The Protectors (Hybrid Book 2)

by TJ Hines

  “Oh. Okay. I thought it was going to be something weird like a hybrid Fishman or something like that.”

  “Haha. No. I am definitely not a Fishman. So, can we talk about what I said the night of the party? About how I have feelings for you.”

  “Oh yeah, we haven’t even had time to talk about that have we. I mean first I get put up for auction and I guess I’ll have to call Chip sometime so I can set that date up when I get back to campus or maybe I should send him some money.” I tried to stop the incessant rambling, but I just couldn't because I wasn't sure what I felt anymore because my whole world had been turned upside down. But Will knew how to get the rambling to stop.

  He silenced me with his lips.

  It took me a moment for my brain to catch up with what was happening. He, Will, Man of my dreams—literally most nights, the hottest guy I knew, was actually kissing me. And it wasn’t a peck on the lips. No, it was more than that. It was a long, slow, sexy kiss, full of passion and desire. His lips were so gentle and when I started kissing him back, he moaned a little. That was the absolute best sound in the entire world. He pulled me closer to him and I wrapped my arms around his neck. Our lips parted when our kiss got deeper and it felt like an electric current surged right through me. It felt right. I ran my hands through his hair, and I swear he made a low growling sound. Which made me kiss him harder and pull myself closer to him.

  He pulled back enough to speak clearly. “We need to…slow down.” I started kissing him again and he couldn’t help but join in. He pushed back one more time. “Seriously, Kinz. We have to stop…at least for right now. There are people in this house who have extremely good hearing and I don’t want to put on a show for them.”

  “Yeah. I forgot about that. You are a really good kisser.”

  “You too.”

  Next thing I knew he leaned over and kissed me so softly and gently that I am almost certain that I fell in love with him all over again. When he was finished, he ran his hand down my face and smiled at me before getting up and wordlessly walking out.

  I could have died right then and there and been perfectly fine with it because Will kissed me. I mean He. Kissed. Me. If I wasn't already sitting in the bed, I think I would have fallen on the floor as soon as my mind caught up with the fact that WILL. KISSED. ME. Finally.

  I heard a knock at the door while I was still sitting on my bed recuperating from that phenomenal kiss.

  “Yes?”

  “Hey Kinz, just wanted to see if you wanted to come down and eat some…whoa,” Addison said shutting the door behind her. “Did I interrupt a good dream or what? You look like you I do when I have a dream about Jason Mamoa.”

  I laughed. “No definitely not a dream. It was the real thing except it wasn't Jason Mamoa it was my personal Aquaman.”

  “Will!” she screamed before I shushed her. “What happened? Tell me everything.”

  I told her everything about the kiss and how glorious it was from the gentle caressing of his lips against mine to the delicate pressure he put on them. It was so perfect. Exactly what I wanted our first kiss to be like. Though I am still not sure why he chose now to kiss me. But I decided quickly I wasn't going to focus on the why of the kiss but more on the fact that he kissed me. I was still smiling like a kid at Christmas when Addison snapped me out of my daydream.

  “So are you going to come eat with all of us. Ensley and I made spaghetti for everyone. It’s the only thing I can cook, and he offered to help,” she said blushing.

  “What’s going on with you and Ensley anyway? Do you like him? I know he likes you a lot.”

  “Oh, my word Kinsey. I think he is the best guy in the world. He is so funny and sweet. He always knows what I need, whether it be space or someone to talk to. He is so awesome. I could see myself falling for him hard and fast if we all stay up here together.”

  “Would that be such a bad thing? Falling for him?”

  “No, it would be great. If it was real but this is not our reality. Plus, after what Tyler did to me, I don’t know if I can trust a guy completely anymore. I thought Tyler was a good guy remember. I even told you how great it would be for you to date him and see how wrong I was about him.”

