The Ravenous Dark, page 32
River turned her gaze back to Bailey, scoffed, and rolled her eyes. "Come on," she said as she began to walk away from the small crew of shifters. "I'm pretty sure Irina's trying to meet with some houseless courtiers that are getting ready to petition to be a Minor Household. The Medicis, I think. With the Vranas backing, their chances will be way better and then the Vranas would—"
"Have more leverage and another family in their pocket."
Bailey watched the back of River's head bob but didn't move. The half-witch made it a few more steps before stopping and turning. She frowned at Bailey in confusion.
"I actually have plans."
The word 'what' didn't cross River's lips, but it was there in the crinkle of her brow and shape of her mouth. "With whom?"
Bailey glanced at the Wildings at the end of the hall. One of them waved.
"You're still hanging out with them?" Shock tinged River's voice.
"I'm a Wilding, River."
"I thought it was just temporary until I got my stuff more sorted out." River shifted slightly forward. A bloom of red scored her cheeks. "But I need your help now. Please, this is really important."
Indecision tore at Bailey's insides. She wanted desperately to go with River, reconnect and get the low down on what was happening with her curse… but she was a woman of her word.
"I can't, Riv, I'm sorry. I already made this commitment." Affronted, River drew back a step as Bailey took one forward. "I should be back around dawn. Maybe then we can strategize and make a plan."
"Wow." River chuckled darkly and retreated some more. A sneer drew up her top lip. "Well, it's nice to see where your loyalties lie after almost twenty years of friendship."
Bailey crossed her arms and returned her friend's sneer. Her anger was too infectious to block.
"Not everything is about you, River. Grow up. If you're allowed to have a life and adventures outside of our friendship, so am I," she snapped. River’s lips parted at the cut of Bailey's words. The anger leached from River, replaced with keen sadness. Bailey's stomach twisted in regret. "Let's meet when I get back, okay? We need to talk some shit out. I hate how things are between us."
River avoided Bailey's eye, jaw working tightly before she replied. "Whatever," she muttered. Then spun on her heel and left.
Bailey growled once she was out of hearing distance, cursing her luck. I wonder how many more relationships I can ruin in a single night, she thought morosely.
"Yo! Let's go, wolf girl!"
Bailey jogged over to the small group, Woods, Kiefer, and Q. A falcon, wolverine, and bear shifter, plus a she-wolf; they were an interesting assortment.
"Sorry, I was just finishing up with some friends. What's the message we're delivering tonight? Why do we need so many of us?"
"This guy’s a notorious runner. We need to keep people on the exits to make sure he reads his message," Q explained, then jerked his chin to the left. "Come on, I wanna get this done."
"How'd your witch friend take the news?" Woods asked. He sported a busted lip. "Didn't seem like she was happy."
"An astute observation," Bailey replied.
"So, who was the other friend you saw tonight?"
Bailey sent him a side-long glance. "Why?"
He raised an eyebrow and smirked. "You said friends, plural. Just making sure they aren't imaginary."
Bailey scoffed, a grin tugging on her lips at the gentle ribbing. "Haha, very funny. I was visiting Stella."
"The banshee?"
"Yo, she gives me the creeps," Kiefer claimed with a faux shudder. "And I heard she's got a few new tricks up her sleeve too. It’s why the Delacroix wanted her to renew her contract so bad," he wiggled his eyebrows at Bailey knowingly. She frowned. A worrying confusion drew her shoulders up defensively. "Isn't that right?"
"Fuck off."
Kiefer laughed. "Hey! It's not like I'm the only one. The banshee's building up some kind of arsenal for herself and turning down contracts left and right? Sounds suspicious to me."
Bailey kept her face neutral and forced her shoulders to relax. "She has her reasons."
Kiefer rolled his eyes. "More like secrets. Have you heard what some of these houses are offering her?" He whistled. "I wish I was getting paid that much."
