I reached forward to set my hand against the cold metal and closed my eyes.
It didn’t matter if this was a trap to lure me, we had to help Danny. We weren’t going to leave him behind, which Enid well knew. If he was in pain—or, worse, dying—somewhere below us, it would be awful. I filtered my power out and pushed it through the door and beyond, my wolf generating as much energy as she could to fuel us. It finally pinged back with something. “He’s down there,” I said. “We’re going to have to go get him.”
From behind me, Ray said, “I hate to break it to you, but look up and to your right. There’s the note we’ve been waiting for. I’m not looking forward to what that Hag has to say. I have a feeling she’s going to make this as painful as possible.”
I glanced where Ray indicated, and sure enough, there was a tiny folded square of white poking out between two old, crumbly stones. Rourke reached over my head and yanked it out. It was small, folded only once. He opened it so we could read it:
YOU ARE RIGHT. THE WOLF IS HERE.
FIND HIM, IF YOU CAN, AND AWAIT YOUR NEXT INSTRUCTIONS.
JESSICA GOES ALONE OR THE FEMALE VAMPIRE DIES.
I glanced around the group as we processed the message. “Well, on the bright side, she wants us to find Danny. She’s just made it harder than it had to be, because she gets off on that kind of thing. However, I think she will hurt Naomi if we don’t listen to her. We have little choice but to follow her instructions.”
Rourke shook his head. “Jeb specifically told us not to. I have to believe this is what he meant.” He shook the note. “Why else would Enid want you alone? Her prime motive is to kidnap or kill you. There is no easier way to do that than if you go down there alone.”
“I agree, she wants me isolated,” I said. “But I also truly believe she wants me to come willingly. Without my submission, her retribution won’t be nearly as sweet.”
“But you can’t know that for sure,” Tyler pointed out. “If she’s a seer, and this is her only opportunity to get you, she won’t hesitate. I agree with Rourke, we have to come up with something other than you just going down there blindly.”
“That may be easier said than done,” I argued. “We don’t have a lot of options.”
Kayla cleared her throat. “I might be able to help.” We turned toward her, waiting. She exhaled a shallow breath. “I…I sense many dead beings below. They are very old, but can be reanimated. There must be a catacomb somewhere inside these pilings where they stored their dead long ago. I can call them up, and they will help protect you.” She fidgeted with her hands. “They are not real people any longer, and they are already down there, so you aren’t technically bringing them with you, so it shouldn’t count against us. At least, that’s what I think.”
Her suggestion surprised me, but it shouldn’t have.
Her talent was necromancy. She reanimated dead bodies and controlled them with her mind. “Okay…that sounds like an interesting solution,” I managed. It was interesting, but also creepy as hell. “What does everybody think?”
“Just exactly how strong are these bodies you reanimate?” Marcy asked. “Enid is powerful. I don’t think a few dead bodies are going to be much of an obstacle for her if she decides to attack.”
Kayla stuck her chin out. “I am the strongest of my kind, and there are not just a few dead bodies down there. I sense hundreds. I could raise an army if I had to. But the most important part is that I will be able to see everything Jessica does, so if she’s in trouble, we will know instantly.”
Marcy nodded, tapping her index finger against her chin. “That’s a pretty tricky plan. I’m on board, but only if I spell Jessica ahead of time with a few protection spells. Enid didn’t say anything about fortifying her in that little note of hers. I can even put a tracer on you”—she head-bobbed in my direction—“in case she decides to get grabby.”
I nodded. “I like it. The plan has merit.” Being accompanied by a bunch of reanimated dead bodies wasn’t at the top of my list of things I’d love to experience, but freeing Danny was. I turned to my mate. “What do you think? Kayla has a great point. The piling is directly beneath us, and she will technically be with me, so you’ll know what’s going on. If there’s danger, you can react. Enid didn’t specify anything against that.” He didn’t look convinced. I lay my hand on his arm. “I don’t think Enid’s plan is to snatch me right now. I believe she left Danny for a reason. Whatever he has to say is going to change the course of what we do, so we have to find him. If Enid still has Naomi, Danny’s not going to stop until he gets her back.” Naomi was Danny’s mate, and they were a perfect match.
“I don’t know.” Rourke ran one hand through his hair, settling the other on my waist. “Letting you walk into known danger is not going to get any easier, but this is the life we’re signing up for.” Although he was trying to be stoic, I heard the pain behind his words. “There’s no turning back now, is there?” His face took on a comical look, a combination of hope and resignation.
“No,” I said. “We are committed. But you’re right. Walking into the path of danger is never going to get any easier. We’re going to be walking into a lot of dangerous scenarios for the rest of our lives. But if we stay strong together as a team”—I nodded around the group—“and make solid, thoughtful plans, I think we can minimize the chances of anything going south. I value that. And what Kayla and Marcy have offered is exactly that. I’m not interested in walking blindly into harm’s way, but I am interested in getting the job done.” My voice was firm, yet gentle. Rourke already knew that I would do anything to get my team back and save Jax.
He just needed to hear me say it out loud.
His expression was reserved. “Okay, I’m in,” he finally said. “The plan is for Kayla to have no less than twenty bodies waiting for you down there, and Marcy spells you before you open that door. Any danger arises, and we storm the castle.”
“Good.” I addressed Kayla. “I want to make sure you’re up for this. Twenty is a lot. At the cemetery, you passed out and were near death.”
Kayla gave me a look that indicated I had no idea what I was talking about. “When you found me, I’d just reanimated several thousand against my will, and I was hyper-stressed about my brother. I am in a calm state of mind. This will be no problem. I’m happy to help. Anything to get us closer to finding Jax.”
Marcy declared, “It’s settled, then. Turn and face me so I can spell the crap out of you.”
I did as I was told. “Go easy on me, ye ol’ powerful witch. I don’t want to break out in hives or have hiccups for a month.”
She clucked. “Hey, aftereffects happen. Just so you know, I’m spelling you with three things. A protection-from-death spell, dialed to Enid specifically. It’s a tricky one, but I’ve been practicing it since we found out she was on your trail. The second one is a simple protection charm, an oldie but goodie. It basically works like invisible armor. It will protect you from anything physical down there, like a blow to the head with an ax or a dull knife to the heart.”
“Jesus,” I said. “Okay.”
“Relax, that’s not happening. But just in case it does, I’m stopping it before it spills your insides out. Third is a tracking spell. I don’t think even Enid can break it—it’s that good. That way, if you’re snatched, we can find you.” She began muttering under her breath.