Sorcha's Wolf (26 page)

“Hurry, witch! Kill the damn thing because more are on their way!” he urged.

“It’s not the demon, it’s Rage. Shit, shit, shit!” Something popped in the air, a sudden rush of heat surrounded them, and suddenly they were falling through the solid stone like water, and down, down, down to what he didn’t know. Sorcha tightened her fingers where they dug into his arm and some understanding passed over her face. Before he could stop her, she raised her hands and made a shoving motion. He found himself tossed upward and away from her. A freezing blast of snow hit his face. Comprehension slammed into him like a sucker punch to the gut.

She’d shifted him out of the trap to the top of Braeriach.

Agni suddenly burst from the side of the mountain with the witch slung over his shoulder. He dropped her hard on the snow and heaved out a breath, holding it when he spotted Alex.

“Shit, where is Sorcha?”

Fury, unlike any he’d ever experienced before, overwhelmed Alex. Mixing with it was the certainty that Sorcha had saved his life—twice now—at the expense of what? Her own? He snarled and fisted his hands, nearly cracking his sword hilt under his grip.

“Easy, easy man, you can still reach her—”

He broke off, staring behind Alex.

Alex spun to come face to face with the last person he’d expected to see.

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Sorcha managed to land in a crouch, minimising the sudden impact with the ground. Immediately she shot out with her power, using an offensive move that she hoped would catch Rage by surprise. It did, but he muttered his own spell and tossed her hissing snake to the ground where it misted out. She ducked his counter attack and scanned the area even as she built another spell. This one was simple, yet affective. It hit his chest softly, like a piece of lint and slowly penetrated his chest while she shoved two direct hits at him. A blaze of lightning struck near his shoulder, which he dodged with a fling of his wrist. The lightning charged right back at her.

The chamber exploded with the fight, sending a statue to the ground with a mighty crash. She hit it with a spell and pieces of marble whizzed at the mage’s head. He swung his hand to the right and the pieces fell to the floor.

“Enough! I will win and when I do, you will suffer before I drain you. Your wolf will die and everyone you care for will beg for death!”

Sorcha laughed, trying hard not to let his threat scare her. It freaked her out, but she wasn’t going to let him know that.

“Oh, sorry, is that supposed to make me give up? You’ll have to try harder, asshole. Try bribing next time, at least you’d show some intelligence.” She baited him, buying time while the childlike spell worked its way to his throat. Soon his air would cut off for at least a minute, possibly two, then she’d take the nearest exit out of here.

“I’ve gained a bit more experience since last we met, dumbass.”

His face darkened, turning a wonderful scarlet under his ghastly tattoos. “Bitch, you think you can distract me? I’m more powerful than anything you’ve ever face—”

She snorted and shot out a spell that drove him back two steps before he straightened. “Really? I kinda thought you’d weakened, you know, with age? I mean, I’m not some youngling any longer, Rage. I’m a woman—one you’re going to learn never to cross again.”

She sent two more quick bolts of lightning at him and deflected a blow that might have killed her had she been younger. Rage’s spells protected him from big blasts of her power, aiding in ways she could never compete with, but her spells held his attention while she moved methodically closer towards the only exit in the room—a long, low window. The doors were bound to lead to another room or tunnel, but the window would gain her freedom.

“Your fight is as pathetic and useless now as your sister and mother’s were before. This time, I won’t let you die so easily witch.”

Anger shot higher in her breast, but she kept it down. There was no way to save her mother and lost sister now. But maybe, just maybe there was a way to find out what he’d done with them. “Right, my mother and sister probably wiped the floor with you before you what? Ran from them?”

“I killed them, just like I did you,” he snarled.

“Your men killed me, not you, Rage. Why is that? Why didn’t you do the job yourself?” she asked, eyeing his hips with a knowing grin. “Can’t get your dangly parts rise to the occasion?”

If he’d been angry before, he was enraged now. Steam practically zipped from him and along his torso, the disgusting tattoos appeared to twist in pain.

She flung a spell at him and he snarled when it snapped in his face, leaving a satisfying welt across his cheek. It didn’t slow him. He shoved his robed arms upward, revealing more of his tattooed arms and summoned something with a spell she barely heard. The hairs along her neck rose and instead of staying to see just what evil he’d called, she made a dive for the window, and tucking her arms to her side, hit the stained glass sideways. The blow hit harder than she’d imagined it would, but the glass broke and with a gasp, she was free falling.

