by V. A. Dold
When she raised her head, he joined her on the swing. “You don’t look so good.”
“A creepy bastard was inside my house,” she clarified.
“Yes, he was. I’ve given the gifts and actions of this stalker some thought. So far, it seems his intention is more about scaring you than harming you. He could have left that message in a note or written it on the mirror in your bedroom using lipstick or a marker. Writing that message on the mirror so you would find it in a vulnerable state of undress was calculated to have the greatest effect. That was an ugly, shit move by a sick but highly calculating mind. I don’t think I have to tell you that someone like that is extremely dangerous. Add to that the shifter aspect of strength and speed, and I have to tell you, I’m terrified for your safety.”
The memory of stepping from the shower to the words on the mirror made her skin crawl. Then there was her bedroom. “Can I dispose of that mess on my bed now?”
“The team collected everything for evidence. What would you like done with your things when this is over with?”
“Burn them. I want every single thing that bastard touched turned to ash.”
He nodded, understanding why she never wanted to lay eyes on those items again. But there were other things to talk about as well. “I have to tell you, djairi, the more this guy acts out against you, the more I’m convinced he’s linked to your mother. Are we going to talk about that?”
Throwing the blanket off, she leapt to her feet and ran for the door. “I have packing to do.”
Doug wanted to punch someone, and he wasn’t an overly violent man. As a matter of fact, he was a very patient, calm man. That’s what made him a great sheriff. He didn’t have a temper to get in the way of good judgment. Sighing, he followed the sound of slamming drawers.
“Krystal,” he chided, arms wrapping around her from behind and lips brushing her ear. Cats are stealthy, cunning creatures, and he wasn’t averse to using that talent. He drew her away from the dresser she was abusing so he could turn her to face him. “Waiting for your mother to get over our bonding is driving me crazy. I’m sure it hasn’t been fun for you either. Tell me what I can do to get us past this?”
She shook her head. “I talked to my aunt Emma yesterday. She is discussing it with my uncle Isaac. I’m waiting to hear back from them. My mother’s insanity isn’t something I want you exposed to. I’ve dealt with her brand of crazy my entire life, but this time, I’m out of my element.”
“Has she ever done anything this depraved before?” he forced himself to ask in a calm voice.
“Well…” she paused and took a deep breath. “She used to parade my sister and me in front of other wolf packs trying to mate us off. The worst thing she ever did, and it was never proven, was burn down my sister’s bar.”
“She burned down her bar?” he asked, unable to believe his ears.
“To the ground. She had Julia’s mate beat up, too.”
Doug gaped at her. “Why? A mating or bonding isn’t something that can be forced or broken.”
“My mother isn’t right in the head. She believed she could make Julia leave Thomas.”
“That’s crazy!”
She shot him a duh look.
He mulled the situation over. “What you’re telling me convinces me the stalker is connected to your mother. She’s trying to scare you into running back home.”
“As if I’d ever go back there,” she scoffed irritably.
“If your aunt and uncle know about your mother’s actions, they should understand how dangerous this is for you. What I don’t understand is how they can help you.”
She frowned a little, confusion in her eyes. “Didn’t I tell you? They are the king and queen of the shifters.”
Doug’s brows popped. “No, you didn’t tell me.” He ran his fingers roughly through his hair. “I can work with that.”
Krystal grabbed his chin and forced him to look her in the eye. “No. I can work with that. I will handle this.”
Taking her fingers from his chin into his hand, he kissed them one by one. “I’ll tell you what. We’ll do it your way for two more weeks. If the situation is unresolved at that time, we do it my way.”
Krystal opened her mouth, closed it again. Blinked as if clearing her vision. Finally, she said, “Deal.”
“And you will stay at the main house until this is over and done, right?” Doug added, needing to protect her in whatever way he could.
“I hate the bed in the guestroom, but yes, I’ll stay there,” she complained.
“Finally, something I can do. I’ll have the guestroom bed replaced. Would you like this bed”—he lifted his chin at her bed—“or a new one?”
