Hot Decadent Rising (Breath of Darkness) (37 page)

“Not kill. He plans to make her his
eternal sex slave.” Demetri smiled.

“She is protected. No one will harm
her.” It wasn’t a mistake. A demon as powerful and as seasoned in battle as
Demetri didn’t make such big mistakes. Demetri wanted to distract him by
getting him to go after Mary and Leland. He wanted to lure Eli away from Kara.

Using his mind, Eli fed the information
to his pack with instruction concerning how they were to split up and deal with
Mary and Leland. Later, not knowing what he was capable of because of Zack’s
blood, they would all deal with Jeremy.

“Perhaps I won’t take her from you the
easy way, but I am taking her from you today.” Demetri lifted his hand above
his head. As a ball of fire and energy formed in the demon’s hand, Eli shifted
into his wolf form as he charged toward him.

Being struck by the ball of power, Eli
was tossed back several feet. He charged for Demetri again. He hit him with
enough force to cause them to tumble. The pack members who didn’t leave to deal
with Mary, joined in and attacked Demetri.

***

Kara
saw Eli get struck by a ball of fire. She watched him get back up and charge
for Demetri. Before she could take a single step she was grabbed from behind
and spun around. “You’re supposed to be dead.” Her father, Leland, lifted his
hand and swung to hit her.

Grabbing his arm and easily restraining
him, a dark and deadly power stirred in her. She felt strengthened by it. She
felt enlightened.

“What the hell is wrong with your eyes?”

He swung again and this time he slapped
her. It was strange. He’d slapped her several times in the past. It had hurt.
This time, the moment he hit her, it felt strange, just a numbing sting,
nothing more.

That’s when she realized it was Eli’s
blood. It had made her stronger and faster. Her father swung at her again. She
caught his wrist.

“Let go.” He struggled to get it free.

“I don’t think so.” She squeezed until
she heard and felt his bones crack.

She released him and hit his face with a
closed fist. He went down onto his knees and lifted his head to look up at her.
“You’re going to die just like your mom.” Blood dripped from his nose and
mouth.

When he reached behind his back with his
good arm she knew he was retrieving a gun. Using supernatural speed she took it
away from him. “What were you planning to do with this?” She aimed it at his
head.

Something was wrong. By the confident
look in his eye he knew it. She panicked. She couldn’t shoot her own father.
Even after all he’d done to her mom, her son and to her she couldn’t put a
bullet in him. She wasn’t a murderer.

Hand him the gun.
Eli sounded out
of breath.

What?

I have this. Trust me. Hand him the gun
and merge with me.

Figuring she’d completely lost her mind,
she did so. His face contorting as if suffering some form of physical agony her
dad slowly, his hand shaking, moved the gun from her head to his own. He opened
his mouth as if to say something, but he just uttered an undecipherable curse.
The terror in his eyes revealed that he knew his death was unavoidable.

Look away, babe. Look away.

The instant she turned her back to her
father she heard a loud bang. Next, she heard a thud and felt vibrations on the
wooden boards beneath her feet when he dropped. She didn’t look. She didn’t
want or need to see him. He was dead. The man who’d caused pain and death to so
many people would never harm another soul.

Where are you?
Kara stepped
off the porch and walked to where she’d seen him attack Demetri. She saw other
members of the pack shifting into their human forms, but she didn’t see Eli
anywhere.
Answer me. Please. Where are you?

Her foot caught on something. She
tripped and fell to her knees. A hand caught her arm. Expecting to see Eli, she
looked up. “Where is he, Cain?”

Cain shook his head. “I lost sight of
him.” Surrounded by the pack, Kara lifted her face to the wind and rain to
search for Eli. “Over there.” Cain pointed. “It looks like he got himself
fucked…sorry. Slip of the tongue. “It looks like Demetri messed Eli up at bit.”

Relief flooding her and tears welling
up, she watched as Eli shifted from his wolf form into his human form. He
walked across the field toward her. The sight of him took her breath away.
She’d never known anyone like him. Clutching his side, he faltered once but
didn’t stop. If she hadn’t known the severity of his injuries, she would never
have guessed that each step he took hurt like hell.

She couldn’t stand there waiting for
another second. She had to touch him, to kiss him. “Eli!” She sprinted toward
him.

Laughing he caught her waist and lifted
her as he spun her around. “Put me down you’re injured.”

“Don’t be silly. I’ll never be too hurt
to hold you. Kiss me.”

“But…”

Tilting his head back, he looked up at
her. “I didn’t say I wanted to hear excuses. Shut up and kiss me, Kara. Right
now,” his voice was a growl of wicked seduction. “Before you force me to show
you all the things I’m capable of doing to you, with you while I’m injured.”

“You wouldn’t dare. Your pack is all
around us.”

“Our pack. And I would.”

Wrapping her arms around his neck and
locking her ankles behind his back, she pressed her forehead against his.
“That’s a temptation I don’t even want to try to pretend I have the strength to
resist.”

“From the moment I first saw you at that
damned gas station I knew you were trouble like no other.”

“That should please you. You told me
that you have an appetite for trouble.”

“Ravenous.” Holding her close and taking
her with him, he dropped to his knees and leaned forward until she was on her
back. “I clearly remember saying I have a ravenous appetite for trouble.”

“A badly behaved wolf with wicked
morals, questionable intentions and a ravenous appetite for trouble.”

He captured her lips with his in a tender
heartfelt kiss that was so passionate it threatened to bring tears to her eyes.
“Would you like to visit your mom now?” He whispered the question against her
lips.

“Can we?”

“Absolutely.” He took her hand and
started to walk.   

