by Holly Hook
Alex nods as he turns dull and stony again. “I was hoping for something new.”
We need to go. I rub my thumb along Cayden's hand to tell him.
“Well, we're off to see the wizard,” Cayden says.
“Is Noah rubbing off on you?” I ask.
“I think it's just some relief from whatever Brett did. You don't know how good it feels. Maybe now we can protect ourselves.”
Once Cayden, Leonora, Everly, Remo, and me are back to the cabin and standing in the living room, away from the chatter outside, I realize that unless we want to break into Edwin's house, we need the guy to get to Brett. A sinking feeling fills my stomach and I look at Cayden. “We need the guy who's ready to...who hates us,” I say.
His expression hardens. “We should go without him. If Brett drains you too badly and he's there, you could start to get possessed, and then I'm going to have to kill him.” Cayden's anger washes over me. It's that red glow I saw around him, I'm sure.
“I don't want to see that,” Leonora says.
“You're going to kill Brett and let Romulus run free?” I ask. “And rot the Nobles?”
Cayden looks me in the eye. The hazel forest god within is dark and determined. His devotion to me is so strong he'll sacrifice the Noble species to protect me. And that's dangerous.
“I'm afraid I will.”
I breathe out as my throat hurts. “We...we have to think of everyone else.”
“What are you trying to tell me?”
I wish I could blurt the truth about Edwin and the fact that he has my blood. “Exactly what I told you.”
“You're so selfless, Brie.” Cayden wraps me in a hug and kisses my forehead. I shudder with the brief pleasure of feeling his perfect chest and hips through my clothes. “That's why I love you and am going to protect you. You might be alpha now, but that drive to keep you safe is still there. To be truthful, I don't think it's faded since we switched places.”
“That's why we need to bring Brett to our side and save him.” I can do that, right? It worked with Alex and was the only thing that brought the Noble King's spirit to me. Perhaps, just maybe, we can pull Brett from darkness, too.
Ha. Fat chance.
Cayden releases me. Everly and Remo, who have stood at the edge of the room the whole time we were talking, step closer.
“Cayden, maybe Everly and I should go,” Remo says. “You two could stay here and we'll try to wrestle how to remove Cayden's curse from Brett.”
“But I'm needed,” I say. “Only I can boss Brett around effectively. Even Cayden can't do that.” I look to my mate as his shoulders slump in barely-hidden shame. “Sorry.”
We don't need to say the rest. If I go, he goes. It only feels right that we face Brett together.
* * * * *
At least Edwin is still distracted in the log circle, arguing about the importance of my vision with his nephew. His self-importance is going to be his undoing soon enough. As we leave the cabin, the two still face off while the five Hunters watch. The rest of the Colling pack watches, too, as do the Russells. What a waste of time.
But as me, Cayden, Everly, Remo, and Leonora leave the cabin, we find Alex waiting beside the greenhouse. He twirls a keyring on his finger.
“Edwin told me that if you are going to get answers out of that warlock you turned, that I should go with you to supervise,” he says.
I'm not sure how I feel about that. Cayden steps in front of me. “This might be unpleasant for you,” he says.
Alex remains stony. “I will cope. We'll just focus on Edwin's mumbo-jumbo and see if it works.”
I know Edwin's sending him for a reason. And what that reason is. Cayden will kill him, too, if the Savage King comes close to taking over again. And there's no way he'll recover from that.
“Come on,” I say.
“I had Nan bring us the SUV,” Everly says just as the Lowes' SUV pulls up the drive, with Nan in the drivers' seat.
“You're awesome,” I tell her.
Nan gets out and hands Everly the keys. I nod my thanks to the older woman. Alex sits in the back, right behind me, but Cayden turns in his seat and watches him the whole way to Edwin's small rental house. No one's home, of course, but I smell something new when we pull into the driveway.
The burning hay scent is still there, wafting out from under the front door, but there's something else, too: a new foresty scent and fresh grass that indicates the presence of a Noble Wolf. Brett has turned. How he is remains to be seen.
