Blood Hunger (An Adult Paranormal Romance) (Deathless Night Series #1) (30 page)

   
 
“When did this happen??” Duncan asked.

     “Seven years ago,” Nik admitted.

     “Seven
years
?” Cedric breathed. “How did we no’ ken aboot this?” He didn’t give Nik a chance to answer as another thought came to him. “Ye’r sure he's alive? How has she managed ta hold him all this time?
”
  

   
 
Nik fidgeted, pulling the tie off of his hair and running his hands over his blond head. Re-tying the thong back around his ponytail, he didn’t see any way to avoid disclosing Emma’s sister’s involvement. “We think she has a witch helping her.”

   
 
The werewolves all immediately retreated a few feet away, superstitiously making the sign of the cross. Witches creeped them out, and as a rule, they stayed far, far away from them.

     Nik waited for them to wrap their minds around that before laying the rest of it on them. “The witch, we think, is Emma’s sister, who went missing around the same time as Luukas.”

   
 
Three handsome heads whipped around to look at her with new eyes. They knew how witches worked. If one female in the family was a witch, they all were.

     Cedric cocked his head to the side and stared at her like he’d never seen her before.

     Duncan was brave enough to actually speak to her. “Ye’re a witch, lass?”

   
 
Lucian snarled at her, and speaking low out of the side of his mouth, told Cedric, “I told ye we coudna’ trust them. They've taken up wi' a witch.”

   
 
Nik speared Lucian with an exasperated look. “You
can
trust us. And that includes Emma. She hasn’t hurt you yet, has she?” He squeezed Emma’s arm lightly, hoping she’d take the hint and play along. And Aiden, for once, kept his mouth shut.

     It wouldn’t hurt them to think she was much more powerful than she was.

     The Scots eyeballed her warily, restlessly shifting their weight from side to side, not sure which way to go with this information.

     She gave them a harmless looking smile, and Nik squeezed her hand. They needed all the help they could get.

     Aiden looked between Emma and the wolves, thoroughly amused. “Really? The big, bad wolves are afraid of
you
, poppet?” He laughed out loud. “She couldn’t even reach you to box your ears!”

   
 
Rolling his eyes, Nik supposed Aiden staying quiet for any amount of time was too good to be true.

     Cedric puffed out his massive chest. “I’m no’ scared o’ a wee lassie.” The other two followed his lead, if not quite as enthusiastically.

     With a deep breath and a last leery glance at Emma, the werewolf leader got his head back in the game. Looking over the disintegrating bodies on the ground, he declared, “Well, th’…uh…
guards
are taken care o'. What do ye say we just waltz on in there 'n' find our kin?”

   
 
Nik and Aiden shared a grin. They’d been looking forward to this fight for a long time, although maybe for different reasons.

     Emma had stayed quiet throughout most of this conversation, but spoke up to ask, “You’re not serious. We’re not just going to walk right in there, are we?”

   
 
“There is no ‘we’ when it comes to you,” Nik informed her. “
You
, will be staying far, far out of the way.”

   
 
Emma raised her eyebrows at his controlling tone, but he gave her a warning look. Now was not the time to challenge him.

     Lucian motioned to his leader, and turning his back to the vampires, gritted out between clenched teeth, “How da we ken we can trust these two? They’re fuckin’ vamps. 'N' they've taken up wi' a witch! They don’t care aboot our brother. How da ye ken they won’t just use us ta get in, 'n' then leave us ta fight that bitch, while they escape?
”

   
 
“Nikulas 'n' Aiden are my
friends
, Lucian. I trust them wi' my life. Now haud yer wheesht! No
’
another word aboot it.”

   
 
Lucian clenched his jaw, his lips pressed into a thin line with the effort to keep his mouth shut. In a deliberate move, he turned his back on his pack leader.

     Cedric didn’t even pause before he grabbed him by the shoulder and spun him back around to face him. “If ye dinna like it, Lucian, ye’r welcome te find a fresh pack. Unless ye think ye kin lead this one better than I kin?”

