Page 76 of Pack Rage
Use me!
Not yet,I replied to my wolf’s silent urging, as thebehrserkerrage ballooned.But soon.
It was almost impossible to hold still, to keep from shifting into my wolf form and tearing into the shifters around me. But I managed, knowing the moment hadn’t arrived. We weren’t all here, and I forced my wolf to acknowledge that. Grigor wasn’t here yet.
She settled reluctantly, and the scar on my chest burned with liquid fire as the ballooning rage began to disperse, traveling down the arms of the scar somehow, and out. To my mates? Maybe. Whatever my wolf was up to, my vision returned to normal, and the stretching feeling eased a bit.
As I caught my breath, I noticed Vanya being pulled away from the front lines of the circle by hands—Becca’s, maybe. Then silently, as Niall stepped toward Finn, the servants who’d been closest melted back into the crowd, far enough back that I couldn’t see them.
We were surrounded entirely by enemies now, but my focus was a hundred percent on Elina. The Russian general, the Eastern Enforcers, that fucker Niall, even Aidan—they were all nothing compared to her. She’d gone too far, and she had to pay.
“Is there nothin’ you won’t do, Elina?” My voice was a growl as my lips moved almost without my permission. My wolfwanted to take charge, use a weapon? One of my best was my sassy Southern mouth, and I gave her the reins. “You got all these pack members nervous as cats in a room full of rockin’ chairs, can’t you see that? Bringin’ that creepy Ivan here and smilin’ like you didn’t just drop a turd in the punchbowl. You just gotta suck up every scrap of power, dontcha? I’d say bless your heart, but I wouldn’t mean it, and I ain’t all that sure you’ve still got one. Is there any line you won’t cross? Any crime you won’t commit?”
Elina tilted her head, like I was a monkey who’d done a trick. Curious like a wolf, though her eyes remained fully human. “Isn’t that what I should ask you? You’ve even ensnared my useless son, and for no reason that I can tell other than to add to your own power. Why did you claim them all? How could you do it? Howdidyou?” The last question was the only one she wanted answered, and she waited as she held out a hand to the nearest Enforcer, who handed her his sword, moving like he was in a trance.
Wait a sec.She’d said that all out loud? I let my eyes flick to the guards around me, suddenly realizing they weren’t looking at her, or me. Aidan was talking behind her to the crowd as she approached, graceful even on the uneven ground.Ah, fuck a duck.She’d done some magic shit.
None of my mates were looking at her either, except Brand, who had Glen in his arms. He began to put him down, and I thought, as hard as I could,Don’t. Keep him safe. I’ve got this.
I hoped he couldn’t hear the lie in my voice. Isodid not have this, but my wolf was raging that Glen had to be kept away from Elina. She’d done something to him to knock him out, and had a hold on him through the wounds on his neck, which meant he couldn’t defend himself. Brand was the only one in the world I’d trust to keep him safe right now. Well, him or Grigor.
Elina moved even closer, no one reacting as she did, so I figured she was using a look-away spell. Power practically poured off her with every step she took, and I wondered how she’d managed to hide it all these years. Might as well ask. I needed to stall for time, and if there was one thing a villain liked, it was the opportunity to monologue.
“How didyou?” I let my eyes go wide, like I really gave a rat’s ass. “You’re so damned strong. How did you manage to fool your pack,allthe packs, for so long?”
She stopped moving, and another odd bubble formed around us as she smiled, the air between us and everyone else going weird and wavy for a split second. “It’s all about bloodlines, of course. I’m a direct descendant of the greatest coven that ever existed, and the Russian Alpha of Alphas, who was the strongest wolf ever born.”
She paused, and I sucked in a breath.Keep talking, keep talking.“Wait, that means…”
“Yes. You mated into my vastly powerful bloodline. You see why I can’t let you live.”
“M-mated?” I didn’t have to hide my shock. She knew I was mated to Grigor? That had just happened today.Those fucking cameras in the lower levels…
“You think I can’t smell you on my son? You marked his neck, but I could sense you’d claimed him before now, though I couldn’t tell how.” She waited.
“Ah. The tongue,” I said, like I was sharing a favorite recipe. Inside, I was cheering. She didn’t know about Grigor, thank the moon. “I bet you didn’t check inside his mouth.”
She blinked, then laughed out loud. “Very clever. I almost hate to kill you.”
“I almost hate to die,” I snapped back, circling a little as she stepped almost within arm’s reach. “I thought you came from some weak little pack in Florida.”
Her lip curled. “You’re not altogether wrong. My wolf father was a weak Alpha. My witch mother was the powerful one, though he never saw who she was. Well, not until she drained him.”
I didn’t ask what that meant, but I had a suspicion it was the same thing Grigor had done to the guards in the lower levels.
I let out an exaggerated sigh. “Seems to be a common failing of shifter males, I guess. They can’t see past their penises to recognize how strong the females in the packs are. Stronger than them, a lot of the time.” Her smile changed, almost genuine now. I rushed on, stepping casually to the side. “Your mama was descended from the Alpha of Alphas, then. I’ve read about that guy. He was the father of Grigor Dimitri?—”
She cut me off with a hiss, as her eyes flicked toward the Mansion. She still thought he was in there. She didn’t know he’d gotten out. “Donotspeak his name.”
“Okay, okay.”Lady,I wanted to say.I’m not just speaking it. I’m screaming it, in my mind.Though with her this close, and the bubble of silence, I couldn’t tell if he was still on his way. What if he’d been hurt, or trapped again? What if he was just too far to get here in time?
Nothing will keep me from you,he’d promised before he left. I had to hold onto that. That, and my own damned skills at bullshitting and fighting, if it came down to it.
I let out a low whistle. “Yeah, but you’re descended from that guy. No wonder you’re so strong. But your mother, she was Verbena, right? Verbena Flock.”
A flicker of what might have been pain moved through her gaze. “Yes. She taught me everything she could before she died foolishly. One of the most important lessons was how to hide your true self. Your true name. It’s the only thing that keptyoualive all these years.” She sneered, her arched brows moving into a scowl for a moment.
I shrugged. If her mother had been outwitted by my stupid fuck of a dad, then she’d deserved what came next. Not that I said that out loud, of course.
