“Devon wants Valerie dead.” And Griffin didn’t have time for this. “You’re going to trust him over her?”
“He’s not the one with a kill list a mile long. He’s not the one who was going to be executed by his own kind. Every single thing points to her being the enemy. But you’re too blinded to see that.” Warren’s cheeks flushed. “She’s going to destroy you. Do you really just expect me to stand by and watch it happen?”
“Valerie is my mate. Not my enemy.” The weight of the bracelets seemed far too heavy in Griffin’s pocket.
“Devon gave you a tool to use. He said you could stop—”
“I’m not using the fucking bracelets on her!”
Warren blinked. Then his gaze flew down to Griffin’s pocket. A furrow appeared between his brows. “If you’re not using them, why are you taking the bracelets with you?” His eyes widened. “You are starting to see the truth! You realize she could be screwing with you. Good, good! We can stop her together.”
Griffin could hear the roar of the boat’s engine. “Go home, Warren.”
“What?”
“I don’t want you around my mate. Go back home, to the shifter realm. Wait for me there.”
“But you will need my help, you’ll need—”
“Stop.” A guttural command.
Warren swallowed.
Griffin studied his friend. “She thinks you’re trying to kill her.”
A frantic shake of Warren’s head.
“She doesn’t trust you,” Griffin added.
“The witch is trying to turn you against me, she’s—”
“You want me to bind my mate. You talk about her as if she’s our enemy. You look at her with hate in your eyes.” Was it any wonder Valerie was so hesitant around the other shifters? “She saved Rio. She saved my ass in that witch dungeon. She’s not perfect, I’m not claiming that she is, but you know what? I don’t want her to be perfect. I’m certainly not perfect. I’m a killer. I’m a beast. I’m absolutely savage. And she is the thing I want most. Screw any spell. I don’t care about spells. I care about her.”
Warren had gone statue-still.
“So either you accept my queen or you get your ass away from me.” Griffin didn’t want to lose his friend. But he would not lose Valerie. “If I have to choose, it will be her. Always her.”
“You’re under a spell,” Warren whispered.
“I’m not you.” He should have seen that Warren still carried the heavy weight of guilt. “Valerie isn’t Lorena. She’s not trying to destroy the shifters. Stop blaming her for something that another witch did. See her for who she is.”
He shouldered around his friend, heading for the door.
“I do see Valerie for exactly who she is,” Warren threw after him. “Everyone sees her that way. Everyone but you.”
Griffin reached for the doorknob.
But Warren wasn’t done. “Shouldn’t that make you suspicious? Shouldn’t that make you stop and think…why in the hell do you see her differently?”
He looked back. “I see her perfectly.” And he knew why. “Go home, Warren. I don’t need you.”
“You don’t need anyone but her, is that it? She’s going to destroy—”
“Don’t fucking talk about my queen again.” They were done. Dammit.
He yanked open the door and stalked into the hallway, fury filling his body. He hadn’t realized how much animosity Warren held for Valerie. All of the shifters had kept their distance from her when she’d been at his castle. Everyone but Rio. They’d whispered about her, stared at her with fear…and hate?
And he’d just let that shit happen. What in the hell had been wrong with him?
He marched from the mansion. Headed straight for the yacht. Valerie was already on board, her dark hair blowing in the breeze.
When she saw him, a wide smile slid across her face, and she hurried back onto the dock. “Starting to wonder if I’d have to hunt for you!”
He pulled her into his arms. Put his mouth on her. Tasted. Savored. Claimed.
“Hello to you, too,” Valerie murmured against his mouth.
His head lifted. He didn’t let her go.
A faint line appeared between her delicate brows. “Is everything okay?”
“It will be.” He’d make it better than okay. He’d make up for every single slight she’d ever received.
“Sunset is coming,” Elliott called out, his voice bland. “But, you know, if you two want to keep making out and just ignore the vamps waiting, we can do that. My schedule is wide open.”
