Lunar Bound, page 18
part #4 of Sky Brooks World: Ethan Series
We showered together. Dressed, I left her in the bathroom and wandered into the living room to clean up any mess left from Sky’s fight with Ethos. I’d forgotten about the Aufero. Resting on a small table in a corner of the room, it reacted to my accidental approach with an angry, pulsing glow. The warning was enough to give me pause. Even before it had absorbed my dark elf magic, the orb had shown a distaste for me. Why, I couldn’t say, but the object was too powerful to simply ignore. Wary, I backed up a step. The intensity of the glow lessened some.
Glancing at the dent in Sky’s wall, I wondered if the orb’s magic had played a part. We knew almost nothing about the orb, other than Sky was its protector by birthright. She was getting better at wielding the orb’s magic. Our ignorance of it was becoming a liability.
She appeared at my side, amused by the Aufero’s hostility toward me.
I gestured to the dented wall. “You did this?”
She answered with a satisfied smile.
Raising my hands to chest level, I took a small step toward the orb, then another until the orb’s protective field pushed back against my palms. My hands glided over the field, feeling its uniformity. With renewed curiosity, I asked Sky, “Tell me everything that happened yesterday with Ethos.”
She repeated her story, patiently answering my frequent requests for the smallest of details. When she described a language he spoke, trying to encourage Maya from her place in the shadows, I stopped Sky.
“I know you don’t know that language, but can you repeat it?”
She did, stumbling over the pronunciation. The words struck a familiar chord. I’d spent untold hours in the library poring over magical texts, sometimes to help Josh, other times for my own benefit. Searching for a spark of memory, I repeated the words over and over.
“How many languages do you know?” she asked, surprised.
“I speak four. Well…” I grinned, remembering to include Portuguese. “Five now.” I turned the conversation back to Ethos. “I knew Anderson was going to be trouble the moment I met him. I can’t believe he is okay with working with Ethos.”
“He was promised the position of Beta of the Midwest Pack,” she reminded me. “Definitely an improvement, being the leader of two hundred to being second-in-command of thousands.”
It was a toss-up whether Anderson or Cole would take the award for Most Treacherous Beta, should one of them take my place. “Whoever becomes the Alpha won’t be able to turn his back for a second without having Anderson’s knife stabbed into it. He will only be the Beta temporarily before he does everything to claw himself to the Alpha position.” I frowned. “And the shooter? Who was it?”
“Ethos called him Derrick.”
“A wolf,” I remembered. “The fourth in the Ares Pack.”
I growled as I drew my phone from my pocket. It was past time for me and Anderson to have a conversation about how I was going to kill him and scatter his pack.
Sky touched my hand. “Who are you calling?”
“Anderson.”
She blinked at me. Her brow furrowed with concern. “I think you should wait.”
I’d already waited too long. “Wait on what, Sky?”
“How will speaking with him change anything? He has an agenda, and you aren’t going to coerce him to change. He sees Ethos as a means to an end, and that is where we should direct our attention.”
She wanted to rehabilitate Anderson—I knew by the look in her eyes. Even if I could convince him that siding with Ethos was a mistake, he could never be trusted. Like a cancer, he needed to be removed.
“Ethos wouldn’t have been able to do any of that alone,” I reminded her. As powerful as he was, we were still immune to his magic when in were-animal form. Without Ares to attack the retreat, Ethos couldn’t have carried out his plan to kill Sebastian and take the Clostra. “Without Anderson, how would it have ended yesterday?”
When she didn’t answer, I returned my attention to finding his number.
She changed the subject. “Have you heard anything from Dr. Jeremy?”
Not the conversation I want to have right now.
I nodded, scrolling through my contacts and hoping she’d drop the subject.
“And?”
“Nothing has changed since last night.”
Her frown deepened. “What happens if he survives but isn’t the same?”
That was more than I wanted to contemplate. “Hopefully, he will step down.”
“And if he doesn’t?”
