Pack Possessed, page 15
part #4 of Thrown to the Wolves Series
Acheron smiles from his perch, elbows resting on the railing he’s leaning back against casually. “Your packmate invited me, remember?”
At my look of confusion, he clarifies, “Kaige’s message. I had a few things to take care of first, so I brought Aure- Sabrina a gift to show my apologies for the delay.” He gestures to the dead wolf lying at my feet, and the sudden urge to vomit is nearly overwhelming.
Sliding into the driver’s seat, my counterpart gives me a chance to collect myself. “I hate to tell you, but it doesn’t really go with the decor; no fireplace to throw a rug in front of. Might I suggest a nice throw pillow or a Ferrari instead?”
Behind me, Reid wraps a hand around the edge of the door, forcing it open enough that he can stand in the doorway with me. “For someone that’s trying to get in her good graces so she’ll make all of your demonic little dreams come true, throwing a back-handed gift in her face is a bold choice.”
“It was a lot easier to protect the idiot when he had his face glued to his laptop,” my demon grumbles before plastering a smile on our face.
“Our first new friend in this place?” Shaking my head with a sigh, I add, “You really should learn to play nicely with others if you’re going to expect them to enlist in your army.”
“Everything okay?” Sabrina’s sleep-laden voice has my entire body tensing, wanting to slam the door and super glue it shut, but I know it’d be futile. The only way we’re going to be able to kill Acheron Wilder is if he gives us an opening. And the only way we’re going to get an opening is if we play along so we can slip past his defenses.
“Yep, just telling your buddy Ash here that Marco makes a better guard dog than a throw rug, but looks like we were both wrong.”
It’s the only way we can warn her before she sees the macabre gift to give her a chance to brace herself. You can only be so prepared in this situation, though, but that’s the beauty of it all. We already anticipate the worst. The bad shit is going to happen either way, so our energy is better spent finding the humor where we can and going with the flow.
After a brief hesitation she asks, “Who’s Marco?”
Reid snorts a silent laugh. “Test subject one.”
“Gotcha, sorry.” Rubbing her eyes, she appears behind us. “Too many people and connections to keep track of these days, thank god for Slade’s notebook.” The cool, calculated voice of Aurelia takes over as they catch sight of the wolf on our doorstep. “So, it’s true.” At Ash’s raised eyebrow, she smirks. “You can’t teach an old dog new tricks.”
Tongue in cheek, Ash takes a second to compose himself before he grins. “What can I say? It felt too poetic of an opportunity to pass up.”
She looks down and sighs in resignation. “Yes, we get it, you’re always watching. Noted. Was there something else you wanted to prattle on about, or can I go back to sleep?”
Kicking off of the railing, he rises to his full height. “I’d wondered if your icy demeanor might thaw a bit after all of this time, but you’re just as welcoming as ever, aren’t you my little demon?”
A low growl proceeds Hunter joining us at the door, and he doesn’t hesitate to wrap an arm around her waist, pulling her into his bare chest. Shooting a glare at Acheron over her shoulder, he declares, “She isn’t your little anything. Whatever you want to say, spit it out so she can get some rest. You do want her at full strength as soon as possible, right?”
Now that I know to look for it, I catch the brief flash of excitement that lights up his umber eyes at the challenge Hunter laid out. “Kaige brought up a valid point about me needing to put in more effort to show Sabrina that I was serious in my claims. Therefore, I’d like the eight of you to join me for dinner tonight. There are several things we need to discuss, and it would serve to ease a bit of the tension, I’d imagine.”
“Things such as...?”
He flicks his gaze over me quickly, and whatever he finds in his assessment he files away before I can get a read on his reaction. To Sabrina, he keeps the smile in place, and I internally scowl. While Sabrina’s demon low-key intimidates me and I’ve had some reservations where her motives are concerned, I’m firmly on Team Aurelia now. Acheron Wilder is just the sort of person you really want to blow up, consequences be damned.
