I stopped.
Chapter
Sixteen
BECK
Istood across the street from the restaurant, my hands shoved deep in my coat pockets and my bear clawing at my ribs.
Charlotte’s scent hung in the air, the tuberoses and honey faint but traceable. I’d followed it from the airport, tracking her through Anchorage’s streets with rage pounding in my wake.
Dr. Henry had no scent signature. Nothing, not even a trace of cologne or the antiseptic scent of modern life that clung to all humans. He was a walking void, which was all the confirmation I needed.
Vampire.
Not that I’d needed confirmation. The memory of what happened at the airport rushed back, humiliation searing my gut.
Henry had met my stare across the top of Charlotte’s head, and his eyes had flashed that unnatural pale blue. Then his voice had seeped into my mind like oil.
You won’t interfere, bear. You’ll stand here and let Charlotte leave with me. If you try to stop us, I’ll slaughter your entire clan. Sixty bears, yes? I could kill them all in a single night. Their mates and the little cub you idiots dote on. I’ll suck themarrow from their bones while you watch. So keep your mouth shut.
The compulsion had wrapped around my throat like a noose. I’d stood there, sweating and shaking, a scream in my mind while he led Charlotte through the doors.
Stay,Henry had whispered in my head.Count to three hundred. Then you may leave the airport and return to your woods.
I’d counted, every second an agony. By the time I finished, I clenched my jaw hard enough to crack my molars. I’d fucking counted, but I hadn’t returned home like Henry ordered.
Summoning my magic, I’d tracked Charlotte to the little restaurant in the heart of the city. And now I stood outside in the cold while she dined with a monster.
My phone buzzed. I yanked it from my pocket and swiped the screen, revealing a text from Everett.
Any updates?
I typed back with shaking fingers.
Still waiting
My phone buzzed with Everett’s reply.
We’re ready if you need us
I pocketed the phone. Having my brothers close was a comfort, but they couldn’t help. Not against an ancient vampire. Henry could slaughter us all, just like he’d promised.
Charlotte’s scent shifted…then faded. She was on the move.
My bear roared in my head. I launched myself across the street, dodging traffic. Brakes squealed, and a car horn blared. I ignored it as I followed Charlotte’s scent. The signature floatedon the air, the aroma as clear to me as a flowing river. It led me around the building and into a narrow, darkened alley filled with garbage and dirty snow.
Dr. Henry stood with his back to me, one arm wrapped around Charlotte and his head buried in her throat.
My bear snapped its bonds. Magic surged through me, and my bones slid against each other. The skin on my forearms rippled as my beast tried to burst free.
Henry spun with Charlotte in his arms. Her eyes were closed, her arms limp. He ripped his fangs from her neck and lifted his head. His bloodstained lips curved, and his eyes glittered like icy blue diamonds.
“Ah,” he said, licking the puncture wound on Charlotte’s neck. She stirred but didn’t open her eyes. “The alpha. How quaint.”
I fought the shift, forcing my bear back even as rage threatened to consume me. “Let her go, filth.”
My mind raced, worries whipping through my head. Henry had flown all day, which meant he was a daywalker and easily a thousand years old. Maybe older. Vampires that powerful could compel entire crowds and move faster than the eye could track.