I get out of the SUV and march to the front door first, determined to get some answers for Cayden and Callie both. Once I open the door, the scent hits me full force: nature mixed with anger. I've never smelled anything like this. I'm about to face some kind of strange hybrid who's never been on the face of the Earth before. And maybe, since Nobles don't like to turn people like Brett, he's the first Wolf like this. It's going to be an interesting situation.
“Let me go first,” Cayden starts, but then he frowns at me once he realizes what he's saying.
We stand in the doorway, blocking the way for Leonora and the others. “I'll go,” I say. “I've dealt with Brett before and know what a jerk he is. If he sucks the life from you—and I'm sure he still can—then you're going to suck the life out of me. No offense.”
Cayden grimaces and forces the words out. “None taken. Leonora, you have a way to defend us?”
“I don't like being in Edwin's house,” she says quietly, looking around at the living room and kitchen.
“Neither do I,” I say, realizing it for the first time. Brett's not up here on the ground level—he's in the basement—but Edwin's house carries a strong sense of you're not welcome. Though it looks ordinary in every way—tan carpet, white walls, an old green couch that doesn't match—the feeling lingers in the air. “We'll just focus on our bubbles or whatever so he can't feed off us. Maybe Edwin's made some spirits to watch his house while he's gone.” I'm not confident about that one, but I'll try. Blinking, I imagine a bubble of light around me, holding off the darkness. The vision's hard to hold onto. It's going to take practice.
Alex snorts.
“Actually, that might be the case. I feel like we don't belong in here,” Leonora says. “Edwin doesn't trust us, after all. He might be working with my parents, but he's still looking down on them.”
“Then let's get out of here as quick as we can. Did anyone bring Brett's spellbook? I'll order him to translate.” I hope he can hear us. He should be able to. Brett should have hearing as good as Cayden's and the rest of the pack's, though he won't have hearing as good as mine. I've never encountered someone like him before.
And then he shifts down below, chains dragging across the basement floor.
I march across the kitchen—which is dark and decorated with nothing at all—and open what I'm guessing is the basement door. Marching down, I call out, “Brett.”
He says nothing. I almost feel sorry for the guy. Almost.
Once down, I find Brett still underneath the stairs with four sets of chains binding him to the walls. He's in a seated position, draped in his black robe with the red trim, and he won't even look up at me at first. The others descend the steps as dust rains from the stairs and onto Brett's dark hair, dirtying his head. Alex practically breathes down my neck while Cayden stands at my side. Leonora, Remo, and Everly hang back. At least I don't have Edwin here and that magic pain spell he was doing. It's just Alex and he's less likely to hold off three Wolves if things go south.
Already, I feel tired. Brett's draining us already and my bubble isn't doing much good. It'll only get worse as time goes on. For a second, I close my eyes and grab Cayden's hand. I feel his energy for a second, warm and tingly, before it wavers. Maybe we're tolerating his presence a little better?
“Brett,” I say, focusing on putting on that golden shield Edwin mentioned. “You need to tell us how to remove the curse you placed on Cayden and how to detach Romulus from Callie and me and everyone else you might h
ave helped bind him to. Is bind the correct word?” I look at Leonora and force a smile.
She nods. “Right word. You're learning.”
Brett doesn't look up from the floor when I open my eyes again. He just keeps eyeing it like it's the most fascinating thing ever. He's not going to be easy to crack. Even now, I feel resistance to my commands. But if Lawrence cracked and gave me the location of his grandmother, Brett has to give me answers eventually.
“It's not for you to know,” he forces at last, pulling against the chains that bind him to the wall.
I have to use more force. Releasing Cayden's hand, I step closer and square my shoulders. I'm in charge. “Tell us how to remove both. We can't read your chicken scratch, and I'm sure you made your handwriting like a doctor's on purpose, so tell us.”
