Lure of Forever (18 page)

"Are you all right there, my
dear? You look as though you've seen a ghost." Bianca's cheerful voice
startled
Coralie
out of her internal anguish.

An ice-cold hand grabbed her insides
and squeezed.
Coralie
shook her head to clear her
vision. For just a split second she could have sworn she was looking into
Bughar's
eyes.
 
But
that was impossible. The fairy was not only male but also over seven feet tall.
The elderly woman smiling up at her was five foot, if
that,
and her face was wreathed in wrinkles. She was so frail a gust of wind could
have knocked her over. Yet still, every instinct screamed at
Coralie
to get away. She looked through the open doorway
into the little cafe, seeking the eyes of the young wolf assigned as her
protection. Where was he?

All day he'd sat at the little table
in the corner, sipping his coffee, his eyes never once leaving her. And all of
a sudden, he wasn't there? The tendril of fear turned into full-blown horror
when meek and gentle Bianca dug a knife under her ribcage and pushed her out of
the back door with a surprising amount of force.

"Don't even think about
screaming, vamp bait.
Jacomo
may want you alive, but
he didn't say anything about undamaged. Besides, I saw how quickly you healed,
so we can have ourselves some fun."

The sharp pain in her side took
Coralie's
breath away, as the knife punctured her skin and
sunk in to the hilt. Her scream died on her lips as she watched
Bianca
change in front of her until
Coralie
stared up at
none other than
Bughar
. His lips curled up in a cruel
smile. He tilted her chin up with one long fingernail, sharp enough to draw
blood, and bile rose in
Coralie's
throat. The pain in
her side made her eyes water and his sneering laughter turned the blood in her
veins to ice.

"We may not be able to get to
the child for now, but you're the next best bargaining tool. You slipped away
once, but not again. I'd so love to be a fly on the wall, when your lover-boy
finds out we’ve got you. I might make him watch as we take it in turns to fuck
you any which way, right before we stake the bastard."

Coralie
screwed her eyes shut against the evil laughter washing over her. His hot
breath in her face told her how close the fairy was. Oh God, this couldn't be
happening. She caused this with her insistence to go to work. Ion and
Marnie
both had pleaded with her to stay at home, but
stubborn fool that she was
,
she’d dug her heels in.
Ion eventually agreed, sending her off under the watchful eye of the young
wolf.

"You'll be safe with Dean. He's
the best young tracker we've got. But for the record, I don't like it, one
little bit. Best brace yourself for the fallout with Lucas when he wakes up,
little human." Ion had smiled at her, his eyes narrowed, before he turned
away mumbling to himself about stubborn females.

"What have you done with
Dean?"
Coralie
asked, forcing the words out of
her parched throat. She knew what the answer must be, yet clung onto the hope
that Dean got away somehow.
Bughar's
manic laughter
in her ear, as he dug the knife in deeper and lifted her to her tip-toes,
robbed her of that illusion. Breaths coming in shallow gasps, she tried to
breathe through the pain. She didn't want to give the fairy the satisfaction of
hearing her scream, even as her insides felt as though they were torn to shreds
and white-hot pain raced through her nerve endings.

"The flea bag is dog food, in
nice small, chewable morsels. Quite fitting, don't you think, my little fuck
toy." He licked down the side of her face and
Coralie
tasted blood in her mouth. She'd bitten her tongue with the effort it took to
not scream. She would not give him the goddamn satisfaction of hearing her
scream or beg. No fucking way. Silent tears leaked out of her shut eyelids, as
she closed herself off against the pain and the reality of what was happening
to her. Her mind focused on Lucas and with a final searing pain in her core
everything went black.

****

Lucas sat bolt upright,
Coralie's
scream of terror reverberating through his mind.
It joined the burning pain in his side and groin.

Putain
l'enfer
!

A string of vicious French curses
reverberated throughout the gloomy cellar, as he struggled to his feet, still
too groggy to be able to coordinate his movements with any eloquence. Lucas
struggled up the steps. Each rung increased the iciness in his veins, as he
felt every sickening thing that happened to
Coralie
as though he was there to watch it. He was going to tear that fucking fairy
limb from limb, slowly. By the time he finally made it up those stairs and
flung the cellar door open, he reeled back at the bright sunshine. He sunk to
his knees with another string of curses and his heart stopped beating, when
Coralie's
screams stopped.

Jesus, he couldn't lose her. The
realization of how much he loved her hit him like a sledgehammer and
desperation clawed at his guts. No matter how hard he concentrated the thread
was broken. Their tremulous connection severed as though it had never existed.
This couldn't be happening again—not again. He'd sworn to keep her safe. How
the fuck did the fairy get hold of her? And what did they want from
Coralie
, apart from… No, he was not going to let his mind
go there.

He groped blindly for the phone in
his back pocket. Tears he hadn't shed since his human days clouded his vision.
He finally managed to connect the call. Ion answered on the second ring. Lucas
could hear the frown in his voice and he smiled grimly.

"Lucas? You ought to be asleep.
What's happened?"

"Where's
Coralie
?"

"She's at the bakery."
Lucas growled his frustration and Ion laughed nervously. "I know, I know,
but she insisted. Dean is watching over her."

"She's far from safe, for
fuck’s sake.
Bughar's
got her and he's… I need to get
out of here, shifter. I have no idea what the fuck is going on, but when did
you last hear from Dean?"

Ion's curse matched Lucas when he
replied.

"Damn it all, I'm going to
check this out. I knew Carmen couldn't trust that fucking fairy. Stay where you
are. You're not strong enough to venture into the sun, Lucas. I'll be around to
get you of that cellar, as soon as I find out what the hell happened."

