He rummaged through the fridge, smiling when he grabbed the plastic bowl with the leftover lasagna that Jasper had made the night before. Damn, his mouth was watering for some of that.
Rave dropped the bowl, watching it hit the floor and tumble onto its side as he grabbed his head. That wasn’t Logan practicing. It was too strong, too powerful. Logan had proven himself powerful, but Einarr had said they would start off with something light for Logan’s first practice.
That wasn’t something light.
Rave blinked a few times, his head throbbing gently, but he still didn’t see anyone. He picked the bowl off of the floor, set it on the counter, and then fell to his knees as he cried out. Images of Rave grabbing the large butcher’s knife pushed into his mind, and Rave knew then who was doing this.
Aba.
He tried to run from the kitchen, to go get his mate, and possibly Einarr if the demon could fight Aba, but he fell into the wall just inside the kitchen when a wave of pain crashed over him.
Rave touched his face, his fingers coming away with blood. His damn nose was bleeding.
What the fuck?
The image of the butcher’s knife sailed across his vision once more as Rave felt himself walking back over to the counter. The butcher’s knife was sitting on the cutting board, gleaming in the lighting.
It looked sharp, deadly as hell as well. Rave’s heart began to pound in his throat as he walked closer. He knew that if he reached that knife, he was dead.
“No!” he shouted as he tried to take a step back, putting some distance between him and the knife. The temperature in the room dropped like a heavy weight. Rave knew it was a trick of the mind.
He was standing in his kitchen, but feeling as though he were standing in the middle of a snowstorm instead. His teeth began to chatter as he pulled his body away from the counter, fighting against the need to get to that damn knife.
“Help!” Rave shouted, but no one came to the kitchen. He was on his own. “You can’t hurt me!” Rave shouted into the empty kitchen.
“Oh, I think I can, wolf. I think I can.” Aba appeared from beside the cabinets. Rave hadn’t even seen the man hiding there. Had Aba kept him from seeing the man? Was he that good, that powerful? If he was, Rave was fucked.
Rave grabbed the island, using his hands to pull away from the counter with the butcher’s knife lying on it. He wasn’t going to get the knife and allow Aba to make Rave kill himself. He wasn’t.
Aba took a step closer to Rave as the power rolled over Rave’s skin, pushing into his mind more forcefully. His fingers began to cramp on the marble countertop, but Rave refused to let go, refused to butcher himself.
Blood trickled thicker down his lip, but if Rave raised his hand to wipe it away, he was done for. Instead, he turned his head and wiped his mouth on his shirt, glaring at Aba. “I won’t let you control me.”
“We’ll see,” Aba said with a small chuckle. The veins became pronounced at his temples as he locked eyes with Rave. The irises in Aba’s eyes were dark, bottomless pits of hell staring back at him.
Rave could see that not only did Aba choose the dark side, he had lovingly embraced it. A high buzzing began in Rave’s head, like buzzing bees. He smacked his hands over his temples and realized his mistake too late. His body shot forward, his abdomen slamming into the counter. The knife lay there, gleaming and ready to cut anything in its path. The blade was sharp. Jasper kept all his knives sharp.
Jasper’s anal need for sharp knives was going to be Rave’s death.
How ironic.
As if an invisible rope was attached to Rave’s wrist, his hand began to reach for the knife. “No, damn it,” Rave gritted out, but his hand was still reaching for the knife.
“Yes, damn it,” Aba mocked him. He stood there in his black suit, crisp and clean, his skinny tie with its silver clip so shiny against the black. Rave wanted to shift and…fuck! How could he have forgotten about his wolf? Rave shifted into his wolf form. There was no way he could grab the knife with paws.
“That will not stop me, wolf,” Aba said as he reached over and grabbed the knife. Rave growled and snarled, baring his teeth, but stood perfectly still as Aba approached him. Rave fought the urge to lift his head and bare his neck. He was not giving Aba his neck.
He threw his head back and howled, howled so loud that Aba had to cover his ears. Rave knew someone heard him then. They better have fucking heard him or he was going to be sacrificed with a slit throat.
He heard heavy footfall as he fought to back away. Aba leapt at him, the knife swinging in the air. Rave howled again when the blade cut across his front leg. He felt the blood spilling from the wound, but he didn’t lose his concentration. Aba swung at him again, but Rave felt the release from the
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’s mind. He jumped back in time, the blade embedding into the wood of the island.
