by Sharon Kay
She grabbed the branch and hauled her body up with practiced ease. Arawn sent mental congratulations to Caine for including so many climbing elements in his obstacle courses, the whole time trying not to look at any tempting bare skin that might be exposed. Her scent alone conjured wicked images in his mind.
The branch swayed, releasing her weight as she climbed higher. Arawn inhaled, focusing on the wolf scent instead of hers. He could still smell them, which meant they were still downwind and would have a few extra seconds when the wind shifted.
One green leaf fluttered down and he reflexively looked up. The silver of her shoes was easy to spot. He felt reassured…until she climbed higher and out of his view.
Damn it! He wanted to roar, but that would prick the acute hearing of the wolves, while the object of his frustration would remain oblivious. She better have a good reason for this. He ground his molars. Of course she will. You trained her.
Around him, the quiet sounds of the forest began to register to his recovering ears. The screech of a night hawk, the hoot of an owl, the chittering of small foraging rodents. That was good, but the need to get a visual on Ria made him twitchy.
Another leaf drifted down, this time accompanied by rustling. Her heels came into view, then her toned legs. She worked her way down until she could set her feet on the lowest branch, and she met his eyes. “Catch me?”
He nodded and held out his arms. A second later, his biceps were curled around a sweet mix of blond hair, orange blossom, and the scent of his clothing on her. Her arms landed around his neck, her body tensed as if ready to be put down.
He wasn’t ready to let go. She felt too damn good in his arms, just like she had before. “So what’d you see?”
Awareness that she wasn’t going anywhere dawned in her eyes, and she relaxed. “Four wolves.”
He frowned. “That’s a small group.”
She nodded. “I thought so too. Maybe they’re males without a pack?”
“Could be.” Sometimes the younger males who weren’t strong enough to challenge a pack’s alpha chose to band together rather than roam the wild nights alone. They were vicious, channeling sexual frustration into violent killing.
“There’s more.”
“More wolves?” He tracked her eyes, which were studiously focused on his lips. “Still can’t hear me?”
“No, damn it.” She rubbed her ear, as if that would bring her hearing back. “But I saw a house.”
His eyebrows shot up. “Occupied?”
“Not that I could tell. Actually, house is a generous term for it. Maybe shack is a better word.”
“House, shack, whatever. How far?”
“A mile, tops. Maybe less.”
“We should head that way. It’ll conceal us. Visually, anyway. Maybe not our scent, depending on what else is nearby.”
She looked up at him for a heartbeat. Blue eyes regarded him with a teasing smirk. “You plan on carrying me?”
“Maybe.” Her full breasts pressed against his chest and the soft skin of her legs was warm on his arm. He’d keep her here the whole damn night if he could.
“I won’t arg—”
Her mouth froze, lips parted, as he abruptly squeezed her tighter. He inhaled.
Shit. The wind had shifted.
The forest was silent.
Slowly, he shifted to set Ria on her feet. Their eyes locked in a knowing glance.
They both rotated until they stood, backs pressed together.
They were underprepared, but that didn’t mean they were the underdog in this imminent fight.
This was what he trained his warriors for.
Scorpio’s sword was ripped from his grasp with the force of the explosive spell charge. His body flew back, falling, falling, then gravity lost its grip on him and he was hurtling weightlessly through space.
Shit. A portal. He hadn’t activated his amulet. But it was pre-spelled to return to Lash HQ.
Flashes of light raced by in the inky blackness and he settled in the brief journey. He’d gone through a thousand portals in his long years.
Just part of the job of a personal assassin.
With an abrupt tug, the rocketing sensation ended and he was falling once more, down through the night sky. But instead of the grassy back lawn of HQ, gurgling water reached his ears as its fresh scent filled his nostrils. A river snaked through a rocky valley. Big rocks, which he was closing in on too fast.
Slam!
The breath whooshed out of his lungs and his rib cage screamed as his heavy body crashed facedown against sharp edges of unyielding stone. Dizzy flickers danced in front of his eyes and fire raced down from his chest to his legs.
