Unleash the Night (Dark-Hunter 8)

But he didn't want to scare her any more than she already was. "Stay focused as a human and you'll remain one."

"I have to tell you, being a tiger really sucks."

He laughed darkly at her words. "Sometimes. Sometimes it's not so bad."

"This isn't one of those times."

He smiled as he gently stroked her hair. "No, I guess for you it isn't." He tilted his head as he tried to sense his father, but all Wren could feel was Maggie. "Do you know where my father went?"

"No, but the next time I see him, I intend to return the bite."

"Don't worry. I'll bite him for you." Wren pulled back from her. "How do you feel right now?"

"Woozy. Do you ever feel like you're going to vomit when you change shapes?"

"It usually goes away quickly. Stare at something for a minute and your senses will settle down."

She stared at his lips.

Wren didn't know what it was about that that turned him on, but his body reacted instantly to it.

"You're right," she said. "It helps."

Wren kissed her lightly. She moaned deep in her throat as he parted her lips to taste the sweetness of her mouth. His body hardening even more, he gently cupped her breast in his hand.

He rolled her to her back just as someone knocked on the door.

He quickly dressed them both as the door opened to show his father. Hesitating in the doorway, he appeared sheepish. "I didn't know you were back. I was coming in to check on Maggie. How's she doing?"

Wren left the bed as rage took hold of him. "What did you do to her?"

He looked past Wren to the bed where Maggie was still lying in human form. "I'm so sorry, Maggie. But it's for the best. You're stronger now. You'll live longer than you would have as a human. Believe me, you're much better off this way."

Wren grabbed him and slammed him back against the wall. "What did you do to her?"

"I gave her my mother's powers."

Wren couldn't have been more stunned had his father racked him. He loosened his hold on his throat. "You did what?"

"I gave her animal powers. I figured that by the weekend I wouldn't need them anymore anyway, right?"

Wren shook his head in denial. "It's impossible. No one can give up their powers."

His father snorted at that. "Yes, they can. It's not something done often. Very few of our kind are willing to let go of their magic. But it can be done."

Wren still didn't believe it. "No. I know a Were-Hunter who's mated to a human. She has no powers."

"Because he didn't share them with her."

"Believe me, if Vane could share his powers with his wife, he would."

Wren's father arched a brow at that. "Even if it meant weakening his own?"

Wren hesitated. No, maybe not. "How is it I've never heard of this?"

"It's not exactly something that's talked about in open circles. I learned about it from my mother, who gave up her powers to me when she knew she was dying of cancer. I was young and she was terrified Grayson would kill me. So she made me strong enough to hold my own against him. Now I've passed her gift along to your girlfriend."

Maggie sat up slowly on the bed. "Why not give it to Wren?"

His father gave an odd half laugh. "His powers are enough that he can hold his own against virtually anyone. But you... you would always be a weakness for him. Now you're not. In a few days, you will grow accustomed to your new life and you will master those powers."

"But we're not mates," Wren said, still unable to believe this was happening.

"You will be. I know it."

Wren shook his head. "Maggie is the daughter of a U.S. senator, Dad. How is she supposed to go back to her life now?" He watched as the horror of that sank in.

"Why didn't you tell me?" his father asked.

"Had I known you were going to foist our world on her, I would have. But I never dreamed in my wildest imagination that you could do this."

Maggie touched Wren's arm as she joined them. "It's okay, Wren. Although to be honest, a choice in this would have been nice. Your father's heart was in the right place. You can't be angry at someone who did something because they loved you."

Wren ground his teeth. "Sure I can."

His father looked stricken.

"But I won't."

His father pulled Wren into his arms and hugged him.

She smiled at them. "So before I shift into a tiger again, did you learn anything about your father's murder?"

Wren nodded as he pulled away and moved to Marguerite's side. "My mother's brilliant plan is that she kills Dad and me, and then she and Grayson split the estate. He's to wire a million dollars into her account in advance of the murders."

"But she doesn't kill you," Marguerite reminded him. "After your father dies-"

"You know," his father said between clenched teeth, "it really disturbs me to be talking about my death like this."

"I'm sorry," Maggie said. She looked at Wren. "Are you sure we can't save him?"

"No," Wren said. "It would alter things and the Fates would punish us for it."

His father concurred. "And I'd most likely end up dead in some other fashion within a few hours of his saving me. The Fates have an eerie way of keeping things in balance."

Marguerite felt for Aristotle. "So how do we prove their involvement?"

"I don't know," Wren said. "The deposit doesn't mean anything. I suppose I could get a copy of it, but Grayson could lie and say that he put the money there for another reason. His argument will be based on the fact that both of my parents are dead. He'll say I killed them both."

"So you'll need to find out who killed your mother and provide proof of it."

Wren nodded. "Could Grayson have been in the house when she died?"

Aristotle shook his head. "It's not possible."

"Are you sure?" Wren asked.

"Positive. I banned Grayson from here a long time ago." Aristotle turned thoughtful. "What all do you remember about the night of my death? I need every detail."

Wren passed an uncomfortable look to Marguerite. "It happened around ten. I remember because I heard the clock chime just as something crashed. I sensed that something was wrong, so I left my room to go to yours. I found you there and I held you."

She saw the pain on Wren's father's face.

"Then I heard them laughing and I went to kill them. Mom's lover attacked me and knocked me out. When I woke up, the house was on fire and I escaped when the floor burned out from underneath me. A fireman took me outside and I escaped into the woods. There was a man there who called out to me. He said he would take me to Sanctuary."

His father frowned. "What man?"

"I don't know. He never told me his name and I don't even know why I trusted him, in retrospect. He just seemed to be honest."

Marguerite considered that. "What did he look like?"

Wren shrugged. "He looked and smelled human. He was really tall, with black eyes and long, dark brown hair."

Aristotle shook his head. "I don't know a human who looks like that."

"Are you sure?" Wren asked.

"Positive."

"How weird," Marguerite said as she considered that. "Who could he have been then?"

Wren shook his head. "I don't know."

Aristotle let out a long, tired breath. "Very well then. It doesn't sound like there's much we can do until the night they kill me. I'll have the bank keep me posted about your mother's account. You stay here and teach your girlfriend how to use her powers."

Wren's frown increased. "Where are you going?"

His father gave Wren a meaningful stare. "I want to go spend a little time with my son so that he won't hate me entirely when he finds me dead."

"I didn't hate you, Dad."

He smiled sadly. "Thanks, Wren. I'm glad to know it before I die."

Marguerite was amazed by the man's strength, at the fact that he could face his death so bravely. It was unbelievable. "You're being incredibly understanding about all this."

He scoffed at that. "Only on the outside. I assure you, inside I'm screaming right now. There's nothing worse than knowing you're going to die and not being able to stop it."

She cringed at the very thought. "No, I guess not."

Aristotle opened the door. "I'll be back in a few hours. In the meantime if either of you need anything, have Maggie buzz me on the intercom."

"Okay."

As his father started to leave, Wren stopped him. "Thanks, Dad."

He patted Wren on the arm before he left them alone.

Wren sighed heavily. "This has been one seriously fucked-up day, huh?"

"You might say that. This morning it was 2005 in New Orleans, I was staring at you wondering what it would be like to have the ability to change into a tiger. Now it's the day before I enter the world in 1981 and I can turn into a tiger. Yeah, just your average day... if you're in a Ted Raimi production."

Wren snorted at her sarcasm.

Marguerite rubbed her arms as the real horror of all this settled deep inside her heart. "What's going to become of us, Wren?"

"I don't know. But whatever it is, it should be interesting."

"And that is what really, really scares me."