A Love For Lera (Haikon) (9 page)

“I’m here, Cormac,” a female announced from out
in the main part of the suite.

Lera stumbled with the speed which Kori released
her, his entire visage softening. Without even a look at her or a word, he
slipped out of the room. She could hear their voices blending together, his
masculine and amazing, hers feminine and lilting.

A lance of pain pierced her chest, and she hated
the hurt and jealousy she experienced. She had no say over him, no claim. One
day, his mate would come and she would have to deal with it anyway. Why hope on
something that wasn’t in her future? Still, it would be nice to have him think of
her in… She shook her head, refusing to go there. It wouldn’t solve anything.
Figures.
Lera took a deep breath and refortified her walls. She sat on the bed and
pulled on her boots. With a quick maneuver, she dropped to her knees beside the
bed and lowered her head.

Please let me be in time to have saved Rissa
from things he may do.
Pushing to her feet, Lera grabbed her jacket and
slid it on, feeling the last bit of her armor chinking into place as she zipped
it up. Staring at her reflection, Lera hesitated before leaving, a few steps
put her beside Kori’s bag, returning something to it. It didn’t take long until
she had her leather bag over one shoulder and stepped out into the main room of
the suite.

Her gaze immediately found the “friend” Kori had
mentioned. She was beautiful. Tall, willowy, and a body Lera would kill to
have. Curves in all the right places and then some. Thick black hair fell
forward around her shoulders, giving her a wonderfully tousled appearance.
Despite screaming “sexy”, she looked like a woman who could defend herself with
ease. Green eyes stared at Lera from behind doubly black lashes. Lera hated her
with a violent passion.

“You must be Valera.”

Lera lifted her chin and nodded, determined not
to sneer at the close proximity the other woman had to Kori. Or the Irish
accent which rolled off her tongue. “I am.”

The woman slid an arm around Kori’s waist and
murmured to him in Irish. Then, she put her green eyes back upon Lera and said
with her thick brogue, “I’m Cairenn.”

“Thank you for helping.” Forcing herself to
remain emotionless, Lera headed for the door. She opened it and said without
looking back. “Ten minutes in the lobby.” Then, she slipped through. She pushed
the button for the elevator and, when the doors opened, reached in to push the
“L”. Then, she slipped through the stairwell door and headed up to the roof.

Sitting down along a HVAC unit, Lera pulled out
her phone and took a deep breath. Licking her lips, she pressed the call button
and held it up to her ear, waiting for it to be answered.

Kori stood in the shadows and eavesdropped on
Lera as she spoke to her father. He’d immediately followed her from the room.
And would have gone down after the elevator had he not been linked to her
mentally. So instead, he went up, a smile on his face at the jealousy he felt
from her.

When he’d slipped out onto the roof, he easily
picked up her voice. Moving silently closer, he listened as she talked to her
father. Correction, she lied to him.

“I’m fine, Daddy. I saw Kim this morning and am
just about to go see Rissa. I miss you and everyone. I’m sure I’m fine. I ran
into Kori, too,,  so he may say he saw me. He met Kim. How is he doing? Kori?”
Lera shrugged. “Fine, I guess. He doesn’t share his feelings with me,.” She
looked at her wrist. “I have to go now, Daddy. I love you. Bye.”

Kori could see her shuddering and took a step
toward her, wanting to offer comfort. Then, he noticed she was crying and
stopped. Each tear he could feel deep in his heart but he knew Lera wouldn’t
want to be seen crying. Forcing back his need to hold her, Kori slipped back
inside and made his way down to the lobby.

Exactly on time, Lera walked out of the elevator,
and as she headed across the lobby floor, he noticed two of Murdock’s men
running a path which would allow them to intersect with her. Kori composed his
emotions and pushed effortlessly away from the pillar he’d been leaning on and
fell into step with Lera.

‘You okay, Lera?’

‘Fine.’

Kori cut his gaze to her at the sharpness of her
single word. There was this mask of acknowledgment upon her face, an eerie
serenity of what was about to happen. No fear, just acceptance. A flicker of a
feeling whispered along his skin, and immediately, his wolf rose to battle
ready.

