To her surprise, Kara pulled a set of car keys out of her pocket and pressed the button. The red minivan parked on the side of the road in front of them beeped in response.
Delaney shook her head. Kara, Im not going anywhere. Not without telling Tighe.
Kara held out her hand, a sly expression entering her eyes. Give me your phone. Ill call him.
No. The hair on her nape began to rise. This was not the woman shed talked to for two hours last night.
And suddenly, in the blink of an eye, she wasnt.
The person standing beside her was no longer Kara but Tighe. No, not Tighe. The clone.
Delaneys heart skipped a beat and began racing with terror. Her head went cold. She whirled to run, reaching for the phone in her pocket. But like Tighe, the clone was too fast. He grabbed her hair and jerked her off her feet in a blast of tearing pain. As he swung her around to face him, she slammed her elbow into his solar plexus.
He slammed his fist into her jaw.
I want that bastard found! Lyons hard growl echoed through the war room, giving voice to Tighes own frustration. He turned his hard gaze to Kougar. Anything on those Daemon traps?
Im close. Ive got three that may potentially work if I can finish piecing them together, but they have to be done at night.
Tonight, then. When Kougar nodded, Lyon turned to Hawke. What have you found out, Wings?
Hawke folded his hands on the table in front of him. The Shamans been digging through old Daemon lore and believes the clone can indeed steal Tighes half of the soul. He just isnt sure how hell go about it. Hes come up with a spell he can place on Tighes soul so that if the clone tries to steal Tighes half, both halves will be destroyed.
What the fuck good is that? Jag drawled.
Hawkes expression was grim. It wont keep Tighe alive, but it will at least contain the further threat of the clone.
Lyon shook his head. The only solution I want is one that destroys that clone and leaves Tighe alive.
Theres still only one of those. Kill the clone. Straightforward and simple.
And damned impossible to do. Lyons fist slammed into the table. It shouldnt be this hard to catch him!
Tighe looked up to see Kara standing in the doorway.
Lyon held his hand out to her, but she shook her head. Sorry to interrupt. I was just wondering if Tighes seen Delaney. I cant find her.
Tighe was on his feet in an instant.
So was Hawke. She was with you.
Karas brows drew down with confusion. I havent seen her. I just came downstairs a few minutes ago.
I saw you, Hawke insisted. He blanched. Or someone who looked just like you.
Tighes blood went cold. Hes got the witchs glamour. Hes taking on the form of other people.
Anyone hes seen. Hawkes mouth tightened. Thats how hes been eluding us. Its how he got away when Kougar and I had him cornered.
Lyon pulled out his knife. Palms. Pink! Join us please.
A fist of terror tightened in Tighes stomach, every muscle raging to take flight, to find her. He drew out his own knife and sliced his palm, holding it up for his chief to see, then he pulled out his phone and called the phone hed given Delaney just that morning. Maybe the clone was still pretending to be Kara. Maybe Delaney would answer. But as the phone rang and rang, he knew that son of a bitch had her. His skin felt as if it were tying to crawl off his bones.
That son of a bitch would kill her. No, not kill her. Not yet. His chest felt like someone were stabbing him through the heart with a hot poker. Hed make her suffer first. Hed feed off her pain and her terror, little by little, like the Daemons of old. Until her tears were spent, her mind was gone, and her body couldnt take any more.
He had to find her. Now. He turned to Hawke. We can track her if she still has the phone.
Hawke ran for the door. Ill get my laptop.
Wulfe, follow her scent, Lyon barked.
Ill grab Tighes pillows for you, Kara said.
No need. Wulfe stood. Her scent is all over Tighe.
Within moments, they burst from the doors of Feral House. As Wulfe shifted into his animal and followed Delaneys scent, Tighe, Hawke, and Jag ran for Jags Hummer.
Ive got the signal, Hawke said as Jag swung out of the circular drive. Its fixed. Over on Oak Woods.
Tighe braced himself in the backseat, his senses going out to her. Call for me, Brown Eyes. When shed been trapped, lost in that vision, hed heard her calling for him. Hed been able to follow. Call for me, Delaney.