“Skylar.” I sighed, held her gaze. “You know what happens if he doesn’t.”
“Will he accept a challenge of submission?”
“You know where Sebastian and I stand on that. It hasn’t changed. If we can’t handle our position and someone feels strongly enough to challenge—” I hesitated as she blinked back tears. The policy was practical. Death challenges eliminated all but the most serious. That didn’t mean the practice didn’t have flaws. Raw physical strength wasn’t always the most useful measure of leadership. Too often, I’d seen the better were-animal die in a challenge. I’d no doubt that Sebastian was the better leader. Beyond the horror of killing my friend and mentor, the pack would never be the same without his leadership. His strength, integrity, and compassion were rare among Alphas.
“You don’t have to do anything,” she insisted. “It’s our rules, we made them and we can break them.”
Our rules were ancient, primal. Right or wrong, the survival of the pack depended on them.
“If you don’t feel he is fit to lead,” she continued, “do what you are supposed to do, support him. That’s your job. No one has to fight. No one has to die. I won’t let you do it.”
“Sky—”
“No! I don’t want to hear anything you have to say. Promise me you will not challenge him, no matter what. Promise.”
I wanted to promise, but I couldn’t. “If Sebastian isn’t able to continue as Alpha,” I explained, each word weighing on my conscience, “I will only challenge if he doesn’t step down.”
“No. No, you will not. You have to promise me you won’t.”
“Sky.”
A tear streaked down her cheek as she jerked away from my touch. “You have to promise me, Ethan.”
Seeing the desperation and fear in her eyes, an ache burned in my chest. If Sebastian died at my hands, I might lose her. My voice softened to nearly a whisper. “No. I’m not going to do that. Things are the way they are. I don’t like all aspects of it, but they are our rules and nothing you say to me is going to change them. If you need to cry—go ahead, let it out. If you need to scream—do that, too, but it will not change anything.”
Reaching for her once more, I gently overwhelmed her resistance, pulling her close until my forehead rested against hers. My hand on her cheek, I brushed away her tear with my thumb. “This situation is black and white. I know you want it to be a gray area, but it just isn’t.”
Sky gasped an angry breath and pulled away from me. Her heart was in the right place, but she wasn’t being practical. Her recalcitrance was making a difficult situation nearly unbearable. Fire burned in her emerald eyes as she declared, “Is that what you want to call it to make it easier to accept? So you just plan to ‘black and white’ the situation? Call it what it is, you two will fight until one of you murders the other.”
“You want to be a child about this,” I snapped, my patience at an end. “Go ahead, Sky. A pack is only as strong as its Alpha. You’ve enjoyed the luxury of being part of one that most will not consider screwing with. You’ve never been a woman in a pack that others consider weak, because then you would understand that need for a strong pack. I don’t want to kill anyone in my pack, but if they feel the need to challenge me, they see a weakness in me; and if they see it, so will others outside the pack. If you need this to feel better, then fine, get upset with me and we can fight about it all night, but after today we will not have this discussion again because it will not change anything.”
A knock at the door interrupted her glower, earning a resentful glance. Another knock followed, more insistent. Peering through the peephole, I found Quell waiting on the sun-drenched porch. A growl escaped my lips, but I knew the vampire wasn’t going to leave. With the ward down, he was likely to break his way in if Sky didn’t respond. Surrendering to the inevitable, I opened the door.
He pushed through the opening, brushing past me to take a rigid stand between me and Sky. His gaze shifted from her to the crack in the wall, the bloodstain on the floor. Finally, his narrowed eyes settled on me, an accusation.
“What?” I demanded, daring him to challenge me.
“You failed and let her get hurt.”
In less than a second, I’d closed the distance between us. Somehow Sky had gotten in the way, pushing us apart.
“You go over there,” she barked at me, pointing to one side of the room, then directed Quell toward the other side. “And you over there.”
Neither of us moved.
“Fine,” she declared, starting for the door. “I’ll leave and you two can have at it. I don’t have time for this.”
