A Cursed Bloodline (WG 4) (37 page)

Anara bent to lift the pitcher beneath Martin. Martin shuddered slightly. He remained in a trance, but the rage behind his blank stare was irrefutable. The Elders emitted power so fiercely, anyone could sense it—a command those without magic would misinterpret as confidence and superiority. Those who belonged to the world my sisters and I had stumbled into would recognize it for what it was: an atom bomb disguised as a lily, carefully contained and ready to erupt at will. I’d never cared for such power, but as I extended my senses toward the bound Elders, I really wished they had it back. They seemed weaker, vulnerable,
human
.

“You’ve made things so difficult for me, Celia.” Anara’s voice carried no trace of emotion. He poured Martin’s blood into a small glass bottle around his neck, similar to the one the witch had fixed to her staff. He then bent before Makawee and took her share.

He corked the bottle tightly and covered it between his palms, lowering his lids with ecstasy. The bottle glowed gold and, although sealed, stunk of the same dark magic the witch had cast. I cringed from the sickening stench of its poison. Anara in contrast moaned with perverse pleasure, high on the magnitude of his prize.

He’d used his packmates’ essence against them. That’s why they’d failed to suspect his actions and remained defenseless to stop him.

The Pack whined. I wasn’t
were,
but I understood the sacrilege behind his actions. My wolves, whose growls hadn’t stopped, were incensed. My eyes cut to Aric. Desperation to break free fired the fury in his light brown irises. He refused to bow down to this monster. And hell, so did I.

I straightened. “How long have you been controlling them?”

Anara finished his indulgence before answering. He quivered slightly, relishing the last of the blood’s effects. “Since the start of the war. For us
weres
to be attacked so easily told me we’d grown too weak as a species.” He scoffed. “All our so-called Alphas failed to see the threat to our beloved purebloods.
They
were responsible for their slaughter as much as the Tribe.”

Sure they were.
“How did you do it?”

He walked over to Makawee and bent to stroke her hair. Her mouth grimaced with distaste from his touch. “She’s always possessed too kind a soul, even for an Omega.” His voice remained gentle when he spoke of her. “Did you know she took in injured animals she found in the forest?”

I stared back at him. It’s not like he truly wanted me to answer. The wolves quieted, remaining furious but needing to understand how a valued Elder had turned against their kind.

Makawee’s hair slipped through Anara’s fingers as he continued. “Rather than letting the worthless creatures perish as our laws of nature allow, she brought them back to her chambers. Many died, but some—even those too feeble to live—returned to their fullest health. No one understood why nor would she speak of it. One day curiosity got the best of me and I invaded her chambers in her absence. I found a vial with her blood.” He shook his head. “Poor Makawee used her spirit to mend another’s broken one. I didn’t take it with me that day, of course. I chose to wait until the time was right.” He smiled almost fondly. “She had no reason to question my scent in her quarters. After all, we met for tea there most nights. Isn’t that right, Makawee?”

Aric released a warning growl as Anara abandoned her to stalk to my side. Anara ignored him. “I solicited the assistance of a witch—” He swung his fist, missing my nose when I ducked. The wolves behind me lurched forward and wrenched my arms behind my back, facilitating Anara’s next strike. His backhand to my face snapped my head back and instantly swelled my cheek. I spat blood. My wolves went ballistic, thrashing and shaking. But like flies caught in a web there was nothing they could do.

Anara persisted as if uninterrupted. “You might remember the witch. I had Virginia hire her to poison you and set the fire. Excellent wielder of magic she was.” He paused to narrow his stare. “Until you tore out her throat.” That earned me another shot to the face. My wolves howled with rage and my tigress clawed at my rib cage, fighting to emerge. My breath shuddered in deep gasps as I glared at him. If I could have broken free, I would have sliced through his jugular.

“Once I had Makawee under control, I used our united power to seize Martin. It was almost too easy.” He waved his hand casually in Martin’s direction. “But that’s what happens when you put a non-pure in charge of a Pack where the Omega and the Beta are of untainted blood.” Anara peered out the window thoughtfully. “Did you know before coming here, we were all Alphas of our own smaller Packs?” He glanced over his shoulder and smiled at my disbelief. “Then I supposed you don’t know once you’re an Alpha, your control over your Pack follows you forever.”

