Page 79 of Hunter

“Kellen’s a slippery one but I haven’t met a fae I can’t handle. If you get me the book, I’ll capture the fae. He owes me several debts and it’s not in his nature to settle.”

“You wouldn’t happen to know where we can find this book?” Viktor asked.

“So, you agree to go get it?” Ilsbeth pressed.

“I’ll do it,” Willa blurted without hesitation. There was no other choice.

The High Priestess smiled, pleased with her enthusiasm. “And this is why royal blood is important. An Alpha to match an Alpha.”

“Please don’t tell me it’s in Hell or someplace shitty.” Hunter plowed his fingers through his hair.

“It’s in a cave,” Ilsbeth told him. “It’s in another country.”

“What the hell. I need a vacation. Maybe I’ll hit Hawaii on the way back,” Viktor joked.

“In Central America,” she clarified.

“Please don’t say the jungle,” Hunter replied.

“Hey, I’m with him. We were just there and let’s just say it was a shit show and leave it at that. You see Julian here? Yeah, no. Ya don’t,” Viktor said.

“We’ll discuss him in a minute,” Ilsbeth replied.

“Do you know where Julian is?” Willa asked, her pulse racing at the sound of his name.

“In a minute.” Ilsbeth’s tone was firm, her lips drawn in a tight line. “First, the skin book. And no. Not a jungle. A cave.”

“Awesome. A cave. Nothing could possibly go wrong in there.” Hunter gave a cold laugh, shaking his head.

“I didn’t say it would be easy. The Karst caves. They’re made of limestone. It attracts the paranormal, the otherworldly. Channels the energy. It is believed the wolves who killed the King brought the skin from Brazil to Belize, safeguarding it somewhere within the cave system. I understand human researchers may have found it during the 1970s but were mysteriously killed. It’s theorized it’s hidden within the cave system but to date, no one has claimed its discovery.”

“The wolves that attacked me. Why don’t they know where it’s at?” Willa asked.

“Because they killed the Alpha, never knowing its location. I’ve heard the folklore for years, but I’ve never needed the artifact for this purpose. Of course, I’d love to gain its magick but as I’ve said, it’s not going to be easy to locate it. It’s my suspicion that your shared hellfire might lead you to it. You must concentrate as you search, sensing it, without seeing.”

“Cave systems are extensive. We’re going to need at least a target of where to start searching,” Hunter insisted.

“It could be dangerous. Demons. Wolves. They will sense Willa as soon as she leaves my property. They could follow you. You must get it and then come back as soon as possible. We’ll summon the demon under the light of the full moon. The wolves will have to be dealt with properly.”

“We’ll get in and out of Belize and back here with the book. Don’t worry about the wolves. They’re as good as dead.” The Alpha pinned her with a hard stare. “What’s going on tonight, Ilsbeth? You wouldn’t happen to be summoning another demon? I can’t help but notice you have several witches on the property.”

“Hot witches.” Viktor smiled and winked at Willa. “Naked witches. The best kind.”

“Focus, vampire,” Hunter snapped.

“I’m not wrong.” Viktor laughed with a shrug. “Just sayin’.”

“These women are the outliers. The solo practitioners who have no tribe. The ones that add value will stay to help conjure the demon. The others must go. I cannot risk drawing the ire of the coven if one is killed. No. I won’t risk it.”

“I can’t believe this is happening,” Willa said, her voice trailed with anger. “I want to kill these wolves myself. This is why you don’t get involved with demons.”

“Sometimes one has no choice,” Ilsbeth told her.

“My brother. Where is he?” Willa changed the subject back to Julian.

“You went to Guatemala. Tell me what happened in the jungle.”

Guilt flooded Willa. “There’s a plant I found in the jungle. It grew inside an ancient building in a hidden Mayan city. The structure was once used for healing. I was destroying the formula I’d created…burning it…I don’t know how the demons knew I was there. My guess is between Julian and I they sensed our energy.”