Anxious at her departure, Quell backed away from me, just enough to give her pause. Not fooled by her bluff, I held my ground. She’d no intention of letting the situation come to violence. Pity. Killing a vampire would go a long way to venting my frustrations. Instead of discouraging us, she simply watched. For some time, the three of us stood in angry silence, waiting on someone to reduce the tension.
Eventually, I accepted the inevitable. Addressing Quell with forced interest, I asked, “Are things with Fi going well?”
The question surprised him. After a moment, he answered with a slight nod.
“Then why the hell are you here?” I growled.
“I was worried about Sky, and rightfully so—you’ve proven to be inept at keeping her safe.”
Before I could correct him, she answered in a rush, “Quell, I’m fine. It isn’t anyone’s job but mine to keep me safe.”
He stepped closer to her, nostrils flaring as he took in her scent—my scent, mingled with hers. I almost bothered to hide a smirk as jealousy contorted his visage. His expression quickly hardened into disgust as he scrutinized her, then me. Sky’s cheeks flushed in unnecessary embarrassment.
The threat of violence filled him. I’d warned her that Quell would eventually lose control. I took a step closer, opening my stance in preparation. My gaze fixed on his shoulders, waiting for that first twitch of action. In most creatures, the eyes betrayed an act of violence just before it happened. The lifeless black eyes of a vampire betrayed nothing.
“Quell,” Sky said softly. “What’s the matter?”
“I didn’t want you to leave last night,” he whispered, “but I couldn’t stop you from doing so.”
I growled in warning as he clasped her hand, but she didn’t pull away.
“Fiona came by and I couldn’t leave to check on you. I just needed to know you were okay. You have someone watching the house now.” His gaze fixed on mine. “But where were they before, when Sky was attacked?”
“Quell.” She squeezed his hand, drawing his attention. “No one attacked me,” she lied for his benefit. “Don’t hold anyone other than me responsible for my safety. Okay?”
He linked his fingers with hers, but I was already distracted by movement outside the kitchen window. Peering out, I saw four large wolves between the trees. “They aren’t part of our pack.”
I strode out the door and found Anderson with two of his pack on the front lawn. The wolves lurked among the trees. Sky appeared on the porch beside me.
“The one on the right is Derrick,” she whispered. “The shooter.”
The assassin. He was new to me, tall and thick, with short dark hair and menacing cognac eyes. His smirk would likely freeze on his corpse after I killed him. My wolf rushed toward the surface, called by violence. Begrudgingly, I held it at bay. Any moment the neighborhood would come to life with people hurrying to their jobs. The sight of wolves fighting on Sky’s lawn would attract the wrong kind of attention.
I felt her hand on my back, cautioning me as she addressed Anderson. “This isn’t the time.”
His smile was condescending. “Oh sweetheart, this is the time.” He turned to me. “He no longer wants you as the Alpha—your protection is gone.” Anderson’s teeth drew back as he started toward me. The four were-animals fell in behind, leering in anticipation of blood.
My hands clenched into fists, but I remained still. With a numerical advantage, I wanted to draw the Ares into fighting their way into the house. I’d hold our ground from just inside, forcing them to come at me through the doorway one at a time. Aside from the tactical advantage, there was less chance of drawing the attention of the neighbors.
Anderson stopped a few feet from the porch. Judging by his sneer, he was surprised I hadn’t walked out to face him. “You all have grown soft, more concerned about your cars, your businesses, and the appearance of strength that you no longer have.”
Sky tensed beside me, prepared to fight. Individually, none of the Ares were a match for either of us. If I couldn’t draw them up the porch, she’d be forced to fight two at a time, perhaps even three as I took on the rest. For myself, I didn’t mind the odds. I didn’t want to see Sky injured. Anderson’s bravado brought a new plan to mind.
“She’s right,” I said. “This isn’t the time. You want to challenge me, accepted.”
