Last Chance (DarkWorld: SkinWalker Book 3) (29 page)

Logan hadn’t told me when he and the general would be entering the building. As the Wraith guard sank to the ground, I lifted my collar, holding the microphone to my lips. “I just took down another guard. Please tell me Wren’do isn’t anywhere on the ground floor.”

“You’re clear,” was all Logan said.

Satisfied that the tendrils of smoky blackness disappearing into the ether didn’t belong to Illyria’s right-hand man, I followed her through the doorway and left, down a short passage that from memory should run straight down the middle of the last third of the ground floor. At the south wall, we should reach a bank of commercial fridges.

We moved forward, me in the lead with my bow aimed straight ahead, Illyria behind, ready to flit away if required to perform a silent kill. We reached the passage and I hugged the wall before peeping around the corner. It looked clear, but I still used my panther senses to see if anything alive was lurking around the place.

Nothing.

Seemed too easy.

I slipped around the corner and hurried along the corridor. I could make out the grey gleam of the metal refrigerator doors up ahead. Numerous doors led off the passage, all closed and everything deathly quiet. My heart slammed against my chest, screaming that something was wrong. I slowed and stood against the wall. Tilting my head, I whispered, “Something is off. Everyone stay alert.”

“Any specifics?” asked Logan. The line was so clear I had to look beside me to make sure he was standing right there.

“Just that it’s been way too easy. Widd’en’s men aren’t stupid or sloppy.”

“Okay, everyone on alert,” Logan whispered, then fell to silence.

I edged forward, feeling Illyria move slowly with me. We’d reached the end of the corridor and now faced the bank of fridges. The path in front of them was empty, no guards, not a Wraith in sight.

I held on to my microphone and said, “Mel, which one?” I hoped she would know what I meant without me having to give specifics over the wireless.

“Third from the left,” her voice whispered inside my ear.”

I followed her instruction, motioning for Illyria to follow. She kept close as I hurried to the door. I grabbed hold of the large metal handle and pulled hard. The door released with a soft whoosh, and I swung it open and rushed inside.

Maybe I should have entered slowly or looked around the square space with more care. Had I done that, I would have seen the empty bed, straps hanging off the sides, the IV stand sitting bare beside the bed. I stopped in front of the bed so suddenly that Illyria would have had to step sideways to avoid hitting me in the back.

Instead, she slammed straight into me, pushing me forward so hard that I fell forward onto the soiled mattress. “Illyria? What the hell?” I managed to get the words out, a strangled cry of disbelief and rage.

***

She spun me around to face her, but I didn’t register her face. Instead, pain screamed up my side, and I gasped, my hand lifting to my abdomen. Illyria stared at me as she shoved her knife deeper. Her lips curled into a cold, menacing grimace as she studied the expression on my face. There was no emotion I was capable of hiding from her right now. As far as my training went, I was far from military, further from mercenary.

My panther screamed for release, roused by the scent of blood and the need to defend. She snarled, and I lost control as my hands widened, my fingers thickened and furred, nails transformed into claws. I fought with my panther for control. I could not give in to her now, not when she’d be vulnerable to the Rebel leader.

It was all I could do to grab hold of Illyria’s hand. I tried to peel her fingers off, but she backhanded me so hard my neck snapped backward and my teeth sank into my tongue. The taste of copper flooded my mouth. Pain lanced through my tongue, just like it streaked into my body as Illyria twisted the knife into my side. I struggled for breath and stared at her, still confused, still too slow to put it all together.

“Why?” I gasped the word out but didn’t really care if she answered me. I was too busy struggling for control of my body as my panther kept fighting against my fragile hold.

Illyria brought her face close to me, ensuring she kept to my left, away from my microphone. In my ear, Logan was yelling for me to tell him what happened. But I suddenly cared why she’d done it. So I waited.

She took her time, her breath hissing in my ear. “You think you’re so clever, Hunter. You have no idea who you are dealing with. I would never have known who you really were if you didn’t tell my messenger the truth. Now we don’t need your mother. And now we have you.” Her grey skin gleamed in the fluorescent light inside the metal-walled room. Her black demon eyes glared at me, and I wanted to laugh. Grams was going to be happy to say
I told you so
, and I wasn’t planning to hold it against her.

I struggled for breath, managing to spit out my next few words. “But why betray us? What’s in it for you? I thought you were helping us fight Widd’en’s army?”

“That’s where you’re mistaken, my dear Hunter. Widd’en meant more to me than anything in the whole world. And you killed him. I had you in my sights from the moment I knew who you were.”

“I don’t understand. You’ve been killing Widd’en’s men. Why kill the army that you follow?”

“Widd’en’s men are weak, misguided. They refuse to answer to a woman, even though I am their rightful master.”

“That’s not possible. Widd’en would have had a second-in-command.” I was speaking slowly, stalling for time, but she was lost in her thoughts.

“The army doesn’t work like that. The reigning lord hands commandership down to his bloodline. Do you understand now?” she asked, spitting the words out against my cheek.

“You’re Widd’en’s daughter.” I gasped, slowly losing consciousness, my heartbeat barely a flutter. My fingers were slick with blood as she continued to twist the knife in my wound.

“Ah, the Hunter is smart too.”

“You’re wasting your time. Logan will have the team here in minutes.”

“Not if Wren’do has already eliminated them. And Wren’do is very efficient.”

“So is Logan,” said a rough voice from behind Illyria. She spun around, letting go of the handle of her knife.

Logan stood behind her. Everything moved in slow motion as I wondered how he’d gotten there. Was Logan a jumper? Then the air shifted beside me, orange embers swirling around and around to form the sexy Saleem. I smiled, but I was pretty sure it looked more like a grimace of pain.

He caught me as my legs finally gave out. “Hold on, Kai,” he whispered as he jumped me out of the fridge and into my apartment.