"I tell you what the fuck
happened, Ion. He's got
Coralie
, that's what
happened. I can't
fucking
sense her anymore,
Ion."

There was an ominous pause on the
line, before Ion spoke slowly.

"I didn't think you could sense
her?"

Lucas's dry laugh made Ion growl
down the phone.

"I couldn't, but I can now.
Fuck, Ion. I know exactly what that thing is doing to her. I've no idea how
Coralie
can project to me, only that she can, but now she's
gone. Damn it, Ion, she's gone. But I know where she is, and we have to get her
out of there, before it's too late for all of us."

****

Coralie
came to, chained to a cold stone floor. Every bit of her hurt, her nerve
endings on fire. The slightest movement chafed, and she bit back the groan
threatening to erupt out of her split lips. The air around her was thick with
sulfur and the sweetly sick smell of human sweat, sex, and blood.
 
Bile churned in her gut when she realized
that she was the source of the stink. The minty smell of fairy overlaid
everything else and the ache between her legs confirmed
Coralie's
worst fears. She curled into a ball on the floor, unable to stop the whimper
this time. At least she'd passed out before
Bughar
violated her.
Be grateful for small mercies, girl
.

Coralie
bit back the hysterical sobs, as she remembered one of her mother's favorite
sayings. She was alive, but at what cost? What the hell did they want with her?
An ice-cold gust of air travelled over her and raised the bloodstained
straggles of hair off her face. Her heart stopped for an instant, before racing
at the beloved voice in her mind that she thought she'd never hear again.

I'm here,
Coralie
,
we all are. I'm so sorry we didn't get here sooner. It will all be okay. This
was always your destiny. Embrace it, my girl, and all will be well. Trust in
yourself and trust the power in your heart. Trust in forever. He will come…

Heat flowed through her veins until
it pooled in her fingertips. The power of centuries’ worth of knowledge poured
into her until her head felt light and the aches and pains in her body
disappeared. When the room stopped spinning
Coralie
sat up gingerly, her chains clinking against the stone floor. She was back at
the warehouse, in the middle of the ancient symbol she remembered all too
vividly. Humans were scurrying around in the shadows, whispering to each other,
their excitement and expectation a palpable presence in the open space. Damn
the whole sorry lot of them. There was no fucking way
Coralie
was going to be the proverbial lamb to the slaughter.

Soft, approving laughter echoed in
Coralie's
head and peace flowed over her. Her heartbeat
slowed and her senses heightened. Lucas's fury took her by surprise. He was
closing in.
 
She knew the minute he
clocked her as his mind focused on her essence. Their heart rates synchronized
and some of his desperation ceased.
Coralie
smiled,
secure in the knowledge that Lucas was indeed
coming. The intensity of his feelings took her breath away, and her heart
clenched with renewed worry. She didn't want him near this place. Lord only
knew what he would do, and if he got hurt... She swallowed the threatening
panic down and cleared her mind with a regretful whisper to Lucas.

His silent growl of denial reached
her through the invading mists, as her own power grew and swelled until she was
sure she must be floating. Alas, she was still chained to the floor, her hand
still bloody and broken when she lifted it to her face.

"I see our sacrifice is
awake."

The chilly voice sliced through
Coralie
and a thousand feminine voices hissed in her head.
Coralie
pushed the hair out of her eyes in time to see the
scaly, clawed hand descend and grab her chin. The scent of sulfur burnt her
nostrils and
Jacomo
pulled her to her feet.
 
The image from her nightmares stared into
Coralie's
soul. Green eyes set in a red face, his cruel
mouth in a grim smile revealed a set of razor-sharp teeth.
Jacomo
looked her up and down. He used one claw to trace a path down her throat, his
eyes narrowing at her lack of reaction. She swallowed down the bile of loathing
balling in the back of her throat and locked her spine. The action thrust her
breasts into
Jacomo's
hand and the demon's grin
widened.

"Seems
the little lady wants more.
Bughar
,
you're losing your touch." He smiled over
Coralie's
shoulder and goose bumps broke out over her skin as the smell of mint in the
air warned her of the fairy's approach. She closed her eyes and willed her
breathing to stay even. She had to bide her time. The tug on her hair brought
tears to her eyes.
 
Bughar
bit her ear as his hands dug painfully into her hips, and his hot breath heated
her skin with pure revulsion.

"Get your fucking hands off me,
fairy."
Coralie's
voice shook with contempt and
she put all of her force into the head butt.
Bughar's
nose broke with a satisfying crunch and he let go of her with a growl.
Jacomo's
laugh echoed through the suddenly quiet warehouse
and his eyes flashed fire.

"If you're going to kill me,
get on with it already,
Jacomo
. That is what I'm here
for, isn't it?"

The chill of his icy smile in
response would have frozen the Sahara.
Coralie
flinched as he stepped closer and the heat of his skin scorched hers. The
flames in his eyes intensified. He settled one clawed hand on her abdomen.

"Such a shame, that silly human
baby ruined you. Our union would have given me a much stronger child. Alas,
once I kill her mother, the child will belong to me."

"You stay away from Jerry, you
freak. You'll never get her. She's protected."
Coralie
hissed the words. Fury balled in her gut and her fingers grew hot, as the power
surged within her.

Jacomo
sneered and punched her in the face. Her head spun with the force behind that
punch and she once again tasted her own blood in her mouth. Terror froze her
words when she opened her eyes again. With a wave of his hand,
Jacomo
projected an image of a lifeless Jerry, little
Suz
standing in the corner, thumb in her mouth, watching
Jenkins doing CPR.