Never Cry Wolf (23 page)
Authors: Cynthia Eden
But was Caleb a low-level demon? Or was he something much, much more powerful?
“Why would you help Rafe?” Sarah asked. “What did he have on you?” Because she knew the way Rafe worked. He loved to go after his prey’s weaknesses.
“Not a . . . damn . . . thing . . .” Blood spilled from his lips.
“Why hasn’t he shifted?” Sarah pushed back her hair as she glanced at Lucas. “Why hasn’t he healed by now?”
“He can’t shift,” Michael said, stepping forward. “He’s tried. Several damn times, but he can’t get a full shift.”
Caleb screamed them, bucking in the bed as his body twisted and the veins bulged on his arms and chest.
Lucas braced his legs apart. “You’re dying.”
Caleb’s face contorted. “Fucking . . .
know . . .
” Caleb’s claws burst from his fingertips, then vanished in an instant, leaving only bloody fingers behind.
know . . .
” Caleb’s claws burst from his fingertips, then vanished in an instant, leaving only bloody fingers behind.
“What the hell is this?” Michael grabbed him and pinned him against the bed. Caleb was thrashing, screaming, snarling as he kicked out and arched on the bed.
The guy was acting like he was possessed. Just like she’d seen in an old movie once with . . .
Oh, shit.
“Poison.” Her whisper had all eyes on her. All eyes but Caleb’s. His black eyes had squeezed closed and bloody tears leaked down his cheeks.
“What?” Lucas crossed to her. “You know what’s happening?”
Sarah swallowed. Thanks to the extermination list, she had a very good idea. “He dosed you, didn’t he?” There’d been rumors about this particular mix back at the Bureau. And as she’d learned, every rumor held some truth.
Caleb didn’t answer. At this point, she wasn’t sure he could. His vocal cords would be closing soon. “Body control, vision, speech . . .” That was the order of loss. If the dose was in his body too long . . .
“What the hell is happening, Sarah?” Lucas caught her arms and pulled her close.
“He’s dying.” That was obvious enough.
“How?”
“Poison. I-I think a special batch made just for demons.” All the supernaturals turned on each other at some point. Some feuds went past the skin, down through the bone and the magic. “At the Bureau, there was talk . . . an agent heard that some shifters created a brew a few years back. A mix that could destroy a demon,” she swallowed, “from the inside out.”
But each demon reacted a little differently to the drug. Demons
always
reacted differently to drugs. With this brew,
if the story was true,
some had died instantly. Some had become comatose. Some had hung on, fighting for weeks, slowly wasting away. Others . . .
always
reacted differently to drugs. With this brew,
if the story was true,
some had died instantly. Some had become comatose. Some had hung on, fighting for weeks, slowly wasting away. Others . . .
They’d just had a few days.
“What is it?”
She licked her lips. “I think it’s Angel’s Dust.”
“Angel Dust?” Piers echoed. “What—PCP? You’re telling us that Caleb’s strung out on—”
“Here’s a little demon lesson for you.” Her gaze darted down Caleb’s twisting body. His skin was mottling, flashing bright red, then turning pale white. “Demons don’t react so well to drugs. Some of them get hooked with one taste, others can OD immediately. Demons and drugs
don’t mix.
” Which is why drugs were their deadliest weakness.
don’t mix.
” Which is why drugs were their deadliest weakness.
Some smart shifters had known that.
“He’s not strung out on PCP,” she told them slowly, clearly. “It’s Angel’s Dust, a poison made for demons. The first batch . . . I heard it came from the blood of an angel.”
“Bullshit,” Dane said instantly.
“Right, werewolf.” She didn’t glance at him. “Talk about angels and demons has to be bullshit, right? I mean, it’s not like you’re staring
at
a demon or that you’re a
werewolf.
”
at
a demon or that you’re a
werewolf.
”
Lucas curled his fingers around her arms and lifted her onto her toes. “How do I fix him?”
