He laughed and kissed her. “You are right my love, don’t need them to see that.” He pulled her up and into his arms.
"So do you have an idea of who might be after us?" Jillian asked him.
"No, but we think it is rogues, probably that were under Kelson. That is why I want you to leave, so you will be safe. I want to get married soon, and I don’t want to have to worry about watching our backs every day.”
"What about a ring?" she asked him. "You want to marry me, but you haven't even properly proposed."
He chuckled. "I need to do that, don't I. It's just in the Werewolf world, technically we are married since you are marked and we have mated."
"But in the human world, this girl would like a ring on her finger."
"Of course my love, and I will do that, soon."
Jillian nodded and held onto Edric. "What will happen when we are separated? I heard it is painful."
Edric nodded. "It will be more painful for me than you. Where you are not a wolf, it won't affect you as much."
"Then I can't go. I don't want you to hurt," she whispered, looking at him.
"My love, I will suffer great pain to keep you safe. You mean more to me than my health. I will be okay."
"Are you sure?" she asked, totally unconvinced.
"I promise," he said, kissing her softly. "Now go pack. I want to send you out of here tonight."
She sighed. "Okay."
"I love you my Luna, always."
"I love you Edric."
He kissed her soundly and then tucking an arm about her waist, they headed out the door. “While you pack, I will make sure the plane is fueled and ready to go.”
Edric glanced at Jillian’s painting as he shut the door behind him, feeling just like the storm she was painting. He would be that storm and destroy everything in his path if anyone hurt his Luna again.
Chapter 28
Jillian went to the phone in the room before she started to pack. She dialed Kim.
“Hey friend,” Kim answered.
“Hey, look, Edric wants to send me alone with my parents on a trip.”
“So, does he think I will cause too much trouble?” Kim laughed.
“No, but he knows where you are a wolf, that someone might read your mind, and put us in danger.”
“Yes, that makes sense. So off on your own then, huh?”
“Just my parents and I, just like old times.”
“Boring,” Kim laughed.
“I agree,” Jillian laughed with her, “but if it keeps us safe.”
“I know friend, and you had better stay safe.”
“I will most certainly try.”
“Good, so I will see you when you get back, whenever that is?”
“Yes, whenever that is, which means probably no prom this weekend.”
“That’s too bad, I think that everyone was looking forward to having you there.”
“I know, and I am sorry. Is there another dance before the year ends?”
“Yes, graduation dance.”
“Good, I will plan on that one then.”
“Very well my friend, take care of yourself, okay?”
“I will, and you too.” She then hung up and began to pack, wondering what she should pack. Was she going somewhere cold, or warm? She was hoping warm. She liked the heat, a tropical place would be nice. Maybe somewhere she hadn’t been before.
A little later Edric walked into Jillian’s room to see that she had two full suitcases open on the bed. One with summer clothes, one with winter clothes.
She turned when he walked in. “I didn’t know where you were sending me, so I packed both.”
“Good idea,” he nodded, pulling her into his arms and kissing her. “The plane is fueled and ready to go.”
"Is that safe?" she asked. "Do you trust your pilot? Wouldn't I be safer on a commercial flight?"
He winced. "Jillian, after what happened last time, I don't want you on a commercial flight."
"Edric, what are you not telling me?" she asked him. She could tell he was hiding something from her.
He sighed. "I called Detective Campbell earlier and asked him to look into the plane. I had a feeling there was something on that plane that made it explode.”
“And?”
“A bomb was in the cargo area. It exploded on take off and that’s why the plane crashed.”
“No wonder I heard a boom when we took off.”
“You heard a boom?” he frowned.
“Yes, right after take off, and then the plane hit the ground. If there was a bomb, that means they were after me,” she whispered.
“I’m afraid so, love.”
“Oh Edric, now I feel even more terrible,” she began to cry. She sure did that a lot, but considering what she was going through, she figured she had every right to do so. “Why? Why would someone be so sick that they would kill several people just to get to me?"
