The Strip

  Alex shoved free of Phelan for a moment and lashed out with his power. The electric lines whipped down toward the other werewolf, hot and sizzling, and slammed into Gabriel’s back, singing the material of his shirt and carving a deep red gash into his flesh.

  Gabriel’s eyes flashed at the contact and he rolled forward, only to be buffeted back by another lashing line, a make-shift whip that carved across his chest, drawing more blood.

  How does it feel, Phelan? How does it feel to be in my granddaughter’s place?

  A third power line snaked down, faster than the others, and slammed into Gabriel with enough force to knock him off of his feet. His back was now sliced open in two places, his chest a third, and blood welled around the burnt injuries as the wounds fought to heal. They would never heal entirely. If he survived, he would scar. Fire was one of the few things that could truly harm a werewolf. Electricity was nothing more than a kind of fire; one that burned hotter than the sun.

  One hundred thirty-five degrees and the air was becoming difficult to breathe. Waves of heat rose from the ground, blurring the bushes and cacti and rocks into a strange sort of yellow and purple haze beneath the color-stealing cast of the moon.

  Phelan didn’t reply to Alexander’s taunt. Instead, he rushed the other werewolf, this time angered by pain and the knowledge that he’d been marked.

  But Alexander was expecting it. He spun as they contacted, using Phelan’s weight against him and taking them both to the ground. As he did, Alex sank his fangs into the other man’s neck and pulled hard and deep against the artery he had opened.

  Phelan barked a harsh sound of pain and surprise and tried to pull away, but Kavanagh had him. The air continued to heat up. One hundred forty degrees. Kavanagh imagined that Gabriel was beginning to feel sick. Heat will do that to an animal. As will loss of blood.

  He pulled and drank and swallowed and felt Phelan’s grip lessen, ever so slightly, on his own body. Then he sensed that familiar flutter in his thoughts – that touch of another mind against his as someone else used his own power to communicate with him wordlessly. Soundlessly.

  But this communication was different. While Alexander expected to hear Gabriel’s voice in his head, perhaps for the last time, he instead began to see things. Images. He began to feel things. His enemy, his eyes closed and he was standing in a dungeon. A beautiful woman hung naked from leather straps in the ceiling. In his hands, he held a bullwhip. His heart beat sped up. Lust coiled deep within him, awakening his hunger. His pupils expanded and he raised his arm.

  Alexander’s arm swung expertly through the air and the whip cut across the space between him and his granddaughter. The leather braid made the most beautiful sound as it hit her back and marked it with a red line. She cried out in agony and Alex grew hard. Painfully so.

  His heart skipped in his chest and bile rose in his throat. He pulled away from Phelan, trying not to vomit, hatred and revulsion and agonizing guilt rushing his mind and body until the world was painted as red as the blood that now dripped from his fangs.

  Gabriel was standing back up. He was weak, but he was standing none the less. “You haven’t won anything, old man,” Phelan whispered as the air around him began to cool once more. “This has only just begun.”

  Alexander turned where he knelt in the dirt, and gazed up at Phelan through tear-stained ice-blue eyes. Gabriel had known how to get under his skin. He’d known to show him those images and make him feel those horrid feelings. He’d known the effect it would have on him. He’d found a chink in the Overseer’s armor.

  Alex watched in stunned, repulsed silence as Phelan’s eyes turned from blue to brown to gold. His body began to morph, to melt, and to change. There was a flash of light.

  When it had faded, Gabriel’s tall, blonde form was gone. A golden eagle sat on the tree stump a few feet away. It stretched its wings and flapped them hard once, twice, and then rose into the night.

  Nearby, a power line sparked. It sputtered and hissed along the ground. And then its electric fire went out.

  Chapter Eighteen, The Singleton

  “Does your husband know you’re here?” Cole asked Lily. The acidic note that normally accompanied his tone when he spoke to her was gone. He honestly seemed just curious.

  Lily shrugged. “Frankly, I don’t care. He really pisses me of sometimes.” She blew out a sigh and sat back in the leather couch. “James knows I’m here, as does Tabitha. Good enough.”

