Alpha Asher and Lola novel Chapter 166

Read Alpha Asher by Jane Doe Chapter 166 – Razor thin branches slapped at our faces, stinging our ankles and any visible piece of skin. The darkness was all consuming, the shadows thick as they surrounded us like the heavy fabric of a cloak.

If only they protected us the way a cloak would, if only they offered their assistance as they had numerous times in the past.

Something changed since I got my magic, and that something was big enough to alter the way the shadows acted around me.

In the past, they’d jump at the opportunity to be of service, to exact a price they saw most fitting. Their whispers would plague my mind, their slippery voices a haunting song of desperation, excitement, and longing.

I could hear their whispers, only this time they didn’t seem to be speaking to me, but to each other. Flinging them around the forest so quickly I couldn’t make out what the h**l they were saying.

“Wait a d**n second.” I panted, gritting my teeth together as Cassidy stepped on something sharp and snarled angrily. The scent of fresh blood was instant and made what I was about to say even more important. “Those were Vampires.”

Cassidy sucked in a sharp breath, swatting away the stray branches as they wacked her in the face. “As far as I’m concerned, just as scary as witches.” The whites of her eyes were visible as she glanced at Tristan, who ran in between us. “…no offense.”

“None taken.” He huffed. “You said the guy you stabbed was already d**d?”

I’d given him a rundown of what Cassidy had told me, even though I didn’t exactly understand what happened myself. Lars was d**d, yet undead? I knew without asking that magic was responsible, but it was a kind of magic I hadn’t learned about yet-and one I wasn’t sure I wanted to.

“Sure was.” She replied, her voice thick and tinged with both nausea and fear. “He decomposed after I k****d him, but I swear I could smell him the second I walked through the door. I…I thought he left some meat out or something and it spoiled.”

Tristan nodded grimly, which looked odd considering we were still running like lunatics through the forest in the d**d of night. “That’s definitely the work of magic, which means the Vampire’s are working with witches. Or at least, some of them are.”

“Lola, maybe you should mind-link the warriors.” Cassidy huffed, increasing her pace even though she was barefoot and sporting a mini dress.

“Cordelia put a spell on the territory. It’s supposed to alert Asher and I if there’s a breach, but I don’t think it worked.” I replied, a bit reluctant to admit this second part. “I don’t want these Vampire’s k****d…which is exactly what the patrol teams will do.”

“You-you haven’t called them?” Cassidy gaped, stumbling over a root that protruded from the ground. If it weren’t for Tristan’s quick reflexes, she would’ve face planted.

I didn’t answer her question, but instead wracked my brain for a solution, for some strategy that would allow two werewolves and one vampire to apprehend not only six vampires, but a d**d/undead biker named Lars. This was one of those impossible situations only magic would solve, yet I had no clue how to call on the mysterious force that sometimes filled my body and made my skin tingle like a livewire.

No one was coming to help. It was only us, surrounded by forest so dense that almost no moonlight could break through. The canopies overhead only allowed the smallest sliver, which is what lit our way as we ran.

We were alone, but not completely.

The shadows around us were frantic, throwing whispers at rapid fire that I couldn’t even begin to make out.

Asher would be furious, and so would everyone else but I was given this ability for a reason, and I’d be damned if I weren’t going to use it in times of dire need. I couldn’t rely on my magic, not without proper training, but I could rely on the otherworldly power of the shadows.

“Help us.” I hissed, raising my voice so that it carved through the trees and into every dark corner of the forest.

Both Tristan and Cassidy gave me identical looks of confusion, though Tristan’s quickly morphed to understanding. It was that understanding that darkened his eyes and hardened his jaw. I swore beneath the rustling of foliage and the crunch of earth beneath our feet, I could hear his teeth grinding together.

“What are you-” Cassidy began, her words faltering when I dug my heels into the ground and stumbled to a stop.

“I know you can hear me!” I snarled at them, turning in a circle to stare at the writhing mounds of darkness that hid behind the thick trees and large stones. “Why are you so afraid of me! Why now?!”

“Fear? Lola, the shadows can’t feel fear.” Tristan said, his eyes darting in all directions. I couldn’t tell if he were searching for the shadows, or for a sign of the Vampire’s that chased us.