“Waiting, a coward’s approach.” He licked his lips at Sky. “And the things I plan to do to you when he’s gone.”
Anger lit a fire in my spine. Before I could act, I felt the dark, oppressive magic of the Aufero swirl around me as it answered her call.
“Why wait?” she snapped.
With an effortless thrust of her hands, the dark magic flowed through her. Men and wolves were thrown to the ground, an impressive display of power. They’d think twice about continuing their attack, but Sky didn’t stop there. Before I could reach out, she leapt from the porch. Looming over Anderson, she gripped his throat in one hand and squeezed. Magic swirled around her as her other hand clutched at his heart.
I watched, awed as her magic seemed to suck the life from him. His heart began to fade as he struggled for breath. For a moment, I considered stopping her. Anderson had earned this death. A quick glance at the other Ares revealed they were still struggling to gather their wits. The neighborhood remained quiet, for now at least. As Anderson’s heart beat slower and slower, I hissed to her, “Do it quickly.”
Something about the magic she used was off, darker than the Aufero.
She brought him to the brink of death, then inexplicably relaxed her magic. He caught a pair of gasping breaths before she returned to drawing the life from him. I blinked, confused. This wasn’t Sky. Even enraged, she’d never torture an enemy.
A cold, alien smile was on her lips. She enjoyed it.
Anderson’s eyes bulged. He squeaked as she choked him, “Please.”
She bent down until her face was inches from his. Her black eyes twitched as she searched his frightened gaze, savoring the nuances of his death. Once more, she relaxed her grip just enough to allow him a quick breath, then returned to torturing him.
This was Maya.
Her attention fixed on Anderson, she remained oblivious to the other Ares who had regained their feet. Distracted, I’d let them. Maya was a problem I didn’t know how to solve, but she’d have to wait. I stepped off the porch, prepared to kill Derrick and the other man behind Anderson. They stood to either side, still awed by Sky’s magic. Before I could reach them, the wolves got between us. Heads bowed, drool spilled out around bared teeth as they growled and snapped their jaws. Dropping into an aggressive stance, I picked out the largest wolf and bared my teeth. Before I could charge, Quell ran from the house at full speed. A blur, he plowed into the wolves, absorbing their attention.
Turning back to Sky, I stepped between her, Derrick, and the other man. They’d had plenty of opportunity to try and save their Alpha. Instead they watched in wide-eyed horror as Sky tortured him, terrified of the sinister magic that radiated from her. A growl from me sent them back a step. Confident they’d not intervene, I edged closer to Sky.
Her attention remained fixed on Anderson’s ruddy expression as he gasped for breath. If she was aware of my presence, she didn’t show it.
“Sky!” I shouted.
A ripple of recognition passed through her. She released Anderson’s throat, staring at her hand as it began to tremble. Her eyes remained black, but glazed over as if she’d turned inward. As Sky and Maya battled for control, I’d no idea how to help her.
Anderson gasped as he stumbled away. The rest of the Ares followed him in desperate retreat.
“Sky!” I called to her.
She remained unmoved.
Quell brushed me aside, gripped her shoulders. Staring into her eyes, he called to her. “You must fight! If you give in, she will control you forever. You must resist!”
Sky blinked. Green swirled in her eyes as she tried to reassert herself. She glanced around the yard, uncertain where she was. When I took her hand, she jerked it free.
“Don’t touch me!”
She whirled, started to stalk away. Maya was reasserting control, but I knew by her confused look that Sky was close to the surface, battling her way toward consciousness. Catching up to her, I wrapped my arm around her waist and pulled her close to me. As she struggled to free herself, I whispered into her hair, “It’s okay. You’re fine. You are.”
After a moment, her resistance ebbed. Her body went limp in my arms, leaning into me for support. I held on tight, listening to her heart thump against my chest.
“You’re okay,” I whispered over and over. Her heart slowed, eventually matching my own. My relief quickly turned to fear as I realized she’d become unresponsive. She was able to stand on her own, but her eyes were glazed, her gaze unfocused.
