Chapter 28

Harlow

My mind swam in an ocean of peace. Drifting on lazy currents, thoughts surfaced and slipped away like debris swirling at the water's whim. Ripples formed around me as I moved through warm eddies that kept me far from the bank and what I might find above the surface. Pressure at my temples, heart, and stomach comforted me, reminding me of something I couldn't quite grasp.

It's time to finish this, little lightning rod. You must go back and see it done.

The voice pierced through me like a jolt of electricity, shocking me out of my daze. My head broke the surface of the water, and as I took a gulp of air, I felt a tear at the center of my being.

Be strong, little one. It's time to let go.

I looked up into my own face and blinked in confusion. How could I encourage myself? Levina. The name stuck in my mind a moment before Donahue stepped up beside her.

We're here with you always. Now stop fighting and let them in .

Stop fighting who? The pressure over my heart increased, and an image of a huge lion with an eagle's head roared through my mind's eye. Vines crept around my waist, contracting my stomach as water continued to flow over my head. At my back, I felt loyalty and connection, and with the acknowledgement of them, my men appeared. Surrender was both the easiest and hardest thing I'd ever done as I embraced the sensations each brought out in me and felt my world click into place.

The next gasp of air came far more painfully than the first, but that seemed to be a good indication I'd made my way back to consciousness. A drop of moisture hit my hand, and I looked up into the earnest blue eyes of my nature witch.

"Welcome back," he whispered, casting a glance over his shoulders. He turned back with a small frown creasing his brow.

My heart ached, but my body hummed with an energy unlike anything I'd ever felt. It was powerful in a way that could put my previously wild magic to shame, but with smoother, more manageable edges.

"Holy shit. The curse is broken."

Hendrix nodded at my wide-eyed stare. "Yeah, we think so. How do you feel?"

I turned my attention inward, and smiled as I felt the presence of each one of my men, where previously there had only been chaotic energy. There was no way to properly quantify the feelings bubbling up inside of me, so I settled for the most apt.

"Alive."

Hendrix returned my grin before moving away to make room for Bruin.

"How about you don't pull the lone cowboy shit again and scare us half to death, huh?"

"That almost sounded like a compliment."

"Perish the thought." His eyes crinkled in the corners before he, too, straightened and moved away.

"Please don't scare us like that again." Ranto's voice rumbled through my back, making me acutely aware of the fact I seemed to be using him as a human pillow. Before I could decide on whether to go for a sweet or smartass reply, the sound of my name pulled at our attention.

Ten feet from where I lay, Lindsay sat with his back to me, his wide shoulders curled over.

"What…?" I sat up, and the change of angle showed me a slightly melted pair of Converse shoes.

"Addie!" Scrambling over on hands and knees, I almost shoved my best friend out of the way with my urgency to reach her.

"What happened? What do I do? Shit. This is my fault. Addie, can you hear me?"

A warm hand pressed against my back, and then Kylen crouched beside me.

"Lindsay got her heart beating again with CPR, but it's not beating the way it should. She's in and out of consciousness. You're going to have to shock her again."

My chest heaved as I struggled to get air into my lungs. Shocking her had put her in this position. How the hell was doing the same thing going to get her out of it?

"I can't do it. My power is too violent. Too much. I can't do it."

"Hey." Kylen's voice was harder than I'd ever heard it as he squeezed my shoulder. "I'm not going to see my sister die because you had a panic attack when you could have helped her. Take a breath and think. It's the same as using a defibrillator, just that you're a person instead. Put your hands on her. One over her chest, the other wrapping around her ribs. Good. Just like that. Now, you're going to send a single pulse through her." He looked around, waving Lindsay back so everyone was clear. "Now."

With a prayer to whoever the fuck was up there listening, I sent a jolt of power out through my palms. Addie's small body seized in a convulsion that made my stomach turn. When she flopped to the ground, Kylen checked her pulse.

"One more."

We repeated the action and this time, Addie's lashes fluttered.

"Ow. Who the hell hit me? I think I bruised a rib. Harlow! You're ok. I was going to save you."

