by Terra Wolf
The little punk deserved to die.
Rage blistered through me at the thought of him still breathing while Scarlet no longer could. My skin rippled as spikes released from beneath my skin. My vision widened and I could feel pressure accumulating throughout my body. The area between my shoulder blades pinched, as my wings pushed through my flesh there. The sound of my shirt ripping made its way to my ears at the same time a soft whisper of a moan came from behind me, bringing me back from the brink and denying my dragon his escape.
Scarlet had made a noise. She was alive.
“Batch,” she whispered. Her voice sounded strangled, but it was still the sweetest thing I’d ever heard.
I knelt beside her and smoothed my hand across her forehead. “I’m here, darlin’.”
“It hurts,” she breathed.
“Shh, don’t try to speak.”
She released another sigh but didn’t speak again. My hand hovered above the hilt of the dagger protruding from her chest. I knew removing it was vital, but I couldn’t bring myself to touch it. Flashbacks from a similar situation surfaced in my mind, paralyzing me. Suddenly I was a kid again, unsure and fearful of what my next move should be as I stared at blood pooling all around.
I clamped my hand into a tight fist as my head tipped back. The hiss of a long breath squeezed its way from my lungs and I knew in that instant that fear was an almighty entity and I was its little bitch. I had never hated myself more.
I swallowed hard as I carefully slipped my hands beneath Scarlet’s fragile frame until I had a good grip on her and then tipped her body against my chest as I lifted her up. If I couldn’t do what needed to be done, then I needed to take her to someone who could.
Sweat broke out across my brow at how boneless she felt in my arms. My heart pounded hard at the sensation and sickness sloshed through the pit of my stomach. I fled the apartment and took my time as I descended the stairs, heading toward my bike. It wasn’t until I was standing beside it, holding Scarlet’s limp body, that I realized there was no way I’d be able to ride the thing while holding on to her.
There was only one option I was left with.
My eyes scanned my surroundings, searching for a place to shift into my dragon form while remaining hidden. A small maintenance building near the office caught my attention. I started toward it as quickly as I could without jostling Scarlet too much in my arms. Tiny whimpers floated from her lips and I slowed my pace. The second I was behind the building, I released my dragon. With Scarlet held tightly against my chest, I pushed against the ground to soar into the night sky without a second thought.
It took mere seconds to reach Silas’s house. I circled the place while remaining high in the air, checking to be sure no one was around to see me land. When I felt the coast was clear, I came to a swift and soft landing. My body transformed back into a man the second my feet touched the ground, and I headed inside.
“Silas!” I shouted, my voice echoing through the silent house. “Silas!”
I carefully laid Scarlet on the couch, positioning her in a way I thought would shift the dagger in her chest minimally. She let out a cry that tore at the edges of my heart and caused the sickness building in my stomach to burn up my throat.
Clips of my mother lying motionless, blood pooling around her, her glassy eyes wide with fear, flashed through my mind.
Another whimper floated past Scarlet’s lips and I began pacing where I stood as the strongest sense of helplessness I’d ever felt clawed at my insides. My hands lifted to press against my temples as my entire body began to tremble. Scarlet was in pain and because of it, so was I. “Silas!”
My shaky hands hovered above the hilt of the dagger. It needed to be removed, but I was afraid I would do something wrong and Scarlet would die.
Two sets of footsteps on the porch stairs sounded. The front door burst open and in ran Silas with Violet trailing close behind. I stepped out of the way as soon as Silas reached the couch, wanting to give him room to do what needed to be done.
“Oh my god!” Violet gasped. “Is that a dagger? Someone stabbed Scarlet!”
I nodded, but couldn’t speak. I was on the verge of a nervous breakdown. My entire body shook as I raked my eyes over Scarlet’s wounded form. She was okay, she had to be, because I couldn’t lose her. I couldn’t.
Silas kneeled at his sister’s side to better assess her injury.
