Part Fourteen
"Easy," he advised when Phoebe pressed against his back and clutched his arm. "You've fooled everyone else we've come across."
"Still think I'll be steak after all," she whispered while she anxiously watched the seven wolf-like demons circle them. Cole had described the Dracken perfectly. Each was slightly larger than the average wolf with silver-grey fur and solid black eyes. She didn't loosen her grip on him and tried to remain calm as the snarling Dracken tightened the circle.
"We don't want trouble," Belthazor announced. The demons stopped their snarling and circling and he addressed the largest Dracken, "We want to hire you." With his foot, he slowly shoved Trevon's body before it. "Down payment."
When the other six Dracken began snarling again, the leader barked once at them and they immediately stopped. It then growled to the couple before it approached the body and sniffed Trevon's corpse in different spots.
"A healthy male Berrindler, cleanly killed," Belthazor informed it. "You'll get the female after the job is done."
The others snarled excitedly and moved in on the unconscious Tressla. In a moment, twelve additional Dracken joined them.
"Not until the job's been completed!" he angrily warned the pack. The leader focused on him and he added, "She's still alive and she's carrying six spawn." The leader barked at him and, raising his voice above the pack's howls, he offered, "The male is yours regardless but she's mine until the job is done."
The leader barked twice and the pack instantly quieted and retreated. It then growled inquisitively at him.
"We need you to track a Dark Starling," he replied.
It snapped its jaws at him and quickly barked several times at the others. The pack lined up in three rows behind it and began growling menacingly at the couple.
"Cole," Phoebe worried, "we need them."
He suddenly twisted, grabbed her from behind, and pushed her before him. He did loosen his grip when she yelped in surprise but he still tore open her collar to reveal the star on her chest. "She's been marked and the Dark Starling has disappeared."
The leader growled at him before it turned around to face its pack. It barked at them and one row proceeded to the doorway.
"Wait!" Belthazor called out.
The leader barked at the line of Dracken and they immediately stopped moving. It turned to him and snapped its jaws.
"The payment is more than generous," he growled with frustration, "and you know it! You'll be getting eight for the price of one!"
It ignored his comments and barked several times to the pack. The line by the door left while another row of Dracken began to follow suit. All, except the leader, began to howl.
"Cole," Phoebe whispered as she pressed herself back against him.
"She's my mate!" he shouted above the howling.
The leader barked sharply and the howling ceased. It faced the couple and snarled at them.
"She's my mate," Belthazor desperately repeated. "I have to save her."
When it suddenly approached Phoebe and began sniffing her feet, she nervously glanced down at her wedding band, clenched her hand, and prayed the Dracken didn't suddenly see through her deception.
"You're okay," Belthazor whispered encouragingly in her ear.
The leader growled long and the pack sat in their spots. It then snarled at Phoebe.
"The sword," Belthazor reminded her. "They'll need it now."
She nodded and slowly reached behind her and pulled out the sword. She placed it on the ground in front of her and quickly stepped back.
The leader shook its head at two Dracken in the last row. It barked once and they immediately sniffed the sword. Each growled back in reply before it then inspected the sword for itself. It gave three short barks and they returned to their original positions. It looked up at the couple and snarled before it positioned itself over the sword, lowered its nose to the sword's handle, closed its eyes, and tensed its body.
Phoebe gasped in horror as she watched the leader slowly absorb the sword. She spun in a panic, "It's gone! How could you let it do that?"
"We had no choice." Belthazor steadied her and tried to calm her before the remaining Dracken took action. "I didn't know how the Dracken would use it."
Phoebe kept an eye on the seemingly frozen leader. "But you said the sword might be our last resort if the potions didn't work," she whispered in defeat.
"Because the sword carries the essence of the Dark Starling," he explained, "it can penetrate the Starling's defenses." He wrapped an arm around her, "Absorbing an item is probably why the Dracken are so successful in tracking their prey. This leader will be able to sense the Dark Starling by using its own aura against it."
"But, what'll --" she began before the pack began to howl and she pressed herself even closer to him.
The leader snapped from its trance and approached Phoebe. It sniffed her again and rubbed its cheek against her thigh.
