35. Evelyn
35
Evelyn
T he drive to the town was tense but quiet, everyone seemed lost in their thoughts.
We parked a little way off and made our way to the creek. Chad shifted into his hellhound form, his massive frame lowering to sniff around the area where the body had been found. His dark fur bristled as he picked up a scent trail.
Moments later, he reappeared and gave a confirming nod.
“He’s got a lead,” Ryker said as Chad led us through the woods and across fields until we reached a large warehouse a few miles away. Lucien followed with the SUV and we regrouped just outside its perimeter.
Alister stepped forward, his eyes scanning the building with supernatural precision. “I’ll go in first,” he said. “Make sure there’s no surveillance.”
Lucien handed him a few vials. “Throw some of these potions to neutralize any alarms or spells.”
In a blur of motion, he was gone. We waited in tense silence until he returned moments later.
“All clear,” Alister said.
The air inside the warehouse was musty, the dim light filtering through dirty windows casting eerie shadows on the walls. The tension was palpable as we moved cautiously, each step echoing softly in the vast space.
I glanced at Rafe, who nodded reassuringly, his wings twitching slightly. Lucien was already scanning the area with a focused intensity, his fingers hovering over his vials. Chad, still in his hellhound form, growled lowly, picking up on the residual scent of magic.
We spread out, each of us taking a different section of the warehouse. My heart pounded as I moved through the dimly lit aisles, alert for any sign of danger.
Suddenly, Rafe’s voice cut through the silence. “Over here!”
We rushed to his side, finding him standing over a faded circle etched into the floor. It pulsed faintly with a dark energy that made my skin crawl.
“This is where they drained the shifter’s magic,” Lucien said grimly, crouching to examine the circle.
Then we heard a noise and chaos erupted around us as attackers swarmed into the warehouse.
I gripped my sword tightly, my heart pounding. “Remember, disable but don’t kill!” I shouted to the others. “They might be under some kind of spell!”
Chad growled, positioning himself protectively in front of me. Alister blurred into action, moving almost too fast to see as he engaged multiple opponents at once, his monster fully out and laughing.
At least he was having fun.
Rafe took to the air, landed in front of heavily armed men, and swung his sword, taking them down in swift, efficient moves.
Lucien hurled potion vials with deadly accuracy, clouds of smoke billowing where they shattered. “Evelyn, on your left!” he called out.
I spun, bringing my sword up just in time to block a blow from a burly man in combat gear. Our blades clashed with a resounding clang. I could feel the raw strength behind his strike, but my newfound abilities allowed me to hold my ground.
“Who sent you?” I demanded, pushing back against him.
He snarled and redoubled his efforts to overpower me. I feinted left, then dropped low and swept his legs out from under him. As he fell, I slammed the pommel of my sword into his temple, knocking him unconscious.
A woman in civilian clothes charged at me, her eyes glazed and unfocused. Definitely under some kind of spell. I sidestepped her attack and used the flat of my blade to deliver a solid whack to her midsection, driving the air from her lungs. She crumpled to the ground, gasping.
“Sorry,” I muttered.
Across the warehouse, Ryker was a force of nature. His massive frame moved with surprising agility as he grappled with multiple attackers at once. I watched in awe as he lifted one man clear off his feet and tossed him into two others, sending all three sprawling.
“Evelyn, duck!” Rafe’s voice rang out.
I dropped to the ground without hesitation. A blur of fur sailed over me as Chad leaped at an attacker sneaking up behind me. His powerful jaws clamped down on the man’s arm, eliciting a scream of pain.
“Thanks, Puppy,” I said, scrambling back to my feet.
Chad tossed the man aside like a rag doll and offered me a wolfish grin.
The battle raged on, a chaotic dance of magic, steel, and primal fury. We were holding our own, but I could see fatigue beginning to set in. We needed to end this quickly.
“Rafe!” I called out. “Can you sense which ones are under a spell?”
He nodded, hovering above the fray. “The civilians! They all have a strange aura around them!”
Closing my eyes, I reached deep within myself, tapping into the well of power that had been awakened in me. One branch in particular hummed eagerly, rising to the forefront.
“Everyone, get ready!” I shouted. “I’m going to try something!”
The guys moved into defensive positions around me as I concentrated. I pictured the spell-bound civilians in my mind, visualizing the spell controlling them. With a deep breath, I pushed outward with my power.
A wave of golden energy pulsed from me, washing over everyone. The spellbound attackers stumbled, confusion replacing the blank look in their eyes. One by one, they dropped their weapons, looking around in bewilderment.
“What…where am I?” one woman asked, her voice trembling.
“It’s okay,” I said, trying to sound reassuring. “You’re safe now.”
Alister gathered the men dressed in combat gear, making them kneel in front of us. Only four of them remained conscious, each exuding a dangerous aura that made my skin prickle.
