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34
After I was sure the girls were off in Maria’s car, and safely on the road, I turned Leland’s truck back in the direction of The Neon.
Alice’s burn on my shoulder throbbed with every breath, but at the same time the effect was almost immediate. Beneath the pain I could feel a strange energy rippling through my veins. Curling and uncurling my fingers around the steering wheel it felt almost like I’d had too much caffeine, and my body was overloaded with adrenaline, but it wasn’t adrenaline. It was thick, viscous, and raw. A tangible element that seemed to vibrate inside my veins the more I thought about it.
My wolf felt distant and disjointed, but the longer time passed with the magic roaming freely, the more they merged and became one entity, hungry for a kill.
It took everything I had not to change in the parking lot and go running into the woods as a wolf. The beast was desperate for me to let him out, but with the witches involved in this ceremony, Adrian would’ve insisted that everyone remain on two legs. Anything to keep his newfound friends happy, even if they were probably both planning some sort of double cross.
Leaning over, I opened Leland’s glove box and sniffed. I smelled something leather, and metal buried beneath the papers, and smiled as I dug my hand in to the dark container. My fingers wrapped around a decently sized hunting knife, tucked away in an old, faded leather sheath.
“I knew you were smart old man.” I smiled, examining the sharpness of the blade. It would do nicely in a pinch. I closed it back up and attached the sheath to my belt. “Thanks Lee.”
My fingers and feet buzzed the moment I stepped onto the path that led around the back of the building. The air smelled thick with wolf scents, and witches. Each aroma though relatively fresh, was starting to fade. The pack had moved into the woods.
Retracing their steps, I moved as quietly, and evenly as I could, praying that Adrian hadn’t thought to leave guards waiting in the shadows. I moved in a wide arch, approaching from an indirect angle, until I came to the fissure Jamie had shown Maria and I the night of Annie’s wake.
Crouching low, I knew it was dangerous getting this close, but I needed to see where everyone was before I made my approach. I needed to make sure I could get to both Jamie and Adrian at a moment’s notice.
At the edge of the rock face, I turned my head and got a wonderful view of the altar below. Adrian stood at the bottom of the ramp that stretched out over the water. In front of him were flowers, and Zach knelt side by side with a woman I didn’t recognize.
Glaring at them, I scanned the gathering of wolves spread out across the rest of the space. Jamie stood closest to the fire, flanked by Dillon and the witch who’d thrown us off the road. His muscles were tense, his jaw set, and as my wolf eyes adjusted, allowing magic to flex inside my vision, I noticed a flaring green line wrapping around his entire body. My gut twisted, and I recognized it as a spell that would kill him if he moved even an inch out of line.
“Welcome family!” Adrian announced at the top of his lungs. “Today we welcome friends into our family and join our pack with a coven of great power. Together we shall become greater and lead this world into a new order.”
Claudette detached herself from the gathering and marched up to stand beside Adrian. He took her hand and switched places with her.
She smiled down at my brother and the witch beside him. She extended her hands, and a wave of purple energy washed over the couple. “Rise, and we shall begin the hand fasting.”
An alarm bell went off in the back of my mind. I was running out of time. I had to act.
Backing up, I stood to my full height, and took a deep breath. I inched forward again, watching as Claudette held up a rope that she intended to bind my brother’s hand with, and it flashed purple in my eyes.
The knife was in my hand before I had a second to think it through. I flipped it around, so I held the tip of the blade, reared back, and threw it with all my preternatural might.
Leland’s knife flipped end over end, slipping into slow motion as I tracked its progress. The blade struck the cord between Claudette’s hands, slicing it clean in two, and then embedded itself in the stone somewhere in the shadows beyond her.
The pack and coven members gave a collective gasp, but it was Adrian who was the first to spot me. His eyes flashed red, and he thrust a finger at me, snarling, “Get her.”
I smiled, and waved at him before, I took a few steps back and then took a running jump out over the altar. My body went airborne for a few precious seconds and then I dropped rolling to the ground in front of Jamie, Dillon, and the witch holding him.
Surging upward, I surprised the witch, grabbing her shoulder with my left hand, and her chin with my right. I gave her head a sharp jerk to the side, and her neck snapped, her body instantly going limp.
I let her drop and winced. “Sorry.”
Beside me, Jamie’s entire body relaxed, and then abruptly tensed as he threw his elbow up into Dillon’s nose knocking him back.
“I said GET HER!” Adrian bellowed, pushing his way through the crowd.
Some of the wolves turned to do as instructed, following the will of their Alpha, but their hesitation was evident. I could feel it rippling through the same bond that connected them to me. Jamie took his place at my side, and I gazed at them evenly.
“I am not here to hurt you. I am here to fix a problem,” I said, raising my voice enough for everyone, especially Adrian, to hear.
“You…you are the problem,” he spat breaking through the crowd.
I snorted. “And you are pathetic. Binding us to a coven we can’t trust? All because you weren’t strong enough to assume the role of Alpha on your own.”
“Shut up!” He growled, glancing frantically around to the wolves staring at us. “Don’t just stand there…kill her. Eviscerate her.”