The color drained from my face. Anara not only manipulated the power of the Squaw Valley Pack but of those other Packs he and the Elders had led. No wonder he was so freakishly strong, he could probably take down a shape-shifter alone. “That’s why the others didn’t know who attacked me. They didn’t recognize the scents from the other Packs.”

Anara clapped in mock appreciation. “Very good, Celia. Perhaps you’re not as stupid as I thought.” He scowled. “I was going to use my power and elevated position to lead our kind to a new future. But then
you
gave me no choice but to turn sides to survive!” He shoved his face into mine. “Why couldn’t you just die! Why must I continue to see your wretched face?”

“I’ll fucking kill you! You’re dead, Anara—you’re fucking dead!”

Aric had
changed
to human, shocking the hell out of both me and Anara. He remained suspended yet his frantic thrashing had cracked the wall behind him. Anara’s bemusement told me it should have been impossible for Aric to use his power at all. He meandered to Aric, who continued to bash and flay hard enough to strain the cords of his neck and turn his breaths ragged. Anara touched his shoulder, awe glazing his eyes. Aric wrenched his body away, chipping the plaster behind him and deepening the dent. Anara smiled, admiring Aric like a rare masterpiece. “Such power,” he whispered. His face changed without warning, veering toward me with hatred so raw I could taste it. “Wasted on this goddamn abomination!”

Anara rushed me, punching me so hard I flew from the arms holding me and skidded across the floor. “Kill her,” he spat.

Aric beat against the wall, his growls loud enough to shatter glass. I whirled to face the advancing Pack led by Allie. But it wasn’t those wolves he’d ordered to kill.

Koda and the Geminis fell from their positions, prowling toward me with their fangs bared and their eyes glowing in that ferocious gold. I stumbled back on unsteady feet, knowing I couldn’t win against them.

But when they reached me, they gave me their backs and assumed protective stances. They growled at the human Pack and forced them back. I almost collapsed with relief. In restoring my mate bond to Aric, I’d restored his Warriors’ duty to protect me. Anara couldn’t make them hurt me now.

An invisible hand grabbed me by the throat and threw me into the corner. “You
whore
. You wasted no time bedding him, did you!” Anara held me and charged my protectors. The Pack of humans howled that miserable song and their stares brightened, fueling Anara’s onslaught. His fists flamed gold as he pummeled the wolves, inflicting all the strength of his rage. I shut my eyes tight, unable to stomach the fury aimed at my friends. Their snarls and yelps filled my ears with their anguish until Anara finally beat them into silence.

I slowly opened my eyes, terrified at what I’d find.

Anara stood, gaping at his hands in wonder of his prowess. “Get up.” The wolves didn’t move. “Get up!”

They rose as much as their injuries allowed. Koda’s spine split at the center. He dragged his body along by his front paws. One of the Geminis swayed with his head twisted backward; the other pushed across the floor with one back leg. Slowly and painfully they returned to the far wall. Tears streamed down my face. Aric’s movements stalled to a deadly quiet. We locked eyes—a moment to bond, to give each other strength. But of course Anara took it away.

“Did Aric tell you how many females he’s taken in your absence?”

I knew what he was doing and let my glare answer for me. His head angled toward Aric. “Should I show her?”

“I swear you’ll suffer before you die,” Aric promised through clenched teeth.

My vision swirled. I blinked to clear it and found myself in a dark bedroom where the aroma of sex condensed in sweltering tides. Sprawled on the bed on all fours was Diane, whimpering with pleasure and saturated with sweat. Behind her was Aric, thrusting himself deeper into her. He moaned her name, making her scream for more of him.

He obliged her.

Anara’s strikes had weakened me. But this image brought me to my knees. I collapsed, sobbing.
“No.”

Thick angry fingers dug into my hair, forcing my attention to the bed. This time Barbara, Aric’s former fiancée, lay on her back with her legs draped over Aric’s shoulders, eagerly receiving his pleasure. I couldn’t contain my distress and cried into my hands, weeping so hysterically I feared I’d pass out.

A gentle voice filled my head. “It’s not true, sweetness,” Aric whispered. I lifted my head. His transparent image stared at me with tender eyes. A ghostly hand stroked my cheek. “It’s not true,” he said again. “I love only you. I want only you, forever.”

