Death Wish (Alexa O'Brien, Huntress #5)(15)

Kale guided him away, quickly asking questions to keep things neutral. It wasn’t worth getting pissed at Falon. Between the target on my back, the mysterious FPA and the Shaz situation, I was overflowing with pent up frustration and the excruciating need to hurt something. Taking it out on Falon wouldn’t ultimately help me feel any better about anything.

Running a hand through my hair in vexation, I looked around the parking lot.

Something didn’t feel right.

The light from the street lit up the entrance. Traffic passed by like usual. Nobody in the lot struck me as particularly suspicious.

Closing my eyes, I breathed deeply of the air, picking through the myriad of scents. I could pick out little more than car exhaust and cigarettes from the nearby smokers.

The sudden awareness of being watched set my senses on fire. My eyes snapped open, and I did my best to survey my surroundings without appearing as if I was. In case of a psychic attack, I focused my energy on reinforcing my shields. I saw nobody as I turned in a slow circle. But, someone was watching.

“Lex?” Jez’s voice was breathy and low. Wary.

The power of the earth vibrated beneath my feet. It was mine to call, though I was already buzzing with undead energy. Theoretically, I could create a shield strong enough to block a penetrative non-living physical object, like a bullet; unfortunately, I had yet to successfully do it.

Slipping into the wolf’s alert and intuitive mind frame, I moved with a casual gait, feeling out my watcher. This dilemma left no room for fear, only readiness.

I’d started to think, perhaps, they were only going to observe, but then I felt it. My sixth sense took over, and I reacted. The arrow sliced through the air toward me. I held it tight in my grip before I fully comprehended that I’d caught it inches from my face. It was a crossbow bolt; the tip was sharp and deadly.

Everyone froze for a heartbeat. I stared in disbelief at the bolt in my hands. Then I snapped into motion.

Following the direction where the shot came from, I threw a ball of power that exploded like lightning at the dark end of the parking lot. A moving blur was all I saw of my unwelcome company as they fled in the opposite direction.

I gave chase, running as fast as two legs would carry me. It was fast but not enough. Not this time. I saw no sign of whoever had taken a shot at me as they disappeared out the other side of the alley that hugged the back of the club. The last thing I wanted to do was walk into a possible trap, so I turned back.

I clutched the crossbow bolt tightly. It had all happened so quickly. Mere seconds. I guess the idea of a hit out on me wasn’t so incredulous after all.

Kale was on my heels, so close we almost collided when I turned around. Falon and Jez were where we left them, watching us. Jez’s face was ashen, her jaw dropped in surprise. Falon’s expression wasn’t so easy to read. Stone cold and closed off, his silver eyes locked onto the weapon in my tight grip.

“Oh my God, Alexa. Are you alright?” Jez was on her feet, braced for a fight.

“Yeah,” I said with a nod. My heart was pumping pure adrenaline, but otherwise I was fine. “Whoever it was, they’re long gone now. Idiots. A rooftop shot would have been smarter.”

Kale looked longingly in the direction my would-be killer had fled. “We should go after them.”

“No.” I turned the crossbow bolt over in my hands. It was heavy and sharp. Pretty damn deadly. “I don’t want you guys involved in this. They’ve targeted me. Let’s keep it that way.”

“I can’t believe you caught that thing.” Jez shook her head in wonder. “That was impressive.”

Falon smirked, but his eyes betrayed nothing. Whatever he was really feeling about what he’d just seen, he wasn’t sharing. “Ah yes, the wolf caught a flying stick. Fascinating. I’d be more impressed if you’d caught it in your teeth like a frisbee.”

If I hadn’t just stared death in the face, I would have been pissed about that comment. As it was, the ass**le angel wasn’t worth the energy. I waved a hand dismissively in his direction and turned my attention to Jez.

“You should take off, just to be on the safe side. I’ll give you a call later.”

“Are you sure?” She frowned, clearly unhappy with my request. “I don’t want to leave you after something like that.”

“It’s cool. I’m not staying. I just don’t want to endanger anyone else tonight.”

She looked uncertainly from me to Kale and then began edging away from us, toward the beat up, white Jeep at the end of the lot. “Be careful, ok?”

“Promise.”

“The dreamwalker, Kale,” Falon interjected. “Sooner than later.” With that he was gone, leaving me alone with the vampire.

I watched Jez’s taillights disappear down the street. This was turning out to be a less than stellar night. Kale continued to glance toward the alley behind the club. I knew he was itching to hunt down the person daring enough to take a shot at me. I couldn’t let him do that.

“Don’t even think about it, Kale. I can handle this. But, not tonight. Going after them could mean running straight into a trap. I want to do this right. On my terms. Not theirs.”

We stared at one another, and I was painfully aware of how close we stood to the very spot where we’d made love in the rain. However, I was also aware of the weight of the crossbow bolt in my hand and what it represented. My skills and instincts had served me well tonight, but would they keep me alive every time? I had to hunt down the person behind the hit and soon. The next shot might get lucky.