‘Lera?’

‘Surely your woman can handle whatever that
was. After all, you
did
train her.’

“Hello, JJ,” Lera said without slowing.

Kori stared at the man before them; he walked
backward keeping pace with Lera’s strides. Handsome enough but Kori didn’t
care. This man had no lustful thoughts toward Lera. He did wonder, though, how
she felt whatever the fleeting feeling was. It had been faint, even for him
with his power.

“Murdock is in the conference room.”

“Let’s go.”

She adjusted course, and at the door, Kori subtly
looked around and spotted four men who were doing their best to appear
inconspicuous.
‘Cairenn, four men in the lobby. We’re going to the
conference room. Be wary; something else is here that’s not human.’

‘Maybe you should stay with her friend. Let me
tail Lera.’

‘No!’

Cairenn’s sultry laughter filled his head.
‘Just
a thought, Cormac. I will make sure those four can’t follow when you leave with
her friend.’

Kori walked into the conference room two steps
behind Lera. Immediately, his gaze found Murdock, and he fought down the wolf.

“Lera,” Murdock said, pushing away from the table
he leaned against and strolling toward them. “I’m so glad you decided to come.”

The man could have been talking about the weather
for all the emotion in his tone.

“Cut the crap, Murdock. Where is she?” Lera demanded.

Murdock’s gaze moved over Kori. “That your
friend?”

“Yes. Where’s Rissa?” Lera never afforded Kori a
glance, just kept her gaze on Murdock.

The urge to rip Murdock’s heart out where he
stood roared over Kori like a freight train. He kept his beast in check but it
wasn’t easy. Murdock gestured with two fingers, and a side door opened. A man
built like a linebacker walked in, his beefy hand clamped around the arm of a
woman Kori knew was Rissa. Not from the picture but from the fact he knew
that’s who they were doing this for. The woman looked nothing like the happy,
chipper woman he’d seen in the photo.

This woman looked petrified and broken. More rage
welled up inside him.

Lera broke away and headed to her friend. With a
glare, she pushed the large man away and enfolded Rissa into her embrace. Kori
listened with half an ear as Lera murmured to her friend, opting to keep all
senses on the five men in the room with them.

“Let’s go, Lera,” Murdock said. “Our future
awaits.”

Your future is death.

Lera didn’t argue. Instead, she walked Rissa over
to him and met his gaze. “Rissa, this is Kori. He’s going to take you somewhere
safe.”

Haunted brown eyes looked up at him before Rissa
nodded. Lera kissed her friend on the cheek and walked away without a word or a
glance back.

Kori could feel Lera’s revulsion when Murdock
touched and guided her to the other end of the room.
‘Stay strong,
mo
ghrá.
I’ll be there soon.’

‘Keep her safe, Kori. That’s all I need you to
do.’

‘I need
you
safe, Lera. I’ll be right
behind you.’

He couldn’t explain the pain which hit him when
there was no response from her. They vanished from his sight, and he dropped
his gaze and found Rissa staring off after Lera.

“They’re not going to let you leave this room,”
she muttered as another door opened and more men entered to circle around the
room.

‘Cairenn, change of plans. Meet me in the
conference room.’
“I’m afraid I’ll have to disappoint them. I gave Lera my
word I would keep you safe and that I would be right after her to keep her
safe.”

“There are more than ten men.” Rissa’s flat and
despondent voice was that of someone who’d accepted her fate.

“Have you met Lera’s father?”

“Yes.”

That single word said it all. She knew Dane was a
shifter. And she felt if he was here, there wouldn’t be a problem.

“He trained me. And I trained her,” Kori said,
pointing to the woman who just walked through the door and got stopped by two
men. “Listen to me, Rissa.” It took a moment but her gaze found his. “That is
Cairenn. You stay with her, listen to what she says and she
will
get you
home safe.”

“And you’ll go for Lera?”

“I’m going for Lera.”

She licked her lips and touched his arm, ignoring
the men who were moving closer. “He’s not going to his house. I heard him; he
said something about a man named Butch.”

