“Is Otto working for the royal family? Are they the ones who sent you here, Greg?”
“I don’t know. I swear. All I know is that he told us we had to wait for you here and get the necklace.” His muscles tensed when he saw the bodies of his dead pack members. “You killed Mario and David…why?” His brow furrowed and his voice remained small. “You have the necklace. You could have taken their wolf, like you did with me. You didn’t have to kill them.”
“What are you saying?” Maya asked warily. She loosened her hold on his arms and stared at him through frightened eyes. “What do you mean, I could have taken their wolf?”
“You’re Vanator,” he whispered. Greg’s eyes flicked to her necklace and then locked on to her face once again. His thin lips quivered with fear, and he barely got the words out. “You really did what they said you could do. You took my wolf.”
“Took your wolf?” Maya repeated the words again, hoping they would make more sense, but they didn’t. “I don’t understand what you’re talking about.”
“You made me have to live as a human,” he whispered.
“Well, there it is,” Lottie murmured. Pursing her lips together, she looked Maya up and down. “I’ll be a son of a bitch. No wonder the wolves want that necklace so damn bad.”
Maya’s body went numb and she sat back, releasing Greg from her grasp. She lifted her quivering hands and stared at them before looking back at Greg, who was inching farther away from her. He looked at her like she was a monster. Maya’s gaze skittered over the two dead men on the lawn, and she started to feel like one.
With lightning-fast reflexes Maya grabbed Greg by the arms and stood up, dragging him to his feet. Shaking with absolute terror, he whimpered, “Please don’t kill me.”
Maya pushed into his mind, dropped her voice to a low tone, and glamoured him. “You’re going to run,” she whispered in a shaky voice. Maya turned to Shane, who looked almost as surprised as Lottie. “You’ll have no memory of me or of what happened here tonight. You and your friends got drunk on tequila, and you woke up naked and alone.”
“Naked and alone.” Greg’s eyes had a faraway look while he nodded his understanding. “Too much tequila.”
“Forget me and this place.” Maya leaned close and whispered, “Now run.”
When she let go of his arms, Greg ran past her into the wild of the bayou with the stumbling gait of a drunk. As his naked ass disappeared into the darkness, Maya turned around to find Shane standing behind her.
She let out a cry of relief and wrapped her arms around him, burying her face in the crook of his neck. Instead of returning her affection, he linked his arms around her wrist and pulled her off him.
“What’s wrong?” Maya looked at him with confusion and immediately felt stupid for jumping all over a man who’d just been horribly wounded. “Oh my God! I’m so sorry, Shane. Did I hurt you? I probably shouldn’t have jumped your bones like that, but I’m so relieved you’re okay. I wasn’t sure if Greg’s blood would work but it did. Here, let me see how you’re doing.”
Her hands flew to his shirt and she attempted to look at his wounds. Shane pushed her hands away and shook his head. Recognizing the serious, flat look in his eyes, she felt a heavy sense of dread creep up her back and something inside her ached. Maya knew that look. It was the same cold, calculated, emotionless expression he used to have.
“No. I’m fine.” Shane winced and took a step back. “It will heal completely once I’ve had an opportunity to sleep.” His expression darkened. “Did I hear that correctly? Did you turn the boy into a human with the power from that necklace?”
“Yes.” Maya nodded excitedly and grinned, but based on the look on Shane’s face, he didn’t share her excitement. “Why do you look so unhappy? I mean, I know it’s kind of weird and everything but…”
“It’s a death sentence for you, Maya.” Shane stared at her through furious eyes. “Don’t you understand? Are you such a child that you don’t fathom what this will mean?”
“I am not a child.” As she glared at Shane, anger flickered up her back. “I’ll just go back to New York and give the stupid wolves the stupid fucking necklace, and then everyone will be happy.”
“Somehow I doubt that,” Shane murmured quietly.
“Oh please,” Lottie scoffed. “Can you two zip it for five minutes? I’ve got two dead werewolves in my yard, and I’d like to get ’em cleaned up so I can go back to bed. I don’t know what kind of crazy shit y’all do up there in New York City, but this ain’t exactly my usual Saturday night.”
Before Maya could ask Lottie just what she planned on doing, the old woman raised her palms to the sky and started chanting again. It was a language Maya had never heard before, and as her chanting grew louder, the ring on Lottie’s hand glowed brightly. Shouting one final chant, Lottie leaned forward and swept her hands, palms down, above the bodies of the two dead werewolves.
The energy from Lottie’s ring flickered and shot out in a circular burst of light and heat, which made Maya squint. When she finally opened her eyes and looked, the bodies were gone. A perfect circle of scorched grass covered almost the entire lawn, and all that was left of the two dead werewolves were the leather-handled daggers. Maya, Shane, and Lottie stood at the center of the burnt circle, and Maya let out a low whistle before picking up the daggers. Lottie wavered on her feet, clearly drained by using her magic. Shane caught her by the arm before she fell over.
“I thought your family magic was only about reading the future,” Maya said with a raised eyebrow. “Looks like I’m not the only one who’s full of surprises.”
“Don’t ya know by now?” Lottie said with a laugh and a wink to Maya. “Us gypsies are a secretive bunch, and we only share our magic on a need-to-know basis. Speaking of which, you should take that advice to heart. I don’t think anyone needs to know about your little gift.”
“Well, I have to tell Olivia and Doug, and they’re going to have to tell the Emperor, which means all the vamps will probably find out about it.” Maya stilled, her gaze meeting Shane’s while they walked toward the house. Shane seemed to be doing his best to avoid looking at her. “I’m sure they’re going to want me to turn the necklace over to the wolves, and honestly, I’m fine with that. If they don’t get it, then they’ll never stop coming after me.”
“Perhaps,” Lottie murmured. “But like I said, I think the magic is more about the gypsy than the jewels.”
Shane remained quiet, and nodding his agreement, he helped Lottie into the house. Once she was settled in her bed, the two of them made their way up to the third floor, and though there was still an hour until sunrise, Maya was more than ready to sleep. Shane moved slowly up the steps in front of her, and Maya sensed he was far weaker than he wanted her to know. She desired nothing more than to curl up beside him in bed and soothe his pain.
When they reached the landing of the attic, instead of going into the bedroom they’d shared when they arrived, Shane turned to the right and opened the other door. Maya stared at him in shock. He had no intention of staying in bed with her.
“You fought well tonight, Maya,” Shane said tightly. He stood tall, his body tense and stiff, but the cold, detached look in his eye sent a chill down her spine. “If it weren’t for your sharp instincts and your incredibly brave actions, I would be dead. You will make an excellent sentry, and I will be sure to inform the czars of my findings when we return to New York.”
“Shane?” Maya took a step toward him but stopped when he moved away from her. “I don’t want to be a sentry or some kind of werewolf hunter. I just want to be with you.”
“Sometimes, youngling, what we want and what is best are contrary to one another,” he said in a barely audible voice. The muscle of his jaw flickered and his mouth set in a tight line while he stared at her intently.