Page 44 of Love Bites (Timber Creek #2)

CHAPTER 44

MAX

“Is Grigor alone?” West directed the question to Quentin, but the kid shook his head.

“I can’t tell that,” Quentin answered, sitting on the couch next to Leif. “I can only sense his presence.”

We’d relocated inside to the pack house’s living room while West dispatched his Shields and Scouts. According to Indi’s last text from her, Summer was already outside of pack lands, but had last been in the mountains at a turn-off not far from town. With quick efficiency, the wolves left, headed in all directions from that starting point. Problem was with a vampire who could shadow walk, her last location meant next to nothing. It killed me to sit on my hands, but charging off with nothing to go on wouldn’t save her any faster.

“How does that work? Terran asked once everyone else had left, pacing the back wall as he took his hat off and ran his hands through his shaggy hair. “What do you sense through a vampire bond? Location, emotions, anything that can help us.”

“Both.” Quentin sighed. “Similar to a pack bond maybe, but if you were tied to an Alpha who gave nothing back, only took for himself.”

Anger rippled through me, both for the way Grigor had treated Quentin, but also that this fucker now held my wife.

Quentin closed his eyes, likely honing in on his bond. “He’s close. In the state, definitely. And he’s — upset, but something else? Maybe excited.”

Leif leaned his shoulder into Quentin for support. Quentin’s eyes shot open, darting towards Leif as he blinked rapidly, flushing at the small touch.

Magic swirled up my arms as I fought the urge to throw a chair through the window. Hearing the duke of the Boston den was upset and excited while holding Summer captive didn’t bode well.

West leaned forward, elbows braced on his knees and hands clasped. “What about a location?”

“I can’t give you GPS coordinates or anything. It’s more like a draw to him, a compulsion to want to be closer. I’ll know if we’re going closer or away from him.”

“That could take ages,” Aspen murmured, exchanging a glance with Cooper, whose jaw clenched in frustration.

“I’ll go with him,” I said. “Together, Quentin and I can track them down much more quickly, and when we have a location, I’ll send it to you.”

“I’ll lead on the ground.” Our heads swung around to Hattie, hands on her hips and cowboy hat on her head. Even Heath raised a brow at her. She smirked back at him. “You don’t know all my secrets, little brother. But trust me, if he’s been around here, I can track him.”

I made a mental note to ask her later what that was all about when West’s voice cut into my thoughts.

“What makes you so sure he won’t just vanish her out of the state the minute you get close?” West’s question was a good one, and I hated that I already knew the answer to it.

“Because it’s personal.” I met Quentin’s gaze, remembering the day I’d helped him escape Grigor’s control vividly. He was still young now, but the sight of a teenage vampire nearly lost to bloodlust had unlocked a protective instinct in me. Grigor preyed on the young and hopeless, leaving a trail of Turned vampires who had to be put down. Quentin would have been the Conclave’s next target in a matter of minutes if I hadn’t stopped him from killing that human in the middle of a dancefloor. I’d broken my cover that night, almost risking my life and job in an undercover mission to take down a leader of the Black Rose Coven to free Quentin, but I didn’t regret it. “He wants payback for helping Quentin escape his den.”

Cooper pushed off the wall and strode towards me, hand outstretched. “Phone.”

I raised a brow.

“I’m sharing your location with us, and then you’re going to go get my sister.”

I handed him my phone.

For some reason, that launched everyone into action. Suddenly, everyone moved in a coordinated motion that made their pack telepathy evident, silently organizing into pairs as Cooper tapped away on my phone.

He passed it back, but didn’t let go as I gripped it, instead using the moment to pull me close.

“If he’s harmed one hair on her head —”

I shook my head. “As soon as she’s safe, do whatever you want to me. I deserve it.”

He cocked his head, but gave a terse nod and let go of my phone, following Hattie and the rest of the Larkins out of the house and into the vehicles already running in the driveway.

Left alone with Quentin, I extended a hand so we could vanish together. “Ready?”

“Farther,” Quentin panted as we rematerialized for what felt like the twentieth time. Maybe it was.

Who knew this state was so big?

He dropped his hands to his knees, bent at the waist, and I couldn’t blame him. Vanishing within one state might not be as taxing as halfway across the globe to Europe, but fuck, doing it this many times in a row? We were flagging, both of us pushing our magic to its limit. But Summer’s life was at stake — we had to keep going.

“Back west, then,” I said, cross-checking the mental map I had going of all the places we’d tried so far. With each stop, my anxiety rose, the bond between us flaring to life as I felt her panicked emotions.

Quentin held up a finger, breathing deep before straightening up with his hand gripping his side, sweat curling the hair at his brow.

