Chapter 20
Sam kept Claudia close as they hurried down the casino’s marble hallway. His lion was snarling beneath his skin, wanting to turn and fight, but strategy demanded they choose their battlefield.
“Where are we going?” Claudia asked, her voice steady, despite what had just happened.
“Somewhere more private. Somewhere I control.” Sam pulled out his phone and sent a quick text as they reached the main entrance. “I had a contingency plan in place. Just in case.”
Their car was already waiting, the driver holding the door open. Sam helped Claudia inside and climbed in after her, his eyes scanning the street behind them for any sign of pursuit.
“Take us to the house. Fast,” he told the driver, and the man pulled smoothly into traffic.
“Can we talk?” she asked, her eyes shifting toward the driver and back again. Sam would’ve laughed if the situation wasn’t so serious.
“We can talk freely in front of Jacques,” he replied. “He’s part of the Clan and normally based out of Brussels. He just came here to help me out. Normally, he runs security for our EU operations.”
Claudia’s eyes went round in surprise as she met Jacques’ eyes in the rear-view mirror. He lifted one hand off the steering wheel and waved at her. Then he returned his full attention to driving away through the crowded streets as quickly as possible.
Claudia waved back, then turned to Sam, her green dress shimmering in the passing streetlights. “You planned for this?”
The question almost sounded like an accusation.
He felt bad he hadn’t let her in on every contingency plan he and Gavin had devised, but really, there were too many moving parts to his plans, and they often changed on the fly.
Better to keep things in reserve until needed, he’d thought.
Maybe that was the wrong approach, but it was too late to worry about it now.
“I planned for many different possibilities. This was one of many scenarios.” Sam took her hand, his thumb stroking over her knuckles.
“When dealing with someone that dangerous, you don’t leave things to chance.
Gavin secured a property for me. It’s a private house on the outskirts of the city.
Walled garden, secure perimeter, no neighbors can see in, so we’ll have privacy for whatever happens. ”
“A killing ground.”
“If necessary.” Sam met her eyes. “I won’t let him hurt you, Claudia, and I didn’t want to have to do any of this in public for all to see. The rest of the world isn’t ready to know about us and about the evil that walks among them.”
She was quiet for a moment, processing. “What about backup?”
“Mark and Nick are on standby. They’ll be nearby but won’t engage unless things go completely sideways.” Sam’s jaw tightened. “They have mates to protect. Their duty is to Sullivan and Shelly first. But they’ll be there for containment and cleanup if needed.”
“Cleanup.” Claudia’s laugh was slightly hysterical. “You’re talking about disposing of bodies.”
“I’m talking about protecting my mate.” Sam pulled her closer.
“Schwarz made his intentions clear. He wants your power, and I don’t think he’s lived this long by taking no for an answer.
I’m not leaving it to chance, and I’m not waiting for him to choose the time and place.
If he wants to push this, it’s going to be in a location I control. ”
The car wound through Monaco’s streets, climbing into the hills above the city.
The road twisted upward from the casino district, clinging to the hillside like a ribbon of light.
Below, the harbor glittered under the moon, while above, villas clung to the cliffs, their terraces suspended between stone and sky.
The lights grew sparser, the houses larger and more private. Eventually, they turned down a narrow lane lined with high stone walls.
“We’re here,” Jacques said, pulling up to an iron gate. He pressed a code into the keypad, and the gate swung open silently.
The house beyond was modest by Monaco standards. It was a two-story stone structure with shuttered windows and a terracotta roof. But Sam hadn’t chosen it for its architecture. He’d chosen it for the high walls surrounding the property and the large garden that would give them room to maneuver.
“Wait here,” Sam told the driver. “If anyone other than Mark Pepard or Nick Balam shows their face, you leave immediately and contact Gavin. Understood?”
“Yes, Alpha.” The driver’s eyes were sharp and alert. Sam knew his old comrade, Jacques, knew how to handle himself if things got dangerous, but he didn’t want the man involved in this. Someone needed to get the word out to Gavin and the rest of the Clan should things go sour.
Sam helped Claudia out of the car and led her through the front door. The house was furnished but felt unlived-in, like a stage set. Impersonal and temporary.
“Stay away from the windows,” Sam said, guiding her toward the back of the house.
“Sam.” Claudia caught his arm. “What’s the plan here? Are we just waiting for him to come to us?”