  “In all fairness,” I started as I was walking towards the door, “he had us all fooled because I thought he was a good guy too. For what it’s worth I think Ensley is pretty awesome and trustworthy. But I understand wanting to take things slow.”

  I gave her a hug to reassure her that everything was going to be okay before I opened the door to go downstairs to eat.

  “Hey Kinz”

  “Yeah,” I said walking into the hallway.

  “You might want to consider brushing your hair first. It looks like a group of trolls had an all-night rager in your hair.”

  My face had to have turned three different shades of red at the embarrassment of what I look liked. It was made worse when I realized I looked like this since I woke up which meant this is how Will kissed me. Ugh. My life sucks.

  After brushing my hair and teeth and changing out of Caleb’s shirt I finally managed to make it downstairs to where everyone was already sitting down to eat. There was a lot of spaghetti, meatballs, and garlic bread being passed around the table. And to my utter dismay, it looked like there was only one seat left at the table. Right at the end between Caleb and Will. It would seem that fate liked putting us three together. I gave Addison a look as I sat down and she gave me an apologetic one back. Well, this was going to be an interesting dinner.

  “About time you got down here Kinz. Em wanted us to wait for you and I didn’t know how much longer I could wait because it smells so good. Thanks, Addison for cooking for all of us. I’m as hungry as a bear,” Drew said laughing at some joke I didn’t quite get.

  “That’s so funny because you are…” Natalie started before Caleb nudged her and shook his head at her. Apparently, they knew the joke too.

  “You are very welcome Drew. Anything to thank Emily and Jack for letting us stay with them while the police hunt down Tyler.”

  I noticed Natalie and Caleb having a silent conversation and I wondered if maybe they had something going on. It shouldn’t bother me but it kind of did. She wasn’t good enough for him. True I didn’t know her but still, I knew him, and no girl would ever be good enough for him.

  “So, what’s everyone doing for Winter Solstice?” asked the girl on the end next to Jack.

  “If we are back at school, I was planning a party for Kinsey’s birthday but now I think I am going to have to make it a little smaller. I hope that’s okay Kinsey and you are not disappointed,” Will said.

  “Oh, were you now. That's funny seeing how she would have been with me for her birthday this year”, Caleb said.

  “Guys, if you are going to do this every time she’s in the same room with you, could you take it outside because my honey bear and I are trying to eat,” Ella said between bites of her salad. She and Drew were so different but so perfect together.

  “Who me? Oh. Oh no,” I said not realizing until that moment how oblivious I had been being. I was the reason for the fight. I am the reason for them not liking each other. I’m the reason for everything. “Oh wow. Excuse me for a little bit.” I got up and went back to my room as fast as I could walk so embarrassed that I never noticed it before.

  After a few minutes, there was a soft knock at the door. “Kinsey, we need to talk,” Jack said through the door. I opened the door in a huff because he had to have known this and he never told me.

  “How long? How long Jack?”

  “How long what?”

  “How long have they had feelings for me?”

  “I didn’t realize Caleb did until the fight outside this morning. Will told me a few months ago that he was developing feelings for you. They know that they can’t pursue any type of relationship besides friendship with you because they won’t be able to keep you safe if they are constantly battling their hormones. So, don’t worry”, he said before taking
a seat at my desk. “Look we need to talk about Addison.”

  “What about Addison?”

  “I didn’t want to say anything until we were sure so that’s why we brought in Claire. She’s a specialist with this type of thing.”

  “What type of thing? What’s wrong with Addison?”

  “She’s been bitten.”

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  “What do you mean she’s been bitten? By what?” I asked sitting down on my bed.

  “By a vampire,” Jack said so nonchalantly that you would think he was talking about the weather. I, however, was a little more phased by the news.

  “A vampire! What do you mean she was bitten by a vampire? Vampire’s don’t exist. Or do they? Wait? Start at the beginning.”

