“Does your magistrate make you say those disclaimers too?”

He cocked his head at me.

“Ours does. But anyway, Mr. Guy-Who-Drives-A-Hard-Bargain. I can live with that too, especially since I know I won’t do any of those things, so you have a deal.”

He eyed me for a moment, that assessing stare so bold that I had a hard time not looking away. He finally said, “You don’t act like most women do around me.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“I’m not exactly sugar-coating my words, yet you’re not offended or scared.”

“Am I supposed to be?”

His lips twitched but then his face schooled itself into a mask of smooth slate. He gave me another unblinking assessment before saying, “Let’s go.”

Without a backward glance, he stepped through his portal, and I jumped in after him.

OceanofPDF.com

Chapter 9

The portal dropped us onto damp pavement in another dark alleyway. Given the tall buildings on either side of us, and the underlying scent of gasoline and rotting garbage in the air, we were in a city. Clouds drifted in front of the waning crescent moon above, barely visible through the narrow strip of sky. Not much light penetrated this dark lane. Only a single streetlight near the mouth of the alleyway illuminated the area.

A single sedan drove by on the street. Other than that, it was quiet. But, it was nighttime here too, wherever here was, so I knew we hadn’t hopped to a new country.

I immediately felt inside me for the bond that Tessa and I shared. Still there. But not humming.

I swung toward the Fire Wolf. “Tessa’s not here.”

“I know.”

“Then where are we and why are we here?”

“We’re in Portland, Oregon.”

“And why are we in Oregon if this isn’t where Tessa is?”

He gave me a side-eye. “Are you always going to ask this many questions?”

I shrugged. “Does that mean you’d prefer I stay small and quiet and do as I’m told?”

“Would you if I said yes?”

“No.”

“And if I asked you to anyway?”

“Then I’d say you won’t be getting a tip at the end of this job.”

A smile tugged on his lips as he began walking deeper into the alleyway. When I made a move to follow, he stopped. “Wait here.”

I planted my hands on my hips. “Where are you going?”

“To do something, then I’ll be back.”

I narrowed my gaze. “You promise you’re not leaving me here? I’ll be royally pissed if this was some ploy to ditch me in some far-off region of the country just so you could work solo.”

“If I’d wanted to ditch you, I would have sent you to . . . how did you put it?” He cocked his head. “A frozen mountaintop or empty desert? Now, wait here.”

Before I could open my mouth, he disappeared deeper into the alleyway in a flurry of speed.

Damn wolf. It was completely unfair that I’d never be able to move like that, unless I agreed to be transitioned into a vamp, which definitely was never happening.

I wrapped my arms around myself as another car drove by on the street. A few shouts came from a block or two away, but this was nothing like the Shadow Zone, where supernaturals had been crawling everywhere, and each alleyway had either carried jurats or horny vamps looking for their next easy meal.

I drifted closer to the mouth of the alley, hoping to get a better idea of what section of town we were in.

When I reached it, I assessed the large warehouses and gravel-filled parking lots on the long empty street. In the distance, a bridge was visible. I didn’t know Portland well, but I guessed we were in the industrial section of town.

A squeal of tires came from down the street, then the sound of voices. Four guys rounded the corner only a block away. All of them wore hoodies or caps, except for a fifth person that followed them, maybe a woman since they were smaller, but I couldn’t tell from the distance.

I was about to duck back into the alleyway, when one of the men stopped and pointed at me, then whispered something to his friend. I’d been spotted.

Shit. The last thing I wanted was to draw attention to myself in a city I didn’t know while I was alone in an unknown area in the middle of the night.

I sank deeper into the alley, keeping my footsteps silent. Still no sign of the Fire Wolf.

The group of five shuffled to the mouth of the alley. I kept my back pressed against the wall, watching them from the darkness.

“She went in here,” one of them said.

“Do you know where this alley goes? She could be long gone.”

“I dunno, but it’s worth looking for her. She was carrying a purse, and it looked like she was wearing nice clothes. She probably has cash or a phone.”

The group swaggered into the alleyway, one of them whistling a tune as the smallest one scampered behind the four bigger guys. I reached out with my magic until it latched on to their auras. They were all humans.

“Come on out, pretty girl,” one of them called out in a sing-song tone. “We know you’re in here.”

Fuck my life. I rolled my eyes and knew there wasn’t any point hiding. They’d see me if they kept walking.

I stepped out, letting myself be visible in the dim light that dipped the narrow alley into shadows. “Are you looking for me?”

They all stopped short and spread out, the smallest one again staying behind the others. They’d effectively blocked the mouth of the alley.

“Yep,” the skinny one in baggy jeans replied as his hand dipped into his pocket.

I widened my stance. “I wouldn’t do that if I were you. In fact, if you know what’s good for you, you’ll go back to the street and keep walking.”

The four of them looked between each other and then laughed. Baggy Jeans’ hand remained in his pocket.

“Has that worked before?” Hoodie Guy asked. He took a step closer, the other three following while the smallest in the group scurried toward the wall and into the shadows.

“Hey, get back out here!” Hoodie Guy snarled at Small One.

With his or her head down, they shuffled forward. “Sorry.”

“You don’t fucking hide!” Hoodie Guy barked.

Small One’s fast-moving nod had my hackles rising. Given the tone of the one word Small One had uttered, I was pretty sure he was a boy, and just a kid given his size.

I seethed. “Why don’t you pick on someone your own size, asshole?”

Hoodie Guy whipped back to me just as Baggy Jeans extracted a knife from his pocket.

Oh, for the love of the Gods. I’m seriously going to have to fight these douchebags.

“You want me to pick on you, then?” Hoodie Guy swaggered another step my way. We were now only a yard apart from each other. He eyed my purse then looked me up and down. “How about you hand over your bag, and this will be your lucky day? I won’t show you what happens when someone your size needs to be put in their place.”

I tapped my purse and brought it closer to my side. “Thanks, but I’ll pass. I happen to like this purse.”

Shocked silence surrounded the entire group for a mere moment before the other two behind Hoodie Guy pulled out switchblades too. Now, three had knives. Wonderful. Although, knives were easier to deal with than guns. But seriously, switchblades? It was like something straight out of West Side Story.

I arched an eyebrow. “Is this where I’m also supposed to pull out my knife and we all dance around each other while singing ballads?” Even though potions were still strapped to my waist, I didn’t reach for any. Instead, I bent my knees slightly and let my magic swim through my veins, heightening my senses and reflexes. “But since I don’t have any weapons, I guess you’ll just have to take me as I am. And sorry if I don’t sing. I’m not the best at staying in tune.”