At my side, Quell gripped her face in his palms, searched her eyes. Willing to try anything, I let him. She seemed to focus on him calling her name.
“She’ll be fine for now,” he said to me. “The spirit shade must be removed.”
Glancing at the dent in Sky’s wall, I wondered if the orb’s magic had played a part. We knew almost nothing about the orb, other than Sky was its protector by birthright. She was getting better at wielding the orb’s magic. Our ignorance of it was becoming a liability.
She appeared at my side, amused by the Aufero’s hostility toward me.
I gestured to the dented wall. “You did this?”
She answered with a satisfied smile.
Raising my hands to chest level, I took a small step toward the orb, then another until the orb’s protective field pushed back against my palms. My hands glided over the field, feeling its uniformity. With renewed curiosity, I asked Sky, “Tell me everything that happened yesterday with Ethos.”
She repeated her story, patiently answering my frequent requests for the smallest of details. When she described a language he spoke, trying to encourage Maya from her place in the shadows, I stopped Sky.
“I know you don’t know that language, but can you repeat it?”
She did, stumbling over the pronunciation. The words struck a familiar chord. I’d spent untold hours in the library poring over magical texts, sometimes to help Josh, other times for my own benefit. Searching for a spark of memory, I repeated the words over and over.
“How many languages do you know?” she asked, surprised.
“I speak four. Well…” I grinned, remembering to include Portuguese. “Five now.” I turned the conversation back to Ethos. “I knew Anderson was going to be trouble the moment I met him. I can’t believe he is okay with working with Ethos.”
“He was promised the position of Beta of the Midwest Pack,” she reminded me. “Definitely an improvement, being the leader of two hundred to being second-in-command of thousands.”
It was a toss-up whether Anderson or Cole would take the award for Most Treacherous Beta, should one of them take my place. “Whoever becomes the Alpha won’t be able to turn his back for a second without having Anderson’s knife stabbed into it. He will only be the Beta temporarily before he does everything to claw himself to the Alpha position.” I frowned. “And the shooter? Who was it?”
“Ethos called him Derrick.”
“A wolf,” I remembered. “The fourth in the Ares Pack.”
I growled as I drew my phone from my pocket. It was past time for me and Anderson to have a conversation about how I was going to kill him and scatter his pack.
Sky touched my hand. “Who are you calling?”
“Anderson.”
She blinked at me. Her brow furrowed with concern. “I think you should wait.”
I’d already waited too long. “Wait on what, Sky?”
“How will speaking with him change anything? He has an agenda, and you aren’t going to coerce him to change. He sees Ethos as a means to an end, and that is where we should direct our attention.”
She wanted to rehabilitate Anderson—I knew by the look in her eyes. Even if I could convince him that siding with Ethos was a mistake, he could never be trusted. Like a cancer, he needed to be removed.
“Ethos wouldn’t have been able to do any of that alone,” I reminded her. As powerful as he was, we were still immune to his magic when in were-animal form. Without Ares to attack the retreat, Ethos couldn’t have carried out his plan to kill Sebastian and take the Clostra. “Without Anderson, how would it have ended yesterday?”
When she didn’t answer, I returned my attention to finding his number.
She changed the subject. “Have you heard anything from Dr. Jeremy?”
Not the conversation I want to have right now.
I nodded, scrolling through my contacts and hoping she’d drop the subject.
“And?”
“Nothing has changed since last night.”
Her frown deepened. “What happens if he survives but isn’t the same?”
That was more than I wanted to contemplate. “Hopefully, he will step down.”
“And if he doesn’t?”
“Skylar.” I sighed, held her gaze. “You know what happens if he doesn’t.”
“Will he accept a challenge of submission?”