Krystal bit her lip as if she was having an internal debate. “A new one?” she said, making it a tentative question.
Grinning ear to ear, he glanced around for something to write with. “Give me the brand name and exact bed, and I’ll have it delivered.”
“Give me a second to grab a note pad and pen.” She was gone for all of a few seconds when she walked in and held them out. “Let me check the tag on the mattress.” She stripped the bedding back and read off the information while he took notes.
“Okay, what can I do to help you pack?” he asked, tucking the note pad into his pocket.
“Could you grab everything in the shower and on top of the vanity for me?”
“Sure. Do you have a cosmetic case or something you want me to use?”
“Yes, put everything in this.” She handed him a tiny duffle like bag.
By the time he returned from the bathroom with her mini duffle, she was zipping up an identical bag, only much larger.
“I’m ready to go,” she said as she grabbed her pillow and he shouldered her bag.
Doug felt a cloak of sadness descend over Krystal’s emotions as they walked away from her beloved home. What kind of person destroyed another’s peace of mind by doing such a depraved act? Give him five minutes with that stalker. That was all he asked. “Are you okay?”
She cast a covert glance at him and stiffened slightly when she found him looking back. “I’ll be fine.”
That was not the strongest or most positive declaration he’d ever heard. Fine, not good, not great, but fine. And not what she was at the moment but what she would be on some distant date. His tiger gnashed its teeth.
Fourteen
Finished unpacking in her nemesis, the guestroom, Krystal placed the bathroom bag inside the larger duffle and zipped it up. She was storing the bag in the closet when her phone chimed a call.
Snagging her phone off the nightstand, she saw Emma’s name. “Hey, Auntie!”
“Hello, cher. I heard you had more excitement. Are you okay? Your uncle and I can be there in no time if you need us.”
“I’m fine, just mad as heck. I really want the freak caught and out of my hair. After the nasty panty incident, I’m consigned to the guestroom in the main house.”
Emma made a sympathetic noise. “Don’t tell Lucas or Kensie, but I hate that bed.”
Lowering her voice to a whisper, Krystal agreed, “So do I. Doug is buying me a new mattress and box spring, so I’ll be fine.”
“Nice! Will it stay with the guestroom when you go back home?”
“Absolutely. I don’t have room for it in the cabin.”
“Excellent. I think I’ll visit more often,” Emma said. Her pleased tone told Krystal that her aunt was smiling. “But that isn’t why I’m calling. After your uncle and I had a long discussion, we decided diplomacy wasn’t an option. Irrational behavior and interference are nothing new for your mother. And, as you know, she was sternly warned when she caused so many problems for Julia and Thomas. That being said, your father is an innocent in all of this, and we don’t want to hurt him by disciplining your mother in front of him. So, your uncle demanded that she appear before him. It isn’t necessary for you to hear the specifics of the ugliness during the royal hearing,
so we will leave it at that. Suffice it to say, the outcome was your mother was stripped of all magic, including shifting for a minimum of six months.”
Krystal sucked in a breath. No magic or shifting was the worst thing a shifter could endure.
Emma ended by saying, “After the six months, she will go before your uncle again for a review.”
Krystal nodded, then realized Emma couldn’t see her and said, “I can’t argue with any of that. I pray she uses the time to think about her actions and changes her ways. You must have said something to my father. He’ll notice when she doesn’t shift.”
“We did. Though, we told him only what he needed to know. Needless to say, he was upset and very angry with your mother. But don’t worry, Charles wasn’t upset with Isaac. He knows your uncle would never hand down a judgment so severe without cause. Come to think of it, he wasn’t sympathetic toward your mother at all.” There was a short pause, and then she added, “I’ve had questions about that pairing since day one. I’ll have to look more closely at them when I get the chance. Anyway, suffice it to say, your mother was disciplined, and we’re all good.”
“That’s good. Maybe this time, he will remove his rose-colored glasses and see her for who she is? I’ve never understood how he could be so blind to her. I agree with you about their relationship, it’s not natural.”
