His touch sent shivers up and down my spine as I took his hands. He pulled me closer, into his embrace. One hand softly stroked my face and moved back to cup the back of my neck as his lips found mine. Tears welled behind my closed eyelids. Heat radiated from every part of my body where we touched. My heart was thundering in my chest. I had never felt that way before, so intensely alive. I could hear his heart pounding in sync with mine. The kiss lasted forever, my tongue found his, deepening our union. Tingles followed his hand as it left my neck and passed down over my shoulder. Down further the fingers went as they brushed the side of my breast, teasing with what would come. Hot flashes shot from between my legs as I melted into his body. I pushed him backwards, turning him so that he fell back onto the bed. I stood over him, drinking in the sight of this gorgeous man who would be all mine in moments. My eyes must have been full of the lust that I felt to my core. His echoed what I felt, but on a much softer tone. I saw need in his face, primal need.
I knelt in front of him and placed my hands on the outsides of his legs just above the knees. Slowly I pushed them up, following the hard curve of his thigh muscles. Metisse’s deep moan was music to my ears as my fingers spread and moved to the top of his legs, inching towards the hard bulge in his beautifully tailored designer trousers. The material strained to its limits as his engorged member pushed to escape the limitations. My thumbs rubbed the material over his testicles as the fingers closed around the big protrusion, eliciting another even deeper moan. Metisse lay back on the bed, his hands bunching the sheets as he attempted to control his lust.
The zipper gave easily as I pulled it down, the belt followed, and I released his manhood from his briefs. I pulled his pants and briefs down past his knees and over his shoes. My hands pressed his legs open and I moved forwards towards his core. I took his cock in my hands and softly let my tongue flick over the engorged head. Metisse groaned and writhed under my ministrations. I took him in my mouth and slowly let my lips move down the shaft, engulfing him in my warmth. His hands left the sheets and I felt his fingers entwine in my hair.
He wouldn’t be able to take too much of this, so I switched tactics. I stood up and in one fluid movement I pulled up the skirt of my dress and took off my thong. I crawled up onto the bed and straddled his body, my wet core just inches from his throbbing member. He grabbed my hips and tried to push me down, but I resisted. This would be on my terms. Not his. My tempo was slower—excruciatingly slow. His brow creased with the effort of holding back. I was driving him nuts. To tell you the truth, I wasn’t doing much better myself, I just bluffed better.
I lowered myself onto the tip of his cock and started to rotate my hips a little, just enough to rub my wetness against the top of him. He went bananas. His hands left my hips and covered his head in his desperation. I continued two more rotations then plunged down. I gasped as his hot member filled me to the hilt. He cried out, grabbed my hips again and pushed even further into me. There was no more holding back, I moved up and down his shaft, helped by his hands as he picked up my rhythm. Stars exploded behind my closed eyes as I rode him. Our moans filled the room and reverberated inside my head.
Metisse grabbed me and flipped me over, never leaving my core. He plunged into me again and again. Our need dictating the speed and fierceness of our union. Heat radiated up from my core and enveloped every cell in my body. Waves of pleasure rode up from our union to my torso and my head. I felt all of my muscles cramp up and let loose uncontrollably. Metisse’s body stiffened and I felt his cock pulsate deep within me as he reached his climax. I rode it and let loose mine. I heard a cry of ecstasy that filled the room, faintly recognising it as my own. Metisse growled as he shot his seed into me, again and again.
Spent, he lowered himself onto my heaving body as we both tried to catch our breath.
Man, that was intense. I was no stranger to sex, but this was something else.
Something very, very deep.
Chapter 19
My mind was confused as I lay in his arms that night. The sound of his heartbeat and the soft rhythmic breathing calmed me as never before. I felt secure there in this massive bed. In that idiotic grand building. In his arms.
I wanted to be there. Not just then, but again. More than once. I wanted to be exactly where I was—with him.
