“That is freaky as shit.” I had to agree. “Go on, finish your tasks. I’ll be fine.”
“Who’s the boss here?” Kellen crowded into my space.
Placing my hands on his chest, I stared up at him. His muscles flexed under my fingers. He truly was too damn sexy for words. With his dark hair and blue eyes, lips that were full and oh so kissable, I couldn’t help but lean forward and kiss him. When he took the kiss over, I wanted to remove our clothes and forget all about club and pack business.
“You are,” she agreed. He nodded and rested his palms on my hips. “I’ll hurry. Get some rest while you can. I have plans for the next few hours.” Lowering his head, he kissed me hungrily.
I shook my head as I watched the Iron Wolves from my treehouse. “Silly men.”
“How was your trip, Jenna?” Talia asked.
Looking at the Fey we’d rescued from her abusive shifter husband, I decided not to tell her where I’d been. The younger woman had a lot of healing left to do. Her daughter would help in that regard, but my job was to oversee my charges as well. Some would say I took my job too seriously, but I was bored.At my age, I needed a little excitement, and the call from the wolves was just what I’d needed. At my age, I took what pleasure I could.
“Earth to Jennaveve.”
Fingers snapping in front of my face irritated the ever-loving crap out of me. “Talia, do you want to keep those fingers?”
Seeing fear wash over my new friend, I instantly regretted my words. “You know I’d never hurt you. I didn’t mean I’d physically take your fingers away.” I hurried to explain.
“Of course, you didn’t.” Talia’s words didn’t match her actions.
With a sigh, I grabbed onto one of the weaker Fey’s hands, showing her the truth of my words. At the same time, I poured healing strength into Talia, something I hadn’t done often because the stubborn woman wouldn’t open up. Now, her mind, body, and soul welcomed me and my healing powers. Like a sponge, she sucked in the goodness I offered.
Weak, I fell backward. “What have you done?” Talia cried.
Shaking my head, I struggled to my feet. “I just need a bit to recoup. Be a dear and fetch me some coffee.”
My mouth was drier than the Sahara Desert. I couldn’t tell Talia that she’d taken too much, not when the young woman before me hadn’t realized what she was doing. Poor thing had been through so much.
I made it into my bedroom sanctuary. The soothing gold and red tones immediately calmed my racing heart. The large sleigh bed with the mound of pillows beckoned me. With a thought, my clothes were gone, replaced with an oversized T-shirt. My long hair hung loose, but I was too tired to worry about braiding it. By the time Talia returned with the requested coffee, I had climbed up the two steps to my huge bed and was snuggled under the covers.
“Thank you, dear.” My voice sounded older to my own ears.
“Why did you do that?” Talia held the steaming mug of freshly brewed java out for me.
The sweet scent of vanilla hit my nose. “Give me a drink, child.” I had never called another Fey that word. It tended to make them feel like they were children. To me, they were. I was one of the first of our kind. One of the originals. And I was so damn tired. I took a long drink of the heavenly brew, finishing it in two long pulls.
“Sleep, Jennaveve. I’ll be here when you wake.”
I rolled onto my side, intending to tell her to go, but darkness swept over me. I felt him searching, an oily substance with no heart, and no redeeming quality. He wanted more. Always more than what he had. I sent a flash of bright white light into the blackness, a love so pure he had no choice but to recoil. Satisfied I’d be safe and so would my charges for the time being, I let myself take a calming breath. The Iron Wolves would need a Fey or two on their side, like the Mystic Wolves. I only needed to figure out how to break it to one of my charges, or two, and send them on their way. Not that they couldn’t come back to the Fey land anytime to recharge. Sighing, I rolled onto my stomach, and finally, once I realized I had several solutions, I slept. Kellen Styles was such fun to mess with. I’d have to make sure I accompanied the Fey I sent.
Chapter Thirteen
Ijerked awake. I had a sinking sensation that something wasn’t right, and wished Kellen hadn’t made his office noise-proof. Blinking sleep from my eyes, I sat the recliner back up. I’d thought of lying on one of the sofas but chose Kellen’s chair. With his scent permeating the large leather piece, my wolf had whined as I’d walked past it. If I were totally honest, the woman in me wanted to roll around in his scent as well. Now, I wished the man were here so I could be reassured the sinking feeling was nothing but a leftover dread from before.
The bathroom light illuminated only part of the space, but my shifter sight allowed me to see clearly. My enhanced hearing didn’t pick up anything other than my own heartbeat. “Calm down,” I muttered to myself.
Getting to my feet, I tried to take a step, but the concrete floor turned to mud. The feeling of sinking several inches made me yell out, and I tried to launch myself back into the chair, only to find myself surrounded by woods and trees. Panic threatened to choke me. Through our mate link, I shouted for Kellen, but the wall I came up against scared me. I looked around, wondering where I was. The tall trees looked like the ones near my home, but the thick mud didn’t make sense since we hadn’t had any hard rain in a long while. Even when we did, I couldn’t remember a time when it was ever like a mud pit.
Then I remembered what the Cordells had said and tried to picture myself back inside the club. An unholy laugh had mespinning in a circle. Darkness still surrounded me, but at least I was no longer stuck.
“Ah, you think to get away again, little girl?” A voice with a thick accent came from all around me.
My wolf wanted to come out and run, but in my shifted form, I wasn’t as logical. I used the logic that Jenna had shown us and tapped into the power that the Fey had shown was inside all shifters. I’d been a quick study my entire life and hoped this time would be no different. Closing my eyes, I pictured myself in a room surrounded by my friends and Kellen. The Iron Wolves club expressly. I did everything Jenna told me to do. When I heard the cackling voice, I almost gave up and started running, but kept pouring all my resolve into the image, until finally I felt the wind blowing past my face.
Pain seared my arm, but I kept the image firmly in my mind, even when I saw bloodred eyes and the face of the devil staring back at me. “You can’t escape me. I’m too powerful,” he roared.
Again, I kept my focus, and then in a blink, I found myself in the middle of the dance floor of the Iron Wolves, blood dripping down my arm.