I glanced at the sky, the heavy rain clouds blacking out the setting sun, adding more urgency to my need to get to her. We’d been at it for hours, and everything felt like a ticking time bomb, a desperation I’d never felt in my life. Each time we seemed to get closer, by the next jump, Quentin’s connection to Grigor would change, leaving us running around like chickens with our heads cut off.

Unless — shit.

“He’s doing this on purpose.” I ground my teeth together, heaving an exasperated sigh.

“W-what?”

“He’s leading us in circles, to wear us out. Fuck.” I was such an idiot. How had I not seen this sooner? By the time he decided he was ready to be found, I’d be so depleted, my chances of fighting back would be severely diminished.

Quentin dropped his hand, his brow creased as he looked up at me. “What do we do, then?”

A sharp pang shot through me, an echo through our bond of what was happening to Summer, and I gasped in pain and shock.

Grigor was upping the ante.

But little did he know he wasn’t just taunting me with a pet, with a Source — no, he was messing with my wife .

A feral snarl broke out of me as my fangs punched down, lightning crackling over my arms, my wings.

“Quentin,” I said, my voice deathly quiet. “I need you to dig deep into your connection to him. I need you to want to go to him more than anything in the whole world.”

He winced, but nodded. I raised my arm for him to hold, and closed my own eyes, imagining the same thing.

The one thing I wanted more than anything — to be with Summer.

A cloud of darkness rose around us, lightning skittering through the shadows as our magic combined, weakened from overwork but strong enough for this, tangling and strengthening together. I could feel Quentin’s intention, palpable in our shared efforts, and I fused mine with his. This wasn’t magic anyone had ever taught me, sharing magic or tracing bonds — neither vampires nor angels had mates, historically — but we created it together, out of desperation.

In my mind’s eye, a grove of pine trees flashed, already dark by a hillside blocking the sunset as rain began to fall. A dilapidated cabin tucked between the trees, windows shattered and shutters hanging askew. But there, in the window, were the red eyes of an angry, hungry vampire.

“Got him?” I gritted my teeth as my lightning lashed out around us.

Quentin’s eyes squeezed closed, but his nostrils flared as he nodded.

With all our remaining strength, Quentin and I surged towards that cabin, clawing along our entwined bonds through the In-Between.

As quickly as the world had disappeared, robbing me of all my senses, they came roaring back when a scream pierced the air. I shoved our shadows away, still gripping Quentin’s arm as he fell to his knees in exhaustion, panting hard again.

“Max!” Summer gasped as I glanced around the dark space for her. There in the far corner was my wife, sprawled on her stomach across broken and missing floorboards in the far corner of the room. Her hair was a mess, her face covered in bruises and cuts in various stages of healing. She fought to push herself up to a kneeling position but her hands were bound behind her back in iron manacles, locking down her ability to shift or heal, her breath wheezing dangerously as she moved.

I saw red, nothing but thunderous rage in my thoughts. My wings spasmed, and I had to hide my shock as they rippled and changed. My usual black feathers were gone, replaced with the leathery black wings of a pureblood vampire.

Summer’s brows shot up, but I clenched my jaw, determined to work this in my favor. Grigor knew me as the vampire, Dante, and this would only help confirm that for him.

I tamped down my angel powers, locking my control over my lightning as a secret weapon.

Summer’s eyes darted to the right three times in a row, and I followed her gaze, peering into the shadowed corner where a kitchen once was. Nothing was there now but a broken table and three chairs, but I trusted her silent signal, watching the corner as I stepped forward.

The floorboards creaked loudly under my foot, the sound drowned out by my pounding heart.

“So loud,” a voice said as the shadows in the corner dissolved, right where Summer had told me he was. Sitting in the fourth chair was Grigor, one leg crossed over the other as he picked at his nails with a knife, cleaning out blood then licking it off the blade. “You’d think the legendary Dante would be stealthier, hm?”

He looked up at me then, a wide grin taking over his face. His eyes had gone the full red of his predator, and he didn’t even try to conceal his fangs. In all-black, he looked every bit the vampire lord cliché, but the sight of the three parallel tears in his sleeve lit a spark in my chest.

No matter how badly injured Summer was, she’d fought back.

“Free her,” I said, my fingers tingling with magic as I moved towards him, watching the shadows dance across the blade in his hand.

Grigor chuckled, the sound dark as the storm clouds outside. “But this has been so much fun, right pet?” His gaze slid to Quentin, and his lips quirked into a smirk. “After all these years, it’s so good to have you back, boy. You didn’t think you’d escape me forever, did you?”

Quentin pushed himself back to his feet, refusing to acknowledge Grigor. By the way his whole body shook, the small defiance was costing him.

