I cleared my voice. “There will be plenty of time for me to feel all of him as soon as you’re dead and gone, Selene. We’ll start the minute you die; no need to worry yourself needlessly. Your bed will be well used.”
“He’s a lover worthy of a goddess—not,” she spat, “a mongrel such as yourself. If he were to live, he would bore of you within a week. He would be back in my bed where he belongs, his cock firmly embedded inside me for all eternity.”
“Unfortunately for you,” I answered as I took a step forward, “I’m extremely talented in the bedroom. Boredom won’t be an option.”
“Show yourself!” she raged. “I’ve had enough of these games!”
“Selene,” I taunted, “you sound a little stressed.”
“I am not stressed!” she yelled. My head snapped to her location. She was in the upper-left corner, just out of my sight. Keeping her enraged was working. Her spell was wavering. “I am a goddess. I have immense powers; nothing stresses me—”
“Having to tell people you have immense powers defeats the purpose entirely.” I shifted closer. I was almost ready to spring. “Maybe you’ve lost some of your mojo with all your beheadings—”
“Enough!” Selene raged. “Show yourself!” A shock wave hit the boulder in front of me. It exploded. I dove to the right, rolling into a shallow recess. “Come forward, wench, and we’ll see who is stronger and has more stamina.”
I crouched, waiting. Selene needed to be lost to her anger. No matter what we see once we clear this wall, we go straight for Selene. Understood? Keeping her from spelling us is our top priority. My wolf whipped her nose down, but I didn’t trust her not to react to Rourke. His scent still rocked us, making us distracted. My wolf’s instinct would be to go to him, to save him above all else. He’s going to look bad. There’s no way around it. If we don’t defeat the witch, we all die. She was barely listening. I inhaled, at her urging, and scented for trouble. Stop trying to figure out the smells. We can’t be distracted—
Naomi.
Selene had the vamps.
The traces were faint, but Selene’s masking spell was breaking down because of her rage. She hadn’t wanted me to know yet.
“You are too late, coward,” Selene called. “She dies now.” Power filled the room. It was time to act, and I needed Selene focused on me, not Naomi.
I sprang, bounding out into the open.
This was exactly what Selene wanted, but I had no other choice. Once I cleared the barrier, the scene in front of me was almost too much. I stumbled for a single moment as I took in the whips and sinister devices lining every inch of the vast cavern, each alcove adorned with shackles, implements of torture, spikes, and chains.
Blood, old and new, drenched the walls and ground like a thick carpet of red paint.
This woman was deranged.
A huge blast of power hit the side of the cavern above my head as I ran. Good. She’s aiming it at us. From the angle of the explosion, I knew she was behind me. I blocked the revulsion that had erupted in my gut as quickly as I could. Don’t look at the walls! I instructed my wolf as we ran. Once I hit the middle, I leapt over the dais in a single lunge. I spun in midair, so I faced her, landing on the balls of my feet. I crouched low, protected by the angle of the stairs. I tilted my head toward the ceiling, following my wolf’s lead. I glanced upward, past all the candles, into the deep shadows and recesses. My eyesight was excellent. Selene must have made herself invisible. Can she do that? “What’s the matter, Selene?” I called. “Too worried I’ll take you down if I can see you? Come and show me your immense powers.”
“You think to hide from me?” Selene laughed. “There is no place to hide.” Another huge ball of energy raced through the cavern.
I spotted a warped, wooden table covered in matted tissue and leftover parts. I jumped at supernatural speed, and with a running start, slid under it like I was stealing a base. Selene’s red lines hit the ground two feet behind me in a rush, rocking the cave floor, leaving a deep, rutted crater in its wake as rocks rained down from the ceiling, thumping and cracking onto the big wooden top.
The table wasn’t going to protect me from the next spell.
I poked my head out, my eyes darting around the room for the next cover. I couldn’t fight something I couldn’t see and I couldn’t throw a spell. Dammit. Do you see Rourke or Naomi? His smell was still everywhere, but I couldn’t see him. “Who’s the coward now, Selene?” I taunted. “Glamouring yourself is such a pansy way out. I’m a weakling compared to you, right? You must really be scared to take such precautions.” I eyed my next cover, a cranny ten paces away. It might hold one strike if I was lucky.
“I do not fear you, wench,” Selene spat. “I’m just not foolish enough to put myself within an animal’s reach.” Her voice tinkled around the room. “Come and look up. See what nice gifts I have waiting for you here.”
I do not want to look.
I looked.