Suck It by Linsey Hall
6
Mac
As I followed the woman through the bar, all I could think was oh shit, oh shit, oh shit.
I’d imagined that Drakon and I would find the location of the secret meeting and eavesdrop through the door.
Nope.
Looked like I was on the planning committee, and I had no freaking idea if I was supposed to talk at this thing. Maybe I could get away with keeping my mouth shut. I hoped so. I had no idea what kind of accent Caitlin had, and though I could do a neutral American one all right, I wasn’t sure about Texan.
The dark-haired woman led me to an unassuming wooden door and then down a quiet hallway to a room at the back. We entered a brightly lit room full of shifters seated at a long rectangular table.
The left side was occupied by people wearing primarily black. The right by those wearing red. There was a clear divide between the two—both physically and emotionally.
These groups did not like each other.
I looked down at my shirt.
Red.
That meant that the reds were the McCabes, since that was the name I’d seen on the license earlier.
The woman next to me wore the same color, so when she turned right to find a seat, I joined her. Nerves prickled along my skin as I took a brief inspection of each person in the room.
The Alphas were obvious. They sat at either end of the table, their magical signatures the most powerful. The Donahue Alpha in black was a woman with dark hair and even darker eyes. She was striking in a way that screamed power and beauty.
The McCabe Alpha was a pale haired man with broad shoulders and ice blue eyes. He had the calm control of a soldier, an aura that radiated from him to fill the room. The woman scowled at him.
He just smiled back.
Clearly,they didn’t like each other. Or, at least, she didn’t like him. He seemed to like her just fine.
One more person slipped into the room and took a seat by the female alpha. A moment later, she leaned forward. “Now that we’re all here, let’s get this over with.”
The McCabe Alpha grinned. “Of course, though I’m delighted to be here.”
The woman twitched, and I was sure she was biting back a hiss. Instead, she said, “We’ve checked with the groundskeepers at Thunder Plains. Everything is ready for the festival tomorrow afternoon.”
Thunder Plains. That had to be where the festival was being held. I’d actually heard of it before. It was a famous section of Texas grassland reserved for supernatural use. I’d never been, of course, but spots like that were fairly rare, and Eve had once mentioned it.
And the festival was happening tomorrow afternoon. So soon.
Thank fates we’d found out in time.
McCabe nodded. “Good. We are prepared with the equipment for the events.”
Donahue pursed her lips. “All right. We’ll begin the opening ceremonies, of course.”
“Whoa now.” McCabe smiled. “We haven’t discussed that.”
“That’s why this is the planning meeting. And I’m telling you what we’re planning.”
“Well, it just so happens that we want to start the opening events.”
“Too late.” Antagonism radiated from Donahue.
Fates, if this was how the two packs planned a community event, no wonder they were at odds.
“It’s never too late.” There was something heavy to McCabe’s voice that made me sit up and take notice.
It wasn’t something bad—no, I was sure that it had nothing to do with the antagonism between the packs and more to do with the antagonism between him and Donahue.
They were both attractive and young, so maybe…
Yep.
The heated look that Donahue gave McCabe confirmed my suspicions. There was something there. Unfortunately, my job wasn’t to detect a possibly romantic relationship between the two alphas.
“We’ll flip a coin, then,” McCabe said.
There was some more arguing, but eventually they flipped a coin and determined that McCabe would start the events. The look Donahue sent him could have melted glass.
“So, what do you think of this threat from Glencarrough?” McCabe asked.
The angry heat in her gaze turned thoughtful, and it was easy to see why she was Alpha. Her pack came first, and she was dedicated to them. “If it’s real, we’ll handle it.”
Damned idiot.
“Agreed,” McCabe said. “There’s no reason to believe it’s real, and if it is, we’ll have no trouble neutralizing the threat. We’ll increase security, and that will be that.”
That will be that.
Oh fates, that kind of cockiness wouldn’t serve them well when Ludovic attacked. Memories of his power shot through me, chilling my skin and making my mind buzz. Even with our help, these shifters were sitting ducks.
“But the threat—” I broke off when McCabe’s gaze snapped toward me.
Horror shot though me. Had I just spoken?
Shit. I had.
I hadn’t been able to help myself.
“Caitlin, was that just you?” The ice in McCabe’s voice sent a shiver down my spine.
