Chapter 20
Chapter
Twenty
BECK
Charlotte moved through the forest at an unnatural speed, her red hair like a flag behind her.
She left bloody footprints in the snow, but she didn’t seem to feel any pain.
She couldn’t continue much longer. Henry had her completely under his spell, but not even he could prevent her from succumbing to hypothermia and frostbite.
I followed as closely as I dared, my throat tight and my heart trying to pound from my chest. The clan wasn’t far behind. My senses prickled as they neared, summoned by my call back at the bed and breakfast.
My jaw throbbed where Charlotte had punched me. The taste of blood lingered in my mouth. She’d thrown me like I weighed nothing.
Henry was channeling his strength through the bond, which meant the bond was stronger than I’d feared. Even so, Charlotte had resisted him. The fact that she’d snapped the connection in Anchorage proved her mind was remarkably strong.
But she ran faster now, completely under his control. If I attempted to stop her again, Henry might order her to kill me. So I stayed back, letting her put more distance between us. I wouldn’t lose her, not with my magic to guide me.
She headed north, away from Anchorage and deeper into the wilderness. Where Henry could do whatever he wanted without witnesses.
Fear tore at me. I couldn’t take on an ancient vampire alone. My brothers would come, but would they be enough? They had to be.
Lowering my head, I followed Charlotte’s scent deeper into the trees. Ten miles north of Bear Cove, her trail led to a clearing. I stopped at the treeline, staying hidden behind the thick branches of an evergreen.
Spotlights atop metal poles glowed at four corners of what appeared to be a mobile lab.
I’d seen enough of Everett’s equipment to recognize the centrifuges and microscopes.
Wires ran from a white truck, which hummed with electricity.
A refrigerator stood next to a workspace, the inside stocked with blood collection tubes.
In the center of the space, a medical-grade table gleamed under the lights. Restraints were bolted at all four corners.
My blood ran cold.
Dr. Henry stood near the table, his white lab coat the color of the snow piled around the edge of the clearing.
This far from civilization, he didn’t have to pretend to be bothered by the chill.
His heart didn’t beat, and blood didn’t pump through his veins.
He was a living corpse, and corpses didn’t mind the cold.
Five humans moved around him, setting up equipment and organizing supplies. Even with the distance between us, my magic fed me their scents.
Faint. Two of them—a man and a woman—barely registered a scent at all. Not quite vampires, but not wholly human, either.
They, along with the other three, were Henry’s stable.
Humans he’d been feeding from for years, maybe decades.
Undoubtedly, he permitted them to take his vein on occasion, slowing their aging in exchange for their service.
If they were like most prey, they waited for Henry to turn them completely so they’d never die.
It was the bargain vampires made with their prey, ensuring their obedience. The blood bond cemented it, lending the humans their master’s strength even as it rendered them hopelessly addicted. It made them desperate. And dangerous.
The truck’s door swung open, and Charlotte emerged. She walked directly to Henry and stopped at his side. Folding her hands at her waist, she bowed her head.
He ignored her.
Anger pumped hot in my veins. But I couldn’t afford such a volatile emotion. I needed to think. I needed to wait for my brothers, and then I’d—
A hand clamped on my shoulder.
I tried to twist away, but the grip was iron.
A whiff of cheap aftershave teased my nose as a man forced me around.
Pale and blond, he surveyed me with glowing, red-rimmed eyes.
Close to my height, his shoulders strained the seams of his black tactical jacket.
His scent was almost gone. He was on the cusp of turning.
But he wasn’t quite there yet.
My bear surged to the surface, and I jerked against the man’s grip.
“You can fight,” he said, “or you can watch Charlotte die. Your choice.”
I stilled.
The man smiled. “Good choice.” Tightening his grip, he hauled me toward the clearing. My anger blistered into rage, but I clenched my jaw against the urge to attack. Fighting meant risking Charlotte, so I let the human prey manhandle me across the snow like an errant child.
Dr. Henry looked up as we approached. “Ah, Mr. Antonovich. It’s a pleasure seeing you again. I knew Charlotte would lead you here.”
Charlotte stood frozen at his side, her brown eyes glazed and larger than usual without her glasses. But her forehead was furrowed, as if she struggled against invisible bonds.
“Let her go,” I said.
Henry smiled at me. “I’ve had her this whole time, Antonovich. I found her when she was a child. I shaped her mind and guided her schooling. How many fourteen year olds choose to study wildlife conservation? Charlotte is my creation, not yours. She still belongs to me.”
Charlotte’s lips moved. “No…” The word was barely above a whisper.
Henry continued ignoring her. “I sensed something interesting about her from the very beginning. Imagine my shock when I tested her blood and discovered she’s the most compatible bear shifter mate ever born.”
My heart slammed against my ribs. “You can’t know that.”
Henry gave me a patient look. “I’ve walked the earth for more than two thousand years, Mr. Antonovich.