"I do not know love. I am trying to figure that out." He rubbed her back, trying to soothe her. "Whoever it is will die when we find them."
"You will have your wolf kill them?" she whispered.
"Yes. My wolf is restless, and is not happy that you keep getting hurt," he frowned.
"You got that right," Raul harrumphed.
"You would kill for me?" she asked.
"I would," he nodded.
She wasn't sure if she should be mortified or not, but she was tired of being chased after. She wanted it to end. “I am glad you are here to protect me.”
He kissed her. "I trust my pilot, he will not harm you, and right now he does not know where you are headed either. I will tell him when you are in the air. The plane has been checked thoroughly for anything suspicious, and I have six of the pack there to make sure no one touches it.”
"Thank you.”
"I love you, Luna, I would give my life to keep you safe," he told her, "I hope you know that."
"I do," she said, looking up at him. "And I would do the same."
He smiled softly and kissed her again. "Finish packing, your parents should be here soon. I'll have Carla cook some dinner for all of us, and then I will send you to the airport, okay?"
“That’s fine,” she replied, and after kissing Edric once more, she watched him walk out of the door.
She sighed, he was so good to her.
She had just finished packing when her vision went blurry again.
Her parents were driving to the mansion when a large dark SUV came up from a side street, going really fast. It breezed through the stop sign and t-boned her parents' small car, sending it flying through the air to crash upside down in a field.
Jillian screamed.
Edric heard her and rushed back into the bedroom.
"Jillian," he said.
"My parents," she sobbed. “Someone is going to hit them on purpose.”
Warren appeared then along with Orson and Wes.
"Try and get to her parents before they get hit,” Edric said.
The men nodded.
"Please, stop them,” Jillian whispered.
"Where love, where are they?" Edric asked.
"Just two blocks from here, they are headed this way."
"You heard her get going,” Edric replied.
The men nodded and all of them shifted to their wolves. Jillian had never seen them shift. They were huge and beautiful. Warren was dark brown with a white spot on his forehead, Orson was pale brown mixed with white, and Wes was brown, white, and gray.
All of them headed out the door as fast as they could.
"Jillian, love, they will be okay," Edric soothed. "The men will get there in time to stop them, I promise.” He kissed her softly then.
"I hope they won't be too late," she whispered against his chest.
"I hope so too," he replied.
"Do you know who it is?" he then asked her.
"No, all I saw was a large dark SUV."
"Maybe I should go see if I can help," he said, he then looked at Jillian. "Will
you be okay? I want to find out who is trying to kill your family."
"I am okay, go," she whispered.
He nodded and shifted. He nudged her with his nose and took off out the door.
Jillian shuddered. She just hoped that they would get to her parents in time.
"Very good," she heard then, "It's about time they all left."
Jillian turned to the balcony doors. Jessy was standing there, a gun in her hand, and it was aimed at Jillian.
She sauntered in, dressed in tight jeans and a low cut shirt. "I was hoping he would leave."
"What are you doing here?" Jillian ground out angrily.
"I am here to get rid of you, of course," she chuckled.
"Edric will know."
"I am planning on it," Jessy said, and pulled the trigger.
Chapter 29
Jillian felt the bullet hit her shoulder, and she fell to the ground, hard, knocking her out.
When Jillian came to, she was bound and gagged in the back seat of a car. Her shoulder hurt like crazy, and she wondered if Jessy was just a really bad shot, or had she shot Jillian in the shoulder on purpose? Jessy was driving and talking on the phone to someone. "Yes, I have her, no, he has not noticed her being gone, or he would be after her. It makes me wonder if they really are mates," she snickered. "Yeah, yeah, I'll be there in a few."
