The Strip (37 page)

“I don’t know if you’ve ever even tried to take anyone with you when you’ve traveled trough the curse before, Cole,” Lily continued, softly, as she turned back around to pin Malcolm with her golden gaze. “But it’s obvious that Charlie can do it now. She can take people with her. All that seems to be required is a touch.”

“You mean, I can travel to these places, before anyone gets hurt, and I can kick some major serial killer ass and save lots of innocent people?” Charlie asked suddenly, an edge of excitement to her tone.

Everybody in the room blinked and all eyes were on her. “What?” she asked. “Why are you looking at me like that? It’s true, isn’t it? That’s what Lily’s saying. With this gift, I can save people.”

“It isn’t a gift, Charlie. It’s a curse,” Cole said softly.

“No, it was a curse for
you
. But for me, maybe it’s something different. Something better.”

“She’s right,” Lily agreed. “The potential to do good here is immense. You have to admit that.”

Cole’s grip on his own hands tightened and he seemed to be struggling with something. Finally, he spoke through somewhat gritted teeth, “Why do our mates keep acquiring powers that put them in danger like this?”

“An excellent question, Cole.” The Overseer sighed and faced the alpha. “I don’t have an answer to it, either. No one does. Except, perhaps, my brother.”

Charlie froze where she was on the sofa. Had she heard him right?

“He seems to believe that Dormants are given these powers as they are made wolves to further aid our survival. Charlie and Lily are not the only two-”

Charlie whirled on her grandfather, her ice blue eyes flashing. “Your
brother
?”

Alexander didn’t even flinch. He’d obviously been expecting this reaction. And he could read her mind. “Yes, Charlie. He’s your great uncle. Unfortunately, there has been some love lost between us. We’re a tad… estranged.”

“I have a great uncle?” she asked.

Kavanagh sighed. “Technically, yes. But I’m afraid I must forbid you from having anything to do with him, Charlie. The man is dangerous. His views are twisted. He can’t be trusted.”

Charlie sat, staring at her grandfather, as this information sank in. And then she straightened, her chin up. “You
forbid
me?”

Kavanagh blinked. He must not have read that thought coming.

Cole cleared his throat. “Charlie, your grandfather is the council Overseer – ”

“No one forbids me from doing anything,” Charlie said, her tone low, her voice tight. She had just about had enough of the macho nature of alpha werewolves. “But you can reason with me, if you like. And I might agree with you.” Her jaw was set and she could almost feel her light blue eyes flashing in warning. “I suggest you give it a try first.”

The inhabitants of the room had grown quiet. Charlie’s gaze skirted from Cole to her grandfather; both were looking at her with the strangest expressions on their faces. But Lily was smiling.

And from where he sat at the table a few feet away, Jessie Graves began to chuckle. Charlie turned to look up at him. His amber eyes were sparkling and his smile was a proud smile. He shook his head in wonder and, when the other two men in the room turned to pin him with hard gazes, his chuckle broke out into a full-blown belly laugh, deep and rumbling and beautiful.

“Be careful, gentlemen,” Lily stated, a mischievous air to her tone. “Revolutions happen for a reason.”

And right now, I can royally kick ass
, thought Charlie, as she recalled the speed with which she’d been capable of moving at Maria’s house; the pain she’d been able to doll out to Phelan. She felt incredibly strong. Capable.

She felt… an
absence
of fear.

It was what she’d always strived for. With each trainer she’d tried, with every class she’d attended and every large friend she’d made, it had been her goal. Now it was finally hers. She could walk the street alone if she chose, and, aside from Gabriel Phelan and that inhuman warlock, no man would be able to hurt her.

Not any more.

“Very well.” Alexander was suddenly trying to hide a smile of his own. “Charlie, please do me the favor of staying away from your great uncle. He doesn’t have your best interests in mind.”

Charlie nodded. Once. “I’ll do my best.”

At that, Lily stood. “I have to go. James and Tabbie are waiting for me outside.”

“Wait.” Cole stood as well. “What about the pain?” he asked, gesturing to Charlie’s arms. “Is there anything we can do to lessen it?”

