Lorelei (5 page)

The woman always had a gentle glow about her, her pale skin a hint lighter than the average person. She wasn’t just fair, she was luminous. Her power made her appear otherworldly and it was a comforting, soothing hue.

This was not
that
. Whitney was pure white, not even the darker color of her marks visible. She wasn’t just painted with power, she was the embodiment of magic. She turned to him, white eyes boring into him, and the words boomed from her mouth. Not the lyrical tones that were familiar to him. No, this was power at its base and it throbbed through this hidden place.

“This is wrong.”

The message slammed into him, pummeling him with every syllable until he was sure his bones were crushed beneath their weight.

He didn’t know what was wrong, what had set Whitney off, but she was staring at him as if he could fix it. Instead of answering or begging for an explanation, he dug into himself and threw his magic at her, feeding her what he could. He felt sure she could repair whatever had gone wrong if she had enough power to feed her.

He was mistaken. So very, very mistaken.

That lightness pulsed and grew, revealing their destination. Only… it wasn’t what they’d aimed for. Dylan was familiar with the hotel’s décor. The attempts at soothing colors and delicate decorations.

That wasn’t what slowly came into focus.

No, it was dirty, grimy, and run down. The flooring that had once been a light brown was caked with God knew what. The walls were yellowed by cigarette smoke and the furniture was no more than cracked milk cartons with pieces of wood atop them.

That… that worried him.

But what terrified him was the fact that three wolves stared at their small group. Saliva dripped from their jaws, white fangs gleaming in the dim light, and their fur stood on end. An air of anticipation surrounded them and he knew they waited for them. Waited and craved their blood, ready to pounce the moment they fully materialized.

A fourth person stepped into view, standing tall and holding an aged book in his hands. His lips moved as if he read from the tome and it wasn’t until he raised his gaze that true fear struck Dylan.

Eyes so like his own stared back at him.

No.

The male grinned and a message was planted in Dylan’s mind. One word.

Yes.

The man’s attention shifted to the woman before him. Not Whitney. No, he followed his line of sight to Lorelei. His Lorelei.

Whitney whimpered and he noticed one tremble and then two and then more wrack her body. She was losing against their attacker, his rapid repetition of the spell overriding Whitney’s efforts.

No, he wouldn’t let the man win.

Ignoring the Ruling Warden Mate’s orders, he grasped Lorelei. He reached for his mate, wrapped his fingers around her arm and drew on the growing power that pulsed through her. It throbbed and punched its way into his body. It seared his veins as it traveled over his nerves and then he felt it slam into Whitney.

The Ruling Warden Mate screamed, the sound breaking into Dylan’s mind and he even saw the wolves and single male wince with the shout. That cringe was the last thing he saw before the dark stole him once again. It ripped them away from their would-be attackers and plunged them into midnight.

Less than a heartbeat later, light burst over them, throwing them from the airless darkness into bright hues.

Unsure of where they’d emerged, he reacted first and decided he’d apologize later. He roared, the change whipping through him in a blinding rush and he knew Lorelei’s magic spurred him to go even faster.

Clothes were burned away by the speed of his shift and rush of power, and he was quick to maneuver Whitney until she was atop Lorelei, leaving him to easily stand over the two women. He pulled his lips back, exposing his teeth as a rumbling, threatening growl escaped his muzzle. Whoever lingered would go through him to get to the females.

A sting hit him, blossoming in his chest, and he merely absorbed the pain, allowing it to flow over him in a gentle wave. The pain was nothing if it meant keeping the females from harm. He would gladly take it and more.

Roars and growls surrounded him, attacking from all sides, but it was merely those annoying stings and jabs that came forward.

Slowly the blinding light from Whitney and Lorelei eased, drawing into the women to reveal… A suite similar to his own, only this one was filled with familiar males and females.

Most importantly, Zeke. Zeke was there, half shifted, and his partner’s gaze flitted from wolf to wolf. He jerked and flexed and it was then that not only did the Ruling Alphas hold his friend physically captive, but Miles and Holden captured him with their magic as well.