Everly snorts with suppressed laughter. I know what she's doing and it's trying to keep the mood in the dark basement up. Brett shifts again. His limbs tremble with weakness and helplessness.
But the drained feeling stays in me. The longer I stand here, the darker the basement seems, and the weaker I feel.
“Tell us,” I order. “And stop trying to drain us!”
Brett looks up, training his sunglasses on me like he's shocked we've figured out what he's doing.
“I can't help it. It happens on its own now. And these chains are sucking the life out of me, so I have to get my energy somewhere.”
A negative pressure starts in my chest. It's not like the threat of possession I've felt before. This is my lifeforce leaving my body.
“You know, you could always have a meal,” I say, glancing at Cayden. I detect no lie in Brett's words. His body must be so used to doing this by now that it's his default. “Tell us how to remove the curses. Then we'll bring you some food. But until then, you're sitting here.”
Brett glares at me. I can barely see his eyes behind his sunglasses, and for the first time I see his veiled fear. Brett's doing such a good job at hiding his terror that I can't even smell it, but it's there. Maybe he doesn't even realize it yet. After all, we've ripped out his whole world from under him and he could still be in denial.
“You might as well,” Everly says, joining me. “You can't go back to Romulus now or he'll destroy you. Even if he doesn't, letting him take over Brie will hurt you, too. You'll become like the Savages you don't even like.”
Brett flinches. Everly has some good points. We're getting to him.
“No,” he forces.
“You have to do what I tell you,” I say. But my command falls to the floor. The negative pressure, like there's nothing in my chest, continues. We're standing very close to Brett, so close I can barely breathe.
“I...just can't!”
“That's progress,” Cayden says. But he winces as he speaks and steps back.
“Stop draining my mate,” I order, speaking at just under a shout. “I don't care how you have to stop.”
“It's happening automatically! I've trained so hard that I can't turn it off anymore.” Brett bites his lip so hard he draws blood. The metallic scent fills the basement and makes my stomach rumble. A tremor of rage starts in my limbs.
I focus again on that shield of light Edwin told us to put around ourselves. The awful sensations ease, but not enough. Behind me, Remo and Leonora breathe in unison, focusing.
“Time is running out,” Alex says. “You need to tell her what to do.”
“And kill my sister?”
Oh. I'm never breaking through that wall. I feel the barrier already. Maybe I need to approach this differently. That could mean being too nice again, but being cruel hasn't gotten me very far. So I kneel beside Brett.
Brett looks right at me. As he does, his draining talent hits me full force and I gasp for breath. So much for that light bubble.
“Brett,” I say. “Why did you have to learn how to do this?” He has weaknesses and I need to exploit them, even if it's dirty. I need to understand him.
“Because you killed my father.” His words stretch out, strained and hurt. As he speaks, his chin carries a sight wobble. “Sure I didn't like him, but in case you're stupid and didn't see, I don't have a lot of family. My mother was already gone and now he's gone, too.”
“Don't talk to her like that,” Cayden says. Balling his fists, he advances on Brett.
“I've got it,” I say as Cayden's anger sweeps over me. “Back up.”
Cayden does, grudgingly, and stands on the other side of the basement. His anger fades. I want him by my side but I know what will happen if he stands too close.
So, Brett. I'm staring at a boy, not a young man now. He chews his lip with nerves. I smell them now, too. Metal. Fear. Confusion.
“That must be tough,” I say. I have to focus on him and not what I've done. “I didn't want to hurt your father. But he threatened my mate, and I acted the way you would have if Karina had been threatened like that. What would you have done?”
Brett's gaze softens. “I would have killed for her. You know that. What's your point? You still ripped out his throat.”
Now the pressure tries to settle into my chest. I sense the darkness above me, watching and waiting for my guilt to open the door. But I won't let it. I can't let it. Closing my eyes, I breathe out and focus on forming a barrier of gold around myself. It's my glow. The good in me. With each breath, I push it out a bit further.
“Learn some meditation?” Brett asks.