"Bend down and look him in the eyes," Belthazor instructed.
"But…"
"Do it," he commanded, "and don't show any fear."
Nervously, she kneeled and locked eyes with the demon. Almost hypnotically, she reached over and slowly brushed the fur along the back of its head and neck. She kept staring and brushing until it suddenly blinked out of the cavern.
Belthazor watched as all but two of the Dracken blinked out in quick succession along with Trevon's body. The two that remained sat on their haunches and, fully alert, guarded the area. Realizing there was nothing to do but wait for the leader's return, he reached for Phoebe and helped her up. "You okay?" She didn't answer and he repeated his question with concern. She stared at him in a daze and he immediately changed forms. "Phoebe, honey, talk to me. What's going on?" But she said nothing and he anxiously commented, "If this is payback, it's not funny." But it was as if she didn't even see him. He placed his hands on her cheeks and shook her head slightly, nervously trying to force her to snap out of it. "C'mon, talk to me…"
Overwhelming fear broke through her cloudy mind and Phoebe slowly realized it was emanating from someone close by. "Cole?"
He let out a sigh of relief and hugged her tight. "You scared me," he whispered as he willed his heart to stop racing.
"Why? I wasn't," she told him as she pulled herself free from his embrace, "not one bit." She noticed the guards and hugged herself. "It was amazing. I never experienced anything like that…that connection…"
Cole caught her when her knees suddenly buckled. "Sit," he quietly ordered.
"Such power," she murmured when she sat next to him and hugged her knees. "I couldn't read its thoughts but feeling its emotions was…it was like I knew everything about it. What it needed to be a strong leader, a successful hunter, a proud father." Her eyes met his and she softly told him, "What you said, that's why it changed its mind. The only reason for it to go against a Dark Starling."
"I don't understand," he admitted.
"You called me your mate," she explained. "Strange, don't you think, that a demon that would've ripped me to shreds if it knew I was a witch can understand what that means."
Cole shifted uncomfortably, "Look, I'm sorry about that but I --"
"It's okay," she interrupted as she lightly traced his jaw line. "Thank you," she whispered as she hugged him. She then settled against him and closed her eyes with a sigh.
"No!" he suddenly shouted. "Don't close your eyes!"
The guards snarled at his agitation and Phoebe, sensing his fear, looked at him with confusion. "What's wrong?"
"Don't close your eyes," he pleaded. He cupped her face in his hands and repeated, "Don't go to sleep."
"I'm just so tired," she quietly told him. "Of everything," she added in a voice barely above a whisper as she closed her eyes again.
"Dammit, Phoebe, listen to me." He lightly shook her and, when she stirred, he demanded, "Talk to me! Tell me about Wyatt. Piper said he's what, nine months old now?"
"More powerful than anyone expected," she mumbled into his chest. "Gonna be king someday. Gotta protect him."
He shook her again, "I'm not kidding, Phoebe. Snap out of it." She glanced up at him in confusion and he continued, "What the hell happened to make Leo an Elder?" She no longer seemed completely focused and, in desperation, he requested, "Hell, tell me about Hong Kong."
"Jason…I do love him," she murmured as she closed her eyes and tried to lean back against him.
He refused to let her rest and propped her up to her annoyance. "Good," he realized when she suddenly seemed more aware of him. "Talk to me," he demanded.
"About what?" she complained.
"I don't care," he uttered, "anything. Everything. Tell me about this past year."
She glared at him. "You don't want to know about it any more than I want to know about your relationship with her!"
"I want to know," he insisted. And, to his surprise, he actually did.
"You're a glutton for punishment," she commented with a shake of her head as she tried to settle back down against him.
"No," he snapped. "You don't get to rest until you tell me what I want to know," he added as he quickly stood up and pulled her to her feet.
The guards immediately rose and took a few steps toward the couple. They snapped their jaws and barked several times.
"We're not going anywhere," Cole shouted at them.
Phoebe pressed closer to his side. "Maybe we should sit down."
Pleased she seemed more alert, he still shook his head. He led her to the opposite end of the cavern and kept an eye on the Dracken while he began to pace with Phoebe. "Now, start at the beginning," he instructed, "or should I say my end?"
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