Cold Blooded

light shot out of the tips, consuming the car as we sped past.

The force of the combined hit brought the tires temporarily off the ground.

“Is the car going to hold?” I yelled, grabbing on to the door.

“We’re about to find out.” Rourke gnashed his teeth.

Magic vibrated all around us, sounding like cymbal crashes in my eardrums. I wasn’t sure if the witches’ spell on the car would hold against this many sorcerers firing at the same time. I fumbled for the handle, pushing power out of me in a rush, channeling it into the frame of the car. Help me fortify this. It may not work, but we have to give it a try. My wolf was one step ahead of me, fueling energy through us so quickly I felt light-headed as a mountain of gold strands erupted in my mind. My power signature was the color of sunlight. Aim it outward.

It was a simple transfer of power.

The car took it greedily.

I think it’s working. The car, which had glowed blue with the sorcerers’ magic for a moment, now turned a hazy golden yellow. There was a sizzling sound as the spell disintegrated completely and the car returned to its normal color, thank goodness, because driving around in a glowing car would be a problem.

Rourke’s foot hadn’t moved off the accelerator. It was too early in the morning for anyone to be up, so the streets were fairly clear, which was a lucky break. I glanced out the back window, but the sorcerers were long gone and no one appeared to be following us.

I eased back in my seat, relaxing my death grip on the door handle. “What’s the plan?” I asked as Rourke made several quick turns.

“We head out of town. I don’t know how far the sorcerers’ magic network stretches, but I know they need physical bodies to amplify their power. Without it they’re weak. That’s why there were so many of them maintaining the barrier. Once we’re out of the city limits, if you stay in the car, it will be almost impossible for them to track us.” Rourke’s gaze was locked on the rearview mirror. “We’re heading south now.” He finally turned to me. “I say we continue until we hit the Ozarks.”

My hands tingled with leftover adrenaline and I wrung them absentmindedly. We’d already planned to rendezvous in the Ozarks with Naomi and Ray, if he survived, in a few weeks. Rourke’s cabin in the woods had been the only mutual out-of-the-way meeting spot we all knew about and could come up with in a hurry. Plus it was on our way to New Orleans. But the plan had not been to stay there. Both the vamps and the rogue wolf pack knew the location. “Do you think that’s a wise idea to go there and stay for a while? Is it safe?”

“I’ve been turning it over in my mind and it’s highly unlikely the sorcerers know about it. The vamps aren’t interested in you, since you’ll be on their doorstep shortly,” he replied. My agreement to provide services to the vamps had not been an easy thing to tell him after we’d left Selene’s lair. To his credit, he’d taken it fairly well. If crushing boulders with his fists equaled taking it well. “Your father is busy dealing with the Southern wolves, so they’re occupied. If any of the fracture wolves had the balls to stick around after the fight, we can pick them off easily enough. They’re young and inexperienced.” The fracture pack had formed because of me, their prime objective being to eradicate me and form a new ruling power among the wolves. We’d fought them outside Rourke’s cabin. “And think about it, nobody would believe we’d be stupid enough to return. The Ozarks may be the best under-the-radar place we have.”

He had a point. “There’s only one complication I can think of, and his name is Hank Lauder,” I said. Hank had been an enemy of mine since birth and I’d recently killed his son in the same battle with the fracture pack. His last known location was in the Ozarks. According to my father, he’d never left the fight. And he was not young and inexperienced.

“So you’re saying there’s a chance a pissed-off werewolf out for revenge is hanging around on my mountain?” Rourke asked.

“It’s definitely a possibility. My father sent two wolves to track him before I left, but I don’t know if they were successful. We should talk to Tyler before we head out. He may have additional information and I want to let him know what we’re doing anyway. With any luck, he’s been in touch with our father by now. It’s been too long since we’ve heard from him. Drive by the Safe House on our way out of town—we’re not far from it.” I gestured to the right. “Take that street.”

He made the turn, but shook his head. “The Safe House is too risky. I’ll buy you a disposable phone and you can call him on the road.”

I turned in my seat, eyeing him. “Rourke, I understand your concern and I’m a reasonable girl. I promise to stay in the car. But I need to see my brother before we head out of town for good. If something’s up with my father, we can’t circle back here if we’re halfway to the Ozarks. Now’s the time or I don’t get a chance. I’m their Alpha now. I owe them a visit before I leave town.”

Rourke’s knuckles flexed on the steering wheel. “Fine,” he said. “But we can’t linger very long.” He ended on a teensy snarl.

I couldn’t really blame him. It was risky to stay in town when we didn’t have to, and making the adjustment to having me in his life after all those years alone with no one to question him had to be hard, but he had yet to really complain. I inhaled slowly, taking in his sweet scent. Molasses and cloves. My hand wound its way to the back of his neck, my fingertips brushing his nape softly. The man was gorgeous, so fierce and strong, and he had an innate protective nature that was not so different from the members of my own family. “I agree with you,” I said quietly. “I’ll talk to him quickly. In fact, you can pull over a block or two away if you want, and I’ll see if I can reach him internally first, and if we sense any trouble, we can skip it altogether.”

Rourke turned toward me, surprise lining his features. “That’s it?”

“What?” I chuckled. “Did you expect a tantrum? I told you I was a reasonable gal.”

“Well,” he said, giving me a sideways grin, “it’s been my experience with most women that once you —”

“Ah,” I interrupted, cutting him off cleanly. I angled my body to face him. “Rule number one to building a nice, healthy relationship with me is you never, ever start sentences with ‘in my experience with other women.’ Ever. In fact, that phrase should be stripped from your vocabulary starting right now. I know you’ve lived a long life, and I don’t begrudge any of your dalliances, but I don’t want to know about them. And if you haven’t already noticed, I’m not like ‘most’ women, so I don’t give a rat’s ass how they conduct themselves.”

A low sound came out of his chest, a mixture of need and want. “Believe me, I’ve noticed. You’re not like any female I’ve ever come across before.” His eyes found mine. “I’ve waited a long time for you.”

Chills raced up my spine as my wolf howled in pleasure. My lover, my protector, my mate. “I’ll be sure to remind you of that often, especially when you’re cursing me for making another rash decision that plunges us headfirst into trouble. Life with me isn’t going to be easy, Rourke. I hope you understand what you’re getting yourself into.”

He gave me a smoldering stare that raked the entire length of my body and sucked all the thoughts right out of my head. “My eyes are wide open.”

The need to consummate our bond rushed up in a fierce swirl of emotion, taking me by surprise. All my brain synapses fired at once. “That’s … that’s good to hear,” I stammered. Heat flushed my face. I knew bonding with him would cement us together in a new way and I was ready—my wolf was more than ready. She howled again. I wasn’t sure if the sudden reaction I was having to him was from all the adrenaline still racing through my veins or not.

But I didn’t care.

I wanted him.

Before I could put my need into words, Rourke nodded toward my passenger window, pulling the car over slowly. “Looks like our chat about stopping at the Safe House was a little premature after all.”

I turned and followed his gaze.

Outside, standing on the street corner in front of us, were my brother and Danny.

Wearing only their underwear.

5