Embrace Me At Dawn (48 page)

In theory, tonight’s mission was simply to retrieve the potion, but Bram’s vision foretold of a battle where both Morganna and Mathias would be present and likely fighting against them. The wizard didn’t often have such premonitions, but when he did, they were spot on. She wished to hell Bram would have dreamed the outcome so she knew what to brace for.

When she and Lucan had retreated to the bedroom they’d shared as mates, Anka had yearned all the way down to her soul to Bind to him, but she’d waited. Now wasn’t the time to be impetuous or selfish. Mathias likely still had a malicious desire to weaken the Doomsday Brethren. If they managed to retrieve this potion and make Morganna drink it, Mathias would still be their enemy, while she and Lucan would be an even riper target now that she expected his youngling. If she spoke the Binding today, Anka couldn’t help but feel that, regardless of what Lucan thought, she’d be holding up a neon sign, advertising their vulnerabilities to Mathias.

Now the warriors had reconvened for dinner, knowing they must refine their plan. Shock was a no-show thus far. That worried Anka a bit. The others could say many things about Shock, and they might even be right at times. But when her safety was involved, Shock always put her first.

“
I don’t like it,” Ice said. “None of the wizards are yet able to use magic around Felicia. I think she should stay behind.”

“
I’m sorry,” the Untouchable murmured.

Felicia looked so miserably guilty. Anka’s heart went out to the woman.

“
I’m not blaming you.” Ice tried to soften his expression, but it still looked like a cross between a scowl and a glower. “I’m simply stating fact.”

“
Even if you can’t use your magic around Felicia, Anka and I can,” Sabelle pointed out. “And neither Morganna nor Mathias will be able to. We still have the upper hand.”

“
It’s too dangerous.” This time, Ice didn’t bother to hide his snarl at all.

Sabelle raised a brow and looked ready to go toe-to-toe with him. “It’s as safe as a battle is going to get.”

Caden jumped in. “I agree with Ice. It’s too risky. That puts the onus of containing and killing Morganna, and possibly battling Mathias, too, on Sabelle and Anka. It’s better to leave Felicia at home and hope that our combined magic is strong enough. We’re warriors. We’ve trained for this for months. You’re talented witches, but you’re not prepared.”

“
That’s crap!” Sabelle insisted. “You haven’t been able to trap Mathias since Zain brought him back, but you’re going to add Morganna to the mix and suddenly succeed?”

Marrok leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms over his massive chest. “If Morganna and Mathias have not their magic, then think on this: Neither is versed in the human ways of war. Between the magic of your females”—he addressed Ice and Lucan—“and all the combined fighting prowess in this room, ’tis likely we can force Morganna to drink the fatal potion. Then, mayhap, Ice can poison his sword with his blood and end Mathias.”

“
I can help to trap him so you can stab him, Ice,” Anka suggested. She would offer herself as bait, if she must.

“
You’re having a youngling,” Lucan thundered. “You promised to teleport away as soon as we obtain the potion. Have you forgotten that?”

“
Of course not, but—”

“
No buts.” Lucan shook his head. “If you’re no longer there, and none of the warriors can use magic, can we truly expect Sabelle’s magic alone to defeat both Morganna and Mathias?”

“
Fuck, no!” Ice growled.

“
Won’t they be much like humans without their magic?” Anka argued. “I know I promised to teleport away, but if they’re disabled…shouldn’t they be easy to defeat?”

“
In theory,” Lucan pointed out. “Felicia disables Mathias’s magic. We know that from the night he attacked Duke’s ancestral home. But we don’t know for certain about Morganna’s. We’re assuming her Untouchable powers will work on that bitch, as well, but who knows?”

“
I agree,” Duke seconded. “Too much is unpredictable. Anka, this fight is too dangerous for you and the youngling. And what’s to prevent Mathias from finding some way to kill Felicia? He must be within a hundred yards of her for her to disable his magic. He’s not stupid. He’ll have guessed we’ll have her near and be prepared with some human weapon, I suspect.”

Yes, there were risks, but these overprotective wizards weren’t seeing the bigger picture.

“
Mathias is vain,” Anka argued. “He will never believe that anyone, least of all a group of females, can best him.”

“
Possibly,” Lucan conceded. “But is getting your revenge worth risking your youngling?”

The question was a slap to Anka’s face. “We’ve been over this. Our daughter has no future if Mathias and Morganna are still here to wreak havoc.”

“
Enough debate.” Bram stood, finally having enough of this argument. “Felicia, are you willing to come with us and continue trying to let these wizards through your Untouchable defenses? If they can use magic around you…Mathias might be expecting it, but he’ll still be powerless. And in case Shock is a spy, he’ll have reported back that we’ve been unsuccessful performing spells around Felicia thus far.”

“
Then why not wait a day or two to see if we can, in fact, be successful?” Raiden asked.

“
What if Morganna loses patience and does something to expose us to humankind again?” Bram challenged. “We’ll have a potential genocide on our hands, a twenty-first century witch hunt. I have no doubt she’ll soon seek out Anka, then threaten to kill all those we hold dear until we lead her to the potion. If we grab it first, maybe we have some prayer of stopping or killing her.”