Was it possible she didnt yet realize she was in trouble? No. Shed have answered her phone.
Only one reason she wouldnt answer either call.
Goddess. Dont let her be dead. Not when Im just starting to understand how much I need her.
Minutes later, Jag pulled onto Oak Woods.
Here. Hawke snapped the laptop closed as Jag pulled the Hummer to a screeching halt. Tighe dove out the door, his senses open. She wasnt there.
But her phone was. He saw it gleaming in the light. As he picked it up, as he touched the metal that had been in her hands such a short time ago, he felt a piece of himself die.
Wulfe came bounding out of the woods, a monster of a gray wolf. He sniffed around the area where the phone had been, then lifted his head to Tighe.
The scent ends here. She must have gotten into a car.
Fury rose in a hot wash, burning through Tighes blood. He had her. That son of a bitch had her.
A hand gripped his shoulder, and he turned to face Hawke.
Im sorry. Hawke shook his head, his expression grim. Id like to give you platitudes like well find her, but Im out of ideas of how to catch him, buddy. His eyes narrowed. How did you find her the last time? After she set you up?
I heard her. I think I inadvertently formed a mind connection with her when I was trying to steal her memories. I heard her crying out for me that night and followed. I cant explain how I knew where she was, but I knew. He met his friends gaze. Shes not calling out for me, this time.
She may be. Hawke frowned. You just cant hear her anymore.
Tighe closed his eyes, listening. He had to be able to hear her. But, except for his own turbulent thoughts, his mind was silent. And he suddenly realized that the warmth that had brushed against the inside of his skull was gone. The connection was gone.
What happened? But like a fist to the gut, he knew. The binding.
Hawke nodded, his expression bleak. Im afraid so. The accidental connection was probably severed when the new one between you and her was formed.
Except it only went one way. If Id bound myself to her, Id be able to hear her like I did before.
Yes. Probably more than before.
The knowledge pierced him like a dozen blades. Hed intentionally cut himself off from her. In not binding himself to her, in trying to protect her, hed sealed her fate.
Inside him the tiger spirit shook his head and let out a furious roar.
Tighe squeezed his eyes closed, fighting the tigers accusation. And losing.
Because he hadnt done it for her, as hed told her. The pain of that realization shredded his heart. He hadnt been protecting her. Hed been protecting himself. Against a marriage he couldnt believe would turn out any better than his first one had.
Hed protected himself. And lost the only thing in his life that mattered.
Delaney.
CHAPTER 22
Delaney groaned, trying to rise out of the fog that encased her brain. God, my jaw hurts. An ice-cold vise clamped around her wrist and pulled, yanking her across
Her hip plowed into something hard, jarring her fully awake. She was in a car. In a garage.
In a shock of an instant, everything came flooding back. The clone. Hed caught her.
She grabbed hold of the door handle as the man who looked just like Tighe tried to haul her across the center console and out the drivers side door. Hed kill her. If he got her out of the car, hed kill her.
The clone reached in, hooking his arm around her shoulders and yanked her toward him, tearing her loose from the car door. No. She whirled toward him, jamming her finger deep into his eye socket.
A shudder of revulsion traveled from her hand all the way to the soles of her feet. His eye socket was perfectly dry. Inhumanly dry.
Her attack had no effect. He didnt scream as any normal man would have. He didnt even rear back. Instead, he jerked her harder, manhandling her out of the car and into the house as she kicked and fought for her life.
The moment he hauled her through the door, into a small laundry room, the smell hit. The hair rose on her arms. Decomposing bodies.
You killed somebody here.
Yes. This was my first stop after I escaped. My first feeding. Tighes voice washed over her, at once wonderfully familiar and terrifyingly wrong. Because the manthe thingspeaking wasnt Tighe. Ill show you. He said the last with a lilt of pride that had her stomach roiling.
Ive seen dead bodies before. She struggled to keep her voice calm and even. The creature fed off fear and pain. Swallow your fear. She tried, but her skin was turning clammy, her breaths coming in tight, uneven pulls.
Pinning her against him, the clone half pushed, half carried her into the kitchen.
Dear God, dear God, dear God.
