Page 81 of Werewolves Don't Howl
The tree took a moment to puzzle out something not being an enemy to destroy and drink their blood before I felt its assent and then a branch snaked around my waist and the next moment I was in the air, high, high, until I was high enough to see the promenade and the bright lights. I also saw chains of darkness threaded with white electricity. Cross was in those shadows. Hopefully not dead. The tree rotated and then the branch lowered me down to the path. Once it released me, I fell to my knees, still clutching Lynx whose little belly was rising and falling rapidly. Good. Not dead.
“Are you okay?” Forsythia demanded, grabbing me around the waist and pulling me to my feet. “I withdraw the question. We need to get you out of here. You can’t look like a freshly shifted werewolf at a party like this. We’ll take you out the back and I’ll call some friends.”
I shook my head. “I have to see Cross. Something bad is going on.”
“Of course it is, or he would have come to rescue you. There had to be a distraction, or your true love wouldn’t have let you take care of yourself. I’m irritated that you killed her after I bothered putting all those spells in place to make her forget us. I hate wasted effort. Also, she was our link to the secret science cult. Oh well. At least this way she’s safely dead. How long do you think she’s going to scream? It’s really disturbing.” She shivered and pulled me towards the shadows away from the party.
I dug my feet in. “I’m not leaving him.”
She scowled at me. “Look at you! What do you think you can do for him other than wreck his reputation? And what will Zephin Clay think? He cares more about appearances than anyone. He’s going to fire you. You’ve hidden your beast this long, don’t stop now, or talk about wasted effort!”
I took a deep breath and summoned vines to grow up my legs, around my body, encasing me in a full-coverage bodysuit. “I look fine,” I said, smiling through my dizziness. “Sudden costume changes are completely normal.”
She gave me a flat look. “If you’re going out there, you’re on your own. I’m not ruining my reputation for nothing.”
I pulled her in a sudden hug.
She returned it with an intensity I didn’t expect. “Don’t make the senator hate you,” she whispered. “Pureblood elves are pure ego.”
“He can hate me if he wants, so long as he’s okay.”
She snorted and pulled away. “Our simple, sweet Delphi.”
“Our elegant, serene, Forsythia,” I returned with a fond smile. “I can’t believe that you hid in a cupboard.”
She made a face. “I can’t either. I really hated the way he talked about you, so perfectly weak and vulnerable for his purposes.”
“Who was he? Zephin Clay?”
She shrugged. “I have no proof. Honestly, I don’t want proof. He could destroy me without any effort, and as far as I can tell, he was the reason to Loren’s madness. Secret societies should stay secret if at all possible.”
I wasn’t sure about that, but I wasn’t an investigative reporter, particularly one who used my position to cover up my own crimes. The wind rustled the leaves above me and a dark haze filled the air as the night expanded.
“What’s that?” I asked, looking up at the spreading darkness.
“I would say that’s likely the heir Lord of the Night Court calling his true love.” She shivered and backed away from me. “Good luck with that monster, sweet Delphi.” She turned and ran, disappearing into the night.
ChapterTwenty-One
Cross was floating off the ground, wrapped in lines of pulsing darkness and light energy. His eyes were bright, blinding violet, with irises shaped like half moons. His dark hair streamed around him, whipping eerily around while he spread his arms, holding his subjects at his feet, prostrate, every one.
He did not look like a polite senator, but a tyrant, happy to drink the blood of his subjects.
I hesitated on the walkway of the promenade, the sloping lawn filled with cowering guests, while Cross hovered in the center, flickering like a bomb waiting to go off.
I looked around, because I couldn’t look at Cross without burning my eyeballs. On the edge of the walkway were Max and a group of scared kids that he was growling at, low, a warning that they didn’t want to anger the mighty ruler. The kids smelled like freshly turned wolves.
“So,” Libby the Librarian said, slipping in next to me and linking my arm with hers. “Don’t see that every day, do you?”
I turned to stare at her and then up at Cross, where he seemed to be gathering darkness and energy so he could explode and kill everyone. “No, he’s usually a bit more relaxed than that. Can you stop him?”
She laughed, sounding a bit mad around the edges. “Sure. That’s why I’m here. I apologize in advance for the indignity.” She grabbed me and pressed a knife against my throat. “I’m going to make you bleed, but only enough to get his attention. And then I’m going to run, and you’re going to faint and pretend like you’re helpless and need him to save you. Otherwise, he’ll come after me and rip out my spine. I’ve seen him do it. It’s very pretty, but I don’t think I’d be in a position to enjoy the effects. Ready?”
She sliced me across my shoulder and neck, deep enough for me to cry out. I’d lost enough blood tonight. I thought she was going to scratch me, not cut me deep!
Cross focused on me with those violet lasers. Wow! So much roiling destruction in such a pretty color.
“Gotta run!” Libby hissed, then knocked the back of my knees so I collapsed while she sprinted into the darkness. “Sorry about that! I’ll buy you sushi…” she called, but the rest of her words didn’t matter because Cross was above me, gazing down at me with infinite destruction in his eyes.