Shit. Fuck. He hoped like hell there were no predators in the immediate vicinity, because he wasn’t going to be able to move for a few minutes. He took a tentative breath and agony licked at his chest. Broken ribs. How many? Fuck if he knew, but the damage was on both sides.
He took stock of his limbs, fingers, and toes, checking to see if he could move anything without pain. Hands and arms were scraped up, but okay.
Left leg, okay.
Right leg…felt like it was coated in lead. So heavy…and cold. With a groan, he pushed himself over to see what the hell was going on. As he moved, pain burst in his right leg like a bomb. Craning his neck, he bit back a foul curse as he saw the problem.
A sharp protrusion of rock had pierced his thigh. Gauging from the wetness around the wound, it was deep, maybe had hit his femoral artery.
A cough forced up from his chest and pain exploded anew. He tasted blood in his mouth and spat it out on the rocks in front of him. Fuck, he was in bad shape, but he’d been in worse. Normally he didn’t have patience for healers, but right now he’d give anything to have one work her medical voodoo on him.
His body would heal on its own, but with this extent of injury, it would take several hours. The night was full of nasty creatures and, while some days he relished a fight, right now he needed shelter if he ever wanted to make it back to HQ.
Glancing around, he saw rocks stretching out as far as he could see. They lined the river on both sides. Where the hell was he?
He studied the bank he lay on, plotting a path to get out of the open, when a quick motion drew his attention. A small black snake slithered up from between two rocks to flick its tongue out toward Scorpio. A growl rose in his throat, but as he peered closer, he recognized it was harmless to anything but rodents.
“Got any places to hide, snake?” he rasped. Shit, he’d take any help he could get. But talking to a snake? Maybe he’d hit his head harder than he realized.
The creature glided away from him, toward the bigger rocks that were set twenty feet back from the water, disappearing under the stones.
Scorpio shook his head and readied himself to move. Right leg first…”Fuck!” he yanked his leg free and a fresh burst of warm blood coated his skin and pants. Goddamn it, the smell of blood alone would be a signal to come and devour him. He bit back the pain in his thigh and focused on navigating a path across the rocks in a half stoop, half crawl. His ribs burned, but standing up straight wasn’t going to happen with his leg torn up.
Left, right, he picked and slid a weaving path away from the water’s edge. He hoped there was something along the bank. Anything to shield him while his cells and bones knit back together.
A dark flick of a tail wiggled in his peripheral vision. The snake again. Scorpio shook his head and kept moving. He couldn’t stop. His momentum was all that was propelling him forward.
Now at the big rocks, he could see that most seemed to be in haphazard piles, while further down, a dark maw drew him. He pushed forward, his right boot and sock now soaked with blood. Almost there…
An opening. Scorpio looked up, inspecting the top. Last thing he needed was for this thing to collapse on him. But two boulders at the sides stood like sentinels to a cave with an earthen roof. Trees lined the grass above, while long weeds draped gracefully in front of the
entrance.
Thank the gods. He stumbled in to see it stretched back about ten feet. White spots danced before his eyes as he made it to the back wall. Dizzy from blood loss and pain, he slid to the soft dirt and drifted into unconsciousness.
C
HAPTER 13
EYES SWEEPING THE FOREST, EARS on alert, Arawn waited.
The eerily silent foliage seemed to hold its breath. One heartbeat, then another…
A pair of yellow eyes materialized in the dark straight ahead of him. Ten yards away. To its left, a second pair of eyes appeared. A quick check of his peripheral vision showed no others, and he had to assume Ria had two in her sight. The wolves liked to surround, then overwhelm, their quarry.
The first one stepped closer and now Arawn could smell the animal’s breath. Its huge paws landed in silent steps, not breaking even a twig.
“I have two,” Ria’s voice spoke quietly and calmly behind him. “I still can’t hear you. I’m going to throw fire at the nearest one in three…two…”
Magic crackled in the air, and an orange glow brightened the space around them. Ria’s body jerked against him as she threw her demonfire.