They jumped onto the boat. Griffin helped to cast off the lines.
“Is Warren coming?” Elliott asked, glancing toward the house.
Griffin locked his back teeth. “He’s going home. I need someone there to keep an eye on things.” A partial truth.
Elliott cut him a sharp glance.
“Take us to the vamps.” Griffin felt his incisors sharpen. “And if things go to hell, be ready to claw your way through them.”
Elliott steered the boat away from the dock. “Always love fighting with a vamp. Been too long since I kicked some undead ass.”
Griffin looked back at his island. Warren had stepped outside. He stared after them.
“He doesn’t appear happy,” Valerie announced. She lifted her hand and gave Warren a cheery wave.
He didn’t wave back.
“It’s a pity he hates me.” She waved once more. Sparks danced above her fingers.
Griffin caught her hand. “Don’t.”
She blinked innocently. “What? You think I was going to hurt him?” Another flutter of her lashes. “He looked so mopey and down. I was just going to give the man his own personal little raincloud. You know, so it could follow him around.”
Elliott barked out a laugh.
“Do not,” Griffin warned her.
She nodded. “Right. I should save my energy for the vamps. Good plan.” Though she did look longingly toward Warren. “Someday.”
“What’s that?” Griffin asked, narrowing his eyes.
“Oh, nothing. I just feel like Elliott. Totally agree with him. Can’t wait to kick vamp ass.” Her smile was huge.
“And what happens after we kick that ass?” Griffin wondered what Valerie’s next step would be.
Her smile dimmed. “We find Calliope. We get her help. And I take down the witch council. Easy.”
It didn’t sound easy.
But then, he’d learned that when Valerie was involved, nothing was easy.
***
“You bring Valerie to me, just Valerie.” Calliope Briggs was absolutely sick of fear being a heavy weight in her stomach. “She’s the one I trust. Only her.”
Enzo cast a fast glance toward the window. “It’s almost sunset.”
“Then you need to go.” Valerie is back. That means I have a chance. “She can help me. She can help us both. Bring her to me.”
The vamp leader hesitated. “She wanted you to be on that beach—at the club, Daybreak.”
Calliope shook her head. “I can’t be out there. I’m not as strong as she is. If the wrong person sees me first, I’m dead.” Just like Hurst and Fiona. “You lead her here. Only Valerie, understand?”
“That shifter isn’t going to let her out of his sight.”
He was a problem. Griffin Bastien. “Griffin was hired by the witch council. He’s an assassin. He’s just biding his time, trying to figure out a way to end Valerie. You have to get her away from him.” She closed in on Enzo. She’d found that the vamp would do just about anything for her. “When you see him, before he even has a chance to speak, kill him.”
Enzo whistled. “He’s not going to be easy to kill.”
She reached for his hand. Pressed two objects into his palm. “He will be if you use a little magic.”
Enzo glanced down. “Silver bullets? Those aren’t exactly magic.”
Not normally. “These are magic. These bullets are enchanted. They won’t miss their target.
I don’t care how fast he is. How big of a beast he can be. You aim these silver bullets at him, and you won’t miss.”
His tongue swiped over his lower lip. A dead giveaway to his nerves. “If I kill the shifter king, then I start a war.”
Time to give Enzo some perspective. “If you don’t kill him, then I’m as good as dead. And you don’t want me to die, do you? If I die, you won’t be able to have my blood any longer.” Her fingers trailed down his chest. “You won’t be able to have me.”
His gaze fell on her throat. “I do like you. You’re fucking delicious.”
Wonderful. What every witch wanted to hear. “So kill him for me. And bring my friend to me.”
Enzo nodded. His fingers closed around the bullets. “I’ll be back as soon as I can.”
Then he was gone. Marching out of the room as if he was heading to battle—which, well, he was. She hurried to the window and glanced down, watching as he filed out with a line of vamps. Vamps liked to live in dens. They thought there was safety in numbers. They were usually right.
