Sword of Mercy (30 page)

She patted his cheek and placed a kiss on the
back of his hand. “And that is why you are the only Alpha for our
pack.”

He smiled and they prepared a quick meal for
the upcoming battle. “I will run into the woods to see how this
thing works before the challenge. Despite how the low hum of energy
running through me, I need to be sure I can handle it.”

She nodded and sat in front of him. “Finally,
after all this time we will have our Alpha. The right Alpha. One
who cares for everyone, not just a few favorites. I can go with you
or wait here, whatever you want.”

Pleased, she offered a choice it made his
answer easier. “No, this first time I will go alone, iron out the
kinks and make sure I am sure footed. When I return we will find
Muzik and I will challenge him.”

She nodded and he could tell she was relieved.
Granira had aged well, but she tired easily and the past week had
presented a strain.

“Okay, I will rest and wait for your
return.”

Niall nodded, left the house and headed toward
the mountains at an easy pace in case someone watched. Despite
Granira’s opinion, Muzik wasn’t dumb. The Alpha understood as long
as he and Hawke lived his position was in jeopardy. It wouldn’t
surprise Niall if someone followed him and Granira and made reports
to Muzik. Within moments he hit the tree line on the mountain.
Inhaling and sensing no one nearby, he took off at a faster pace,
impressed by the increased speed.

He headed for a cave where he hid as a boy
when no one had time for him. It had become his private place to
dream and hope. Today, it seemed the proper place to practice
before reaching the culmination of his dreams.

Chapter 30

“Hawke? Hawke? Wake up
.” Asia’s called
again as she had been doing for the past ten minutes. She lay on a
gurney in a lab where a technician had taken her blood and had her
lined up in a long metal tube for x-rays. Pretty soon, Lancaster
would recognize the metal in her legs and arm and know her
identity.

“Mistress?”

“Asia? Where are you?”

“I don’t know where but Lancaster
is running tests on me and will know who I am soon. I cannot wake
Hawke.”

“Not again,
” Jasmine murmured.
“
Angus is tracking you guys. The door was locked and he had to
enter another way. He and that animal took down a couple of hybrids
and saved Maheegan and her mate. But you were gone by
then.”

“Does he know what
happened?”

“Hawke told him it was Granira and
Lancaster.”

“What? That bitch. I will
personally kill her when I get out of here.”

“Let’s work on getting you out first. I’ll
have Silas work on Hawke while I help you
.”

Asia tensed and then forced herself to relax.
Her Mistress wasn’t very good at this yet, but anything she could
do to help would be appreciated. The motor started and she moved
slowly toward the tube. Many times in the past she had been in this
same position, helpless. After all she had been through, her death,
rebirth, mating and falling in love, it seemed impossible that
she’d be subjected to all of this again.

Her wolf growled.

Not again. Her wolf howled in agreement. If
Lancaster was anywhere in this building the man would die by her
hands today. Earlier, she and Hawke planned to allow themselves to
be captured to be close to their prey, well this wasn’t how they
imagined things would work out. But it would have to do. She sought
her link with Hawke, he was still unresponsive, but his energy
burned bright.

“Mistress, I have an idea, let me
try it and if it doesn’t work I’ll let you know.”

“Okay
.”

Asia touched his energy, it coiled around her
like a lost lover. She warmed and then burned hot as the two of
them linked. While in the container she lifted her hands popping
the security bands and threw energy toward the controls causing
them to burn and short out.

The technician re-entered the room as Asia
inched forward. Their gazes met. The woman pulled out what looked
like a small tranq gun and fired just as Asia jumped aside. The
needle fell to the table. The tech fired again and again missing
until Asia reached and backhanded her, knocking her to the
ground.

“I’m off the table.”

“Good. Silas is still working on
Hawke
.”

“Tell him, I know how to wake him and I’m
on my way
.” She dragged the tech to the door, ran the ID card
through the slot and placed her thumb on the pad. The door opened.
Two hybrids met her in the hall. Asia inhaled searching for her
mate as she jumped up, pushed the charging hybrid into the lab just
as the door closed behind him and turned to face the other. He
charged and she dropped low, gut punched him and then kicked him
beneath his chin sending him flying down the hall. He dented the
wall, causing dust to float around him. Good, they hadn’t
reinforced this building for hybrids.

Locked on Hawke’s scent she headed in his
direction. On the way she broke the glass and pulled an ax from an
emergency exit box. Since no one opposed her on the way she
suspected a nice welcome from Lancaster and Gordon.

“Hawke
,” she called when she reached
the door to the room where he was located.

“Asia?
”

She breathed and sent energy to clear the
cobwebs from his mind.

“What the fuck? How’d I get back
here again? Damn it.”

“Doesn’t matter. We’ll deal with
that later. Right now plan B is in effect.”

“Plan B? Refresh my
memory.”

“We allow ourselves to be caught
to get close to the Liege. They die today, Hawke.”

“Yes… I agree. Is that you at the
door?”

“Yep, just waiting for an
invitation
.”

His chuckle filled their link.
“I’m
blindfolded and suspended over something, don’t let that distract
you from our mission. I’m really hard to destroy
.”

She swallowed hard. “
You first
always
.”

