Coveted (23 page)

“I don’t like this.”
Muscles bunched as if Aiden were holding himself back, his words a mere rumble,
his wolf lurking in his eyes.

“We both know I have
to do this.” Shayla forced herself to step away, but not before stealing one
last touch to give her courage. She brushed the back of her hand against
Aiden’s forearm, marveling the way her pulse jumped at the innocent touch. A faint
growl of pleasure vibrated under her fingers, a sound reserved only for her.

Hugging those feelings
close, Shayla plucked the empty vial from the table. She rolled the glass
cylinder between her palms. Taking a deep breath, she closed her eyes. Sounds
faded, became muffled, as she cracked open the door to the Frost World. Her
skin prickled painfully when the temperature dropped, all the lovely warmth in
the room syphoned away as fast as she could pull it into her, consumed by her
gift.

Shayla concentrated
on the vial. Different signatures wrapped around her, dragging in every
direction until vertigo threatened to knock her flat. She shook her head and
set the tube aside with trembling fingers. “Multiple people have touched the
vial. It doesn’t belong to one person. I can’t get a clear read on anyone.”

Shayla curled and uncurled
her hands, her fingers stiff from cold. Heat stung her skin, the sensation both
painful and welcome as she slowly thawed. The further she was sucked into the Frost
World, the worse it would get.

Two more items on the
table failed just as quickly. One item was just too new, the other stretched on
forever, the distance too great to span. Shayla dropped the hat she held, her
fingers so numb she couldn’t maintain her grip. She scanned the remaining five
items on the table. Her head throbbed, feeling twice the normal size, and the
edges of her vision distorted as she fought off the effects of a migraine. She needed
something more before her gift gave out and burned her up from the inside out.

Aiden stared at her
with an intensity that made her suspect he saw nothing in the room but her.
Shayla stiffened her spine to conceal her exhaustion. If he suspected she was
pushing herself too far, he’d call a halt. She couldn’t allow that. Not yet.

“Try this.” Lassie held
out a shirt he’d been clutching.

Shayla recoiled.
Blood stained the collar. If the person was dead, it wouldn’t be long before
she joined him. Blood was the best connection that could be forged…and the most
dangerous.

Aiden held out his
arm to block her, and Shayla was absurdly grateful for the reprieve. He hovered
even closer, his heat seeping into her frost-coated skin, allowing her to
breathe a little easier.

“We can stop.” His
voice was low, his eyes so very earnest that her chest hurt for a whole new
reason.

“I can do this.” For
him.

Aiden studied her a
minute longer before he reluctantly stepped back.

Heart still beating a
bit too fast, Shayla stalled, rubbing her hands to get feeling back before
facing Lassie. “Who is he?”

The intensity in
Lassie’s eyes was uncomfortable to witness. His throat moved as he swallowed
the emotions trying to escape. “My brother Shawn. They had no reason to take
him. He wasn’t infected.”

“You thought he would
be safe if he went with the others.”

Lassie only nodded.

That they had taken
children only made Shayla more determined to end this now. She reached out for
the shirt when she saw Aiden move toward her.

“Don’t.” He mustn’t
touch her when she was using her gift.

But it was already
too late.

Flakes of dry blood
adhered to her skin, and her gift burst into life. Fire immediately flared in
her chest, burning along the underside of her ribs like an inferno, scorching
everything in its wake. Every breath seared her throat. Her lungs crackled, the
reaction so violent it took her precious seconds to take control of her gift.

The world around her
shifted, became lifeless and dull. She blinked, surprised to find the shadow of
Aiden’s wolf sitting next to her.

Guarding her.

“Aiden?”

The wolf gave a
devilish grin before turning to scan the new world around them. Aiden’s hold on
her wrist tightened, her whole arm tingling at the contact. Warmth poured out
of him, flooding her system, boosting her powers as it greedily consumed
everything he offered. “Where are we?”

That’s when she
realized Aiden had used his wolf to enter the Frost World with her. Terror
seized her, and she tried to break his hold and shove him out, but the bastard
was as stubborn as usual. “You’re not supposed to be here.”