She then hung up. Who was Jessy talking to? Jillian didn't want to move, even though her shoulder was healing already. Did Jessy know she healed fast? She hoped not, but Jillian didn't really want to stick around to see who had ordered Jessy to come after her and her parents. She was sure it was the same person, but who? She pondered on escaping, or should she wait and see where Jessy was taking her, to see who she was talking to? What to do, what to do. She decided on the first choice. She sat up after tearing her restraints off easily. She was either getting stronger, or Jessy didn’t know how to tie someone up properly.
"So witch, what are you planning on doing with me?" Jillian hissed into Jessy's ear.
Jessy screamed and jerked the wheel hard, sending it sailing across the lane and into a field, right into a tree. Jillian saw the accident happening, right before impact, so she ducked back down and braced for impact. Maybe she shouldn't have done that to Jessy, scaring her that bad, but too late for regrets now.
The car hit the tree, hard. Jillian hit the back of the driver's seat with a hard oomph, making her let out a scream, while Jessy hit the steering wheel, making the airbag deploy.
"Ouch," Jillian moaned. She sat back up and shook her head. It hurt, a lot. She touched it and noticed it was bleeding, no surprise.
"Stupid idiot," she muttered, cussing both her and Jessy out, then leaned over the seat to make sure that Jessy wasn't dead, not that she really cared, she did kidnap her after all. Jessy was unconscious, no surprise. She had hit a tree head-on. She sat back on the seat, knowing Edric would soon be there, wouldn’t he? She was sure he had felt her pain, but then, did he even know she had been kidnapped? It’s not like she had her phone on her to call anyone.
Suddenly her door was ripped off the hinges and Edric was there. He tossed the door into the grass and looked at her. "Are you okay?" he asked softly, great worry on his face.
"I’m better off than Jessy,” Jillian told him.
Edric leaned in and pulled Jillian out and into his arms, bridal style.
"Your head is bleeding."
"It will heal. How did you know where I was?"
"Well, I was kicking myself for leaving you alone, and I headed back to the house just as Jessy was pulling out of the gates. I wondered what she was doing there, and so I followed. I knew you were injured somewhere, I could feel your pain, did she hurt you?"
"She shot me, then tied me up and dumped me into the car," Jillian admitted. "But that doesn't explain how you knew I was in the car."
"I didn't know until I heard you scream."
"I screamed?"
"Yes, when the car hit the tree. I wanted to kill Jessy for crashing. Why did she crash anyway?"
Just then Emerson showed up. He tore off the front door and looked in on Jessy. "Sorry it took me so long, I had to make sure Jillian's parents were okay." He looked down at Jessy, then felt for a pulse. "She’s alive, but she looks to be hurt badly. I called for an ambulance." He then turned back to Edric and Jillian.
"I'll be fine," Jillian said, to his unanswered question.
"I know love," Edric said, holding Jillian tighter, "but we aren't taking any chances. You have been hurt way too many times lately."
"I know, and I'm sick of it," she sighed.
Edric chuckled.
An ambulance pulled in moments later, followed by the three other wolves. They changed into their human forms behind the trees and walked out clothed. It was Warren, Orson, and Wes.
"She okay?" Orson asked, walking up to them.
"Jillian should be okay," Edric nodded, "we'll see about Jessy."
"What did she want with Jillian?" Orson frowned, as he watched the paramedics pull Jessy from the car, still unconscious.
"She wanted to take me to someone, I am not sure who," Jillian replied.
"Who, I wonder?" Emerson frowned.
"Jillian, can you tell us what happened?" Warren asked as a paramedic walked over to them.
"Alpha, can we look at the Luna? It looks like her head is bleeding,” the paramedic asked.
Edric nodded and set Jillian onto a stretcher that the paramedic had wheeled over to them.
"This conversation can wait until we make sure Jillian is okay," Edric told his men. He didn’t give a rat’s ass about Jessy. He then turned to Wes and Orson. "I want a guard on Jessy. I don't trust her. If she tried to kidnap Jillian, someone is going to come looking to see why she didn't show up."
"Yes Alpha," both men nodded.
