Heart of Flames

Chapter 1

Chapter One

Renault Duchanes would burn for this.

Gabriel could scarcely see through the haze of his red-hot fury. His hand trembled, the phone clutched inside it seconds from cracking.

“You’ve just signed your death warrant, bloodsucker,” he warned, but the line had already gone dead. Duchanes had made his singular demand—hand over the witch, or the wolf dies—and that was that.

They had until dawn to comply. And in the scant few hours remaining, Gabriel was certain Cole would endure the kind of torture that would make hell look like an amusement park.

Fuck.

Gabriel closed his eyes, trying to focus.

Plan. He needed a f*****g plan. But even if Duchanes hadn’t warned them to come alone, they were out in the middle of the woods, hours away from anyone who could’ve helped. With Cole’s life already in mortal danger, Gabriel wasn’t about to put Dorian, Aiden, Colin, or Isabelle in the line of fire.

Beyond that, there was no one else he trusted to outmaneuver Duchanes, rescue the wolf, and keep his woman safe.

Gabriel sighed. In this, he and his witch were utterly on their own, which meant it would all come down to him. He didn’t give a f**k what Duchanes had demanded—Jacinda wasn’t getting anywhere near the bastard.

For a moment, the world fell silent, the only sounds the frantic pounding of his heart and the echo of Duchanes’ threats.

I want my witch returned to me…

The thought of that wretched vampire putting his hands on Jacinda, using her, tormenting her, feeding from her…

The phone exploded in his hand.

By the time Gabriel saw the blood and felt the sharp bite of broken glass and metal, the wounds were already healing.

If only he could say the same for his heart.

“Gabriel,” a soft voice broke through the tempest of his thoughts. Almost a whisper. Almost a prayer.

Jacinda…

The lightest touch of her hand against his face brought him back from the precipice.

His vision finally cleared.

His rage, however, did not.

If anything, looking into her bright blue gaze only further stoked the flames.

“It’s okay,” Jacinda said gently. “We’ll figure this out.”

“Nothing to figure out. I told you I’d destroy anyone who dared to touch you, did I not?”

The faintest smile lit up her face, and she slid her hands behind his neck, her warm body pressed firmly against his. “Actually, you said you’d bleed and burn them. Monster, man, or mage.”

“Brilliant. That’s precisely what I’ll do, then. In that order.” He brushed a quick kiss across her mouth. The contact was all-too-brief, but if Gabriel lingered so much as another minute over those soft lips, the courage to walk out that door would surely abandon him. “I’ll call you when it’s done.”

She glanced down at the shattered phone still gripped in his hand. “Right. And while you’re off vanquishing the enemy, I’m supposed to just, what? Netflix and chill with my knockoff Irish coffee?”

“Yes.” He turned away from her to hunt down his clothes. He found them on the floor, half-buried by the comforter he and Jacinda had been wrapped up in most of the night, and quickly changed. “I’ll find a way to get in touch. Just… just lock the doors and windows and lie low until I or one of my brothers comes back for you.”

Ignoring his protests, Jacinda retrieved her clothes from the floor, tugging on the jeans she’d worn earlier. Dirt from the Enchanted Gardens still clung to the bottoms, a stark reminder of their passionate tumble beneath the rosebushes that stirred Gabriel’s c**k to rapt attention.

But when he met her gaze again, it wasn’t lust he found there.

Only anger.

“So that’s the whole plan?” she said, hands on her hips, wild curls damn near crackling with the sudden force of her emotion. “Storm the castle, bleed and burn the bad guys, save the wolf?”

“Clear and concise. Less room for error that way.”

“Less room for success, too.”

“It will work, Jacinda. It has to.”

“You’ve left out a few crucial steps, Prince.”

“Such as?”

“How are you going to capture Duchanes and save Cole?”

“I’m not going to capture Duchanes. I’m going to eviscerate him. Wait, no—bleed and burn him. That’s what I said. Even better.”

“We need him alive, Gabriel. He’s our only shot at breaking the curse.”

“The curse is the least of my worries tonight.”

“Not mine.”

“Jacinda, we don’t have time to argue about this. I need to—”

“How are we supposed to get past the security guys, anyway? Cole said the warehouse is—”

“We’re not getting past anyone.” Gabriel shoved his feet into his boots and grabbed his jacket, wishing like hell he could trade it all for the comforter instead, spend the rest of the night before the fireplace in a storm of hot, sweaty limbs and feverish kisses and…

No. He needed to lock Jacinda inside, secure the cabin, and make for Newark. The sooner he could reach Duchanes, the sooner he could end this nightmare.

The sooner he could get back to his woman.

“This is a solo mission, Jace,” he said firmly. “And if I’ve got any hope of saving the wolf, I need to leave now.”

“Has anyone ever told you you’re super adorable when you’re full of s**t?” She shot him a condescending smile, then dropped it, her face turning stone-cold serious. “Go shovel the driveway so we can get the car out of here. I’ll put on the coffee.”