“He will come. Probably sooner rather than later.” Sam moved to the French doors that opened onto the garden. “Schwarz is arrogant. He’ll see this as an opportunity to take what he wants without witnesses or complications. He’ll come, and when he does, I’ll be ready.”
“We’ll be ready,” Claudia corrected. “I’m not sitting this out.”
Sam turned to face her fully, his hands coming up to frame her face. “I need you to understand something. Schwarz has been alive for centuries. He’s consumed dozens, maybe hundreds of mages to fuel his power. He’s not going to fight fair, and he’s not going to show mercy.”
“I know that,” she replied with quiet dignity.
“And I need you to trust me when I say that if it comes down to you or him, I will do whatever is necessary to make sure you survive.” Sam’s voice dropped. “Even if that means things get ugly.”
Claudia’s eyes searched his face. “You’re planning to kill him.”
“If possible.” Sam pressed his forehead to hers. “I won’t apologize. I’m a lion, baby. Both sides of my nature object to letting someone that evil live to continue to kill others in his quest for immortality and power.”
“I’m not asking you to apologize.” Her hands came up to rest against his chest. “But Sam, if we kill a centuries-old mage and one of the Venifucus’ high-ranking members, there will be consequences.
Others will come looking for revenge. We’ve been working so hard to nullify the threats to your Clan.
This might make it worse. I just want you to realize that before we proceed. ”
“Let them come.” Sam’s lion rumbled in agreement. “The Kinkaid Clan doesn’t back down from threats. We face them head-on, and we end them. It’s the only way to keep our people safe.”
His phone buzzed with a text from Nick. He glanced at it quickly before stowing his phone in his pocket once more.
“Nick and Mark are on the walls. That’s where they’ll stay until this is over,” Sam told Claudia so she’d know where help was should she need it.
“What about Shelly and Sullivan? Are they safe?” Claudia asked quickly.
“With other jaguars. And Shelly is no slouch in the magic department. They’re both well away from here and protected. Though you’re right. It’s really good of Mark and Nick to help us considering they had to leave their mates to do so.”
Sam turned to the French doors leading to the dark garden, lit only by a sliver of moon and the ambient glow from Monaco’s lights in the valley below.
Trees cast deep shadows, and a fountain burbled somewhere in the dim light.
Of course, he was a shifter with excellent night vision. The dark didn’t bother him one bit.
“He’s close,” Claudia said suddenly. “I can feel his magic approaching. It’s like a storm front moving in.”
Sam felt it too, now that she’d pointed it out. A pressure in the air, a sense of something ancient and malevolent drawing near. His protective items were heating up. The cufflinks were almost uncomfortably warm, and the tie tack was pulsing against his chest.
“How long do we have?” he asked.
“Minutes. Or less.” Claudia’s hands were glowing faintly with her own magic. “Should I—”
The French doors exploded inward in a shower of glass and splintered wood.
Sam had Claudia behind him in an instant, his body between her and the threat. Through the smoking doorway, he could see a figure silhouetted against the garden’s darkness.
Adolf Schwarz stepped through the wreckage with casual grace, his tuxedo unmarred, despite the violence of his entrance. Behind him, Marta Chambeaux followed, her black dress blending with the shadows.
“Herr Kinkaid.” Schwarz’s smile was cold. “How thoughtful of you to provide a private venue for our discussion. So much more civilized than making a scene at the casino.”
“This isn’t a discussion,” Sam growled. “This is a warning. Leave now, and maybe you’ll live to see the morning.”
Schwarz laughed, the sound devoid of genuine humor. “Bold words from a shifter facing two Venifucus mages. Tell me, do all lions have such inflated opinions of themselves, or is it just you?”
“Just the ones who’ve survived this long by knowing when to eliminate threats.” Sam let his lion rise closer to the surface. “Last chance, Schwarz. Walk away.”
“I think not.” Schwarz’s gaze moved past Sam to where Claudia stood. “I came for the girl, and I’ll have what I came for. Her power is wasted on someone so young and untrained. I will put it to much better use.”
“Over my dead body,” Sam snarled.
“That,” Schwarz said pleasantly, “can certainly be arranged. Marta, if you would be so kind as to deal with the shifter? I have more important prey to claim.”
Marta’s hands blazed with dark magic, tendrils of shadow coalescing around her fingers. “With pleasure, Master.”
She struck fast, sending a bolt of corrupted energy straight at Sam’s chest. He dove sideways, feeling the heat of it pass inches from his body. The blast hit the wall behind them, leaving a scorched crater in the plaster.