Cold Blooded

“They came on their own,” he said. “I had nothing to do with that. But Marcy and James are the ones to be thanked. They arrived shortly after I jumped the wall. James shifted and finally contacted Callum. He’s been rallying the Pack out here since they started showing up. We have a good contingency assembled now.”

I turned to Marcy. “How did you guys find us?”

“We were trailing the sorcerers who kidnapped me. We knew they were going after you, because I’d overhead them scheming, so when they abruptly headed south, we followed. We ended up here, and once we saw Nick, we knew there was big trouble—which was no surprise, since trouble follows you like a horde of angry bees to honey.” She grinned. “So we adopted a new, sparkly agenda that included saving you from the bad sorcerers and the evil demons.”

I glanced around me for the first time. “What is this place?” We stood in the middle of a large barricade made up of what appeared to be car parts. “Marcy, did you make a fort?”

“Yes, and it’s spelled,” Marcy said proudly. “James ripped the cars apart to protect me and I spelled it. That’s why it hurt your head. It’s meant to stun anyone who touches it. But when I saw it was you, I snapped my fingers and, voilà, you were cured. No more massive head injury.”

“We’ve secured the perimeter around this entire area,” Nick said, gesturing to a wider arc. I didn’t see any Pack wolves. I could only hear them, so the contained area had to be a lot bigger. “The Pack has managed to keep the fracture wolves back, except the one who just snuck through. I also found I can use my persuasion to some degree on the younger sorcerers and the low-level imps. I’ve managed to convince a few to abandon their plans, but it won’t hold for long. The High Priests are starting to show up and that means they will call up Demon Lords. Things are about to get heavy.”

We heard some commotion to the left and James came into view. He strode up. “Hello, Jessica, it’s good to see you are well.”

I reached out to give him a hug.

“Don’t even think about it, missy.” Marcy’s voice held an order. “He’s mine. A simple handshake will do. No touching anymore. Like ever.”

I stifled a laugh and reached out to shake his hand. “James, it’s such a relief to see you here. My father will be happy to hear you’ve coordinated things on this side.”

“I don’t know if ‘happy’ is the correct word,” James said. “But we have spoken and he has been … amiable. It was by chance I shifted when I did and called out to him. He wouldn’t tell me what was wrong, but I told him you were here and he changed his course.”

“If you hadn’t done that, he would’ve died,” I said firmly. “We owe you and I’m certain he will welcome you back when he understands the scope of what went on. And I can see I was right in thinking you’d gone after your mate.” I addressed Marcy. “Congrats, by the way. He’s quite a catch.”

“Thank you. I’m keeping him.” She preened as she glanced at him with adoration and genuine happiness.

James nodded once.

As always, he was a man of few words.

For the first time I noted their appearances. They were both dirty, clothes ripped. Marcy’s stellar red hair, which always looked impeccably styled, hung loosely around her shoulders. It was clear whatever they’d been through had been rough.

“The feral wolves in the fracture pack are cursed. We need to warn the Pack to stay away from them. One bite and they’re deadly to us,” I said. “My father said they’d been made.”

“What?” Nick exclaimed. “That can’t be right. Shifters can’t be made.”

“That’s what he believes,” I cautioned. “And now that I’ve seen one, I have to agree. They’re not normal wolves and if we engage them, it could be fatal.”

“Then it’s time for me to shift,” James said. “We’ll have to change our focus from the demons to the wolves if that’s the case. The demons want you, but the wolves will fight us to the death no matter what.”

I peered out into the night. “Speaking of shifting, Rourke should’ve been here by now,” I said. “I wonder what happened?” A shiver ran through me at the thought the curse had touched him. But I would’ve known, or felt something, so I tried to relax.

“I haven’t seen anyone else come over the wall,” Marcy said. “But if he’s anything like mine, they growl a lot when you’re not around.”

I made a move to leave the junkyard fort, but Nick caught my arm. “Jess, you can’t go back out there. It’s better if you stay in here. Once the demons know you’re here, they’ll come soon enough.” He shook his head. “What’s happening here shouldn’t even be possible. Sorcerers don’t have the power to summon Lords. No one can. So it’s clear they’ve made a prior agreement with each other, which makes the entire thing unprecedented on the biggest level.”

