Page 74 of Junk Magic

I kept looking up into the huge face of what was supposed to be an ally, and wondering why I was being treated like a threat. I decided to ask, because I’m the kind of person who asks. “Is this the way you treat clan, Death Stalker?”

I used his Were name since he was transformed, and as a sign of respect. But good manners had no effect, except for a slight lip curl. It seemed that we weren’t doing pleasantries tonight.

And then he confirmed it.

“It’s the way I treat trespassers, No Name.”

“I have a name. And I suggest you use it.”

“Human name. Weak name for a weak link.”

My hand flexed, itching to show him exactly how weak I was, but I pushed my magic back down. It would hurt him, but it wouldn’t teach him a damned thing. Weres like him had nothing but contempt for human displays of strength, including magical ones. I could beat him— probably—but I couldn’t force him to respect me, or to have any patience for Sebastian’s willingness to add a Were to the clan who couldn’t even transform.

And then I decided to hell with it, and used a spell to shove him off my truck.

It was not a punch, not quite, but he came off the dirt like a tornado—snarling, maw agape, and eyes narrowed down to slits. I just stood there, trying to look unaffected, and I must have managed it. Because the glistening yellow fangs stopped a hair’s breadth from my throat.

“You dare use magic here, little bitch?”

“Bitch? But I don’t transform, remember?”

“Don’t, or can’t?” the words were a rumble, from deep inside his chest. “I hear it’s the latter.”

“Of course, it is,” I said, getting impatient. “I didn’t take the bite—”

“We could change that,” he said, pushing at me, his breath forming a noxious cloud around us. It smelled like blood, as if he’d been eating some unfortunate creature before I arrived. It smelled like death. “We could test a theory.”

“What theory?” I asked, but didn’t get a reply. Because Caleb was suddenly behind me, weapons holstered but coat flapping open in a nonexistent wind, showing off exactly how many he had.

“I have a theory,” he said. “Want to hear it?”

I got a hand on his chest, leaving me stuck between a rock and a very hard place. And wishing that I’d told Sebastian two hours, and dropped everyone off at home first! I should have known this was a bad idea.

“Sebastian called me,” I told Ulmer shortly. “Your boss wants a word—”

“With you. Not outsiders.”

“—and he said now, so I was in a hurry. But they’re not coming in—”

“They die if they try!” the snarl was back in his voice and more pronounced than ever.

“And we find out if I can strip the hide off a wolf with one spell, instead of the usual three,” Caleb murmured, his hand on his belt.

“You’re not helping!” I said, shooting him a look. “Listen, just take everyone home, okay? I’ll be back in a few—”

“We’re not going anywhere.”

“Damned right!” Sophie said, sticking her head out of the window. I guessed the gag had been wishful thinking on my part. “Is he threatening you? What’s he saying? It sounded like a threat!”

I would have put a hand on my forehead, which was developing a stress headache, but I needed both of them to keep two Alphas—and maybe three if you counted Sophie—from going for each other’s throats.

“Give me a moment,” I told Ulmer, and dragged Caleb back to the truck. I looked at the kids, who were staring at me with varied expressions.

Sophie, of course, was ready to throw down, despite not knowing what she was dealing with. We were going to have to work on that. Chris was glaring at me, as if wondering why the hell I’d brought them here, which . . . yeah. Dimas, predictably, had faded into what I’d started to think of as his liquid state, meaning that he rippled like water, reflecting the images around him. And the remaining kids were subdued and silent, with wide eyes except for Kimmie, who had somehow remained asleep.

I handed Caleb the keys to the truck. “I’ll be fine. Clan is clan. He’s not going to hurt me.”

I ignored the growl from behind, which I swear I could feel in my bones.

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