Fear the Darkness (Guardians of Eternity #9)(40)

Oh, Lord. She whimpered in pain. She wanted to curl into a tiny ball and pray the lurking thing wouldn’t notice her. But she couldn’t. The scent of Caine was drifting through the air and she knew she had to reach him.

He was in trouble.

Deep trouble.

Then, as if on cue, the fog slowly parted.

She cried out in shock as she caught sight of Caine. Oh, please blessed mother, no.

He was lying in the mist, his body twisted and deformed as if he’d been caught midshift, trapped between human and wolf. Impulsively she stepped toward him, only to come to a halt as he bared his fangs in warning.

Only then did she notice the sapphire eyes were filled with a feral insanity.

He didn’t recognize her.

The thought had barely flashed through her mind when he was awkwardly shoving himself upright, his savage howl echoing through the creepy fog. Frightened, Cassie backed away.

Precisely the wrong thing to do.

Lost in the savage instincts of his wolf, Caine tracked her movements with the cunning of a predator. In this moment she was his prey.

And he was preparing to attack.

Cassie didn’t fear for herself. She’d always assumed she was destined for an early grave. She was, after all, the only known prophet. The most desired and feared creature in the world.

No. She’d prepared for years to die. But if Caine came to his senses and realized what he’d done . . .

A gut-wrenching dread lodged in her heart. He would never, ever be able to forgive himself.

Or worse, what if he was stuck in that hideous state between wolf and man? What if he was forever trapped as a monster?

As if sensing her fear, Caine crouched, no doubt excited by the scent of her panic. But even as she braced for the impact, the vision vanished as abruptly as it had arrived.

Reeling in reaction, Cassie fell to her knees, her head bowed with the sheer horror of what she’d been shown.

Oh, gods, she had to stop this.

But how?

She didn’t know where the two of them had been, or how they’d been taken, or even what evil had been lurking just out of sight.

“Think, Cassie, think,” she muttered, wiping away the useless tears.

Though she didn’t know where they’d been, she sensed that it would happen soon. And if they were both in the strange fog, then they’d obviously been together when they were taken.

So . . . she had to make sure they weren’t together.

Ever.

She ignored the brutal pain that sliced through her at the mere thought of spending the rest of her life without Caine. It would be a barren, lonely existence, but she could survive if she knew that Caine was alive and well.

And more importantly, she ignored the whispered warning that she’d never been able to alter the future. No matter how often she tried.

This time it would be different.

It had to be different.

With an effort she forced herself to straighten, her knees still weak and her head aching. She would worry about the future later. For now, she had to get away from Caine.

Something that was easier said than done.

She was under no illusion that she could simply give him a kiss good-bye and stroll away. Caine had declared himself her protector and nothing short of death was going to pry him from her side.

Which meant she would have to slip away.

Her gaze turned toward the window. Although she couldn’t shift, she was still as strong and as fast as other Weres. If she jumped out the window and took off at top speed there was a fifty/fifty shot she could reach the Jeep before Caine realized she was trying to escape.

Of course, she’d only have one shot.

Caine would chain her to the wall if she failed.

Sucking in a deep breath, she was actually in the process of crossing the floor when she was struck by a sudden thought.

Crap. She couldn’t just leave. The hexes surrounding the cabin would fry her if she left the house alone.

Which meant she’d have to find a way to have Caine escort her past the barriers and then escape.

She squeezed her eyes shut in frustration. Yeah. No problem.

“Cassie?”

The sound of Caine’s voice calling from the kitchen jerked Cassie out of her dark broodings. First things first. She had to convince Caine to leave the house. She would worry about escaping later.

“I’m coming,” she called, heading reluctantly down the stairs and stepping into the kitchen.

She was greeted by the scent of waffles fresh from the toaster and warm syrup. Her stomach rumbled in approval, even as her heart sank to her toes at the sight of Caine mixing frozen orange juice into a pitcher.

It all looked so wondrously homey. Like a scene from her deepest fantasies.

Caine turned at her entrance, instantly sensing her distress despite her forced smile. Setting aside the pitcher, he moved across the tiled floor, grasping her hands in a tight grip. “What’s wrong?”

She hesitated. She might be the world’s worse liar, but this was for Caine. It was her turn to step up to the plate and do whatever was necessary to protect him. Just as he’d always protected her.

“I had a vision,” she admitted, sticking to the truth for as long as possible.

“Damn,” he muttered, the contentment leeching from his magnificent eyes. “Now what?”

“We have to leave.”

“Okay.” Her heart nearly shattered at his ready nod. He was prepared to follow her no matter what new disaster she was leading him into. Without question, without hesitation. How had she ever earned such steadfast loyalty? “Do you know where we’re headed?”