“But I don’t want you two watching Jessy. I want Zack and Travis. I would rather have you two watching my Luna, I trust you more.”
“Yes, Alpha,” they said again.
Jillian listened in to the conversation as the paramedic checked her over. He wiped her head clean with a soft cloth and checked her for bruises.
"How are you feeling Luna?" he asked her.
"I feel okay."
"Your head is healed already. But I am worried about internal injuries. It looks like you were shot also," he pointed to her shoulder, “and did you hit the back of the seat with just your head?"
"I don't remember. It happened really fast," Jillian admitted, "and yes, Jessy shot me," she sighed.
"Maybe we should take you in to get you checked out for internal injuries then."
"I think I agree," Edric replied. "That car was totaled, and if you hit the back of the seat as hard as Jessy hit the steering wheel, you are probably really bruised up."
"I'm fine," Jillian insisted, “and I am so sick of hospitals."
"I know Jillian, and I am sorry, but for me, please?" Edric asked.
"Okay, for you, but I want to know if the men find out anything. Like as who was Jessy talking to when she kidnapped me?”
"Warren just checked, it came up as a private number. We are going to see if it can be traced."
He then looked at the paramedic. "We will meet all of you at the hospital."
The man nodded, and with the help of another paramedic, they loaded Jillian into the ambulance, right next to Jessy. The ambulance was wide enough for two stretchers. Jessy was still unconscious, her bruises not healing, or the bleeding on her head not stopping.
Jillian frowned as the paramedics worked on Jessy. "Is she going to be okay?"
"We're not sure," one of them said. "She hit that tree at a very high rate of speed. I am sure she has some serious injuries."
"But why isn't she healing? Most wolves start healing by now."
"I don't know," the paramedic shrugged. "That is also something we need to look into."
The paramedic who was driving, put on the lights and sirens and they sped through the night, it was o
nly as Jillian lay on the gurney, her eyes closed against the headache pounding away, that she wondered where her parents were and how they were. Were they okay? But the biggest question of all, who had sent Jessy to kidnap her? And did they want Jillian dead, or just injured? Jessy had only shot her in the shoulder, so either she was a bad shot, or the person who wanted her, wanted her alive.
Chapter 30
Jillian wondered if the whole thing with her parents was a setup to get everyone out of the palace and leave Jillian alone. It had to be, but why? She sighed then, the headache finally easing up.
"She's crashing!" one of the paramedics yelled. "Hit the gas, Fred!"
The driver gunned the engine, racing down the street to the hospital, as two of the paramedics worked feverishly on Jessy.
Jillian opened her eyes and looked over at the frantic movements. She sighed. She knew she should be more concerned, but Jessy had belittled her, tried to steal her mate, and kidnapped her, why would she care? She supposed she should care, it was after all another human, well, wolf. That was the most curious thing. Why was Jessy not healing? She seemed to be bleeding even more.
Jillian sat up. She didn't want the girl to die, even though she hated her guts.
"Move over," Jillian told one of the paramedics.
"Luna, she is dying, I need to save her."
"As do I. Just let me take her hand."
The paramedic nodded and let Jillian grasp Jessy's hand. It was ice cold. Her lips were turning blue. She was not going to make it if Jillian didn't do something.
She had saved her classmates on the plane, so she could save this rotten girl now, right? She cleared her mind and sent healing vibes into Jessy.
The paramedics watched in awe as Jillian’s hand began to glow a light blue, and then they watched as the light traveled across Jessy’s body, healing wherever it went.
Jessy finally took a deep breath and settled into a peaceful sleep. The bleeding had stopped, and her color was returning.
Jillian lay back down, that healing had exhausted her.
"Good job Luna," one of the paramedics said in reverence. "You saved her."
"Yeah, me," Jillian muttered.
Jillian heard a snicker from one of the men at her sass, but she didn't care. She was tired. “Don’t you dare say a word to anyone,” she warned the men.
The Alpha King and his Human Mate Page 23