“No!” Logan shouted as he came into the room. Rave saw in that one glimpse of a moment what Aba wanted to do to his mate. He wanted Logan’s powers. If Aba killed Logan, Logan’s ability would be absorbed into Aba’s body. He wouldn’t allow that to happen.
“Abaddon,” Einarr sneered. “Long time no see.”
“You know him?” Logan asked.
“I do,” Einarr said.
* * * *
“He was named after the deceiver. Abaddon likes to think himself all-powerful, but he is not,” Einarr replied. Logan snapped his head from Aba to Rave, rage filling him at the sight of Rave bleeding.
“What did you do to my mate?” Logan demanded.
“Come see,” Aba taunted.
Logan blew out a breath, praying like hell that he wasn’t about to get his ass handed to him. Logan smoothed his hair back, reaching down inside of him where his powers rested. He tried his hardest not to look anxious or scared. But it wasn’t easy. Aba was out to kill him.
Of that Logan had no doubt.
Einarr laughed, but it turned into a low chuckling growl as he stood to Logan’s right. “Do you think he’s stupid enough to come to you?”
“So, you have been training him?” Aba asked Einarr.
Too bad it was only an hour’s worth of training. Why couldn’t Aba come at a later date when Logan was a little more skillful?
“I have,” Einarr admitted.
“To fight against me?” Aba looked offended. Logan wasn’t sure what was going on, but he wanted to get Rave away from Aba’s side.
His mate was bleeding all over the floor, which meant the wound was pretty damn deep.
“Yes,” Einarr replied, “against you.”
Logan was glad one of them was calm, because he was about to lose his damn mind. Einarr stood there as if the two were talking about the weather. He knew the demon had come to teach him how to control his powers, so what was the man talking about?
“Is this some half-baked attempt to redeem yourself for failing me?” Aba asked. Logan could feel Aba’s powers sliding over him like slick, black oil. He stopped himself from shivering. The probing wasn’t hurting him, but he didn’t like it.
“No,” Einarr said as he shook his head. “I did all I could for you, Abaddon. It was your choice to hurt people.”
“You were his teacher?” Logan asked in surprise.
Einarr nodded. “I was.”
Logan swallowed. He knew he was in trouble now. If Einarr, a man who studied
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mente
beings, was Aba’s teacher, he was so damn screwed.
“And you expect me to win?” Logan asked.
“No, I don’t.”
Well, that was reassuring. Logan didn’t know what to say. Was Einarr going to let him die at Aba’s hands? If he was, that was pretty low to agree to teach him in the first place.
“Giving him over to me?” Aba asked with a glee of triumph in his voice.
“No, I’m not.”
“Look, you’re confusing the hell out of me,” Logan said as he glanced quickly at Einarr and then back at Rave. Logan’s back slammed into the wall, Aba catching him off guard. The pain shot through his mind and down his spine as he fought not to cry out.
Logan shot forward, his anger unleashed, but Einarr drew him back with his hand on Logan’s arm.
“Never go to your enemies. Always make them come to you.”
Right. That was Logan’s plan all along. Really.
Logan stood there waiting for Aba to do his worst, although he had high doubts he would live to see the end results. Tony slid to Logan’s left, his gun drawn. Logan wasn’t sure that was such a brilliant idea, considering Aba could make Tony shoot himself.
Cal walked into the kitchen, standing there staring at Aba.
“I don’t think you should be in here,” Logan said as he took a step toward his friend. Cal was no match for Aba. The guy would end up with minced brains. Logan cocked his head as his friend began to laugh. He knew Cal was a little off, but now was not the time for humor.
“Cal?”
Cal began to cross the kitchen, his steps self-assured, maybe even a little bit cocky. Was the guy about to confront Aba? “Cal, don’t.
He’s dangerous.”
Kneeling by Rave, Cal reached out and grabbed the wolf’s leg, his fingers curling around the wound. Rave whimpered and tried to bite Cal, but Logan could tell Aba was using his mind control to keep Rave subdued.
“What are you doing?” Logan shouted, taking a step toward his friend. Einarr grabbed Logan’s arm, stopping him.
“Let me go, Einarr.”
The demon shook his head.
“I think he is trying to rescue you, Cal,” Aba said humorously.