The big brute ignored
her, scanning the open door to the inn. “I wouldn’t be a very good protector if
I let you do this alone.”

Shayla rolled her
eyes but relented. A small, logical portion of her that wasn’t trembling in
fear wanted Aiden to see how she straddled both worlds, and finally banish the
last of the secrets between them. “As soon as you let go of me, you’ll drop
back into your world. If something goes wrong or you feel sick, let go. Promise
me.”

Aiden grunted as if
insulted, giving her an amused look as he ran his fingers along the sensitive
underside of her arm. “I’d follow you anywhere.”

Shayla’s heart lurched,
and she shook her head, trying not to foolishly read something into his words.

“Where is my
brother?” Lassie’s voice sounded far away.

The people around
them looked grey, like corpses, the brightness of their life force dimmed. She
was doing that to them. Stealing more and more of their life. The longer they
remained in close proximity to her, the worse it would get. She’d suspected
that if she took everything they had to offer, they would die in the real
world.

Shayla shut down her
gift as hard as she could, starving it, taking the brunt of the burden so it
consumed her instead. She stepped outside, Aiden by her side, following a faint
tug. “He’s alive, somewhere near, but there is something blocking the
connection.”

 “But you know he’s
alive.” Lassie watched her intently, searching for the lie, his once-animated
eyes beginning to turn milky as he closed the distance between them.

“Yes, his ghost
would’ve appeared otherwise.”

The grass began to
turn brown under her feet, withered as her gift sought an alternative energy source.
The desiccated circle around her swelled, consuming plants and buildings. She
had to keep moving, couldn’t remain still or she’d kill everything around her.

Her gift led them to
the edge of town. The buildings appeared dilapidated, creaking and groaning like
a light breeze could knock them down. The few trees were like skeletons clawing
at the sky, dried leaves crackling as they swayed in the wind. 

“What the hell is
that?”

A man stumbled toward
them, the glow of life conspicuously missing. Darkness clung to him, seeping up
from the gates of hell, waiting to suck him down in its pits. Shayla quickly
shushed Aiden. “A wraith. Don’t draw its attention.”

But it was already
too late.

They’d been spotted.

“It’s Hugh, the man
from the cave." Aiden bulked up, his expression turning murderous.

The man didn’t appear
to notice the threat, stumbling toward them, casting furtive glances over his
shoulders. Tufts of hair stuck up around his head, the rest matted flat by some
goop she had no desire to examine further. The once large guy was so gaunt that
she barely recognized him.

He appeared
harmless. 

It was a lie.

“Whatever you do, do
not allow him to touch you.” Shayla tried to tug Aiden away, but the blasted
man wouldn’t budge.

“Thank God. You have
to help me.” He reached out to them.

Shayla scrambled
forward, shoved her way in front of Aiden at the last second, and Hugh latched
onto her forearm instead. She couldn’t shake him off.

“Release me.”
Sometimes, if she pushed enough command into her voice, they obeyed.

Not this man.

He turned toward her
at the sound of her voice, then squinted in recognition. “I know you. You’re
that girl.” His grip tightened further until her fingers tingled. “What did you
do to me?”

“You died.” Some of the
warmth of her gift seeped out from the contact between them. Shadows faded from
under his eyes, the hollows of his cheeks filled out, color gradually returning
to his face, and the darkness around him retreated. The man inhaled, and his
body inflated until he almost appeared human again.

“Let go.” Nausea seized
her in its grip. Unable to bear his touch, Shayla yanked her arm again, finally
breaking free. When Hugh lunged after her, Aiden stepped between them. A quick
shove sent Hugh tumbling on his ass, and he skidded a few feet.

But now that the man
had gotten a taste of life again, he wouldn’t give it up willingly. Hugh popped
to his feet. When he charged her again, Aiden’s wolf jumped between them. A menacing
snarl vibrated beneath her feet. The wraith gazed at her over the beast’s head
as if contemplating if he could get to her before being ripped to shreds.

As if the wolf called
them, a howl echoed in the distance. Whatever color Hugh had gained, he lost
pretty quickly. “You can’t leave me here. Those demon dogs will kill me the
first chance they get.”