What the hell was all that about? My plan was to seduce him and get him away from his clan so that I could fulfil my mission. I was here to kill him—not to get emotionally involved. Love was a complication; one I could do without. It had never served me before and I could easily forsake all the commitment and stupid lovey-dovey stuff. I wasn’t a romantic person. I was a killer, an assassin. Love wasn’t meant for me. It didn’t fit my lifestyle. It didn’t fit my plans.
My plans went way further than just this mission.
This stint as an assassin for the Council was just a means to an end; the end of someone in the Council. I would exact my revenge for what he or she had done to my mother. For all the years we had to run and leave friends, homes and everything that was dear to us. They took everything from me; my childhood, my innocence and the one person in the whole world I loved; my mother. I was so close to finding out who killed her that it hurt. I felt the anger rise and the hairs begin to push through the skin on my spine. My fangs ached to break the skin of my gums and emerge. It took an enormous effort to stop the claws from growing at the end of my fingers. Only the steady heartbeat of my lover calmed me enough to take back control and calm my nerves.
My lover. It sounded good. Too bad he was just a target. Him and the biker. I could get used to his attention. He made me feel good. Important. Even loved. I knew that he adored me. It was clear in everything he did and said, but most of all in his body language. Our shared heritage acknowledged each other. Spoke in a language that wasn’t human or aloud. He had found his mate. It was an instinct he could not refuse or ignore. He wanted me close, twenty-four-seven. Forever.
Well, forever could be a lot shorter than he thought. Being only half Sabre gave me the power to refuse what he couldn’t. I felt the pull, just as he did. But for me it wasn’t all encompassing. I could refuse. I could live on without him. I could kill him. Well, in theory.
Only it seemed such a shame. A waste of a perfectly good man. There was something about him that touched a nerve with me. He was a player, or had been, but that wasn’t his essence. It was the boredom that all immortals go through before they find their mate. I couldn’t blame him for that. I had done exactly the same. No, deep down inside I knew that he was a good man. A good leader. A waste to kill.
So, what If I didn’t?
Now that was a novel thought. If I just killed the Werewolf, then wouldn’t that stop the war? And wasn’t that what my mission was?
I snuggled up closer to Metisse. This new found idea needed some thought. Some planning.
But not just now. Now, my fingers traced down his muscled chest to his six-pack, following the contours of the chiselled muscles further down to the curly hair that surrounded what I needed right now. His cock was awake before Metisse was. Ready to do my bidding. My hand closed around the hard shaft and I felt the light touch of Metisse’s hand stroking my spine. I let the fur grow under his hands, exciting him even more.
There are more ways to make love if you are a shifter.
More forms.
More fun.
Chapter 20
We saw each other almost every other day after that. I was addicted to his body and his lovemaking. He was subtle, loving. Not like my previous liaisons. They were usually one-night stands, some with a lethal end for my partner. As an assassin I used all my talents to fulfil my missions. Sex was just another tool. Albeit it was one that I enjoyed most of the time. Men—and most of my targets were male—were so easily distracted by a flirt and a flash of soft skin. The blood immediately flowed from their heads down about a metre and that left them wanting in the thinking department. Men think with their dick. And believe me, that’s not a good idea
if you’re on my kill list.
With Metisse, I’d started out using my female wiles to get close enough to be able to kill him. My strategy had backfired. I was becoming enamoured by my target. A big no-no in my line of work.
* * *
‘You are my mate. You know it.’ He stared at me intensely, willing me almost to agree with him. The yellow specs in his eyes glistened invitingly. Oh, it would be soooo easy to give in.
‘I don’t belong to anyone,’ I replied, a hint of anger in the tone.
‘No, you misunderstand, I don’t want to rule you. I want you to rule alongside me. You are strong, it shines through you. Never would I even contemplate eclipsing such strength. Together we will be unbeatable.’ He tilted his head slightly to the right as he blinked those puppy dog eyes. Or should I say kitten eyes. He was after all, of the feline persuasion.
‘Your mate? You don’t strike me as a guy who wants to settle down.’ I laughed.
‘I never did. Not until the right person came. And here you are.’
‘You’re a player.’
‘No, I was a player. You can make me an honest man.’ Metisse took my hand in his, softly stroked my fingers. The light touch sent tingles up and down my spine, and heat radiated from between my legs.
