Savage Awakening (Alpha Pack #2)(46)

"And that would be?" Hammer asked.

"Malik, king of the Unseelie." Sariel gave a bitter laugh. "My sire."

"Nick, my God," Kalen breathed.

There-that weird vibe passed between the two men again. This time a couple of the guys noticed, but before anyone could ask about what had Kalen so upset, Sariel continued.

The Fae prince hung his head, speaking quietly. "Their being in your world means so much, I wish I'd realized sooner that these were the creatures you'd all spoken of. They are the thread that ties everything together."

"Hang on," Aric said. "We have one of these in the basement, in Block T. You haven't seen it?"

"No. I knew of a creature being held, but I wasn't allowed down there. If I had seen it, I would've been able to relate this information to you all sooner." Sariel paused. "It's no longer there. I was told it perished while you were gone."

Nick confirmed this. "That's right. The creature seemed to have some intelligence, which is why we were holding it. But it wouldn't communicate or eat, and finally it died."

Rowan couldn't find it in herself to be real sorry that it had croaked. The thought of literally having a monster under your bed was a bit too much.

"I'm forming a picture here, and it's one I don't like." Aric stared hard at the Fae, who continued his thoughts on the subject.

"Where the Sluagh are present, so is Malik. Since he's the only one who could've brought them to this world, they'll do his bidding, and his alone. And as badly as my father might want to destroy me, he wouldn't bring an army of Sluagh here just for that. He wouldn't need that much help."

Nick glanced around at his men. "Then it's safe to assume Malik was behind the ambush on Alpha Pack more than six months ago, as well as placing them on guard at the old church where we found Micah and Aric and the other prisoners. He even sent this scout, perhaps to find us, if not Sariel. It's much worse than we thought-Orson Chappell isn't the head of the project to create a legion of super-shifters. He's working for Malik or, more likely, is under his control."

"That would be my guess," Sariel replied grimly. "And if it's true, no one on earth is safe."

"Nick, tell them the rest," Kalen said quietly, looking away. "They need to know."

Nick was silent for a moment as the team stared at them. Finally he nodded. "You're right. We'd have to fill them in sooner or later, so it might as well be now." He faced the group, his voice low. "The short version of it is, since Mac and Kalen were attacked in town by that Sluagh, Kalen's been hearing a voice in his head. The being, or whatever, is trying to control him. He's fighting it, and has been successful so far, but..." He shook his head.

The danger to them all slowly sank in.

Jax pushed a hand through his spiky black hair. "If Malik can gain control of a Sorcerer, he'll have the ultimate weapon."

"The two of them together would be nearly unstoppable." This from Zan, who studied Kalen thoughtfully.

"I can leave," Kalen offered sadly. "I told Nick the other day I was going, but he talked me out of it."

"He was right." Ryon shook his head. "We're not throwing you to the wolves, pardon the expression. You're one of us now, and the Pack sticks together."

"Exactly," Jax said. The rest echoed his sentiment, and Kalen looked touched.

Rowan also knew that it was safer to keep Kalen here, where he could be watched. Though nobody said so, the others had to know it, too.

"Okay, how do we toast Malik's ass?" Typical Aric.

"If my sire has a weakness, I don't know what it is. But I'll keep searching."

"We'll help however we can." Aric sighed. "Though most of us know shit about the Fae. Maybe some of us can research online?"

Sariel rolled his eyes. "Kira is teaching me to become 'tech-savvy,' as you guys call it. Don't believe everything you read on the Internet. Most of it is garbage."

"Kalen," Nick called. "Can you place another ward over the property, one that acts as a cloak, making it appear as though there's nothing here but forest?"

The Sorcerer shrugged. "Sure, that's easy. The question is, will it fool Malik and his ghouls?"

"For a while, perhaps," Sariel mused. "It can't hurt to try."

With a nod, Kalen held out his right hand and his staff appeared in his palm. On the top was a glowing ball of light, blue on the edges and white in the center. Rowan recalled that when he performed magic at the church, he'd knelt. This time he remained standing, booted feet shoulder width apart. Head back, he raised the staff and began to chant.

She peered at the sky, not seeing anything unusual. But she felt something like static electricity, the hair on her arms and on her head crackling as though it were being rubbed with an inflated balloon, like she used to do as a kid. Returning her attention to Kalen, she couldn't help but be awed. To be able to command the elements, bend them to your will to do magic, must be such a rush. And he looked damned cool doing it, too.

"What're you staring at?" a voice growled softly in her ear.

She turned her head to find herself looking into Aric's annoyed face. "Just watching him use his magic staff thingy. It's just as awesome as the first time I saw him do it." His breath puffed against her neck, making her break out in chill bumps.