Chaos erupted. The wolves charged. One frantic yelp echoed among angry growls and snapping jaws.
Arawn hurled his own demonfire, two balls in quick succession, at the lead wolf. It dodged the first one, but the second glanced off its hind leg. Arawn had no time to assess the damage as the ground thundered with the footfalls of the next wolf.
Jaws dripping saliva, it ran. Low to the ground, like it had no doubt that Arawn would be its dinner. No time to summon fire. The beast leaped at him.
Fuck. Ria was still at his back. He couldn’t duck or the thing would land on her. Arawn grabbed his dagger and braced for impact.
He and the wolf collided in a tangle of fur, claws, and blood. He scored a hit along the animal’s flank, enough to draw blood but not hitting anything vital. They fell to the ground, rolling. The wolf’s jaws snapped and Arawn jerked his head to the side just in time.
Momentum wasn’t on their side, with each of them weighing well over two hundred pounds. They stopped and he jumped to his feet. The snarling animal clambered to all fours. Its huge head came up to Arawn’s chest.
He summoned a ball of fire in each hand and flung the first at the animal’s jaws. It ducked, as he’d anticipated, and the fireball sailed over its head. But while the canine was moving its head back up Arawn released the second one.
A howl pierced the night as it struck home. In seconds, ash and the odor of burned fur were all that remained of the creature.
Arawn looked around for the next wolf and was met with the sight of Ria getting tackled by one. He didn’t have time to help, couldn’t even if he wanted to because another wolf ran at him. It moved awkwardly, its gait off kilter, and he realized this was the first one he’d hit. It lumbered and attempted a leap, but its back leg buckled under the pressure of its large body.
Arawn leaned back and the thing’s claws barely missed him as it crashed to the ground. He summoned a ball of fire and flung it at the beast before it could struggle to its feet. In seconds, it was gone.
A whoosh of air behind him drew his attention. He turned to see Ria still tangled with her wolf…and spinning. He looked around warily, but didn’t see another wolf. Had her first shot killed one?
Ria’s talent was breathtaking. And at times, not for the faint of heart. She was able to spin even if horizontal, as she was now. Arcs of red liquid began to shoot from the twist of fur and blond hair, and he knew she’d managed to put that tiny shoe knife to use. Though small, if the blade was used with enough speed at the right points on a body, it could be deadly.
Ria stopped and drew back. The wolf’s limp body lay on the ground. Summoning demonfire, she sent it to a quick death.
He placed a hand on her shoulder, turning her to face him so she could read his lips. “You okay?” A spattering of dots marked her neck, and a streak of red darkened her arm. He rubbed it with his thumb. Clever girl, she seemed to have avoided most of the gore.
She gasped and her eyes lit up. “I heard you! I can hear again. Woo-hoo!”
“Thank the gods,” he muttered. “And you didn’t answer my question.”
“I’m fine.” She beamed. “Other than being lost and not having my own clothes.”
“I like you in my shirt.” He pulled her closer, burying his nose in her wild curls.
“Not saying I don’t like it.” Her voice drifted up from his shoulder, teasing. “It’s just not my outfit of choice for fighting dire wolves. Or fighting anything.”
Her lips brushed against his skin as she spoke, reminding him of her tough sensuality. Reminding him that his shirt was all she wore. Memories of her coming undone for him in the shower room rushed back with an urgency he hadn’t expected. “Come on, Princess. Let’s get to that shack of yours.”
She pulled back and studied him, eyes flicking over his chest and arms. “I’d ask if you’re okay, but you’re always okay.”
Not always. The thought pulsed like a dark flare of magic before he shoved it away. Some things could stay buried. “I have to be.”
Her eyes narrowed as if a comeback lurked in her thoughts, but she didn’t voice it. Shifting her focus, she scanned the trees. “Let’s see, it was…this way.” She pointed to the left.