“I don’t think it’s actually in her heart. I think it grazed it.” He pressed his hands around the outer edge of the knife’s entry point, checking its placement with extra care.
“You brought her here, so obviously neither of you are considering taking her to an actual hospital, right?” Violet asked.
Silas shook his head. “A hospital wouldn’t do any good.”
“But Silas, that looks bad. The second you pull it out, she’s going to bleed out,” Violet insisted.
“She won’t.” I couldn’t say anything more. My voice wavered even with those two words. My emotions were all over the place.
“Batch is right. She won’t bleed out, because once I remove the dagger she’ll begin to regenerate herself.” Silas gripped the hilt with one hand and placed his other firmly against Scarlet’s chest, readying himself to remove it from her.
“I can’t even watch this,” Violet muttered. She shielded her eyes and began pacing back and forth.
“Be prepared, because once I remove this she’s going to jump up off the couch and scream. The pain will be excruciating.” Silas said. I wasn’t sure who he was speaking to—me, Violet, or himself—but either way, I listened.
I crouched on my knees alongside the couch and placed one hand on her forehead. My gaze zeroed in on Silas’s hands and the dagger protruding from Scarlet’s chest.
“Ready?” he asked. I lifted my eyes to meet his and nodded. “On the count of three. One, two, three.”
I grabbed her arm and pressed against her forehead at the same time Silas removed the dagger. The instant it was free, her eyes snapped open and she pulled in a deep breath. Her back arched as she came off the couch from the pain of it, and I kept my hands where they were, pushing against her until her body relaxed. She collapsed against the couch and her eyes locked on mine.
“You came?” she whispered.
I brushed the back of my hand against her cheek. “Of course I did.”
Her lips twisted into a smile, as her eyes fluttered closed again. “I knew you would.”
“Always,” I whispered before I leaned in and brushed my lips against her forehead.
“So what happens now?” Violet asked.
Silas took a step back, but I could feel his eyes boring into me. “We wait while she regenerates.”
“And how long will that be?” Violet wondered.
“As long as it takes. No one can say for sure, but she’ll wake when she’s ready.” I released my grip on her and put some space between us as I came to a standing position.
“Okay, well, in that case…” Violet moved around to the other side of the couch and bent to retrieve my duffel bag. “Why don’t you get dressed? If we’re all going to be standing around, waiting for Scarlet to wake, I’d rather you did it clothed.”
I cupped my crotch, realizing I was naked. Making sure Scarlet was okay had and consumed my mind. I’d forgotten about shifting and how it tended to ruin clothes.
“Yeah, okay.” I reached for my bag.
After I was dressed I headed back to the living room to check on Scarlet. She was still lying on the couch, looking as though she were sleeping. I didn’t know how long she’d be out for, but I knew I wouldn’t leave her side until she woke.
“Now that I know my sister is taken care of,” Silas said as I entered the room. “Tell me about the asshole who did this to her. Has he been taken care of as well?”
My jaw stiffened. “Not nearly as well as he should have been.”
“Tell me what you know,” Silas insisted.
I moved to sit on the armrest near
Scarlet’s head. Once I’d situated myself, I folded my arms over my chest. “She called me and said she needed help. I heard her mutter something about Dylan and her heart, so I came.”
“How did you know where she was?” Violet asked. “I mean, you’re new to town, so how did you know where Dylan’s apartment was?”
“I was with Becky, a girl she works with, when Scarlet called. She told me where Dylan lived.”
“Oh, that makes sense. I wasn’t sure if it was some kind of magical bond the two of you shared because of well, you know.” Violet swiped a few strands of hair away from her face. “I don’t know how all this dragon business works yet.”
“Because of what? Is there something I’m missing?” Silas was quick to ask.
“Oh, crap! I forgot he doesn’t know.” Violet gasped. “Silas, I really think this is something we should talk about later.”
