them, Val would get to Liv and bring her home safe.
She watched the whirling leaves to the right of the warehouse. They lifted and moved to the left, then the wind took them high. Her stomach dropped. He’s here.
I see him, sielamet. You are not alone. Stick to the plan and keep Blaze close.
Tariq had carefully explained to her that if she were in mortal danger, if the hunters thought Tariq’s lifemate might be killed, they would all come to her defense, not Liv’s. They couldn’t afford to lose one of their women. Losing Charlotte meant losing Tariq as well. But Val had dropped his bombshell and that changed things. She knew it did. Time meant little to Carpathians and knowing Liv was in the world made the waiting for her to grow up and mature fully much easier.
He cannot feel.
He has to feel something or he wouldn’t know. He wouldn’t be so gentle and focused on her, she protested. She had to believe Val would save Liv no matter what. All the while she connected so intimately with Tariq, she watched those whirling leaves. The moment Fridrick materialized right by the warehouse door, she stepped into view, “Genevieve” right behind her.
Fridrick spun around, saw them and carefully looked for their escort. Charlotte shook her head. “I was able to rise before Tariq and made my way here. I knew where to come because two of your men were captured and they said you had taken Liv here. I’m asking you to allow me to trade places. Genevieve is willing as well.”
“Genevieve” pressed trembling fingers to her mouth, but didn’t say anything at all. She did shift just slightly, still a couple of steps behind Charlotte but also to her left. Charlotte was well aware Blaze was giving herself room to attack should she have to.
Fridrick continued to look around, scanning the area, looking for anything that would tell him the women were bait. “Why wouldn’t I just take you without freeing that horrible little brat?”
“Because I’m willing to die and I have a knife in my hand. So does Genevieve. I can kill myself before you make it to me. You have to know Tariq converted me. I may be new at this, but I’m fast.”
“You would kill your lifemate as well,” he pointed out.
“She’s a little girl.”
“She’s nothing.” Contempt was written on Fridrick’s face. “Food for the master’s puppets. So many children—sometimes for fun we put them in the hold of the ship and let the puppets in with them. So amusing. I will allow you to watch the show, just for not coming to me the first time I told you to.”
“We don’t have much time,” Charlotte said, her chin up. She couldn’t think about children down in the hold of a ship screaming as the puppets were let loose on them. She just couldn’t. Right now, it was all about Liv.
“Tariq will be coming after me any minute. I won’t give up Amelia, and Emeline has a concussion. She can’t be moved. So if you want to make the exchange, it’s for Vi and me and you have to do it right now before the hunters come. They’ll come in force, and once they do, you know Tariq will never negotiate. I’m his lifemate. He won’t give me up.”
She sounded convincing. Very convincing. Tariq was proud of her. She appeared as she had in the parking garage, a woman of courage who had no idea who she was squaring off with. She treated Fridrick as she might a human male threatening her. Blaze, in Genevieve’s form, hovered behind her just as Vi had done in the garage.
Fridrick smirked at her and beckoned with one long-nailed finger. “If you want her, come to me then.”
“I’m not moving until I see her,” Charlotte said stubbornly. “Compulsion doesn’t work on me and time is flying by.”
Charlotte! What have you done? On cue, Tariq sounded the fearful and outraged lifemate, left behind because he couldn’t stand the sun. Do not give yourself to the undead. I forbid this. He used the Carpathian common telepathic path. I am coming for you. Get away from him.
The corners of Fridrick’s mouth widened, not so much into a smile, although it was certain he thought he was smiling, but more like an open gash where his mouth was, revealing his teeth. He wasn’t bothering with his appearance and his teeth were not nearly as white as they had been in the parking garage.