He took her hand and led the way. Holding her hand felt natural and his inner demon craved contact with her, the same way he’d needed to be at her bedside. He glanced down to her slender fingers tucked in his as a surge of rightness warmed his heart. Though he hadn’t felt anything like this in centuries, it didn’t seem so unusual anymore.
He wanted her. Hell, that had been clear to him for years. But now, another part of him was calmed by her presence, a part he knew would fight to protect her.
You’re always okay. Her words danced back into his mind, along with a new, unfamiliar dislike that he was concealing major shit from her. What would she think if she knew the truth?
He gritted his teeth. What the fuck was happening to him? They needed to hide. This wasn’t the time to psychoanalyze his issues. He scowled into the night, glad she couldn’t see into his dark thoughts.
They made their way through the forest quickly. Chances were there were no other wolf packs nearby since the animals were territorial, but there could be other nasty creatures.
Luckily, the normal sounds of the woods at night were all that reached his ears. Not even Ria’s footsteps behind him. And she was doing this in heels. Something his men never had to do. He rubbed his thumb over her knuckles. She was a damn good soldier.
And a damn good female.
Acutely aware of her heat and scent behind him, it took all his energy to focus. Shelter for the night was priority one.
A flutter and flash ahead interrupted his thoughts and they pulled up short. He tensed for a fraction of a second before he recognized the approaching glow.
Ria drew next to him with a quiet chuckle. “Mathias and I used to catch those growing up.” She nodded toward the cluster of tiny lights that wove through trees toward them.
Fireflies streaked around them a second later, speeding dots of lights that flew frantically from their pursuer. The hungry bat’s leathery wings beat up and down in soundless, steady strokes as it tracked its meal.
“Didn’t every kid do that?” he asked.
“Did you?” she challenged.
He paused. His thoughts traveled back, zooming like the fireflies, to the village where he’d grown up. All the kids had caught the luminescent bugs at dusk. Including him.
Including Lottie.
She’d even taken them home and tried to keep them alive in her room. That hadn’t worked out too well for the bugs.
The memory tugged at him and he mentally braced for a sucker punch of guilt…but none came. He and Lottie had been so small. Not even thinking of the future, of evil, of bloodlines.
“Arawn?” Ria’s voice was qu
iet next to him. “I’m sorry if I brought up—”
“No.” He cleared his throat. “Don’t be sorry. Sure I caught those things.” He smiled at her. “It was a game to see who could catch the most.”
“Bet it was you.”
“Always.” He started walking again in the direction of the house, keeping her hand in his. “Should be almost there.”
They walked another five uneventful silent minutes and then, abruptly, the trees thinned. Ahead was the sorriest excuse for a dwelling he’d ever seen.
“Hell, Princess, you sure know how to pick ‘em.”
“I didn’t pick it. It’s not like we have choices here. And I told you it was, you know, more of a shack.”
Gray weathered planks composed the exterior, but they were riddled with holes. Shutters hung askew beside narrow windows which, remarkably, held unbroken glass panes. The front door was cracked open and looked like Arawn could break it with one swift kick.
He paused and inhaled, not picking up any creatures other than the forest’s nocturnal inhabitants. He glanced at Ria. “Hear anything?”
She shook her head.
“Let’s check out the exterior first.” He tugged her into the clearing.
True, the place seemed completely deserted, but the habit of checking first was too ingrained to ignore. Plus, they were still stranded. The fewer surprises they had, the better.
They walked a circle around the one story house. Each side had two windows and the peaked roof was built from the same gray clapboard as the rest of it. It sat flush to the ground, with no porch or steps—a good thing, Arawn noted. Better to not have things slithering beneath you in the night.
Sensing no wards on the exterior, he rested a hand on the wood near the back corner—and found it surprisingly solid. He peered closer. The house looked ready to fall apart, but that was deceptive. He leaned a shoulder into the frame and pushed. A weak structure would’ve groaned, maybe the panel would have popped. But this held steady.