I can slip in and out of a lab without anyone noticing.
Surveillance cameras can’t track me.” He gestured to the equipment around us.
“I’ve known about Dr. Laskin’s genetic isolation research almost since its inception. ”
Fuck. Images of Everett’s lab formed in my head. Had Henry seen it? My skin crawled at the thought of the vampire entering Everett’s home without anyone knowing.
“I was a physician in another era,” Henry continued.
“When you live a long time, you get weary. Many among my kind can’t withstand the weight of time.
To thrive, we must find new pursuits to busy our minds.
I devoted myself to solving my species’ reproduction problem.
Vampires are the only members of the supernatural community who can’t produce children.
Instead, we must rely on prey to further our line. It’s an imperfect system.”
The blood in my veins turned to ice. The humans around Henry stood utterly still, compliant and deadly as they awaited his command. Behind me, the clan crept forward. My brothers moved into position, ready to respond to my call. They’d strike if I ordered it.
But I couldn’t. Not yet. If the other humans were as strong as the man who’d led me to the clearing, there was no guarantee my fighters would emerge victorious.
Worse, Henry might have additional prey stationed around the woods.
My father had taught me that most people couldn’t resist talking about themselves.
Until I knew his strengths and weaknesses, I had to keep Henry talking.
“What are you planning?” I asked. “Whatever it is, it won’t work.”
Henry’s smile was indulgent. “Forgive me for saying so, but my grasp on science is much better than yours.”
My pulse pounded in my ears. “I won’t let you hurt Charlotte.”
“Oh, I’m not interested in Charlotte,” Henry said. He glanced at the metal table. “Although, her cubs will undoubtedly prove useful.”
Every part of me tensed. Nausea sloshed in my gut, the thought of Henry anywhere near my child threatening to turn my stomach inside out.
“No,” he continued, seemingly oblivious to my struggle, “my interest has always been you.” He looked toward the treeline over my shoulder. “Along with the other members of your community.”
I swallowed the saliva that had pooled in my mouth. “What do you mean?”
“Charlotte is a lure, nothing more. You’d follow her anywhere, yes?
Do anything to keep her safe from harm?” He waited for an answer.
When I stayed silent, he shrugged. “I’m saving my species.
Or maybe I should say I’m elevating it. Our inability to have children has always prevented us from leading the supernatural community as we should.
” He gestured to a large machine I didn’t recognize.
“But shifter blood combined with CRISPR technology can change that. You can probably imagine how difficult it is to get blood from the werewolves. But your kind are vulnerable, your numbers so limited that you’re not a threat.
And now that you have three females you’re desperate to protect, you’re more likely to be willing participants in my experiments. ”
As one, the humans around him stopped their work and focused on me. Henry’s smile spread.
“This will be a lot easier if you’re compliant, Mr. Antonovich.”
A growl caught in my throat. “You’ll have to kill me first.”
“Yes. I expect I will, eventually.” Henry’s eyes glowed an icy blue. “Perhaps I’ll have Charlotte do it after she delivers a few of your cubs.”
A chorus of roars split the night.
Twenty bears burst into the clearing. Snow flew from under their massive paws. Cal led the charge, his blond fur silvered by the moon.
The humans crouched. Hissing, they launched themselves at the attacking bears. Flesh and fur clashed.
Henry bared his fangs and flew at me.
I barely had time to raise my arms before he slammed his elbow into my chest. The impact drove the air from my lungs. We went down in a tangle of limbs, rolling through the snow.
Henry’s fist connected with my ribs. Pain exploded in my side. He moved faster than I could track, springing to his feet only to appear behind me in a blink. He punched me again and darted away as I spun.
Shifting would leave me vulnerable. In the moments it took me to transform, Henry could rip out my throat.
The fight roared around us. Bears clashed with Henry’s humans, who moved with vampire-enhanced strength. Blood splattered the snow. Someone screamed.
I had to protect Charlotte.
She stood in the middle of the chaos with her forehead furrowed and her arms wrapped around her midsection.
Come on, sweetheart. Break it. I know you can.
Henry appeared at my side and backhanded me.
The world tilted. I flew through the air and hit the ground hard, snow spraying around me. My vision blurred. Blood spurted over my tongue.
A massive shape charged across the clearing. Cal thundered over the snow on four paws. He swiped at Henry with claws extended, tearing a chunk of flesh from the vampire’s side.
Henry hissed, stumbling.
Now.
Calling on the magic that made me alpha, I pulled from the clan. At once, energy surged into me in hot currents. My brothers had heard my call, and now they gave freely, fueling my shift.
One second I was human, the next I was fifteen hundred pounds of fur and muscle.
I charged toward Henry.
He spun, his jaw elongating in a gruesome display. Fangs extended past his chin. With a hiss, he launched himself at me.
We collided mid-air.