Free Darkness Awakened by Katie Reus Page B

some other scheme to start a war between us and vamps? You don’t even know if she has a daughter.” Gabriel’s voice was challenging, his expression deadly.
    Victoria, who had already made it halfway back to their vehicle, turned on her heel, her green eyes wide. “Gabriel, what the hell?”
    “My word is good enough, that’s how you know.” He pinned his Guardian with a hard stare, his inner wolf daring Gabriel to question him again. For how tightly he was wound, he was walking a tightrope of control right now.
    After a long moment, Gabriel lowered his gaze, though nothing about his stance or expression reflected the submissive gesture. Despite his attitude, Finn knew he wouldn’t have a problem with the other wolf. They butted heads all the time, but Gabriel always supported him. Even if he didn’t always agree with him.
    Once Finn and Lyra were in his SUV, Finn plugged the nearest address on his list into his GPS. He was familiar enough with the city that he knew where most neighborhoods were, but he didn’t want to waste time.
    Lyra let out a long breath as he steered out of the parking lot. “I’m sorry for any issues I’m causing with your pack.”
    He shrugged. “Don’t worry about it. If they don’t like it they can leave or challenge me.”
    “I’m still sorry,” she said quietly. The truth pulsed off her in a wave of tension he felt and scented. “For so long I hated you for pushing me away when I came to you.”
    Surprised by the statement, his entire body turned to ice. He might have known she’d harbored anger, and yes hate, toward him, but hearing the words was like a silver dagger to his chest.
    “Now I think you might have been right,” she continued. “Even if we’d run away together, no one would have ever accepted our relationship.” There was such a stark note of sadness in her voice it just embedded the dagger even farther.
    “I questioned my decision every fucking day, Lyra.” And every day he buried his pain just a little bit deeper. Being separated from her had given him the edge of rage he’d needed to kill his uncle. It was like he’d lost part of himself when she’d gone. And he’d blamed his uncle, his rage simmering and growing every second of every day.
    Her head whipped around, her long blonde hair cascading over her shoulder in a wave. “You did?”
    Jaw tight, he nodded. “After I killed my uncle I searched for you.” Hell, he’d still been searching for her right up until she showed up on his front doorstep. Now he knew why he hadn’t been able to find her. She hadn’t been living in any covens; she’d been in the human world.
    As he pulled up to a stoplight, he glanced at her to find her watching him with an unreadable expression. Finally she turned away, looking out the window.
    Her silence shredded him but he wasn’t sure what he’d expected. Changing the subject, he said, “As soon as we stop at the first place I’ll email you the list of addresses so you have a copy too. Maybe next time you connect with Vega she’ll be able to give you a clue about the place; help us narrow it down.” He prayed that was so. The constant worry lines on Lyra’s face were clawing at him. More than anything, he wanted to make them go away, to give her back her daughter. Then he wanted to possess Lyra once and for all. To bind them together. The rest of the world be damned.
    * * *
    Her lover’s voice came over the phone in a whisper, as if he was afraid of being overheard: “A group of warriors just left the mansion.”
    She rolled her eyes because he couldn’t see her. She was growing increasingly annoyed with his whininess. He might be fantastic in bed, but as soon as they made the rest of the money they’d been promised, she might kill him too. “So what? They’re probably just hunting for more demons.”
    A long pause. “I don’t know. They rushed out of here so quickly. And when I questioned Gregory’s mate she didn’t know what he was up