Here was the tricky part. “Is that what you want? I thought you were going to let him die. Pack justice and all.” Yes, her words had bite. Couldn’t control that—not when she was so scared and so damn angry.
He’d really let his pack turn on me?
He’d really let his pack turn on me?
Lucas’s hold tightened a bit. Not enough to hurt. Just enough to let her know his control was thinner than it looked.
“If he dies, he can’t tell me what I need to know.”
No, and the guy was beyond talking right then. No words were coming from his lips, just blood.
“If it’s poison, then there’s an antidote, right?” Michael asked, his body rocking forward.
Not always. “He doesn’t have a lot of time left.”
“Then I need the cure right now.”
She shook her head. “It’s not that easy. If it’s Angel’s Dust—”
“You just said it was,” Piers fired, voice rough.
Sarah glanced over her shoulder at him. “I said I
thought
it was. It looks like what I’ve heard about an Angel’s Dust poisoning.” She didn’t want to look back at Caleb, but she forced herself to.
Damn.
Agony etched deep lines into his face. “Never seen a poisoning up close,” she admitted.
thought
it was. It looks like what I’ve heard about an Angel’s Dust poisoning.” She didn’t want to look back at Caleb, but she forced herself to.
Damn.
Agony etched deep lines into his face. “Never seen a poisoning up close,” she admitted.
“Sarah.”
She blinked and her gaze zeroed back in on Lucas.
“I need that cure.”
If only she had a cure to give him.
“How’d you find out about the Dust?” Dane wanted to know.
“There was an agent . . . he’d been following a series of demon deaths. I saw some of his files at the FBI. Some demons who’d been . . .”
On the list for death.
“They were taken out before the Bureau got to them. The agent on the cases suspected Dust was used. The demons . . . they’d attacked some bear shifters near Yosemite, took their pelts . . .”
On the list for death.
“They were taken out before the Bureau got to them. The agent on the cases suspected Dust was used. The demons . . . they’d attacked some bear shifters near Yosemite, took their pelts . . .”
“Fuck,” Piers snarled.
The absolute insult to a dead shifter—take the pelt before the body shifted back to human form. That left the dead body twisted, malformed. A monster at death’s gate.
“He heard about the Dust then, from some warlock named Skye.” She’d remembered the warlock. She always remembered names that could help her. But this part . . . “The agent also wrote that once ingested, he didn’t know if there
was
a cure for a demon.”
was
a cure for a demon.”
No cure, just death.
“But Caleb’s not just a demon.” Lucas’s fingers eased their hold. Caressed with a soft touch. A hard smile curved his lips. “He’s also wolf.” He turned away from her and stalked toward Caleb’s heaving body. “At the core,” he said again, “he’s wolf.”
But the wolf wasn’t fighting then, and the demon was dying.
“Time to let the wolf out to play,” Lucas announced with a nod. “Get it, Jordan.”
Jordan.
She’d forgotten he was even there, but when she looked back, Jordan stood in the doorway, a silent shadow. “What do you want him to get?” she asked.
She’d forgotten he was even there, but when she looked back, Jordan stood in the doorway, a silent shadow. “What do you want him to get?” she asked.
But Jordan was already leaving.
“Shit,” Dane whispered. “You’re not giving him the Balkans?”
“Damn right.”
“He won’t be in control!” Dane argued. “He’ll just be wolf, he won’t—”
“He’ll be wolf,” Lucas said, “and the wolf can heal.” Balkans. Yes, okay, she knew the geographical area, but what did that have to do with saving the man’s life?
“Will he even be able to ingest it?” Piers asked.
“He’ll take it,” Lucas promised. “Even if I have to shove it down his throat.” His blazing eyes turned back to Sarah. “Take her out, Dane.”
Her knees locked. “I thought you—”
“You can’t control him, Sarah. You said so yourself.” Lucas’s mouth tightened. “When the shift comes, the beast is going to take over.”
“And humans, charmers—they all smell like prey to us,” Dane told her quietly.