In the middle of the floor, beside a cracker-strewn high chair, was a pile of rotting corpses covered with flies. A pile. As if the despicable creature had killed them and tossed them away one by one.
Delaney looked away, swallowing desperately against the rising bile, but the image was carved into her brain. Flies crawling across the face of a small boy, his head dangling over the curve of a mans shoulder, the rest of his body hidden by the bathrobe of a woman. A woman draped faceup over the pile, her arms spread as if even in death she tried to protect her family.
Delaney breathed through her mouth, panting between swallows. Her mind screamed at the wrongness, at the waste of life, even as hatred burned through her with the force of a wildfire.
You sick bastard. She stomped her heel hard onto his instep.
He jerked her around and slammed her against the wall, her head crashing into a picture frame and sending it clattering to the floor as pain crackled along her skull.
Pressing his body hard against hers, pinning her to the wall, the clone grabbed her face in his hand.
Do you know what Im going to do to you? His green eyes had jagged black streaks running across them like cracks in two windshields. Streaks that hadnt been there the last time he attacked her. Would Tighes look the same?
Oh, Tighe. Find me.
She spit in the clones face. Go to hell.
He didnt bother to remove the spittle. Youre going to scream, human. By the time Im through with you, your vocal cords will be shredded from your screams.
His words twisted inside her, sending her pulse spinning like a tornado. He wanted her afraid. Fight it. Fight him.
The clone gripped her face, forcing her to look at him. Oddly, his expression softened, warmth flowing into his eyes. For a heartbeat, she saw Tighe in his face. Tighe as shed never seen him, his sunglasses off, his eyes filled with soft emotion.
But this wasnt Tighe.
Any resemblance disappeared as cold rushed back into his eyes. His hand gripped her breast and squeezed until he brought tears to her own. His face took on an expression of deep pleasure.
He was feeding off her pain.
Maybe he should feed off his own. Catching him off guard, she slammed the heel of her hand into his nose. When he didnt so much as flinch, she raked her nails down his cheek. He didnt bleed.
The full understanding of his inhumanity hit her even as he jerked her away from the wall and threw her to the ground. She slid across the wood floor, stopping less than a foot from the bodies, sending the flies swarming into the air.
Oh God, Oh God.
Her body aching, her mind dazed, she tried to push to her feet, but he stomped her flat with his foot. How long before another body topped that pile of corpses?
Hers.
Tighes chest burned as he climbed back into Jags Hummer with muscles so tense they were cramping Wulfe joined him through the opposite door.
Goddess, where is she? What is that piece of shit doing to her?
Is she even still alive?
When I get my hands on him, hes not going to die fast, he snarled. Im cutting him up inch by inch until theres nothing left of him but his head and his heart. Then Ill shred those, strip by strip.
But what would it matter? How sweet would revenge taste when Delaney was dead? The blades in his chest twisted, slicing him anew until he felt the blood running in rivulets down the sides of his heart.
Where to? Jag asked, starting the engine. No one answered. Where did they go from here?
As he opened his mouth to reply, his vision went suddenly, totally black. As it had when hed first had the visions. Before Delaney got in the way.
His hand grabbed hold of the door as he held on, knowing he was about to watch the demon feed, and praying, praying, he wasnt about to watch Delaney die.
CHAPTER 23
Shes not a witch! Paenther growled as Foxx pulled on his clothes after snooping on all fours around yet another mountain estate that had absolutely nothing to do with the Mage.
The clouds had rolled in, driven by a chilly wind, turning the afternoon hazy and gray.
Foxx finished tying his running shoes. Im just saying, you cant always tell anymore. Zaphene hid her Mage eyes so well, none of us knew she was a witch. She had me fooled but good, he added morosely. I thought she was in love with me.
Foxx. Paenther sighed as they started walking back to the Mustang parked alongside the road. I can tell. Which was an out-and-out lie. He hadnt known Zaphene was a witch any more than anyone else had. StillIf she were a witch, shed have enthralled me already, right? A touch of her hand, and Id have been hers. Shes not a witch. And it doesnt matter anyway, because Im not going back there. I dont have time to get involved with a woman. Any woman. Especially one who lives hours from Feral House.