"Maybe if you shut your mouth long enough, you could finish a job and get paid for once," Q said. "Now shut it, all of you. I need everyone to be on top of their game tonight. No getting distracted." He sent a meaningful glance at Bailey that made her flush. "We're dealin' with a banished sorcerer tonight by the name of Malinski, and anything could happen. Got it?"
Bailey ducked her chin in a nod and made no other move to engage the men in conversation. A dark thrill slithered up her spine as they reached the secret passageway exit located on the sixth floor. There was enough pent-up energy running through her that she almost wanted the sorcerer to cause trouble tonight, just so she could find some physical release.
As the foursome departed, those watching from the shadows smiled.
XX
A Land Rover waited for them not far outside the court's wards. They drove to the hilly southwestern countryside, where towering trees hugged the sides of the road. After thirty minutes, they pulled up to a secluded house on a steep hillside. The lights were on, but the curtains were drawn.
Q turned the headlights off and parked halfway down the drive. "Let's make this quick," he said in his usual gruff voice. "Deliver the message, get the response, then head back." He hopped out of the car, and the rest followed suit.
Bailey relished the crisp November air. It saturated her lungs, and for one beautiful moment, its teasing nip muted the incessant pressure that hounded her.
"Shift." Bailey blinked, her attention snapping to Q, who slanted her an unreadable look. "Both of you."
Kiefer wordlessly followed his command, shrugging off his coat and tossing it inside the car. Next came his shirt. Bailey stood frozen. Her measured breath coalesced with the cold air in white plumes. Her eyes never left Q, and his never left hers. Unease rippled through her.
"Why the fuck would I need to shift if we're only passing along a message, Q?"
"Chill," Woods drawled and walked over to Bailey, blocking the other man from her view. "You'll be faster in that form if he or any of the others decides to run."
"What others?" Bailey cocked her head to the side and pinned Q with another withering stare. "I didn't sign up to be a thug."
Woods grabbed her chin and turned her face back to his. She gasped, then growled at the manhandling. All the while, Woods' expression stayed eerily neutral.
"You're not a thug, and neither are we." He punctuated the remark by squeezing her chin more firmly, despite the angry golden visage of Bailey's eyes. "They stick up their noses at us because we're part animal, but I'll be damned if I feel shamed for the best parts of myself." Woods huffed and released her chin to cross his arms. Bailey stopped herself from rubbing the bruised area. "The Wildings know the value of shifters and aren't afraid to push us to our best. With the Lunar Court backing us, we run this court without the cream of the crop even realizing the—"
"Enough, Woods," Q commanded. Bailey’s throat bobbed as she caught the meaningful look the men passed each other. A silent conversation happened between them; one Bailey couldn’t begin to read. That didn’t make her comfortable. Nor did their handling of her. She wasn’t given time to voice her complaint before Q returned his focus to Bailey.
"Here's the deal. You can either be part of what we're doing, or not. I'd suggest you choose the former because you're a damn fine addition to the crew. You don't take shit from anyone and work efficiently, which is all we're asking you to do tonight. Q and I will handle the delivery, make sure our guy reads the message while you and Kiefer have our backs if shit turns sideways or someone runs.
"If you punk out," he continued, voice lowering, "Stay in the car and the fuck out of our way."
Woods' speech riddled Bailey with indecision. Going along with the job felt dangerously close to crossing a line she'd drawn long ago, even if it was only to man an exit.
But refusing means snubbing my last refuge.
Bailey clamped her jaw shut as her hands formed tight balls. She'd made a mess of her brief time with both Stella and River that evening. And Ronan—
A snarl burst past her lips before she could stop it, and Bailey redirected her gaze to the car. She glimpsed her pained expression in the window's reflection, her gilded eyes unable to hide the mental anguish which seized her.
It hurt. Everything hurt.
Why can't he love me like I love him? She bit her tongue until it bled to muffle the whimper that begged to be released. Why is he doing this to me? To us?
"You in or out?" Woods demanded.
She said nothing, unable to claim her wits as she battled for control. The soulmark burned at her lower back. Its blistering touch seared her already fraught nerves. Bailey trembled. The taste of copper filled the back of her mouth.
