Cravings: Alpha City 2 (11 page)

Zoey could hear London humming. For a minute she thought she was back at Milton College listening to her best friend get ready for class. London had a beautiful voice but never let anyone hear it. She didn’t know if Ryder knew she could sing so well. But something was wrong and then the pain hit her in the chest. She tried to scream, but nothing came out. Her throat felt like it had sand embedded inside it when she tried to talk.

Opening her eyes, she saw London looking down at her. Then it was like a switch had been turned on, and the past events of what had happened came crashing down on her. She remembered Kayden and his mate at Pier’s Point and the witch in the woods. Gasping for air, she remembered the knife stabbing her in the chest over and over. The witch was too powerful when Zoey tried to stop her. It was Claudia Blackwood. She said she was going to get us all. She needed to warn the others.

Kayden came running in the room and dropped down in front of her. She could see the pain and helplessness in his eyes. “Zoey, I thought I had lost you. I’m so sorry, baby, for not listening. I was stupid and prideful. Please forgive me.” It was Kayden. He had tears in his eyes as he looked down at her. He saved her life,and now he wa
s
apologizing. She wanted to tell him that it wasn’t his fault, but nothing would come out. Taking a deep breath, she forced her hand out to touch him. Then blackness came, and she slipped under again.

****

“She passed out again,” Kayden muttered to himself. He hoped that she heard him.

“She needs our help, Alpha.” Kayden recognized the voice. He turned around as Judith Lamont bowed her head to him. She had another woman with her he had never seen before. Her head stayed down where he couldn’t look in her eyes.

“Alpha, this is my cousin, Maggie Lamont. She is also a very powerful healer. I would like her to work on Zoey. Her technique is different than others you have seen. If you give her permission, she will proceed. No matter what you see, you cannot touch her while she is healing. Will you give her permission?” Judith asked.

Ryder came into the room and answered for him. “Yes, she can heal Zoey. Technically until they mate, she is still my wolf.”

Kayden wanted to tell Ryder to shove it, but he knew the laws just like Ryder did. If he tried to go over his head, then it would end their friendship, and Zoey may still die from not allowing this woman to heal her. It wasn’t that he didn’t like the woman, but something was odd and broken about her. His fear was that she would mess up.

“I will not hurt your mate, Alpha,” Maggie whispered. Kayden and Ryder both whipped their heads around and stared at the woman, shocked. Could she hear their thoughts? Kayden was sure she could. Her head was bowed as she spoke.  How else could she know that?

“Maggie has powers that not even I can explain. One of her gifts is that she can feel what you are thinking. She can’t hear your thoughts; she just knows.”

Kayden stepped back, so Maggie could use her magic. He would stand close enough to her though in case she tried something. Nobody knew what this woman was capable of, and trusting her outright would be foolish. Too many strange things were happening today for him to trust her. He didn’t know if Claudia Blackwood was involved, or sent her to finish the job.

Kayden looked at London who was holding her necklace in her hand. If she was okay with this then he wouldn’t kill Maggie. London nodded that everything was okay.

Stepping back further, Kayden stood beside Ryder as Maggie walked forward. He couldn’t put his finger on it, but something was different about this woman.

Really different.

Judith Lamont stood back so Maggie could get on her knees. She was beautiful from what he could see of her. She kept her face hidden, her head bowed low. That was something she needed to work on if she wanted to make it around here.

Kayden’s panther rumbled as Maggie got down on her knees in front of Zoey. She took her cape off and pushed it to the side, then pulled back the blanket showing the vast wounds in Zoey’s stomach and chest area. It looked like she had been ripped open over and over again. Her wounds gaped open from the knife, allowing blood to seep out of her slowly. He couldn’t believe that Zoey was still alive. If it hadn’t been for Rose, she would be dead now, but from the look of the wounds, she wasn’t out of the woods yet.

Maggie rolled her shirt back from her arm, and then pulled out a knife and cut into her wrist. Without hesitation, she started dripping her blood into Zoey’s wounds then placed her hands over the wounds.