It takes all I've got to ignore him. “I'm sorry things turned out this way for you,” I say. “I didn't want to hurt him and we didn't want to do this to you. But you weren't happy with your father and you aren't happy with where your sister is now. Let us help you get her out of her situation and come around again. We owe it to you.” Then I force myself to look right at Brett. He's making eye contact.
“Of course I'm not happy,” he says. “You killed—you couldn't get my sister out of the cult. You let her escape. Now she's dark just like my father and I don't think she's coming back. It's her who bound Romulus to Callie. Her and the high priestess. I had nothing to do with it.”
“This is about your sister?” I ask. It's not about his father after all? “Tell me. That's an order.” I push everything I've got into the command and I feel the wall break.
“Yes. It's about my sister, Miss Psychologist. She's going to go so dark she'll die. Karina drains me when I'm around her and I had to learn this art form to survive there. I also did it so I could drain the Savages when I was around them.”
“He's giving us a load of bull,” Cayden says from the other side of the basement.
“Wait,” I say, facing him. “Brett really does care about his sister. I don't think it's bull.” Already the connection between me and Cayden strains. Brett's still draining us but at least he's showing some signs of cooperating. “We need to listen to him.”
Brett's eyes widen behind his sunglasses. I can see that much. “You're going to listen to me?” He feigns shock.
“I'm listening,” I say. “If we can help you get Karina out of her situation, would that be enough for you to help us get rid of the curse? And the Savage King?”
“Brie, you can force the answers out of him,” Everly reminds me.
I could but that doesn't feel right. Forcing answers will chase away any of that real Noble feeling that I need to fight off Romulus for good. Right?
“That would be nice if you could make it happen,” Brett says. “I can't save her now and I don't think you can either. She's always worked more closely with our father than I did. She was his favorite.”
“Then why did you try to protect her?” I ask. “Brett, I'm not trying to be a psychologist. I'm just curious.”
“Because I'm her older brother,” he says. But as I listen, I hear the real meaning in his words. Because I wanted to feel useful. Because I was always worthless. It's a very human reason for doing what he did.
“I see how it worked,” I say.
“We need real answers,” Alex says.
Th
e Hunter is scared. I don't blame him. As I think about what I've done to Brett, the horrible pressure increases, like the Savage King is trying to take advantage of the hole Brett's leaving in me as we have this conversation.
So I step back. “Yes. We do,” I say. “Brett, if we destroy the Savage King, your sister will have no one to worship and work for. We might have to free her that way because even after we fed her and treated her great, she left and sold me out to your father. Karina's not going to come around for a long time, but she has a better chance if she's not working for the cult.”
Brett shakes his head. “The cult will never break apart. And I don't know if Romulus can ever become dormant now. I've felt him, too. He's strong and won't go away easily.”
“But do you know of any ways to help?”
In the corner of my vision, Cayden inches along the wall, watching me with his mouth hanging open. He's impressed. And that's despite the darkness dancing around the periphery of the basement. Though Brett's turned, it's just as strong as ever. He's still dark.
But at least he has hope.
Brett swallows. “I don't know of any ways to hold him back but I know what feeds the Savage King. To connect him to you, we had to attach a few dark spirits to your life force. They're still there, giving him a place where he can get in. And every time you feel dark you feed them and send out a signal for him to attack.”
Alex clears his throat. “So Abigail was right. You're a danger.”
“I'm not a danger.” I whirl on him, expecting him to draw a weapon. Alex hadn't heard this part of the story, had he? He just knew I was from a forbidden line. Okay, so I still hate Brett.
Alex keeps his hands down, probably because Everly and Remo stand on either side of him and Cayden has moved to breathe down his back. But if he's unnerved, he doesn't show it. “But if this is true, you might be. Unless you can fix this.” He finishes with a nod that looks honest. He's honorable. But the hardness remains in his eyes. Before I had pulled him out of the pond, he would have killed me.
“You will not touch her,” Cayden says.