Wicked Road to Hel (League of Guardians 1)

To add insult to injury he was nowhere to be found and no one was offering up any information. Something was going down, something big.

Ana shuddered as a wave of panic slid through her. The little bit of blood she’d drunk from Declan had already formed a tenuous link. He was in danger. She could feel it, and not knowing what was going on was killing her.

Quickly she crossed to the fridge and grabbed a bag of blood. She sliced it open with the sharp end of her fingernail and sucked it from the bag like an animal. No waiting. No manners.

Declan O’Hara had been pushing every single freakin’ button she owned for so long that she should be able to handle it better.

Except she was ready to fall apart. Not good for a vamp to be off her game, not in this situation. She needed to focus. Try a different tactic.

Ana tossed the empty bag and wiped blood from the edges of her mouth.

“Where the fuck is he, Nico?”

The jaguar looked up from the table where he was fiddling with a cup of coffee. He rolled his shoulders and appeared relaxed, but she knew better. The cup was gripped too tightly and the smile upon his lips, too fake.

The warrior never smiled.

“It seems the game has changed.” Nico’s voice was low, his words controlled. “O’Hara is dealing with it.”

Kaden made a weird sound but his eyes quickly fell from hers as she glared at them. “Has he sworn you all to secrecy? Are you really going to play that game with me?”

Silence greeted her words and it only fed her anger more. Her fangs slid out and her veins fattened to form spidery artwork along her face. Her strength lay just beneath the surface and for a second she envisioned her hands wrapped tightly around the jaguar’s neck as she quickly snapped it.

It was insane, where her mind was going, but the loss of control, the fear she felt for Declan was coloring everything in a dark, desperate palette.

Nico stared at her, his dark eyes hooded, lips open in challenge. “I don’t play games.”

“Then tell me where the hell O’Hara is. I don’t need to remind you how delicate a situation we’re in, and after last night I don’t think Declan is in the right frame of mind to be running ops.” She glared at the shifter. “Or to be keeping me in the dark. I’m not some sniveling, weak human.”

“What happened last night?” Nico stood in one fluid movement, his six-foot-six frame dwarfing her petite form.

Ana’s eyes widened and though she didn’t answer, a knowing grimace flickered across the jaguar’s face.

“Just fucking wonderful.” The shifter eyed her, clearly pissed off. “I don’t know the specifics, only that O’Hara is taking a trip below.”

“Below?” The acrid taste of dread rose up from her gut, and Ana clenched her fists together tightly as she stared up at Nico.

The jaguar pointed toward the floor and nodded. “To Hell.”

“Why would he . . .” Her voice trailed off as an image of his scarred, mutilated flesh flashed before her eyes.

“Apparently Lilith has the children.”

The glass in Ana’s hand shattered and she watched the small bits fly like diamonds across the floor. Droplets of blood marred their perfect jeweled form.

“He can’t do this on his own. Is Cale helping him?” What if he was screwed up because she’d taken his blood? They’d had sex as well. Hell, they were halfway to bonding. What if he wasn’t on his game?

Lilith was no run-of-the-mill demon. She was renowned for the darkness she wielded, a legendary princess of darkness who was as bloodthirsty as, if not more so than, her master, Lucifer.

I held up Lilith’s whipping post for six months.

Nico shook his head. “Cale cannot enter the demon realm. His light would be like a beacon. He’d have no chance of survival.”

The jaguar continued to speak but Ana didn’t hear any of it. Her fear for Declan was fierce and her hands shook from the strength of it. She closed her eyes and concentrated, seeking him out, looking for the tenuous thread that joined them. The barest whisper of emotion was there and she grabbed it greedily.

Her sorcerer was resigned. Filled with hatred and fear. Could he sense her anguish as well?

A thousand thoughts slid through her mind but one stood out in stark relief. The need to get to Declan, kick his ass for pulling such a dumb-fuck move and then . . . then what? Kiss him silly with relief? Claim him as hers? Push him away again?