  Jack said that they brought Claire in because she is a specialist in vampire tracker bites. Some vampires will bite their victims, wait for them to go back to their home, where there are more people usually, and then will feed on multiple people instead of on one. They can track the victim through the pheromones in the bite. Ensley saw the bite but was hoping it was something else. They told Addison that Claire was a doctor in town that came by to check on her and that’s how she got a closer look at the bite. Addison thought it was a couple of bug bites that she picked up at here in the woods. But Claire was adamant that it was a tracker bite and that the person who bit her would be able to track her to here.

  “So, is she a vampire now? What does all this mean?” I asked. My head was swimming with all this new information. It was too much to deal within a very short period of time. My best friends were in love with me and Addison, the only normal person in my life, had been bitten by a vampire. I felt like at any minute I was going to have a break down of epic proportions.

  “No, she's not a vampire. Don’t be ridiculous. She would have to be bit several times and feed off the vampire as well before she would become a vampire. Plus, humans who are turned are far more likely to die during the transformation process.”

  “Okay, so she isn't a vampire. That’s good news. So why are they tracking her? To feed on everyone she’s around?”

  Jack gave me that look like sometimes I could be really dense. “Oh, they are tracking her to find me, aren’t they?”

  “That’s what we think. Especially if they know she's a friend of yours. Good news is they won’t be able to find you here because we have special wardings around the property that keep non humans away unless they know exactly what they are looking for,” Jack said giving me a reassuring pat on the shoulder before walking out of my room to leave me reeling from the news that I was the cause for everything. Every bad thing that was happening was because of me being born.

  The next few weeks went by seemingly routine for the most part. Addison and I would do school work in the mornings and then in the afternoons I would take turns training with a different Protector. Ensley was even teaching Addison some self-defense moves so she would be better prepared if she ever got in trouble again. And unfortunately, the longer she hung around me the greater chance she had of getting into trouble. The two Protectors that Jack sent to get our belongings and Abby couldn't find her anywhere and our apartment had been trashed. Abby’s boyfriend had been found though. He had been drained by a vamp. I was worried that the same thing had happened to Abby that had happened to Mike. Jack asked the two Protectors to keep trying to find her, but he told me that with her being missing this long that it didn't look good. All I could do at this point was pray and hope that she was safe.

  I spent more time with Will and Caleb during these weeks, though never together. They still could barely be in the same room with each other when I was around. Apparently, Em said I caused their testosterone to rise which is not always a bad thing, but it was when they were supposed to be on the same team. Jack thought if I spent time with both of them maybe their jealousy would lessen but from what I could tell it was only making it worse…or I was making it worse. I wasn’t meaning too but they were my best friends so I would talk about them with the other one because I would forget for a moment who I was with.

  Addison and I grew closer as friends which was great except that I felt horrible lying to her. I knew the reasons why were to protect her and keep her safe, but it didn’t make me feel any better. Especially since Em thought she was already dealing with a mild case of PTSD. I wished there was something more I could do for her, but Emily and Ensley said that they were using all their abilities to help her heal. It did seem to be working. She was coming out of her shell more around everyone even Drew and Donte who could be very intimidating because of how big they were. She was even going on mini-dates with Ensley, like movies in the theater room. But still, it was a good sign she was starting to heal.

  I, on the other hand, still hand not come to grips with everything that had been thrown at me in the last few weeks. I still wasn’t having nightmares, but I knew eventually I would. They hadn’t let me down in five years so why would they start now. Jack talked to me about my powers and when they would fully develop. On my 21st birthday not only will I be able to legally drink I will also be able to use the full force of my powers, which were getting more powerful the closer I got to my birthday. He had me training to control them as much as possible. Always in the barn away from prying eyes. And the barn had such a lovely smell of crap and leather. Who wouldn’t love spending five hours a day in here? But I couldn't talk him out of the training because as he said no one wanted an untrained Princess of Hell running around killing things all willy nilly.

  “Concentrate Kinsey,” Jack told me. “You have to be able to use your magic to move the whole body not just her arms.”