“
But if we know Mathias will grab it and use it to try to control her, why are we playing into his hands?” Lucan asked.

“
If we do this as I’d like, Mathias will be dead and his plans won’t matter.” Bram turned to the Untouchable. “Felicia?”

She turned her blue eyes to Duke, then gave him an apologetic glance before facing Bram again. “Yes. I’ll keep trying. Always.”

“
I believe in you,” Bram assured. “You came through for Duke at the last possible moment when you faced Mathias previously. I believe you’ll find the trust in time again.”

“
You’re certain Morganna will be there?” Caden asked.

“
She was in my vision. Either she’s figured out the location of the potion on her own or she’s watching our every move. I expect that she will make this plan somewhere between difficult and impossible. So we must be prepared for anything. As for Mathias, I’ve got another trick up my sleeve. This should be fun.”

~ ~ ~ ~

Lucan resented the hell out of Bram demanding that he follow along on this last minute jaunt. And he would happily tell his former friend to sod off…except he didn’t like the thought of Bram scheming without supervision. If Merlin’s prick of a grandson was going to let him in on whatever the hell he had brewing in his head, Lucan would follow.

Bram pulled an enchanted rock from his pocket, mumbled something, then threw it. With a satisfied nod, he made his way out of the dining room and away from the others. Lucan followed, feeling Bram’s assessing stare on him.

“
I see you’re still angry with me.”

Lucan raised a brow at him. “Furious, actually.”

“
And you’ll never believe that I sent Anka to Shock to keep her safe?”

“
You could have sent her to
me
.”

“
She wouldn’t have gone.”

“
How do you know? You didn’t try that tactic,” Lucan argued.

“
She was barely speaking to you at the time.” Bram pinned him with a glare.

“
We would have worked through it. You simply wanted a spy. Admit it.”

“
Gladly. Yes, I needed one. The only person I trust Shock with is Anka. He will always have her best interests at heart. I’m certain that’s of some benefit to him, though I’m still figuring out exactly what. But he will do anything to keep her safe. I gave you the opportunity to train her because I know you two belong together. I wish she’d had more time to learn to fight, but the mission is upon us now. And soon she will Bind to you, and you have a youngling on the way.” Bram smiled tightly. “You’re welcome.”

Anger poured through Lucan like fiery-hot lava. “Morganna did more to bring us back together than you did, you manipulative wanker!”

Bram opened his mouth, but before he could unload whatever piece of shit argument currently defiled his brain, a magical chime sounded. Light and tinkling, a bit old-fashioned.

“
Ah, there she is.” Bram raced to the front door and admitted his doddering Aunt Millie.

She patted his cheek with a wrinkled hand. “Hello there, dear boy.” She smiled Lucan’s way. “And you, too. How is Anka?”

“
Very much alive and pregnant,” Bram supplied.

Millie looked as if she wanted to ask who had done the deed, but couldn’t find a way to express the delicate question. Lucan saved her the trouble. “With my youngling.”

She smiled brightly. “So you are the mate of her heart. How lovely.”

Yes, he was. Supposedly. Then why hadn’t Anka spoken the Binding this afternoon when they’d been alone and he’d been deep inside her, exchanging love and energy?

“
What can I do for you, my sweet nephew?” Millie asked. “Do you wish me to look at Anka?”

“
I need a bit of binding magic.”

The little witch pursed her lips. “You know the restrictions.”

“
We’ll have her consent,” Bram assured her.

“
What the hell are you doing?” Lucan demanded. If this involved Anka, and Bram was once again taking matters into his own hands, Lucan swore to God he’d rip his former friend into tiny pieces.

“
Something designed to help us with two problems at once.”

Lucan didn’t like Bram’s smile at all. “This better have nothing to do with Anka.”

“
Absolutely nothing except to make her safer,” Bram assured. “You’ll fancy this.”

The other wizard guided Millie with a hand at the small of her back. Within a few steps, Lucan realized they were headed down to the dungeon. Bram waved open some of his magical protections, then sealed them again once they’d passed the barrier.

Nodding to some of the new guards he’d put in place since Zain’s last escape from this place, Bram approached the magical cell with its lone prisoner, Rhea.

Mathias’s favorite play toy and courtesan pouted, elbows propped on her pale knees as she sat on the wooden bench inside the cell. She wore black lingerie that couldn’t possibly be legal, even inside the bedroom. Sleek dark hair fell in waves past her shoulders. With her dark, slumberous eyes, so-red lips, and sinful body, Rhea looked like the devil’s mistress. Essentially, she was. She also looked damn near drained of energy, her magical signature fading and weak.

She stood at their approach. Her full breasts barely fit inside her peek-a-boo corset. Her knickers were nearly nonexistent above legs that went on forever. She was a beautiful witch, yet Lucan almost couldn’t bear the sight of her.

“
What do you want?” she demanded.

“
I’m here to make you a deal, Rhea.”

“
I’ve no energy for that. The last surrogate you sent me gave me so little,” she whined, then looked Lucan’s way. “I’d hoped you brought me another in this one.” Lucan felt her stare dance all over him, undressing him, then she rolled her eyes. “He’s quite lovely, but mated. How does that help me?”

“
You won’t need energy for this, dear. All you have to do is say yes. My aunt will take care of the rest.”