They were—
Something hit her from behind. A sharp, stabbing pain. Her hand lifted, and she grabbed at her shoulder. Calliope’s shaking fingers pulled out some kind of…dart?
“What in the hell?” Calliope whispered.
Her knees—her legs—gave way. She slammed onto the floor.
And she heard a man laughing.
Someone was in the room with her. Someone she hadn’t even seen. She hadn’t sensed anyone, hadn’t felt the stir of magic in the air—
“One witch down…” His mocking voice drifted to her.
A heavy, numbing lethargy swept through her. Calliope couldn’t even lift her lashes, much less her head. She couldn’t see the man who stalked toward her.
“One down,” his hand brushed over her cheek. “One to go.”
Chapter Nineteen
“I don’t like this setup, man,” Elliott muttered. “Two of us against how many vamps?”
Griffin didn’t know. They’d just stepped onto the beach. He could see the outline of Stefan’s club, Daybreak, in the distance.
“I don’t see any humans around,” Elliott continued grimly. “Maybe you should shift into your dragon. A little fire and those vamps will be ash. Only thing that burns faster than a vamp is, um, it’s, uh—”
“Yes, please,” Valerie entreated as she wrapped her hand around Griffin’s arm. “Do finish that sentence. What is it that burns faster than a vampire? Is it, by any chance, a witch?”
Elliott scratched his chin. “I can’t seem to remember what it is right now.”
“Coward.” She shook her head, then glanced up at Griffin. “You can change, if you want. I don’t exactly trust vamps, either.”
Griffin stiffened. “They’re coming.” He could hear their footsteps. “At least a dozen of them.”
“Because you always bring a dozen buddies to a friendly talk,” Elliott drawled.
Valerie bit her lower lip. “Is it just vamps? Or do you hear or smell a witch, too?”
The vamps were coming in fast. They were near Daybreak.
“Just the vamps,” he told her.
“Dammit.” She huffed out a breath. “Then let’s go meet the bastards. Because I do not tolerate someone trying to screw me over.” She straightened her shoulders. “Daybreak won’t open until midnight, so the place should be deserted. Stefan will be around, though, in case we need him.”
She started to walk forward, but he pulled her back.
“Griffin? What—”
He kissed her. “Few rules first.”
Her eyes widened. “No, please, no. Tell me that we are not back to rules.”
Elliott smothered what sounded like a laugh.
“Rule one…” Griffin began.
“You love your rules far too much,” Valerie muttered. “It’s positively unhealthy.”
He ignored that comment. “You stay behind me. I’m the one with the super senses.”
“Well, about that…”
He frowned.
She winced. “My senses may be a wee bit enhanced. Not as good as yours, of course, but…” Valerie cleared her throat. “Really good.”
Yeah, he’d suspected. “I’m faster than you. I’m stronger.”
He waited for her to argue.
“You’ve got me there.” She nodded.
“So I stay between you and the threats.” Protecting her was his job.
Valerie fired a quick glance toward Daybreak. “Any other rules?”
“You don’t get hurt. That’s rule two.”
Now her gaze came back to him. “You don’t get hurt, either. And that’s my only rule for this little meet and greet.”
“Careful, sweetheart,” he rasped. “You keep talking like that, and I’ll think you care about me.” He deliberately threw back the words she’d given to him when they’d been on the island.
“I do.” Her eyes widened, as if she’d just surprised herself. “I do.”
“Damn straight. Glad you admitted it.” He locked his fingers with hers. His claws were already out. “Now let’s face the vamps.”
Griffin, Elliott, and Valerie headed for Daybreak. They beat the vamps to the club, and when they walked inside, Stefan was waiting behind the bar.
Stefan raised a brow at Valerie. “You just had to use my place for your showdown, didn’t you?”
“You heard, huh? Word spread on the paranormal grapevine?”
“It always does.”
She shrugged. “Daybreak was convenient.”
Stefan’s fingers tapped on the bar. His snakes seemed to stretch. “You think you can trust the vamp?”