"What a waste," he scoffed and turned away.
Bailey seized. I can't lose the Wildings too.
"I'm in," she gasped.
Woods halted and glanced at her sharply, a twinge of surprise lighting his eyes. The corner of his lips twitched upward, and a sliver of relief washed over Bailey at the austere man's approval.
"Good," he said. "Told you we could count on her, Q."
Q grunted, his regard lifting from his phone's screen to acknowledge Woods. The illumination of the screen cast shadows over his dour expression.
"We good?" Q asked, gaze flicking to Bailey. She nodded and inhaled deeply. Q's gaze narrowed as he pocketed his phone. "Shift." Bailey expelled the breath in a rush.
She turned her back to the men, and a lump lodged in her throat as she stripped off her jacket and clothes. Kiefer was already in his wolverine form, waiting with the other men.
It was the most uncomfortable transformation of her life.
The shifting of bones and stretching sinew left her insides in ruins. When she finished, she was panting.
"You made that look hard," Q rumbled as she padded over to them. She raised her lips in a lackluster snarl. She was confused, uncertain, and disconnected from her wolf. She hated the feeling. "Let's do this. Kiefer, watch the front door. Bailey, follow behind us and stick near Woods. Follow his instructions."
Apprehension sunk its greedy claws into Bailey's belly as they approached the door. Bailey half-expected him to kick it down, but he knocked. The three short raps sounded like cannon blasts in the otherwise silent night. Bailey's ears twitched as footsteps sounded.
"I told you I'm out. I'm not helping anymore." A pregnant pause. The man behind the door's voice quavered. "Please, leave my family and me alone."
"No can do, Malinski. Got a new message for you," Q responded without inflection.
The door creaked open to reveal a man in his sixties with a sandy goatee and wire-framed glasses. He gulped at the sight of their assembly.
"If it's about—"
Q grunted and pushed open the door. Malinski struggled but was no match for the bear shifter's strength. The door swung out of his hands and bounced off the wall with a bang.
"Here." Q held out the small envelope to the man and stepped inside. The man took it, face blotchy and red. Woods followed after Q, arms still crossed. Bailey trudged in last, head low and fur on end. The house smelled of pine cleaner and popcorn. She scanned the small foyer.
Several pairs of shoes huddled against the wall. Above them, a variety of coats hung in an assortment of colors and sizes. Her gaze stopped on the two long velvet cloaks hanging at the end, one black, the other a greenish-yellow. Bailey searched for the sorcerer's spell-casting instrument—a staff or wand, or some other tool—but spied none. Her muscles tensed.
The sorcerer probably carries it on him.
"Jonathon? Who's here?"
The middle-aged man shut the door and strode ahead of the group to the adjoining room.
"Jen, why don't you put Max and Heidi to bed?"
"They can stay," Woods cut ahead of Malinski and walked into the next room with confidence. He cocked an eyebrow at Bailey when she remained in the foyer. She padded after him, keeping an eye on Malinski.
He jerked away from her as she passed him by. His body thumped into the door frame. The reaction felt like a kick in the gut, but worse still was the children's reaction. Bailey froze halfway through the door. Two small children hid behind a woman. Their tiny hands clutched the flannel pajama bottoms she wore.
The woman let out a startled gasp as she and Bailey locked eyes. "Jonathon, what's going on? Who are these people? And why is there a wild animal with them?"
Woods snapped his finger, and Bailey's attention switched to him. He scowled at her and then the place at his side. Bailey padded forward, her claws clicking against the hardwood floor.
"Sit," he ordered. Bailey did… for all of three seconds. Then she was pacing in the space directly behind Woods. Her tail brushed past his thighs with every pass.
Q pushed Malinski farther into the room to take his place in the doorway.
"Read it," Q commanded, leaning against the door frame.
Malinski stood a little straighter under the regard of his wife and children, but his gaze still darted around the room furtively. Bailey and her wolf could barely stand the scent of fear seeping into the air. It was thick and pungent and burnt the insides of her nose.