Butch Caine. I bet he’s going back to
Winthrop.
Power ripped along Kori’s skin, and he lifted his head to glare
at the closest man. A loud crash filled the room, and Kori almost smiled when
two large men were tossed across the room.

Cairenn seemed to materialize by his side. “I got
this,” she said. “You go.”

“Keep her safe,” he uttered.

“As if she were family.”

Kori snarled and jumped at the nearest man,
heaving him into another before slipping out the door. His wolf howled in rage
and stopped him dead in his tracks. Whirling around, Kori launched himself back
through the door, shifting as he did. The humans were dead, but there were five
ater malum—
evil and mindless drone creatures often used to do the dirty
work of his enemies
—
and one
elgyrd
, an elite guardian of the
ater
malum,
left. Cairenn fought the
ater malum
but the
elgyrd
headed for Rissa. Kori intercepted it.

He hit the creature with enough force to bear it
to the ground. Sliding off, Kori scrambled across the floor and immediately
jumped back at him. They fought for a while until Lera’s face flashed before
his mind’s eye. Barely thinking about his actions, he tore out the elgyrd’s
throat. In a mere second, he shifted back to human and clothed himself before
moving to where Rissa cowered in a corner.

“Are you okay?” he asked, crouching down by her.

“Save her.”

“I will.”

“No.” Rissa shook her head, her hair flying
around her face, face pale beneath her dark skin. “You don’t understand. She
swore she would die before someone else took her without her consent.”

“Someone else?” Kori felt the wolf push through,
and Rissa shrank back even farther. “Cairenn,” he rumbled. “See to her.”

He hit the door at a run.
‘Lera!’
No
response. Not a flicker of anything. Kori became a blur as he ran for his
vehicle.
‘Lera! Damn you; answer me!’
There was nothing.

Jumping in his Humvee, he barely registered that
he saw his bag on the seat. He started the powerful engine and tore out of town
without looking back. When he reached an area where there was no one else, he
pulled over. Dropping his head, he closed his eyes and reached out to Lera as
he had in the past. As her angel.

‘Can you hear me, little one? Little one? If
you can hear me, let me know.’

There was nothing. He snarled, feeling his
canines lengthen. Kori moved from where he lurked in her mind and frowned over
the darkness that met him. Wherever she was, she wasn’t conscious and that…that
made him furious.

The light streaming in through the windshield
flashed on something in his bag. Reaching over, he slipped his hand in the top
and withdrew the necklace he’d given Lera twelve years ago. The Ogham letter
“C,” or
coll
, from the hazel tree, in jet upon a silver oval. He shook
from the rage which swamped him.
Why did she remove it?

Gunning the motor, he tore off down the road then
vanished, utilizing his power to travel through gates and appear elsewhere.
When he was visible again, he was close to Winthrop. The powerful vehicle
squealed to a stop at the crossroads where Lera had gone off to inspect the
quarry. Heading that way, he pulled the Humvee off the road and hid it. Then,
where one second he had stood now was a large wolf.

With the forest as protection, he took off
through the woods in the ground-eating lope his kind was known for. The two
dogs at Butch Caine’s residence were swiftly silenced by fear and ran away like
cowards. When he was sure Lera was not on the premises, he followed the scent
of Butch’s bike, although he had a hunch where it would be leading him to.

The quarry.

Coming out from the tree line overlooking the
quarry, Kori stared down over the expansive area. It was huge. And offered no
cover from this point. There was a building across the open area. He had to
wait until darkness drew nearer. Lying down to where he could see the main
road, Kori rested his head on his paws and sighed.

‘Lera? Can you hear me,
mo ghrá
?’
Again, there was no response. He snapped his powerful jaws together.
I swear
to you, Lera. When I get you back, you will know you are mine. And I will
never
let you go.

He lay in wait, the animals around giving him a
wide berth, but he paid them no mind. His body became immediately alert when he
felt Lera’s mind stir. For a brief second, there was fear then it was locked
away. Pushing to his feet, Kori stuck to the shadows as much as he could but
began to prowl closer.

