Page 17 of Frost and Fate
Darren led Nova, wordlessly, back to her apartment. As he opened the door, he added a brusque, “Hope you enjoyed your evening,” before quickly turning to leave. The cool treatment from Darren was getting even colder. Worst of all, the burning desire for him had yet to subside, despite his frigidness.
With a sigh, Nova put herself to bed.Is he jealous?
* * *
Nova dreamt of the ice-covered cavern, and the feeling of something drawing her close. That vast icy room seemed to speak to her, seemed to know her. It felt like memory and secrets. What was glowing in the distance? Nova couldn’t tell, and as the voices slowly faded, Nova found herself back in her apartment and as confused as ever by the dreams.
Darren only returned in the evenings to take her to her dinners with Gideon. She used her time with the Alpha to ask more questions. It was useful to discover they weren’t more than an hour and a half away from Atlanta. It turned out Gideon was the Alpha of all the surrounding areas. The complex was settled on the edge of Mountain’s End. He had chosen the location because it backed up to the woods. Evidently they owned three thousand acres of forest behind it. Ulric Industries also owned a plethora of other properties including hotels, bars, clubs, and restaurants. Including the club, Luna + Lupine, which wasn’t as far off the beaten path as she had originally thought. Gideon had laughed at her surprised expression.
“Parts of Georgia can certainly feel like the middle of nowhere,” he agreed. Nova smiled at the Alpha. He had such a casual energy during their dinners. It was so different from the energy he emanated around the pack. Honestly it was nice to see him more relaxed. Gideon excused himself to take an urgent phone call, and Nova used the opportunity to speak to Darren.
“This place has a gorgeous view.” She stood up, taking a step toward the window he was stationed in front of. Darren remained impassive. Nova sighed. “Aren’t you allowed to speak while you’re working?”
“Yes, I’m allowed,” Darren replied without looking at her. “I’m choosing not to.”
Frustration bubbled in Nova’s veins. “What is your problem, Darren? One minute you’ve got your tongue down my throat, and the next you’re acting like I’m the bane of your existence. You either want me, or you hate me, which one is it?”
A hardness came over Darren’s eyes and he lowered his voice. “I would keep that little encounter to yourself, if you know what’s good for you.” His honey eyes burned. “And don’t worry, that won’t be happening again.”
Nova’s face twisted.
“I apologize,” Gideon said as he reentered. He informed Nova that their dinner would have to be cut short. He walked them out of the penthouse. At the elevator, Nova impulsively turned around and kissed Gideon on the lips. He momentarily moved back, obviously surprised by the gesture. It only took a second for him to move in closer to Nova, claiming her lips with his. Gideon’s mouth was warm and firm. His kisses were powerful and masculine. She didn’t hate it, but she couldn’t deny that the spark Darren lit within her simply didn’t exist with the Alpha.
She finally pulled back and turned to step into the elevator. The short ride down felt longer than ever. She could practically feel the anger rolling off of Darren as he stared straight ahead, hands fisted at his sides. Nova smiled. Finally she had elicitedsometype of response out of him.
He walked her to her room, and with one last huff, he whirled and left her standing there. The kiss had been fun in the moment, if a bit thoughtless, but now that she was in her apartment by herself, she felt more alone than ever.
Sleep did not come easy. When her eyes finally did close, her morning alarm was about to go off. She groaned and dragged herself out of bed. Leah would be here soon. Nova was determined not to let Darren’s attentions, or lack thereof, ruin her day.
ChapterEleven
Leah was relentless. You would think Nova had entered a military of some sort. They had been training for days, weeks even, and Nova still felt just as exhausted by the brutal conditioning and hand-to-hand training. It helped when Laurie and Aria were able to be there. On days like today, Aria was always able to make her laugh even when she thought she was moments away from death by cardio. Nova sometimes felt a sudden wave of peace and rejuvenation wash over her, and had a sneaking suspicion that it came from Laurie.
After a quick water break, Leah was back at it. “Okay, let’s work on some drills from the floor—” She suddenly stopped. The air had begun to crackle around them. Leah’s black eyes burned. “Nova, get behind—”
Her words were cut short as the air around them exploded. One moment there was nothing, and the next, three figures appeared in the room. Laurie screamed as they pressed in around them. Aria moved in front of the frantic blonde, her cobalt eyes burning as she lunged toward the first attacker. Leah was on the move as well, her speed nearly unimaginable as she engaged one of the gruesome figures. Nova’s initial shock wore off as the third man approached. He reached out a skeletal arm to grab the front of her shirt. She reacted quickly, drawing upon the training Leah had been drilling into her all morning. Leah’s voice guided her. “Arms up, sharp turn, elbows down!”