“You know where Sebastian and I stand on that. It hasn’t changed. If we can’t handle our position and someone feels strongly enough to challenge—” I hesitated as she blinked back tears. The policy was practical. Death challenges eliminated all but the most serious. That didn’t mean the practice didn’t have flaws. Raw physical strength wasn’t always the most useful measure of leadership. Too often, I’d seen the better were-animal die in a challenge. I’d no doubt that Sebastian was the better leader. Beyond the horror of killing my friend and mentor, the pack would never be the same without his leadership. His strength, integrity, and compassion were rare among Alphas.
“You don’t have to do anything,” she insisted. “It’s our rules, we made them and we can break them.”
Our rules were ancient, primal. Right or wrong, the survival of the pack depended on them.
“If you don’t feel he is fit to lead,” she continued, “do what you are supposed to do, support him. That’s your job. No one has to fight. No one has to die. I won’t let you do it.”
“Sky—”
“No! I don’t want to hear anything you have to say. Promise me you will not challenge him, no matter what. Promise.”
I wanted to promise, but I couldn’t. “If Sebastian isn’t able to continue as Alpha,” I explained, each word weighing on my conscience, “I will only challenge if he doesn’t step down.”
“No. No, you will not. You have to promise me you won’t.”
“Sky.”
A tear streaked down her cheek as she jerked away from my touch. “You have to promise me, Ethan.”
Seeing the desperation and fear in her eyes, an ache burned in my chest. If Sebastian died at my hands, I might lose her. My voice softened to nearly a whisper. “No. I’m not going to do that. Things are the way they are. I don’t like all aspects of it, but they are our rules and nothing you say to me is going to change them. If you need to cry—go ahead, let it out. If you need to scream—do that, too, but it will not change anything.”
Reaching for her once more, I gently overwhelmed her resistance, pulling her close until my forehead rested against hers. My hand on her cheek, I brushed away her tear with my thumb. “This situation is black and white. I know you want it to be a gray area, but it just isn’t.”
Sky gasped an angry breath and pulled away from me. Her heart was in the right place, but she wasn’t being practical. Her recalcitrance was making a difficult situation nearly unbearable. Fire burned in her emerald eyes as she declared, “Is that what you want to call it to make it easier to accept? So you just plan to ‘black and white’ the situation? Call it what it is, you two will fight until one of you murders the other.”
“You want to be a child about this,” I snapped, my patience at an end. “Go ahead, Sky. A pack is only as strong as its Alpha. You’ve enjoyed the luxury of being part of one that most will not consider screwing with. You’ve never been a woman in a pack that others consider weak, because then you would understand that need for a strong pack. I don’t want to kill anyone in my pack, but if they feel the need to challenge me, they see a weakness in me; and if they see it, so will others outside the pack. If you need this to feel better, then fine, get upset with me and we can fight about it all night, but after today we will not have this discussion again because it will not change anything.”
A knock at the door interrupted her glower, earning a resentful glance. Another knock followed, more insistent. Peering through the peephole, I found Quell waiting on the sun-drenched porch. A growl escaped my lips, but I knew the vampire wasn’t going to leave. With the ward down, he was likely to break his way in if Sky didn’t respond. Surrendering to the inevitable, I opened the door.
He pushed through the opening, brushing past me to take a rigid stand between me and Sky. His gaze shifted from her to the crack in the wall, the bloodstain on the floor. Finally, his narrowed eyes settled on me, an accusation.
“What?” I demanded, daring him to challenge me.
“You failed and let her get hurt.”
In less than a second, I’d closed the distance between us. Somehow Sky had gotten in the way, pushing us apart.
“You go over there,” she barked at me, pointing to one side of the room, then directed Quell toward the other side. “And you over there.”
Neither of us moved.
“Fine,” she declared, starting for the door. “I’ll leave and you two can have at it. I don’t have time for this.”
Anxious at her departure, Quell backed away from me, just enough to give her pause. Not fooled by her bluff, I held my ground. She’d no intention of letting the situation come to violence. Pity. Killing a vampire would go a long way to venting my frustrations. Instead of discouraging us, she simply watched. For some time, the three of us stood in angry silence, waiting on someone to reduce the tension.
