Alpha Pack 7 - Chase the Darkness (17 page)

Faster and faster, he pumped, and when his fangs sank into the curve of her neck where it met her shoulder, she detonated for a second time. Her walls spasmed around him, and he came with a hoarse shout, filling her with his release.

At last, he had to pull out, and she felt a sense of loss.

“I wish we didn’t have to leave here,” she said sadly.

“But we’ll be back one day. I promise.”

Jacee wound her arms around his neck and kissed him, holding on to him for a very long time.

*   *   *

She woke, her lips tingling and her body singing with the phantom pleasures of her mate’s kiss and his lovemaking. The press of him against her. She smiled, remembering the dream, the sheer joy of playing with him.

Too bad it had just been a dream.

From the bed, Micah stirred and whispered, “I promise.”

She rose on one elbow and stared at him, stunned. He’d spoken those words, but he wasn’t awake. Could it be?

Her mate was a Dreamwalker. It was entirely possible they’d had a meeting of the minds, as it were.

Smiling, she let that comforting thought carry her back into sleep.

This time, she didn’t dream at all.

*   *   *

Micah first became aware of the incessant beeping that he hated. Then the smells.

The one scent he was glad to pick out was that of his mate. She was the sole reason he’d struggled so hard to return to the living. To open his eyes. Otherwise he wouldn’t have given two shits if he ever moved again.

Micah tried to recall what in the holy hell had happened. An argument with Jacee. About what?

Oh. Shit. She’d found the bottle of myst. They’d had words. He’d left, intending to just go blow off some steam for a while. Damn, he wasn’t used to having to answer for his every fucking move, and he was trying. So hard. He hadn’t even taken any of the goddamn pills, but she hadn’t believed him, had she?

Maybe she had. But he remembered she kept saying Micah had lied. By omission.

Truth. No way around that. He hadn’t wanted to worry her, but maybe that hadn’t counted for anything. She’d felt she couldn’t trust him, and the hurt had driven him away. Temporarily.

Wasn’t like he’d planned to stay gone. But the creature had attacked first, blood and vengeance on its mind. It had intended to tear him to pieces, carry him away, and then finish the job. Perhaps even eat him for dinner.

God. He’d narrowly escaped that fate. The last real memory he had was of his Pack arriving, Aric shooting flames at the beast. Of falling. And then nothing.

Had he even hit the ground? Something told him he wouldn’t have been alive to talk about it if he had. Kalen was probably to thank for intervening there.

After quite a bit of effort, Micah managed to open his eyes. Focusing took a few more minutes, but when he did, he saw his mate sleeping on the sofa under the window. She looked so small and vulnerable lying there, his heart broke for what she’d endured because of his stupidity.

And the monster’s cruelty. He couldn’t forget that. Yes, he’d tortured innocents. But he was coming to understand that his friends were right—only a soul that was truly twisted to start with would end up at this extreme, killing and maiming. Perhaps Bowman had merely made sure the outside of the creature matched the inside.

The “good doctor” had tried to accomplish the same thing with Micah. He’d tried to mold Micah into a ruthless killer, but thankfully the lessons had never taken. Micah hadn’t been able to kill an innocent, no matter what punishments Bowman threatened him with. That was the truth, and he’d swear it in front of anyone.

As though sensing his stare, Jacee stirred and stretched. After a couple of minutes she opened her eyes to find him watching, and sat up fast.

“You’re awake! My God, I thought I’d lost you.” Tears flooded her pretty eyes, and she came to sit by his bed, taking his face in her hands.

“You didn’t,” he croaked. “I’m made of tougher stuff than that.”

“You almost died. It took my blood and Calla’s to bring you back. Don’t ever do that to me again. Please.” She kissed his lips tenderly.

“I’ll try. How long have I been out?”

“Since last night. You were really messed up. The doctors had to remove your spleen and appendix. But everything else healed on its own. Well, with some help.”

“I’m so grateful. Thank you, baby. I’ll thank Nick and Calla later, too.”

“They won’t want your thanks, just for you to get well. How do you feel?”

He thought about that. “Like hell. But it beats the alternative.”

“Yes, it does.”

She got quiet, and he asked, “What’s wrong?”

“I was wondering if you remember having a dream about me last night?”

