1-62639-327-1)
Getting Lost by Michelle Grubb. Twenty-eight days, thirteen European countries, a tour manager fighting attraction, and an accused murderer: Stella and Phoebe’s journey of a lifetime begins here. (978-1-62639-328-8)
Prayer of the Handmaiden by Merry Shannon. Celibate priestess Kadrian must defend the kingdom of Ithyria from a dangerous enemy and ultimately choose between her duty to the Goddess and the love of her childhood sweetheart, Erinda. (978-1-62639-329-5)
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Pedal to the Metal by Jesse J. Thoma. When unreformed thief Dubs Williams is released from prison to help Max Winters bust a car theft ring, Max learns that if you want to catch a thief, you have to get in bed with one. (978-1-62639-239-7)
Dragon Horse War by D. Jackson Leigh. A priestess of peace and a fiery warrior must defeat a vicious uprising that entwines their destinies and ultimately their hearts. (978-1-62639-240-3)
For the Love of Cake by Erin Dutton. When everything is on the line and one taste can break a heart, will pastry chefs Maya and Shannon take a chance on reality? (978-1-62639-241-0)
Betting on Love by Alyssa Linn Palmer. A quiet country girl at heart and a live-life-to-the-fullest biker take a risk at offering each other their hearts. (978-1-62639-242-7)
The Deadening by Yvonne Heidt. The lines between good and evil, right and wrong, have always been blurry for Shade. When Raven’s actions force her to choose, which side will she c
ome out on? (978-1-62639-243-4)
One Last Thing by Kim Baldwin & Xenia Alexiou. Blood is thicker than pride. The final book in the Elite Operative Series brings together foes, family, and friends to start a new order. (978-1-62639-230-4)
Songs Unfinished by Holly Stratimore. Two aspiring rock stars learn that falling in love while pursuing their dreams can be harmonious—if they can only keep their pasts from throwing them out of tune. (978-1-62639-231-1)
Beyond the Ridge by L.T. Marie. Will a contractor and a horse rancher overcome their family differences and find common ground to build a life together? (978-1-62639-232-8)
Swordfish by Andrea Bramhall. Four women battle the demons from their pasts. Will they learn to let go, or will happiness be forever beyond their grasp? (978-1-62639-233-5)
The Fiend Queen by Barbara Ann Wright. Princess Katya and her consort Starbride must turn evil against evil in order to banish Fiendish power from their kingdom, and only love will pull them back from the brink. (978-1-62639-234-2)
Up the Ante by PJ Trebelhorn. When Jordan Stryker and Ashley Noble meet again fifteen years after a short-lived affair, is either of them prepared to gamble on a chance at love? (978-1-62639-237-3)
Speakeasy by MJ Williamz. When mob leader Helen Byrne sets her sights on the girlfriend of Al Capone’s right-hand man, passion and tempers flare on the streets of Chicago. (978-1-62639-238-0)
Myth and Magic: Queer Fairy Tales, edited by Radclyffe and Stacia Seaman. Myth, magic, and monsters—the stuff of childhood dreams (or nightmares) and adult fantasies. (978-1-62639-225-0)