Embrace the Hunt

  Sounds like you have everything in hand. And Ian, this is exactly what we’ve needed to do for a long time. I’ll see you in a few.

  Reverting his attention to Regan, he pathed, Everything’s set with Ben. He’s on his way.

  Was he upset you hadn’t involved him initially?

  Not really. I think he trusts my judgment. He held her gaze. Are you ready for this?

  Absolutely.

  He could feel her energy rising and he could relate. Whatever this was for Regan, he was going into battle and his warrior nerves were hopping, ready to go.

  He moved in behind her as he had earlier when she’d first experimented with breaking down the initial layer of mist. He sensed her drop into her meditative process as she relaxed against him.

  I want you to wait before you sink too far, he pathed. I want the Guardsmen in place who I’ve assigned to protect both you and me while you’re working on the counter-spell.

  I’ve thought of that, too. I’m resting just inside the deeper state. I won’t sink ‘til you tell me.

  He loved that she was in step with him. Good. Are your eyes closed?

  Yes.

  He watched as another squad arrived. He inclined his head to them as they continued on to their designated coordinates.

  To Regan, he pathed, Several of the teams have passed by, those heading to the westernmost reaches. We’re on our way.

  He felt her breathe a sigh of relief. Sounds like everything’s moving as planned.

  A moment later, the first of the squads he’d assigned to serve as their detail, arrived at the granite outcrop. Each warrior landed lightly and though nodding to Ian, stayed in silent mode. He took a moment to path to the leader, letting him know what was really going on. The squad leader then pathed to his team. Excitement vibrated in the air.

  Once they were all in position, he used hand signals to direct them to form an arc in front of the two of them, with three protecting the rear. As battle frequencies rose, the men fanned out. His own powerful energy radiated down his arms, preparing to erect his shield when necessary. As a result, his blood tattoos heated up.

  Ian continued contacting the various squad leaders telepathically. He let them know what was really happening, that his force and part of Stone’s were heading into battle with Margetta’s primary army. What returned each time was a telepathic cheer, for he could call it nothing less.

  Shifters began to arrive as well. The squad leaders pathed to him, letting him know their teams were taking up the easternmost positions as ordered. Again, Ian let them in on the true nature of the mission. Even if one of them was a spy and informed Margetta, she wouldn’t have enough time to remove her army. She could move a small portion of it, but not the majority.

  When Stone checked in and the last unit was in place, he pathed to Regan, Game time. Let your magic rip.

  ~ ~ ~

  Regan readied herself to drop into her deepest meditative state in order to create her counter-spell once more. Before she began, however, she pathed to Ian, Place your hands on my blood tattoos the way you did last time and let your power flow. I can’t tell you how much your battle energy supports my spell-making.

  Whatever you need, Regan. Let me know, and I’ll do it.

  When he slid his hands to connect fully with her blood tattoos, his battle vibration hummed against her skin. She deepened her meditation until she reached a perfect place of connection with all things realm.

  She opened her inner eye to see Margetta’s spell and to once again appreciate its complexity and beauty.

  She began, as she had earlier in the night, to compose the counter-spell, a process using many of the elements in Margetta’s spell base. The moment it came together, her blood tattoos lit on fire.

  Ian pathed. You’re ready, aren’t you?

  I am. Do I need to hold back?

  Nope. Your timing’s perfect.

  Then start letting your battle energy flow like last time. As the first layer begins to dissipate, I’ll begin composing the second counter-spell. There are five in all, but this will happen very fast, Ian, in waves only a few seconds apart. Ready?

  Hell, yeah. Just give me one sec.

  She felt him switch his telepathy from just her to his squad leaders. Because he included her in what proved to be a group contact, she heard the orders he delivered to his Guardsmen and shifter warriors. The vampire had power.

  What returned felt like a big cheer, definitely a flow of excitement and energy that almost pulled her out of her conjuring state.