Kayden and Ryder growled and leaped forward knowing now what she was. Maggie was a vampire, and she just put her blood inside of Zoey. The moment they touched Maggie, they both flew back slamming them against the wall. Maggie jumped up and crouched down in a defensive position against the two Alphas. Her eyes glowed bright red, and her hands seemed to vibrate with white lights.

Brody and Johnny rushed into the room and watched as Maggie jumped backwards toward the window, crashing through it as she landed outside.

“Stop, Alphas!” Judith begged. “She didn’t hurt Zoey or turn her into a vampire. She is still a werewolf. Look at her.” Kayden and Ryder stopped and stared as Zoey’s wounds started to close. “I told you her methods were different from anything you have ever seen. Maggie is a healer first. One night she was kidnapped by a powerful vampire. He needed for her to heal his daughter and for that he turned her. She was young and didn’t understand what that would mean. She does now, but it’s too late. Please just look at Zoey. Her wounds are closing.” Kayden went to Zoey’s side and couldn’t believe what he was seeing. It was like she had never been hurt.

“Look, Ryder. Look at her wounds. They’re gone,” Kayden said, surprised himself.

“I will find the girl,” Brody announced.

“I will go with you. She won’t trust you, Alpha,” Judith responded. Before she walked outside, Judith stopped in front of Ryder. “If you have ever trusted me, then trust that Maggie is a good person and healer, and she would be a benefit to have here in Alpha City. The only way she can turn you is to bite you. That is why she cut her wrist.” Judith bowed her head at Ryder then left with Brody.

“Kayden.” Zoey’s voice was barely above a whisper.

Kayden kneeled down beside Zoey relieved to see the color coming back to her face. She was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. He couldn’t imagine his life without her.

“Baby, how do you feel?” A chill washed over him as he waited for her answer. He was scared that she would reject him.

“Tired and very sore, but I’m alive thanks to you.” Zoey smiled. “Thank you for getting her off of me.” Zoey looked him right in the eyes and held it. “I just knew I was going to die.”

Kayden placed kisses on her face whispering reassurances. “Never, never, will you be without me again, my love.”

“I thought you were with Rose,” Zoey whispered, softly.  Kayden could see the pain in her eyes as she brought Rose’s name up.

“No baby, Rose is in my pride. I’ve got so much to tell you, but you are my mate. I was stupid for not staying with you in Vegas. I blame myself for this. If I had been with you then...”

“Stop it. Stop it right now. No more blame. I love you, Kayden Lynn.” Zoey tried to reach up and kiss him, but her body was still in pain and healing. He let her go thinking he had hurt her.

“Did I hurt you?” Kayden asked concerned. 

“No, I tried to move, and I don’t think I’m quite ready for that yet. Did Judith heal me?” Zoey asked looking around for the healer.

“No, it was Rose who healed you so you could breathe, but it was Maggie who healed you completely.” Kayden pushed her hair back away from her face.

“Maggie? Who is Maggie?”

“Like I said, we have a lot to talk about, but right now all I want you to do is drink this water and go back to sleep. I will ask London if she has any herbal tea ready for the patient.” Kayden winked knowing that nobody wanted to taste any of the stuff London grew in her hot house. Zoey wrinkled her nose at her mate then smiled back at him.

That smile made his heart soar knowing that she was finally his.

“Now, close your eyes, beautiful, and rest for a while. I will get you some food to help build up your strength. Do you need anything?” Kayden would give her anything if she asked for it. He had to do something to get her back on her feet. It killed him that he brought this on her. If only he had stayed and allowed her to explain.

“Just you, Kayden,” Zoey whispered.

“You have me, baby.” Kayden leaned down and softly kissed her lips then covered her back up and went to find Ryder.

****

Brody knew she was around here somewhere. Her scent was the strongest where he stood. Judith called out to her.

“Maggie, come back. They didn’t understand what was going on, but they do now. Please sweetheart, come back to the house!” Judith yelled out.

“Can she disappear?” Brody teased Judith trying to make light of the situation.