Next to me, the woman who’d brought me to the meeting looked like she wanted to sink into the floor. Apparently, I’d just broken a major rule.
“Um—”
McCabe’s brow flattened. “You know better than to speak at a meeting like this.”
“Of course. It’s just that the threat—”
I broke off when his eyes turned even stormier. Okay, making excuses wasn’t going to work. I snapped my mouth shut and hoped I could get out of there before he realized I was an impostor.
When he tilted his head and his gaze narrowed in on me, that hope fled.
“There’s something different about you,” he said.
Shit.
He inhaled deeply, his eyes flashing. “Your scent has changed.”
The woman next to me turned to glare.
My mind raced. How did I answer? Say that I hadn’t had a shower in a while? That probably wouldn’t work.
Shit, shit, shit.
Donahue pushed her chair back. “What’s going on?”
I stiffened, mind racing as I tried to figure out how to get the hell out of there.
When the door slammed open behind me, a sense of foreboding rushed through me.
A man stood in the doorway, panting. “Two bodies have been found outside!”
I wanted to sink into the floor.
“Which ones?” McCabe snapped.
“Caitlin McCabe and Tom O’Leary.”
Shiiit.
McCabe’s gaze snapped to me. “You’re an impostor.”
“I—” I stood, backing away from the chair. “No, I’m here to help.”
All eleven shifters at the table rose to face me.
Well, this was bad.
Quick as I could, I yanked potion bombs from my pockets and hurled them at the nearest bodies. The glass orbs crashed into chests, knocking their victims unconscious as I tried to dart toward the door. The shifters were too fast, however. They grabbed me by the arms as and dragged me back in.
McCabe and Donahue came around to face me, their expressions creased with anger and suspicion.
“Who are you?” McCabe demanded.
“I’m just trying to help, I swear.”
“Bullshit.” McCabe looked mad enough to spit.
Of course he didn’t believe me.
They’d been so resistant to help before. And would they even believe me after what I’d done to two of their pack mates? I hadn’t truly hurt them, but I’d attacked.
And it wasn’t like my motives were totally selfless. I wanted to catch Ludovic to save my own skin almost as much as I wanted to help the shifters. I was no saint.
They didn’t give me a chance to defend myself.
McCabe heaved a disgusted sigh and gestured with his right hand in a shooing motion. “Take her to the interrogation room.”
My pulse thundered. They had a freaking interrogation room in their bar?
“Wait!”
They ignored me, and two shifters dragged me out of the room and down the hall. I struggled against them.
Should I scream?
It would bring Drakon to me. But it might also bring more shifters. Right now, I could maybe take these guys. Especially now that we were out of sight of the meeting room.
Two against one weren’t bad odds.
I lifted my feet up so my legs dropped out from under me. I’d tried the trick with the demon who’d attacked me on the train. Maybe it would work again.
The shifters both lost their grip, and I rolled away from their grasp. I popped up into a crouch and kicked one of them in the knee, hearing a sickening crunch. He shouted and toppled over. I dodged away from the other, but he was too fast. With a snakelike maneuver, he gripped my bicep and hauled me up against him. He was so damned big that he managed to tuck me under his arm like an oddly long football.
I punched him in the gut as he carted me down the hall, trying to aim for the most delicate organs. He grunted and flinched, but never let go.
A moment later, he hurled me into a windowless room. A single chair sat in the middle, and I swallowed hard.
Shit.
That was kind of scary. It brought to mind movies with gross interrogation scenes. As much as violence played a role in my everyday life, this kind of violence made me sick. Especially if it was going to be enacted against me.
I swung around and faced him. “You guys are really almost not worth helping, you know that?”
He stared stonily back.
I gave him a disgusted look and paced around to put the chair between us. It wasn’t bolted to the ground, which meant it could be a weapon.
When a shadowy figure appeared in the door behind my captor, my heart leapt.
Drakon.
And yet, when the figure stepped into the light, it was clearly McCabe. He had the same tall, muscular build as Drakon.
Damn it.
“You’re going to tell me why you’re here.” He paced toward me, eyes cold. “And why you impersonated my pack mate.”
“I—”
Before I could get a single word out, Drakon appeared behind McCabe. He was still in the form of Tom, but I recognized him all the same. The icy glint in his eyes was unmistakable. The cold light sent a streak of fear through me. For a moment, I thought he might break McCabe’s neck before the man even realized the vampire was behind him.
