Freak Show (Alexa O'Brien, Huntress #7)(63)

“How the hell did you do that?” One man with a scruffy beard and a black eye asked as he watched me walk free of the tiny prison cell. “What are you?”

I sighed. It seemed that I could never escape that question. It passed the lips of many when I was around. “I’m a werewolf.” A simple answer was the best answer. “I just have a few extra bonus add ons. Upgrades, you could say.”

“Like in a video game?” This from the cutest little boy with a Batman t-shirt and the bluest eyes I’d ever seen on a human. “Are you the good guy?”

I stared, frozen, into his innocence. If he knew the many horrific things I’d done, he would definitely categorize me as a villain. In a world of black and white, there was no place for one like me. I walked in both worlds. Everything in me felt inclined to protect him. To protect all of them. Willow was right. I knew it then.

“You got it, kid. I’m one of the good guys.”

I knelt beside Shaz, setting the dagger aside. His breath came too fast and shallow. His eyes rolled back in his head. I couldn’t get him to look at me.

Healing had proved difficult for me. It came from a place of life and nature, taking precise concentration and intent. I had done it before, with Arys’s guidance. Sloane’s revelation encouraged me. It meant that the ability to heal had been meant for Arys and me, somehow. It was a gift.

I can do this.

I placed my hands on Shaz, clenching his bloodstained fur between my fingers. Taking several deep breaths, I counted backwards from ten and prayed nobody would come through that door.

It was easy to feel and touch his broken energy. Aligning it to mine, I pushed a gentle, warm flow of light into his battered body. The constant chatter of voices in my head beat at my focus. I fought to shut it out. The wolf within demanded my attention. She heard nothing, saw nothing, only Shaz. The connection between us grew stronger. Power flowed out from me, seeking and finding its target, breathing health and vitality into this wolf that I loved with every part of me left that was wolf and human. The sound of other people’s thoughts faded. Shaz was all I knew. My being was devoted to keeping him alive. Nothing else proved stronger than that devotion. I steadied the flow between us, giving all I had until his energy hummed happily once again.

I collapsed beside him, my head in my hands, and blood running steadily from my nose. My ragged breaths became gasps, and I coughed.

Thanks to the angel blood crashing through my veins, the exhaustion was short lived. I recovered quickly. The burn out that followed the inevitable crash from so much power was going to be brutal. So I’d better make it worth it.

Chapter Fifteen

“Trust Shaz,” I said. “He’ll get you out of here. And take care of each other. Nobody gets left behind.”

I stood near the door, speaking to the group of frightened captives. The Dragon Claw was ready in my hand for when the door opened again. At my side was Shaz, as wolf, strong and alert.

I didn’t have much of a plan. I would take on Linden and his guys, keep them busy while Shaz led the humans out of the warehouse. It was growing harder to restrain the force within me. If I never took blood from an angel again, it would be too soon.

For the better part of an hour, I’d listened to stories. The men and women told tales of being kidnapped and abused at the hands of Linden and his crew. They’d been lined up against the wall while vampires ogled them. Harsh punishments were handed out to those that dared to fight back.

Linden was a crime lord in his own right. He took human trafficking to another level. Taking him out wouldn’t be enough to abolish an organization like this. Still, I couldn’t go home and pretend it didn’t exist while they treated innocents like cattle.

Innocent blood was on my hands too. I would not make the error of having a holier than thou attitude toward Linden. My mistakes were just that though. Mistakes. When I hunted with the intent to lure and kill, I chose ones with blood on their own hands.

Touching base with Arys, I assured him I was fine. He and Jenner had found Roscoe who had yet to give them anything on Linden. Arys was still of the mind that he needed to come for me. Having to stay away and wait it out was driving him mad. I refused to put the kids at greater risk. There was no way to predict what Linden may do if Arys arrived on the scene.

My palm grew sweaty on the dagger handle. I was nervous but eager. I didn’t have to wait much longer for a vampire to return with the rest of the children. Standing behind the door, I waited for it to close and expose me.

I was on the guy before he could react to seeing me out of the cell. Shoving the dagger into its sheath, I grabbed his head and snapped his neck, letting him fall. Then I swiped his phone, keys and gun so they wouldn’t be lost in the destruction of his body when I dusted him.

“Who knows how to use this?” I offered the gun to the first guy who held up a hand with a semblance of confidence. “You take the rear. Cover everyone else on the way out. Especially the kids and that lady there.” I motioned to the pregnant lady who wore a hard, stern expression. She was braver than I ever would have been in her place. “A gun isn’t the best weapon against vampires, but a good face shot or two can buy you some time.”

A broken neck also wouldn’t keep a vampire down long. A quick swipe of the Dragon Claw’s blade ensured he wouldn’t be a future problem. His dusty remains had both the kids and adults fascinated. They would never look at the world the same again after this night.