  Let it loose, Ian pathed, though just to her this time.

  Regan brought the initial counter-spell to the forefront of her mind. Using the enormous shared power emanating from the blood-tattoos, she let the spell flow.

  It was like fire from her arms and hands. Part of her wanted to watch the mist disperse, but she had to stay focused on creating and launching the successive counter-spells.

  Ian pathed, The first layer is gone.

  She quickly brought the second combination of melodies, words and images together. I’m releasing the second wave.

  I feel it. The layer is peeling away. I’m watching the whole thing and it’s amazing.

  She fashioned the third and with Ian’s battle energy flowing, she launched it.

  Then the fourth.

  Finally, the fifth.

  Holy shit. It’s gone. All of it. Sweet Goddess. But you’d better come back to me as in now. Something’s not right.

  Regan returned to full consciousness, but didn’t immediately move her arms or disengage from Ian’s power. Together, they were still streaming the spells and it would take some time to roll back the disguising mist from all over the large acreage of Margetta’s land.

  But what stunned her was how close the fortress actually was. The mist had not only disguised its existence but also its proximity to the gorge. It wasn’t more than a quarter mile distant.

  Yet the tents in front of them seemed too quiet. Where were the Invictus?

  Ian, what’s going on?

  I’m not sure. Where’s the army?

  Regan’s heartrate doubled. I can feel they’re here. I can sense them. Oh, no.

  What?

  Ian, you’d better contact everyone. There’s another layer to the spell and I’ll need a minute.

  As Ian delivered the warning, Regan dove deep again and once more summoned Margetta’s spell.

  Sure enough, a sixth layer emerged, this one more intricate than the others.

  Fear beat at her, that she and Ian would be slaughtered in what was an extremely vulnerable position. Despite that her knees shook, she forced herself to focus on the sixth spell. No wonder the fortress had been invisible for so long.

  Fortunately, the same essential base appeared and after sorting through it and separating the various incantations, melodic choices and special words, she found the final layer. She quickly created the counter-spell and let it fly. Ian’s power flared, and as she opened her eyes, dozens of Invictus pairs suddenly became fully visible.

  Ian had already ordered his nearby force to hold the line until he could take care of business. But he now pathed the team leaders with a different directive. Engage at will, resounded through her mind and therefore to the rest of the squads. Aloud, he again reminded his closest warriors to wait for his command.

  Shifting to face her, he gripped her shoulders. “You’ve done your part, and I need to fight. Two of my men will take you to the opposite side of the gorge to protect you. Stay hidden in the forest until I come for you.”

  He gestured to the Guardsmen behind them. “Sean, you’ll see to this?”

  “Yes, Mastyr.” Sean had thick, red hair and a determined look as he nodded to her. “Can you fly, Mistress?”

  “Yes, absolutely.”

  Levitating, he waved a hand toward Dark Gorge. “Then, let’s get you out of here.”

  Regan immediately took to the air, moving as fast as she could to the opposite side. Landing at the edg
e of the forest, she slipped among the trees. The Guardsmen came with her.

  Each stood facing away from her and far enough apart that she could see the granite outcropping. Ian had set up a powerful blue shield behind which his troops battled the Invictus.

  But there were so many.

  Regan had hoped Ian’s forces would be able to take the fortress, even though she knew the odds were against them. But with so many pairs battling, she didn’t see how it would be possible.

  CHAPTER NINE

  With the enemy encampment now fully exposed, and Regan safely away from the north side of the gorge, Ian focused all his attention on the coming battle. His men had already formed a line in front of the Invictus force, each having erected a battle shield. He then let loose his own battle energy and added to the heavy shield wall.

  Many of the wraiths rose into the air, shrieking. Their bonded mates formed an opposing line to Ian’s Vampire Guard, then shouted, roared and struck their weapons together to create as much noise as possible.

  They were fierce-looking with wild hair, and a battle fervor equal to his Guardsmen. They wore lots of leather, heavy boots, chains and spikes.