Foxx grunted. If youre not interested in her, why do you keep talking about her?
Paenther growled low in his throat, his hands fisting on his coat. Im not the one who just brought her up again!
Yeah, but youre the one who keeps growling. Youre driving me crazy, B.P.
The feeling is mutual, Cub, Paenther said, as they reached the car. The feeling is mutual.
Im doing the best I can, Foxx snapped, guessing correctly Paenther had lost patience with the young Ferals worthless intuition. They climbed in and Foxx started the car, gunning it onto the empty road.
I didnt say youre not, Foxx, but for two and a half days youve been certain Vhyper is in these mountains, and for two and a half days weve found shit. We might as well head home.
No.
Paenther looked at the younger man sharply.
Foxx met his gaze. Hes here. I know hes here. And I know were going to find him. But not yet.
Paenther growled, his claws unsheathing for a frustrated instant. When?
Later today.
Paenther stared at his companion. You really think that?
Foxxs gaze turned inward, but he nodded slowly. Yeah. Youre going to be talking to him again soon.
And just how are we going to find him?
Hes going to find you. But later. Foxx turned the Mustang around in the middle of the road and headed back the way theyd come.
Paenther scowled. Now where are you going?
Following another one of my intuitions. Were going back to the Market.
Youre going to hand me over to a witch?
I never said she was a witch. I was just making the point that youre not being very cautious for a guy whos lived long enough to know better.
Paenther growled, but damn, the cub was right. Hed been so blown away by the woman that hed completely forgotten Zaphene had been able to hide her Mage eyes. Then again, hed never known a Mage to be able to do that. And, honestly, the chances of his little beautys being Mage were one in several million. Maybe a billion. Still, the thought probably should have crossed his mind.
But what hed told Foxx was true. If, by some monumental coincidence, shed been Mage and had wanted to enthrall him, shed have done it already. She wasnt Mage. And damn yes, he wanted her.
As they pulled into the Markets parking lot twenty minutes later, she was standing at the corner of the building, her head tipped against the wall in a stance that was perhaps a little sad, perhaps weary, as if shed been waiting for him for hours. Her shapeless dress was a pretty blue, the same summer sky shade as her eyes.
Get her out of your system, B.P. Im tired of all the growling. Besides, my guts sure of this one. Hell if I know why, but you need to do this. Shes going to be good for you.
Paenther climbed out of the Mustang and hesitated, a dozen reasons not to walk toward her bounding through his mind.
But then she straightened, and even across the parking lot he could sense the loneliness and longing in her eyes. A hunger less of the flesh than of the spirit. A need of the soul that spoke to something deep inside him, and he found himself unable to turn away.
The wind whipped, coating him with dust from the parking lot and flinging sharp, tiny raindrops against his cheeks and forehead. He barely noticed.
As he started toward her, her expression didnt change. No smile greeted him this time. But with each step, the air around him heated. As did the blue of her eyes.
His pulse began to pound in his veins, the blood rushing, thick and warm, hardening him in an instant. Her remembered taste danced on his tongue, her scent springing from his pores as if it had been moments and not more than twenty-four hours since he kissed her.
Goddess, but he needed to get her out of his system. There was only one way he was going to do it.
As he closed the distance between them, she held out her hand to him, watching him with deep, smoldering eyes. Her warm hand trembled as he curled his own around it. As the wind twirled leaves in the gravel, she turned and tugged on his hand, and he followed. She led him behind the building and up the steep, heavily wooded hill behind the store.
Surrounded by the rich loamy scents of the woods, all he could smell was violets. Her. The scent wrapped around him, sinking deep into his skin, further inflaming the heat already building.
He gripped her hand tighter, part reaction to his bodys excitement, part possessiveness as they climbed together, far away from prying eyes.
He didnt even know her name.
He ducked under a low branch, pushing aside another for her. It didnt matter. All that mattered was sinking inside her and ridding himself of this obsession that had hounded him for two solid days.
She continued to try to lead him, but they were out of sight of the parking lot, and he couldnt wait any longer.
