The Secrets of the Panther
Chapter 51

KAT

It has been a long day, but I’m so happy to have my mate back with me.

I know Izzy has been busy dealing with Linda, as Blake made sure Dale told us everything that happened when he came back to get Lena.

I’m so glad that Izzy and Graham got their answers, and also happy that Linda is dead after what she did to my sister, even though I would have loved to witness it.

“Penny for your thoughts,” says a voice from behind, which makes me smile. I turn to Todd. “I’m just thinking that is so nice that Linda got what she deserved,” I said.

But the doubt of what Dale said that Michael is still alive haunts me more, as Todd and I tried to kill him.

I look at him, knowing as he has the same thoughts as I am.

Todd looks at me. “Michael is on your mind too, isn’t he?” he says. “I know. I feel sick to my stomach. I thought I killed him.”

I look at his worried face, knowing this is getting to him slightly. “It’s not your fault, hunny,” I say as I walk up and wrap my arms around him. “He deserved it and a lot more.” He places a kiss on my head as I lean my head on his chest and sniff his scent. It calms me and my panther down slightly.

We have been on our own in the cafe just coming up to an hour now, and there has not been one customer. But I had to open my mouth as the bell rang. I move my arms from around my mate and walk over to the counter, but the scent that hits me as my panther growls loud in my head.

Todd is behind me. A growl slips past his lips.

I stare at the person in front who doesn’t seem afraid of us.

“I’m not here to harm you,” she says. “I need to talk to you about something. As I know, we have a mutual friend that we want dead. I think you should listen to what I have to say.”

“You’re a witch. Why would we listen to you?” says Todd through gritted teeth.

I couldn’t help but stare at the woman in front of me. She looks familiar, but then the photo flashed back, the photo that Izzy brought back with her, the one of the elder with Graham and Linda, and another woman standing in front of me.

What the hell is she doing here?

“Why should we listen to you for?” I growl. “You help kill my sister. If Izzy replaces you here...” but she cuts me off. “I know she will kill me,” she says.

“She is one power panther,” she says.

A growl slips past my lips. “Don’t,” is all I say.

She stares back. “Look, I’m going to get straight to the point,” she says. “Michael is after Izzy. He wants revenge and has been hell-bent on getting her. He is the one that has been sending the hunters after her and the rogues, but there is more,” she says as she walks over to a chair and sits.

She looks back at me and nods to the chair next to her. “Sit, please,” she says. “I haven’t got long as they might come and look for me.”

I move away, and Todd follows, not leaving my side. He walks with me as we pull out the chairs and sit down. “Why do you want to talk to me?” I ask as my butt sits on the seat.

She looks at me. “I know about Izzy’s daughter, and do the others. Drake saw Allie and has a photo of her,” she says.

I tense, but Todd growls. “If he comes and takes...” he says, but the woman shakes her head. “He won’t take her. He wants Izzy more.”

She sighs. “Michael is a vampire. My mate saved his life thinking he was good, but obviously, he was completely wrong,” she says with a sigh.

“Well, he saved him. He has become attached to his every emotion, desire, and even revenge tactics,” she says. “For every one that this happens to, it’s called a sire link which cannot be broken unless one or both die.”

“I have told you this, as Michael has no clue about it. I have a spell that can break the link, but I will need help from another witch or Izzy, maybe both. Once the link is broken, Izzy is free to kill Michael by any means necessary,” she says.

“Why would she want to help you after what you did?” I say through gritted teeth.

She looks at me. “I love my mate, and he is a strong vampire who has been sucked into all of this,” she says. “I am also a victim in all this, as I have a son from another relationship. He is a werewolf. I fell pregnant, and he left me as soon as he found his mate. I love and want my son back, but Michael took him away somewhere I do not know where.”

I can’t help but stare at the woman. “Why, Izzy?” I ask again. “You seem powerful to me, especially after killing my sister as you did, forcing the potion down her throat.”

She looks at me. “I’m not as powerful as you may think, but I dapple in dark magic, which has taken its toll on me,” she says. She lifts her top sleeve to show some black veins appearing and moving. It looked like something out of a horror film.

She pulls down the sleeve and looks at us. “I’m dying. Everything the Elder has been asking from me has taken its toll on me, and I know I can’t do the spell for the sire bond. I want to spend the rest of my life with my mate, and he is coming here soon. Michael separated us for so long as he thinks it will make my mate more savage as he is,” she says and sighs. “Michael is one strong vampire with a thrust for blood, but he also likes to kill or even play with his food before he eats.”

She looks towards the door and back at me. “I want to help you. I know where they are based and can give you details, but I want you to help replace my son. He is innocent in all this.”

