Free [Southern Arcana 3.0] Deadlock by Moira Rogers Page A

words to Alec. “Unless you want to have to kill those guys out there, we’ve got to book. Grab her and let’s go.”
    If he did, she was likely to fight him the whole way and hurt herself. “Can you put her to sleep? Like you did for Mac when her instincts went crazy?”
    Jackson looked like he was fighting a battle within himself. “I don’t know what they did to her. More magic could hurt, and bad.”
    “Fuck.” With no other choice, Alec rose and closed the distance between them, concentrating on maintaining that steady, soothing aura of shapeshifter power. “I’m not going to hurt you, but I need to take you out of here.”
    She shifted her weight suddenly and fell over backwards, landing hard on the floor. She still didn’t speak, but she made a terrified noise and swung when he reached for her.
    Alec had seen newly changed wolves react the same way. Steeling his heart, he knocked her flailing limbs aside and curled his hand around the back of her neck with just enough pressure to be a warning. “Stop.”
    She struck him on the shoulder and shoved at his chest. When he didn’t yield, she wound her hands in his shirt and met his eyes. After a few hitching breaths that finally caught on a sob, she whispered, “Please. Help me.”
    Terror could break her mind. It happened in more infected wolves than not, driving them so mad they had to be put down. His instincts rebelled, and he’d swung Carmen up into his arms before he realized it, cradling her feverish body against his chest. “Now, Jackson, or there won’t be enough of her left to save.”
    Judging from the hard set of the man’s jaw, Jackson recognized the truth of his words. But when he reached for Carmen, she snapped at him, her teeth closing viciously only inches from his fingers. “Jesus Christ.” He tried again, and this time he managed to press his hand to her cheek.
    One low word, and she sagged in Alec’s arms, still whimpering and fitful. “The rest can’t be helped,” Jackson said. “We need time to figure out what happened.”
    Alec could only hope it was time she had.

Chapter Five
    They were talking about her. Arguing, judging by their harsh tones, even if they fought to keep their voices lowered.
    She curled tighter on the narrow backseat and pressed her hands over her ears. Everything was loud, too loud, and she couldn’t stand it.
    Fight. She wanted to, except that she didn’t know where the hell to start. The sandy-haired man in the front seat, the one who seethed with the same sort of magic the witch had carried inside her? She couldn’t very well battle the glare of the sun or the ear-splitting rumble of the engine.
    Or the chaos inside her. Half of her wanted to fight, but the other half wanted to run, to kick through the back window if she had to. Fight or flight. Instinctive reactions, and they left little space for anything else. Still, some tiny part of her…
    It remembered the dark, scared man behind the wheel.
    He’d glowered at her before, though Carmen couldn’t quite place where it might have been. She vaguely recalled heat, as well, the sort that warmed her blood and made her shake with longing.
    She could test him, stand still and see if he approached, if he liked her scent. She liked his. It clung to her clothes, her skin. Leather and sweat, strong and earthy.
    Strong. She closed her eyes and reached inside for some semblance of lucidity. It made no sense that she could feel that, the magic that dwelled in him and matched her own.
    “—heard rumors, but they’re just that. They’re rumors. You can’t make a wolf, not like this.”
    “But she’s not human. Hell, she’s not even your usual brand of halfbreed. Remember, one of the brothers turned up shifter.”
    “I don’t care if one of her brothers is a little gray man from outer space, Jacobson, you can’t do it. It’s exactly because she’s not your average human that you’d have to be insane to try.” He sounded upset, almost sick. “The