“Forever,” I repeated. Aric’s soft lips brushed against mine…then he was gone.

My gaze returned to the bed. This time it was Anara with Barbara and Diane, his face devoid of pleasure. Only rage loomed. Something exploded in my brain. I screamed as more fluid leaked from my ears. I hadn’t quite recovered from the stabbing pain when Anara seized me by the throat with his bare hands. He slammed my head repeatedly into the wall, yelling obscenities and insults.

Aric went mad. Glass screeched and a solid mass collided against the building. Anara dropped me, veering away as I slumped onto my side, coughing blood and struggling to breathe. I didn’t know what had happened until I forced my head up and saw angels standing before me.

“Get away from our sister, you son of a bitch!”

Chapter Thirty-two

My family charged, dirty and covered with blood, with Tye and Bren in beast form leading the way. Danny stumbled in through a broken window behind them, determined yet shaking with fear.

Taran blasted Anara with a barrage of lightning as Shayna launched a dagger into his throat and out through his neck. Emme bolted to me, her blond hair swirling behind her. Anara’s wolves
changed
and attacked. She threw out her thin bare arms, sending six flying through the wall of windows with her
force
. Tye and Bren lunged at the others, ruthlessly forcing them back.

I slapped my hands against the floor and pushed up, trying to stand. My head spun. I only made it to my knees before I collapsed. My body had given up but my mind stubbornly refused to surrender. I rose, careening toward Aric. A large brown wolf tackled me after only a few steps. His front claws dug into my shoulders down to the bone, making me scream.

Bren snapped the wolf’s neck before he could kill me. He
changed
and lifted me in his arms, carrying me to where Danny tried uselessly to pry Aric from the wall. Aric shrugged him off. “Leave me. Get Celia out of here!”

The entire room caved in around us. Glass rained from the speed with which Emme tossed Anara’s brethren through the demolished wall of windows. They leapt back in, snarling, hungry, and feverishly seeking blood.

Chunks of ceiling fell like boulders from the strength behind Taran’s lightning bolts. She, along with Tye and Shayna, fought their way through Anara’s guards. Shayna spiraled in a windstorm of moving swords, slicing her way through the thickening army of raging
weres
. Taran closed in, compelling the giant beasts back with her fire. She’d almost reached Anara, but she couldn’t stop him alone.

“We can’t leave them,” I told Danny feebly when he pulled me into his arms.

“I have to keep you safe!” he yelled.

As I looked toward the pack of snarling wolves bounding to us, I thought he was attempting the impossible. Emme didn’t. She cut through the mob, parting them like waves along the Red Sea. “Run, Danny. You have to save Celia!” She cleared a path across the vast ballroom to a section of windows leading out to the garden.

Danny jetted forward, vaulting us into the cold night. He landed on his knees just as Taran screamed and the sound of flesh tearing from bone rippled behind us. Danny shielded me as the remaining windows shattered in a wash of blue and white flame. My heart sunk into the pit of my stomach.
“Taran!”

Danny raced across the sprawling lawn, cutting between buildings until he reached our Tribeca. Deep claw marks were cleaved into the side of the SUV and blood was streaked over the hood and splintered windows. He reached for the handle only to jerk back to avoid the snapping jaws of a huge red wolf.

The wolf shoved his way in front of us. My hammer fist met his snout. I brought him to the ground. He shook off the pain and stalked forward followed by three more wolves. A fourth in human form jerked me from Danny’s arms and punched me hard in the skull.

Spots fluttered in my vision. I forced myself up on my hands. More wolves arrived, these in human form. I recognized them as the morons who’d mocked and picked on Danny. They encircled him, shoving him between them and taunting him like bullies on a playground. He tried to break through the ring, reaching for me.

The red wolf I’d hit dug his fangs into my scalp and snatched me back. I could barely see straight. My head throbbed from the multiple blows. My limbs flopped against the ground, leaving a trail in the wet grass while he hauled me away by my tresses. He dragged me along, stopping suddenly near a row of firs. I angled my chin enough to see why. A beautiful snow-white wolf bared her teeth with unforgiving ire. Heidi, the last of Aric’s Warriors, had come to my rescue.