Wolfsbane, A Paranormal/Urban Fantasy (The Maurin Kincaide Series) Read online

  "It's not an effect. It's not even supposed to be there." I pushed past the anger and tried to think. "Damn it, Arawn!" I shouted, even though I didn't think he could hear me cursing his name. I pulled my shirts back over my head and forced my arms through the sleeves, not caring if he caught a glimpse of my bra.

  Cash didn't know it yet but we were taking a little detour on our way to the challenge. I grabbed his hand before he realized what I was doing and could pull away. My one bedroom apartment slipped from my sight, quickly replaced with the familiar grounds outside of the vampire keep.

  Gallows Hill park. Arawn had told me that if I came through the between here he would know. I was counting on it. I stood my ground, waiting to ask my father why I suddenly had a tattoo running down my spine.

  "I thought I told you not to do that anymore!" Cash roared.

  "Oh quit complaining. It's not that bad. Aidan does it all the time. Are you saying there's something he can do that you can't?" I don't know why I was rattling his cage.

  "It pulls my wolf closer to the surface. I almost shifted this time." His voice was rough.

  "Sorry, I didn't know." I admitted.

  "Well now you do, so don't do it again." He stiffened at my expression. "What?"

  "We'll have to travel in the between one more time tonight if you want to make it to the challenge." I mumbled.

  "If I lose because of you I will come back and haunt the shit out of you. I will make your bedroom my permanent ghostly residence." He may have been making a joke but the seriousness of the situation suddenly hit me.

  The challenge was to the death. Even if he yielded, not that Cash ever would, Roul was within his rights to kill him. It was a good possibility Cash would be dead by the end of the night. I struggled for a moment with the feelings that seemed to stir up. I was about to erase the awkwardness I felt with a joke about how Aidan would probably have something to say about him spending his afterlife in my apartment.

  Before I could reply my father appeared. "Maurin. I didn't expect to see you tonight."

  "Arawn." He tilted his head, looking at me sideways. "Father." I ground out.

  "You wish to speak with me?" He asked, his eyes flitting around taking everything in. "I see you brought one dog with you, but not the one I assigned. Where is Conry?"

  I didn't say anything. I forgot to bring him with me. Again. I couldn't take him to the luncheon, even Arawn would give me that, but here I was heading off on another Council task and had left my guardian at home. A growl formed at the back of Cash's throat over the dog comment. I shook my head.

  "I was a little distracted by the Celtic knots running down my spine." I told him.

  "You will have to do better than that daughter. Life is full of distractions. That is why I gave him to you. So that there was always someone at your back." With a wave of his hand reality parted and Conry slipped through the between. I could almost see my apartment behind him.

  Conry came to stand beside me and my nerves instantly calmed. I gave him a couple scratches behind his ears and a pat on his massive side. "Good boy." I whispered and brought my attention back to my father.

  "May I see the marks?" He asked as if it was no big deal. I turned around, tugging at the collar again. "The between is accepting you. This is wonderful."

  "The between is accepting me?" I asked, totally confused. "You make it sound like a sorority or something."

  "No, but it is a force. It is magic that allows you to move through the place between realities. It has been getting easier hasn't it?" He said, referring to my practice sessions with Aidan.

  "Yes." I hadn't even broken a sweat moving with Cash tonight and he resisted pretty hard the second time.

  "The magic has marked you. Think of it as a tuning fork, resonating your body to the right pitch to move through the between without having to breakdown reality." He explained.

  "That's how you do it. That first night, you moved three of us with you through the between like a hot knife through butter." I said.

  Rather than say anything he pushed up the sleeves of his sapphire tunic exposing a helix of Celtic knots running up his arm. "It's the same design as mine." I gasped.

  "More proof you are my daughter." He moved closer.

  Cash cleared his throat loudly, looking at his watch. "This is all really touching, but I've got some where I'm supposed to be."

  Arawn's expression darkened and his grip tightened around the hilt of the short sword fastened to his leather belt. He shook his head to clear away the anger. "You would do well to remember your place wolf. You are not an Alpha yet. Daughter, we will continue this conversation another time." And just like that he was gone.

  "Cash, you need to watch yourself around him. He's not bound by Council law." I warned.

  "That guy likes to hear himself talk. I don't have all night." Cash snapped.

  "We've got plenty of time. I can have us at the challenge in sixty seconds." I said confidently.