Chapter Seven

Lera stirred. Her mouth was extremely cottony, and
she swallowed a few times to try and get some moisture in it. Faint voices
streamed by but she couldn’t make any of it out. Shifting, she frowned when it
became evident she was restrained. It was a struggle but she opened her eyes.

She lay on a bed, on her back, spread eagle.
At
least I’m still clothed.
Turning her head to the side, she saw Murdock
staring at her from where he sat in a chair, one leg draped over the other and
his hands clasped under his chin.

“Hello, luv,” he said, his blue eyes burning with
fervor.

“Murdock.” Lera tugged on her wrists. “Why am I
tied?”

“We thought it best, Lera. But if you answer me,
I’ll untie you.”

We? Who the hell is we?
“Okay. What’s your
question?”

“Who was that man you brought to get your friend?
What is he to you?”

“He’s a guy I’ve known for most of my life. And
other than that, he’s not anything to me.” A rumble of anger filled her head,
and Lera knew Kori was near. Although to be honest, she had no clue how close
he had to be to be in her mind. Shaking her wrist, she said, “Come on; I
answered your question.”

Murdock didn’t move from his seat. He gestured
with a hand, and from the shadows stepped JJ. He withdrew a knife and slit the
material from both hands then her legs. Just like that, he vanished again.

Moving slowly, Lera sat up. “What did you give
me?”

“Something to make you sleep. Didn’t want you to
give anything away.”

She rubbed her hand over the back of her neck.
“Give what away?” Looking around, she noted where the door was and saw a grimy
dirty window across the room, offering the little light allowed.

“Where we were going.”

“Right. And where are we?”

With a smooth push, Murdock got to his feet and
moved toward her. Lera sat there and watched him, determined not to show any
fear.

‘I’m close,
mo ghrá
.’

She would never admit how much relief coursed
through her at the sound of his voice. Nor did she respond. The man before her
needed to be given full concentration. “What, Murdock? You wanted me? I’m
here.”

“Yes.” He leaned down and ran a hand down her
face. “After all this time, you’re here. I know you’re scared because you’ve
heard of my…umm…interesting tastes. But there’s no need for you to worry.”

“Let’s cut the crap, Murdock. We both know I’d do
anything for Rissa. That’s why you took her. Just like we both know I’m not
staying here with you.”

He lifted one brow. “And where do you think
you’re going?”

“Home.”

Anger flashed in his eyes, and he reached for
her, his hand closing about her neck. “See…it’s comments like that which make
me very angry.”

“What are you going to do, kill me? It doesn’t
matter.”

“So brave,” he said, squeezing tighter. “So
stupid, but so brave.”

“If you kill her, Murdock. I’ll be very displeased.
Take your hand from her neck and treat her like you would treat anyone who was
mine.”

Lera fell back and struggled against gasping for
breath. Her eyes moved to the speaker of the new voice. Fear rose up within her
unlike anything she’d experienced in years. Bile rushed up, and she couldn’t
stop the shudder from pouring over her. Out of anything she expected, being
faced by this person hadn’t been an option.

‘Lera?’
Kori’s concerned tone floated
through her mind.

‘Will you do something for me, Kori?’

‘Anything.’

‘Tell my daddy I’m sorry. I would have said
goodbye if I had the ability to do so.’

‘What are you talking about? Nothing is going
to happen to you. I won’t let anything happen to you.’

‘I’ll die before he touches me again. Just
tell them I love them, and they were the best family I ever could have hoped
for. And to you, Cormac MacLochlainne, thank you for protecting my friend. I
hope you find happiness.’

Closing down her mind the best she could, Lera
stood and faced the man who had supposed to have protected her. Her foster
father, Richard Jones. Forcing her fear back where it belonged under lock and
key, Lera lifted her chin and faced him head on.

“You,” she seethed. Her fingers flexed, and she
bit back a whimper when her weapon didn’t appear.
I’m helpless.
Fear
barreled down upon her.

“You seem surprised to see me.”

He stepped closer, and she narrowed her eyes. It
wasn’t her old foster father. It was his twin, Raymond. And that made her feel
even worse. The man was lower than a snake’s belly and with none of its charm.