  Ian wasn’t fooled by their crude appearance, however. Their increased power because of the Invictus bond made them dangerous.

  Red battle shields accompanied the Invictus, a counterpart to the Guardsmen’s shields that now vibrated in a blue wave of energy in front of him.

  “Hold steady,” he shouted.

  His troops obeyed.

  He wanted the Invictus to break ranks first. By nature, the bond also created chaos and wraith-pairs were easier to defeat one-on-one.

  Ian’s blood tattoos were lit up and even at a distance he felt Regan’s power flowing toward him, focused on him. What would it be like if he bonded with her?

  Ian tracked a powerful wraith who never took her gaze off him. She moved steadily closer to his position, though remaining high in the air. No doubt she was planning to dive-bomb.

  When the wraith was directly above him, she flipped in the air, head down, her palms lighting up a dark red. At the same time, the Invictus charged forward.

  The moment had come.

  “Attack at will,” he shouted.

  Almost as one, his Guardsmen launched.

  He released his shield, more than ready to engage mano-a-mano. He arched his neck, lifted his glowing palms as the woman fired then let his battle energy fly. The resulting clash of frequencies sent explosions of blue and red sparks into the air.

  This one had power.

  When her gaze flipped for a split-second to his right, by long habit, Ian levitated backward in a quick dart of movement. Her shifter mate’s axe struck the granite where Ian had been standing, the sound reverberating down the gorge.

  The pair moved toward him with one mind. The wraith opened her mouth, exposing sharp, yellow fangs then let loose with an ear-shattering shriek. But he was used to the sound so he ignored her, focusing instead on building up the power in his hands.

  His battle energy flowed once more down both arms, his blood tattoos pulsing. The wraith, streaking back and forth through the air, was firing hers up again, which meant he could expect her bonded shifter to come at him.

  The shifter’s eyes were bloodshot, his skin ruddy, and his long, black hair hung in filthy strands to his waist. His nostrils worked like bellows as he sprouted wolf fur down his bare chest.

  Ian felt a surge of power from his blood tattoos. He shot forward faster than he ever had before, swiped the axe from the shifter’s hands and used the blunt end to smash into the back of his head.

  The man went sprawling, landing face down on the granite and sliding almost to the edge of the gorge cliff.

  His mate shrieked, faltering in the air, then landing hard on her side. She shook her head and rose unsteadily to her feet. A series of dull shrieks followed as she went to her mate and flopped down beside him.

  They shared their power and when either was badly wounded, the other couldn’t keep going.

  He moved off to the side to keep an eye on the pair he’d just wounded as well as the battle.

  But as he analyzed the battlefield, at first, he didn’t understand what he was looking at since there was so little movement. The Guard that had served to protect himself and Regan, stood over several either dead or incapacitated wraith-pairs.

  Otherwise, the field looked empty though there had to be a hundred tents directly in front of them, leading up to the fortress.

  A few more of his Guardsmen had come in from their positions both east and west of his and were now moving from tent to tent as well.

  When his squad leaders started checking in with the same disturbing reports, of encountering only a handful of easily dispatched wraith-pairs, Ian’s heart sank.

  Where the hell was Margetta’s army? Was it possible she’d actually been able to move thousands of her troops within the last few minutes?

  Instinctively, Ian knew the Ancient Fae didn’t have that kind of power. She would have required at least twenty, maybe thirty minutes to relocate an army of this size. Yet, once the spell dissipated, she would have only had a couple of minutes to get the job done and that was impossible.

  Which meant only one thing.

  Somehow, though he’d been careful, the Ancient Fae had learned of his plans in sufficient time to save the bulk of her forces. But who had told her? Who was Camberlaune’s traitor?

  ~ ~ ~

  Regan heard Ben call out her name and she responded until she could tell he was moving through the forest in her direction. Yet the moment she saw him, she knew something was off. For one thing, she felt his battle energy revving up.