Shayla sure hoped so.
She had little sympathy for the man who had tried to kill Aiden and would’ve
killed her if he’d gotten the chance. One thing changed her mind. She didn’t
want this jerk waiting for her every time she crossed over. “This is your
purgatory. You have to face your demons if you want to be free.”

Hugh cringed.

The howling drew
closer. Fear got the better of him, and he scurried away, disappearing into a
building down the street. Shayla rubbed the spot where his hand had gripped
her, noticing bruises already darkening her skin.

A soft touch, gentle
as a breeze, ran across the back of her injured hand, the wolf licking away the
hurt. She scowled at the wolf, secretly charmed despite herself. “Enough of
that.”

In reply, he gave a crooked
grin and took off down the trail. They travelled a few miles, everyone
following like a relentless zombie horde. A light mist clung to her. Her skin
had long since grown numb, moving from pale to a sickly gray as frost collected
on her arms.

Shayla gritted her teeth,
grateful for the silence, since every time she opened her mouth to speak, her
teeth chattered. Fog thickened the air to a murky soup, chilling her until the
strands of her hair clicked together like icy branches. Her eyelashes stuck
together as they slowly froze. Walking became difficult, her body getting
clumsier with each passing minute as the cold insidiously invaded her soul.

She covered her awkwardness
as best she could, hiding the debilitating effects of her gift, but even Lassie
wouldn’t stop watching her.

“You’re dying, aren’t
you?”

“We’re close.” But
the warmth her gift used as fuel was dangerously low. She refused to steal from
those around her. When she tripped over her feet for the third time, Aiden blocked
her way.

“Stop.”

A howl reverberated
in the distance, and Aiden turned. His beast had found something. Shayla opened
her mouth to tell the others, but ended up coughing instead, a wet, hacking
sound that ripped up her chest. She quickly wiped away the telltale sign of
blood from her hand before anyone could notice.

Instead of speaking,
James produced a hankie. “He’s right. You’re brought them close enough. You
can’t risk your blood getting any warmer. You’re slowly cooking yourself.”

They both knew
seizures were next.

Then the traitor
turned toward Aiden. “If she goes any further, she will die.”

Aiden swung her
around, drawing her toward him until she was wrapped in his arms. There was no
sign that her gift had any effect on him at all. He didn’t speak, but dipped
his head and kissed her senseless. The taste of him exploded through her,
heating her faster than any fire. Every nerve ending flared to life. He parted
her lips, stealing her breath, and the forgotten shirt dropped from her hand.

By the time he pulled
away, Shayla was toasty warm. A few of the men lingered a discreet distance
away, not even bothering to cover their grins.

“Kind of smug, aren’t
you?”

Aiden didn’t smile at
her teasing. “I figured if you feel even a fraction of what I do, I could pull
you back. I ground you, just as you do me.”

Her breath hiccupped
in her chest at his confession. She must have looked as stunned as she felt,
for Aiden smiled and prodded her forward.

“If you keep looking
at me like that I won’t stop at kissing you. Now get moving, woman.”

Shayla followed the
others, so completely undone by Aiden’s flirtation she almost missed the
cottage. It looked innocent enough, cozy even, a lazy curl of smoke floating up
into the night sky. Blue flowers were scattered around the property
willy-nilly. “The same flowers I found around your dungeon.”

Aiden looked grim.
“Wolfsbane. It kills our sense of smell and weakens our wolf. Everyone spread
out and search.”

People scattered.
Shayla followed Aiden, Mac and Lassie into the cottage. The small room
consisted of a table and chairs, the place littered with odd knickknacks. It
almost looked homey, except things were slightly off. Dust coated the place.
Wood chips for the fire littered the floor. A small military cot stood against
one wall, the rough green covers tossed back as if the person had gotten up in
a hurry.

The smell of charred
food lingered in the air. Underneath that was the distinct smell of rot. Pots were
stacked precariously along the cupboards like small leaning towers, mold spores
twisted up the sides.

“There’re not here.”

Shayla heard no
accusation in Aiden’s voice, but flinched under the lash of it anyway. “They
have to be. We’re just not looking hard enough.”