  "No you can't. I told you I wasn't doing that again. We'll go borrow one of Agrona's cars." He crossed his arms stubbornly over his chest.

  "Quit being such a baby. If I don't have to focus so hard on breaking down reality I can concentrate more on keeping it from bothering you." I told him. "Now, where are we going?"

  "Winter Island."

  Of course, why would it be anywhere else?

  3

  I brought us to the spot on Winter Island where Cash had found me contemplating a swim through the bitter Atlantic to a small boat anchored just off shore in a last ditch effort to get Matthison and myself off the island. I shivered both from the cold and memories of what had happened here. Cash moved closer and I soaked up the warmth from his hot blooded nature coming off of him in waves. Conry was facing the old hanger, ears pricked up, twitching as he listened for something or someone. A growl soft at first began to rumble up from his chest. It was the first time since Arawn gave him to me that he truly tried to warn me. His growl vibrated through my bones, making my teeth chatter. I spun around, pushing past Cash as my guardian sounded off a warning. I was expecting to see that death itself had finally come to claim me. I wouldn't have been surprised. I had evaded it too many times already.

  I couldn't reconcile what was right in front of me with what Conry was trying to tell me. Olwyn? Why was Conry reacting to her this way? Maybe he was picking up on her feelings toward Cash and we were just getting caught in the crossfire. Olwyn was throwing some serious hate Cash's way and I just happened to be standing in front of him.

  "It's okay Conry, it's okay boy." I stroked his back, trying to reassure him Olwyn was our friend.

  "Maurin, if I didn't know better I would say you were sleeping with the enemy. You're not slipping him any pack secrets over pillow talk I hope." Olwyn was eyeing Cash, still behind me in a protective stance.

  "I don't know any pack secrets and not that it's any of your business but the only one keeping my bed warm is my dog." I said wondering where this was going.

  "That's because vampires are cold blooded dear. Pity you let Agrona get her fangs into you so easily. How do you do it? Spending time with a wolf during the day and a vampire at night? I hope exhaustion won't impede your ability to do your duty tonight." There was anger in her voice.

  I knew it didn't have anything to do with vampires or Cash. Well maybe that had a little to do with it. She was close to Mahalia though and I had a sneaking suspicion she blamed me for Mahalia's incarceration with the Fae. That was what Conry was picking up on. Funny how Olwyn seemed to forget the part where Mahalia tried to kill me.

  "Nobody has their fangs in me." I shot back suddenly on the defensive. "And I wouldn't call banging on Cash's door every morning at three o'clock yelling at him to turn his TV down spending time together. Of course if Roul was so concerned about Cash moving into my apartment building he should have held the challenge a couple weeks ago."

  Olwyn didn't say anything else, instead she gave me a look that said you don't belong here. Yup, s
he was somehow holding me responsible for Mahalia's punishment. Well bring it on bitch, I thought. I spent a lifetime on the receiving end of looks like that. I wasn't planning on backing down. The Council expected me to witness the challenge and I was going to do just that. Screw her and her misplaced anger. She should have been pissed her best friend turned out to be a lying, murderous bitch.

  We followed her into the old hanger and I was immediately assaulted with memories. I could practically smell the blood that still stained the concrete floor. Mine, Matthison's and the Butcher's. 'You said I could keep her. She likes to play my games.' I could hear the Butcher's voice in my head. I thought I scrubbed those words from my mind like I had scrubbed his blood from my body. My hand was on my mid section, splayed across the spot where he would have carved another message to the Coven before I snapped myself out of it. I had killed the Butcher. It seemed that despite having healed the cuts and bruises the Butcher's blocky hands had inflicted on my body, my mind had not done the same.

  Olwyn was watching me with satisfaction. I assumed she had selected the location and it had had the desired effect. She stood across from me, elegant even in her casual attire of jeans, riding boots and perfectly tailored cream leather jacket, with a look of mock innocence.

  I shoved the memory of the Butcher from my mind and tried to focus. What had changed since the first night I met her at Baylen's? I had aligned myself with her and her husband, done everything they asked leading up to tonight -including blowing off my sister- and she wanted to play mind games? Perhaps I had chosen the wrong side. After all, it was Cash that had found me when I was branded and beaten beyond recognition. When my friend's life was hanging by a thread it was Cash who got him to the hospital. He stuck with me at Mahalia's when I confronted Oberon and has never asked for anything in return. I sucked in a breath when it dawned on me. Somewhere along the way Cash and I had become friends. And everyone here knew it. Now Olwyn had two reasons not to like me.

