Desire Awakened (Aaron's Kiss #13) (15 page)

Pete came to her and Lizzy handed it to her.
If anyone could figure it out, she would. Walking away, she
promised Lizzy that she’d be back in a few minutes. She didn’t even
make it to her computer before she came back smiling.

“It’s from Lou’s out on seventy-nine. I stop
in there all the time and get gas and a candy bar. I’d know this
receipt anywhere.” She showed it to Lizzy. “See here, they bought
gas and four drinks. Logan was out, so that means there were four
of them. Unless they were two and doubled up. I doubt it, but it
could be. Gas was a fill up, I would imagine with that amount, or
pretty close. So wherever he’s been taken is far and not within a
city.”

David nodded and called for one of the men
who’d come with him. “All that from a tiny scrap of paper.”

Pete nodded. “And the one that handled this
was a wolf and not from the Brotherhood either.”

Men scattered after David spoke to them.
Pete went to her computer, and Lizzy stared at the van. Logan had
been in it and left them clues. She started to turn away with her
dad when she turned to him suddenly. “Dad, I love him.”

He smiled.

Holy shit, she was in love with her
mate.

Logan watched the door. He had no idea where
he was, but it was cold and wet, with the scent of mildew in the
air. He tried again to contact Aaron or anyone, and all he hit was
a blank wall. When he shifted on his feet, something hard dug into
his hip and he realized that he still had his phone. He was still
trying to figure out how to get it out of his pocket with his hands
tied when the door suddenly opened.

His sight was a little blurry, but he could
see better now than he had been able to. The first time he’d
awakened, he couldn’t see anything and he hurt everywhere. He
thought that Lizzy’s blood was helping him. He didn’t speak as the
woman came toward him.

“He wakes.” She walked around him and looked
him over. “Lizzy always did have good taste. Even as a kid she had
the best clothes, and her hair always looked like she’d stepped
from a beauty parlor. I guess that didn’t change once she got to
picking men too.”

She kicked him in the back before coming
around to face him again. She knelt before him and smiled. He
wanted to grab her around the throat and choke the living shit out
of her, but he just let her look.

“You smell like her and vampire. I’m
guessing that she became one after she hit the right age. Can you
tell me if she has a great deal of magic still, or did she lose
that with her change?”

He didn’t answer, but something rubbed
against his mind. It wasn’t like Lizzy had done, or even how Aaron
had felt like when they’d been practicing, but like he’d thought of
someone rubbing against his mind to touch it, and not gently
either.

The woman frowned at him. “She has your mind
blocked. I guess I’ll have to give her credit for that one. I can’t
hurt what I can’t get into.” She snapped her fingers, and a chair
was brought in for her. “You have something of mine. Or that I
want. The building that I have my shop in. You outbid me and now
they’re going to have to start the bidding all over. It’s really
too bad that you’re not going to be there when it happens then
either.”

Logan watched her primp. His ex-wife had
done that as well. It would get to the point that he would have to
leave the room or scream at her to stop. He could never figure out
what the fuck the reasoning behind straightening your shirt over
your lap for ten to twenty minutes had to do with going to the
store. She had to have everything just right. And when no one
noticed her, she’d pout for hours afterward.

“Who are you?” He knew that when someone
asked Lula that, she’d get pissy. He hated to think of his now
deceased ex-wife like that, but he was desperate to be
released.

As if on cue, she kicked him in the shin.
“You’ve never heard of me?” He didn’t move. “Never? Even hanging
around Lizzy, she never mentioned how I used to terrorize her as a
child?”

Logan pretended to think about it. Then
shook his head and smiled. “Wait. You’re that girl that she knocked
on her ass with a punch to the face? Oh yeah, she told me about
that. We had a good laugh. Colin is teaching my son the—”

His head hit the wall behind him twice
before she sat back in her chair. Her fist had come out quickly and
had jabbed him hard twice in the jaw. When he turned back to her,
he had to keep his mouth closed because his fangs had dropped.
Logan didn’t know why he thought so, but he had a feeling that
Megan didn’t know he was a vampire like his Lizzy was.