***

When Kai had said something was off, Logan had known it in his bones. He and Wren had been stationed on the rooftop on the next building, watching as best they could. The view to the driveway was clear, and he’d seen Lily and Anjelo take out the guards with a swift and silent ease that had impressed him. Perhaps Omega should be looking at those too as well as Kai.

From his vantage point, he could see the south and west ends of the building as well. He’d watched Kai and the Wraith Rebel leader enter the building without a hitch. But when Kai began to suspect things were a little too easy, Logan was forced to reassess their progress and had to admit she was right.

That could only mean that someone Kai had divulged information to was selling info to Widd’en’s men. Logan stiffened, glancing over at the Wraith general beside him. Wren had barely said two words to him since they’d scrambled up the south fire escape and taken up position.

Right now, Logan could trust no one.

He shifted a little to ensure he had the Wraith in his full sights, ensuring the Wraith would be unable to get the drop on him. Then he fished his cell phone out of his pocket and sent a text to Saleem.
Sec yr loc meet me asap.
And he hoped the Djinn would know what he meant.

Minutes later, as Kai made progress toward the refrigerators, Saleem and Iain shimmered into solidity behind the Wraith and hunkered down beside an air-conditioning fan.

The wireless crackled with Kai’s shocked voice. “Illyria? What the hell?”

The Wraith moved, sliding around to grab hold of Logan, but the general didn’t get far. Saleem’s first bullet hit him in the upper back, the second at the base of his skull. If the poison wasn’t meant to kill, the second bullet would certainly have done the job.

Instead, Logan saw that Saleem had used the Wraith gun Illyria had given Kai. Kai had paid little attention to the weapon, and Saleem must have grabbed it at some point.
Good call, Djinn,
thought Logan.
We might need this dirt bag to squeeze him for info.

Moments later, he heard Kai ask, “Why?” Her struggle to speak was clear, and Logan’s gut twisted with fear. What had the Wraith done to her? The pain in Kai’s voice was enough to confirm she’d been injured in some way.

Everyone on the wireless was privy to Kai’s words, and one look at Saleem’s and Iain’s faces said they weren’t wasting time either. Saleem motioned to Iain to wait for him, and Kai’s brother gave him a curt nod. Then the Djinn held out a hand to Logan, jumping him to the yard outside the south entrance as Kai said, “I don’t understand. You’ve been killing Widd’en’s men. Why kill the army that you follow?”

Logan’s heart raced. The flow of the conversation only confirmed that Illyria wasn’t intending to leave Kai behind. She had some plan to abduct Kai, and Logan wasn’t going to let that happen. No fucking way.

They entered the building using the same door as Kai and the Wraith, headed right, and slipped through the double doors. Left then right then straight ahead.

“That’s not possible. Widd’en would have had a second-in-command,” said Kai in his ear. He knew she was stalling for time. Smart girl.

“You’re Widd’en’s daughter,” Kai’s voice echoed in his ear both from the wireless and echoing from inside the fridge, and Logan’s muscles stiffened. This was getting worse by the second.

“Ah, the Hunter is smart too.”

Logan and Saleem slipped inside the room

“You’re wasting your time. Logan will have the team here in minutes.” Kai was speaking, but she looked like she was about to pass out.

Illyria was standing close to her, her hand at Kai’s side red with blood. The Wraith had her back to Logan, so confident that her plans wouldn’t be thwarted. “Not if Wren’do has already eliminated them. And Wren’do is very efficient.”

Sorry, bitch, this is not your day
, he thought.

Then he spoke aloud. “So is Logan.”

As Illyria turned, Logan moved toward her. She grabbed the gun at her waist and raised her hand, but he kept moving. Saleem appeared beside Kai and spirited her away.

The Wraith managed to get off one shot before Logan pulled the trigger.

The bullet hit Illyria’s forehead dead center.

***

Logan watched as Kai tossed and turned. Her pain couldn’t be relieved with normal drugs, and it would be a waste of time to procure the special pain relief she’d need as a Walker.

All they could do now was watch and wait until her fever broke. She’d been unconscious most of the day now. Ivy had confirmed that Illyria’s knife had been laced with poison.

Logan sighed and rubbed his eyes. He was holding on to the faintest hope that Kai’s run-in with the Wraith-sword poison would strengthen her body against this one.

The apartment reeked of tension. But the one person Logan had expected to lash out at him had merely thanked him and slapped him on the shoulder. His heart twisted at Iain’s reaction, reminding Logan that he still had history with the Walker.

He left Iain with Kai and returned to the dining table. Cassie and Larsson had stuck around for a while before being called out on a mission for Sentinel, which left the rest of them waiting around for Kai to wake up.

Ivy touched his arm as he took a seat. “Don’t worry too much, dear. She’ll be well enough soon. She’s a strong woman, your Kai.”

Logan nodded at Ivy, giving her a small smile, but it was very disconcerting to have her call him dear when she was sizzling hot and looked not a day older than forty. The woman had to be at least sixty. Logan had to wonder if Walkers were part immortal. Something he needed to discuss with Kai.

He needed to think about something else or he would soon go crazy with the waiting. He cleared his throat. “Mel. Thanks for coming back. I was actually hoping you would.”

Mel sat across from him and nodded. She looked tired and worried, and he knew Kai’s injury had gotten to her. “What do you need?” she asked, getting straight to the point.

“We need you to track Celeste one more time. This time there is no Illyria to betray us. And I think it’s best to move as fast as we can. They won’t expect it—the last thing they’ll expect is a full-scale rescue mission. Especially when they think Kai is injured and poisoned to boot.”

“That’s what they think. They obviously know nothing about Walker physiology or immunization practices,” said Kai as she walked slowly out of her room.