Winter Wolf (26 page)

Despite having run me ragged, I hadn’t betrayed myself to them.

I had survived the lion’s den.

“I’ll warn them we’re coming back, and you can face off with them in Vegas.” Amber grinned, pulled out her cell phone and turned it on. It beeped at her, and she turned the display to me: over a hundred messages awaited her, and her voice mail was full.

Motioning for me to stay quiet, she dialed a number. “Hello, Richard. I’m bringing your princess back to you now. We’ll be in Vegas in a few hours.”

I heard Richard’s rumbling voice, but before I could catch what he said, Amber hung up on him.

“Really, Amber? Princess? Are you trying to piss off everyone?” I put my hands on my hips and tried to look stern. “He’s going to be angrier than before now.”

“Hey, I was helping you. Princesses aren’t supposed to be scary. You’re armed and dangerous now. Never forget it, Nicole.”

~~*~~

By the time we reached the Venetian, I was prepared to face down an entire pack of Fenerec if it meant I could soak in the penthouse suite’s tub. I grimaced as I got out of Amber’s car.

“I warned you,” she said.

Huffing at her, I couldn’t help adding a jab of my own. “Remind me again, and I’ll help myself to your car for a weekend, Amber.”

“Grand theft auto? Nice. What other charges are you going for?”

“I already have two counts of kidnapping. Is there one for having done it with a stolen gun? And is there one for armed assault and battery?” I flicked my hand at the witch in a rude gesture. “I got a gun, witch.”

“And I taught you how to use it,” she replied with a laugh. “You’re going to have quite the rap sheet if you get caught.”

“I’m pretty sure you told me yesterday the idea isn’t to get caught.” I stretched, groaning a little as my back popped. “Were you trying to kill me?”

Amber shook her head. “If I wanted to kill you, Nicole, you’d be dead.”

Before training at the Inquisition compound, I doubted I would have believed her. Unfortunately for me, Amber had scored the best on the obstacle course—and sweating was optional for her. I didn’t know why, but she made me want to beat her. Maybe I just wanted to be able to run up a wall, jump over alleys, and shoot at moving targets while managing to hit them. I still didn’t like the Inquisition, especially after three days of making sure they didn’t think I was anything other than a Normal with particularly bad circumstances, but I respected them. They worked hard.

And all of them had their own reason to fight, even Amber.

“Tell you what. You get the better of Richard and Alex, and I’ll give you the keys to my car for a week.”

I narrowed my eyes and glared at the witch. I wanted to drive her car, but I doubted I’d be able to best Richard or Alex at anything, let alone a serious dominance challenge. Carrying a gun wouldn’t save me from either one of them if they lost control. “What do you get if I lose?”

“You help me take out the murderer.”

I snorted. “That’s a losing proposition.” And then I paused, considering her wager. If Amber wanted help, she was worried. Anything worrying an Inquisitor capable of fighting like Amber could was frightening. What did she know about the killer I didn’t?

Nothing good was the only conclusion I could draw.

But I couldn’t abandon Amber, not after she helped me, not when she put her life on the line hiding me from the Inquisition she served. So I shrugged, pointed at her car keys, and said, “Two weeks of quality time, me and your car.”

She laughed and some of the witch’s tension melted away. “I can live with that.”

If Amber worried about taking out the man killing wealthy young women, I suspected she wasn’t sure she’d survive. Inquisitor or not, I liked Amber.

I didn’t have many friends. I hoped she would number among them, if we weren’t forced to kill each other first. But she couldn’t do that if she died. Even if I won the bet, I’d help her.

I didn’t want her becoming another victim.

We walked to the penthouse suite in silence. After a glance at me, Amber knocked on the door before using the card key we’d taken.

I wasn’t sure what I had been expecting, but a gun in the face wasn’t it. Amber squeaked. Before I realized what I was doing, my pistol was in my hand, the safety off, and I shoved my shoulder against the door, pushing it open. Focusing all of my attention on the gunman, I shifted my aim from the weapon to the man’s face. I didn’t recognize the blond-haired man, but the scent of cinnamon teased my nose.

