Chapter 18
Rafe’s lungs burned, inhaling the blistering desert air. He closed his eyes, concentrating, searching for Skylar. Her face flashed in his mind, his wolf rushing forth, howling to alert him. “She’s here.”
“So is Zyaire. I feel her.” Ilsbeth exhaled loudly. “Ah yes. She’s hidden underneath a glamour.”
“I don’t feel or see anything except for the animals, so I hope whatever you’re both sensing, we’ve got this right.” Greyson sniffed the air. “I can’t smell any humans.”
“It’s hot as hell. But it’s dry heat. Reminds me of home,” Thorn said.
“Dry heat my ass,” Dominique brushed the dust off her leather pants and kicked a scorpion off her boot.
Rafe ignored their banter, intent on finding Skylar.
He studied the barren Mojave Desert landscape.
To his right a mountain range appeared to waver underneath the late afternoon heat.
The mirage, a trick of the light, continued across the horizon.
As he turned around to the east, he caught sight of a black dot wavering in the distance.
“There.” Ilsbeth pointed to a huge sand dune. “She’s hidden.”
Rafe looked to the dune then into the distance. A single raven cried out to him from above. The great bird circled Rafe. It released a great croak and dive bombed. Rafe dodged it as it nearly clasped his hair.
“What the fuck?” He waved it away, trying not to hurt it.
“What’d you do to piss off the crow?” Greyson studied the bird.
“He’s testing the Alpha,” Thorn suggested.
“It’s a raven,” Dominique corrected.
“It’s not shifter,” Rafe said.
The raven circled and swooped at him once again. He watched in fascination as it flew toward a structure in the distance, then returned to him again.
“Maybe I was wrong. I don’t sense a shifter but it’s tryin’ to tell me something. I can feel her. Skylar’s here.”
“You still sense her?” Greyson asked, raising a questioning eyebrow. “If she was here, I think I’d scent a human.”
“The bond isn’t broken.” Rafe concealed his true emotions, but it was too serious a situation at this point to lie any longer to the vampire.
“Sorry, what? Did you just say you feel a bond with this human?” Greyson asked. “But you feel no blood lust? You don’t crave her blood? No fangs?”
“I already told you guys. The hunger is gone. The fangs are gone. The vampire is gone but the bond? I can sense her. I think I could almost speak to her.” Rafe held up a hand, searching, projecting the energy of his Alpha to the creatures of the desert.
Skylar, he repeated in his mind. A raven called to him once again but as he opened his eyes, there was no raven.
“We can find her later,” Ilsbeth insisted.
“No, not without Skylar,” Rafe growled. “She’s at most a couple of miles away. Greyson?”
“Let’s roll.”
“Follow the raven.”
“Skylar!” Rafe called out to her.
As she came into view his heart sank. Naked. Dirty. Alone. She turned to him, tears streaming down her face.
He scooped her up in his arms. “Greyson! Over here!”
Rafe dropped to his knees, cradling her. Guilt tore through him seeing her broken. He stripped off his shirt and tugged it over her head. “Hey, I’ve got you. It’s okay, baby. Oh Goddess. What did she do to you?”
“I’m okay.”
“No, you’re not. Look at you. Your feet. How long have you been walking out here alone?”
“She’s here,” Skylar whispered.
Rafe’s jaw clenched, enraged with the witch. “I’m gonna fucking kill her. What did she do to you? Let me see.” He inspected her arms.
“Something happened. Rafe…” Skylar began.
Four ravens soared above, and landed on the roof ridge, gathering one by one. The ominous scene escalated as more and more ravens descended. The conspiracy croaked in unison, one after another.
“What the fuck’s going on?” Greyson asked as he reached for his gun. “I don’t like the looks of this.”
“No, no, they’re fine. Don’t hurt them,” Skylar pleaded. “They’re here for me.”
“I think she hurt her head. I don’t see any blood. Or bruises. What happened?”
“She had me in this cell. I saw her. Zyaire. She’s got these things. They’re not human. She says she’s got more of them. They’re not what we saw in that club. They move. I killed it.”
Greyson and Rafe exchanged a look. “Grey, can you take Sky back to her parents so we can get this done?”
“No way. I’m not leaving.” Skylar shoved to her feet.
“Hey, hey, hey. Where do you think you’re going?” Rafe asked. “Greyson. I’m gonna need clothes for her.”
Rafe cupped her cheek, and she froze. “I can’t lose you.”
“I killed one of those things back there. Give me a weapon. I know how to shoot.”
“Okay.” Rafe nodded and gently brushed a strand of hair from her face, gazing deep into her eyes. His wolf craved her, and he struggled to understand why the bond remained. She wasn’t a wolf, let alone a shifter. Yet his wolf, his true nature within, urged him to take her. Claim her.
The temptation to kiss her lingered, his lips hovering above hers. I love you.