“You? You’re behind this?”

“Fifteen years, Isolde. Fifteen years I have
waited for you. Murdock may want you but he wants his lifestyle more. When I
saw your photo from one of the spring breaks with him, I knew it was only a matter
of time before you were back where you belonged.”

In the recess of her mind, she could feel the
arrival of her angel, in wolf form. Just as he always came when she was scared
or hurting. This time, though, she wanted something else. Well, not something.
Someone. Cormac “Kori” MacLochlainne, to be exact.

“I’ve never belonged to you. And my name is
Valera.”

“Yes, you have. Even my stupid brother knew you
were mine. Didn’t stop him from touching you, but still. When he died and you
vanished, I knew it was a sign that I was supposed to find you later. You’ll
always be Isolde to me.”

She hadn’t known her foster father had died. Dane
never said anything further about him. Just that she was now his daughter and
safe.

Daddy!

In that instant, Lera wished she’d told him the
truth. Murdock she was confident she could handle but Raymond Jones, not at
all. It was a miracle she hadn’t collapsed boneless to the floor already. She
had no idea he would even be there. Hell, she hadn’t even thought about him.
She’d done her very best to bury that part of her life. Now, her lack of
preparation would cost her everything. Including her own life.

The howl of a wolf pierced the walls, echoing off
the quarry rock, and everyone froze. It was the cry of one who sought. There
was anger in the call and determination.

Lera kept her gaze upon one of the men who’d made
the beginning part of her childhood unbearable. “You’re going to die,” she
said.

“How so?”

“That wolf. He’s coming for you.”

Another howl. Louder. Deadlier.

“Go take care of the creature,” Raymond issued
the order. Even so, he couldn’t hide the leeching of blood from his face.

Murdock and JJ left, and she swallowed, forcing
steel into her spine. “They don’t stand a chance against him. And, when he’s
done with them, he’ll come for you.”

“This is a big quarry, Isolde. He may get here.
He may not. One thing is for certain. I will have you.”

“I’ll die first.”

“No, I wouldn’t get to enjoy you if you were
dead. But I’m more than happy to fight. I have no problem with that.”

Despite all her years of learning to fight and
defend herself, Lera found she couldn’t move. She knew she should run, prepare
to protect herself, but she was frozen. With a mere flash in time, she had
reverted back to the scared little girl she had been. Raymond knew it, too, for
his grin turned sadistic. He walked toward her, unbuttoning his flannel shirt
and pulling it from his pants. With each step, Lera’s heart pounded harder and
her throat closed up.

Another eerie howl shattered the air and snapped
her out of the fear cementing her feet to the floor. Lera bolted. She ran for
the door and stretched out for it. It seemed time slowed the final millisecond
between captivity, depravity, and her last ditch effort at freedom. She never
made it to the door. A large hand closed around her upper arm and halted her.

Raymond spun her back, his face filled with
deranged perversion. “Oh no, Isolde. We’ve not had our fun yet.” His fingers
dug into her flesh while his other hand reached for the top of her breasts and
the material of her tank top.

The little girl within her cowered in
near-paralyzing fear like she had in the past. Lera closed her eyes and forced
her frozen body into motion. He wasn’t expecting her reaction; for when she
jerked once, she was free. The next second, her leg snapped out, and a cry of
pain exploded from his mouth as he dropped to his knees, grabbing himself.

“You bitch!”

Lera spun and lunged back to the door. Her hand
closed around the handle and pulled it open. He yanked on her ankle, and she
fell forward, her head hitting the edge of the door. Pain exploded up through
her but she didn’t care. Stopping her fall about an inch from the floor with
her hands, Lera immediately kicked out with her other foot. There may not have
been boots on her feet but he released her anyway.

She scrambled up. only to be tackled back down.
Raymond rolled her unmercilessly to her back, cracking her head against the
door. Fear seeped through every pore in her body. Lera struggled, striking out
with her hands, going for his eyes, nose, and throat.

He backhanded her across the face and grabbed her
hands together in one of his. With his other, he trailed a finger down her
sternum and between her breasts. Revulsion filled her. Lera blinked away blood
which trickled into her left eye from where the door busted her head.