Emma sighed. “I’ve had that thought hundreds of times over the years. The blinders your father wears may be one mystery we never solve. But hey, at least we solved your problem. Your handsome tiger is now free to court you without repercussions. Have fun!”
Krystal’s smile grew with each word. “I’ll let him know. Thank you, Auntie. Give Uncle Isaac a big kiss for me, okay?”
“I sure will. Oh! Look at the time. I was supposed to be outside for a bonfire with the boys and their mates ten minutes ago. Call me in a week or so and let me know how it’s going. Good night, cher.”
“Good night.” Tossing the phone on the bed, she grabbed her pajamas. The one good thing about the guestroom was the television. She stripped and pulled her favorite nightgown over her head, then scowled at the bed. “I hate you.” Moving her phone to the bedside table, she pulled the comforter to the foot of the bed. She didn’t need that. The blanket and sheet were plenty. Fluffing the pillows and stacking them at the head of the bed, she climbed in. It took a minute to adjust the pillows behind her back until they were just right, then she grabbed the television remote. It was Hallmark movie time.
Two movies later, her sappy movie craving was satisfied. After the disaster at her cabin, she’d needed the escape of romantic love that always finds a way. It had been a late night, but that was all right, she had the next day off and could sleep in. Tossing the extra pillows aside, she snuggled under the covers and sighed. Now she just needed a comfortable mattress. With thoughts of Doug and courting swimming in her head, it took a while, but eventually, she dozed off.
Fifteen
Krystal dreamt of windchimes tolling. They tolled again. The ringing penetrated her mind enough for her to realize it was her phone’s ringtone pealing. Everyone knew this was her morning to sleep in. Who was ruining her delusions of staying in bed until noon? Ignoring the call, she rolled over and tried to go back to sleep.
Fluttering chimes peeled out again.
Son of a biscuit! Fully awake now, she glanced at the phone’s display. Four a.m.? Then she saw Leon was the caller. Why the hell was he calling her in the middle of the dang night? Even more perplexing was how he’d gotten her number. When she didn’t answer, a text message popped up. This was also from Leon. Panic struck her heart as she took in the message.
Lucas asked me to contact you.
Sheriff Dansby injured by your stalker.
We are in the meadow behind your cabin.
Krystal threw off her covers, ripped her nightgown over her head, and grabbed the first shirt and jeans her fingers touched, then pulled them on. Cursing the guestroom for merely existing when she banged her shin on the bedframe, she rubbed it for a second before pulling on socks and boots. She glanced at Lucas and Kensie's door, knowing she should tell someone where she was going, but Lucas was with Doug, and she didn't want to disturb Kensie. So, she headed out the door on her own.
Clearing the far edge of the woods, she stopped so abruptly she rocked on her feet. At first glance, no one was there. Peering into the darkness with her wolf's eyes, she saw no sign of the men. Odd. Lifting her face, she drew a long breath. She didn't smell them either. What the hell was going on?
Hands on hips, she searched the area from end to end. The meadow had a rolling terrain with a hillock on the south end large enough to hide the men from view. She headed in that direction.
Stopping on the crest of the hill, she wiped an escaped tear away and glanced beyond, and then turned slowly in a circle. They had to be here somewhere.
Still seeing no one, she pulled her phone from her pocket. In her panic to get to her mate, she must have gotten the location wrong.
I'm in the meadow behind my cabin.
Where are you?
Krystal stared at her phone, willing an answering text to appear on her screen. Entirely focused on the expected response, she ignored her surroundings. The last thing she expected was the yank on her arm that threw her off balance. A startled scream tore from her lips as she went down hard and twisted her ankle. Her wolf shoved forward, growling and snapping at the unexpected danger. Struggling to her feet, she breathed through the pain in her ankle as she wobbled on one good leg to keep her balance. That was when the scent of wolf shifter in human form registered in her mind.