He pulled her to a stop. She turned, her expression enigmatic as she slid into his arms. He covered her mouth with his, and passion exploded inside him. Desire roared through his body, making him heavy and ready. Her taste was even sweeter than hed remembered, her scent exhilarating.
As he pressed her back against the nearest tree, he was vaguely aware of a pair of deer wandering close, watching them curiously.
She kissed him frantically, as if she feared they didnt have much time. He kissed her back with the same intensity, desperate to taste her, to feel her, to know her in every way.
The feel of her hand on his zipper made his blood pound. The touch of her fingers along the length of his bare flesh nearly stopped his heart.
Gentleness and care be damned, he needed her now. Shoving his hand beneath her dress, he found her as bare and ready as shed been the day before. Hot, wet, and whimpering with desire as his finger probed her depths.
Without pretense, he yanked up her dress to her waist then lifted her, positioning her sheath to his height. As she wrapped her bare thighs around his waist, he pushed inside her, filling her in a single, perfect thrust.
Heaven. Nothing in his entire life had ever felt more right. He thrust into her, over and over, pressing her against the tree at her back until she was gasping and moaning with pleasure. Within moments, her release broke over her with a cry, her inner muscles contracting hard around him, driving him over the edge.
Look at me, she cried on a husky groan.
As his seed pumped into her, his body and mind open as they only were during sexual release, he stared into her passion glazed eyes.
And froze.
Im sorry, warrior, she said softly, her eyes no longer the simple sky blue of a humans.
As darkness swallowed his vision from the outside in, he stared into blue eyes now rimmed in copper and knew his luck had followed his caution into oblivion.
For the second time in his life, hed fallen into the trap of a Mage.
CHAPTER 24
Shes alive.
Tighe felt the Hummers upholstery at his back, but his mind was fully with Delaney as he watched her through the clones eyes. But even as he rejoiced in her survival, he wondered how long it would last.
He felt Wulfes big hand on his shoulder. Any identifiers?
None. Shes in a kitchen, I think. She was on her stomach on a polished wood floor lined with blue paint, in a room swarming with flies, a kneethe clones kneefirmly planted in her back. While Tighe was forced to watch, hands that looked like his own stripped the sweater and bra from the body of the woman Tighe would right now give his life to protect.
The bastard flipped her onto her back. Delaneys eyes glittered with hatred, lanced through with pain. And fear.
Fury roared in Tighes ears, melding with the sound of the chaos as his fingers began to burn.
Stay in your skin! Wulfe growled. She wont stand a chance if you lose it.
Delaney. Goddess. Delaney.
He took deep breaths, fighting back the chaos. She needed him.
She tried to hit the clone, one feminine hand flying into his eyes only to be stopped and wrenched to the floor where a length of rope lay waiting. With Tighes own nimble fingers, the clone tied the rope tight around her wrist.
Delaney tugged, but her hand went nowhere. Tighe saw why. The rope had been attached to an eyebolt screwed into the floor. As if the clone had planned everything.
Of course he planned it, he muttered.
Planned what? Hawke asked.
Hes tying her to the floor. Already had the eyebolts and rope ready.
Why? Why her?
Who knows. He must have seen us together. At the Lincoln Memorial. During that first apartment fire. He could have been anywhere. Anyone.
The clone slammed his knee into the crevice beneath her rib cage, making her eyes bulge with pain as he yanked her other arm wide from her body and tied her second wrist.
Delaney grabbed the ropes, lifted her hips, and kicked hard at her captors face, but her strength and speed were no match for a Ferals, and the clones were. He grabbed her heels and pulled off her boots and socks, one after another as tears glistened in furious brown eyes.
She was right there. Right there. Close enough to reach out and touch, and he couldnt help her.
He gripped the seat, his stomach cramping.
Jesus! Hes shredding the bleeding upholstery. Jags voice. Wulfe, do something!
How about I bang your head into the steering wheel? Wulfe snarled. Cant you see he has bigger concerns than your damn car? We all do!
Tighe heard a low moan and realized it had come from his own throat. I cant help her. Shes fighting him, and I cant help her!
