“But she’s so damn young,” I whispered. “Younger even than Berget. Younger than I was when my abilities came on line.”

And in many ways she is smarter than both of you. She’s studied the supernatural more than you have, and she is stronger than you both in her powers.

“I’m not worried about her physical self. I’m worried about her soul.” I flicked the TV off. I couldn’t look at Milly anymore. I couldn’t look at her and wonder if Pamela was on a similar trajectory. The urge to go after her, to find her and bring her home, hit me in a wash that had me turning before I could stop myself.

“We have bigger problems than Pamela defecting or however you want to look at it,” Faris said. “Milly gave us the timeline. Four days and Orion is going to be here. If we don’t find the Destroyer in that time period, we’re going to be sunk.”

I hated that he was right, and for the first time in my life, I was letting go of someone in my family without a fight.

Be safe, Pamela. Please be safe and in the end, I have to believe it will work out.

“I agree with Doran,” Berget said.

“Any idea where to start?” Doran asked.

I physically had to change my view. I kept my back to the TV as if that would help make what we’d seen and realized go away.

“The Destroyer is an elemental. She, and I believe it’s a woman, was punished for something and that’s why she’s hidden away. I don’t know much else than that.” It was all I had gleaned from the elemental I’d met . . . in the place I couldn’t even remember now.

“That’s it?”

I crossed my arms, holding myself tightly. “That’s it. Unless any of you have had dealings with elementals? I think that will be our first stop. Find one, pick their brain and hope to hell they want to play nice.”

“A lot of ifs and maybes,” Faris pointed out, helpful as ever.

Berget cleared her throat. “I could ask my parents. If Doran would be all right with that.”

Doran’s jaw ticked. “Ask them.”

Berget’s eyes went foggy, the blue fading until they were almost completely white. Even though she was my sister, it was damn creepy to watch. I wondered if that’s what happened when I Tracked.

No, your eyes swirl, the colors spin like on a child’s toy top, Blaz said.

Psychedelic. Awesome.

We waited, the minutes ticking by, and then the blue of her eyes brightened until she was back, her eyes once more her own. “Good news and bad news.” She cleared her throat. “I don’t really know which is which to be honest. It’s a lot of information. They said the Destroyer was so dangerous, so deadly, that she was put away for her crimes. They didn’t know what those crimes were, only that they were serious. Once imprisoned, the other elementals willingly went under a type of mass hypnosis that struck the Destroyer’s real name, face, and deeds from the collective memory of their people.”

“Holy shit balls,” Alex said, and I had to agree. The Destroyer sounded almost as bad as Orion.

“Keep going.” I waved at her and then tucked my hand back under my arm.

“Well, it seems there may be one person we can get information from. Most everyone who ever knew the Destroyer was an elemental. Except for one. The Great Wolf.”

I felt more than saw Liam roar forward inside Faris. He was at my side in a split second, his hand on my hip.

I didn’t look at him. The pressure of his hand was enough for me to know it was Liam. “Do you know who she means?”

He grunted softly, fingers kneading my side. “Yes and no. I heard his voice more than once. He guided me when I wasn’t sure what the hell I was doing.”

“So he’s one of the good guys?” Berget asked.

He shrugged. “Maybe. Here, this is what I saw in my head when he spoke.” His fingers wrapped around mine and an image burst into light at the front of my brain. A large, black wolf with jet black eyes stared back at me. “He looks like you.”

“A little, I suppose. See the scar on his shoulder?”

I did, a streak of zigzagging white down his right shoulder. “Got it. I can Track him.”

Faris snarled at me, his eyes flicking from gold to blue like a light switch. “You didn’t call him forward. Your wolf is starting to piss me off, Rylee.”

I smiled up at him. “Not my fault. You invited him in, remember?” I flicked his arm, the one that had been missing until Liam helped him out in that department.

Faris’s eyes glittered dangerously. “And now you have to Track the Great Wolf, yes?”

I nodded. Crap. I forgot about that part. Faris undid the top two buttons of his shirt. “I don’t suppose you want witnesses for this.”

Fucking hell.

CHAPTER 9

Rylee

“I don’t want anyone leaving.” I pulled a knife from my boot. “Here, somewhere in your arm or wrist will do, I believe.” I knew the blood exchange didn’t have to be from the neck, though that was the preferred spot. But that was when it was between pairs who were doing it for the rush, for the sex that often followed.

Kinky and all that shit, I did not need. Faris took the knife reluctantly and nicked himself just below the crook of his elbow. I grabbed his arm, and put my mouth over the wound before I could think about what I was doing.

Behind me, Alex started to whisper, “Growdy, growdy, gross.” A giggle, nerves, bubbled up and I had to fight to keep my mouth on the open cut and keep drinking down the blood. Warmth filled my mouth, and the faint hint of vanilla. Not what I expected.