Charlie’s stomach clenched. She looked up at her mate. As tall and strong as he was, he seemed burdened by a weight that he very much wanted to get rid of and didn’t know how to. He seemed desperate in this. It made him appear almost human.

Lily’s mouth opened as if she were going to say something, and then she paused and closed her mouth again. She looked from Cole to Charlie – and then to Jessie once more.

“I can’t do anything about it, Cole. And neither can you.” Then she nodded toward Jessie. “But he can.”

Cole and Charlie both turned to gaze at Graves.

Jessie stood. He didn’t seem too surprised, which served to further shock both Charlie and Cole. “All right,” he said, softly. “Now’s as good a time as any.”

The others just watched in silent surprise, as Jessie moved away from the table to a briefcase that was sitting on a counter against one wall. He opened it and pulled out a manila folder. Then he walked over to Cole and held out the folder for the other alpha to take.

Cole hesitated, just a moment, and then took the folder and opened it. Charlie stood to peer down at it as well.

On the very top was a photograph of a young, handsome man with deep brown eyes that were nearly black. His skin was fair and his dark hair fell to his shoulders in careless waves. There was something secret in the man’s intense gaze.

“His name is Rendor. He is the prince of the Boyash gypsy tribe in Romania,” Jessie said.

“And that would be why he seems familiar to me,” Cole said. Charlie gazed down at him and then glanced up at Malcolm’s face. She thought of what she’d been told about the gypsy who had originally placed the red marks on his arms. And it hit her. The man in the picture was probably related to that gypsy. Maybe he was the grandson? Or great grandson?

“Why are you showing me this?” Cole asked, his tone reflecting a sudden and stark irritation.

Jessie took the final step necessary to close the distance between Cole and himself. He stood head to head with the man and easily held his gaze. “The Boyash tribe happens to owe me a favor Cole,” he said. He paused, then added, “and I will happily cash it in.” He cocked his head to one side, waiting.

Charlie felt the tension spark between them and stepped back. Cole wasn’t stupid. He was obviously well aware that Jessie wasn’t going to do him any favors for free. “And what do you want in return?” Malcolm asked through clenched teeth.

“I want guardian rights.”

* * * *

It was a long time before both Jessie and Lily were gone and Cole and Charlie were alone with the Overseer. All three of them were growing tired. They were inhuman, but they were still animals, and animals needed their sleep.

“Now that I have you two alone, I need to talk to you about something very important,” Alexander began. He paused, searching for the right words. Then, with a deep breath, he ventured, “The witch Dannai is a very special individual.”

Charlie’s heart skipped a beat. She realized, in that tense moment, that her grandfather could read her mind – and she couldn’t make herself stop seeing what it was that Dannai had done in that room of Maria’s house. She couldn’t stop seeing her heal Malcolm. Heal the woman. Heal herself. Her grandfather would know, even though Dannai had pleaded with her not to tell anyone.

“It’s all right, child,” Alexander shook his head, a faint smile on his lips. “You don’t need to hide her talents from me. I’m well aware of them. And she’s aware that I’m aware.” He chuckled softly at that. “She also knows that there’s no way around it. The two of you, Lily Kane, her guardian, and most of the alphas in our community have been made aware of her gift. She is a generous spirit, Dannai. She shares this healing power with us whenever we need it and never complains. However, should the rest of the world become aware of her abilities, she would be jeopardized. We must strive to keep it to ourselves.”

Relief flooded through Charlie. But she was still confused. “Why? Why does she want to hide this? She could do so much good with it.”

“And she does, Charlie, believe me. However, the ability to heal one’s wounds is a spectacular power. It’s unheard of amidst humans. Can you imagine what many fundamental religions would think of her? Can you see the tabloids? The government agencies? If word got out… there would be no place on earth that Dannai could hide.”

Cole and Charlie were silent as they digested this. And then Alexander continued.

“She agrees to work for the Council because the covens and the Council have worked together for hundreds, if not thousands of years. And she does so because she’s a genuinely good person. She can’t help herself. When she knows that someone is hurting, she has to be there to help them.”