“Jacinda, I told you. You’re staying in this cabin until—”

“If you so much as think about leaving without me, I’m never talking to you again. Or kissing you. Or doing that thing with my tongue and the—”

In a flash he had her pinned against the wall, hands fisting her hair, mouth close to her ear. “Do not disobey me on this, little moonflower. Your protests, however valiant, are pointless. You’re staying here. End of discussion. Understood?”

“f**k off, Prince.” She shoved against his chest, glaring up at him with new fire in her eyes. “I’m coming whether you like it or not. Your only choice is whether I ride shotgun with you or strap on a pair of snowshoes and make for the highway. Maybe some trucker will take pity and offer me a lift.”

Gabriel tightened his fist in her hair, trying to fight off the urge to kiss her. How the f**k could he be so enraged and so turned on at the same time?

“You wouldn’t dare,” he warned.

“Try me, dickhead.”

Heat rose between them, a whiff of hellfire scenting the air. A low, possessive growl rumbled through Gabriel’s chest, but Jacinda refused to back down.

“What’s it going to be, vampire?” she asked. “Am I riding with you, or taking my chances with that trucker?”

“You’re bloody impossible, witch.”

“Nope. Just determined.”

“Determined to get yourself killed?” Gabriel finally released her and paced the room, red haze clouding his vision once more. “Are you mad? For f**k’s sake, woman. As much as I love talking to you, and kissing you, and especially that thing you do with your tongue, I’d give it all up in a heartbeat for a chance to keep you safe. Don’t you get that?”

“Doesn’t matter. Renault said—”

“It’s a trap, Jacinda. The moment we set foot in that warehouse, he’ll take you from me, and I can’t—”

“Of course he’ll take me! That’s the deal—me for Cole. There are no other options here, Gabriel. If we don’t give him what he wants—or at least make it look like we’re giving him what he wants—Cole’s dead. And who’s next? One of your brothers?”

“Not happening. I’ll find Cole and deal with Duchanes before anything—”

“You don’t know that. Renault’s a smug asshole, but he’s not completely stupid. He’ll expect a double-cross.”

“Doesn’t mean he’ll be able to defend against it.”

“And if he can? What do you think happens to me then?” She grabbed her coat and boots, ignoring his protests. “He knows we’re here, Prince. He’s obviously got people watching the place. The minute he realizes I’m not with you, I’m dead. And this time, I doubt his goons will do me the courtesy of leaving a decapitated wolf as a warning.”

“Jacinda…”

Gabriel cursed under his breath.

Fucking hell, she was right. Gabriel knew it—he’d known it as soon as Duchanes had issued the demand. There was no way around this. They either showed up together as ordered, or the dawn would bring nothing but death.

Cole’s. Jacinda’s. Dorian’s. His own.

“Trust me on this,” she said, reaching for his hand. “Please, Gabriel.”

Gabriel finally stopped pacing and turned to face her again. Slid his hands back into her silky hair. Tried one more time to break through her obstinate, reckless, beautiful audacity—a thing he loved and loathed in equal measure.

“You risked your life to save Charlotte,” he said softly. “Now you’re ready to do it all over again for Cole?”

“Seriously? How is that even a question?”

“Because it’s… You’re just… If anything were to… Ah, moonflower.” Gabriel sighed and shook his head. As much as he wanted to chain her to a chair and lock her in the closet to keep her safe, he couldn’t help but admire her courage. Her fire. “What happened to the woman ready to sacrifice the whole world just to save her father’s soul?”

Tears glazed her eyes, and when she finally answered him, her voice was little more than a sigh. “Maybe she realized she wouldn’t be able to look her father in the eyes if she sat on the sidelines and let her friends die.”

Gabriel nodded, touched his forehead to hers. There was no use in perpetuating the argument—he’d already lost. “Then let’s just be sure we don’t let anyone die tonight, shall we?”

“Thanks for the ‘we,’ Prince.”

“We’re partners, are we not?” he teased.

“Despite your best efforts to play the lone hero…” She pulled back and grinned, then thrust out her hand. “Hell yeah, we’re partners.”

Gabriel took it. Held on tight. But he couldn’t return her smile—not when he thought about the odds.

“I’m still not sure what the f**k we’re doing,” he said. “What we’re walking into at that warehouse. Duchanes and his vampires? A hundred grays ready to attack? Dark mages preparing for another sacrifice?”

“Whatever it is, we can handle it. Together. We just need three things—well, four, counting the coffee.” Jacinda headed to the kitchen.

Gabriel followed, digging out the travel mugs as she set the pot to brew. “And the other three things?”

“A halfway decent plan, a little magic, and your favorite—leverage.”

“Second favorite.” Gabriel slid a hand around the back of her neck, tracing her earlobe with his thumb. “Weapons, Jace. That’s my first favorite, and you left it off your list entirely. We’re not going in there unarmed.”

“Silly vampire.” She glanced up at him and smirked, her eyes turning demon-black, a hint of silver-blue hellfire flashing through them like an electric current. “Who said anything about going in unarmed?”