“I presume Sabrina desires the finer details on how to actually free the demons without harming their human counterparts, as well as what to expect once those trapped beneath the mountain emerge.” He smirks. “After all, we don’t want a repeat of Aurelia’s performance and wind up with another mess to clean up.”
Grinding my teeth to combat the impulse to wipe the smug look off of his face, I lean against the doorframe. Tucking my gun away, I occupy my hands by stealing one of Sabrina’s, tracing patterns across her skin with the tip of my finger.
This time when she speaks, it’s all Sabrina. “This is one of those fun situations where we don’t really have a choice, isn’t it?”
Biting back his amusement, he counters, “I wouldn’t say that. The discussion needs to take place regardless, it’s simply a matter of under what circumstances. Consider it more... an olive branch.”
Twisting in Hunter’s arms so she can face me, she studies the invisible pictures I’m creating on her skin instead of the man holding a proverbial axe to all of our necks. I have to press my lips into a flat line to stave off a grin as in my peripherals, I catch the corner of Ash’s eye twitch once at her sleight.
“Fine; dinner. It’s a win-win, really. If it’s poisoned, we get to bypass this whole ordeal, and if it’s not, we get a cheat sheet and free food,” she quips. “When and where?”
“Seven at Cipriano’s?” he suggests, and she loses the game of playing disinterested.
Searching his face, she finds nothing but satisfaction at finally gaining her full attention. “You’re letting us leave the mountain?”
Clucking his tongue in faux indignation, he tucks his hands casually in his pockets. “You may be a prisoner, Aurelia, but it’s of your own making, not mine. Though I’ve kept an eye on you, I left you well enough alone unless the need arose for me to intervene, but even then, I was subtle about it so you could have as much freedom as possible. Now that the block is gone, though, it changes things. You attract danger, so you require several escorts, that’s all. Obviously I’d like you to stay close until after this situation is dealt with, but I never expected you to stay here forever.”
He reaches a hand like he means to caress her face, and at the last second, I use my grip on her hand to tug her out of Hunter’s grip and stumbling into Reid’s side, subtly flipping Ash off. By the time she’s straightening up, sending me a warning look for playing with fire, Ash has flawlessly concealed his slip of shooting me an annoyed glare.
“Then it sounds like you’re right,” she concedes. “We have plenty to discuss. How far of a drive is it so that we leave on time?”
For a minute, I expect him to insist on her riding with him and then conveniently forgetting he drives a two-seater and the rest of us will need to be left behind. Apparently, though, he’s willing to pick his battles, because he announces, “About an hour.”
Reid looks like he’s two seconds away from shifting, and if it weren’t for the fact that I don’t want him to get hurt like Bo did, I’d love nothing more than to see him snap and tear this bastard limb from limb. As much as I hate the fact that my twin has reached the point we may as well be strangers, I’m sort of happy about it, as insane as that sounds.
Back when my demon and I realized that Sabrina had claimed us, I was terrified, but relieved that it was us, because I knew it would mess with Reid’s head. All of my life I’ve been trying to protect him from the world, and from himself. Now, he has what I’ve always secretly wanted for him; someone that can protect him better than I ever could, so I won’t have to anymore.
I’m not even sure if the thought is mine or my demon’s, we’re so intertwined at this point. He’s such a pivotal factor in my identity, I don’t know who I am without him, but I’m starting to make my peace with that. We both want to take care of the people we care about, to fight for them until they’re able to fight for themselves.
Sabrina gives him a two fingered, mocking salute. “See you then.” And promptly pulls me out of the way so she can shut the door in his face.
With a heavy exhale, she opts for humor to combat the tension in the air. “So, who wants to place bets on if we make it to the SUV and truck without getting eaten alive? Because I’m going to go out on a limb and say that Kaige’s pack isn’t going to be too happy with him after he mutilated that guy and hasn’t slid back into his leadership role, let alone if word spreads that the Slaughters’ pack is getting first dibs on our miracle drug.”
Hunter steals her back from me with a derisive scoff. Throwing her over his shoulder, he storms off back to the bedroom. “After that speech? I’ll be shocked if there isn’t a damn red carpet rolled out from here to the truck.”