Silas stood and stepped toward me until inches separated us. “Do you have something going on with my little sister?”
I lifted my gaze to meet his and said the words I’d wanted to for so long straight to his face. “Yeah, I do. I think I love her, man.”
A smile shifted across his face, surprising me. My body tensed because I wasn’t sure if he was about to sucker punch me or crack apart like a madman. When he reached out and patted me on the back, I wasn’t sure what to think.
“About damn time you came around,” he said, grinning.
A flush of adrenaline tingled through me and I was forced to exhale a shaky breath. “What did you say?”
I knew there was no way he’d said what I thought he had. Silas had told me years ago to never screw with his little sister’s heart. In fact, I remembered him saying it more than once.
“I said, it was about damn time you admitted your feelings for my sister. The two of you need to stop screwing around and just be together. What’s holding you back?”
“You knew about them?” Violet asked before I could say anything.
“Of course I did. Batch and Scarlet have had a thing since we were kids.”
“How did you know? I always thought I did a pretty good job of hiding it,” I said.
“No. You sucked at hiding it. And my dad was the one who pointed it out to me.” Silas grew quiet as the memory of his late father surfaced in his mind. He’d died a few years back in a battle against a hunter. It was another reason why we were so close—because hunters had stolen our parents from us. “He knew after a few weeks of you being with the tribe that you and Scarlet had a strong connection. He pointed it out to me when we were around ten or eleven years old, and since then I’ve been waiting for you two to admit it.”
I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. All this time I thought he’d disown me if I admitted to having feelings for his sister. “Then why did you tell me to never screw around with her? You made it sound as though you hated the thought of her dating one of your friends.”
Silas laughed. “I did, didn’t I?”
“Yeah, you did.” I narrowed my eyes at him, not understanding what was so damn funny.
“I was giving you hell.” He slapped me on the back. “Now, back to Dylan.”
Anger rushed through me at the mention of his name, and I cleared my throat. “Dylan was subdued for a while. Scarlet managed to gouge him in the stomach before passing out.”
“Good. I knew she would never go down without a fight.” Silas’s eyes drifted to his little sister and pride swirled through their bronze color. “Have you come up with any suggestion as to how we can remedy the situation? Dylan is human, isn’t he?”
“Yeah, he is, but I think I have a solution.”
I told him everything Becky said about Dylan and how she thought he knew what Willow Vale really was about. I even mentioned how she’d been willing to help in whatever way she could before I told him my proposal.
“Let me get this straight.” Silas situated himself in the recliner. “You want Becky to go to Dylan’s apartment, call the cops, tell them he attacked her and she was forced to defend herself with a kitchen knife?”
“Yeah, I think it might work. If he’s been in on the whole shifter thing for a while people have probably thought he seemed a little off, which means they’ll probably believe he went batshit crazy and attacked someone.”
“I agree with Batch,” Violet insisted. “I think the whole Becky thing could work. As long as she’s willing.”
“You have her number?” Silas asked me. I nodded. It was still on my cell. “Then call her and see if she’s game.”
Nine
Scarlet
My eyes fluttered open. At first, I wasn’t sure where I was, but then the familiar furniture put my mind at ease. I smoothed my hands along my face as I forced myself into a sitting position, wondering why I was in my living room on the couch. The sight of my blood-soaked dress had the events of the night rushing back to me. My hands pressed against my heart, feeling for the dagger I knew had been there.
“Hey, you’re awake.” Batch’s warm voice sedated my nerves. “How are you feeling?”
My eyes shifted to him. He was sitting in the recliner closest to me. His feet were propped up and he looked as though he’d just woken.
“Sore and tender.” I gently rubbed where I’d been stabbed with the palm of my hand. “Where’s Silas?”
“He and Violet went to go help Becky set Dylan up.”
“What do you mean?” I moved until I was sitting up all the way and my feet were touching the floor. The movement brought my attention straight to the dried blood crusting my dress to the skin of my chest. It felt disgusting.