  The Guardsmen greeted him and he smiled, then lifted glowing blue palms in their direction.

  Regan didn’t have time to do more than utter a startled cry as he fired at both vampires, hitting each in the chest. They flew backward, one landing against a tree and the other falling into a dense thicket of shrubs.

  She stared at the men, horror-stricken. Their chests were caved in, smoke curled from their bodies and the stench had her stomach boiling. The men were dead.

  “Let’s go, Regan. And in case you’re wondering, you’ll be bonding with me. I’m the one Margetta has chosen for you.”

  Regan had to get out of there, fast. She levitated to make her escape, but Ben was a blur as he grabbed her. He then planted his hand on her head and her mind grew strangely fluid. Not a single thought could emerge except that she felt so tired and wanted to sleep.

  Ben picked her up, cradling her in his arms. That’s it, Regan. A little trick Margetta taught me. Now, let yourself go.

  Just before she fell unconscious, she felt herself flying through the air.

  ~ ~ ~

  By the time Ian heard back from his squad leaders, he had all the confirmation he needed that Margetta had received a warning of the impending attack. The camp still had fires burning, food cooking in skillets, water boiling in pots. She’d removed her army with the formidable power she had at her fingertips but she’d begun the process long before Regan had destroyed the spell.

  Ian kept shaking his head. He’d been damn careful. How could she have known?

  His forward Guardsmen continued to plow through tent after tent, heading toward the stone fortress. But the response was always the same. The Invictus were gone.

  When he reached the wall of the fortress, the same place he’d caught Regan in his arms two nights earlier, he had a sick feeling something had happened that he couldn’t face, couldn’t believe.

  At least Regan was safe on the far side of the gorge.

  He reached for Stone, pathing, What are you finding?

  Nothing. There’s nothing here. Half my warriors encountered no Invictus at all. The rest battled a handful of wraith-pairs. That’s it.

  Ian shook his head. Meet me at the fortress entrance. I think it’s on the north side.

  I’ll bring some of my men.

  Ian ordere
d his Guardsmen to make a clean sweep of the adjacent forest all the way to the gorge to make certain the Invictus really were gone. He then pathed to his squad leaders, directing them and their troops to do the same, including those belonging to his Shifter Brigade.

  He levitated slowly to have a look, doing a 360 spin at the same time. He visually hunted for any sign of the enemy, but he found nothing. He then flew higher into the air to get a birds-eye view of the encampment. What he saw stunned him. He did a cursory estimate and realized he was looking at over five thousand tents.

  Margetta’s army was beyond anything the ruling mastyrs had ever imagined. No wonder Regan had said that the woman didn’t seem worried. But how had Margetta known to remove her army?

  It appeared he’d been right after all, he had a spy in his Guard or maybe the Brigade. But his mind refused to speculate who this might be.

  That sick, twisted feeling returned, something so heinous that bile crawled up his throat. Part of him knew he was witnessing a traitorous act of enormous magnitude, but another part couldn’t even look it.

  He saw the tower where Regan had been imprisoned. At least he knew she was safe from Margetta. He’d left two guards with her.

  He made his descent on the north lawn where he could see Stone standing in a knot of his warriors.

  Stone pulled away from the group. “Ian, what the fuck happened here? It’s as though they knew we were coming and pulled out.”

  “I think that’s exactly what happened.” Ian’s temples throbbed. “But I don’t know how. I was so damn careful. Were you?” Maybe Stone was at fault.

  “Shit, yes. I told no one, as requested. Not even my seconds.”

  “I didn’t either.” A sharp pain drilled through his head. “Except … ”

  Stone took hold of his arm, gripping it hard. “Ian? Who did you tell?”

  Ian couldn’t breathe and the pain in his head felt like someone had suddenly jammed a hot poker inside his skull. In that moment, his world flipped upside down and everything he knew to be true no longer was.