Charlie nodded. She could understand that. And she had sensed Dannai’s goodness.

“Charlie, she has spoken with Lily and she wanted me to speak with you about it,” Alexander went on. “She wants to…” he trailed off as if searching for the right term. “She wants to
join forces,
if you will, with the two of you. If you three can work together, you can save many, many lives.”

Charlie blinked. “What do you mean?”

Cole stiffened beside her. She could tell he didn’t like the direction this conversation was taking. But the Overseer continued, none the less.

“Lily is able to see the future. You can transport people to the scene of a crime that will soon take place, and your fighting abilities are phenomenal. Dannai can heal wounds – along with a rather vast array of other impressive feats of magic.” He paused long enough for the information to soak in. “As a trio, you would be….”

“Pretty awesome,” Charlie finished for him. She knew that her eyes were bright when Cole swore softly beside her and ran a hand through his thick, dark hair.

“This night is just getting better and better,” he muttered.

At that, Kavanagh chuckled. “I suppose everything is relative,” he said, softly. “And remember, Cole, you can accompany them. As I’m sure Charlie’s new guardian will want to occasionally do.”

Malcolm’s eyes shut tight and he swore again.
“Christ.”

Epilogue

Lucas Caige tried not to think about what he was doing. It was painful, in a way. Like ripping off a Band-Aid over a wound that had healed long ago. Needed to be done, even though it hurt.

And it was time.

With one quick pull, he yanked the cover off of his bike and exposed the chrome and black-silver paint to the overhead lights of his garage. It had been too long.

With a slow, appreciative gaze, he looked the bike over, running a check, as he always did, before getting on and starting the engine. He’d grown used to it over the last forty years or so. Ever since Scrubs had helped him build his first chopper in San Francisco.

Since then, Caige had owned many bikes. But this one had always been his favorite. A 1978 Harley Davidson FXS 1200 Low Rider in contrasting black and silver. Pristine condition. He made sure of that.

He had no idea where he was going. He had no plan.

There were people out there who meant the werewolf community loads of harm. And he would have to watch his own back. He would always be looking over his shoulder.

But he could handle that. He’d been there before.

The open road called. That some other place that waited at the end of an empty gas tank – it was there. It always had been. His visit was long past due.

“Had a feeling you’d be heading out,” Jake said, from where he stood in the doorway that led to the interior of Caige’s house.

Lucas had known he was there. He’d sensed him approach. He didn’t look up as he lifted a red gas tank from the ground a few feet away and then topped off the bike. “Give Cole my best,” he said. There was no emotion in his tone. He wouldn’t let any out.

He couldn’t afford to.

Finally, as he put down the gas tank, pulled on his gloves, and settled into the saddle on the motorcycle, he dared to meet Jake’s blue gaze. “Keep an eye on him, mate,” he said, faint traces of his Australian accent lacing his words. It happened sometimes. When he wasn’t paying attention. “The pommie bastard attracts trouble.”

Jake smiled, flashing white teeth, and nodded. “I will, Caige. Be safe.” He hit the garage door button beside him and Caige started the engine.

A few seconds and the bellow of an engine later, Caige and his bike had roared out of sight.

* * * *

She wasn’t supposed to be here. This kind of thing was strictly forbidden by the Council, not to mention her coven. But damn it, she was pissed. She was tired and sore and angry at the world for too many reasons to count.

She’d seen something she wanted. And the bad guy had no right to it.

It may as well be hers.

So with quick, determined steps, Dannai made her way through the holding lot where the Las Vegas police department kept their impounded vehicles. The cloaking spell she wore protected her image from the prying eyes and speakers of the cameras that whirred all around her.

It didn’t take long for her to find the one she wanted. It seemed to be waiting for her. When she came around the corner and its large black frame slid into sight, her breath caught in her throat. It seemed to stare back at her as her gaze skirted over its shining length of hood, its charcoal on black paint, its tinted windows. She took in the Cobra emblem on the radiator and the GT500 mark on the side.