I choked on a sob as I crushed her to me in a hard hug, feeling the strong, steady beat of her heart beneath my hands. She was okay. She was safe. She was…

"What the hell?" I asked, eyeing the small carpet of white flowers that spread beneath her palm.

"Did you do that?"

Addie glanced down at her hand, a look of awe dawning on her face as she touched a finger to one of the buds and drew a coiling vine from its center.

"I have powers?" she breathed so quietly I wondered if she worried it would disappear if she were too loud.

"My sister has the same powers as me!" Kylen crowed, scooping Lindsay into a hug.

"Sister?!" Addie shrieked, flowers forgotten for the moment. My nature witch took a half step toward her, rubbing the back of his neck in an endearingly nervous way.

"Ahh… yeah. So, you see. Ranto—Oof!" Kylen cut off mid explanation as he struggled to catch ninety-two pounds of flying teenager.

"I have a family!" Addie grinned over her shoulder at me from the koala grip she had on her brother.

I smiled indulgently at her but couldn't help pointing out, "You've always had a family. Now you just have a few more."

Her breathing hitched, and I pretended not to notice as she surreptitiously wiped her face on Kylen's shirt.

" We'll talk about this later ," I mouthed at him.

He shot me a sheepish smile as she hopped out of his arms and walked toward my biker, who stood at the edge of the action, seemingly unsure what to do.

"Hey, Bruin, guess what! Now I can tie you up in vines, too." Addie called, earning a wince from him and a hearty chorus of No from the rest of us.

"We still have an hour to wait, and some of these bastards are starting to stir." Ranto wasn't paying attention to the proceedings as he directed Hendrix to check on each of the unconscious bikers. He swiped a hand down his face, looking tired, yet determined, but something in his statement caught my attention.

"What are we waiting for?"

I hadn't known about Ranto's job as a PI, but the lack of surprise on Kylen's face told me it was old news to him. He explained how he'd been privately contracted to assist a task force in the takedown of the Grim Hearts MC chapter that happened to be littering the highway at present, and how he'd put out the call for reinforcements the second we caught wind of their attack.

Bruin snorted, eyeing Ranto closely, but only received an enigmatic grin in return. I understood his worry. The only reason Ranto could have been on the case he described and end up following me was because of him. I reached out and took his hand, waiting for him to make eye contact.

"Whatever happens, we'll deal with it together."

He grunted, but his fingers tightened in a return squeeze.

"Well, it won't be worth much if they all take off before the task force gets here," Ranto groused.

We needed time. And for the assholes to stay asleep.

Or sedated.

"Kylen!" I shouted, wincing as the sound echoed in the quiet air. "Your plant."

Understanding washed over his face, and with a quick look at Addie, they both took off toward the motel.

"I really hope that plant of his doesn't accidentally kill them all," Bruin muttered.

I glanced at him, trying to read his tone. He said he was sure of his allegiances, but there was a line in the sand that seemed to include a level of mortality on both sides.

"We don't want to get stuck with a murder charge because of experimental medicine," he clarified, taking in my worried expression.

I coughed a laugh and elbowed him. He responded by hooking an arm around my neck and planting a kiss on my head. Sweet bastard. Not that I'd ever tell him that.

"Get off me, asshole. We need to keep your butt buddies asleep until they get to jail." There was no heat behind my words, and he chucked me on the chin before wandering off to help with the damage assessment.

In a surprisingly short amount of time, Kylen and Addie returned, the latter bouncing around her new brother like an excitable puppy, her mouth running a mile a minute while he held a jar like it was explosive. Maybe it was. I glanced toward Lindsay, silently encouraging him to distract our excitable ward so Kylen could save our asses.

"I'm so excited to see how this goes," he muttered, crouching beside the nearest biker, who was twitching like he was coming around.

Kylen sprinkled a small amount of the powder into his nostrils, and the movement ceased immediately.

"Harlow, can you monitor his pulse? I'll get the ones who are stirring now, but I want to make sure it's safe before I use it on the rest of them."