‘Yeah, right.’
‘They were humans, playthings. Never serious contenders. You… You are different.’
‘Playthings? Watch it Metisse. Your true nature is rearing its ugly face,’ I challenged him.
The smile curled his lips even more, a hint of the long fangs slipped out from under his upper lip. ‘Don’t pretend to be insulted. I’m sure you have done the same. We are not of their lowly race. We are the top predators. And that is what we do. I’m a Sabre and so are you.’
‘Am I?’
He changed tactics, still holding on to my hand. ‘Which one of your parents was clan?’ Metisse asked.
‘My mother.’
He observed me for a minute, said nothing, just looked at me so intensely that I thought he was literally trying to get inside my head. ‘And she was high in the hierarchy?’ Perceptive.
‘The highest.’
‘That figures. That’s where your strength comes from.’ Metisse leaned forward, his hand running up my arm to land softly on my cheek. ‘There’s a strange vibe with you. Something I can’t exactly put my finger on.’
‘Is that good or bad?’
‘Good. Very good. It’s mysterious. Exciting. I’m looking forward to investigating it more.’ There’s that mischievous glint in his eyes again. But there was more there. A longing. Maybe even hope.
‘Be careful what you ask for. You might get more than you bargained for.’
Chapter 21
Talking about my mother brought back both good and bad memories.
On my way home from yet another hot evening with Metisse, the memories swamped me in the darkness of the lonely street. I pulled over and stopped the car. My breath came in gasps. Heat radiated from my body as though on fire. A sharp pain started at the back of my head just under where the spine meets the skull and quickly spasmed up through my brain, temporarily blinding me. I let it wash over me. There was no use trying to push the memories away anymore. Not now. They were here. There was no escape.
I closed my eyes, leaned my head back onto the headrest and let it all come over me.
Colourful pictures of my mother and me in a field full of flowers, laughing in a stream as I splashed her with the cold mountain water. Her warm embrace as she held me, her soft melodious voice as she sang me to sleep.
The edges of the pictures began to blacken and curl up as though burnt. An acrid smell assailed my nose. ‘It’s all a dream,’ I said out loud in an attempt to calm myself. But it was more than that, and I knew it. The colours were replaced by blacks and browns, dirty surfaces wherever we walked. Dust and smoke. I felt my muscles seizing up, pain radiating over my whole body. Lightning flashes illuminated scenes of devastation. Blood, death, this too was my youth.
Sweat dampened the beautiful couture dress that I wore as I sat in the car reliving scenes from my youth. It didn’t matter. Nothing did. Only the memories.
* * *
We were running over rocks, through forests and fields. Always running, running.
‘We cannot stay, my sweet,’ she would tell me.
‘Why not mama? My friends are here. I have friends. I don’t want to go.’
‘I know. Neither do I, but we must. Before we are found.’
It was always that; before we were found. Found by whom? That, she never told me until the end, just that we had to go if we valued our lives. So, we packed our meagre belongings and left by whichever means of transport we could find at that moment. In another town, in another state, we would start our lives again.
Until that fateful day.
* * *
‘Run Trish.’ Her voice wasn’t much more than a whisper, but the urgency in her words spurred me onwards. My legs were aching, my breath coming in heaves.
‘Don’t look back love. Just run, as fast as you can.’
I did. I ran as fast as my twelve-year-old legs would carry me. Whatever it was that frightened my mother so much was after us. They had found us. How could this be? How could my strong and fearless mother be so terrified of what was behind us? The sound of something big rushing through the field after us pushed me a bit further. My energy was short lived. Cramp gripped the muscle of my right calf, causing me to stumble. Mother caught me and picked me up. Holding me close to her chest she ran onwards.
Over her shoulder I saw the tops of the maize field undulate like massive waves in the sea. There was something there, and it was quickly moving towards us. It was catching us. I struggled to get out of my mother’s arms. I needed to run myself. My weight was holding her up. Slowing her down. The stalks moved closer to us.