Xander will be so disappointed if he found out. Her alpha would never condone the use of their wolf form like this. He would never—
"Chill the fuck out." Wood's hand clapped her on the back of the skull on her next pass.
Her distress morphed into anger in a split second. Bailey snarled; jowls heaved up to warn Woods of his fate between her fangs if he raised a hand to her again. Skirting on the outer bounds of her fearsome snarl, she picked up another noise. It was one of pure fear.
Her attention whipped to the children. They pressed themselves against their mother's side, crying with fear as she begged them to quiet. Bailey stilled, her blood running cold.
They were scared… of her.
Oh, Gods, what am I doing?
"I—I can't do this." The note trembled in Jonathon's hand. The bear shifter lifted an eyebrow. Jonathon cleared his throat. "I don't have the book."
"You do." Q's tone brokered no room for argument, and Jonathon flushed. He looked at his wife.
"Take the kids to bed, Jen. Please. I'll—I'll handle this."
Neither Q nor Woods denied Malinski's request, but his wife and children still hesitated. Their eyes were stuck on Bailey. She turned from them and growled at herself, the sound vibrating through the room as she began to pace again.
The scent of their terror was driving her insane.
More insane. The correction skittered through her head. More insane. I'm going more insane by the minute.
She wanted to laugh and cry. Instead, she panted.
"Fucking sit down. Now," Woods barked.
Bailey sat her ass down, snug against Woods's side, as mother and children approached. Their movements were stilted trying to shuffle out of the room as one unit. Bailey couldn't take her eyes off them, even as Jonathon's pleading grew louder in the background.
She didn't understand why he wasn't using magic against them.
She didn't understand why she agreed to this at all.
A stone settled heavily in her stomach. The least she could do for this family was pull her shit together and not give fodder to their fears.
With all the control she possessed, Bailey held herself impeccably still as the family was forced to draw past her and Woods to leave the room. The mother was ashen as she held her children close. Neither were older than eight. The boy stared at Bailey with wide eyes. Still, she couldn't turn away and give them some measure of relief from her lycan regard.
She wished she would have found the strength to do so.
Woods stepped back. The heel of his boot dug deliberately into Bailey's tail. She snarled and reared onto her hind legs from the sudden jolt of pain.
Mother and children screamed. The sound stabbed at Bailey's heart. She rounded on Woods.
"All right, all right!" Jonathon cried. "Take the book, just don't—don't hurt them. Please!"
Woods grabbed Bailey by the scruff of the neck before she could get his neck between her jaws. He yanked her away from the family. Bailey's back paws scrambled for purchase they couldn't find, leaving scratch marks on the floor.
"What are you waiting for then?" Q said, leaning into the man's space. "Get the book and consider your debt paid."
"And my family?"
"Woods, take her outside."
The words barely registered with Bailey. She was overcome with rage. Rage at being used to install fear. She struggled valiantly against Woods as he dragged her from the home and threw her outside. The terrified sobs of both children and mother chased after her on the cold November night.
Bailey shifted.
She could do more damage to Woods in her wolf form, but it wouldn't be nearly as satisfying as tearing him apart with her bare hands. As such, her transformation to her human form was swift.
"Nice work," Woods commented, completely unaffected by Bailey's fury as she whirled on him naked. The corner of his mouth twitched upward as he gave her a thorough once over. "You gave a good show."
"You made me out to be a fucking monster," she seethed.
Woods’s top lip curled back. "Welcome to the club. Get dressed. Once Q's out with the book, we head back."
Bailey vibrated with anger. The need to lash out, to hurt something or someone was so intense it made her almost physically ill. Kiefer padded over to her and shifted.
"You're not going to cry, are you?" He asked condescendingly.
Her fist smashed into Kiefer's face, knocking him down to his knees.
"Fuck!" His scream was muffled by his hands that clutched his nose. "You broke my nose, you bitch."
Bailey's foot connected with his stomach in reply. She would have continued her assault if it wasn't for Woods. He swooped in, one arm snagging around her waist as the other pinned her arms. He dragged her back, despite her rage-filled shouts.