***
“Just one more thing.”
Glancing down with a smile to where I’m kneeling at her feet, Sabrina playfully waggles her eyebrows. “A kiss for good luck?”
Lifting the hem of her white sundress, I slide the leather straps into place around her thigh. After everything is tightened, I slip the obsidian dagger that I gave her what feels like a lifetime ago into it.
“Not a bad idea.” Starting at her ankle, I gently skim my fingertips up the back of her leg. Pressing a kiss above her knee, I slowly work my way higher and over the straps, up to her underwear. “I might be down here all night, though.”
“If only,” she says on a wistful sigh, reluctantly encouraging me to stand. Fixing the hem of her dress so it conceals the dagger, her amusement falls away as her nerves take over. “I really hate this.”
Palming the nape of her neck, I rest my forehead against hers and whisper, “So do I.” I only allow us a few seconds to lament our situation before shaking it off. “But think of it this way. We have leverage until after you do what he needs. It’s then that we really need to worry, so we may as well consider this a much needed break from this godsforsaken place. A free meal and a change of scenery as the evil villain confesses all of the details to his diabolical plans. Maybe we’ll get lucky and he’ll give us an opening so you can stab him in the eye. Might not kill him, but you have to admit, it would be a fun way to end an evening.”
Tilting her chin up, she captures my lips in a lingering kiss. “It would, wouldn’t it? In case that falls through, though, want to over-order so we can bring home leftovers?”
Slinging an arm around her shoulders, I guide her to the main room where the others are waiting for us. “Bleed him dry in every meaning of the words; I like the way you think, angel.”
***
“We are woefully underdressed.”
As soon as the doors close behind us, it becomes abundantly clear that Ash picked this place in a blatant attempt to impress her. Even with Sabrina and Slade dressed on the nicer side of the spectrum, we stick out like sore thumbs.
Low lighting makes the colors of the illuminated, circular waterfall in the center of the restaurant stand out as a focal point. As the colors slowly shift through the spectrum, it changes the tone of the atmosphere in a romantic way that I hate to admit, is actually impressive. It dances off of the empty glassware laid out on dark wooden tables, and by the reservation cards marking every table in sight, they’re planning on a full house when they officially open in an hour.
“For Mr. Wilder’s party, correct?” the hostess asks. At Slade’s nod, she makes a note in the leather book before snapping it shut. “Follow me, please.”
Striding away from the stand at a brisk pace, the hostess leads us across the main dining space to a closed door, holding it open for us to proceed her into the private room. Ash is already here waiting, seated at the head of a long table with a glass of wine in hand, and another of the illuminated waterfalls spanning the wall at his back. All of us hesitate, unsure of how to handle the seating arrangement. Obviously we’re going to put Sabrina as far away from this sociopath as possible, but we may have to draw straws to see which two of us are going to be the unlucky bastards that get stuck sitting beside him.
While Slade makes a point of pulling out Sabrina’s chair for her, I use the opportunity to slip into the seat to her right, and it sets off a chain of frantic musical chairs. The rest of the guys hastily attempt to snag the good seats, leaving Damian cursing under his breath and Slade shooting a narrowed glare at all of us.
With a swift kiss to Sabrina’s cheek, my eldest brother makes his way to the last open seat; at Acheron’s right hand. “I was the only one that was an actual gentleman. Why am I being punished?”
To my right, Bo suggests, “Nice guys finish last?”
Ash rolls his eyes, but doesn’t comment on everyone acting like his presence is akin to the plague. “Sabrina, you look lovely as always.”
She gives a hum of acknowledgment, but doesn’t reply. A low, displeased rumble starts up in my head, and I’m banking on it lasting the entire night. Treating it like white noise, I skim the wine list. There aren’t any prices on the menu; if you have to ask, you can’t afford it, mentality. Unfortunately for Ash’s wallet, the events that Slade dragged us to over the years were filled with men of a similar mindset, always attempting to flaunt their wealth. Several of the brand names are familiar, and I offer some self-serving suggestions to guide my lovely mate’s choice. She may make jokes, but these sorts of situations always leave her uncomfortable. Me? Not in the slightest.
