Haunted Prey Ch. 10

"We have a compound three hours north of here."

It annoyed her that Maels not only refused to look at her, but chose to answer her questions in English in between bursts of his foreign language directed at his men. "What is that, German?"

"No, it is the language of our clan."

"So everyone like you can speak it?"

"No." It was Brock who answered the question. He glanced at Alauria through the rearview mirror and shook his head as if dealing with an unfocused child. "Each Nagual clan has its own specific language, which is mostly reflected by their country of origin."

"So that's why your language sounds German."

"There are bits of Polish in there," Hunter added.

"So what happens when you meet someone from another clan?"

"We do speak English, you know," Maels stated.

"Don't patronize me," Alauria snapped. While she was grateful for the help, she refused to be treated like an imbecile. "I'm new to this stuff, ok?" There was a moment of silence she didn't understand and for a moment, she felt as if the men said nothing because they didn't want to laugh at her. The thought alone sparked her temper. "Do any of you have a phone I can borrow for a moment?"

"Hunter," Maels ordered.

Hunter pulled his cellular phone out of his pocket and handed it to Alauria. "Don't tell anyone where you are or where you're going," he ordered.

She barely nodded at him as she quickly dialed and waited for an answer.

"Hello?"

"Mom, it's me," she sighed. Thank goodness, Raife decided to leave her mother alone.

"Alauria, Jaedyn-"

"Mom, I'm fine, I promise." She'd been middle named, which always meant she was in trouble.

"Where are you? I don't hear from you and you're not at the studio. What is going on? Your father has been trying to find you."

"Why?"

"It's your sister."

Alauria felt her heart seize as a sense of foreboding washed over her. "What happened?"

"I didn't get all of the particulars, but according to your father, she has some rare infection."

"Is she all right?"

"The doctors are trying to fight it but the medications they are using aren't working very well."

Tears welled in Alauria's eyes as she considered the meaning of the statement. "So she's dying?"

"No, not dying; just very sick. She's been asking for you."

Alauria sighed as she tried to figure out what to say. "Um, can you check on her for me and tell her that I'll see her as soon as I can?"

"Shouldn't you do that yourself?"

She felt the men's eyes on her and she blushed in reaction, but she kept her focus on her mother. "I can't at the moment."

"Why not? What is going on with you?"

The worry in her mother's voice made Alauria rush to pacify her. "I'm sorry I didn't get to call you sooner. It's just that Lindsay, uh..." What the hell did she say? Her mother would never believe the truth (if she could even divulge it) and she didn't want to lie.

"The piano student, Lindsay?"

"Yeah."

"The one you should have wild animal sex with?"

Alauria heard the men chuckle under their breath and it was then that she knew that they could hear what her mother was saying. Absolutely wonderful. "Yes, mother, that Lindsay. He sort of, um, took me away on a small trip out of town." That was the best she could do; it wasn't a lie, but it wasn't the truth either. It would have to do.

"Where did he take you?"

"One of his other houses."

"How many does the man have?"

"I'm not completely sure."

"Is it close to town?"

The questions were getting too personal for the men's comfort. "Uh, Mom, I actually have to go. I just wanted to call to let you know I'm not dead in a ditch somewhere."

"When will you be back?"

"Not sure; Lindsay's kept me pretty busy these past couple of days."

"I hope you're using protection."

She knew her face was scarlet. "MOM! Could you please?"

"Now Honey Bun, you're a grown ass woman and he's a sexy man. Spontaneous trips like yours only mean one thing; infinite rounds of passionate screwing."

"For the love of - MOM!" The blush went to her chest and shoulders as she heard Brock and Hunter laugh harder. "I'm hanging up the phone now."

"I love you, Honey Bun."

"Love you too." Alauria was quick to end the call and handed the phone back to Hunter. She made no eye contact with anyone and quickly focused her attention on her window.

"Your mom sounds like a lot of fun," Hunter commented.

She remained silent, refusing to play into their game. A movement to her right caught her eye and she turned in time to smack Maels' hand away from her face. "What are you doing?"

"The flush of your skin intrigues me."

"Keep the intrigue to yourself, buddy." Alauria pressed herself into the door to make more space between her and Maels. A part of her wanted to laugh at the ridiculous turn of events, but the truth was that she was too worried to appreciate the humor. There were so many repercussions to consider; if Lindsay failed, she could never go home and her mother would be in danger. So would Raedyn, who already had a lot to deal with. It wasn't just her life that would be altered. If she lived, anyway. On the other hand, if Lindsay succeeded, then there was a whole new life to deal with, a new world to navigate. She could do it, but Alauria wasn't sure she was exactly strong enough to deal with all of the pressures that came with dating a man who hunted demons for a living. Would she always be a target? Would he have to stow her away in some unknown corner of the world so that no one would find her?

"You are very pensive."

Alauria glanced at Maels and gently shrugged her shoulders. "A lot on my mind all of a sudden." A second later, she found herself gasping in fear as the truck lunged forward as if hit hard from behind. Before she was given a chance to turn around to see what was happening, Maels pulled her down to the floor and used his body to shield her. She would have screamed if it wasn't for the terror coursing through her veins. Both Hunter and Brock were shouting. Maels' harsh breathing covered the side of her face in heat that would have been comforting had she not glimpsed the blade of what had to be a sword penetrating the roof of the car. She did scream then and the screaming only intensified when she found herself being thrown as the truck rolled violently down the road.

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We're a little passed the halfway point, but we're nowhere near done with this installment. Fasten your seatbelts, folks - and as always, please comment!