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"Wel , wel , look what we have here, Jaycee. Visitors. Aren't we lucky they've taken such an interest in our work?"
The voice came from behind us. Startled, I turned. There, just inside the broken door, stood Van and Jaycee. And they looked pissed out of their minds.
CHAPTER 16
"Oh, crap." I backed up.
Van, who was a nondescript, pale man, stepped forward. His blandness faded as a wave of power rol ed toward us. Shit. The dude had strength.
Camil e let out a gasp, and I realized she could feel his energy better than I could.
"He bad?" I asked her softly.
"Yeah . . . bad." She moved toward me.
There was no good way out of this. We couldn't talk our way out of having trashed their lab, that was for sure. I flicked open my wrist blade, jonesing for Lysanthra. But I'd fought before I began carrying her, and I could fight barehanded if necessary.
Camil e sucked in a deep breath; I glanced at her. She was invoking the energy of the storm that was starting to break outside. Not only could she cal down the Moon Mother, but she could invoke the power of lightning. She had a thing for the forked bolts, and they liked her a bit too much.
Van kept his gaze on us but motioned to Jaycee. "How much do you suppose we'l get for them?"
She looked us up and down, like a couple of fryers. "Two out of the three? My guess is more than we expect, although we can't press our luck. I don't want the boss thinking we're trying to jack up the price. We're toast if she even remotely believes we're trying to scam her."
"What are you talking about?" I jostled, trying to find just the right position. It was obvious they weren't going to let us waltz out of here.
"Seems a certain demon general we work for has set a pretty price on your pretty heads," Van said. "We've been planning this moment--or one similar-
-for the past two weeks. Our only concern was that we get to you before the other recruits."
Realization of what he'd just said swept over me, and I wavered--only for a second--before spreading my legs and taking a firm stance. "So you work for the Bonecrusher."
"This is a setup." Camil e let out a soft sigh. "The coyote shifters, the Wolf Briar . . . al to gain our attention and bring us to you."
"No, we just lucked out with the stupid shifters. They wanted the Wolf Briar, and they wanted it bad. We decided to use that to bring you out. We knew it would catch your attention sooner or later. You've got your nose into everything in this town. We just had to be patient. In the meanwhile, the more werewolves we captured, the more ingredients we had, and the more personal profit we made. Everything we get from the Wolf Briar is ours to keep."
Van shrugged, a pasty grin plastered on his face.
Fuck . . . but we had one thing on our sides. They didn't seem to realize what the coyote shifters were after, which meant they didn't know about Amber or the spirit seal. If Stacia knew we were on the trail of the sixth seal, she'd be right on our asses herself.
"What are you planning to do with us?" I tried to gauge what kind of magic they had at their fingertips. Camil e would know better than I, but I couldn't just ask her in front of them. The trapped door had been a harsh reminder that we weren't playing with neophytes.
"Wel , that depends on you. On whether you come easily or whether you push your luck." Van stepped forward, a cunning, wicked smile on his lips. "Oh, this is going to be fun, isn't it, Jaycee?"
Jaycee slid behind him, guarding the door. "Yes, my sweet. We're going to have ourselves a lovely time." Her eyes glimmered, sadistic and cruel.
"You ready?" Camil e whispered, so low that even I could barely hear her.
I inclined my head, ever so slightly.
"Inch a ways to the left," she said.
As I did, Camil e let loose.
Lightning crashed through the side of the house, arcing down through the basement. With a rip and a shriek, the wood splintered as the bolt landed directly in front of Van, missing him by two inches. Thunder jolted the foundation, shifting the ground as the electricity whistled so loud it popped my ears.
Camil e moved forward, a dark light fil ing her eyes. "Want to play some more, little boy?"
Van laughed. "I'd love to play bal . . . here, catch." And a bal of light shot out of his hands, directly at her, sizzling. Tendrils emerged from the energy bolt as it zeroed in on my sister.