  There wasn't a friendly face in the crowd surrounding Roul for Cash or myself. Conry's hackles were up as the snarls got louder with our approach. I kept my hand on his back in an effort to comfort the both of us. We were at the edge of the pack's circle and I could feel their collective growl hum through my body. I looked across the "ring" at Roul. There was a look of betrayal on his face. I shrugged my shoulders, as if to say this is your fault. You're the one who practically glued him to my ass. He surprised me with a nod that seemed to say I know.

  Tybalt stepped forward and let out a growl that commanded everyone's attention. Apparently he was playing the role of master of ceremonies tonight. "The challenger will step forward."

  Cash shrugged out of his black Carhardt jacket, dropping it at my feet before walking to the center of the room. He rolled his shoulders a few times and cracked his neck. Muscles rippled beneath his shirt and for the first time I saw just how much strength he kept caged inside. I had caught a glimpse of the Alpha he could become in the helicopter a few weeks ago when he saw the brand on my neck. Anger rolled off him in waves that night, enough to have every wolf in the chopper with us on the verge of shifting. Still, I had under estimated him, distracted by his arrogance and smart ass comments. No wonder Roul had been putting this off.

  Tybalt's booming voice filled the room again when he called the Alpha forward. Roul met Cash in the center of the makeshift ring. They stood there toe to toe facing off like boxers in a championship fight with Tybalt in between them as referee. He stepped back to the edge of the ring signaling the battle for Alpha had begun. The opponents circled each other cautiously at first. Roul swung with a right. Cash easily dodged it. Suddenly they were on each other in a blur of fists. It was hard to tell who was winning. When one of them seemed to be gaining ground the other rallied.

  Blood and sweat flew as Roul and Cash each landed blows. The scales seemed to tip in the reigning Alpha's favor when Roul slashed Cash's stomach in a move I hadn't known was possible. Roul had partially shifted, arming himself with the massive paws and deadly claws of his wolf. My heart was suddenly in my throat. Could Cash shift his hands too? I didn't think shifting completely into his wolf would help him against the half wolf fighting him.

  Blood soaked the front of Cash's shirt. Roul had shifted his face. His sneer made more terrifying by powerful jaws and deadly canines as he pressed his advantage. Cash swung with a shifted hand, connecting his paw with the side of Roul's face. Cash's claws sliced through Roul's left eye and cheek. I stifled a cheer as I caught sight of Olwyn. Terror flashed across her face as she realized for the first time how close she was to losing her mate. They were hoping Roul's ability to partially shift would give him the upper hand in the fight. I knew from the fear in her eyes that they hadn't known Cash could as well. Was that something only an Alpha was supposed to be able to do? I was suddenly hyper aware of how little I actually knew about the wolves. I wouldn't get an answer to the questions swirling around in my mind until the challenge was over. The sound of snapping jaws brought my attention back to the fight.

  Two fully shifted massive wolves circled each other in the ring. It occurred to me that I had never seen Cash shift. I had fought with him against a demon horde but it was always a man at my side. If he had shifted during the battle I hadn't been there to see it. The murmurs from the crowd said I wasn't the only one who had never see Cash shift. I hadn't expected a timber wolf. While they were evenly matched as men, Cash was easily twice the size of Roul as a wolf.

  Black fur momentarily blocked my view as Roul pounced on his opponent. Snarling jaws snapped and tore into flesh and fur as the two wolves tried to kill each other. Cash clamped down on Roul's front right leg. Blood welled up, seeping out the side of Cash's jaws. Roul bit down hard on the scruff of Cash's neck staining his fur red. There was the distinct sound of breaking bones. Roul whimpered and released his grip on the back of Cash's neck, limping back toward the edge of the circle. Cash stalked forward. Thinking he had Roul on the ropes he moved in for the kill. He pushed off of his hind legs, lunging forward but in his rush to finish the Alpha he made a novice mistake. I couldn't help the gasp that escaped my mouth as soon as I saw it.