I targeted the bridge of his nose, right between his wide blue eyes.

“Safety on,” Amber shrieked.
“Safety on!”

“Back off, Daniel,” Richard rumbled from somewhere inside. “You don’t want Amber shooting you. She doesn’t miss.”

The gun pointed at Amber lowered, and only after the Fenerec engaged the safety did I relax and lower my gun.

“Amber isn’t the one with the gun,” Amber replied in a smug tone. “And she’s a pretty good shot.”

“She? You don’t mean Nicole?” Richard stepped into the foyer as I was adjusting my coat. Dark rings circled his eyes and he stifled a yawn.

“You look like hell,” I announced, stepping back to let Amber enter the suite first.

Amber swept by me. If she worried about Richard losing his temper, she showed no sign of it as she shook hands with the Alpha Fenerec. “Nicole got a Beretta for her birthday plus enough ammunition to take on Fort Knox. And she’s right, you do look like hell.”

“You two are to blame for that,” Richard growled.

A yellow gleam crept into Richard’s eyes. I tensed, wondering if holstering the Beretta had been a mistake.

“You hired me to protect her,” Amber replied, her voice calm and soothing. “I did just that.”

Daniel cringed away from Richard, slinking by me to close the door. “Sorry,” he whispered.

“Nothing to be sorry for,” I replied, making space for the Fenerec. “You startled me, that’s all. I’m a little jumpy. I’m sorry, too.”

Relief at having controlled myself, resisting the urge to pull the trigger as I had been taught, outweighed my fear of a strange Fenerec so close to me. If I had shot, I would’ve hit him. After Amber’s grueling training, I couldn’t have missed, not so close.

“You move pretty fast.”

I blushed a little. “I practiced.”

“Amber,” Richard growled.

“Excuse me, I need to deal with him,” I said to Daniel and nodded to him, careful not to expose my throat. Then I turned to Richard, chin lifted in defiance. “Richard.”

The Alpha Fenerec turned to me, and his eyes turned all yellow. I stepped within arm’s reach of him, crossed my arms, and met his gaze.

Amber sucked in a breath and recoiled back several steps. “Nicole…”

“Amber, shut up.” There was a hard edge to my voice, and the witch fell silent.

~Yes, show him you’re not prey,~
the book whispered, speaking up for the first time since I had started the Inquisition’s training.

“Richard, I apologize for not calling you.”

Wolf-yellow eyes bored through me. I stood firm, although my muscles tensed in preparation. If he moved, so would I. Maybe I wouldn’t be able to beat the speed of a Fenerec, but I’d try.

“Mr. Desmond called me yesterday,” Richard snarled.

“Good for him.” Careful to keep my eyes lifted and focused on his, I scooted around Richard. He turned, stalking me. I straightened, mimicking one of Richard’s low growls. “I spent the past three days with the Inquisition. They taught me how to kill people. Monsters, too. I’m not good at it, but I should be able to hold my own.”

“You let them bruise her face, Amber.” When Richard reached out, it took every bit of my willpower not to back away. He brushed my cheek with the back of his fingers, pausing at my jaw.

“She didn’t let them do anything,” I snapped. “I did. My choice. My decision. My bruises. I earned them.
Mine.
”

~Good,~
the book whispered.
~Don’t let him beat you.~

“Holy shit.” Daniel’s voice cracked.

~He’s afraid.~
The book’s pleasure and approval warmed me.
~Don’t fear them. Rule them. We are strong.~

Richard shook with fury. I didn’t fear him. I should have, but I couldn’t. It was as if the cowardice had been snuffed out of me, melted down, and tempered to something capable of withstanding the Fenerec at his worst. I breathed deep.

I liked the scent of cinnamon, I decided.

“Why?” Anger lurked in Richard’s question, quiet and simmering, as if he held onto his rage by his fingertips.