Rafe sensed Greyson over his shoulder and pulled away. He didn’t trust the ancient vampire not to read his thoughts. Greyson lived an enigmatic life with supernatural skills Rafe was certain he hadn’t seen. Unwilling to test the theory, he forced his mind to clear the thoughts of Skylar.
“So hey, you guys wanna go kill this witch or what?” Greyson shrugged, a look of annoyance crossing his face. “Ilsbeth is gonna be fit to be tied.”
“Let’s do it. I’ve got a witch to kill.” Rafe winked at Skylar as Greyson touched his shoulder.
Rafe watched Ilsbeth as she scooped up a handful of desert dust, letting it slip through her fingers and get carried off by the wind. Skylar remained by his side, yet he sensed she held back details of how she’d escaped. Though physically unscathed, she’d gone quiet after getting dressed.
“You okay?”
“Yeah. So, did it work?” Skylar kicked a pebble across the ground, averting her gaze.
“Well…” Rafe blew out a breath, contemplating his next words. His wolf hungered for her as if the bond was getting tighter, and he had to figure out why the spell hadn’t taken. “I’m not a vampire anymore so…”
“No more fangs?”
“Nope, but I think I’m still working some things out.” Rafe looked to Ilsbeth, who waved her hand at him, calling him to her. Saved by the witch, he changed the subject. “I’m going after Zyaire while Ilsbeth and the others distract her.”
“That thing I killed back there? She’s going to use them to infect you.
I don’t know if they were people. It kind of looked like a human, but I don’t know.
It didn’t have skin. It kind of walked like a crab, but it could jump like a cat.
It was fast. Most of all…it was really gross.
Good news is I know they can be killed.”
“Speaking of which. Greyson?” Rafe swiveled his head, searching for the vampire. “You got my stuff?”
Greyson strode toward him and set a black leather bag at his feet. Rafe looked to Skylar as the vampire handed him a tactical vest. “May I?”
She nodded and extended her arms upward.
As he slid the vest over her head and adjusted the Velcro straps, his fingers brushed over her shoulder, her warm skin buzzing with an unfamiliar magick.
She locked eyes with his, an instant unspoken awareness between them.
Rafe made quick work of adjusting it, struggling to restrain the urge to kiss her.
As he finished tightening the cummerbund, their bodies within inches of each other, heat radiated between them.
Rafe’s wolf rushed forth, demanding he claim her as he gazed into her eyes. Mate.
“Guys. Come on, now.” Greyson released a loud sigh and rolled his eyes.
“Indeed, the bond does not appear broken,” Thorn mumbled underneath his breath at Ilsbeth.
With the moment shaken, Rafe focused on his task and reached into the bag, retrieving the weapon. “You said you know how to use a gun?”
“Yes. A Sig Sauer. He’s a big boy.” Skylar accepted the weapon, racked the slide and chambered a round.
“Bullets are silver. There’s holy water in one of the pockets here,” Rafe pointed, “but I’m not sure that’s gonna do much good in this realm.
Let’s see, what else?” Rafe recovered a dagger from the bag, careful not to touch the blade or her.
“Works on humans too. I imagine it’ll work on those things. ”
Skylar took the knife from Rafe, inspecting it, and then slid it into a holster. “This’ll work. I used metal from a rusted grate. Hit it in the right spot.”
“Yeah, where’s that?” he asked.
“Eye socket.” Skylar answered, her expression impassive.
“Nice. I like a girl who knows how to kill.” Dominique approached, admiring the human. “She’s full of surprises now, isn’t she?”
“She’s an experienced shooter,” Rafe told her.
“Did you say Zyaire’s reproducing?” Dominique asked. “What are they?”
“My guess is humans. I don’t know if they’re infected with something, but they sure aren’t the blobs we saw in the club back in Vegas. I told Rafe that I kind of think they look like humans. But the skin is…” She grimaced. “Missing? It’s not right. You’ll see. It’s nightmare fuel, for sure.”
“I know this is gonna sound counterintuitive, but I need you to stay with Dom.” Rafe turned to the vampire, speaking directly to her. “And she will not hurt you. Or bite you. Isn’t that correct, Dom?”
“Yeah sure.” Dominique blew out a breath and rolled her eyes. “Collecting good karma isn’t easy.”
“I’ve already killed one thing today. I’m just getting started.” Skylar shot the vampire a cool smile.
Dominique smirked. “Humans. Such confident creatures.”
Rafe’s expression grew serious studying the witch as she prepared for battle. Ilsbeth’s omnipotent power radiated through his soul. In that moment, he realized that although his vampire magick had disappeared, her power, the blood of the high priestess would forevermore run through his veins.
“My sister is wicked in a way you cannot imagine. If I fail to bind her, if the spell collapses for any reason, for the good of our world, you have my blessing to remove her from this realm. Permanently.”