~Twenty Two~

THE
INSTANT KARA saw Max walk out of the cave her breath caught in her throat. She
took a step back.

“It’s okay, babe.” Eli took her hand and
prevented her from taking another step back. She stared at the man she’d
believed had killed her mother for so long. She remembered the sight her
mother’s blood covering him as he crouched down over her body. 

“You shouldn’t have brought her here,”
Max said. “Take her and go away.”

Max hadn’t changed much since she’d
least seen him. Drowning out the sound of their voices she began to listen to
mother’s voice in her mind calling out to her.

Eli shook her. “What’s happening?”

“I hear her. Just like I used to hear
her when I was a kid. She wants me to come to her. She needs me.”

“It isn’t happening,” Max explained.

Kara turned to Eli. “Please. I know her
voice, her touch. It’s her.”

Max turned to Eli. “Something is wrong.
You need to get her out of here.”

“I know it’s her. She’s calling me to
her.”

Eli wrapped his arm around her. “Take us
to her mother. I will take her out there at the first sign of trouble.”

As if considering it, Max looked at
Kara.

“Please. I will leave if Eli tells me
it’s not safe.”

“Do you understand that she might try to
attack you or kill you? She isn’t in her right mind. She might not even recognize
you. Are you prepared for that?”

Kara lifted her chin defiantly. “I
understand you’re only looking out for her, for me, but you’re wrong, Max. She
already knows I’m here. She doesn’t intend to harm me.”

***

The
moment they entered the cave Eli felt a demon’s influence on the magic being
used to prevent Grace from breaking through the iron bars containing her.
“Who’s helping you contain her?”

“I can’t tell you. If I do, the spell
will be broken.”

Eli nodded. “I understand.” If a demon
had known about the situation then why didn’t the demon find and destroy the
vampire that had tainted Grace’s blood with his? It was the only hope Grace had
to be healed by Max’s blood. Of course he wanted to know details, but he
wouldn’t press Max for any. If the spell was lifted Grace would eventually
break free, she would go on a killing rampage and she would have to be
destroyed.

“It’s very important that no matter what
happens you don’t get within her reach.”

***

Kara
looked at her mother. She was huddled in a corner with her knees drawn up to
her chest rocking back and forth. “Mom.”

Grace looked up. She stared at Kara for
several seconds. She stood up.

Her mother hadn’t aged a day since she
last saw her. She’d forgotten just how young her mother was. They were same
age.

They were different as night and day.

Her mom was fair skinned, with light
blue eyes and blond hair. She was slender and a bit taller than her.

Kara was tanned with black hair and dark
brown eyes. She was rather short and skinny.

Grace moved slowly for a few seconds.
She stopped and gave Max a questioning look.

“It’s okay. You’re okay. I’m here.
Nothing bad will happen, Grace,” Max said.

Grace didn’t look okay. She looked
nervous and afraid.

***

Eli
felt a vague shift in the air. Reaching out with his mind he studied it. He
quickly recognized the disturbance as being caused by the vibes of a
compulsion. He watched Grace’s lip slowly curl up into a slight, nearly
indistinguishable snarl. It was Grace. She was using a compulsion to coax Kara
to get within her reach.

He merged his mind deeply with Kara’s to
prevent Grace from intensifying her mental link. Obviously realizing that he
was preventing her from taking control of her daughter’s mind, Grace turned her
head and glared at him.

“What’s happening?” Kara squinted and
rubbed her temples. “What are you doing, Eli? She says that you’re attacking
her through my mind. You’re hurting her. Whatever you’re doing, I feel it.
You’re making my head feel as if it’s going to explode.”  

“I’m not doing anything to hurt you. She
has powerful mental abilities. I’m trying to protect you.”

“From my mom?”

“No.” Eli struggled to come up with the
right words to make her understand that despite what she was seeing, feeling
and hearing that her mom wasn’t really her mom. “Your mom isn’t in control
right now.”

“Don’t say that. You’re scaring her.
Back off so she’ll talk to me again.”

“I can’t.” He watched Grace’s eyes turn
from light blue to deep dark blood red.

“Get her out of here,” Max ordered as he
positioned himself closer to Grace.

Eli didn’t need to be warned he was
already, slowly to avoid further riling Grace and startling Kara, pulling Kara
behind him. “We need to go.” He kept his voice low and calm. “We will come back
later.”

“Wait just a minute.” Stronger and
faster than he expected due to his blood in her, she yanked her arm out of his
hand and managed to dodge his other hand when he reached for her arm again.
“You’re stopping her from talking to me. That’s why she’s upset. Let her talk
to me.”

“No. That’s not why. It’s Jeremy. He’s
controlling her right now.” Taking charge he changed tactics. He moved quickly
and aggressively not caring if he instigated a violent response from Grace or
alarmed Kara. She needed to be afraid. He caught Kara’s right arm in a firm
grip and pulled her away from the iron bars. “We don’t have a minute. Trust me,
Kara, you do not want to see what is about to happen.”

Grace burst into a fit of rage. She
couldn’t make any other sound than a horrible hissing noise as she charged and
slammed her body against the iron bars. She strained to reach though the bars.
She thrust a powerful compulsion at Kara in an attempt to get her to come
closer. Eli blocked it and pushed back with enough force to get Grace’s
attention. In frustration and rage, she began to slam her body against the bars
again and again.

 “We need to leave now, Kara. We
need to allow Max to calm her before she hurts herself.”

Kara nodded as Eli led her out of the
cave. “She was fine just seconds ago. What happened to her?”

“It’s Jeremy’s blood in her,” Eli
explained. “It’s corrupt. When she was attempting to lure you closer she wasn’t
in her right mind. At that moment you weren’t her daughter. You were a source
of blood.”