“We were young. It’s over and done with.”

The gulf remained between them. But it felt a little smaller.

“It’s up here on the left.” He indicated the small gas station as he turned into the drive and pulled into a parking space.

“I’ll walk with you. Use my othersight to see if I can sense any of the mage energy. Then you let me talk to the people inside, please.”

“Will you let me watch if you get rough?”

She snorted as she got out. “Maybe. If you’re good.”

A breeze sent cold air over her face as she stood, throwing open her othersight and taking in the area. She noted the way the wolves looked, their magick deep green with hints of earth and sunshine.

The paler blues and reds of human energy. The deep azure of witches. She paused, moving closer.

Allie had been here. Michelle’s heartbeat picked up as she eased her way around the side of the building, and a wave of nausea hit from the mage energy hanging thick in the air.

“They were here.”

Josh stepped in front of her, Damon and GiGi to either side. He wrinkled his nose. “I can scent her magick. Just a hint. Yours is rich and powerful. Hers…”

“She’s weak.” Michelle tamped her panic down.

“I can scent the difference between the witch magick and the mage. The mage smells like rotting things.” Damon’s lip curled.

“Stolen magick is perishable,” Michelle murmured.

“What do you mean?” Josh stuck close, and she could far more easily sense his dual nature now. His wolf seemed to press against the human skin.

“Witches, Weres—our magick is natural. It comes from what we are. In the case of witches, from the earth, the air, all the energy from natural things. For you I’m told it’s the magick of the shift. Of the way you hold your forms. I guess Vampires have it too in their own way. Anyway, it’s inborn. We use it, we get more. It’s part of us like our blood. Mages steal it, but it’s not natural for them. That’s why it’s magick with a k when it’s ours and what they have is magic. Mages use it to feed their own power but it doesn’t renew like ours does. So they need more. And the turned witches? Well they’re like junkies. They use the stolen magick so often that it eventually burns out their connection to the earth. To their own magick. They have been working with the mages to get a hit of the witches they’ve been kidnapping. What they steal can’t be kept around. It will eventually, for want of a better word, evaporate. That’s probably why you smell rotting things.”

“I didn’t really know all that background. I mean I knew this was happening, but not all the detail.”

“There’s more detail I’m sure. But I’m a coven witch, we aren’t a clan, and we don’t really know a whole lot about all the rest of the Others. Gage told me some, and when we got some training from Clan Owen about this stuff, they did a brief history lesson. There’s a whole world of information I need to know.”

“I’ll help however I can.”

She caught movement out of the corner of her eye, a guy running out the back door of the convenience store.

“Shit.” She took off after him. “Stop! Police, stop and put your hands up,” she called.

Adrenaline pumped through her system as her feet hit the pavement. He led her away from the main road and through a stand of trees. In the distance she caught the scent of water.

She heard the pounding of feet behind her. “Don’t leave that gas station! I need to know if someone else tries to run away.”

Josh pulled next to her, running easily as her lungs began to burn. “Damon and GiGi are keeping watch.”

She indicated he head to the right and she’d go left. He nodded and peeled away. She drew on her reserves and sped. Their runner was so close. She ordered him to stop one last time and he ignored her.

Drawing a deep breath, she gathered her strength and her power in the soles of her feet and sprang, leaping forward, grabbing a handful of him and taking him down just as Josh sped out of the trees from the right, his teeth bared in a snarl, eyes narrowed.

The guy beneath her tried to buck her off so she dug her knee into his back and bent his arm up, pinioning his wrist enough that if he continued, he’d break something. He shrieked and stilled.

“God. I don’t know why you guys always do this. This is the eventuality. I will get you, and if you make me run, I’m going to be cranky.”

“I didn’t do anything!”

“I told you to stop. I identified myself. You kept running. Now, back to my earlier point about eventualities.” She managed to cuff him before getting to her feet and toeing him to his back. “Hi. I’m Officer Slattery and I’d very much like to ask you some questions.”

“I didn’t do anything!”

“We’ve covered that. I want to ask you some questions.”

“Fuck off, bitch.”

Josh growled. Honest to goodness growled and the hair on the back of her neck stood up. The guy on the ground stilled and she got to her haunches.

“That’s officer bitch to you. Now, what’s your name?”

He didn’t answer so she patted him down and pulled out his wallet, flipping it open. “Charlie Hixton.” She pulled out her phone. She really should have checked in with Portland PD when she arrived in town, but it was too late for that now so she’d go through her own people first and then do the checking in. Easier to apologize than to ask permission.

The dispatcher had her hold on while she ran a check on him.

Very quietly, Josh leaned in and told her they had a contact in the police department and gave her a name.

“You work here at the gas station, Charlie?” She hauled him to his feet and nudged him to walk back.

“Priors. Armed robbery. Reduced sentence because you testified. A few assault raps. Did some time for that.” She kept listening as dispatch continued to fill her in. “Car theft. Check forging. You sure do like getting arrested, Charlie. Burglary. Felons aren’t supposed to be carrying weapons, and here you are with a handgun and a knife. Tsk tsk.”

Damon and GiGi waited, as Josh had said they would, in the parking lot. She instructed dispatch to call Portland PD, giving them the name Josh had told her, and get them out to pick Charlie up. He was in violation of his parole, and if he was in jail, she’d know where he was.

“So, while we wait, you want to answer my questions so I can say you were helpful? Probably knock some time off for you.”

“Fine. No I don’t work here. I do odd jobs for my brother-in-law. I was visiting Bobby, the owner of this place.”

“Why’d you run out the back door and do not waste my time telling me you were on your way home and you like running.”

“Just stopping by. I looked out the window and saw you get out. You got cop written all over you. I didn’t need the hassle. Bobby’s a felon too.”

A double parole violation with the weapons possession.

“You ever see this woman?” She held out a picture of Allie. He shook his head.

“I’d remember her. I like blondes.”

She curled her lip, barely restraining the urge to shake him.

“Know anyone with a blue SUV? Jeep Cherokee.”

That he did know. She saw recognition in his features even as he tried to school it. Christ, no wonder he got arrested so many times. He was a dumbass.

“Everyone and their brother has an SUV. Hell you drove up in one.”

“Sure I did. But we both know you know exactly which SUV I mean.”

“I really don’t. I know at least ten people with SUVs. Can’t say I notice the colors much.”

“I think I need to talk to Bobby about this whole thing.” She stepped away, her hand still at his back, and he leapt at her, knocking her down, snarling as he tried to bite her.

Her head cracked against the asphalt so hard she saw stars, and the edges of her vision grayed slightly.

Josh hauled him off and slammed him against the car hard enough she heard the air burst from his lips. “I should gut you for that,” he growled low, the words laced with menace enough to bring a little fear even to Michelle.