Nova slammed an elbow down, breaking the man’s hold. She was rewarded with a pained scream from the intruder as he clutched his arm. Nova threw her palms together, preparing an icy dagger between her fingers. A concussive slam to the side of her head dropped her to the floor. She wasn’t sure what she’d been hit with. Looking around, she saw the chaos in the room. Aria and Leah were both fully engaged in their own battles, while Laurie worked to open the training room doors. The Collectors must have sealed them somehow. With everyone preoccupied in their own fight, Nova was on her own. She propped herself up on one elbow, her body leaning to the side for support. She tried to summon ice between her fingers but everything seemed fuzzy. She could feel something hot and sticky making its way down her face, blurring the vision in her left eye. Horror dawned as she saw the pool of red forming on the floor in front of her.
A movement caught her eye. Leah must have smelled the blood. She locked eyes with Nova, and a moment later, shifted. The sounds of flesh and bone breaking and tearing filled the room and the wolf burst forth from Leah’s skin. It happened so fast Nova could barely process it. Where Leah had stood a moment before, there was now a midnight-black wolf. The transformation seemed to push a large wolf form out of Leah’s body, while simultaneously folding her human form to disappear without a trace. Within seconds of the wolf’s arrival, Leah’s attacker was down. Gurgled cries echoed throughout the facility as Leah’s wolf buried its muzzle in the man’s throat. Nova felt a cold hand on her upper arm. She screamed as the man hauled her to her feet, backing them both away. Leah’s wolf snapped its head up in their direction. The moment its animal eyes locked with Nova’s attacker, he froze.
Leah’s wolf was long and lean, nearly twice the size of a normal wolf. It walked low to the ground and was covered in solid black fur that rose up high along its back. Intimidating as the animal was, it wasn’t the size or shape of her wolf that had stopped him, it was the eyes. The way her black eyes glowed among her dark fur was unimaginably horrifying. Looking into those deep black orbs felt like looking into the face of death. It was disturbing and dark and soulless. Even Nova felt a chill rip through her as the beast approached. Suddenly Nova’s world began to spin. She had felt something similar before, back when she was taken to the warehouse. She gasped in recognition. He was trying to teleport them out. To where? Nova didn’t want to find out.
“Leah!” she cried. And by the time the word had left her lips, the wolf was already there, sailing through the air. Nova could feel the heat as the wolf dove above her left shoulder and straight into the face of her captor. The impact knocked Nova to the ground along with them. The second they hit the floor, she rolled away, crawling as fast as she could.
Screams filled the room. When she finally turned back, she could see Leah’s wolf, its muzzle deep in the face of its prey. His body twitched several times before falling still. The wolf looked up. Nova held her breath. Staring into those endless black eyes, Nova felt true fear. Blood saturated the black furry jaws and dripped to the ground. Nova became aware of a loud pounding near the entrance.
Suddenly the training room doors flew open. Lance’s blond wolf was the first to enter. Darren and Gideon were close behind. They were accompanied by three people, two men Nova remembered from the warehouse and a woman that Nova didn’t recognize. Lance’s wolf lunged at the last assailant who was still trading blows with Aria. His blond fur moved with lightning speed as he knocked him to the ground, landing square on the man’s chest. He growled and snapped as the man worked desperately to keep him at arm’s length.
“Stop!” It was Gideon’s command. “Leave him alive!”
The large blond wolf growled, but obeyed. He pressed a massive paw to the man’s throat, pinning him in place. The new arrivals rushed in to secure him.
“Get him into a cell,” Gideon ordered. One of the men half pushed, half dragged the injured Collector out of the room. Nova felt warm hands sweep around her back and under her knees. In a moment, she was up in the air and staring into familiar honey-fire eyes.
Darren stared at the blood coating Nova’s head and face. “Get Dr. Sawyer!” he shouted across the room. The other man ran from the training area. Darren walked quickly to the other side of the room. Nova groaned at the fast motions, as a wave of nausea crashed into her.
“Slow down,” she begged. Darren sat her on the training pad and began to tentatively move his fingers through her bloodstained silver hair. Nova winced as he found the source of the blood. He then checked her thoroughly for other injuries. “I’m fine,” Nova mumbled, brushing him off. Across the room stood Lance and Laurie. Lance shrugged on a pair of sweats one of the men had brought him. Leah had shifted back at some point and was just finishing slipping a sweatshirt over her head as well. Across from them, Gideon held Aria in a fierce embrace. The beautiful brunette was covered in blood and bruises.