He didn’t respond right away. She sensed her
words impacted him the same way his always hit her. “
Understood.
By the way, come on in
.”

“I need to borrow a little of your energy,
hold tight, this won’t hurt a bit
.” She wrapped his essence
around her and shifted. Once in her hybrid form she kicked the
door. It flew off the hinges into the room like a
torpedo.

“Nice. I felt the wind as it
passed
.”

There was a small room higher up with human
heartbeats, she counted two and one full blood. She wondered who
had betrayed the wolf nation and promised to make that bitch
suffer.

“Welcome Asia. It has been a long time since
we’ve seen you. Blood doesn’t lie and yours was a perfect match,”
Lancaster said through an intercom. “Please come in, I’d love for
you to join us, after all this party is for you.”

“Mistress, where is
Angus?”

“His pet is tracking you, I don’t
know where he is exactly. Why?”

“I need a little help
.” She told
Jasmine what she learned so far.

“Sounds like Hawke will need the
help.”

“I plan to kill all of them, but I
need to make sure my mate is safe. I don’t want to look at him,
instead I want to focus on that room.”

“I see. Good plan. I’ll tell Silas, he and
Hawke will work out whatever he’s going through and I’ll help
you.”
She paused.
“I’ve been practicing Asia. I can direct
an energy bolt into that room and start a fire if you look at it
long enough. Promise I won’t hurt you.”

“I wonder if I can redirect
Hawke’s energy and do that?”

“Try it and if it does not work,
I’ll help.”

“Yes, Ma’am
.” Asia prayed to the
Goddess and stepped inside. Her plan of not looking at Hawke failed
the moment she entered since he was suspended in front of the small
glass pane where Lancaster, Gordon and Alpha Verrick
stood.

Testing the weight of the ax, she moved
further into the room, and threw the ax into the glass causing it
to web but not shatter. Next, she picked up the lone chair in the
room and sent it flying into the glass, this time it broke in
several places. Running, she leapt and fell short of the
window.

“You bitch,” Lancaster said, holding the side
of his head as blood ran down and then stopped. “You just killed
your mate.”

Trusting Silas to keep her mate safe, she
focused on that small upper room. She tapped into Hawke’s energy,
allowed it to burn and merge with hers. Running she leapt for the
room and landed inside. It was much larger than she
thought.

Lancaster screamed as she backhanded him so
hard he flew into the wall and slid down. Gordon backed against the
wall, inching for the door.

“Kill her,” Lancaster screamed at Verrick who
caught the brunt of the shattered glass. His face re-knitted as he
bulked to a hybrid.

“So you accepted the poison,” she
mocked.

Verrick shrugged and walked toward her. Asia
grabbed the chair and slammed it into the control panel jamming the
door.

“No! No,” Lancaster yelled and ran toward the
door.

Verrick tried to grab her around the waist. At
the last moment she jumped and kicked him in the chest, sending him
flying backward. He hit the wall, shook his head and fell
backward.

Asia backed up, looked at Gordon and grabbed
him by the throat while Lancaster punched the destroyed control
panel trying to open the door. She squeezed and then threw Gordon
at Verrick when the Alpha ran at her. Both hit the floor. Turning,
she grabbed Lancaster by his shirt and shook him like a leaf. All
the lives this bastard ruined. She put her hand around his neck,
prepared to snap it when Verrick knocked her back into the wall.
Lancaster rolled to the side holding his neck trying to
breathe.

She blocked Verrick’s punches and kicked him
in the gut, sending him backward knocking Gordon down in the
process. “They didn’t warn you, about these did they?” she asked,
pointing to her legs before going after Lancaster again.

“Mistress, I can’t kill them until the
covenant is broken, have Maheegan break the
contract
.”

She backhanded Lancaster again. He spun and
hit the floor. “That was for chaining my mate to the wall when he
was a pup.” He tried to crawl away. But she grabbed him by the back
of his shirt and punched him in the gut. “That was for taking his
pup without telling him.”

“Stop… stop,” Lancaster cried, covering his
face as she picked him up again.

“This is for Gunnolf.” She hit him in the face
again.

“What about Gordon… he did it too,” Lancaster
cried, pointing at Gordon who stood behind Verrick.

“All of you’ll die for what you’ve done to
full-bloods but you… you are a slimy bastard who abused my mate. I
promised to kill you myself.”

“They are working on it Asia. It’s
going to take a few minutes,” Jasmine said.

“Hawke?”

“He’ll be okay.
” It was the hesitancy
in her Mistress’ voice that concerned Asia. Her mate wasn’t dead,
she would know, but he’d blocked her, which could mean a lot of
things. She had to have faith that he would be okay. Otherwise all
of this would be meaningless.

“You sniveling asshole,” Gordon growled at
Lancaster.

“I saved your ass.” Lancaster tried to crawl
toward Verrick but Asia blocked and dragged him back to the
opposite side and pinned him against the wall by his throat. Damn,
she wished she could squeeze the breath out of him right
now.

Footsteps. She looked at the door before the
knock came.

Hybrids.

Lancaster’s eyes widened with what she
identified as hope. “The door is jammed on –” she increased the
pressure on his neck cutting off his words.

Verrick stood, dusted off his pants and met
her gaze. “Either kill him or let him go.”