I shook my head.
Drakon didn’t seem to notice.
He grabbed McCabe by the back of the shirt and whirled him around, then delivered a vicious punch to his jaw. McCabe swayed on his feet, but I didn't wait around to see if he fell. I picked up the chair and swung it at the other guard, slamming it toward his skull.
He blocked it with a forearm, and I let go of the chair, plowing my shoulder into his gut. A great gust of air whooshed out of him as I forced him into the ground.
“We’ll figure out what you’re up to,” he spat.
“Oh, suck it.” Straddling him, I plowed my fist into his jaw.
The blow was precise enough that his eyes rolled back and he slumped unconscious. I grinned and hopped to my feet. I’d had plenty of chances to practice that punch while working in The Hound, and it was nice to see it come in handy.
The sound of fists smacking flesh drew my attention toward Drakon. He fought two shifters nearly as big as him. They hadn’t transformed yet, but they looked like they spent a hell of a lot time in the gym.
Drakon delivered fierce, precision punches as the men tried to land their own blows. They didn’t stand a chance. I left Drakon to it and darted around him, nearly colliding with a third shifter.
The woman had bright yellow eyes that gleamed with wolfy ferocity, and she looked seconds away from shifting. I didn’t want to run into her fangs, so I kicked out and landed a blow to her gut.
Her breath rushed out of her as she gripped her stomach, but she straightened herself almost immediately and swung for my face.
I ducked, but wasn’t quick enough. Her fist, which was adorned with a big ring, grazed my cheek. Pain flared as the skin broke open, and annoyance blazed through me.
As I straightened myself, she shrieked.
Genevieve had appeared and leapt onto her back. The badger pulled at her hair with strong claws, her bright eyes on mine. Get out of here.
I spun around to see Drakon knock the last of his opponents to the ground.
“Come on.” His voice was rough with the heat of battle.
We sprinted from the room, leaving Genevieve to take care of the shifter who was now screeching as the badger tore at her hair. She couldn’t get a grip on the furry beast, and I did not envy her.
The next room with an open door was empty, and there was a large glass window behind a desk.
“This will do.” Drakon hurled toward it and charged through the glass.
It shattered, letting in a rush of warm Texas air. I leapt out after him, feeling the protection charm around the bar disappear.
“Come here.” He held out a hand, and I raced to him.
I gripped his palm, feeling warmth race up my arm. He yanked me to him and wrapped an arm around my waist, a far more intense embrace than we’d ever shared for transporting. The ether pulled us in and spun us through space.
All I could feel was my connection with Drakon—every place where our skin touched, the intense heat of his body melding with mine.
When we arrived on the front step of his castle, I barely had time to process where we were.
“Mac.” Concern creased his brow.
Sometime during out trip through the ether, he’d transformed back to himself. I could feel that my body was back to normal as well, though I still wore the borrowed clothes.
His eyes gleamed with an intensity that sent a shiver through me. He’d been worried about me. I could feel it like I could feel the bite in the air.
His gaze traced over my face, and the tension in the air tightened unbearably. My heaving breaths pressed my chest against his, and my arms were still wrapped around his neck.
All of the adrenaline and fear that had surged through my veins transformed into heat. Suddenly, there was only him and me. The connection between us was impossible to resist. It felt like it had been there for a millennia, growing in strength with every second until we were here—embracing in the cold wind on the Romanian mountaintop he called home.
His gaze burned into me, thick with heat and desire. His perfect jaw clenched, as if he were trying to hold himself back.
Don’t.
I couldn’t help it. No matter how bad he was for me, no matter how dangerous, I had to feel his lips against mine.
I crushed my mouth to his, tightening my arms around his neck. He groaned, a sound rich with pained desire, and I felt the switch click inside him. It was as if he’d been waiting for this forever, and he wouldn’t fight it anymore.
We kissed like the world would end. As far as I was concerned, it did. The cold drifted away, the ground beneath my feet disappeared, and all I could feel was Drakon. His strong arms wrapped around me, pulling me close to his chest. I gripped his broad shoulders, wanting to tear the shirt from his back.
His lips were ravenous against mine as he kissed me like he’d die if he didn’t. When they traced toward my neck, I shivered with delight. The heat of his tongue on my skin sent desire racing through me.