He smiled. “About us, at our cabin? Making love in the pool?”

She nodded, wide-eyed. “How did you know?”

“Because it wasn’t
just
a dream. We reached out to each other, and so I directed us in our dream. That’s what a Dreamwalker does.”

“So it happened, and yet it didn’t.”

“We met on almost a spiritual level. Our minds connected. I helped with the rest.”

“That’s just . . .”

“Weird, I know.”

“But sort of cool.” She stroked his hair. “You need to rest, honey. I can see how tired you are.”

“I don’t really want to,” he grumbled.

But his healing body didn’t give him a choice. As if she’d commanded it, the weight of sleep dragged him under to the stroke of her hands on his hair, his face. He knew nothing more for quite a while.

*   *   *

Jacee was dozing again when Mac came into the room.

“Hey,” the doc said softly, “you awake?”

“Barely.” Sitting up, Jacee wiped her face.

“How’s our patient?” Mac glanced toward Micah, who was sleeping.

“As well as can be, considering.”

Mac busied herself checking his vitals, then addressed Jacee. “He’s doing pretty well. By the way, I’ve got the lab results back on those leftovers you brought to us last night.”

“With everything that’s happened, I’d almost forgotten about them! What were the results?”

“Well, your coyote’s nose was correct—the food was laced with rat poison, something anyone can buy at any supply store. With your shifter biology, the stuff would’ve made you sick, but it wouldn’t have killed either of you.”

“So the crime wasn’t very well thought-out,” Jacee mused. “Sounds almost like an afterthought, like he had the opportunity and did it on a whim.”

“Well, I’m a doctor, not a cop, so I couldn’t say. But that sounds about right.” The doc tucked her stethoscope back into the pocket of her coat. “Anyway, I’ll let Nick and the sheriff know the results.”

“Thanks. Any idea when he might be released?” Jacee glanced at Micah, who was still totally oblivious.

“If it hadn’t been for Calla’s blood, his healing would’ve taken a lot longer. As it is, perhaps a day or two. Even so, I want him to rest for a few days when he’s released.”

“I’ll make sure he does.”

One thing was starting to become clear—she was going to have to cut back on her hours at the bar. She might have to quit altogether, which would be kinder to Jack than keeping such a sporadic schedule. And bartending, though she loved talking to people, wasn’t what she wanted to do forever.

What she
did
want to do, she didn’t know. Go back to school? To study what?

A tiny bubble of excitement started to form, and she decided to speak with Micah about her options as soon as he was awake and coherent. One thing she did know for sure was that her mate would be supportive of whatever she chose to pursue. That was a very liberating feeling.

A short while after Mac left, Micah began to wake up. He moved around, cracked his eyes open, and groaned. “Hey,” he said, his lips turning up. “You’ve been there the whole time?”

“Haven’t left, but I’m going to shower and change, then get something to eat soon. Want me to bring you back anything?”

He thought about that. “No. Just you.”

“That, I can do.” Leaning over, Jacee kissed him. “Mac was here. They’re going to spring you in the next day or so.”

“That’s fast, considering how bad that bastard tore me up,” he said in amazement.

“I’ll say. We have Calla and her vampire genetics to thank for that. She and Nick are going to stop by and see you soon, by the way.”

“Okay.”

“You sure you’ll be all right while I run out for a bit?” She bit her lip.

“Stop fretting. I’ll be fine. Just do what you need to, and I’ll be here plotting the untimely death of a certain monster who put me here.”

“All right, but I’ll be back soon.”

After giving him another kiss, she left. But not before looking at her mate lying in the bed and reassuring herself that he really was going to be fine. John was guarding his door as well, which added some relief to her worry. There wasn’t anyone in the world who meant more to her than that battle-scarred wolf.

He was hers, and nobody was taking him away.

Back in their quarters, she puttered around, finding a bra and a pair of clean underwear. Then she laid out a fresh pair of jeans and a blue cotton top. Just as she turned to go into the bathroom, the small brown pill bottle caught her eye. It was lying rather innocently on the floor, and a sudden spurt of anger seized her chest.