“No, but she is smart and can hide better than anyone I’ve ever met,” Judith answered.

“Well, unless she can climb trees…” That’s when Brody and Judith looked up in the trees and saw Maggie high up at the top hugging the tree.

“Maggie, are you okay, honey?” Judith yelled.

Brody was a bear, so he could climb trees, but Maggie was high up in that tree. He didn’t want to climb up that high, but it seemed that Maggie wasn’t coming down. He decided to climb the tree beside it. Taking off his boots, Brody allowed his bear to come forward, so he could climb up the tree.

“Damn, she is up there high. I hope this tree holds me,” Brody muttered to himself.

Finally, he reached the top and sat down on the branch, praying it would hold his weight long enough to talk her down.

“Maggie. My name is Brody King, and nobody is going to hurt you, sweetheart. I promise.” Brody waited for that to sink in before he continued. He watched as she peeked out from around the tree.

“You shocked everyone back there. We were caught off guard, but Judith explained everything to us, and nobody is mad at you. In fact, I think there are some pretty happy Alphas who want to thank you personally. I would like to thank you too, because Zoey is a good friend of mine, and I don’t know what we would have done if that sweet lady…Well, let’s just say we are happy that you saved her.” Brody started swinging his legs as he sat waiting for her to say anything.

“I couldn’t turn her like that. I only used my blood to help heal her,” Maggie whispered. Brody lowered his eyes, grinning that he got her to talking.

“We don’t get many vampires around here. They tend to stay away from shifters, but you’re different,” Brody answered. He continued to move his legs back and forth like he was on a swing.

“How am I different from the others?” Maggie turned and looked at him. Finally he could see her eyes, and they were as green as the grass.

“Well, I’ve only met one other vampire, and he wasn’t a nice man. He changed some shifters to follow him. Some of them were our friends. So I hope you can understand why they were so scared, thinking that you were trying to hurt Zoey,” Brody answered. Her scent was different too, now that he thought about it. He hoped she wanted to get down soon because his butt was killing him on this branch.

“I’m sorry that he did that. We’re not all like that. I would never hurt anyone,” Maggie explained.

“We know that now. Do you think we could get down from here and go back to the house so those two friends of mine can apologize to you? If you are going to live here then you need to start meeting people, and how about I start? It’s nice to meet you, Maggie Lamont.” Brody paused waiting for her to answer. He could see she was fighting with herself on what to do, but finally a small smile formed at her lips.

“It’s nice to meet you, Brody,” Maggie responded.

“Let’s get down from here, and go eat.” Brody thought about what he said then looked up at her confused. “You do eat real food, right?”

Maggie giggled at Brody’s look. “Yes, I was human first, and my diet consists of food and blood. Judith gets me blood from the blood bank.”

“Great, let’s go, because my butt is numb.” Brody and Maggie both started laughing. He laughed so hard that he lost his seat and down he went. Thankfully, he reached out and grabbed the tree as he slid down it tearing the bark from it. His claws stopped him before he hit the ground. He was worried he might fall on Judith, but she was standing to the other side with Maggie.

“Hey, how did you do that?” Brody panted. He wasn’t far from the ground and let go. His shirt was in shreds and the front of his pants didn’t look much better.

“I can jump really far,” Maggie replied. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah, first time I lost my seat in a tree, though.” Brody chuckled then turned to walk back to the house. Maggie and Judith walked beside him laughing.

Kayden walked back into the living room where Judd Walsh and Nolan Banks were sitting. They both got up when Kayden came into the room.

“Is she okay?” They both said simultaneously.

Kayden smiled. “She will be. Right now she needs rest and food. I need to talk to you all while you are here, but we need to wait for Brody to get back.”

“Where is he?” Judd asked.

“He went after the vampire,” Kayden said nonchalantly. Judd and Nolan both went on the defensive.

“A vampire?” Judd’s voice rose as he said vampire. Unfortunately it was the same time Brody, Maggie, and Judith walked back into the door.

Maggie jumped behind Brody, holding him around the waist. She stuck her head in his back as she whimpered.