I can feel Todd tense. “Why should we help you?” he says through gritted teeth.

“I thought I could try something good for once. I am even willing to sacrifice myself to help you,” she says and stands. She looks down at me. “They use the tunnels to get around here without being seen as Elder Johnson gave them the plans of the pack grounds,” she says. “If you can stop them that way, you might win the war that will happen. There won’t be just hunters and werewolves coming here,” she says. “Vampires too. My mate has been recruiting vicious ones that will die for a stupid young vamp cause if they can get blood or even kill some werewolves.”

She walks away, and we both stand up, but she stops. She looks over her shoulder at us. “I am sorry about the part I played in your sister's death. Elder Johnson never cared for anyone except that brat daughter of his; he even sacrificed his own mate for the potions.”

That sent a shudder down my spine.

“I have to go,” she says. “Please kill them all and save my son, even if you have to kill me and my mate. He had nothing to do with any of his.”

She opens the door, but I adjust myself in the seat. “Wait, what’s your son’s name?” I ask her.

She stops and looks back at me with a smile. “Nolan,” and with that, she disappears through the door.

Todd gets up and heads to the door to see if he could replace out where she went, but his face is stern. “She’s gone,” he says as the door closes.

I sit back down in the seat I was sitting in.

I look at Todd. “We need to tell everyone about this,” I said.

He nods. “We will, but I think we should wait for a day or two,” he says as he looks towards the door. “I think we should tell Luna Lauren, Anita, and the alpha’s first, though.”

I nod.

We close up the cafe and head to the pack house. It is getting dark now when we reach there.

We see Anita and Alpha Dawson walking down the stairs when we walk in. They smile at us, but they look concerned as soon as they see our faces. “What’s the matter?” asks Anita in a worried voice.

“Can you get Alpha Derek and Luna Lauren in the office?” I say. “We just had a visitor in the cafe that they might want to know about.”

Alpha Dawson looks blankly at us and comes back to us seconds later. “They are both already in the office. Let’s speak to them,” he says.

We follow them to the office and walk in. Both of them smile at us as we walk in, but when they see our faces, they stand and look concerned. “What’s wrong?” asks Alpha Derek.

Once the door closes, I tell them about our encounter with the witch.

Once I finish, everyone is tense and on edge.

“Why would she come to you, though?” says Anita to me, but all I can do is shrug. “Why would she come to you, though?” asks Anita, but I can only shrug. Not only that, he is also threatening to come for Allie too.”

I couldn’t help the growl that slips through.

I look at Alpha Derek, who was on the computer, but he looks back at me. “I emailed councilwoman Tilly to send over the pack grounds’ plans. We can take care of the tunnels. We don’t want anyone else coming in here,” he says with a grim look. “Also, I am placing more guards on patrol around the whole territory to make sure there is a presence around.”

I nod, but I am more worried about Izzy and Allie.

Before anyone else can talk, a knock at the door, and Alpha Derek summons them to come in. As the door opens, Graham walks through.

“What is he...” I say, but Graham stops me. “Kat, I’m sorry for everything,” he says and looks at me with sorrow in my eyes. “I never knew I was being spelled.”

I close my mouth and nod. I don’t want to speak to him, but he clears his throat. “I met Allie and even spoken to Izzy as well,” he says, and I look back at him, stunned.

He smiles. “Both of them look like Lucy,” he whispers.

“Yeah, they do,” I whisper as an image of Lucy floods my mind. It is uncanny how they look like my sister; you could pass them all off as sisters if my sister were here.

I could feel my heart ached slightly at the thought of my sister.

“I told Graham about what you just told me through mind link,” says Alpha Derek. “He wants to help.”

I look between the both of them and nod. “How are we going to keep the girls safe?” asks Todd.

“I think I can come up with something,” Graham says and looks at me. “Allie is the nursery, and we only let a few people in that she knows to pick her up. But I think it would be easier if all of you, including Allie and Izzy, move into the pack house so we can ensure no one can get to them.”

“Sounds ok for Allie, but what about Izzy?” I ask.

“I think she can look after herself, but Blake can always be with her,” says Graham.

“He is taking her on a pack house date tomorrow,” he says with a smirk.

My mouth drops open. “A date?”

He nods. “I told Izzy to take it slow and to go on a date as they can get to know one another better, even just talk,” he says.

I can’t help but smile at him.

Finally, she is opening up more. I thought hearing about Michael would have sent her over the edge and planning on leaving.

“I am placing the pack grounds on lockdown,” says Alpha Derek. “No one in or out. We can train and get a plan in place. We will tell Blake and Izzy tomorrow. Let them have some time to be normal before all this starts,” he says with a smile.

I agree with him, but I am worried that this might start sooner than we think.