Chapter 25

The cold that rushed through Paenther as the evil spread over his heart was sharp and biting, but wondrous. A frigid cleansing that rid him of doubts and worry, of guilt and sorrow and conscience.

His body bled with pain at the transformation, but it was the pain of rebirth, and he exulted in it.

Behind Birik, Skye rose, her gaze clinging to him, boring into him. In a voice so soft, only a Feral would hear, she whispered to him.

“Paenther, I need the words. Help me save Vhyper! Help me save you! ”

Why would he want to be saved?

“Paenther, give me the words! ”

She needed the chant. But the chant gave her power.

“I love you, Paenther.”

What difference did it make how she felt about him? The old Paenther was gone. The reborn Paenther had no need for love.

But deep inside his slowly hardening heart, a fire flared. A desperate love. A fierce need to help her. The fire battled back the cold that tried to encase his heart. And suddenly he was saying the words, his voice ringing through the cavern.

Birik shouted. “Cease! Stop him.”

Skye grabbed Vhyper’s arm, her mouth moving to the words as she whispered them along with him. Her face contorted with pain, her pain fueling the battle inside him, strengthening his resolve to hold on, to fight for her. For Vhyper. For his own soul. Discord rippled through the evil, as he felt the battle raging inside Vhyper even as he was consumed by a battle of his own with Skye’s power struggling to save them both.

“Stop him! ” Birik yelled a second time.

“He’ll stop on his own, ” one of the sorcerers said. “Once we have his soul.”

Birik whirled on Skye instead. He grabbed her from behind, slamming her jaw closed as he pulled her away from Vhyper.

Paenther felt the cold surge inside him, the evil pulling at him, tearing him apart at the most fundamental level. Darkness swirled around his head, but he continued to chant, clinging tenaciously to Skye. She was all that kept him tethered. All that gave him the might he needed to hold on.

But he was losing. The chanting went silent as the words would no longer come.

Through the dark fog, he saw lights flash and sparkle. Where Vhyper had stood, now sat a great snake, growing by the second until it was the width of a man and five times as long.

The snake slithered across the floor, coiling and rising beside the sorcerers. As the darkness closed in on him, the snake rose, his eyes pinning Paenther. And in those eyes, he saw pain and joy, grief and love. He saw his friend.

The snake struck lightning fast, tearing off the heads of two of the sorcerers before they could move. The third ran.

For one searing moment, Panther thought it was too late, then warmth rushed in, dispelling the cold as the invisible bonds disappeared. In a rush of dizziness, he fell to one knee. And felt his soul tumble back into place.

Vhyper’s voice, warm and rich with the deep bond of brotherhood, whispered in his mind. The head or the heart, B.P.? Birik is going down.

Paenther looked up with a fierce grin. The heart. Welcome back, Vhype.

He called on the power within him and shifted into his cat’s form in a burst of pain and furious joy, then leaped to Vhyper’s side.

The snake let out a hissing sound Paenther knew well. A viper’s battle cry. We’re getting out of this together, B.P. Now, let’s do it!

“Capture them! ” Birik yelled.

As the sentinels drew their swords, Skye’s voice rang in his head, ringing with excitement and love. Paenther, help me say the chant again!

Paenther’s gaze swung to Skye, loving her with his panther’s eyes. He said the words as he leaped at Birik, Vhyper at his side. Skye chanted loudly, her voice ringing over the stone as she raised her unique power and sent a blast at the sentinels, knocking them back. He felt her pain, heard it in her voice, but his witch was at heart a stubborn little fighter, and she kept the guards at bay.

Birik tried to run for the door, but Paenther leaped on him, taking him down. As he sank his teeth into the bastard’s chest, the great snake bit off his head. Paenther pulled out Birik’s heart and ate it.

Beneath him the ground began to shake. Chaos erupted in the room as the Mage fled, sprinting for the door. Paenther shifted back into his human form and ran for Skye.

She flew at him, her arms wrapping around his neck as he gathered her tight against him.

“You’re okay, ” she whispered.

The sound of battle erupted behind them. Animal battle. Paenther set Skye on her feet and pushed her behind him as he whirled to find Jag and Foxx fighting as no Ferals should, going for one another’s throats. Mortal combat. Jag’s fur was soaked with blood where the huge fox had taken a chunk out of his neck. Part of Foxx’s face had already been torn away. Each was fighting for his life.

“Foxx! ”

But the fox ignored him.

I tried to stop him from leaving, Jag said. He attacked me again. His eyes are empty, B.P. There’s nobody home.

“Wait here, ” Paenther told Skye, but as he prepared to shift, Vhyper struck the fox, six-inch-long fangs burying deep in the animal’s hindquarters.