From his place squished between Bo and Slade, Kaige announces, “I’m thinking one bottle isn’t going to be enough for all of us to get through tonight.”
Eight simultaneous forms of, “Agreed,” ring out, and when Ash chuckles, it somehow turns the tone around to make it sound like we’re petulant children that he’s humoring with all of the patience in the world. That cuts off the low rumble in my head and I can actually feel his wolfish grin as he comes to a decision.
Please don’t. We need to at least semi-behave while we pump him for information.
“Semi-behaving is my specialty.”
Mentally, I shoot him a warning glare. So is pissing people off.
He simply writhes around beneath the surface of my skin, his sudden excitement putting me on edge. “We need to get him emotional so he’ll make a mistake. Don’t worry, I know how to toe the line; just ask Slade.”
When the waitress appears, she begins with Sabrina before going to the opposite end to wait on Ash, then jumping around to Hunter, Kaige, and Damian before me and my brothers. I catch a glimpse of Hunter’s raised eyebrow, and have to take a sip of water to hide my own amusement. Those three weren’t privy to the sort of etiquette games and sleights that my brothers and I grew up with, so if even he’s noticing, Ash wanted to make it abundantly clear.
He chose the three of them to be her mates, but considers himself the primary leader of the group. My brothers and I are tolerated, but weren’t part of his plan and messed up his timeline, so we’re ranked at the bottom in order of significance in his eyes.
He thinks himself top dog, but even the worst alphas I’ve met have their pack’s best interests at heart and sacrifice their own joy at times in order to take care of them. Acheron Wilder may have the ability to siphon feral energy, but he’s no alpha. He’s a poison infecting everything he touches, a cancerous limb that needs severed.
“So,” Sabrina awkwardly states to break up the tense silence, “where do we begin?”
Ash adjusts the cuffs on his black dress shirt and rests his chin on his threaded fingers. “Wherever you’d like.”
More perceptive than he gives her credit for, Sabrina turns to me. “I’ve lost track of the endless list of questions. Cin? Where do you think we should start?”
“How about why he even needs you to do his dirty work if he’s spent centuries amassing his power?”
With a polite smile, she looks to Ash expectantly. “That’s as good of a place as any. After all, you have a valid point. Aurelia’s stories are just that; stories, the same as yours. Better off gathering as many renditions of events and facts as possible so I can make my own conclusions.”
“Flawless, I tell you,” my inner demon praises. “Subtly exploiting a topic that annoys him while seeming to play into his hand the next. Gods, do I love this woman.”
The waitress returns with a small cart, distributing drinks in the same order she took them, leaving the bottles of whiskey and wine on the table without being asked. Writing down all of our dinner requests, she disappears again, closing the door behind her.
“Because a Nightmare’s abilities are... complicated.” Finishing off his glass, Ash pours himself another. “Yes, some of the strongest of us can wield the energy we take in to a certain degree as I can, but ultimately, our power is rooted in influencing people’s realities and guiding them in the directions that we want. Aurelia, on the other hand, siphoned from the other demons on the mountain and in turn, gained their abilities. It’s how she was able to physically manifest her intent; even if it was too much for her to control.”
Sabrina lifts her glass. “And there’s no way you can replicate that? You’ve managed to artificially come up with a solution to free people’s wolves without any demonic magic involved whatsoever. Or heck, go siphon from some other shifters.”
At that Ash stiffens. “Stone was... reluctant to assist me in remedying the situation after how wildly off the rails it went the first time he was involved and has actively orchestrated against me. It’s safer for all of the wolves that we remain on the fringes of shifter society for now.”
The enemy of my enemy is my friend. Hello, Stone, my new best buddy.
Falling back into a casual approach, Ash gestures at Sabrina’s eyes. “And seeing as the shards were useless without the stone that was absorbed into Aurelia, I had to get creative. Thus, here you are.”