I opened my mouth to reply but was interrupted by the blessed sound of sirens. Pressing two fingers beneath the meaty biker's jaw, I found his pulse beat strong and steady, then nodded to Kylen as he worked his way around to a few of the more conscious-looking men.

A phalanx of cars screeched to a halt behind the lines of bikes, and uniformed men swarmed the road in full SWAT gear. As the droves of men stumbled to a stop at the sight of unconscious bikers everywhere, a man in a well-fitted gray suit let out a low whistle.

"Looks like you guys have already had all the fun."

Ranto's face lit up. "Mikey! You came in person." He closed the distance between them, pulling the man into an enthusiastic hug. "Hey! You have to meet my mate." And then they were headed my way.

I'd always had a love-hate relationship with officers of the law. Mostly hate, seeing as they were responsible for screwing over runaway orphans and took issue when we stole to survive. Killjoys. But this was Ranto's friend, and for him, I'd make an effort.

"So, I guess we owe you thanks. Toto here tells me you're responsible for bringing down the Grim Hearts."

"Holy shit! Yes. That's sticking," Addie squealed, laughter bubbling out of her as she leaned on a grinning Lindsay.

Heat rose in my cheeks. Could I really take credit for almost succumbing to a curse and letting them all get caught in the fallout? Eh, why not.

"You're welcome."

Mike chuckled, looking around at us all.

"As much as we appreciate what you've done, we need to ask you to leave us to the arrests. This is now an active crime scene." He glanced at Bruin with a frown.

"Why is he conscious? Bruin. Get down on the ground with your hands behind your head. You have the right to remain silent—"

"What?" I demanded, shooting a concerned look at Ranto.

Bruin had helped. Bruin was… well… not good. But he was mine.

Bruin sank to his knees, offering his wrists for cuffs and patiently waiting out the reading of his rights while sending me comforting glances.

"Mike," Ranto said, gripping his friend's shoulder.

"He's the club's enforcer and a legacy. He is the Grim Hearts MC. Give me one good reason why he shouldn't rot in jail with the rest of them."

Ranto flicked a look between Bruin and me before focusing back on his friend.

"He was my primary informer."

Bruin choked on a denial he couldn't quite squash, but Ranto talked over him. "He was instrumental in the demise of the club, and most importantly, he's bound to my mate. I have complete confidence in vouching for the strength of his allegiances. If he steps out of line, I'll rip him apart myself."

Mike stared at him for so long I began fantasizing about jailbreaks to retrieve my man from custody, but eventually the click of cuffs being released caught my ears.

"All of you, get out of here and let us do our jobs. If there's any trouble now or in the future from the enforcer, it's on your head."

Ranto nodded at his friend, then pulled him in for one more hug before we all turned back toward the motel. Kylen held back a little longer to explain the sedative to the officers and exchanged phone numbers so they could report on the effects.

Hendrix offered to stop off at the diner and get food for everyone, while Lindsay, Bruin, and Addie settled in to watch a trashy reality television show. Ranto shifted into his raiju form and curled his bulk around Addie, as though he still needed the reassurance that she was okay.

I waited by the door for Kylen to return, and as soon as he was in reaching distance, I cupped his face and pulled him into a devastating kiss. Pushing my tongue into his mouth, I tried to tell him without words how much he meant to me. How much I wanted him. The passion with which he returned the kiss stole the breath from my lungs and made all kinds of dirty fantasies kick off in my mind. I'd just decided that closing the adjoining room's door would give us adequate privacy when Hendrix cleared his throat loudly.

"Eat each other later. Right now, everyone needs real food."

I laughed, stepping away to let him through and flopped down at the small table, knocking Melisande's diary to the floor. As I retrieved the book, a loose page slipped from its place, tucked in the back cover.

The writing was done in a different hand, and curiosity burned through me. Was this the end of the story? Or a new mystery to solve? With the curse broken, tomorrow would be spent planning our next move. Would we head to our respective homes? Would they come with me? I hoped so, but how could I ask them to pick up their whole lives so that they could all share little old me?

I looked around, realizing Kylen had followed the food into the other room, and for the moment, I was alone.

Praying this wasn't the curiosity that killed the cat, I took a seat and started to read.