Wolf Creek Enforcer (16 page)

Melissa walked up and explained what would happen if he tried anything.  “You already know what I can do, but have you ever seen a wolf attack?  It’s not pretty.  Other than the wolves you see here, the woods are full of them too, and they would love to chase you down.  Then they would rip you apart, piece-by-piece.”

She pause
d, tilting her head to the side while studying her nails.  “Now, I’m different.  You see, you know I’m a cougar shifter and we like to play with our prey.  No instant kill for me.  I’d do a little shredding first on your back, just to get your attention.  Then I’d sink my claws into your belly until your entrails were hanging out so you could see them.   A nice slow and agonizing death,” Melissa’s smile was as sweet as an angel’s.

Krew’s face paled in fear.  She scared him more than the wolves or the fae warrior.
  He thought about trying to use a spell once they removed the gag, but was afraid his magic was too weak compared to the fae.   

“Damn woma
n, you are one scary kitty,” David grinned in admiration.   

“She’s mine,” Robert declared, glaring
once again at David.

“No, I’m not,” She stated
adamantly. 

David put his hands up, “No problem man, she’s just really hot.”

Robert growled, glaring at David.

“Stop this shit right now,” Ian demanded.  “We don’t have time for this crap.  David, stop messing with Robert.”

“I’m a pacifist,” Melanie stated, out of the blue.  “Just saying,” she shrugged her shoulders when they all looked at her in amazement.  “Well, most of the time.”

Robert cut the gag off, stepping back
as Krew spit in the dirt.  “The son of a bitch has left me behind to take the heat.  I’ll tell you whatever you need to know, just take me back home.”

“Why did you
try to attack me in the cave?” Melanie asked.

“You were my ticket home.  Braeden cast a spell,
searching for a way to travel through time.  I thought he was a fucking nut case, but he told me I’d be his apprentice and he would train me.   He found you two,” he added, looking at Melanie and Robert.

“He thought the girl
had gone back to Faery so he went after you.  He used the book to find a magic user that could do what he needed,” Krew said, looking at Robert.

They all kept quiet about Melanie, not
letting Krew know she was not fae, but druid. 

“He’s searching for something,” Krew said.  “A spell…
”

A neat hole appeared in Krew’s head, right between his eyes.  His body leaned forward, then toppled sideways onto
the forest floor.

Melanie gasped in shock, stepping towards Krew to help him.  She knew intellectually he was already dead, but her instincts had her moving forward.  Before she
had taken two steps, an arm snaked around her waist, pinning her.

“If you move, I’ll slice her throat,” Bra
eden said.

He
squeezed her up against his chest, with a knife pressed to her neck.  A small trickle of blood rolled slowly down her throat.

They all froze staring at Braeden, afraid to shift or make any movement. 

Ian’s voice turned deep, gravelly, “You’ve signed your death warrant.  The only choice you have now is if it will be fast and merciful, or long and painful. Release her and I’ll kill you quickly.” 

Even Melanie got chills listening to him speak.  He stood tall with his fist clenched, brimming with aggression.  She knew his wolf was just waiting to burst free and rip Braeden apart.

Braeden slowly took a step back, not taking his eyes off of Ian.  “She’ll be dead before you can reach me,” he stated flatly.   

David was furious as he watched his sister being taken right in front of his eyes.  He could do nothing without putting her life in danger.  His eyes promised retribution.

Devlin stood a few feet from Ian, glancing from Braeden to Ian, waiting for an opening to attack.  Glancing around, he noticed Angus and Rory were no longer sitting behind him.  He was hoping they were somewhere near, waiting to ambush the wizard.

Robert had pulled Melissa behind him and had his sword in his grip.  “Release her wizard, you canna kill us all.”

Braden smiled, showing his perfectly straight, white teeth.  “I don’t need to kill all of you, just killing her should do it, so it would be in her best interest if you don’t try to be some kind of a fucking hero.  She and I are taking a little trip.  Follow and she’s dead,” he stated simply.

Not moving his eyes from Ian, he whispered into Melanie’s ear, too softly for them to hear.

Feeling the cold steel against her neck, she couldn’t move without the knife biting into her jugular. 

“Now, damn it!” Breaden snarled. 

Melanie stared at Ian, knowing she couldn’t hesitate any longer and started her chant.  A single tear rolled down her cheek as the eddy appeared before them.  He had no qualms about killing her, she knew, hearing the conviction in his voice.

As the wind blew around them, Melanie groaned when Braeden’s grip tightened around her waist.  She couldn’t lose him in the maelstrom, as the arm under her breast felt like a vice. 
He pulled the knife back from her throat, laying the flat edge against her stomach so that he could hold her with both arms. 

The chicken shit was afraid h
e’d get lost in time, she thought hysterically.  Her head was all over the place, fear and anger warring inside.  Focusing back on Ian, she prayed he would find her before Braden killed her.  Once they returned to their time, he would have no use for her, she feared.  Now she needed to focus on staying alive, looking for any opportunity to escape.  Since he’d found her once before, there had to be something he wanted from her, so maybe he wasn’t going to kill her when they got back to their time.  She hoped… 

Home, go h
ome! 
Her voice screamed in Ian’s head as the swirling energy took them
away.

Ian leapt towards the vortex as
her voice was abruptly cut off.

“No!” David shouted,
jerking Ian back.  “It’s too late, you’ll be ripped apart.”

Growling, Ian wrenched
his arm out of David’s grip.  Shoving David in the chest, he growled, “I don’t give a fuck!  You shouldn’t have stopped me.”

“A hell of a lot of good it’d do her if you’re dead,” David
shoved him back, bracing for Ian’s attack.