Before we could question them, a commotion erupted near the entrance. I turned to see a fifth man struggling as he fumbled with something in his hands. My heart stopped when I realized it was a grenade.
Lucien was right beside him.
“Lucien!” I screamed in fear.
In a blur, Alister raced toward Lucien, his movements a shadowy streak. With a swift motion, he grabbed him and hurled a screaming Lucien upwards, shouting Rafe’s name.
“I am NOT a bloody frisbee!” Lucien’s yell echoed as he soared through the air.
Rafe intercepted him mid-flight, cradling him securely.
At the same time, Alister forced the grenade from the man’s grasp. It dropped to the floor, and for a few tense moments, we all stared at it, frozen. Then, with a swift kick, Alister sent it skidding across the floor and crashing through a window. The grenade detonated as it struck Lucien’s SUV, the blast taking down the front section of the warehouse. Flames and thick smoke erupted, swallowing both the SUV and the entrance.
“Oopsie!” Alister shrugged, entirely too casually.
I ran to him to make sure he was alright then flew up to meet Lucien and Rafe, my heart still pounding from the near miss.
Rafe held an enraged Lucien in his arms, cradled like a lover.
“Are you okay?” I asked, relief washing over me.
“Of course!” Lucien snapped. “Being thrown by a crazy vampire, caught mid-air by an angel, while a grenade goes off and my car gets obliterated, is exactly how I envisioned my day.”
I was too panicked to smirk at his sarcasm. I couldn’t lose anyone else. Flashes of Theo’s lifeless body were all I could think of when the grenade exploded.
“Evelyn, are you okay? You look pale,” Rafe asked, concern evident in his voice.
I nodded, trying to smile to conceal my unsettling thoughts.
“Is he hurt?” I asked, nodding towards Lucien.
“If he was hurt, he wouldn’t be cursing so much,” Alister called from below.
He had a point.
Looking at them, I muffled a smile.
Rafe holding a scowling, cursing, and enraged Lucien—they made a rather nice couple.
“Say cheese,” Chad quipped from below, holding his phone up at us.
Lucien launched a string of impressive curses in Chad’s way, his eyes flashing with annoyance, but I could see a hint of a smile tugging at his lips.
I descended back down, my heart finally starting to steady.
I called out, “Everyone okay?”
Chad nodded and gave me a thumbs-up. “We’re good here.”
Ryker was watching over the kneeling men.
“Do not look at her!” Alister roared, his monster fully out and eyes blazing with fury.
The men ignored his warning and cursed not only me but also Alister.
“You cannot win this,” another spat at me. “You will die—”
He didn’t have time to finish. In a blur, Alister moved with ruthless precision and extracted their hearts with his bare hands. He placed the still-beating organs in front of me as some sort of macabre offering.
The men crumbled to the ground, lifeless.
I stared at the hearts as they pulsed one last time, my mind reeling from the sudden violence. The metallic scent of blood mingled with the acrid smoke from the explosion, creating a nauseating mix.
My stomach churned, and I gagged.
A heavy silence fell over the warehouse until Lucien yelled, “Alister! We needed them!”
Tearing my eyes away from the gruesome sight, I looked at my vampire mate.
His features were twisted into a feral grin. “They threatened you, my little phoenix. No one threatens what’s mine.”
Ryker grunted in agreement, then blew a stream of fire from his mouth, reducing the bodies to ashes.
Alister turned to Ryker, and they did a high-five.
Glad they were finally bonding, but it was a little too much for my frayed senses.
Lucien, still being held by Rafe, struggled to free himself. “Put me down, you overgrown pigeon!” he snapped.
Rafe complied, setting Lucien gently on his feet.
“You’re welcome,” he mumbled with a smudged smile. Then walked towards me. “Evelyn, are you alright?”
I nodded, the sight of hearts being torn out of bodies kept replaying in my mind.
“Okay, let’s focus,” I said, trying to regain composure. “We need to figure out what’s going on here and who these guys were working for.”
“Well, we can’t exactly question them now, can we?” Lucien grumbled, glaring at Alister.
Alister shrugged, his monster slowly receding. “They were expendable. Foot soldiers. They wouldn’t have known anything of value.”
Suddenly, Alister’s expression shifted, his eyes darkening with a different kind of hunger. He moved closer, his voice softening as he cupped my cheek. “I’m sorry if I scared you. My monster demanded retribution. Let me take care of you.”
“What?” I squeaked as Alister hoisted me into his arms, still processing the aftermath of the battle and violence. “What about the civilians?”
“Let the others handle it,” he replied, blood still coating his shirt and hands.
“I don’t think that’s a good idea right now,” Lucien interjected, but Alister cut him off. “She’s my wife and fated mate. She’s safe with me.” Then he looked at me with those intense eyes. “And it’s time I claim what’s mine.”
We sped out of there, Alister moving with supernatural speed.
Lucien’s voice faded as he said, “Someone go with them.”
But we were already gone, the world blurring around us.