Icy air exploded around her and she settled her panic. She formed the image of the raven, fixing each feather firmly until she had it solidly fixed in her consciousness, then she shifted to the bird of her goddess.

Wind suddenly caught on her wings and with a cry of freedom, she spiralled down the side of the mountain then back up.

Alex
. He would be pissed off, possibly charging back in to fetch her. Reaching him was all she could do—and fast. The chill air caught in her lungs, but before she could panic too badly she spotted Alex, then Agni and the witch. Back winging to slow down so she could land she settled near them and slowly eased her form until she dropped behind Alex with barely a stumble.

Alex spun and stared at her with such anger that she stepped backwards, nearly landing on her ass when her foot slipped on ice. He reached out, hauled her close and, before she could do more than cry out in fright, sank his fangs into her shoulder where he’d always nipped lightly at her before.

This time his bite was deep, much deeper, and the growl coming from him made her heart flutter and her body grew weak with desire. He tightened his arms to the point of pain and with a deeper rumble, his bite grew possessive. Shockingly, her body answered and she climaxed. Heat flooded her. Wave after wave crashed around her, making her body clench. Suddenly she felt something more, and realised Alex fought his own pleasure. With another low toned growl, he broke off his bite, licked the spot and after only a second met her eyes with a look that she felt all the way to her soul.

“You’re mine now, witch. Never forget it again,” he told her breathlessly.

Between them, she could feel invisible bonds tightening, binding them together so closely she dug her fingers into his shirt, ripping it partway open in her need. Alex firmed his hold and his buttery yellow eyes flashed browner then sparkled again with his wolf. She leaned in and nuzzled his jaw, then with a low moan, bit him on the chest right where she’d marked him before. He groaned as he did when he orgasmed and she felt him surge hotter and harder against her stomach.

“Sweet goddess, lass.”

“Alex! You’ve bonded me.”

“Aye, don’t ever leave me like that again. Now stop before I embarrass myself in front of the demon.”

“Oh, Alex.”

“Shh, lass, I’ll make this up to you, for now, let’s break free from this mage, eh?”

“Shit, you two need to stop, now!” Agni growled. “This plan just got worse, man, you’d best get your ass under control.”

“I love you, Alex,” she murmured, kissing the spot where she’d broken the tough skin on his chest. He shuddered and tightened his hands on her ass.

“Aye, lass, I love you as well.” He raised his head, squinted at the mountain, then at her. “Where is this gate?”

“The gate won’t help you now, wolf.”

“Sonofabitch, won’t you give up already!” Agni shouted, trying to tackle Rage off the side of the mountain. The mage merely snapped his wrist and Agni flew sideways hitting the side of the mountain with a muffled, horrid sound. He fell and didn’t move.

“Alex!”

“Shh, we won’t leave him. Give me time, then hit the mage with one of those fire spells.”

“Alex, that won’t do a thing. He’s unbelievably strong and I might have pissed him off…”

“It will buy me time.”

“The demon will take some taming I see.” Rage seemed to dismiss Agni and turned to her with such hatred her breath stalled. “But you won’t.”

“Back down, Rage. You have no right to her, and I’m not letting you have her.”

She bit her lip at Alex’s brave words and grimaced. She gathered her power, silently willing this spell to cut through Rage’s formidable protections. They couldn’t leave Agni here and she couldn’t get close enough to reach him. Even if she could, even she wasn’t strong enough to shift him, the witch and Alex.

“I don’t have to back down, wolf. I think I don’t have to do more than promise her your safe passage to get her to walk willingly to me.”

“Fuck you. I wouldn’t walk willingly to you if you held my sister in your arms.”

His brow rose and the way it pulled his tattoos caused his face to turn into an even more gruesome mask.

“Now, sweet, hit him now!”

“Well, how do you like that, I thought I mattered to you more than that sister,” Trouble suddenly called behind her.

Alex growled. She shot out her fire spell and watched as her mate hit Rage hard enough to knock him backwards towards the edge of the mountain.

Moon shot by her, her slim form intent on Agni, Markee a step behind her, sword drawn, but her concentration centred on Alex wrestling with the mage. Trouble abruptly hugged her and, with a wink, dived at the mage’s other side, slapping him with a stinging spell and toppling him off his feet.