She had just regained her equilibrium and was about to confront her attacker when she was yanked by the arm again. This time her head connected with a large rock as she went down with her attacker hanging on. Her wolf fought for release, but Krystal held it back, which wasn’t easy with her world spinning. She blinked, trying to ease the dizziness. Of course, that didn’t help at all. She needed to see the attacker and judge whether her chances were better in wolf or human form before she allowed the shift. Her wolf had the heart of a lion but not its size. A much larger wolf could take hers down if it came to fang and claw.
Suddenly the wolf scent she breathed in registered in her brain. It smelled just like her stalker. Not for the first time, she wondered if her mother had sent the freak. Did she send one of her lapdogs to beat her into submission and force her to return to Louisiana or for more nefarious reasons that she refused to contemplate?
Blinking away the blood dripping into her eyes from where her forehead had struck a jagged stone, she tried to catch her breath. Dizziness threatened to take her under, but she shoved the desire to succumb aside. Calling on her wolf's strength to assist her, she pushed up with her hands. Before she could get her knees under her, rough hands grabbed her waist. Her wolf snapped at the attacker in her mind.
Oh, hell no. Gritting her teeth against the pain, she twisted onto her back and thrust the palm of her hand up, smashing the guy's nose into his face.
Instinctively, he released her to cup his nose with his hands. “Son of a bitch!” the attacker snarled. “You'll pay for that.”
Seeing her chance, Krystal took it and rolled to the right. But she didn't get far before he hooked her waist with one arm, throwing everything into a tailspin. Suddenly the earth and sky were alternating positions as they tumbled over and over. It felt like forever before they came to a stop at the bottom of the hill in a tangle of arms and legs. Luckily, she was on top, and he was out cold. Based on the blood at his temple, his head had impacted a rock somewhere along the way. His injury was oddly satisfying, at least she wasn’t the only one with a head injury.
Krystal gasped when sudden recognition dawned on her. Scrambling to her feet, she backed away. It was Leon, Lucas's newest hire. A man her cousin hired after her mother found out about Doug. That was too much to call a coincidence. Leon was one of her mother's lapdogs and, more tha
n likely, her stalker. But why didn't he smell like a wet dog smothered in old spice? Her wolf bared its teeth and snarled, wanting a piece of the stalker.
Damn, Leon was big. Really big. In wolf form, he had to surpass one hundred and forty pounds. There was no way her petite one-hundred and twenty-pound wolf could take him. She may not get out of this without help. Unsure if Doug would hear her, she took the chance and called to him telepathically. Help! I'm in the meadow behind my cabin. Hurry!
Hang on, Tamaali. I'm coming. Are you injured?
I have a twisted ankle and mild concussion, nothing life-threatening. What she didn't add was yet.
Suddenly, Leon's eyes popped open.
Oh, shit. Krystal slammed the connection to Doug shut. It wouldn't help to have him yelling inside of her already ringing head. She was in trouble now. She couldn’t outrun him until her ankle finished healing, and she didn’t dare shift. That left standing her ground and using every dirty move her brothers taught her.
Leon never took his glaring eyes off of her as he got to his feet. The malice in his glowing eyes was palpable.
She wasn’t a violent person for a number of reasons. Hurting others made her physically ill was only one. Her mother often accused her of being weak because of it. But that was neither here nor there. Swallowing down the bile rising in her throat, she prepared for his attack.
Leon's thunderous expression said he didn't give a shit about her comfort. It looked like it was kill or be killed time, and she had to pull her big girl panties up and fight smart.
When Leon shifted his weight, he telegraphed his next move. Krystal ignored the mild throb of her ankle and widened her stance, putting her weight on the balls of her feet.
With a snarl, Leon sprang forward, taking her down. But he didn't come out of that completely unscathed. She'd rammed the heels of both palms under his chin, snapping his head back so hard something cracked, and blood gushed from his mouth. No doubt, he'd bitten his tongue. She hoped he'd taken the damn thing right off. As for the crack, it was too bad that hadn't been his neck. But no such luck.