She let my feet touch the ground and supported me with the first agonising steps through the cramp. I bit my lip and pushed onwards. But I was too slow. Much too slow. A bellowing sound assailed my ears and chilled me to the bone. There were screams hidden in the noise. Screams of endless pain and suffering. It spurred me on with renewed energy. But still the monster was gaining on us.
I felt her hands leave my arm as she pushed me onwards. ‘Keep running Trish. Keep going. Remember what I told you.’ She pushed me forward. I could hear her behind me matching my steps. I ran and ran. Then suddenly I became aware that there was only one set of foot falls; mine. I couldn’t feel her next to me, or behind me. ‘Run my love,’ she shouted. The sound came from far away. ‘Don’t look back. Keep running. I’ll catch up.’
I crashed through the stalks, no longer moving in a straight line, just going. A faint tearing noise behind me signalled that my mother had shifted. Her deep growl confirmed what I was too scared to contemplate. She was staying behind. Ready to confront whatever it was that was hunting us. She would attack. She would win. She had to.
The stalks of maize disappeared and opened up into the edge of the field. There was a forest up ahead to the right. Instinctively I changed direction and rushed out of the open into the dark of the deep ferns and tangles. My foot caught on one of the vines that littered the forest floor and I tumbled head over heels down an embankment into the dried-up riverbed. The deep ferns hid my bruised and battered body as I lay there trying to catch my breath. I couldn’t run anymore. Not another step. Not even to get away from the monster.
The monster! Mother! Where was she? She would find me. She would follow my scent and find me.
My breathing slowed as I tried to listen. The wind through the fir trees drowned out any other sounds. I concentrated more. Just a sound, a growl, anything that would let me know that she was all right. That she was looking for me. But all I could hear were the sounds of the forest.
Darkness deepened the blacks in the forest. Even my sensitive eyes drew a blank as the canopy seemed to close over me. I huddled in the ferns and pulled my arms around my knees. Silent
tears ran down my cheeks. Where was she? Why hadn’t she found me yet?
The dark and the fatigue flowed over me and I closed my eyes. Just for a second—to concentrate. It was too much for me. My small body shut down as I slowly slipped sideways deeper into the soft ferns. I had to sleep. I had to.
Chapter 22
A sharp pain on my right calf brought me awake. My own growl escaped my lips and the small polecat sprang back surprised. I grabbed a stick that was lying next to me and threw it at the creature as it disappeared through the underbrush. A small trickle of blood dripped down the side of my calf from where the sharp teeth had penetrated the skin. I rubbed it away with my hand. It would heal quickly enough. I was immortal, quick healing was one of the perks.
The sunlight shone through the canopy onto the dip in the forest where I had landed the day before. The warm rays heated up the ferns and pushed away the morning dew.
‘Mom!’ It all came back to me in a rush of emotion. Tears fell from my eyes. ‘Mom!’ I called, oblivious to any danger that my shouts might cause. I stumbled to my feet and scrambled up the small incline, mud and dried leaves coating my hands and knees. ‘Mom, where are you? I’m here!’ I cried.
I ran back through the dense undergrowth to the edge of the forest. The stark light of the sun hurt my eyes and I held my arm over them to stave off the brightest glow. I stopped at the edge of the forest. Not sure if I should continue.
There was no one there.
No sign of my mother or of the monster that chased us. The only proof was the wreckage of the maize. Hundreds of stalks were smashed down to the ground forming the battleground. Willing my feet to move I slowly left the safety of the trees and walked over the snapped maize towards where I’d seen her last. There was nothing. I retraced more steps going deeper into the natural labyrinth. I called out softly; ‘mom, where are you?’ Tears streamed down my cheeks. There was no answer, even the birds were silent. A scrap of dark green material stopped me in my tracks. She had been wearing a green sweater, the one with the roses on it. The one I gave her for her birthday, salvaged from a charity shop. This was where she had changed, where she faced the monster of my nightmares. The echo of her last words “run, run” pained my ears. I abandoned her. I left her to die. I could at least have tried to help. I could shift. I had fangs and claws. But all I had done was run away.
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