He nodded, giving her a slight smile as he was loading, clicking, and rearranging guns hidden all over his person.
Logan had been watching me ever since I stood. Now he reached into his back pocket and pulled out a black beanie. “I don’t want to make a habit of telling you no … so, tie up your hair and you can come help us walk the perimeter.”
I raised one eyebrow, taking the beanie and leaning into his ear, my right breast pressing against his arm. “It’s cute that you think I take orders from you,” I whispered, and then straightened, following Dominic off the bus.
Isaac nodded as I passed, tying my red hair up into the beanie. The druids were on a redheaded hunt. I didn’t want to advertise my mane.
“I’ll keep the car warm I guess,” Isaac offered.
When I was about to step down onto the curb, Logan’s hand snaked out and grabbed my belly, pressing me into him, his mouth on my ear. Warmth pulsed from his hand into my gut, nearly making me moan.
‘I can smell your heat coming again. We need to talk about what to do when it does,’ he told me, and then let me go.
I nearly stumbled onto the curb, flushed with fire, cheeks pulsing red. I watched Nadine, Keegan, and Danny cross the street and go into the club. Then I turned back to look at Logan.
‘Let it come.’ He was my mate after all, and I’d be lying if I said I wanted to sleep through this one.
His mouth popped open in shock; his eyes flared emerald green and I grinned, beginning my walk around the perimeter.
I walked along the riverbank for a few strides, following Dominic, when the lion shifter stopped and cocked his head to the side. His nostrils were flaring, his whole body tense. Logan must have seen it too, because he jogged to catch up to me and then called out to Dom.
“What is it?” We both took quick strides to meet up with the silent shifter.
Dom was staring at the alley that led to the side entrance of the club our group had gone into. He was looking into the darkness like it held some secret.
“Familiar smell,” he grumbled, and a thousand emotions crossed his face. Confusion, disbelief, terror, and then rage.
Without another word, Dom crossed the street, not even looking for cars, hands going into his jacket to pull out his guns.
“Dominic!” Logan’s voice was authoritative but also caring. Something was going on with his friend and he was trying to help. Dom ignored Logan and kept his head down as he passed the sorcerer at the front entrance, and then slipped into the side alley. Logan and I scurried after him. We were wedged between two buildings with the reek of garbage and dampness, but there was another smell: dogs, blood, death.
Dominic turned to face Logan, breath coming in and out in ragged gasps. He was on the verge of hyperventilating.
“Dominic. Use. Your. Words.” Logan hovered over his friend, and finally Dom unclenched his fists and the blood drained from his face.
“Logan, it’s him. I smell him.” The way the streetlights were casting shadows on Dominic’s face made him look like a scared child.
Logan’s face fell. “You’re sure? Here? Now?”
Dom nodded, and as his jaw gritted, his features transformed. The fear disappeared and in its place the dancing lights left a macabre expression. “You promised,” He told him.
Logan sighed, looking over at me. His black hair swept over one eye, he looked like he was physically in pain. “Sloane, get on the bus,” he ordered.
My jaw dropped. “Umm, no. Who is here? What’s happening?”
Logan pulled out his Glock and cocked it, looking maniacal. “The sorcerer that tortured Dominic and pitted him against other shifters is here … running another underground ring.”
Shock mixed with fury ripped through me in the same moment. Oh. Hell. No.
“What are you going to do?” Why was he asking me to get on the bus? And what had he promised Dom he would do?
Logan didn’t even hesitate: “We’re going to kill that bastard and set the shifters free.”
I put my hands out in an effort to try to calm the two males. Clearly they were seeing red right now and not reason. “You’re going to go into a pureblooded club, full of sorcerers and druids and God knows what else, and kill the most powerful one there with your guns? Just the two of you?”
Logan shrugged. “We’ll manage.”
Tough guy.
Dominic was bouncing on the balls of his feet, raring to go.
“I have a plan.” I held up my hand. “Why don’t we just try to relax until Danny and the others get out there and we can all go into together. Calmer, more focused, and more powerful…”
Please listen to reason. I wanted this asshat wiped off the face of the Earth just as much as anybody, but I didn’t want to lose my mate in the process.
Dominic started pacing, on the verge of shifting, pelts of fur rippling down his arms.
“The shifters fighting in there could be dead by then. He would put out his cigarettes on me. Cut me with broken bottles. Anything to enrage me before a fight to get me to win.” Dom’s words tore my heart in two; hot tears leaked out of the corner of my eyes as my dragon tightened within me. My throat physically ached. I wanted to sob, wanted to scream, wanted to kill.
Mofo was gonna pay.
“Don’t move. I’ll be right back,” I barked, and took off running back to the bus, hoping they would listen.
The moment I popped up the steps, Isaac was ready, staff in hand, poised for attack. “What is it? Your energy is erratic.”
I didn’t want to think of how he could feel my energy, so I pushed that aside.
Roxy peered at me from behind him, wild brown curls, twelve-inch hunting blade in her hand.
“A long time ago, our friend Dominic was tortured and used as a fighting animal in a shifter-fighting gambling ring. The sorcerer who did it is inside. Are you down to help us kill him?” I still wasn’t sure how much of a free-loving hippie Isaac was. I knew he wanted to kill Ardan, but was that all? Did he have a “hug trees and don’t kill” policy? Because if we were going to bust in there with a bunch of pureblooded powerful supernatural creatures, we would need all the help we could get.
Isaac’s eyes crinkled and the grip on his staff tightened. “Gladly.”
Roxy stood, muscles clenched, ready to go, but I put my hand out. “We need a driver if shit goes south. Can you have the bus ready to go when we run out?”
Roxy’s face looked physically pained. “But I want to help.” She peered out the bus window and across the street. I knew she had a thing for Dom. They’d both hit it off from the beginning, but I needed Isaac more than her, because that place could be crawling with druids.
“You are helping. Keep the bus running. Dom needs you,” I said, and grabbed Isaac’s hand, yanking him towards the front of the bus. I didn’t bother looking behind me, praying that Roxy wasn’t following.
Isaac tucked his staff into his side so it couldn’t be seen too easily as we walked. The cloak of nightfall was our friend. As I led him into the alley, I stopped short in surprise. Dom was in lion form, guns and clothes crumpled on the ground.