I shivered, remembering the Demon Lord in the cave.

“The sorcerers want my life force,” I said, “but the demons think I’m an outlaw, powerful enough to rule their race if I were given the opportunity. They want to stop me at all costs. I have a court date in the Underworld already, and once the date arrives, the Lord said I would pop to that plane automatically. But if that’s the case, why are they here now?” None of it made much sense.

“I have no idea, Jess,” Nick said. “All the information I have about the Underworld is strictly from books. They are intensely powerful and their magic feels strange and foreign.”

He was right. “Foreign” was a good word. It tasted strange, more than just sulfur. It had an odd undertone.

Something flew over the wall in front of us.

It howled on the way down, crashing into a nearby Dumpster. It was an imp. There was a ferocious roar and another one flew over, greasy hair flying. Then Rourke’s entire body smashed through a hole in the wall.

He was livid, his arms braced.

I crossed my arms. “There’s my guy now.” I smiled at Marcy. “He must’ve come across some more trouble. The ward has completely fallen, because the imps must be coming in from the other side. Can he see us?”

“Holy caveman. He can see us, but we look like human bag ladies watching the show from behind a heap of scrap metal.” Marcy chuckled.

I glanced at her sideways. “You know, you never cease to amaze me.” Marcy had definitely found her groove. There was a time when she’d suffered from a lack of confidence, which had kept her out of her aunt’s Coven, but the world wasn’t dealing with the same girl any longer. Her recent adventures had changed her in a big way. “Did I mention I’m glad you’re alive? Not only do I love seeing your smiling face but if you’d have turned up dead, I would’ve followed you shortly if Tally had anything to say about it.”

“Yeah, she’s a cranky old bitty. She would zap you into never-never land just because she can. But can you believe she showed up here?” she exclaimed. “She never does anything for anyone. So consider yourself part of the elite. But, honestly, do you know how much this is going to cost you? Witches never do anything for free. You’ll never make another dime. All your future paychecks are going straight to the Coven.”

“Not this time,” I said, shaking my head. “She’s fighting for you, not me. I’m pretty sure she’s here because Maggie told her to come. That child probably had another vision and said, ‘If the wolf lady gets killed, Auntie Marcy will die.’ So Tally felt compelled to come to save her favorite niece.”

“Isn’t Maggie a little charmer? Spooky as hell, but you can’t help wanting to give those cheeks a squeeze. I love her up every time I see her. But I also plug my ears whenever she starts chanting. Some things are better left unknown.”

“You got that right,” I said.

“Jessica, where are you?” Rourke’s bellow was just short of manic. “The low-level demons have broken through the wall. If they have you, I’m going to tear this place apart.”

“I’m right in front of you,” I called, waving. “But you have to come inside the barricade to see it’s me.”

He paced closer, growling fiercely. “The vamps have disappeared. They were there one second and gone the next. The witches seem to know what’s going on, however, and are prepared to fight. Whatever’s stocked in their ammo is working on the imps.” He lifted his nose to scent the area. “I can smell you, but I can’t see you.”

“Keep walking. Marcy has spelled a small area. Once you get closer, you should see a couple of old ladies. Did the curse get on anyone?”

“Yes, one of the witches who was coming around the yard got sprayed, but Ray is on it.” He made his way over to us. “Tally has him by the neck, even though he’s cooperating. She doesn’t trust him not to drink her witch dry.”

“What about my dad?” He had taken off like the rest of us.

“I haven’t seen him,” he said, coming closer. “I see three old ladies, one who smells like you.”

“Three?” Nick said. “He thinks I’m an old lady?” He turned to Marcy with a questioning glance.

Marcy pressed her lips together and replied, “Gender bending is hard, so you get lumped in, my friend. My spell reads lady, so lady it is.”

Just before Rourke reached us, flames erupted in a single circle around Marcy’s blockade, separating us.

“Jess!” Nick yelled, grabbing my arm. “We have to get out. This is a demon circle!” He leapt around a car door, pulling me along.

I didn’t need any urging. I was right behind him. “Go, go! I’m following you.”

“Jessica,” Rourke yelled. “The flames won’t kill you. Get the hell out!”