Corrigan Fire Bloodfire - Helen Harper Page 0,58

anyone else. She was also someone who acted first and thought later. Given her temper, it might not be wise to be too obvious. ‘Fine. Be discreet. If she tries anything or goes anywhere, don’t approach her directly. Just contact me.’

‘Do you think she’s got something to do with all this?’

‘Possibly. Probably. I just don’t know how she’s involved yet.’ Despite my argument with her, my certainty that she wasn’t a perpetrator had solidified. Her emotions were too honest and too close to the surface to be faked. ‘Keep that to yourselves though,’ I told them sternly. That didn’t mean she was an entirely innocent bystander though. ‘There are other avenues to consider anyway. We also need to find where those damn beasts came from. Anyone who’s not working on immediate repairs needs to search the area for another portal. We know they couldn’t have come through the one on the beach because it’s been bound closed. There must be another one somewhere else.’

‘Yes, my Lord,’ they chimed in unison, before withdrawing.

I bent down, attempting to clear some of the broken earth and debris from around a pretty little plant. We were going to have to stop waiting for this goddess bitch’s next move and do something ourselves. But breaching an unknown portal was a dangerous prospect. I’d need to pick a team very carefully, ensuring that we were fully prepared and properly rested first. She had a lot of power and we had to be sure we were going to walk into a fight we could win. Despite the brute strength of Anton and Mack, it made more sense to use solely Brethren shifters. It’s what we were here for, after all. And if Mack really was what the demi-goddess wanted, well, there was no point in placing her in harm’s way. She wouldn’t like it but it would make me rest a hell of a lot easier knowing she was safe. Unwilling to examine my feelings too closely concerning that though, I spun round and went in search of Doctor Fenewick and Julia instead.

***

Both Staines and I hovered over Julia’s bed. The prognosis did not look good. Her face, normally rosy cheeked and beaming, looked drawn and haggard. And when she tried to speak, the words came out as nothing more than a hoarse whisper.

‘This might be,’ she croaked, ‘the shortest career span of any alpha in history.’

I gripped her hand and squeezed it. ‘Actually, there was a guy up in Manchester who only lasted three hours. A werehyena. He was so puffed up at his sudden advancement and focused on telling off a pair of wolves for staying out too long at a local nightclub that he didn’t look where he was going and fell into a manhole. Cracked his skull and died immediately.’

A faint smile crossed her lips. ‘Werehyenas are always the worst.’

‘They are. And you’re going to heal, Julia. It might take a bit of getting used to but you’ll get over this.’ Even to my own ears, my words rang hollow.

She shook her head. ‘Don’t sugarcoat it or treat me like a child, my Lord. I’m done. No pack can survive with an alpha who’s so weak she has to be wheeled around in a damn pushchair. Besides, the Voice is gone. I can feel it.’

I resisted the urge to shoot a look at Staines. ‘Right now that doesn’t matter,’ I told her. ‘All you need to focus on is getting better.’

‘Whoever controlled those beasts is still out there. That woman…’

‘We’ve secured the border. The mage is setting up a barrier spell that won’t keep out a strong Otherworlder for long. But it will give us enough time to be prepared if there’s another attack.’ I met her eyes. ‘We think it’s a demi-goddess who’s behind all this.’

The shock in her eyes was real. ‘Oh my goodness,’ she whispered. ‘How can we defeat someone that strong?’

‘Everyone can be defeated. We’re going to do this.’

‘I have no doubt.’ Her expression flickered. ‘You’re going to be an excellent Lord Alpha, you know, dear.’

I smiled. My own misgivings might be vast in that regard but I appreciated the sentiment. ‘Listen, Julia. We think this woman is after someone. Someone here in this pack. It’s the only reason we can think of for her to keep on sending attacks our way.’ I took a deep breath. ‘Mack wasn’t here when the attack began.’

Alarm rippled through her body and she tried to sit up. Fenewick tutted and gently pressed