With little effort, the clone stripped off her jeans and panties and tied first one ankle, then the other, to the last two eyebolts, spreading her wide.
Goddess.
Then he reached for her.
Tighes roar of fury threatened to shatter the Hummers windows.
Stay in your skin!
He has her. He stripped her. Hes touching her. The sight of that demons hands reaching between her legs
His head pounded with the force of his fury. His fingers burned. The chaos swirled at the edges of his mind, black fingers of darkness curling toward him, ready to hook around him and pull him in. His claws began to unsheathe.
Tighe! Hes not going to rape her. He doesnt have any blood in that body, and a cock cant rise without blood. Hes just trying to scare her. Whatever he does, shes alive, buddy. As long as shes alive, you can get her back. But youve got to stay in your skin.
He fought the darkness, pushing away the fury. She needed him. Needed him.
Slowly, painfully, he pulled himself back from that edge, his thoughts clinging to Delaney. She had to be terrified. He knew she was strong. If any woman could survive this mentally, it was his brown eyes. But he had to reach her. He had to save her. He had to stay in control.
You dont have enough fear in you, the clone said with a touch of disgust, at last pulling his hand away.
As he rose, Tighes own sight of Delaney widened. The blue paint staining the floor suddenly took on an ominous significance.
Shit.
What? Hawke demanded.
A pentagram. Shes lying in the middle of a Daemons sacrificial pentagram.
Stay in your skin!
Im in it! The vision ended. Tighe shook off Wulfes massive hand, a deep, furious growl rumbling in his chest at the thought of Delaney in that bastards clutches. His gaze flew to Hawke. Why the pentagram? Why does he have her in a sacrificial pentagram?
Easy, buddy, Hawke said. Daemons used pentagrams for any number of purposes, most of which we dont know. At least we know he caught her for a purpose other than to feed from her. We just dont know what it is.
Think, Tighe, Wulfe urged, his hand landing heavily on Tighes shoulder. What did you see in that vision? We need clues.
Tighe gripped his head, forcing himself to replay the scene though it tore strips from his soul. Nothing but impressions. A big house. Lots of trees in the backyard. No houses easily visible.
Could be around here, Hawke murmured.
Could be anywhere in the Mid-Atlantic, Tighe snapped, then took a shuddering breath. My gut says it was near here. He didnt take her far.
What else? Hawke prompted.
He saidright before the vision ended he told her she didnt have enough fear in her.
She wasnt feeding him. He may have gone to feed elsewhere.
Tighe closed his fingers around his hair until his scalp ached. Or he killed her.
Youd have seen it, Hawke said. Youre getting the visions again. At least when he feeds from Delaney.
Tighe lifted his head and speared his friend with his gaze. Why?
Goddess knows. The three of you are connected, thats all I can tell you. If he were feeding from her, I think youd be seeing it. But you may not see him feeding from anyone else. Delaneys probably still seeing those.
The shitbags probably setting another fire, Jag drawled.
I agree. Pull over, Jag. Hawke turned to look at them all. I think he has Delaney nearby, and hes going to set those fires the same. Ill take to the air. Wulfe, shift and try to pick up her scent. Jag, call Lyon, tell him what we know, get him or Kougar to get on the emergency bandwidths and listen for a fire to be called in, then drive through the neighborhoods looking yourselves. And keep Tighe in his skin.
Aye-aye, Admiral, Jag drawled.
Hawke opened the door, shifted, and flew out while Wulfe leaped from his own door on all fours.
Get the doors, Stripes. Looks like its just you and me, now, Wigout. Keep your eyes peeled for smoke.
Tighe pulled the two doors closed, then collapsed against the seat back as Jag called Feral House and filled them in. His body ached. Delaney. What have I done? If only Id bound myself to you. If only.
I see the fires. Hawkes voice sounded in his head. Hes got three houses on Birch Terrace circled with flames.
Im on my way. Tighe opened the door of the moving car and leaped out, shifting into his tiger in midair. Behind him he could hear Jags, Shit!, but he never slowed. He could get there faster on foot than Jag could in the car, and all that mattered was finding Delaney.