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My vision blurred until I saw nothing but red. I charged him, taking a fist full of his shirt in my hand, ready to knock some sense into him. He stood up from his chair, eyes glowing like a dog’s when you catch one in your headlights.
With a growl, he warned, “Little girl, if you would like to keep that hand, you best remove it from my body right the fuck now.”
I didn’t know why I was being so ballsy right then, but I wasn’t about to back down. “Oh yeah?” I sneered. “You and I both know that you wouldn’t risk Leo’s wrath by laying a finger on me.”
He scoffed. “I know how to make it look like an accident. Last warning, sweetheart. It’s getting really hard keeping the beast at bay here. Remove. Your. Fucking. Hand.”
I was seething so hard it felt like my body was burning up. I swear I could feel every cell in my body coming to life, as the air around us began to stir. The hand that was clenching his shirt warmed, and before I knew it, he had backed away from me, whimpering like a puppy. The pungent smell of burnt hair circulated throughout the room as the wind began to die down. I looked down at his balled up form and cocked my head to the side. “What’s the matter, wolf? Did this little girl beat you at your own game?” My voice sounded guttural. Like it was layered with a thousand other souls.
His head snapped up. “What the fuck are you? How the hell did you do that?” He glared at me as he rubbed the burn mark on his shirt.
I pointed towards the door. “Get. The. Fuck. Out. Don’t you ever try threatening me again!”
He brushed himself off. “I can’t leave here. Leo will kick my ass.”
The wind started whipping again, which was quite strange considering the balcony door was closed. I clenched my fists, trying to calm the inferno that was raging inside of me. “Leo is the last thing you need to worry about right now. Unless you feel like getting neutered today, get the hell out of my sight.”
I could tell the moment he felt my threat was valid. “Goddammit!” he yelled as he slammed the front door.
The second he was out of my sight, my vision cleared. Looking around, I could see that the room was in complete disarray. The maps that Leo had spread out were scattered across the floor, coffee bled onto the beige carpeting, crooked pictures hung from the wall, and a broken lamp lay on its side. I stood there in awe as I thought about Takk’s question. What the fuck was I?
I couldn’t stop thinking about the incident with Takk. Was I the one who’d made such a mess of the suite? And what about his burn? I’d summoned a defense ball before, which had the same effect, but this was different. I didn’t conjure any dust that a fairy required to perform magic. Not a single speck. How was that even possible? I tried calling Leo, but it kept going to his voicemail. I wondered again why he was in Belfast. Would he be back in time for our meeting with the guardians tomorrow night? I had no idea when and where we were supposed to meet. I hadn’t bothered asking because I assumed Leo would be with me. I felt myself growing more frustrated by the minute. We’d been in Ireland for almost two weeks now and I didn’t feel like we were any further along than where we’d started. Not by much, anyway. I stopped my compulsive pacing and thought, fuck it. I wasn’t going to sit in this room and wait for things to happen. One way or another, I was going to make them happen.
I made my way across one of the bridges and did some people-watching while I came up with a plan. As I walked around, I was amazed at how different things were on this side of the River Liffey. Although most of the buildings were older, this had a much more commercial feel and was not nearly as welcoming. Garbage littered the streets, and I was fairly certain I had witnessed a drug deal or two. I started to lose confidence the further I walked. Somehow, I had wandered away from the main drag into something much more derelict. I passed one building after another, all in desperate need of repairs, until they seemed to blend together. My skin prickled with unease; there were no people crowding the streets, no cabs to hail, and all of the ground-level businesses were closed for the evening. Until that moment, Dublin felt like a city that came alive after dark. That definitely wasn’t the case on this side of town. I lost my bearings and felt as if I were walking in circles. My anxiety level was rising; I had to keep reminding myself that I was fine. All I needed to do was find the river and my sense of direction would be restored. That wasn’t very difficult, right?
I thought I heard footsteps behind me but saw nothing as I glanced over my shoulder. Click. Clack. Click. I stopped to listen and they stopped. I started and they did the same. Okay, now I knew I wasn’t imagining it. I increased my pace, trying desperately not to let panic take over. I didn’t risk looking back as I heard the footsteps gaining on me. I saw a side street up ahead and practically jogged over to it, hoping it led to a more populated area. As I rounded the corner, I was met with a dead end. Shit! I was in an alley with no way out but the way I’d come. I was closed in on three sides by red brick buildings, each one, four stories high. The smell of rotting garbage permeated the air making me gag. Old newspapers and God knows what else scampered across the ground. Th
e person behind me slowed their pace as they closed in on me. Dammit! I was the idiot that went up the stairs in a horror movie! How did I get myself into these situations? I took a deep breath, willing myself to calm down. I closed my fist and conjured some dust just in case I needed to defend myself. With my feeling of terror having risen to an all-time high, I turned around to face my stalker. I was now officially in freak-the-fuck-out mode as I prepared to fight.
“Hello, Karli,” Maria purred.
I froze, trying to process what was happening.
“What’s the matter?” Maria gave me a wicked smile. “Surprised to see me?”
Surprised, scared shitless…tomato, tomah-to. I was face to face with a wanted murderer. A woman who admittedly killed a man twice her size. And not just any man, mind you. One who had incredibly powerful magic at his disposal. On top of that, she came damn close to killing Chad, who was no slouch in the strength department either, thanks to his demonic genes. The gorgeous woman in front of me appeared to be a delicate walking, talking Barbie doll, but I knew she was anything but. She was a force to be reckoned with, with or without her vampire abilities, and crazy to boot. Not a good combination in any situation.
Jagged bricks were digging into my back as I stood against the wall facing her. I knew that my only hope of survival was to catch her off guard. With a mound of fairy dust waiting in my hand, I decided to play it cool. “What are you doing here, Maria? A little far from home, don’t you think?”
“I could say the same about you.” She grinned maliciously. “Perhaps you needed some distance from my husband?”
“Ex-husband,” I corrected.
Maria waved her hand in dismissal. “A technicality. He certainly didn’t act like an ex when we were fucking.” She put her index finger on her chin in contemplation. “Oh, but wait…you already know that.”
I was not going to let her goad me. “I know you’re not here for Vance since he’s five thousand miles away. Are you following me?” The wind picked up, blowing my hair forward.
Maria inhaled deeply. “Now, why would I do that?” Her fangs extended. “More importantly, why do you smell so delicious?”
I tensed. “Must be the new perfume.” Shit! I needed to find a way out of this.
She stepped forward, shaking her head. “Oh, I don’t think so. I think this is something much more.” She cocked her head to the side, studying me. “You smell different. I wonder if you taste different too.” Maria had sampled my blood when she kidnapped me during the whole put a spell on Vance and seduce him incident. That was not something that I would like to repeat.
“Sorry, I’m not in a donor mood at the moment,” I deadpanned.
She smiled. “Oh, my stupid, stupid fairy. I don’t think you have a choice.”
“Aaahh!” I screamed. Before I had the chance to form a defense ball, Maria had charged me, pinning my wrists to the brick wall behind me. She squeezed until I felt my bones crack, causing me to release the dust I had clenched in my fist.