“Calm down, guys. Maggie is a good person. Yes, she is a vampire, but she is a healer too, and she just saved Zoey’s life, so how about cutting her some slack on the vampire stuff. She isn’t like the others.” Brody’s tone was final as he put his hands on Maggie’s arms letting her know that he would protect her.

Ryder and Kayden both stood up. “Maggie, nobody will hurt you. I promise. I want to thank you for saving my mate.” Kayden’s voice was low as he tried not to scare her any more than he had. “Sorry about what happened earlier. You are different than any healer we have seen or heard about. We mean you no harm. But I will say you are one hell of a healer, and I want to welcome you to Alpha City.”

Kayden and the others continued to stand still waiting for Maggie to say or do anything.

Maggie peeked around Brody then dropped her hands. She straightened her shoulders and walked around so they could see her.

“You’re welcome,” Maggie whispered.

“Is it okay if I hug you? You saved my sister’s life, and that requires a lot of favors, but mostly a hug,” Ryder asked.

Maggie hesitated but moved slowly toward Ryder. When he opened his arms, she gladly hugged him back. That’s when everything went strange. Judd started growling when Maggie hugged Ryder.

Every eye turned toward him.

“Dude, don’t scare her any more than she is.” Nolan leaned over and whispered. Judd’s hands were shaking, but he quickly got himself under control.

When Maggie let go and stepped back, she glanced at Judd who was staring at her intensely.

Judd stuck his hand out for her to shake. “Hello, I’m Judd Walsh.”

Hesitantly, Maggie reached out and shook his hand. It was like lightning went off in the room because of the sparks these two were making.

Kayden couldn’t believe what was happening. That was the first time he ever saw a mating happen that fast and with sparks. Both jerked their hands away from each other and stepped back.

It wasn’t hard to figure out what was going on. Neither one of them were happy about what just happened.

“Let’s get this meeting over with. I need to talk to my pride and inform them of the witch.” Judd’s voice was tight with frustration.

“Maggie, if you and Judith would go in the kitchen with Rose. Help yourself to the food,” Kayden responded kindly.

Once Maggie and Judith were gone, Kayden walked into his office with the others and closed the door. He wasn’t worried about Zoey because as soon as he walked out, London was right back in the room with her best friend.

“As you all know, the witch we brought back from Vegas hasn’t been spoken to yet. We need someone who can draw information out of him. Next, we have a new problem with Claudia Blackwood being able to pop in and stab us with a damn knife. We need to put the city on lockdown until we figure out what is going on. Zoey almost died, and Claudia just smiled at me right before she disappeared,” Kayden explained. He could barely contain the fury he felt for that woman. She needed to die for what she had done to Zoey, and God only knows who else she has tortured and killed.

“We have to be careful about locking people down. It makes everyone nervous, and panic will arise unless we handle this carefully. And we have to explain to everyone about Maggie,” Ryder added.

Everyone glanced at Judd who just stared off toward the window. His demeanor changed when her name was spoken. They could see the veins in his neck pulsing outward.  It was obvious that he was going to fight his mating until the bitter end.

“Maggie will fall under my coven and under the pack. If we all show unity on her protection then it should be okay. People will be wary of her at first, but once they get to know her, they will like her,” Ryder answered, not leaving any room for argument.

“Next, I know this is something that we have never had to deal with, but we have a traitor among us. I don’t know who it is, but only a few knew that Zoey and I were in Las Vegas. No flight plan was filed with the major airports on who was on the plane. I just think that someone is feeding Claudia Blackwood information. It’s not coincidental that she was on my property when she found Zoey. Who knows where the woman is now?” Kayden allowed that information to sink in. No one said anything at first.

“I agree. The place she was located isn’t just off the roadway. This woman didn’t know that you were not together when she set up near the house. She figured that you were together and could get near either of you somehow. I think we need to figure out who the plant is before someone gets killed,” Brody hissed.

“Set a trap,” Judd finally responded. Everyone was on edge now wondering who it was and from which group the traitor was from.