“She cheated. She used magic back on me when
I was told no more. Then that fucking cunt of a queen stepped in
and made me stop coming to the classes. She said she can tell when
someone uses magic, but she lied to get her precious Lizzy to
continue. I could have been great. I will be great when you’re
gone.”

He watched her as she ranted on and on then
when she noticed him again, she seemed to try and calm herself. But
her true self had come through.

“Tomorrow, I’m going to call your wife and
tell her that if she wants you back, she’ll give me money. A lot of
it too. She’s going to pay for getting me kicked out of the
kingdom. The queen will know that I’ve succeeded, and things will
get much better for me and my store.” She looked behind her when a
man came into the room. “What the fuck do you want?”

“We was wanting to know if we can go out now
that you’re here? My guys are hungry and they are snapping at each
other. And we gotta report to our alpha.”

She snarled as she stood up.

“You have to let them eat or things’ll go
bad for us all.”

“Go then. But if anything happens, I’m
holding you responsible. Those idiots out there are going to get us
caught, and I’m not going to jail for their stupidity.”

The man growled. Even Logan could tell he
was warning her. But she only shoved him out of the cell and locked
the door behind her. Logan leaned his head back against the wall
and tried to reach someone again.

When this was over, he decided he was going
to learn all he could about what he could do and what he was.
Closing his eyes, he tried to think of some of the things that
Lizzy had shown him, but other than biting and talking to her,
there wasn’t much else.

Morrigan, the witch. She owed him. He wasn’t
sure if this would be considered part of the two more questions or
not, but he was willing to try. Closing his eyes, he thought of
her. Then he called her name in his mind. Nothing. He opened his
eyes to see her sitting before him. Logan grinned.

“You’re a very intelligent man. Do you know
that most men just call me because they want a favor? You don’t, do
you?”

He shook his head.

“You do know that I can’t change the outcome
of this. I’m not one of the Fates, but only a witch. Powerful, yes,
but still only a witch.”

“More than a witch, I think, and you well
know it. I know how some of this thing works, and probably just
enough of that to get me into hot water. You said I had two
questions I could ask.” He started to ask her if that was correct,
but was afraid she’d count it against him. When she laughed, he
decided he had to be crafty with her.

“I will enjoy this, I think. And yes, you
have two questions. But I will give you something first. I cannot
tell them where you are. I cannot tell them how you are as well. If
your question is for me to ask one of them, then you will waste it.
I am not able to interfere with the ways things are set into
motion.”

Logan nodded. He had to do this right or he
wouldn’t be able to get out of this. He looked at the woman. She
was going to help him, but…

“I have a phone in my pocket. I need for you
to take my picture.” She looked at him for several seconds. “Or
can’t you do that?” He was playing with fire and knew it. She was a
witch, not an idiot, and he was hoping that she’d see that he was
trying to get back to his family.

“I can take your picture. I can even send it
to someone for you. Not a question, I get that, but don’t push your
luck.”

He felt his phone leave his pocket. She
hadn’t moved, but suddenly, his camera was in the palm of her
hand.

He tried to think what to do. He thought
about smiling to show he was fine, but that wouldn’t work. Then he
realized she was smiling at him. It wasn’t a friendly smile, and
all he could think about was he hoped it wasn’t directed at
him.

“It’s not. I’m taking this picture now.” The
camera clicked, then she held it up seemingly to inspect it. “But
I’m not sure just how to send it. How about if I take it to Lizzy?
Or Aaron? One of them should be able to see that you’re well enough
in it, don’t you think?”

“You would know best.”

She stared at him for a long while. Then she
leaned back. She seemed to be in no hurry, and as much as he wanted
her to go and find his family, pissing her off wouldn’t help.

“When Lizzy was born, and so you know, it’s
important that you know her entire name is Melody Savannah
Elizabeth MacManus. It was determined that she would be the
catalyst to all vampires to be brought together. Her brother would
be as well, but Lizzy and her mate were to be greatness.”

“And now she’s not? If I had anything to do
with you changing your mind, I’m sorry. But I won’t lose her. I
just figured out that I love her.”