   
 
Shockwaves rippled through the males, vampire and wolf alike, as the gauntlet was thrown down. The tension suddenly so thick the air practically crackled with it.

     Nik surreptitiously took Emma by the hand and carefully pulled her behind him, as everyone backed away from the pair.

     For a few insanely tense seconds, it seemed there was going to be a fight for dominance. Lucian’s face turned as red as his hair, his anger at being called out in mixed company plain for all to see.

     He must’ve decided it wasn’t worth his life, for he took a deep breath and dropped his gaze submissively. Grinding his teeth, he lowered himself down onto one knee in front of his pack leader.

     Cedric visibly relaxed, laying a hand on Lucian’s shoulder and giving it a quick squeeze. “A'right then?”

   
 
Lucian gave a terse nod. “Aye.”

   
 
And just like that, the tension dispersed as quickly as it had appeared.

     Emma blinked, her heart resuming its normal rhythm as Lucian rose to his feet and everyone relaxed. She wondered how anyone could spend any significant amount of time with werewolves.

     Nik wasn’t kidding when he said they “run kind of hot”. Their emotions were so up and down, she was mentally exhausted from spending just a few hours with them.

     Aiden clapped his hands together loudly, “Alright then! Let’s go see my girl!”

   
 
Cedric gave Nik a questioning look, but Nik just shook his head. “You really don’t want to know.”

   
 
He must’ve decided to take Nik’s word for it. With a sideways look at Aiden, he motioned for everyone to huddle in, sticking Emma in the middle of the towering males.

     Within minutes, they had their plan of attack.

    
“Alright.” Nik squatted down on his haunches, and drew a rough map in the dirt by the creek with a stick he’d snagged out of the water. The rest of the group hovered around him in a circle, bent over with their hands on their knees so they were able to see. Craning her neck, Emma tried not to fall on him as she peered over his shoulder.

     “So, the main access to the hideout is still about a mile downstream. The creek flows directly into it, but we’re not going to go in that way. She’s sure to have more guards stationed there.” He pointed with the stick to an area around the right side. “There’s another entrance here. It should be less guarded. Aiden and I will go in first. We’ll take out whoever’s there and make our way inside.”

   
 
Standing up, he pulled Emma around in front of him, casually wrapping his arms around her shoulders from behind as she studied his drawing.

     Her skin felt hot and sensitive where he touched her, even through her clothes. She stared at his rough drawing, not quite believing that she’d be with her sister again before the night was out.

***

     Nik kept her within the circle of his arms, her anxiousness to go rippling through him, and he felt his own adrenaline rising in response.

     He tamped it down with effort. He needed to stay calm and focused.

     “When da ye want us ta join ye?” Cedric’s face clearly showed what he thought about missing out on any of the fighting.

     Duncan had a similar sour expression. “Or are we just 'ere ta look bonnie?”

   
 
Nikulas understood how they felt. Still holding Emma with one arm, he gave Cedric a punch on the arm. “Don’t worry, old friend, there’ll be plenty of action for you three.”

   
 
Hugging Emma to him again, he kissed her on the head before letting her go as he continued with the details of his plan. “Once we get in, we’ll get ourselves ‘captured’…”

   
 
“That
was
a brilliant idea you had with Emma,” Aiden told Cedric.

     Nik grudgingly agreed. “I hate to admit it, but it was. We’ll try the same trick on the inside. We’ll get ourselves ‘captured’, check out the layout; get a count of who’s there. You four will wait out here, and when the opportunity presents itself…”

   
 
“Wait. Hold up a minute.” Emma held up her hand. “You said four. You expect me to wait outside with these do…wolves?” She corrected herself. “No. I want to be inside with you. I want to help. And I need to see Keira for myself.”

   
 
Nik crossed his arms and shook his head, not willing to give in on this one. “No. Absolutely not, Emma. Unlike some others standing here…”

   
 
Cedric eyebrows rose, his face the picture of innocence. “Whaa?”

   
 
“…I’m not willing to risk your safety,” he finished.

     “
No-o
?” she repeated.