Another rush of pain caused him to wince and he swung his gaze toward the source. Emmett and Levy. The Ruling Wardens were focused on him, their bodies flush with their magic. He suddenly realized the aches assaulting him came from those two. Another bolt flew through the air and he snapped at it with his jaws, his power using the wolf’s intent and disseminating it before it struck him.

“Dylan!” Zeke’s yell was followed by a snarl and then a grunt that had him refocusing on his partner. He noticed that Keller, one of the Ruling Alphas, sported a bloody nose. “You need to chill, man. I know it was scary, but you need to relax and let Whitney up. No one here is gonna hurt her or Lorelei, okay?”

Dylan let his glare hit each of the room’s occupants. He would kill them if they tried to injure either of the females.

“C’mon, D. You need to relax,” Zeke coaxed and he shot a questioning look to his partner. “I promise. They’re gonna help our mate. The whole teleporting thing isn’t fun, but you gotta let them through.”

Isn’t fun?

Talk about an understatement. No, it definitely hadn’t been fun.

And Dylan was fairly sure he knew why. Someone found a way to highjack their trip from the tenth floor to the Ruling Alpha’s suite.

No, it wasn’t just someone…

It was the patriarch of the eldest of the five families. Their line could be traced back a millennia. The male he saw now led his esteemed line and demanded blind obedience. So much like his father who perished last year at the hands of the Ruling Wardens and Whitney.

Yes, the wolf was very like his father.

Or rather,
their
father.

Lorelei’s body throbbed with every beat of her heart—hands pulsing and muscles clenching with each thump. She was conscious of each compression and every breath that slipped in and out of her lungs. Her nerves were alive and waiting for stimulation, on edge with anticipation of… something. She wasn’t sure what. She did know something, though. Pain no longer pummeled her with invisible hands while searing heat encompassed her.

She forced her eyes open, demanding her lids part and reveal the world. It took time, a demand or two, but the sticky eyelids finally separated. The grit and grime that came with waking covered her lashes and she instinctively brought her hand to her face.

Then she was reminded of why she was sleeping. The brightness she remembered was now a barely-there glow, but it lingered. As did the swirling marks that marred her skin. Each one was exactly like the next. Some larger, some smaller, but they were present.

She flipped her hand over, staring at the back and the gentle progression of the new texture as it went from hand to wrist to forearm and on until it disappeared beneath her top.

A top she didn’t recognize. She frowned, eyebrows lowering and coming together. The small movement stung, but that didn’t keep her from scowling at the fabric.

How… What…

She must have made some sort of sound because then a vaguely familiar woman was there, her presence filling her vision. Worry-filled dark brown eyes met hers, anxiousness and concern warring across her features.

“Hey, how are you feeling?” The words pounded through her mind and she moaned, squeezing her eyes shut against the sensations. The stranger winced. “That bad, huh? Okay.” She raised her hands and Lorelei spotted symbols similar to her own coating the other woman’s skin. “I’m gonna touch you real lightly and real slow and your magic isn’t gonna kick my ass, okay?”

Magic?

Wha—

Lorelei wasn’t able to finish thinking about her question before hands were on her. And something inside Lorelei reacted. It surged forward, pressing and stretching her skin until she thought she’d pop like a balloon.

“Yeah, your magic isn’t paying attention, hon. Maybe you can calm your heart a little and I’ll take some of this pain away.” The woman shoved the words past her gritted teeth.

Calm. She could almost do calm. Especially if calming meant this pain would cease. Lorelei didn’t even pretend to understand what the hell had happened to her, but she was all for putting an end to some of it.

So she looked into herself, closed her eyes, and sought the peacefulness that tended to remain just out of reach. She drew that safe and soothing feeling forward and sent it sliding through her body. She willed her muscles to unclench and ease as she slowed her breathing. With each new part of her that unclenched, more of the pain receded.

Thank God for yoga.

“That’s it.” The stranger sighed and her relief allowed Lorelei to calm further.

Soothed, she was able to explore her surroundings with her gaze. She lay atop a huge bed, the mattress massive and she realized it was easily king sized. Which meant the room was definitely big enough to hold something so massive. She let her stare travel further to the small sitting area off to the side, to the large dressers and the door that stood ajar to reveal the bathroom. A set of double doors was to the bathroom’s left, both snug and shut tight. The colors and patterns in the blanket’s fabric as well as the paintings that graced the walls told her she was still in the hotel.

