The Mate Challenge

18

The sound of a wailing siren made her jump back, slapping her back to the gate by the door. Seriously? She was acting like a damned kid getting all worried over being caught. This was what Mason did to her. He’d pushed her to have to do stuff without his knowledge.

Sheesh, how long did it take for Nicole to send the bartender outside. She’d agreed to help Emma out in the hopes it would keep her out of trouble. Which it would since Mason couldn’t argue that she was in his club again.

The back door creaked open and Emma pressed further back into the darkness. She daren’t think about what the squishy stuff she was stepping on was.

Music blared from the inside of the club and the sounds of laughter, along with voices drifted out the back door. A moment later, the short curvy bartender walked out. She wore black jeans and a bunch of tattoos covering both arms and bright pink in her hair.

Lael met her gaze and frowned. “I didn’t think you had it in you to actually do as Mason said.” Her lips lifted into a slow grin. “What did he promise you to keep you out?”

“Nothing. I felt guilty,” she sighed in disgust. The things she did for that mutt and did he even appreciate it? Nope.

Lael laughed and strolled closer to Emma. “I sent your friend out through the front so she wouldn’t call attention.”

Emma nodded, folding her arms over her chest. “I’m sorry to bother you again. I just have some questions.”

Lael’s smile fell from her lips slowly. Icy fingers of concern stopped Emma’s blood in her veins. Lael’s face pursed as if in pain. “Things are moving a lot faster than I thought.”

Emma struggled to make sense of Lael’s words. “What do you mean? What’s moving faster?”

Dear God, what if Maria was beyond being rescued. She swallowed back the vile that rode the back of her throat. The last thing she needed was to get sick over her fear for the kid.

“Rahound. He’s got a plan.” Lael shut her eyes and leaned back on the gate.

“What plan? What are you talking about?”

For cripes’ sakes! The woman needed to give her full sentences or she’d shake her soon.

“Embraced. It’s all connected. The rogues. The vamps. The kids.” Lael swayed on her feet and Emma had to grab her before she hit the pavement.

Nicole rushed around the side of the alley and ran toward them.

“What the hell, Emma? What did you do to her?” She asked, her voice rising in panic. “I thought you only wanted to talk.”

Emma rolled her eyes and tapped Lael on the cheek. She’d gone pale and cold. Emma didn’t know what kind of paranormal Lael was, but she was sure she was either a witch or an empath. Or she had some off the wall stuff going on. “Lael?”

Nothing. The other woman didn’t respond. Nicole kneeled by Emma and motioned for her to pass Lael over.

“Isn’t she too heavy for you to carry alone?”

Nic blew a raspberry. “Em, I’m a shifter now. I could probably carry you if the need arose. Let me carry her back to my car.”

Emma watched as Nic carefully lifted Lael into her arms without breaking a sweat or grunting over the other woman’s weight. She was impressed. If she gave in and allowed Mason to mate her and her body took to the change, she could have the same powers as Nic, Jordan and Ellie. It was still in the air if Karla had the ability to shift. With her getting pregnant right after Nate had bitten her, it wasn’t something anyone knew. Barbara had mentioned that Karla was likely to have the shifter genes in her body through her offspring. Only a strong female could carry a shifter child. The strength of their kicks could break bones and if Karla’s body couldn’t handle it, it would kill her. But even closing in on her delivery of the babies, Karla was holding strong.

Nicole carried Lael to Nic’s car and they laid her on the back seat.

“She’s breathing steadily,” Nic said, placing a hand on Lael’s pulse. “Her heartbeat’s steady and I don’t sense any kind of discomfort in her.”

Every time Nic, Jordan or Ellie did something cool like tell her others were lying or sense how someone was feeling, she hoped that when she mated with Mason she got their skills. It would suck if she was the first one out of them to not shift or bond with the shifter genes.

“I don’t understand why she fainted.”

Nic bit her lip, pulled her cell from her pocket and sent a text. “She must have some draining abilities. It’s the only thing I can think of that would cause her to pass out. She had to have been mentally going somewhere to get you whatever information she did.”

Emma growled. “She said so little. Only a few words about how things were linked and how time was running out.”

A black SUV pulled up beside Nic’s car and Shaari along with another enforcer jumped out.

“Are you okay?” Shaari asked, glancing at them. “I got your text,” she said nodding at Nic.

“Thanks a lot, Shaari. She and Emma were talking and all of a sudden she was out like she’d been K.O.’d.”

Shaari’s brows flew up under her bangs. “Did you knock her out, Emma?”

Emma’s lip twisted wryly. “With what? My annoying sarcasm?”

Shaari grinned. “Yeah, I don’t think you could. It takes a lot to take out Lael, she’s strong. One of the strongest daughters of the Sisters. No way you could say or do anything that would take her out.” The smile faded. “I think she must have connected with something that took her too deep into the future.”

Wait. What? “She sees the future?”

Emma glanced down at the short bartender with dragon earrings and a pair of lips on her T-shirt and had to stop herself from yelling for her to wake up.

“Oh, yeah. And not the fun stuff. As a powerful witch, she’s got some serious sight. She’s really good at seeing war, pain, suffering, and stuff like that.”

“So she doesn’t see happy things?” Nic asked, her voice filled with that tremble of nerves Emma had come to know was concern.

Shaari shrugged and moved so her partner could pick up Lael and place her in their SUV. “She can, but I think she worries more over the things that will cause pain than those that bring happiness.”

Made sense. Why stress what’s going to end up being a happy ending. She needed to try to change the negative.