Rosette followed Kyle toward the back of the rig. Dee undid the locks and levers and threw the doors open. None of the warriors or security people got in front of the doors when they were opened. They waited for instructions.
Rosette pushed into her mate's mind and felt his discomfort with this situation. Some deep instinct told him to be cautious, that there was danger very near. Softly, she told him she felt the same way.Dee stood looking at them and pointed into the truck."Your shit's in there," she said. "Get it the fuck out. I'm not touching it anymore.""Hell of a mouth you've got, Dee," Will said, passing in front of the open doors and walking toward her.She backed away from him and the truck. "I got his word," she said, pointing at Kyle, "I get to leave. Don't touch me."A warm breeze came through the trees and pushed into the trailer. The wind billowed back out at them, and they gagged as a group. Rotten, putrid flesh assaulted their senses.Rosette followed her mate through the woods to the circle. There wasn't any reason to tap into his mind right now. It was obvious just looking at him; he was seething mad. The source had been a member of his pack. All the destruction caused across the country had started on his home turf. Rage was radiating from him.When they reached it, Kyle stopped her from stepping in the circle. Looking in, she saw Ethan and the others had built a simple wooden funeral pyre in the center. They were laying the body on it when they got there. At Kyle's command, they lit the kindling underneath and bolted back so they were outside the circle of stones.Kyle reached for her hand as he watched the scene before them."The body will release its energy when it starts to burn. The circle is meant to contain magic. We will be safe out here," he said in that level voice she'd come to dread.The kindling burned slowly, catching the larger pieces on fire. Suddenly the light hit the body,
"She is cooperating, Alpha Luther, may she have some water?" Will asked.Kyle nodded, and a pitcher and glass appeared before them a moment later. Kyle poured a glass for Dee and gestured for her to take it. She hesitantly accepted the water and took a sip, seemingly reassured that it wasn't poisoned, she finished the entire glass."Thank you," she said, nodding to Kyle and then looking at Will.Will patted her back reassuringly and encouraged her to continue.Juniper had told Dee about a woman who had approached her with strange questions a year earlier. The woman knew Juniper lived with werewolves and was curious about their potential cooperation. Juniper had initially been intrigued, as the woman offered a substantial sum of money in exchange for a simple task from one of the boys.The woman had piqued Juniper's curiosity. Juniper had visited her home and confirmed she was a witch. Juniper, never one to resist a good heist, had later broken into the woman
Will grinned triumphantly and pulled Dee closer, kissing her forehead. She seemed a little taken aback by the gesture, but she didn't resist."I should go check on Juniper," Rosette told Kyle, "Sarah is good with human injuries, but only to a point.""Go," Kyle instructed, "come back to the security suite when you are done. I think this night is far from over.""I would like to come with you, ma'am," Dee said, rising from her chair. "I'd also like to see how Juniper is doing."Dee and Rosette headed quickly down the hall to where the infirmary was. It was an offshoot of the secure room, so it had much of the same protection. One of Sarah's assistants buzzed them in when they reached the door.They walked into the room Sarah directed them to. Juniper was laying in a bed surrounded by her brothers and Roel. They all looked concerned. Rosette took her time examining Juniper before talking to them.Juniper was resting, attached to a monitor on the wal
"You told me you would protect me," Dee said, pointing at Kyle, "you can't do that dead. You need to take a tactical approach to this. Force will only get you so far. They are prepared for force.""Odds are they know you are coming. They are probably waiting for you to bring your so-called army. They will cut you down in an instant," she ranted, her voice rising.The room had gone strangely quiet as the warriors tried to pretend they weren't watching and listening.Kyle growled and towered over Dee. "I will have you removed from my security center and placed downstairs if you can't control yourself. This is my territory you are in. I will protect it and I will protect you. The witches are not prepared for the full weight of my attack. We will destroy them before they are able to mount any resistance.""Kyle, just listen to her," Rosette argued softly. "What harm could more information do? Maybe there is a better way to do this. Perhaps charging in is a bad idea.
That was the most accurate way Rosette could have hoped for a human to describe it."Plan," Dee said, taking a curve much too fast, "we need a plan to make them stop. At least they need to pause before they hit the estate's security. Maybe if they see what's in front of them they'll stop."Dee laughed at her. She'd been on the fringes of society her entire life. She knew werewolves. According to her, they would only stop if the Alpha said stop."They'd run into my semi going full speed if the Alpha told them to," she said. "You're different. I don't know if it's because of your rank or what. You don't feel the pull to follow his lead like the others do. For them, the compulsion is non-negotiable.""Can you get us inside the house?" Rosette asked her. "Do you know enough about the security systems to shut some of them down before they get there?"Dee grinned at her and told her yes. She'd just avoided the security last night, but she was sure she could turn i
"You forced us to do this your way, mate," Kyle answered. "Of course we are here, but we are biding our time. Does Dee know where the back up generator is?"Rosette asked her, and she quietly told her downstairs on the other side of the house. She gave specific directions, and Kyle heard her through Rosette."Let us turn off the distribution system for the potion," Rosette told Kyle, "and then you can do whatever you want.""Be careful," Kyle warned. "If I get one hint something is wrong, we are coming in, whether it is off or not."Dee moved them into the security suite, and there were several armed men inside. They laughed when they saw two women walk in. Rosette dispatched two with the hunting knife rapidly, but the third got a shot off before she killed him.Rosette barred the door to the security suite as Dee started to press buttons on the panels in front of them.Outside the door, Rosette could hear the stamping of feet as the witches realized th
Dee got off Rosette's back, she collapsed to the ground, almost too weak to move. She wanted to curl up, lick her wounds, and sleep. Dee refused to let her crawl back into the undergrowth, which is what she wanted to do."Shift!" she screamed at her, and Rosette did, falling back to a human form.Dee lifted her into the passenger side of the truck and got in the driver's seat.Rosette saw her fiddle with the area under the steering wheel for a moment, and the truck roared to life. It struck her that she'd left the keys in her clothes, which she had torn off in the security room of the burning house."Damn it, damn it, damn it," Dee cursed, looking over at her, "you aren't dressed, and you're covered in blood. If we get pulled over, this is going to look so bad. This road is going to be crawling with cops pretty soon."She was right; Rosette had to keep her wits about her."There's got to be a blanket or something in the back," she said, turning to dig around behind their seats.The p
"He won't kill you," Rosette muttered, trying to make her mouth work. "He may chain you up in Will's bedroom for a while."It was funny to her, but apparently not to Dee. She started to load her weapon.Kyle stood in the middle of the road about twenty-five yards away. His arms were folded across his chest. Apparently, he had gone to the fight prepared, because he was dressed in a tight black t-shirt and black cargo pants. He even had black boots on. Kyle looked commanding.Rosette's brain felt hazy, and she focused inanely on his clothes. She was jealous of his outfit and wiggled her naked feet. Well, that's what she got for rushing in half-cocked. She lost her shoe privileges."I want shoes," she told Dee.Her eyes were huge, and she stared at Rosette, mouth agape. "What the fuck, man?" she asked rhetorically.Dee must have panicked because Rosette watched her shove the truck into reverse and hit the accelerator. The tires spun but they didn't go anywhere. Dee cursed again and hit t