  Charlie cocked her head to one side and studied the female made werewolf who was fast becoming a friend. “What happened?” she asked, knowing instinctively that Lily probably wanted to get it off of her chest.

  “Oh, he’s just a big bully.” Lily looked up at Charlie and smiled a meaningful smile. “You know how alphas are.”

  Charlie returned the smile and Cole had the decency to look chagrined.

  “I can’t thank you enough for what you did,” Charlie said next. “You probably saved my life, and you definitely saved Cole’s.” Her gaze cut to her mate, who’s glittering eyes reflected her own relief. “And Maria’s.” Charlie finished, turning back to Lily. Maria was the name of the young woman who had been trapped in all of this and nearly killed as nothing more than bait.

  Lily smiled a warm smile and blushed a little. “It’s my job.” She picked up her paper coffee cup and took a deep sip.

  Charlie wasn’t so sure about that. Lily’s determination was only slightly less great than her resolve to do the right thing. When Daniel Kane had hidden Lily’s phone from her, she’d simply gotten into her car and driven the short distance to her best friend’s house, where she used Tabitha’s phone to call the Overseer. She told him about Charlie’s marks – and about the vision of Phelan that she’d had on the way over.

  Alexander Kavanagh had then called in the troops.

  Dannai was the first one on the scene, as usual, and it was her magic that provided the Council with Charlie’s location. If they hadn’t arrived when they had….

  Charlie chanced a glance around the large hotel room. It was Cole’s suite in the Bellagio and it seemed as if the entire werewolf community was inside of it at that moment. The Overseer stood by the windows in his expensive suit, his strong arms crossed over his broad chest. His ice blue eyes were the most keen and intelligent eyes that Charlie had ever seen.

  Jessie Graves sat in a sideways chair at the dining table, one arm draped over its surface, the other in his lap. He met Charlie’s gaze and smiled tenderly.

  She smiled back.

  Jakob Samson, Lucas Caige, and the rest of Cole’s pack were also in the room. They were scattered around it, most of them standing, and the air was thick with the energy they gave off. They were worried. None of them had quite slid out of fight mode just yet. Phelan was still out there. It seemed the man was impossible to kill.

  Enforcers were spread throughout the room as well. It was easy to tell an enforcer. They looked like the body builders of the werewolf community. All werewolves were large and well-built. But these guys were ridiculous.

  The witch Dannai was the only one that Charlie could think of at that moment who was not with them in the room. She’d left as soon as the fighting at Maria’s house had died down and the Council enforcers had begun to clean up the mess.

  As Charlie thought of the woman now, she recalled the witch’s unspoken words. Tell no one… please.

  “I think it’s time to discuss Phelan and what the man is capable of.” The Overseer came away from the window and paced slowly, his hands now behind his back. “He’s a problem that isn’t going to go away.”

  Everyone in the room watched him as he turned toward Charlie. “He can change shapes Charlie, which means that we must accept the distinct possibility that he can become anything he wishes. Any one he wishes.”

  “You mean he could be one of us right now,” Lucas Caige ventured from where he sat reclined in a large black love seat.

  “That’s the general idea, though we would most likely reco
gnize his scent,” Alexander replied calmly.

  “Unless he can change that too,” Cole said.

  They fell silent at that, and Charlie noticed that they were all looking at one another, as if unsure of whose presence they were in.

  She sighed. “I don’t know why I didn’t mention his eye color earlier. We may have been able to prepare for something like this. When he trained me as David Reese, his eyes were brown.”

  “That’s true,” Lily agreed. “His eyes were brown in my vision.”

  Charlie nodded. “But he changed them right in front of me. If he could do that, there’s no reason why he couldn’t do more. I mean,” she turned to her grandfather. “You told me that some werewolves are born with gifts. I guess that could be his.”