Bending, she grabbed it. Carrying it to the bathroom, she opened it, poured the contents in the toilet, then flushed them. “Good fucking riddance!” Then she buried the bottle at the bottom of the trash can, where it would end up in the dump, never to be seen again.

That wouldn’t end his cravings, she knew. But she’d be there to help him every step of the way.

After her shower, which felt really good, she dried her hair and put on the barest of makeup. Just enough to cover the circles under her eyes and put some color in her cheeks. Then she went to the dining room in search of food.

Lunch was in full swing, and she was instantly surrounded by Micah’s Pack brothers, all demanding an update. They hadn’t wanted to bombard his room all at one time, but now that he was on the mend, they promised to stop by.

Jacee sat with Aric, Rowan, Kalen, and Sariel. One thing her friends steadfastly refused to discuss was the actual attack.

“You don’t want to hear a blow-by-blow account,” Aric said firmly. “Trust me on that.”

And that was the end of it. He did describe the creature, but that was as far as he was willing to go. Jacee shivered at the knowledge of how close to death her mate had come.

Her friends changed the subject, and she enjoyed listening to Sariel talk about the wonders of this world. She’d never thought about their plane of existence from the perspective of someone from another realm before, and it was intriguing. Well, the prince himself was fascinating.

“So, you don’t have phones or anything in the Seelie realm?” Jacee asked.

“Phones? Whatever for?” He cocked his head, jewel blue hair cascading over one shoulder. His large blue wings rested against his back.

“Guess not. How do you communicate with each other?”

“Oh. If not in person, then we use mind-link. Much like mated shifters can do, but Fae can all do it from the time they’re children.”

“Wow, that’s cool.”

Sariel grinned. “Very. For the most part, though sometimes siblings can be a pain when you want privacy. Especially my brothers.” At the mention of his brothers, his face fell. “I miss them.”

“I’m sorry.” Reaching out, Jacee touched his hand. “Do you think they’ll ever come here looking for you?”

“I’m not sure, but I like to imagine they’d find a way,” he said wistfully. “I look for a portal, once in a while. I was cast out of my realm through one, so I know they exist. I just don’t know where.”

She hated to see the Fae prince so sad. All too well, she understood what it was like to suddenly be without your family. Only his weren’t dead, just out of reach. “What do you like to do for fun?”

“Hmm, I like to watch television.”

She laughed. “I mean
real
fun. TV is boring.”

“Not if you’ve never seen one before.” He gave it some thought. “I like the video games, and I like to shop.”

“Really? How does that work, with that hair and those wings?” She eyed the gorgeous creature, imagining the riot he’d cause in town if people got a look at him.

“I use magic to cloak my appearance when I go out. I’ve been at the Grizzly with the team, and I’ll bet you’ve never even noticed me,” he said, smug.

She blinked at him in surprise. “You have?”

“Yes. I don’t use the same disguise every time because I don’t want people to remember me.”

“Makes sense. Can you do it now? Show me a disguise.”

“Of course.”

The air around him shimmered, and in two blinks, a rather ordinary-looking young man with short brown hair and green eyes sat in front of her. No wings. Then the air shimmered again, and he became a portly, older bald man. Then a buff, muscular black man.

“Wow! That’s incredible.” The others around the cafeteria were getting into the fun, calling out suggestions. Sariel did a few more before reverting back to his normal self.

He shrugged. “It allows me to move freely in your world. If I can’t be myself, the ruse will do, for a short while.”

That sobered her some. She couldn’t imagine having to pretend to be someone else just to move freely in society without censure.

But then, there were regular people who had to do that every day.

Purely on a whim, she asked, “Would you like to go shopping with me sometime?”

He beamed with pleasure. “I would love to. There are so many things I haven’t discovered, and I enjoy getting out of the compound. If your mate wouldn’t mind, that is. I wouldn’t want him tearing out my throat.”

She seriously doubted even Micah could tackle an eleven-thousand-year-old Fae prince, but Sariel’s words were endearing. “I’m sure. He’s not like that.”

“In that case, yes.”

“How about you?” she asked Rowan. “Think you could get away from Pack duties for an afternoon for some retail therapy? We’ve been under plenty of stress, and shopping is the cure.”

“As long as Nick approves and Sariel is with us, I think we’ll be safe enough.” Rowan nodded. “I’m in!”