Alterant (Belador #2)(86)

Because word was out that she’d helped Tristan escape.

Quinn wouldn’t believe that I intentionally released Tristan. He wouldn’t.

“You’re lying, Kizira,” Tristan argued. “Evalle’s thick as thieves with Tzader and Quinn. You know that. Why would those Beladors hand her over to a Medb?”

“Because VIPER is hunting all the Alterants with a kill-on-sight order, even Evalle. I owe Quinn from a past debt and offered to keep her safe. He also knows that I’m her best chance at freedom.”

Evalle didn’t buy that. Why would Quinn think she’d be safe with Kizira?

“And Evalle?” Kizira called out. “If you want proof that I spoke to Quinn privately today, he was in the Ritz on Peachtree in downtown Atlanta in a room the same number as today’s date. I was curing Quinn of a severe headache. Even with my soothing skills, he was in no shape to come after you himself, and he didn’t want Tzader caught between loyalties.”

Air backed up in Evalle’s lungs.

Quinn had a system of hotels he stayed in, and on Thursdays he stayed in a room based on the date. He changed to a different hotel every day as a safety precaution, but he’d told her and Tzader yesterday he’d be at the downtown Ritz today.

He’d said no one knew his system except Tzader and Evalle.

Kizira had been in Quinn’s hotel room. Soothing him.

Evalle understood that reference with no problem. She couldn’t believe Quinn had slept with this murdering witch. The first time Evalle had met Quinn she’d found out he’d had history with Kizira, but never had she questioned his loyalty to the Beladors.

Or to her.

Did he really think she’d walk into the Medb camp for any reason? If so, he didn’t know her as well as she’d thought. Even if she believed Kizira, Evalle knew Tzader wouldn’t agree.

A soft female voice whispered next to Evalle’s ear. “Believe who you trust and trust who you believe.”

She sucked in a sharp breath at the bodyless voice. The same voice that Evalle had heard earlier tonight in her apartment and for the first time this past week. If Tristan had been standing here she could have asked him if he’d heard it, but Evalle had a feeling he wouldn’t have.

Who kept trying to reach her?

Evalle whispered, “Who are you?”

No one answered.

Kizira called out again, “If you don’t come with me, Evalle, the fog will grow across North America until it covers everything in a week. Do you want all those deaths on your shoulders? Or to lose Tzader and Quinn? Because you know they’ll be on the front lines. Come willingly and I’ll clear the air. Literally.”

The beast stirred inside Evalle.

She should have known that wacked-out witch was behind the fog. But would Kizira really spare mere humans or anyone who mattered to Evalle? Even Quinn?

“I’m through waiting, Tristan. Tell Evalle to come forward or I’ll have to hurt one of your friends.”

Tristan warned in a deadly tone, “Hurt one of them and expect to pay a price. Make this easy on everyone. Let these three and my sister leave. I’ll stay.”

Evalle tensed at his challenge. She peeked around the corner.

The witch flicked her fingers and a bolt of lightning shot toward the redheaded Alterant.

Tristan whipped his hands across his body, throwing a kinetic field of power to block the lightning bolt.

The block worked like a champ.

Kinetic energy hadn’t bounced back at Tristan. The maze spirits wanted Kizira out of here. They must have cleared this area from any backlash.

But the witch had used the strike of lightning to divert Tristan’s powers.

She waved a hand and snarled out a hairy-sounding chant.

Two creatures rose from the moat of fire around Kizira. The scaly creatures had heads the size of fifty-gallon barrels, with teeth and jaws that looked as if they could crush cars. Fire raced up their red-orange scales and crawled along four arms that grew from each of their undulating serpent bodies.

Six long tentacle-like claws curled in and out at the end of each arm. The creatures continued to rise and coil into shape. When their tails came into view, the last ten feet curled up and over with a scorpion pincher.

“Last chance, Tristan,” Kizira warned.

“What good am I to you dead?”

“You’d be surprised what I could do with a dead Alterant, like, oh, bring Evalle to me and I’ll show you.” She called out another chant and flames roared to life around the tallest of the three Alterants.

Tristan charged the flaming circle, but one of the serpents lunged at him. He twisted around to throw up a field of energy to hold the thing off.

The other two Alterants lunged, but their fire circles flamed up, stopping them. They roared, shifting into beasts.

Evalle stepped from cover and raced into the room.

No one was dying to protect her.

The fire must have broken Kizira’s silence spell over the tall Alterant. Amidst his screams of pain he cried out, “Petrina . . . not . . . here.”

The smell of charred flesh gagged Evalle. She shoved a blast of kinetic energy to knock the burning Alterant from his circle. The flames went with him.

He stopped struggling, dead.

Tristan yelled in Evalle’s head, Kizira lied. My sister’s not here. Run!

Evalle said, No way. She made a decision she hoped she wouldn’t regret. Link with me and we’ll kick her scrawny butt.