“Two against one, Grigor,” I called over, trying to stall as I did my best to maneuver myself between Grigor and Summer. I had no real sense on where we currently were, but the steady rain turning to snowfall outside told me we were back high up in the mountains, closer to pack lands again. He’d led us in a circle after drawing us all out to chase him down.

“Hardly.” He chuckled, lifting an imperious brow at Quentin as he stood from the chair, circling the broken table to move closer. “Do you have it in you to defy me, pet?”

Behind me, Quentin whimpered like the word was a physical blow, and I wanted to rip Grigor’s head from his body twice as much.

“You have no idea what I’m capable of.” I raised my arms out, lightning sparking from my fingers as Grigor’s gaze flicked from Quentin back to me.

Grigor tilted his head, frowning slightly as he took in the power. “My my, Dante. Aren’t you full of secrets. Maybe I need to take you as a pet, too.”

My lightning lit the dark cabin, casting spasms of shadows Grigor observed with interest until his gaze returned to meet mine.

“What are you?” he murmured, but he seemed to be speaking to himself since he didn’t wait for an answer. “No matter. Either way, I should replenish myself.” His grin was all fang as he appeared at Summer’s back and yanked on her hair, wrenching her head back. She gritted her teeth, fighting his hold. His shadows swirled around her, holding her still as he leaned down, meeting my eye as the tip of his fang grazed her neck.

“Wait!” Quentin pushed past me, staggering forward and falling to his knees. Summer’s eyes locked on mine, doing her best impersonation of being paralyzed even though I knew Grigor’s magic had no effect on her. Clearly, he still underestimated the extent of her immunity.

Grigor paused, pulling back ever so slightly.

“ Quentin ,” Summer hissed, never looking his way as she held her act.

Quentin trembled so hard, his teeth were all but clacking together, but he tilted his own head, exposing his neck.

“Master.” His eyes downcast, his voice was barely audible as he pleaded to save Summer.

Grigor’s face lit up with glee, his pet coming home to him. Letting go of Summer’s hair, he stepped unceremoniously around her to stand before Quentin. His hand cupped Quentin’s jaw, tilting his head up to meet his eyes.

Obediently, Quentin brought his hands behind his back, like this was a routine they’d danced many times over. Grigor’s eyes turned feverish as they locked on Quentin, and I was so distracted by their exchange I almost didn’t see Quentin’s fingers.

Behind his back. Counting down.

Three —

My gaze flicked to Summer, watching as she dissolved the shadow magic binding her in place.

Two —

My ears pricked. A crunch of twigs underfoot behind us.

One .

I dropped a stake from the In-Between into Quentin’s hand before he roared, stabbing upward and plunging it into Grigor’s chest.

In a flash, I was at Summer’s side, wrenching the last of Grigor’s magic off her. With a snap of my fingers, I summoned the key from Grigor’s pocket to the iron manacles binding her hands and feet.

Grigor’s feral growl had me spinning back around as Summer’s manacles fell away to see him wrench the stake from his chest, the strike having missed his heart. Quentin’s eyes went wide as he scrambled back on his knees. Before I could intervene, Grigor’s hands circled Quentin’s throat, both of them crashing to the ground.

“Quentin!” Summer cried, moving to rush forward. Her breath was still a wheeze, so I pushed her back.

“ Ungrateful, hateful pet ,” Grigor seethed at Quentin, knees on the kid’s chest, holding him down and strangling the life from him. Quentin clawed and scratched and scrambled for the stake that had fallen between the broken floorboards, for a second chance —

I stomped on a floorboard, breaking a piece off as I moved towards Grigor, but a chorus of howls drew all of our attention to the front door as it was ripped from the hinges, a dozen wolves rushing into the tiny cabin, led by Hattie with the glint of murder in her eyes.

Grigor looked over the wolves, then back down to Quentin, his grin wide — he’d vanish them away, somewhere untraceable.

“He’s going to —”

I didn’t get a chance to finish my shout before a snow leopard leapt from the pack of wolves, jaws closing around Grigor’s throat. In Grigor’s distraction, I tossed the makeshift stake to Quentin and he went for round two. This time, he stabbed it home, straight through Grigor’s heart.

The snow leopard ripped Grigor’s head to the side — could never be too careful — and we all watched Grigor’s lifeless form collapse to the floorboards.

As quickly as he’d appeared, the snow leopard shifted back, and I drew in a shocked breath.

Leif emerged from the cat form, his naked skin covered in dirt and blood, as he dropped to his knees in front of Quentin and pulled him into a fierce hug, tears streaming down both of their faces.

I raised a brow at Summer. “Since when is he a cat?”