     “Yeah, NO. I’m won’t risk you. You’ll stay out here until it’s safe for you to come in. I’ll find Keira personally, and make sure she’s not harmed.”

   
 
Mimicking his defensive body language, Emma wasn’t about to back down. “Oh really? And who’s going to protect me when the wolves run off, hmm? I’ll be out here all alone. What if there are more of those,” She pointed over where the last remaining pieces of the victims of Nik’s temper were flaking away. “And they find me?”

   
 
She was playing dirty, and he knew it, but there was no way in hell he was bringing her.

     Nik frowned at her, a warning in his blue eyes. “Once Cedric and the guys get in there, it’ll be over quickly. You will stay outside, hidden, where it’s safe. This is not up for discussion.”

   
 
She agreed. “You’re right. This is not up for discussion. Because I’m coming with you.”

   
 
“Let her come, Nikky boy.” Aiden told him. “It’s alright. There won’t be any fighting. She’s expecting me.”

   
 
Nik was confused. “She’s expecting you? Who’s expecting you?”

   
 
“Leeha,” Aiden told him.
Duh.

    
Once again, Nik was struck speechless by the words coming out of his friend’s mouth. “Leeha.
Leeha
...the bitch from hell, is
expecting
you.”

   
 
“Yes.
That’s what I’m telling you.”

   
 
Nik glanced around at the others, letting his eyes rest on Emma for a moment, before asking, “And why, exactly, would she be expecting you, Aid?”

   
 
Hands on his narrow hips, Aiden rolled his grey eyes heavenward. He spoke slowly, enunciating each word carefully. “Because. She rang me. And invited me over.”

   
 
Nik stared at Aiden blankly for a long moment. Opened his mouth, and then closed it again. Opened it again, and then shook his head. He had nothing.

     Duncan exchanged knowing grins with Aiden. “Aye. So ye've been keeping in touch wi' th' lassie.” He gave a shrug of one brawny shoulder. “Canna say that I blame ye. Bonnie as she is.
”

   
 
“Wait a minute. Hold everything.” A thought had just come to Nik. A thought that didn’t bode well for his buddy.

     “You mean to tell me that you’ve been keeping in touch with the bitch who’s been doing God knows what to my brother all this time? And you never told me?” He barely managed to get the words out between his gritted teeth.

    
Please, tell me Aiden is not so stupid as to let Luukas suffer all this time for nothing.

     The smile slipping slowly from his face, Aiden held his hands up, palms out, in front of him. “Nikulas…mate…she didn’t ring me all that often. And she never, ever, gave me any idea where she was. I tried to get it out of her, I did! I’m not a complete arse. But she never slipped. Not once.” With an admiring tone, he admitted, “She’s quite a crafty little twit, that one is.”

   
 
Sometimes Nik wondered if he really knew Aiden at all. “She’s had your number, your secret cell number that you’re not supposed to give to anyone, all this time.”

   
 
“Yes, and no.
”
Aiden hedged. “She has a cell number, but only to my prepaid phone, not my super secret one. That’s how I knew she was back here.” He looked Nik directly in the eye. “I’ve really been trying, mate. She has a thing for me, you know, and I was hoping to get some info out of her about Luukas, but no dice. I would’ve told you, but I didn’t want to get your hopes up unless I’d gotten something useful out of her. I didn’t. I’m sorry.” Pushing his hood off of his head in frustration, he scratched the top of his dark head, sticking his short hair straight up.

     Nik didn’t know what to say.

     Emma looked back and forth between the guys. “Good. Then it’s settled. I’m coming with you.”  And with that, she turned on her heal and started following the creek downstream. Aiden smiled broadly and fell in behind her, leaving Nik little choice but to follow them.

     Walking fast to catch up with them, Nik looked back over his shoulder at the three wolves. “Stay hidden. I’ll give a whistle when it’s time.”

   
 
Breaking into a jog to catch up with Emma before she tripped over something in the dark…she was really pretty quick for a human when she wanted to be…he didn’t look back again as the wolves dispersed into the trees, completely trusting them to not fuck up the plan.

     He hoped that trust wasn’t misplaced.