“You know how things work—we can’t kill a human, no matter how much we want to.” Batch shifted to the edge of his seat. He clasped his hands in front of him and rested his elbows on his knees. I got the impression he wanted to reach out and touch me but wasn’t sure I would allow it.
“Yeah, I know.” I remembered how things worked. “So what is Silas planning?”
“Becky agreed to help. You know she’s a panther shifter, right?”
“Yeah, I know.” I nodded. “How is she going to help?”
“She’s going to pretend Dylan attacked her instead of you and that she cut him with a kitchen knife in self-defense.”
“But wouldn’t it seem more believable if it was me? I mean, I’m the one who’s been dating him.”
Batch stood and walked toward the kitchen. “Not necessarily. He could have been dating you both.”
“Was he?” My nostrils flared at the thought. I’d never been two-timed before, and the thought didn’t sit well with me.
“No. Doesn’t mean we can’t make people believe he was, though.” He came back into the living room with a tall glass of water and held it out to me. “I’m sure you’re thirsty.”
“Thanks.” I took the glass from him.
“So what happened?” He moved to sit on the couch beside me, brushing his knee against mine in the process. The contact had every cell in my body jolting to life.
It took me a minute to piece together memories from my night so I could create a clear story of what happened between Dylan and me. After another sip of water, I shifted so I was facing Batch on the couch before I began.
“I don’t know how I missed it, but Dylan was actually nuts.” I pushed a few stray hairs away from my face. “He knew what I am, and he knows about this town. He said he’s been disposing of shifters for a while and that I would have been lucky number thirteen.” My words came out surprisingly calm, but I couldn’t stop my hands from shaking.
Batch reached over and took my glass. He set it on the coffee table before pulling me against his solid chest. His strong arms wrapped around me and his fingers smoothed through my hair. “See, he was crazy. I’m sure people know that about him. The story of him attacking Becky will be believed. He’ll be locked away where he belongs. Where he can never touch you again.” I could feel his muscles stiffen at the sound of his own words. “Because if he ever does, fuck all t
he rules, I’ll kill him.” His words came out on a low growl that immediately turned me on.
The thought of a man fighting for me was hot, especially this man.
“I have no doubts.”
“I hope so, because I mean it.” He pulled away and cupped my cheek. My breath hitched at the emotions swirling through his eyes. “I thought I lost you, Scarlet. I never want to feel that again for as long as I live.”
I swallowed hard, his agony-filled words catching me off guard.
Batch drew in a breath. “I love you, I always have. I’m done trying to deny it. I’m done trying to make it something it isn’t. And I’m done trying to run away from it. I can’t anymore.”
I hadn’t been expecting to hear those words. Ever. Emotion caught in my throat, making it hard for me to speak. “I love you too.”
Batch pressed his forehead against mine and cupped my face between his strong hands. “I don’t know what I’ve waited longer for, to say those words to you or to hear them come from your lips.”
“That feeling is mutual,” I breathed.
“Good, because I meant it when I said I never want to feel that horrible sense of loss again. I can’t. I know how strong I am, Scarlet, and I’m not fucking strong enough to lose you. I won’t survive it. I know that now.”
My heart stalled out. I wasn’t sure what to say. Hell, I wasn’t sure how to breathe. Thankfully, I didn’t have to say or do anything because in the next instant, Batch kissed me. It was a sweet kiss at first, but then his tongue slipped along my bottom lip. Every part of me grew warm and aroused at the sensation. I opened my mouth, allowing him the access he seemed to crave, and entwined my fingers in his hair.
“Scarlet,” Batch whispered between kisses. “Marry me.”
I pulled away so I could stare him in the eye. “Are you serious?”
“I’m always serious, darlin’.” His thumb skimmed along my bottom lip, but his eyes never wavered from mine. The wry hint of a smile crept across his face. “You know me better than that.”