  I had been out this for an hour and all I could manage to do was move Ella’s arms up and down. I thought once I had finally got it, but it was Ella messing with me. Since she was a Fairy Hybrid she could fly. There weren’t that many full-blooded fairies left in the world and even fewer hybrids. Most fairies were killed during the Fairy War of 1600, which was fought over the claim of a particular piece of land in Northern Ireland. Ella was one of a handful of Protectors who were also fairy hybrids and she was Ensley’s sister, not Will’s, another lie they had to tell me. Though the reason for that lie was a little selfish seeing how Will didn’t want me to assume that he and Ella were together.

  “I am concentrating. This is not that easy you know.”

  “Try harder. Think about moving her and say the word Volito” Jack said clearly frustrated at my progress.

  “Look, Jack. I am trying my hardest, but I can’t get it to work.”

  “You aren’t trying hard enough. You never try hard enough. Look at your Spanish grades. Anything that doesn’t come easy for you, you automatically resign yourself to failure. You can’t do that anymore. Things are going to be tough from here on out and you are going to have to step up to the challenge. Or you and everyone you love will die because you were too lazy to put in the effort.”

  That last part finally broke a barrier inside me and allowed me to grasp a little of my magic, but it was enough to send Ella about thirty feet in the air. Thankfully, she was able to fly back down to safety.

  “Woohoo,” Ella cheered. “She finally got it. Who would have thought you would have to piss her off to get her to tap into that magic.”

  “Me,” Jack said smugly. “Nothing else was working so it was either this or I was going to get Natalie to come outside and punch her. I figured one of the two would work. Glad I decided to do this one first.” He was still laughing when he left the barn.

  In my spare time, I did research on my uncles. I found tons about the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse on the internet and in our library. The lore said that the Four Horsemen would bring the Apocalypse to the human realm through Pestilence, War, Famine, and finally Death. Pestilence, according to the book I read, rode a white horse and carried a bow. He brought diseases to the masses. War was second on the list and he rode a red horse. He also carried a giant sword and brought war to the whole realm
. The third horseman was Famine. He carried a set of scales with him. He brought hunger to the human realm and rode a black horse. Finally, there was death. Death was the last of the horsemen. She carried a scythe and rode a pale blue horse. She ferried souls to their rightful place. Heaven or Hell. So really, she worked for both sides.

  However, if I went with my uncles and started the Apocalypse at least one-quarter of the human population would be decimated. The council believed that number to be doubled if my uncles release the demons, vampires, and hell hounds from Hell. I could see that being true. I know I've never dealt with vampires or hell hounds, but I have demons and they are some bad juju. They didn’t care if they hurt humans in their crossfire with us on the way to the portal nor did they care if they possess people and those said people got hurt. That’s not cool. I had to stay away from my uncles at all costs. Staying away from my mom’s family equals no Apocalypse. I could do that. As long as I had Jack and the rest of the Protectors backing me up.

  Jack wasn’t sure when my transition would actually take effect seeing how I was dealing with a demon side as well as a magic-user side. We did know that from Will my demon side would be dominant meaning that I would have magical abilities, but they wouldn’t be as strong as Jack’s or Ensley’s. And no one knew what kind of abilities I would obtain from my mother's side. All we knew was that she was the final horseman. Death. I decided to do as much research as I could on what the lore said of my mom’s powers hoping to get a feel for what was going to happen to me in the next couple of months.

  During my research, I discovered a prophecy about a Princess of Hell who would rule the supernatural forces in the human realm and defeat the dark forces of Hell. I wasn’t sure what that was all about, but I made a mental note to ask Jack if that was why everyone kept referring to me as a Princess. Because there was no way I was going to be able to rule over anyone especially not the whole supernatural world. There was no way. I loved History and Political Science, but I wasn’t a leader. I was a follower. It was safer that way. Less scary.