Page 114 of The Tracker's Revenge
As the hybrids figured out the mechanics of the door, Blaze hunkered down and sent another attack toward the witch. Again, the smoke shrank out of the way, scuttled along the floor, and reformed a distance away from where it had been.
She was headed for the hole in the wall, I realized.
“We can’t let her escape!”
Not with the Unholy Vessel. Not with her life.
I went after her as she kept scurrying away using the same trick, moving quicker and quicker by the second. In a few beats, she was out of the house, her shadowy, insubstantial body blending into the night.
We had to do something, at this rate, she would be miles away from here in a matter of minutes. If she left with that vessel, the city would be doomed.
I ran outside, followed by Blaze, while behind us, Jake and Eric contended with the hybrids. I didn’t want to leave them, but they could take care of themselves. Putting them out of my mind, I peered into the darkness, doing my best not to lose track of the witch.
A white light shot out of Blaze’s tail and exploded overhead, illuminating the area. We were in a weed-sprinkled yard surrounded by tall trees. For a second, I thought I’d lost track of her, but I spotted a wisp of smoke snaking around a bush and ran at full pelt after her.
Blaze kept pace, trotting beside me. I glanced at him sideways, confused to have such an unlikely partner in this chase. As the light from his previous spell died out, he shot another ball of energy ahead of us. My wolf eyes would’ve been enough to track normal prey even in the darkened woods, but a curl of smoke was a different story.
In the renewed light, I realized that Mekare had doubled the distance between us, leaving me no doubt that she was gaining momentum with every second that ticked by. If I was going to catch her, I needed to move faster.
Recalling the anger that triggered my speed, an electric tingle zipped down my spine, shooting into my limbs. My legs began pumping at a prodigious speed, and I was off. Trees blurred at either side of me. Blaze choked on my dust, and before I knew it, I’d caught up with Mekare. I ran at her, but, like Bernadetta, all I managed to do was to go through her.
Putting on the brakes, I skidded to a halt and whirled around. The plume of darkness stopped and hovered in midair, undulating in a threatening way.
Oh, shit! Now what?
I’d been so intent on catching her that I hadn’t stopped to think what I would do if I managed it. Now, here we were, facing each other, and I was clueless and doomed.
She solidified.
“So you have the fleeting skill, I see.” One of her eyebrows went up, and she appeared mildly surprised at the discovery. “I bet you think you’re brave, but you’re just stupid. Who do you think is going to help you now? I’ve wanted to kill you for a while now, but Stephen was so blind. And now, you’ve come to find me.” Smiling sardonically, she twirled a hand in the air, magic crackling in her palm.
I searched for the Unholy Vessel on her person but could only guess where she’d put it, not in the folds of her tight outfit for sure.
My heart hammered out of control as she drew her hand back, ready to unleash her dark magic on me. I focused on anger, on my fleeting ability. If I moved fast enough, she wouldn’t be able to hit me.
Please, don’t fail me now.
Abruptly, she flicked her wrist and shot out a spider web of energy. To my relief, I managed to tap into my speed and leaped out of the way just in time. Mekare’s attack hit the ground and sizzled the dirt out of existence, leaving a hole behind.
She made an assessing sound in the back of her throat. Her eyes narrowed, giving her the look of someone who was calculating a very hard math problem. Her mouth tipping in a cool smile, she prepared another spell. A new ball of energy formed on her palm, growing bigger than the last.
“See if you can dodge this.” She drew her hand back.
I watched closely and when she flicked her wrist to the right, I fleeted to the left. Except she twirled her hand in the opposite direction and released her spell straight into my path.
Searing energy hit me square in the chest.
The heat of a thousand suns enveloped me. I flew back and struck the ground, my fur going up in smoke and my skin sizzling like meat on a griddle. I howled in pain, twisting as if that would make the agony go away, but it just made it worse, as the hard ground peeled away my blistering skin, exposing raw flesh.
At the fringes of my consciousness, I sensed Mekare hovering over me. I clenched my teeth, fighting the pain, and tried to focus on her. My vision was blurry. My eyelids were nothing but thin veneers of exposed tissue. I could barely keep my eyes open as I blinked up at her, my desperate movements finally coming to an end as my strength waned.
“New pups can be so arrogant,” Mekare said. “You actually thought you could fight me? You may have a few skills not all alphas possess, but I’ve been around the block quite a few more times than you have.” She blew air through her nose in a display of amusement at the sight of my mangled body. “I’d love to leave you here to suffer, but I prefer not leaving anything to chance if I can help it, especially the death of my enemies. Bad things tend to happen, like that damn cat.”
As every cell in my body screamed in anguish, I watched as the witch prepared a killing spell with the flex of a few fingers. I thought I should move, try to do something to save myself, but why? She was about to put a stop to the pain.
“Goodbye, Toni Sunder.” She lowered her hand to deliver the killing blow, then screamed instead. Her hands flew to her head. A snarling, savage creature had jumped on top of her and was doing its best to claw her eyes out.
Blaze!