  “Indeed,” Kavanagh replied. He took a deep breath and let it out through his nose. “All right, people. Be on your guard and keep in touch,” the Overseer ordered. As if dismissed, the werewolves began to stand from where they’d been sitting and those who had already been on their feet were making their way to the door.

  Charlie watched them leave. Jessie stayed behind, as did Lily.

  Within a few moments, the only people left in the room were the Overseer, Jessie, Charlie, Lily, and Cole.

  The door to Cole’s suite swung shut and the latch caught and Alexander Kavanagh took a seat beside Charlie. “Phelan is bad enough,” Alexander said as if speaking with her alone. “But we also have to consider the warlock, Seth.”

  Charlie paled a little at the thought of the black haired man who looked so young and felt so much older. The warlock was a wild card. She thought of the way his deep, indigo eyes had raked over her, and the way he’d looked at her in the back of Phelan’s Cobra after she’d hit him… and she shivered. “He had fangs and his eyes were glowing red.”

  “Yes,” Kavanagh nodded. “I believe he is related to an Akyri. Most likely, the offspring of one.”

  “The same thought occurred to me,” Jessie said.

  “What’s an Akyri?” Lily asked.

  “A supernatural being that has existed alongside the werewolves since time began,” Alexander replied. “They tend to form a symbiotic relationship with warlocks. Something in the darkness of the magic feeds their existence. In exchange, they perform duties for warlocks they feed from.”

  “So they’re real,” Cole said softly. “I had suspicions.”

  Charlie’s head was spinning, but it definitely wasn’t the first time that week. She now believed in werewolves and witches. What was one more supernatural creature?

  “Many of the more powerful alphas have come across them at one time or another and not known what it was they encountered,” Kavanagh continued. “Now you know.”

  “Are they dangerous?” Lily asked.

  “I would have to vote ‘yes’ on that,” Charlie said, recalling Seth’s aura of power. “But Seth was a warlock himself,” she told her grandfather. “You said the Akyri just feed off of warlocks.”

  “I believe Seth may be the offspring of a warlock and an Akyri. These creatures are incredibly rare. In fact, we have virtually no information about them, which is why I can’t be certain that Seth is one. However, it would make sense. And if this is the case, then to answer your question, Lily – yes. The Akyri are dangerous. But Seth is perhaps far worse.”

  “Great,” Lily said as she blew out a sigh. “Now what?”

  “The Akyri don’t think we know about them,” Kavanagh said. He smiled. “We prefer to keep it that way. If you have a vision concerning Seth, of course you are to tell us. Otherwise, keep away from him. We have no idea what his intentions are. We have no clue as to what it is that he wants. He is holding all of the cards.”

  Nobody had anything to add to that. The words seemed to drape a blanket of solemnity over the small group of werewolves. They had much to think about. The leader of the Hunters was out there somewhere with a seemingly endless army of killer humans and werewolves at his disposal. And he could most likely become anything he wished.

  To make things worse, there was an inhuman warlock on the loose with a hidden agenda and unbelievable power. It was safe to say that Charlie and her companions were not yet at home base.

  “Charlie, we need to talk about those marks on your arms,” Kavanagh interrupted her thoughts.

  Cole sat across from them and leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees and lacing his fingers together. “Lily, you said the curse was different now.” He paused and cleared his throat, as if embarrassed. “You didn’t have a chance to elaborate.”

  Lily blushed and nodded. “You showed up at Maria’s house before she was killed. And in my visions, it’s the same way every time the marks work. You show up before anyone is hurt.” She waited as this information sank in. “Also, in the visions, Charlie’s never alone.”

  Now, she looked to Cole.

  And then she looked away from Cole and turned in her seat to look at Jessie.

  Jessie’s stark amber gaze narrowed slightly and he straightened in his chair.

  “I don’t know if you’ve ever even tried to take anyone with you when you’ve traveled trough the curse before, Cole,” Lily continued, softly, as she turned back around to pin Malcolm with her golden gaze. “But it’s obvious that Charlie can do it now. She can take people with her. All that seems to be required is a touch.”