“I absolutely don’t. But Enzo has Calliope. I need her.”
Stefan’s gaze slid to Griffin. Then to Elliott. “Two shifters against a den of vamps.” He nodded. “Yeah, I’ll take those odds. Should have opened a betting pool. Would have gone ten to one on the shifters.”
“Nice to know,” Griffin murmured.
Stefan saluted him. “When you want me to join in, just say the word.”
Elliott advanced toward the bar. “What word is that?”
“Medusa,” Valerie answered.
The snakes hissed.
Elliott stopped advancing. “Obviously, you two have played this game before.”
The vamps were almost on them. Griffin pushed Valerie behind him.
The door flew open. Enzo was the first vamp into Daybreak. His men came in right after him. They fanned out. They didn’t attack.
Enzo frowned as his stare slid to Elliott. “Just one shifter as backup? Seriously?” He was obviously insulted.
Griffin shrugged. “I know. It’s overkill. If you jerks try to betray us, Elliott won’t get to do anything but watch me kick your asses.”
“Hardly fair,” Elliott announced.
Enzo tensed. Then he was craning his neck. “Valerie, are you hiding behind this dumbass?” He laughed. “Didn’t think you hid from anything.”
A deliberate taunt. One designed to get Valerie to step away from Griffin.
But she didn’t. In fact, Griffin didn’t think she moved at all. Holy hell, the woman was actually following his rules. “Where’s Calliope?” Griffin demanded.
Enzo scratched his chin. “Who?”
“You sonofabitch!” Valerie’s sharp voice rang out. “My ally! I want her, right now! That was the deal, that was—”
“I’ll take you to her,” Enzo promised, his low words cutting through her cry. “Right after I kill the assassin. Don’t worry, you’ll thank me later.”
Kill the assassin.
Fuck. Griffin lunged forward even as the vamp lifted a gun.
Enzo was smiling as he aimed the weapon at Griffin. Like Griffin was supposed to be afraid of a damn bullet. He could dodge anything that came at him. His incisors extended as his bones began to pop and stretch.
Bam. Bam.
Two bullets exploded from the gun. Two bullets that were rushing s
traight for Griffin. He jerked to the side—
The bullets froze in mid-air. Just stopped.
“What have you done?” Valerie’s shaking voice.
Griffin glanced at her. Saw the sparks in the air around her. She’d obviously worked some kind of spell, and his crafty witch had just frozen the bullets in the air. A very impressive feat.
Enzo backed up. “Calliope wants you, Valerie. She said the shifter is an assassin. She wants him dead.”
Great. Griffin stepped to the side, but the bullets, even though they were hanging in mid-air…they turned. Aimed at him.
“Did you just see that?” Elliott demanded, his voice holding shock.
Enzo let out a low laugh. “They won’t miss. Calliope promised that they wouldn’t. The bullets won’t miss at what I aim for.” He pointed at Valerie. “You stopped them, but it’s just temporary. You can’t hold them back forever. Calliope knows her shit. Those bullets are going to lodge in your shifter. He’ll be dead, and then I’ll take you to Calliope.” A satisfied expression crossed his face. “See you in hell, shifter king. ‘Cause those bullets are made of silver. And they are going straight for your heart.”
Bullshit. Had to be.
Valerie stood in the middle of the club, her hands fisting at her sides. Her body trembled from strain. From the strain of holding those bullets back? Griffin ran toward the bullets. He’d just knock the bullets out of the air. But when he tried to touch them, a bolt of electricity threw him back.
“Stefan!” Valerie’s voice was strained. “Medusa.”
Snakes immediately flew across the room. Dozens of them raced for the vamps, biting and hissing, and when the snakes plunged their teeth into the vamps…
The vamps froze. Their bodies just locked down and only their eyes were alive with emotion—terror.
Griffin bounded for Enzo. He grabbed the vamp and put the SOB in front of his body. “The bullets are going to come for me, huh? Well, guess they’ll have to go through you first.”