Almost at once, the fox fell back, shifting to a man as he hit the floor. A chunk of rock fell from the ceiling not far away, crashing and splintering as the ground shook even harder.

Paenther grabbed Skye, shielding her in case anything else fell. “We’ve got to get out of here.”

Vhyper and Jag both shifted back into men as Paenther and Skye joined them. At their feet, Foxx lay groaning, twisting in pain.

He looked up at them, his gaze locking on Paenther’s. A gaze as cold as any he’d ever seen. Soulless.

“Vhyper…was right.” Foxx’s face twisted with pain. “All this time…didn’t know. The Mage’s weapon and…I didn’t know.”

Paenther looked at Vhyper. “How bad? ”

“The poison? A lethal dose.”

Paenther stared at his friend, then nodded and looked down at Foxx. “I’m sorry, Cub.” And, goddess, he was. The kid had shown some real promise. He could have been a damn fine Feral once he matured. Once more the Mage had cut off a promising life before it had a chance to bloom. “It shouldn’t have ended this way.”

Foxx opened his mouth as if to speak, then said nothing as his body relaxed, his head lolling to the side.

“He’s gone, ” Skye said quietly.

A massive stalactite dropped from the roof and shattered, spraying them with stinging bits of limestone.

“Out, ” Paenther said. “Now.”

Vhyper lifted Foxx in his arms as Paenther shielded Skye.

“Where’s that Daemon blade? ” Jag asked.

Vhyper shook his head. “The last time I saw it, it was sitting between the two circles.”

As they reached the door, Paenther turned right, but Skye pulled against him, fighting him.

“This isn’t the way out? ” he asked her.

“It is. But I have to get Faithful. Go with Vhyper. I’ll meet you outside.”

“Like hell. Who’s Faithful? ”

“One of my deer. I have to save my deer.”

“Skye…”

“I’m not leaving them in here to die! ”

Jag grabbed her arm, but his gaze met Paenther’s. “I’m going after the blade. I’ll bring the deer.”

“I’ll go with you…” Paenther began, and cut off as a chunk of ceiling nearly crashed on top of them. He hauled Skye out of the way barely in time.

“Go, B.P.! Get her out of here.”

“You’ve got three minutes, Jag, then I’m coming after you.”

“Deal.”

Vhyper led the way out of the caverns and into near-hurricane-force winds and driving rain. Mother Nature was furious, but Skye could hardly care. Paenther was alive, Birik dead, Vhyper saved. Now if only Jag, Faithful, and the other deer made it out alive.

Paenther held her tight against his chest as cold rain lashed her body. She glanced at Vhyper as he held Foxx, his gaze searching the forest. No longer was he the cold, casually cruel Feral she’d known in the caverns. But the dark, swirling intensity she felt in him made him seem every bit as dangerous. Inside him, she could feel the snake, coiled and agitated, but she didn’t think it had anything to do with her this time.

“Do you see any sign of them? ” Paenther asked.

“None. The Mage may be soulless, but they’re not stupid. There’s nothing more for them here.”

“Three minutes, ” Paenther said softly, as if to himself. “Then I want you to take Skye and get out of here, Vhype. She can lead you to the others.”

“No, ” Skye said. “I have to see Faithful.”

Paenther stroked her, the cold rain sliding between their naked bodies. “We’re not going to have room in the car for a deer, Beauty.”

“I wouldn’t take her from her family. I just need to know she made it. I need to say good-bye.”

Vhyper laid Foxx on the ground and stripped him, tossing Paenther the clothes. “You need these more than he does.”

Paenther slipped Foxx’s shirt over Skye’s head, a soft cotton dress shirt that fell nearly to her knees, then pulled on the pants and boots for himself.

Beneath them, the ground rumbled and shook. “Get her off this mountain, Vhyper, before it implodes.”

But Skye shook her head. Deep inside she could feel the pull of the animals. “Jag’s coming.” As the Feral cleared the entrance to the cave with four deer, elation flared inside her. It was done, and they’d all made it. Except Foxx.

Skye pulled away from Paenther and ran to Jag as he led the deer by the ends of their tethers. He might be holding them by the ends of ropes, but she noted with interest that Faithful was pressing as tightly against him as she usually did her. Which was extraordinary, really, considering the man was part predatory cat.

She also noticed that Jag’s hand stroked the side of her friend’s neck, long, gentle strokes. Skye pushed between the deer gathered around him and gave the Feral a kiss on the cheek.

He scowled as she knelt to pull the tethers from around the deer’s heads, his face screwed up against the driving wind and rain. “Can the gratitude, Glinda. I told you I’d get ’em, and I got ’em. You saved us, I saved your friends. We’re even.”