“You always were such a naughty girl, Isolde.
That’s why you always had to go to the room.” More chills racked her. “You
remember the room, don’t you? And the lashes.”

Memories roared down upon her and bile rose again.
She could never forget. The cold. The hunger. The pain. The scars.

“You’d better not let your guard down for one
second, Raymond, because I will kill you.”

Raymond sneered. Reaching behind him, he pulled
something from his pocket, and in a few seconds, she knew what it was. A
butterfly knife. He ran it down her forehead, over the bridge of her nose and
across her chin before moving it down between her breasts.

“Is that supposed to scare me?” she hissed.

“Don’t make me hurt you, Isolde.”

“Lera!” she yelled. “My name is Lera!”

With everything within her, Lera shoved up and
against him. As he rolled to one side, she pushed up more. The blade swiped
diagonally across her torso, drawing blood. On her feet, this time, she didn’t
head for the door. She ran toward the chair in the room and picked it up by the
back.

She chucked it at Raymond who threw up an arm to
block it. The heavy chair knocked him back a step or two, and she bolted for
the door, calling on every ounce of speed she had within her legs, despite
being petrified and still woozy from whatever drug she’d been given.

Again, she came so close. Raymond’s hand wrapped
around her hair and jerked her nearly off her feet. “Enough foreplay,” he bit
off.

When he pulled her close, Lera spit in his face and
raked her nails down it. “Fuck you!”

This time, when he connected with her, she saw
stars. She hit him back and felt the sting of the blade along her arm. Lera
grabbed for the knife and wrestled with him for it. Somehow, she got it turned
enough to sink into his flesh. His cry filled the room as he hit her again. And
again. And again.

Dazed, Lera stumbled away from him and headed to
the light across the room. Raymond knocked her down and flipped her over. His
face a mask of rage, and she knew he wanted to kill her.

“I know you want me to kill you,
Isolde
,
but I will have you one more time. Then, maybe I’ll kill you.”

Chest heaving with each difficult breath she
ingested, Lera glared back at him and spit in his face one more time. “Go fuck
yourself.” Blood and saliva mingled and ran down his pale skin.

“Nope. You.” He sat along her waist, pinning her
beneath him and reached for the hem of her shirt.

Crash.

Lera watched in shock and awe as Raymond was
shoved off of her, a huge wolf powering his body to the floor. All that came
from Raymond was a garbled scream then there was nothing.

Could this be my angel?

She sat up slowly and stared as the wolf,
standing over the dead body of her would-be rapist, looked at her. Before her
stood a beautiful silver-gray wolf with a mask of the deepest charcoal. Dark
golden amber eyes burned with rage as they held her gaze. Blood along his jaw
didn’t detract from his majestic appearance.

No, her angel had dark eyes when he came to
her in wolf form. Didn’t he? Yes. He was a black wolf, not this one.
That
left one option.

He sniffed the air and padded toward her. Two
steps from her and he shifted. And just like that, Lera was face to face with
Kori. His eyes were the familiar gray, and they stared at her a mixture of
anger, fear, and concern.

“
Mo ghrá,
I’m so sorry.” She didn’t refuse
when he gathered her close. “I’m sorry I wasn’t here sooner.
Anáil de mo
anam
.”

Lera stiffened briefly then curled into him.
“Take me to Rissa, Kori,” she said before the tears began to flow.

He swept her up and stood. She knew she soaked
his shirt but he made no mention of it. Lera watched him kick the door out of
his way, and it ripped off the hinges with the force he delivered to it. She
remained against him while he moved up and out of the quarry. They passed the
dead bodies of both Murdock and JJ. She also saw Butch lying in a pool of
blood. None of it bothered her. All of them had their throats ripped out. A
savage way to die but she could think of no more fitting punishment for all of
them.

Kori opened the door to his Humvee, and when he
went to set her on the seat, she gripped him tighter. Her mind had been so
focused on getting to her friend, who was safe now, that she didn’t know how
much time passed as Kori walked through the woods to his vehicle.