  “You mean, I can travel to these places, before anyone gets hurt, and I can kick some major serial killer ass and save lots of innocent people?” Charlie asked suddenly, an edge of excitement to her tone.

  Everybody in the room blinked and all eyes were on her. “What?” she asked. “Why are you looking at me like that? It’s true, isn’t it? That’s what Lily’s saying. With this gift, I can save people.”

  “It isn’t a gift, Charlie. It’s a curse,” Cole said softly.

  “No, it was a curse for you. But for me, maybe it’s something different. Something better.”

  “She’s right,” Lily agreed. “The potential to do good here is immense. You have to admit that.”

  Cole’s grip on his own hands tightened and he seemed to be struggling with something. Finally, he spoke through somewhat gritted teeth, “Why do our mates keep acquiring powers that put them in danger like this?”

  “An excellent question, Cole.” The Overseer sighed and faced the alpha. “I don’t have an answer to it, either. No one does. Except, perhaps, my brother.”

  Charlie froze where she was on the sofa. Had she heard him right?

  “He seems to believe that Dormants are given these powers as they are made wolves to further aid our survival. Charlie and Lily are not the only two-”

  Charlie whirled on her grandfather, her ice blue eyes flashing. “Your brother?”

  Alexander didn’t even flinch. He’d obviously been expecting this reaction. And he could read her mind. “Yes, Charlie. He’s your great uncle. Unfortunately, there has been some love lost between us. We’re a tad… estranged.”

  “I have a great uncle?” she asked.

  Kavanagh sighed. “Technically, yes. But I’m afraid I must forbid you from having anything to do with him, Charlie. The man is dangerous. His views are twisted. He can’t be trusted.”

  Charlie sat, staring at her grandfather, as this information sank in. And then she straightened, her chin up. “You forbid me?”

  Kavanagh blinked. He must not have read that thought coming.

  Cole cleared his throat. “Charlie, your grandfather is the council Overseer – ”

  “No one forbids me from doing anything,” Charlie said, her tone low, her voice tight. She had just about had enough of the macho nature of alpha werewolves. “But you can reason with me, if you like. And I might agree with you.” Her jaw was set and she could almost feel her light blue eyes flashing in warning. “I suggest you give it a try first.”

  The inhabitants of the room had grown quiet. Charlie’s gaze skirted from Cole to her grandfather; both were looking at her with the strangest expressi
ons on their faces. But Lily was smiling.

  And from where he sat at the table a few feet away, Jessie Graves began to chuckle. Charlie turned to look up at him. His amber eyes were sparkling and his smile was a proud smile. He shook his head in wonder and, when the other two men in the room turned to pin him with hard gazes, his chuckle broke out into a full-blown belly laugh, deep and rumbling and beautiful.

  “Be careful, gentlemen,” Lily stated, a mischievous air to her tone. “Revolutions happen for a reason.”

  And right now, I can royally kick ass, thought Charlie, as she recalled the speed with which she’d been capable of moving at Maria’s house; the pain she’d been able to doll out to Phelan. She felt incredibly strong. Capable.

  She felt… an absence of fear.

  It was what she’d always strived for. With each trainer she’d tried, with every class she’d attended and every large friend she’d made, it had been her goal. Now it was finally hers. She could walk the street alone if she chose, and, aside from Gabriel Phelan and that inhuman warlock, no man would be able to hurt her.

  Not any more.

  “Very well.” Alexander was suddenly trying to hide a smile of his own. “Charlie, please do me the favor of staying away from your great uncle. He doesn’t have your best interests in mind.”

  Charlie nodded. Once. “I’ll do my best.”

  At that, Lily stood. “I have to go. James and Tabbie are waiting for me outside.”

  “Wait.” Cole stood as well. “What about the pain?” he asked, gesturing to Charlie’s arms. “Is there anything we can do to lessen it?”

  Charlie’s stomach clenched. She looked up at her mate. As tall and strong as he was, he seemed burdened by a weight that he very much wanted to get rid of and didn’t know how to. He seemed desperate in this. It made him appear almost human.