Sorcha forced another fire spell at him, careful of Alex and her sister and saw the spell latch on to his cloak. Rage merely grunted and swung his arm out, connecting with Alex who dropped to a knee. She rushed to his side and pulled him to his feet, urging him up and away as Trouble broke free from Rage as well.

Her sister swung her blades and the mage’s cloak fell open, falling to his feet and revealing the disgusting faces of his tattoos over his muscular chest.

“You’ll pay for that, wolf!” he screamed. Spittle and blood flew.

Trouble sneered and hit him with her swords. Rage caught her blades with a magical one, causing sparks to erupt where their blades screeched along each other. Trouble hissed, and kicked out at Rage, breaking away and dancing backwards.

She felt Alex’s muscles tense to rush him again. She shoved him down, and latched onto Trouble’s shirt, dragging her down as well as Rage hit them with a truly massive fire spell. Sorcha’s shield held, but fire erupted around them as the spell hit and ricocheted off her protections. Alex swore and tightened his arm around her shoulders. Trouble jumped to her feet, spitting out snow.

“Now that wasn’t nice,” Trouble grumbled, her eyes narrowed in that way Sorcha knew meant her sister was contemplating something deadly.

From the side she realised Markee had Agni up. Moon had the witch by her hair. The witch was awake, but Agni was out.

“Alex! This is it. We need to leave this place.”

“Now? If we work together, we may defeat him now.”

“No! No, please, we need to go.”

As if reading their thoughts, Rage struck out and his spell caught them all by surprise. He ripped through her shield and sent a spell directly at Moon.

“Moon!” Sorcha screamed.

Moon merely tossed her hair off her face and grimaced as the spell hit like a shot of lightening in her chest. Without blinking, Sorcha threw her own spell, knocking the mage back closer to the edge. Trouble dived in, attacking him with both her swords, slicing at him with deadly accuracy. He stumbled back and suddenly burst into a hundred bats all aimed at their heads before he winged up the side of the mountain.

“Holy shit,” Markee breathed.

Moon ripped the witch’s head nearly off with a vicious jerk. “Release him! Now!” she yelled.

“Holy hell, sister, that girl means business,” Trouble muttered, helping her from the snow. Alex stood too, assessing the area with her gaze.

“You have no idea,” Markee murmured then seemed to realise he had and ducked his head.

Suddenly the witch howled in pain, breaking off to sob when Moon unexpectedly dropped her. Sorcha guessed she’d released Agni from her spell.

Alex wrapped his arm around her waist and glared around them. “What of Rage? Is he—?”

“He’s dug in for cover, but he’s not gone,” Trouble said interrupting Alex with a fierce look.

“Ah, that’s good, right?” Markee asked. “I mean, we can get off this pile of rubble and all now, right?”

Alex shifted his feet next to her but through their new bond, she felt him accept that for now, Rage was gone.

“Only for now, my love. We still need to kill him.”

“Why do you say that, Sorcha? Why now do you want to kill him?”

“Because Bridget ordered it.”

“What?” he demanded. He pulled her by her shoulders around to face him. She blinked innocently, but by his scowl, she could tell he wasn’t buying it.

“We don’t have time for this. Let’s meet back at the coven and discuss this vacation, huh?” Trouble asked with a nasty look at Alex.

He glowered, but didn’t respond.

“No.” Sorcha turned to face her sister with a firmness she rarely showed Trouble. “We are going somewhere else, and you can go to the coven. I’ll get hold of you soon, but for now, we are going to celebrate that we’re alive and while Rage might be as well, his days are numbered.”

“Oh? How’s that?” Trouble spluttered. “He’s just flown off into a hundred freaky bats. For all we know, he’s probably sizing us all up right now. What makes you think we’ll kill him so easily another time?”

“I never said it would be easy, but it’s what Bridget wants.”

Trouble frowned and turned serious for once. “Then if she wants it done, why are we waiting?”

“Because now isn’t the time—”

“He’s weak, wounded and if now isn’t a good time, when is?” Trouble demanded.

For the first time, Alex stepped forwards and spoke. “Not now. If it was his time, we would know, but for now, as your sister says, we need to leave this place. Sorcha is freezing, Agni is hurt and Moon has been wounded as well.”