“Where,” the word was hoarse and Lorelei cleared her throat. “Where am I? What’s going on? Why are you people doing this to me?”

“Oh, Lorelei.” The woman sighed and the soft click of a door unlatching cut off whatever she was about to say.

The panel swung open, just enough for a familiar face to peek past the opening. “I heard voices.”

Lorelei’s heart clenched and her lungs burned. Her eyes stung from new tears and she swallowed back a sob that threatened to explode from her chest. “Rebecca.”

Her sister. Her baby sister.

Rebecca eased into the room and gently swung the door shut behind her before padding toward Lorelei. “Hey, Lor.” Her sister stopped beside the bed and then took the stranger’s place at Lorelei’s side. “You stepped in it this time, huh?”

“Rebecca, we have to get out of here. We have to find a way out. I found this phone and the things it said and those guys…” She didn’t fight to stop the tears, letting one after another trail down her cheek. And then… then she voiced the words that made her a coward, but she was beyond caring. The fear, the pain, the overwhelming stress made her put voice to her emotions. There is no courage without fear. “I’m scared.”

“Oh, Lor-Lor. I was too, but it’s okay. I promise.”

Lorelei shook her head. “No, the texts and emails.
Werewolves,
Rebecca. And it hurt so bad and the light and…”

She shuddered. She’d managed to look composed, to keep her head on straight, but she needed a chance to fall apart. Then she could put herself back together.

“Hush.” Rebecca enveloped Lorelei’s hand with her own. “Hush, now. We’re gonna talk about all this. Remember when I was burned? When I was three? And you held my hand and you told me everything would be okay. That you’d protect me and I’d always be safe because you wouldn’t let anything happen to me ever again.”

Lorelei nodded. She remembered that time. Little three-year-old Rebecca got caught in a fire that burned her from ribs to upper thighs. Lorelei spent months at her sister’s side. Reading to her, playing games, and even when her mom told her to go to sleep, she’d always crawl into her youngest sister’s bed. She’d carefully hug Rebecca and promise everything would be okay. She promised.

“I promise you’re safe. I
promise
.” Rebecca echoed Lorelei’s thoughts.

Her sister glanced over her shoulder and called to the stranger. “Whitney?” The woman, Whitney, came closer and sat behind Rebecca, but still visible to Lorelei. “Lor, I want you to listen. I want you to listen and look at your hand and realize what you’re hearing is real. It’s the truth.”

Truth.

Lorelei looked at her hand, at the halo of light that hovered above her skin. Then she looked at the matching glimmer that encompassed Whitney.

“Okay.” She swallowed past the ball of emotion clouding her throat. “Okay, I’ll listen.”

And she did listen.

Lorelei listened as Whitney—
her cousin
—explained about werewolves. Told her there were stronger wolves, those that were different because of their dominance or ability to wield magic, and they weren’t like regular werewolves.

Alpha Pairs and Warden Pairs.

Alphas needed a female to keep their dominance in check and those human women carried a Mark on their skin. Wardens required a shared mate to strengthen them, but they didn’t have visible Marks until they met their mates.

At one point, it was thought that Warden Pairs didn’t have mates, but in truth, they were hidden by a twisting perversion of magic. Now, they were revealed and summoned to the Gathering.

Whitney was the mate of the Ruling Wardens.

Rebecca was mated to two alphas.

“You have a Mark?” Lorelei kept her attention on Rebecca and tension filled her sister’s features.

“Yes, it was… destroyed in the fire.”

Lorelei squeezed her sister’s hand. “Oh, Rebecca…”

“It was on purpose, Lor.” A tear trailed down Rebecca’s face and her sister brushed it away. “No one knew about Warden Born women, but our family has a history of producing Alpha Marked girls. Grandma had a bad mating and…” Rebecca brushed another droplet from her face. “They burned me on purpose. If they’d known about Warden Born, I’m sure they would have done something to you and Paisley as well.”