“The blade? ” Paenther called.

“No sign of it. And that hall is gone, now. It pan-caked about two seconds after I got Bambi and her friends out of there.”

One by one, Skye looked into the beautiful creatures’ eyes, sharing her joy in their survival, feeling their warming love in return, then sent them far away.

Finally, she kissed Faithful. “Go, dear one. Be safe.” Faithful hesitated, then pressed her cheek against Skye one last time and took off.

Skye rose and turned back to Jaguar, tears in her eyes. “You’re a better man than you want the world to think, Jag, ” she said softly.

He scowled at her again. “You’re wrong, Sabrina. My heart is as black as they come, and it always has been.”

She could see the utter truth of his words in his eyes. Or at least, a truth he fully believed. He was wrong.

But she had a feeling telling him that wouldn’t do a bit of good.

The ground rumbled again, violently. Paenther’s hand landed on her soaked head. “We have to go. Now! Just how many Mage did you kill in there, Jag? ”

“Eight. Maybe nine.”

Vhyper laughed. “Serves the fuckers right.”

“Yeah, well let’s hope we can get out of here before Nature’s fury rips this mountain out from under us.”

Skye grabbed Paenther’s hand and ran as the earth began to cave in behind them. Birik and the caverns were gone. There was no going back.

But she feared the only future she wanted, one with Paenther at her side, was nothing more than a dream.

“How did Foxx die? ” Tighe asked grimly as he drove them back to Feral House.

“I killed him.” Vhyper’s raw confession rang through the closed car.

Paenther looked at him sharply, hating the pain he heard in his friend’s voice. They were in Tighe’s Land Rover, Delaney riding in front with her mate, Vhyper in back with Skye and him. Foxx’s body lay in the cargo area behind them. Hawke was driving Jag and Wulfe back in Paenther’s Escalade.

“You didn’t kill him, Vhype, ” Paenther said, willing his friend to believe the words he knew were true. “The Mage killed him when they stole his soul.”

The car went silent except for the swish of the windshield wipers and the gusts of wind buffeting the Land Rover. Any rejoicing at Vhyper’s and Jag’s return was dampened by the hard truth of Foxx’s death and Vhyper’s earlier announcement that the three wraith Daemons had been set free just that morning. Goddess knew where the Daemons had gone, but Paenther felt certain they’d know soon enough. Just as soon as the first bodies of their victims were found.

His own satisfaction at finally freeing Vhyper was tempered by the pain lancing his body in harsh, regular waves. He didn’t know what the sorcerers had done to him when they tried to steal his soul, but he felt strange in a way he never had before. Like there was still something inside him.

Skye lifted her head off his shoulder. “Something’s wrong with your animal spirit, Paenther. He’s acting like he’s sick. I’m worried about him.”

He looked down into the copper-and-blue eyes he’d come to love. “Me, too, Beauty. Me, too.” Pressing her head against his shoulder again, he held her, needing the feel of her against him.

“If this is too insensitive, tell me and I’ll shut up, ” Delaney said from the front seat. “But what happens now? With Foxx? Or the fox spirit? ”

Tighe answered her without hesitation clearly relieved to end the silence. “Within the next few weeks a new Feral will be marked. Sometime in the next year or two, he’ll find his way to us. If he doesn’t, he’ll die, clearing the way for one who will.”

Vhyper met Paenther’s gaze over Skye’s head. “I can’t decide if I should thank you for freeing me or kill you for it.” His eyes swam with a guilt thick enough to choke. “I’m not sure I can live with the things I’ve done, B.P.”

“You will, Vhype. Because you didn’t do them. The darkness that held you captive did. And because I’m not ever giving up on you. Just as you’ve never given up on me.”

He saw Skye’s hand reach out and take Vhyper’s. To his surprise and relief, his friend didn’t pull away but curved his hand around her smaller one and held on as if her touch alone kept him from flying apart into a million pieces. A tiny curl of jealousy slid around Paenther’s heart, then dissipated. He was about to take as his mate a woman, an enchantress, to whom all the Ferals would be drawn on some level. And while she’d told him she had no particular affinity for snakes, she had a heart big enough to care for all creatures, two-legged and four-. And those without any legs at all, for that matter.

It was a moment before his mind backpedaled to the words he’d thought without hesitation. He was about to take as his mate…

He stared out the window, stunned, and yet…certain. He was taking her as his mate. If she agreed, if she wanted him, he would willingly bind himself to her for all eternity.

They wouldn’t be able to live at Feral House, of course. Not with her being Mage, but it didn’t matter. He’d find a safe house nearby and split his time between them. This woman wasn’t getting away from him. Ever. He just hoped whatever was going on inside him gave him the time to make good on that promise.