  Roul waited until the last possible second. Just as Cash was about to take him down, he caught the exposed neck of his challenger in his vice like jaws. He wrestled Cash to his back, never loosening his grip on his neck. Cash shifted back, vulnerable as a man, naked and covered in blood beneath a wolf. I fought the urge to call the fight. I shuffled my feet, ready to jump in between them and put an end to it. This was insane, no one had to die.

  Tybalt laid a heavy hand on my shoulder, squeezing harder than necessary. "Don't even think about it. The penalty for interfering in a challenge is death. Just to clarify, that applies to the Council Liaison." I tried to shake him off but he wasn't letting me go.

  Roul's paws were on Cash's chest, pressing him into the concrete as he crushed his windpipe. Cash struggled to get out from under the huge wolf. Roul sensed the end was near and clamped down tighter. I didn't want to watch this. If someone told me twenty four hours ago I would mourn the loss of Cash I would have laughed in their face. Now that the moment was here I struggled with the emotions that swelled in my chest. Eyes closed, I dropped my head. I couldn't bear to watch him die.

  Small but powerful fingers grabbed my chin hard enough to bruise and forced my head up. "Open your eyes." Olwyn demanded. I met her cold eyes with a steely gaze of my own, gaining confidence from Conry's growls. She jerked my head to the side, bringing the fight back into full view. I kept a hand on my guardian to make sure he didn't break any pack rules. I had a feeling Olwyn was trying to push one of us over the edge. She was so confident in her husband's victory she never took her eyes off me. Conry never took his eyes off her.

  Cash had a hand on both of Roul's jaw. He managed to wedge his fingers between his neck and Roul's teeth. His eyes met mine. My brain struggled to process the confidence I saw on his face. Didn't he know he was losing? What the? Was that a wink?
Cash's lips curved up in a half smile as he took in my confusion. Without ever breaking eye contact he began to force Roul's jaws apart. Blood flowed freely from the puncture wounds in his neck. Cash's biceps flexed as he unleashed the power coiled inside them. It cost Roul more energy than he could afford to hold Cash in that position for so long. Roul couldn't finish him off and Cash knew it. With a swift jerk Cash ripped Roul's jaws apart. Cash slipped an arm around Roul's neck and wrapped his other hand around the muzzle. Roul's bottom jaw flapped around unsupported as Cash snapped his neck. He pushed Roul's body off to the side and got up. He stood over the dead Alpha and howled.

  With shaking hands Olwyn released her grip on my face. She watched in shock as her pack knelt to recognize their new Alpha. Their new Alpha! Her husband was dead. Tremors racked her body and I felt her shift before I saw it. There was shouting. People yelling grab her, stop her. She was airborne and headed straight for Cash, snarling ferociously. She was all beast, the woman in her died with her mate. Anticipating this would happen Cash was ready for her. Just before she landed on him he connected a backhand that sent her soaring across the room. The blow would have killed a mortal woman but Olwyn didn't stay down for long. After collapsing on her first attempt to stand, she found her second wind. Fueled by the insanity losing one's mate obviously caused she lunged again. Cash thwarted her attack just as easily the second time.

  Before I had the chance to wonder why no one was making a serious effort to stop her I was crushed beneath the massive weight of her wolf. I was struggling to push her off me, trying desperately to keep her from clamping down with her long canines and puncturing my flesh. I didn't know if I could be turned but I had no desire to find out. When I was attacked by the Afrit I hadn't been able to stop poison from spreading through my body alone. Would I have the same kind of reaction to a wolf bite? Aidan wasn't back from Iceland yet and I was pretty sure I wouldn't be getting any Alicorn from the Coven. I needed to keep her teeth away from my body but I could feel her cold, wet nose press against mine. Damn, she weighed more as a wolf than I would have imagined. I screamed her name in an effort to call the woman I knew forward but there was no recognition in the wild eyes of her wolf. I called for Conry. Where was he? I hammered fist after fist into her ribs with my right hand all the while keeping my left forearm crushed against her throat. She yelped and I knew my guardian had a hold of her. Hot, stank wolf breath assaulted me. She was still too close. Conry's teeth dug into her hind leg. He managed to drag her off of me enough for me to jam my fingers into her eye. She finally reared back. Without the combined weight of Olwyn and Conry pressing me into the concrete I was finally able to buck her off. Conry never let go of her hind quarter, dragging her further away. I scrambled to my feet, instinctively reaching for my sword. I knew I would have to kill her to stop her. She was too far gone for there to be any other outcome.