Page 60 of Fanged Desire
It was a trap.
The drive to Esmerelde’s spa was a blur of angry, red-streaked visions and a white-knuckled grip on the steering wheel. I hadn’t even thought to grab my coat, my mind blank except for Addison, her text, and the eventual switch to voicemail that left my imagination careering into overdrive.
Every second that ticked by was another that she was in the hands of people with motives I couldn’t even guess at, and people I now knew to be closer than I’d realized – two sisters with too many secrets between them.
I barely remembered pulling up to the spa, but I slammed the car door behind me with a ferocity that made the glass tremble. My thoughts honed into one sharp, cold certainty: Addison was in danger, and I was getting her back, no matter the cost.
The receptionist stammered when she saw me approach, her eyes darting as she opened her mouth to call for Esmerelde.
“Shut up,” I spat, lacing the venomous words with a jolt of coercion.
The woman’s mouth went slack and her arms dropped to her sides, hanging limply where she swayed in place. Under the layers of vicious fury I felt a small pang of guilt, but it was quickly smothered as I stormed past her, shoving open the door to Esmerelde’s office.
An overpowering scent assaulted my nostrils as I entered – lavender and eucalyptus, deceptively relaxing scents meant to pacify. But the effect was lost on me, only heightening the roiling anger that surged in my chest.
I stalked right up to the preening elf’s desk, fists clenched, patience hanging by a frayed thread. Esmerelde looked up from her seat, an infuriatingly calm smile spreading across her lips. “Oh, it’s you. Can I help you?”
She knew exactly why I was here, and if she wanted to play the innocent act she was about to lose that privilege. My voice was ice, each word laced with anger.
"Where is she?”
Esmerelde tilted her head, her face a study in practiced surprise. "I’m afraid I don’t know who you’re talking about.”
I let out a humorless laugh that did nothing to mask the fury clawing its way up my throat. “I think you do, so I’ll ask again.Where is she?”
“Oh, are you referring to Wendy,” she began, holding up a placating hand, unaware or unbothered that she was essentially trying to reason with a storm. “I’m afraid she never arrived. Perhaps she’s delayed, or perhaps she’s simply decided to–”
“Don’t waste my time. Tell me where Addison is.Now.” I took a step closer, letting every ounce of my power coalesce into one point, drawing it into the dark, forceful pull of coercion. And… hit a wall.
Seeing the glint of frustration in my set jaw, Esmerelde chuckled, patting at the jewels and talismans around her neck like she was brushing dust from a prized possession. “Nice try. But these little charms keep out meddling minds like yours – if you’re doing what I think you’re doing.”
Her smirk was smug and she tilted her head, looking me over like a specimen in a jar. “You’re not human, are you? You smell human enough, but something’s… off.”
She was onto me, toying with me. But I was past the point of caring about concealing my identity. Iwantedher to know what I was, to understand exactly what I was capable of.
I exhaled slowly, letting a cold smile curve my lips as I met her gaze.
“Your mind might be protected,” my words came out casual, conversational, but my fangs followed shortly after, and that coy smile of hers gradually slipped away, “but the rest of you is not.”
Esmerelde’s calm facade faltered, her eyes widening slightly as she registered my meaning.
Before she could breathe, before she could blink, I bared my fangs in full force and lunged forward, swift and deadly. She had no time to react before I was over the desk and on top of her, one clawed hand wrapped tightly around her throat, the other ripping the talismans from her neck with a brutal tug. She tried to scream, but I toppled both of us to the floor, the impact knocking the breath from her lungs.
Her talismans hit the wall behind me where I tossed them, and her panicked gaze found mine. I gripped a handful of her hair, locking her in place as I lowered myself to her eye level, aiming pointed fangs at her exposed neck.
“Addison – tell me where she is,” I hissed, turning the full brunt of my coercion on her. Without the protection of the talismans she had no solid defenses against me. Her eyes widened, and I could feel her mind struggling, fighting desperately against the intrusion.
It was a precarious line to walk – my powers had limits when it came to the fae, and elves like Esmerelde were resilient, trained to guard their minds. She gritted her teeth, stubbornly resisting even as I drilled through her mental walls. But I’d come this far – I wasn’t letting go until I had what I came for.
I focused, pushing deeper, until I felt something snap, some invisible barrier finally breaking under the pressure.
Esmerelde’s gaze lost focus, her body going slack beneath me as I tore through the fragments of her mind. Words floated up, scraps of information scattered like broken glass.
“The labs…” she whispered, her voice barely more than a gasp. “She’s… taken… testing…”
Her words hardly made sense, but I grasped the key details, sifting what I could from her fracturing mind. Addison had beentaken to a facility, Cathy’s forensics lab, for some kind of testing.Testing for…
“The A-gene.” I said it out loud, and Esmerelde nodded in a half-conscious daze.
