Hunted (War of the Covens 1)

Caia concentrated and walked through the back door and into the home in her mind. It was dark, stark, and dismal with the distasteful residue of Midnight magik in every corner. The sitting room with its beat-up sofas and broken TV was empty. Caia strolled past, checking the two bedrooms, also empty. Finally, she turned the corner and walked into the large kitchen. The floor in the center was completely devoid of furniture, the kitchen itself consisting of plain white cupboards and counters running along the walls. But she wasn’t interested in that.

She walked into the pantry, to the end of that room to pull open the door that would lead her to the basement. She inhaled and could smell Jae, even on her virtual tour. To her surprise, the energy she recognized as Ethan’s was merely residual. He wasn’t home.

Coming back to herself, Caia glanced at the males who waited expectantly by the side of the truck.

“There are two daemons.” She nodded. “One at the back, one at the front. We’re going to enter from the back, so the daemon there will be the trickiest to take out without alerting the other one. Ethan’s not there, but Jaeden still is.”

Christian drew in a breath of relief. “So all we have to do is deal with two daemons and we have Jaeden home free.”

Caia nodded. “If we move quickly. I suggest that you”—she gestured to Christian—“Sebastian, Aidan, and Ryder all change. Lucien and I will remain human to get Jaeden out.” She glanced up at Lucien to see if he agreed.

Despite looking annoyed that she had taken control, he nodded.

“Good. Now let’s talk strategy … ”

Once they had formulated their plan, the four males changed, and Caia and Lucien walked into the woods. They said nothing to one another, but the tension remained thick around them. As the trees whispered behind them, Caia gave the four large lykans who padded toward her, a bolstering smile. Sebastian, tawny and beautiful, padded over to her, brushing his face against her leg affectionately. She patted him and ignored the ever-growing coolness from Lucien.

“No heroics,” he said between clenched teeth. “In and out. I mean it.”

“Of course.”

A quarter of a mile from the house, they went into stealth mode, moving so quietly no one could hear them. Hopefully, that included the daemon they were closing in on. Caia kept checking ahead of them to make sure there was still only the two beasts. Nothing had changed.

And then they were there, hiding and peering out into the clearing where the house sat. A large daemon identical to the one she’d killed stood guard at the back door. She felt a tingle across her fading scar at the thought of that fatal fight. The taste of his disgusting blood still made her want to gag.

Ah, poor Aidan and Ryder, she mused, thinking of the plan. And just like that, Aidan sprang from her left a few yards away, launching through the air. He landed a few feet from the daemon who gaped in amazement and had little time to respond before Aidan pounced again, his jaw ripping into the daemon’s jugular. His brother was seconds behind him, clawing his way up the daemon’s struggling body, ripping into any part of it he could find before sinking his own teeth into the other side of its neck.

The death was quiet and sickening, neither lykan willing to stop their attack until, like Caia had done, the daemon’s head rolled from its body.

She let out a breath and looked at Lucien who was, to her surprise, studying her. His eyes were so unreadable. She wondered what he was thinking.

“One down,” she whispered, and he nodded sharply, breaking from his daze. They moved silently into the backyard to meet the brothers, their muzzles glistening gorily, ensanguined fangs still on display.

Caia waited with Lucien while the four wolves split into two and headed to either side of the building for their next attack. And then Caia and Lucien made their move. Caia opened the back door with magik so that it wouldn’t squeak, and the two of them entered the house like professional thieves. Her heart pounded the entire time, her senses feeling constantly for any change in the air that would warn her of Ethan’s presence.

They heard a whine outside and Caia flinched, her wide eyes flying to Lucien. He looked worried but shook his head, indicating for her to still lead the way. And then they were in the pantry and she was opening the door that would take them to Jaeden.

The smell of Jaeden hit like a gale-force wind, and Lucien’s snarl erupted before he could stop it. Until then only Caia had known the extent of Jaeden’s torture, but her blood was thick in the air coming from the basement, and her fear was like the stale scent of body odor.