“How the fuck did he sneak up on us?  None of us knew he was here, there wasn’t a
ny warning from the pack in the woods,” Ian growled furiously.

“It has got to be that book.  Once my sister is safe, I will find that damned book,” David vowed.

Ian snarled, roughly shoving his hand through his hair.  He was so wound up, his head was ready to explode.  His wolf wanted out, anxious to go track Braden down and rip him apart.  The human part wanted to beat the shit out of him before killing him, slowly.  Pacing, the leaves crunching under his boots, he made no attempt to be silent.  Now was not the time for stealth.  All he wanted to do was annihilate his target.     

He had to pull himself together, focus on finding her.  Narrowing his gaze on David, he marched over to him, bristling with anger.

“She said ‘go home’, before they disappeared.  Take me home, now druid,” Ian demanded. 

Standing toe to toe, David didn’t back off.  He was furious and if Ian wanted a fight, he welcomed it.  Watching his sister being threatened and then taken while he
stood by and did nothing infuriated him.

Melissa walked up to stand between the two men, shoving them apart.  “Stop it.  You two fighting isn’t going to help a damn thing.  We’re all pissed off right now, but we need to know where to look for her.”

Devlin stepped forward, “What did she mean?  Are we supposed to go to our house or hers?  Or Braden’s, wherever that is. Fuck, is she still in this time and trying to protect us by telling us to go home?” Devlin asked, frustrated.

David turned, addressing Devlin, “No, she did what she was supposed to do.  Rescuing the person from this time period was
what called us here.  With Krew dead and Braeden gone, her job was pretty much done.  She knows that I can get the rest of us back.  When she says go home, she means back to our time.”

Robert stepped up, “We should
go to where Melissa and I ran into him.  That’s his home, near the water.  Wizards migrate to bodies of water, drawing power from them.  Many of the homes near the coast are owned by wizards you’ll find.”

“And what?  Knock on the door and say hand her over?” Ian sarcastically challenged Robert.

Ian was managing to piss everyone off, but they made allowances, knowing how frustrated he was.

Devlin knew he had to take the lead, calming his brother while get
ting them organized.  He didn’t want to just show up at Braeden’s house, thereby possibly getting Melanie killed. 

Looking behind him, he motioned for Angus and Rory.  “Can you take care of Krew’s body?  We need to leave, immediately.”  Devlin nodded his thanks as Rory threw the body over his shoulder.

“Go, we’ll handle it.”  Looking at Ian, Angus said starkly, “Make it painful when you kill him.”

“Robert, take us to the castle.  We need sniper rifles.  David and I will find our high point while you and Ian go in.  His magic won’t stop a high speed bullet, no matter how powerful he thinks he is,” Devlin paused when Melissa punched his shoulder. 

“And me?  What, the little woman goes home to wait until the mighty warriors come back?” Melissa hated it when men assumed she was useless. 

“Yes,” Robert nodded, which really pissed her off even more.

“You’ve seen the magic book he used.  I need you to do whatever it is you do as a seer and get me information on that book.  A way to nullify its’ power or something,” Devlin growled, frustrated.”  “I know you can fight, Melissa, but I have to know what we’re up against.” 

Ian wanted to leave, not stand around making plans.  He knew not to go off halfcocked, but he was having a difficult time concentrating, 

Ian stared at Robert, “As soon as we get to the castle, transport me directly outside his home.  I’m not waiting on Devlin or David.  He could kill her at any moment, she may not have the few minutes it’ll take you to gather weapons.”

Robert reached out, grasping Melissa’s hand.  She started to jerk her hand away in an automatic response but stopped, knowing they had to be touching to get them back home. 

Ian and Devlin put their hands on Robert’s forearm, anticipating the moment they would flash out of this time and be home almost instantly.  “You need to put yer hand on me somewhere lad, so you won’t be left behind,” Robert’s eyebrows rose in question, waiting for David to join the group. 

“I can get myself to the castle you know, I have been doing this for awhile,” with those words, David raised his arms, summoning the vortex to take him back.

Robert sighed, a nanosecond later they were standing in the castle great room.  “So young and arrogant.”  

A minute later, David appeared beside them, pushing his hair back an
d running his fingers through the strands, trying to get the tangles out.

“Let’s go,” Ian stated as Devlin rushed to get his rifle.

Chapter 11

Melanie was thankful the knife was no longer at her throat, but with it pressed to her stomach, she hoped he wouldn’t accidently stab her.  If only the wind would whip it out of his hands, but no such luck.  He had his arms wrapped around her so tight, the knife was snug against her body.

Thinking about simply let
ting her body go boneless, she thought that maybe he would release her and she would have the opportunity to fight back.  Feeling the solid floor beneath her feet, she knew it was now or never.  The knife may still slice her, but the sharp edge was turned down where it pressed against her body.  She could be filleted like a fish and lose the top layer of her skin.  Feeling dread at being skinned alive, she gave herself a pep talk to bolster her nerves.  

Dropping her head, she
made sure she could see the knife’s spine and was thankful for that little bit of luck. She stood less of a chance of cutting off a boob when she hit the floor. 

Hearing him moan, she knew he was probably still dizzy from the trip, whereas she was a seasoned traveler.  She needed to do this quickly, before he
recovered his equilibrium. 

She let go, every
muscle in her body going limp, she hung like a rag doll before his arms loosened and she fell to the ground.

Melanie’s knees banged agai
nst the wooden floor, her palms slapping the wood when she fell forward in pain.  On all fours, she hurriedly crawled across the room, like a crab scurrying across the sand.

Her hands ached where
she’d slammed them against the ground, while her knees throbbed in time with her heartbeat.  Gritting her teeth, she pushed up off the floor, balancing her weight on the balls of her feet, fist clenched and ready to fight.