Prey. Was that really what she was to them? To Lucas? Jordan came back, shoving open the door. He had a small vial in his hand. Some kind of clear liquid.
“There’s a white flower in the Balkans,” Dane told her as he guided her back toward the door. “About five hundred years ago, folks believed if you ate that flower, you’d become a werewolf.”
Piers and Michael hauled Caleb up. Lucas caught his chin and pried open Caleb’s bloody mouth. Then the alpha shoved the open vial past the snarling man’s lips.
“They were half-right.” Dane’s breath blew against her ear. “The flower forced an instant shift in those who carried an animal inside. No stopping it, just fast, full on—”
Lucas threw the vial to the floor. It shattered. “Get her out!”
Caleb’s wasn’t jerking anymore. He’d gone still. Dead?
Then his bones began to snap. A howl tore from his throat.
“
Get her out!”
Lucas yelled again.
Get her out!”
Lucas yelled again.
You all smell like prey.
Dane pulled her outside just as another howl shook the small guardhouse.
“No matter what happens,” Lucas snarled, his voice roughening as the beast fought for control of his body. “Caleb doesn’t leave this room. He
doesn’t
get near Sarah.”
doesn’t
get near Sarah.”
Piers still stood as a man, by Lucas’s order. Lucas knew how delicate that shifter’s control was. Now wasn’t the time to test him.
“He won’t get by me,” Piers vowed.
“Or me.” From Jordan.
Good to know, but Lucas didn’t plan on letting Caleb get past
him.
him.
Already, the man’s body was gone. The white wolf crouched on the bed, his eyes wild, his fangs bared. Ready to rip and attack at any moment.
Lucas let the change sweep over him. It was such a beautiful pain, savage and brutal, but the power of the beast was a heady addiction. One that had long ago worked under his skin.
He expected an attack from Caleb. It would have been smart for the other wolf to attack while he shifted. But Caleb just stood, body trembling, and watched. Waited.
The fire of the shift began to cool. Lucas stretched in his new body, feeling the pull of muscles, the tensile strength.
He stalked toward the bed—and toward the waiting wolf.
You in there?
He sent the question out, searching.
He sent the question out, searching.
A breeze teased his nose. The scent of grass, of ocean, of . . .
Sarah.
The white wolf’s nostrils flared and he launched off the bed, heading right for Lucas. Lucas twisted, but didn’t let his claws touch Caleb. Not yet.
Poison.
Caleb had been loyal once. Lucas had called him friend. But if he had to, Lucas would kill him. He’d killed other friends before.
But Caleb . . .
Get control, wolf.
He snapped out the command in his mind. There was no mental link that he could find with Caleb. He just touched rage, fear, pain.
He snapped out the command in his mind. There was no mental link that he could find with Caleb. He just touched rage, fear, pain.
Get control,
he fired again but the white wolf attacked him. This time, Lucas had to use his teeth. He caught the beast around the neck, held tight, then tossed Caleb across the room.
he fired again but the white wolf attacked him. This time, Lucas had to use his teeth. He caught the beast around the neck, held tight, then tossed Caleb across the room.
Not a good fucking way to heal.
The white wolf’s ears flattened.
“Lucas, I sure as shit hope you know what you’re doing,” Piers muttered.
Yeah, he did, too.
The white wolf attacked once more, a hard, driving attack. Lucas met him head on, jaw snapping. He didn’t want to kill the other wolf. He needed Caleb to heal. He needed to find out what the hell was happening, but—
They rolled, twisted, and Caleb’s claws dug into Lucas’s side. He growled at the fiery burst of pain.
Get control, Caleb.
The shift should have pushed some of the poison out of his system, and if the man could just get control of the beast—
Get control, Caleb.
The shift should have pushed some of the poison out of his system, and if the man could just get control of the beast—
Caleb broke away from him and sprang for the door.
“ ’Fraid not.” Jordan stood before the door, arms crossed.
“You’re not getting by me.”
Lucas jumped onto the white wolf’s back and as the snarls and growls burst from them both, the wolves crashed onto the floor.
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