With one wrong word, I’d unleash his beast, the monster lurking within—the thing that made him Fenerec. I didn’t know how I knew, but the knowledge should have frightened me. It frightened Amber and Daniel. They backed away from us.

I smiled. I wouldn’t fear Richard.

~Ours.~
The book’s presence lurked in my head, and it longed for violence—and something else I couldn’t identify. With a wordless growl, I resisted its cravings.

Defeating Richard couldn’t be done with a bullet. Unless I wanted the Fenerec always hovering, I had to stand firm. My freedom depended on me proving I could withstand even an Alpha Fenerec. I didn’t want him to view me as someone always needing to be protected. If I lost this battle, I’d be sucked into the world of the Fenerec and never allowed to leave. One of them would always be lurking nearby, watching over me.

I wouldn’t be able to go back into hiding.

Smothering my sprouting worry, I caged it behind a mask—one forged from the truth. “I am tired of being afraid. I am tired of running. I am tired of being a victim. A target. Someone needing protecting.” I spat the words, and without lowering my gaze, I stepped to Richard, close enough I could feel his breath on my face as I stared at him. “Would you keep me a coward?”

“I’d keep you
safe.
” Richard’s breathless voice sent shivers through me.

The book seemed startled. For a moment, I thought it was going to say something, but it remained silent.

How could he keep
me
safe? I was a wizard. I’d never be safe. Every day of my life would be spent looking over my shoulder and hoping no one figured out the truth. I would go through each day wearing one of my masks in the hopes no one would see beyond the visage of a pretty actress with a hoarse voice.

I understood wanting to keep people safe. I hadn’t known Scott, but I had wanted to avenge him before I had learned the true cause of his death. I wanted to keep Amber safe, too. I wanted to atone for my cowardice and help my sister, my mother, my father, Alex, Richard, and the rest of the Fenerec.

I couldn’t do anything if I remained
safe.

“You are a Fenerec. You are an Alpha,” I acknowledged. Richard’s wolf-yellow eyes stayed focused on me, and his nostrils flared as he drew deep breaths.

I wondered what I smelled like to him.

“But I am what I am, and you can’t protect me from that. We are running out of time and we can’t afford to waste more of it by safeguarding me. You’re needed and so am I. You can’t do your part if you’re too busy trying to protect me. Safety isn’t what I need.”

I needed a partner, someone who would stand at my back, not a custodian or protector.

~Yes.~
Pride infused the single word.

Richard sighed. When he shook his head, he broke our eye contact. “What did you do to her, Amber?”

With one question, the tension in the room eased, and while Amber didn’t dare get close to Richard, she eased around him and flopped down on one of the armchairs. “Eighteen hour shifts at the firing range and obstacle course. Three hours of sleep. Rinse and repeat. They have no idea what she is. She didn’t even need me to protect her from that. She did that all on her own. All I did was put a gun in her hand and taught her how to use it.”

At first, I thought Richard’s temper would flare again, but his shoulders sagged and he stalked his way to the couch. He sank down on it, swinging his legs onto the cushion so he could stretch out. “I see. You are aware her hand was torn up before you pulled this stunt, yes?”

I showed him the back of my hand. While the gashes still sported scabs, they had healed. “No infection, and only minor bleeding. No harm done.”

“Courage is a Beretta, is it?” Richard shook his head and then he draped an arm over his eyes. “Mr. Desmond snarled at me for three hours, I’ll have you know.”

“I’ll call him,” I promised and anxiety welled up at the thought of speaking with my father again.

“Courage is knowledge,” Amber said, and the witch kept her gaze focused on the carpet. “It’s scary not knowing how to protect yourself. Three days isn’t enough, if I could, I would’ve kept her there for a month, but she has no reason to feel so helpless anymore. Her control is good. Not a single power flicker, not even when a dozen Inquisitors fired at her on the obstacle course.”

“They
what?
” Richard bellowed.