Cal licked the blood from his hand as he stood, smiling at Logan as he pulled his fingers from his mouth. His tongue traced across his lips, as if he wanted to make sure he had every last drop. Logan felt like he was going to be sick. Cal’s brown eyes were shimmering with something close to lust as he looked back down at Rave’s injury.
“Stay away from him,” Logan gritted out.
“Or what?” Cal laughed.
“Is he using mind control on Cal?” Logan whispered to Einarr.
Because if Aba was, Cal was going to be sick to his stomach when he found out what he’d done to Rave.
Einarr gave a slight shake of his head.
“Do you think Aba is controlling me?” Cal asked as if insulted.
“No, Logan. This is all me. I killed that couple. You should have heard her husband begging, begging me not to cut her precious skin.”
Cal’s eyes were gleaming now, like twin jewels of terror. The man appeared to be reliving the event in his mind, enjoying it.
How in the hell had he not seen the true Cal? Fuck, Logan had shared a damn house with the man. “The man by the Dumpster?”
Cal laughed. “His screams made my damn cock hard.”
“You’re a fucking sociopath,” Logan spat.
“That I am.” Cal claimed the title with pride and then looked over at Aba, glaring at the man. “But Aba wouldn’t let me eat him. He said it had to look like he had killed the guy.”
“Eat him?” God, Logan really was going to be sick. He stared across the room at someone he had called friend, but in truth, the man was a complete stranger. He shook his head, knowing in his heart that he wanted Cal dead. Just as dead as he wanted Aba. Not only had the cat shifter betrayed him, but he had killed innocent people. Logan felt disgusted just looking at Cal.
“What do you get out of this?” Logan asked as he waved a hand from Cal to Aba. “What has he promised you?”
Cal toed Rave, smiling down at Logan’s mate. “Fresh bodies.
Victims I can kill without worrying about being caught. He promised to give me playthings that I can torture for hours, Logan.”
“You sick fuck.” Logan wondered how he was standing there.
Why hadn’t Cal ever tried to kill him at home?
Cal chuckled. “Sticks and stones, Logan.”
“Why didn’t you try to kill me?”
“Because.” Cal once again glared at Aba. “I was told you were off-limits. Someone else wanted you all to himself.”
Gee, I wonder who.
“In return,” Cal continued, “I kept an eye on you. I was supposed to make sure Aba had no problems taking you from our home that night, but then Rave and his buddies showed up. You’re supposed to die, Logan, so Aba can absorb your powers. So die!”
Aba’s powers lashed out too quick to stop. Logan was on the floor, curling into himself as he grunted out his pain.
That’s it.
Whether he died or not, Logan was tired of Aba playing with him. He glanced up at Aba, seeing a frightening intensity in Aba’s eyes as he glared at Logan, as if the gloves were off and playtime was over.
“Concentrate,” Einarr warned under his breath. “Don’t let your powers control you. You are the one in charge of your powers, Logan.”
Aba roared as a wave of darkness fell over Logan. He shook his head, fighting to release Aba’s grip on him, on his mind. Logan pushed and pushed damn hard, but he could feel the darkness taking over.
“Channel your powers,” Einarr said with a bite. “Channel them.”
“You can’t win,” Cal taunted from across the room, but Logan shut the man out of his mind.
Logan narrowed his sight down to Aba, pushing his will into the other man to die. Just making Aba relent wouldn’t be enough. He may not be the one responsible for the man and woman’s death in Pride Pack Valley, but he was sure that Aba was responsible for more deaths than what was reported. He could feel it in the man’s mind.
But his morals wouldn’t let Logan kill the man. That wasn’t his call. He had to just disable Aba. He wasn’t a cold-blooded killer. He wasn’t Aba or Cal. Logan never wanted to be what he saw in front of him. And he knew that if he killed Aba, it would make it a little easier to kill again. Being a
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was too damn alluring in itself. He didn’t need any help being seduced any further into his own powers.
A wave of cold ice formed just under Logan’s skin as he fought to keep Aba out. It wasn’t a matter of hurting Aba now as much as it was staying alive. He could feel Aba’s arrogance rolling off of him in waves. The man thought himself untouchable.
Calmness began to settle inside Logan. It was serene and peaceful.
He wasn’t sure where it was coming from, but Logan grabbed on to it.
He could feel Aba’s powers weakening inside of his mind, loosening their hold on him. Logan pushed hard, lashing out with everything in him, wanting Aba to relent, to give up.