Eventually, I accepted the inevitable. Addressing Quell with forced interest, I asked, “Are things with Fi going well?”
The question surprised him. After a moment, he answered with a slight nod.
“Then why the hell are you here?” I growled.
“I was worried about Sky, and rightfully so—you’ve proven to be inept at keeping her safe.”
Before I could correct him, she answered in a rush, “Quell, I’m fine. It isn’t anyone’s job but mine to keep me safe.”
He stepped closer to her, nostrils flaring as he took in her scent—my scent, mingled with hers. I almost bothered to hide a smirk as jealousy contorted his visage. His expression quickly hardened into disgust as he scrutinized her, then me. Sky’s cheeks flushed in unnecessary embarrassment.
The threat of violence filled him. I’d warned her that Quell would eventually lose control. I took a step closer, opening my stance in preparation. My gaze fixed on his shoulders, waiting for that first twitch of action. In most creatures, the eyes betrayed an act of violence just before it happened. The lifeless black eyes of a vampire betrayed nothing.
“Quell,” Sky said softly. “What’s the matter?”
“I didn’t want you to leave last night,” he whispered, “but I couldn’t stop you from doing so.”
I growled in warning as he clasped her hand, but she didn’t pull away.
“Fiona came by and I couldn’t leave to check on you. I just needed to know you were okay. You have someone watching the house now.” His gaze fixed on mine. “But where were they before, when Sky was attacked?”
“Quell.” She squeezed his hand, drawing his attention. “No one attacked me,” she lied for his benefit. “Don’t hold anyone other than me responsible for my safety. Okay?”
He linked his fingers with hers, but I was already distracted by movement outside the kitchen window. Peering out, I saw four large wolves between the trees. “They aren’t part of our pack.”
I strode out the door and found Anderson with two of his pack on the front lawn. The wolves lurked among the trees. Sky appeared on the porch beside me.
“The one on the right is Derrick,” she whispered. “The shooter.”
The assassin. He was new to me, tall and thick, with short dark hair and menacing cognac eyes. His smirk would likely freeze on his corpse after I killed him. My wolf rushed toward the surface, called by violence. Begrudgingly, I held it at bay. Any moment the neighborhood would come to life with people hurrying to their jobs. The sight of wolves fighting on Sky’s lawn would attract the wrong kind of attention.
I felt her hand on my back, cautioning me as she addressed Anderson. “This isn’t the time.”
His smile was condescending. “Oh sweetheart, this is the time.” He turned to me. “He no longer wants you as the Alpha—your protection is gone.” Anderson’s teeth drew back as he started toward me. The four were-animals fell in behind, leering in anticipation of blood.
My hands clenched into fists, but I remained still. With a numerical advantage, I wanted to draw the Ares into fighting their way into the house. I’d hold our ground from just inside, forcing them to come at me through the doorway one at a time. Aside from the tactical advantage, there was less chance of drawing the attention of the neighbors.
Anderson stopped a few feet from the porch. Judging by his sneer, he was surprised I hadn’t walked out to face him. “You all have grown soft, more concerned about your cars, your businesses, and the appearance of strength that you no longer have.”
Sky tensed beside me, prepared to fight. Individually, none of the Ares were a match for either of us. If I couldn’t draw them up the porch, she’d be forced to fight two at a time, perhaps even three as I took on the rest. For myself, I didn’t mind the odds. I didn’t want to see Sky injured. Anderson’s bravado brought a new plan to mind.
“She’s right,” I said. “This isn’t the time. You want to challenge me, accepted.”
“Waiting, a coward’s approach.” He licked his lips at Sky. “And the things I plan to do to you when he’s gone.”
Anger lit a fire in my spine. Before I could act, I felt the dark, oppressive magic of the Aufero swirl around me as it answered her call.
“Why wait?” she snapped.
