Moving faster, I went to door number two. Also locked. FML.
And last, door number three . . . slightly ajar. Hallelujah.
I crouched down, studying the door handle. It’d been snapped.
Fire Wolf.
I doubted anybody else would have broken the lock. I wished I was able to scent him the way he could detect me, then I could have followed his trail. I sniffed, as though maybe it would work. Of course, the only odors that assaulted my senses were the mustiness that seemed to accompany all buildings below ground level and the slight smell of smoke. Somebody who worked down here enjoyed their cigarettes.
I tightened my hold on the door handle, then checked over my shoulder again to make sure I was alone, before pulling it open slowly and peeking inside.
Another hallway with doors.
Of course, there was.
I almost cursed out loud, but then I heard the low murmur of voices.
“. . . didn’t think I would find you, did you?”
Fire Wolf?
I crept farther down the hallway, inching along the wall as I sought the hunter’s location.
Someone else’s laugh came, dark and deep. I didn’t recognize who it belonged to. “It looks more like I found you.”
Well, shit, that didn’t sound good.
The Fire Wolf and whoever he was talking to were in the room at the end of the hallway. The door was slightly ajar and the closer I got, the louder their voices became.
“Did you really think you’d be able to prowl in here and take what Jakub has claimed?”
Okay, that really didn’t sound good.
“I still don’t see how that won’t happen,” the Fire Wolf replied in a bored tone.
“In true fashion, I see your arrogance has gotten the better of you. But Jakub has discovered ways to capture all supernaturals, even those that harbor your powers.” The sound of clipped footsteps, as though someone were pacing back and forth, came next. “He shall reward me greatly when I present him with you.”
Oh fuck.
Sure enough, when I reached the final door and peeked through the gap, the Fire Wolf was there . . . on his knees with his hands and feet shackled behind him. Six supernaturals surrounded him. One of them was Star Tattoo Guy.
They formed a circle around my hunter. A tall fairy stood over him and had his hands clasped behind his back. Blue hair fell in artful waves around the fairy’s shoulders, and a wickedly sharp sword was strapped to his back. Sinister-looking was one word to describe him. Terrifying was another.
My hands clenched into fists as rage burned through me, but . . . what now? A glowing device encircled my hunter’s wrists and ankles. That band ensnared the scourge of society, the infallible menace who so many feared. But how? How had he failed?
And then I knew. The Fire Wolf’s words when he’d tried to leave me outside in the alley blazed across my mind. I won’t be able to concentrate until I do.
Shit. His newly formed mate bond had distracted him after all. At the moment, he was probably the equivalent of a rutting stag, running blindly through the woods, as an instinct as old as time told him to return to his mate . . . all while he’d been trying to do his job. And since it was an instinct he didn’t seem to understand, he’d probably been even more distracted.
So now, my hunter was the hunted.
A distant, low moan came from somewhere down the hall. Then a shrill, “Tala!”
My breath caught just as the Fire Wolf tensed. The six supernaturals gazed down at him with glee, as though unperturbed by the cry I’d just heard. Because if they were out to hunt powerful supernaturals, they’d literally just caught the biggest and baddest wolf of them all. No wonder they were content.
“Tala!”
My heart thumped. Tessa. She could feel that I was close, just as I could feel her.
I knew that I could creep down the hall, call upon all of my magic and break into whatever room they were holding Tessa in. I could throw my cloaking spell over her. We could run. Escape. It could be that easy, since the assholes down here were currently distracted by the hunter.
But what would Jakub do to him? Kill him? Torture him? What exactly was going on down here? I locked my teeth together.
“Tala!” my sister yelled again.
The bond inside me vibrated more. I was so close to getting her back, but . . .
I swore under my breath.
I couldn’t. I couldn’t leave the hunter to his fate, not when I’d been the distraction and the reason for his capture.
Pressing my lips into a tight line, I crept toward his room.
Chapter 18
Even though Tessa yelled for me again, I didn’t falter.
You’re gonna have to wait, sis.
If only she and I shared a telepathic link, then I could have assured her that I was coming—just not at the moment.
I cracked the door open a little farther, only an inch, and thanked the gods that it didn’t squeak. Peering into the room, I surveyed the occupants.
The ring of supernaturals were all looking to Sinister Fairy Dude for direction. I assessed all of them. They appeared to be two werewolves, Star Tattoo Guy—who I was guessing was a half-demon—and two sorcerers, judging from the magical sparks glistening on their fingertips.
“A part of me is still surprised that you came just as expected,” Sinister Fairy Dude said with a smug smile. “How unfortunate for you that we were aware of your impending arrival. Our European contact has proven quite useful in that aspect.”
European contact? Do they have something to do with the mafia? Or something else? My eyes narrowed.
“How much were you promised for finding Katarina? Hmm? Thirty thousand? Forty thousand?”
The Fire Wolf clenched his jaw but didn’t reply.
Katarina? Why is that name familiar?
Since Sinister Fairy Dude had everyone in the room enraptured, I inched the door open a bit more. Nobody’s attention drifted my way. Just another inch and I can slip through . . .
“Matija will be quite disappointed by your failure, no doubt,” Sinister Fairy Dude continued, then turned and paced the other way.
All the others watched him.
Now. I whipped the door open enough to slip into the room, then returned it to the slightly ajar position I’d found it in.
I held my breath.
Nobody glanced my way.
Thank you, cloaking spell . . .
My heart pounded as I stood in the room. Now that I had a clear view of everyone, I got a better feel for my competition. It wasn’t reassuring. All six supernaturals had magic prickling over their skin, and I could sense their powerful auras. Nobody in this room was a lightweight.
Shit.
So I’d have to do this fast. It was the only way to survive. Keeping to the edges of the room, I crept closer to the group as their ring leader carried on talking.
“Jakub will be thrilled at what you may be able to offer him. He’s been searching for the key for over a year now. He’ll . . .”