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Storm ran at top speed in his jaguar form through the dark desert. His animal’s sharp night vision allowed them to leap over or sweep around any obstacle. He’d shifted outside the resort property as soon as he reached the first place he could free his jaguar without starting mass chaos.
His animal had been tearing at him the whole time.
As Storm rushed away, Bidziil had shouted that he’d catch up by car and deal with Haloke.
Not if Storm’s jaguar reached the woman first.
For her sake, he’d better find Evalle unharmed.
As he streaked across a paved road, his jaguar found fresh ruts where a vehicle carrying Adsila’s scent had driven.
That should make finding Haloke even quicker.
Storm’s jaguar caught Evalle’s scent when he reached a hogan. He slid to a stop, sending dust flying, stuck his head inside only long enough to determine the place was empty.
Inhaling the scent of his mate, his jaguar tore around the structure and stretched out his stride to eat up ground.
In seconds, he had a small fire in view.
A narrow figure stood silhouetted against the glow. Too short to be Evalle, but that’s where her scent led him. His jaguar snarled and raced forward.
Thirty yards out, he slowed his animal.
Storm wouldn’t hesitate to enter the territory of a deadly witch, but neither would he put Evalle in further jeopardy by blasting in with no idea what was going on.
As his animal slowed, it snarled and growled. Storm apologized to his jaguar and forced a fast shift that ripped his body in opposing directions.
He lost no time, striding to the fire where the seer stood. Who else could it be? “Where is she, Haloke?”
“Evalle is healing herself.”
“Liar. Tell me now or I’ll let my jaguar out and rip you apart.”
“That will not provide answers,” she said, full of confidence.
She had no idea what she faced.
Storm let the demon roll over him long enough for his eyes to glow red.
Losing her cocky smile, Haloke hissed, “Get away from me, demon.”
“As if you aren’t evil incarnate? Where the fuck is she?” He followed Evalle’s scent in one direction then stopped when he scented a different path. Rushing around the fire while Haloke stood motionless as a statue, Storm picked up a third trail.
Then a fourth. Fuck! “Which way did she go? Tell me now and you’ll have a head start.”
“Why would I need that?” Haloke sounded too confident.
He swung around, shoving his red-eyed glare in her face. “To run from me.” That came out in a demonic voice.
Her eyes flared wide, but she stood firm. “I’m helping Evalle.”
“Liar!” Which way had his mate gone? He knew without a doubt every second counted.
She tossed something into the fire. Smoke boiled around Storm. When the smoke dispensed, he said, “Didn’t work, bitch.”
Her face fell and her hands shook.
“You’re losing your chance to run. What did you do to Evalle?”
“Healed her,” Haloke started on a shaky breath. “I saw the damage in her. No one helped my Roy.”
Storm strained to prevent his jaguar from breaking out and shredding her, but he still had no idea which direction Evalle had departed here. Running in any single direction risked choosing wrong and losing precious seconds.
His heartbeat went into double time. He sucked air in and out, filtering the smells to find the strongest one left by his mate. He had to calm down enough to think when dealing with a lunatic. “We had nothing to do with Roy.”
“You are blood of Bidziil,” she spat back at him as if that explained everything.
Wait, it just might.
Both young men were his uncle’s protégés and Bidziil had been trying to show that he cared about Storm. He’d also helped to get Haloke’s kid in college.
His uncle was the connection.
“Bidziil did right by you and your son.”
“Roy was all I had! Bidziil sent him away. My child never came back. I gave up everything for him, to give him the life he deserved. He would be here now, married to Adsila if Bidziil hadn’t turned him against me. Bidziil must pay!”
Shit. Storm had nothing that would break through her insanity if she was killing to pay his uncle back for her son’s death.
He couldn’t wait any longer. He had to choose a direction.
Storm strode past Haloke as light grew, pushing the dark away behind him in the east. He had nothing but a gut feeling drawing him west, but he’d learned to trust his senses.
Haloke’s voice powered up, calling to the wind to kill the son of Sani.
She could try.
Ten steps from the fire, wind swirled, spinning sand to slap his naked body.
That damn witch thought to stop him?
She’d just confirmed he headed in the right direction. Even the wind couldn’t steal Evalle’s scent from him once he got away from Haloke’s majik.
He leaped forward to run.
Wind churned faster and faster, building a sand tornado that tossed him from side to side.
Storm covered his eyes, disoriented.
He tried to push forward. Sunrise was on the way. He had to find Evalle and cloak her.
His jaguar wouldn’t stop until he found their mate.
Storm called up his animal. It blasted to life and dove into the wind, flipping around. Wind tossed his jaguar and battered him in the air. His animal landed hard outside the tornado.
Haloke came running up, shouting words as fast as a machine gun spitting out bullets.
Jumping up, he turned in a circle then finally saw a lone figure standing in the distance on the other side of Haloke.
He lunged forward.
A new wind shoved him back.
Storm had never put his jaguar through so many changes at one time, but he shifted again. The second he stood on two feet, Storm unleashed his own dark shit. He roared words he’d never intended to speak again.
Haloke had learned how to wield dark majik.
Storm had been born into it.
His majik lived and breathed.
His father’s power came from the light. That side of Storm warned him Evalle had seconds left until something terrible happened.
With one last shouted curse, the wall of wind wobbled.
That was his chance.
He called to his demon blood and shifted again into his jaguar, hoping he hadn’t harmed his animal. He could take damage better in that form with the dark blood coursing through him.
Haloke gasped, eyes wide in terror.
She screamed for the gods to kill the demon!
Yeah, bad move pissing off a Skinwalker, bitch.
Storm’s jaguar roared and dove through the wall of wind-whipped sand, closing his eyes at the last moment. Sharp stones in the whirling vortex ripped at his coat. Blood spun free in long strands. His jaguar forced one paw ahead of the next, walking through a living buzz saw.