With an effortless thrust of her hands, the dark magic flowed through her. Men and wolves were thrown to the ground, an impressive display of power. They’d think twice about continuing their attack, but Sky didn’t stop there. Before I could reach out, she leapt from the porch. Looming over Anderson, she gripped his throat in one hand and squeezed. Magic swirled around her as her other hand clutched at his heart.
I watched, awed as her magic seemed to suck the life from him. His heart began to fade as he struggled for breath. For a moment, I considered stopping her. Anderson had earned this death. A quick glance at the other Ares revealed they were still struggling to gather their wits. The neighborhood remained quiet, for now at least. As Anderson’s heart beat slower and slower, I hissed to her, “Do it quickly.”
Something about the magic she used was off, darker than the Aufero.
She brought him to the brink of death, then inexplicably relaxed her magic. He caught a pair of gasping breaths before she returned to drawing the life from him. I blinked, confused. This wasn’t Sky. Even enraged, she’d never torture an enemy.
A cold, alien smile was on her lips. She enjoyed it.
Anderson’s eyes bulged. He squeaked as she choked him, “Please.”
She bent down until her face was inches from his. Her black eyes twitched as she searched his frightened gaze, savoring the nuances of his death. Once more, she relaxed her grip just enough to allow him a quick breath, then returned to torturing him.
This was Maya.
Her attention fixed on Anderson, she remained oblivious to the other Ares who had regained their feet. Distracted, I’d let them. Maya was a problem I didn’t know how to solve, but she’d have to wait. I stepped off the porch, prepared to kill Derrick and the other man behind Anderson. They stood to either side, still awed by Sky’s magic. Before I could reach them, the wolves got between us. Heads bowed, drool spilled out around bared teeth as they growled and snapped their jaws. Dropping into an aggressive stance, I picked out the largest wolf and bared my teeth. Before I could charge, Quell ran from the house at full speed. A blur, he plowed into the wolves, absorbing their attention.
Turning back to Sky, I stepped between her, Derrick, and the other man. They’d had plenty of opportunity to try and save their Alpha. Instead they watched in wide-eyed horror as Sky tortured him, terrified of the sinister magic that radiated from her. A growl from me sent them back a step. Confident they’d not intervene, I edged closer to Sky.
Her attention remained fixed on Anderson’s ruddy expression as he gasped for breath. If she was aware of my presence, she didn’t show it.
“Sky!” I shouted.
A ripple of recognition passed through her. She released Anderson’s throat, staring at her hand as it began to tremble. Her eyes remained black, but glazed over as if she’d turned inward. As Sky and Maya battled for control, I’d no idea how to help her.
Anderson gasped as he stumbled away. The rest of the Ares followed him in desperate retreat.
“Sky!” I called to her.
She remained unmoved.
Quell brushed me aside, gripped her shoulders. Staring into her eyes, he called to her. “You must fight! If you give in, she will control you forever. You must resist!”
Sky blinked. Green swirled in her eyes as she tried to reassert herself. She glanced around the yard, uncertain where she was. When I took her hand, she jerked it free.
“Don’t touch me!”
She whirled, started to stalk away. Maya was reasserting control, but I knew by her confused look that Sky was close to the surface, battling her way toward consciousness. Catching up to her, I wrapped my arm around her waist and pulled her close to me. As she struggled to free herself, I whispered into her hair, “It’s okay. You’re fine. You are.”
After a moment, her resistance ebbed. Her body went limp in my arms, leaning into me for support. I held on tight, listening to her heart thump against my chest.
“You’re okay,” I whispered over and over. Her heart slowed, eventually matching my own. My relief quickly turned to fear as I realized she’d become unresponsive. She was able to stand on her own, but her eyes were glazed, her gaze unfocused.
At my side, Quell gripped her face in his palms, searched her eyes. Willing to try anything, I let him. She seemed to focus on him calling her name.
“She’ll be fine for now,” he said to me. “The spirit shade must be removed.”