She smiled at him.

“Morrigan, are they going to be all
right?”

It was one of his questions, but he didn’t
care. He needed to know. He wouldn’t give up if she told him they
wouldn’t; he’d just try harder to get to them. She stood and looked
to the door. He knew someone was coming and braced himself for
their return.

“Don’t let them win, Logan. You’re much
smarter than them. Just keep your secrets safe and you’ll be fine.
I’ll be back if you need me. But I doubt you will.” Then she was
gone and the door opened and three large men and Megan came in.

“I need a bit of your blood so I can show
them that I have you.” Megan said with a smile. “I guess I could
just ask you for it, but this way is so much more fun.”

The bullet ripped into his shoulder and he
cried out in pain. The man who shot him looked pleased with
himself, and Logan decided that as soon as this was over, he was
going to tear the man apart.

~~~

“Lady Lizzy, there is a person here to see
you. She is the witch Morrigan. She said that it is important that
she has a word with you.” Duncan didn’t look, happy and Lizzy asked
him what had happened. “She is not here, my lady. She is here but
not here. If you know what I mean.”

She didn’t, but went into the living room to
speak with her. Morrigan looked like she always did. Black clothing
and dark hair. She was so beautiful. Lizzy had always thought so.
But Duncan was right; she wasn’t here, just her image.

“I have something for you. Your mate is a
very smart man. I want to strangle him, but he is a smart man.” The
phone appeared on the table between them. “He asked me to take his
picture. I’m not sure if I did a good job or not, so I practiced a
bit more taking pictures of other things. I think I did well when I
compare them all together.”

Lizzy picked up the phone and realized the
battery was dead. She went to find a charger, and Morrigan followed
her into the kitchen where her mom and Mel were. Morrigan smiled at
them before sitting down on whatever it was at her end.

“She took a picture of Logan because he
asked her to. Now the battery is dead.” She plugged it in and
looked at Mel. “I don’t suppose you could charge it up now, could
you?”

“I wouldn’t do that.”

Lizzy turned to Morrigan when she spoke.

“You know that we can’t, Lizzy. Taking the
picture was almost bordering on helping with the outcome. The Fates
are nasty when they’re—”

“Fuck the Fates.” Lizzy sat down and started
to cry. “I need him, don’t you understand? I need him and I love
him. I want him here, not with that mad woman. I can’t help him if
he’s where I can’t find him.”

“But you can.”

Lizzy stood up when Atropos, Clotho, and
Lachesis, the Sisters Three, or the Fates, shimmered into the room.
Clotho smiled at Morrigan, but said nothing more.

“What do you mean I can? I can what? Find
him? In case you haven’t been paying attention, I have been trying
to find him. She has him in some sort of lined cell and I can’t
break through that.”

“No, you can’t,” Atropos said. “Morrigan,
how did you find our young Logan? Was he well when you left him? I
have heard that he was shot just after you left. I have checked
since and he seems to be holding up well.”

Lizzy would gladly have shot them all if she
thought it would do any good. But they’d just turn her into
something and leave her that way forever. She looked at Mel. “How
do you do this every day? I mean, how do you put up with beings
that you’d like to murder?”

Mel laughed as she answered her. “You should
listen more and talk less, Lizzy. They are giving you a way.”

Lizzy turned to the women and frowned.

“Listen.”

Atropos winked at Mel, then turned to
Morrigan. “Anyway. Logan. Did you know that he’s the one we picked
for our Lizzy all those decades ago? And now he’s there and without
knowing if he’s going to make it.”

“He’s going to make it. I’ll kick his ass if
he even thinks that.” Lizzy looked at Morrigan then Mel. “You’ve
seen him. You’ve both been to see him. Including you.” Lizzy
pointed to the Fates, waiting for whatever was just out of her
reach to click into place. Something that she’d missed. Mathew
walked in and asked if he could have a sandwich, and she stood up
to make him one.

“I’ve been helping Tristan. He said that
with my help on the virtual imaging, he might be able to retool the
game so that he could re-release it.”