I stood and held out a hand. He took it, and I pulled him to his feet.
“Come on. Let’s go help Rachel. I’m sure we can find something to keep you alive until dinner.”
* * *
“Did you remember your phone?”
“Yes.” I pulled my cell from the inside pocket of my leather jacket and held it up to Rachel.
“Weapons?”
I pointed to the sword scabbard next to my seat and patted one of the large saddlebags on my bike. “All set.”
“Cash? Credit card?”
I placed my hands on Rachel’s shoulders and met her anxious gaze. “I’m good. Don’t worry.”
Her eyes misted. “How can I not worry? My little girl is going out into the world.”
“I’m not little anymore, and I can take care of myself,” I said in a soothing voice.
She sniffed softly. “I know you can, but that doesn’t make it any easier. Now I know how my mother felt when I left home the first time.”
I pulled her in and hugged her tightly. “I love you, Rachel.”
“I love you, too,” she said hoarsely.
We broke apart, both of us on the verge of tears. I looked at Mason, who stood with his parents a few feet away.
“Ready?” he asked, his eyes lit with anticipation.
I nodded, afraid my voice would crack if I spoke. This was no way for a warrior to behave.
Rachel handed me my helmet, and I donned it as I straddled the seat of my bike. When Mason and I had bought our motorcycles last year, he’d gotten a sleek black Ducati, the bike favored by most warriors. I’d gone for a more classic look and feel. I loved my dark-red Harley Davidson.
“Call me when you get there,” Rachel ordered.
“I will.”
I took a deep breath and started my bike, glad no one could see the tear that escaped and rolled down my cheek. I heard the Ducati rumble to life a few seconds before Mason pulled up beside me. We looked at each other, and I gave him a thumbs-up. And then we were off.
Side by side, we rode to the main gate that was already open for us. As we passed the gatehouse, I had a moment of panic, but it passed quickly. I stared at the road stretching out before us, and exhilaration replaced the butterflies in my stomach. This was it, the moment Mason and I had talked about for years. It felt almost surreal.
We reached the first bend in the road that would take us out of sight of home, and I slowed to look back at the sprawling stronghold behind the tall iron gates.
Mason’s voice came over the speaker in my helmet. “You good?”
“Yes.”
I sped up until I was beside him, and together, we rode away from Longstone.
Chapter 2
Beth
“Beth, are you sure this is the right place?”
“I think so.”
I slowed my bike and stared at the large one-story Spanish villa surrounded by tall trees and perfectly manicured grounds. It looked like something you’d see in a celebrity magazine, definitely not what I’d imagined a command center to look like. But then, this was Los Angeles, and the Council was generous when it came to outfitting and housing its warriors.
The arched front door opened, and a short, pretty brunette in jeans and a sweater came out. One look at her as she walked toward us told me she couldn’t be a warrior. I glanced at the phone mounted to my dash. How could I have messed up the address?
“Hi,” she called over the rumble of our motorcycles.
I turned off the Harley and removed my helmet, shaking out my long blonde hair.
“Hi. I’m sorry. I think we might have taken a wrong turn.”
The girl smiled. “Not if your names are Beth and Mason. We heard you’d be arriving today.”
“Oh.” I stared at her for a moment, unsure of what to say. “Are you…” My voice lowered. “…a warrior?”
She laughed heartily. “I guess I am. Don’t worry. I get that a lot.”
Relieved, but still confused, I dismounted and held out my hand to her. “Beth Hansen.”
“Sara Grey,” she said as we shook hands.
I did a double take.
“The Sara Grey?”
I stared at the girl who was rumored to be half Fae, had single-handedly killed a Master, and was mated to the legendary Nikolas Danshov. She was as famous as her mate. Maybe more.
Her green eyes sparkled with amusement. “The one and only, but I prefer Sara.” She turned to Mason. “And you must be Mason Young.”
He took her hand, looking a little awed. I had to bite back a grin because I knew exactly what was going through his mind. Wherever Sara Grey went, so did her mate.
Lord Tristan wasn’t the only reason Mason had wanted to go to Westhorne. It was also the home of Nikolas Danshov. Every new warrior, including me, dreamed of fighting alongside him. But I had my reasons for not wanting to go to Westhorne, and not even the chance to work with Nikolas could override those.
When we’d learned about the new command center in Los Angeles, Mason and I had immediately requested to be placed there. It was a great opportunity to work with seasoned warriors in the field, and the city was a hotbed of demon activity. We hadn’t heard who would be running the center, and the last person either of us had expected to find here was Nikolas.
Sara waved at the house. “Come inside, and I’ll give you the grand tour.”
We grabbed our stuff and followed Sara into the house. The wide foyer opened into a spacious living area with floor-to-ceiling windows at the back that looked out over a courtyard and a large pool.
Leaving our bags near the door, we walked to the nearest end of the U-shaped house that had been converted into a busy control room. I looked around the room, taking in the computers and banks of monitors at the various workstations set up around the room. On the wall was the largest computer screen I’d ever seen, displaying a map of Los Angeles and the surrounding areas. Tiny colored dots moved on the screen, and it took me several seconds to realize they were locators for our warriors out in the city.
I’d been to the security center at Longstone a few times, but that was nothing compared to this. I was more than a little impressed by the size of it all as Sara walked us around, introducing us to the people there.
“This is the weapons room.” Sara opened a door to a store room filled with shelves of weapons and other gear. “If you need anything, you’ll probably find it in here. If not, let Raoul know, and he’ll commission it for you.”
She closed the door, and we moved on to the next one.
“And this is the gym.”
We entered the room where two men were fighting, their movements so fast it was hard to follow them even when I used my demon sight. They stopped, and one of the men turned to smile at Sara. I didn’t need to hear Mason’s sharp intake of breath to know who we were about to meet.
“Beth and Mason, this is Nikolas and Raoul. Nikolas runs the command center, and Raoul is his second.”
“Nice to meet you,” I said, proud of how confident I sounded despite the nervous flutter in my stomach.
Mason muttered a hello.
The men walked over to shake our hands. They were the same height with black hair, but that was where the similarities ended. Raoul had an easy manner about him. Nikolas was friendly, but there was an edge to him, an aura of strength in every movement.