Jade

by Valerie Ullmer

  Noah dropped down on her and she laughed, holding him close as he buried his face against her neck and used her hair as cover. Knowing they were both exhausted, she reached for the second sleeping bag and placed it over both of them. With the heaters in the cave, they didn’t need a lot of covering, and Jade was happy to have Noah on top of her, acting as a blanket.

  “Is this okay?” Noah asked.

  “Yeah, I like holding you. I know I’m smaller than you, but your weight feels so good on me.”

  Noah chuckled.

  “Well, now I know sex makes you giddy. I’ll have to use that to my advantage.” She let out an evil laugh that was spoiled when Noah joined her with a full, throaty laugh. That sound alone made her happy.

  “I’m torn between sleeping or grabbing some food.”

  “How about we take a nap and then eat dinner? We’re going to head out early tomorrow to miss the storm, so if we eat later and then in the morning, we’ll have enough energy to get there in record time. I estimate about a four-hour trek back from this spot.”

  Noah nodded against her neck, not even managing to lift his head. “Sounds good.” His voice was slow and measured.

  She pulled him closer and pressed a kiss to his forehead. “Sleep, Noah.”

  “Okay.”

  And as Jade closed her eyes, the steady breathing of Noah’s breath against her skin and his warmth pulled her under and soon, she was asleep.

  Chapter Eight

  Noah

  Noah shivered as the cold breeze drifted through the pines, bringing with it the threat of snow on the horizon. They had been walking for close to three hours and were almost at the car, but in those hours, the temperature had dropped twenty degrees so it hovered around ten degrees above zero. Even with the trek through the mountains where he had on his thermal layers, heavy parka, insulated ski pants, two layers of socks, and snow boots, he shivered.

  He glanced at Jade. Her head was down and pushed through the wind, but she looked as though the cold temperatures didn’t affect her, which they probably didn’t.

  When he’d woken before the sun started to rise, he could feel the chill in the air, especially because he was naked under a layer of sleeping bag. But Jade had radiated heat and without thinking about it, he moved her on top of him. She was a lightweight and the warmth that came from her body lulled him back to sleep.

  The next time he woke, Jade had her arms crossed on his chest, her chin resting on her hands as she watched him slowly come into consciousness. He could tell she was worried about his reaction to her after a night’s sleep, but nothing had changed his mind about her. He reached down and gripped her waist before he pulled her up for a scorching kiss. She gave a little squeal of surprise that turned into a moan and Noah deepened the kiss.

  He could smell her arousal and when she tilted her hips, he could feel her wetness and heat against his stomach.

  “Please, Noah.”

  Her words snapped something deep inside him and he flipped her onto her back before he kissed her, putting all of his desire into that one kiss.

  When they made love, it was soft and slow, lingering kisses and touches. Far from the untamable desire that exploded from them the first time. It was sweet and hot at the same time and when they found their release together, their names were whispered and carried off in the quiet morning.

  Noah had no idea why this would have affected him more than their heady first time, but he found himself studying Jade. The way she walked, with destination and purpose in mind. The way she looked back at him often, making sure she didn’t leave him behind. And the small smile she would give him when she remembered making love to him, and the wicked one when he knew she wanted to do it again.

  She was both a vixen and the most innocent woman he’d ever met. He could tell the first time he touched her. Her gasps and moans caught in her throat as his touch surprised her. Noah knew that he could have a lifetime with Jade and she would still surprise him.

  Noah was pulled from his thoughts when big, fluffy snowflakes drifted down from the sky. At first, they were absorbed into the mushy, snow-covered ground and melted on their clothing, but within minutes, the snow had accelerated and they couldn’t see five feet in front of them. And to add insult to injury, the wind started blowing from the west.

  “Noah, we have two choices.”

  He nodded for her to continue.

  “I carry you on my back to the car and we try to drive out of here before too much snow can accumulate or we find another place to camp tonight, having no idea where that might be. It’s your choice.”

  Knowing their chances weren’t good at finding another spot like the cave they’d left, he put away his pride. “Let’s get outta here.”

  Jade handed him her pack and he immediately dropped it in the snow. “How much shit did you pack?”

  She laughed at his expression, but instead of answering him, she strapped the pack to her chest, turning around so he could secure the straps around her back. Jade glanced over her shoulder and nodded for him to come closer.

  “Okay, time to hop on.” Her words were almost absorbed by the snow falling at a steady pace.

  Without time to waste, Noah hopped on, hoping he wouldn’t throw off her balance and they would both end up in the snow. Miraculously, she reached for his thighs and wrapped his legs around her waist as he wrapped his arms around her shoulders, allowing her the chance at movement.

  Jade already started moving before she had adjusted Noah on her back. Although he remembered she was immortal and immensely stronger, faster, and an absolute badass, it still took him by complete surprise how easily she carried Noah. He calculated that they covered several miles in fifteen minutes. He couldn’t tell how close they were to the car, but Jade’s pace increased as the snow started coming down harder.

  “I don’t know if we’re gonna be able to drive out of here.”

  Jade looked grim as she took in the accumulation as she slogged through the thick snow. “Yeah, but it’s a Land Rover so we can raise the body and see if that will work. If not, we’ll try to get into Crested Butte and look for a hotel.”

  He knew they were twenty minutes from town, but they’d taken all dirt roads to get to where they’d left the SUV. He hoped that it was snowing less where they were going.

  “We’re about a quarter of a mile from where we parked. When we—”

  Jade froze and Noah had no idea what she sensed. In the next second, Jade jerked her body and without warning, she fell backward, flipping at the last minute so her back slammed into the snow and her arms were wrapped around his torso. The moment she landed, she flipped him so her back was exposed and that’s when he noticed.

  Blood.

  A lot of blood.

  Jade rummaged in the pack and pulled out his MP5 and shoved it in his hands. That was when he noticed the blood soaking through her white and pink parka at her right shoulder. He tried to surge to his feet and put pressure on the wound, but her hand opened on his chest as he went to move and she pressed him back down.

  “I’ve got to look at your wound.”

  She shook her head, her face the mask of seriousness as she lifted her head slightly off his chest. When she couldn’t hear anything from that position, she slid down his body toward his feet and soon she was kneeling at his feet, one knee down and one up. Without looking at him, she slid one of his HK Mark 23 .45 caliber handguns from his holster and brought it eye level as she scanned her surroundings.

  “That scent, from the man I ran into at Ghost’s office—it’s here. He’s here. I didn’t smell it at the farm the other day. But some of those scents are here, so I figure we have five enemy combatants and they are closing in on us.”

  “What’s the plan?”

  A low, angry growl slipped from Jade’s throat and when he glanced up at her face again, he was happy that her anger was directed at the shifters who surrounded them. He’d never seen her like this and he believed she could take out entire armies if
she were so inclined.

  She slipped off her coat, which left her in a white tank and white ski pants, along with white boots. She was almost invisible in the snow. With quick movements, she tied her hair into a bun before she slid a white cap over her head, covering her black locks completely. She was bleeding and when he went to press against it, she shook her head.

  “It’ll heal. Regenerative, remember?”

  He nodded and savored the small smile she gave him before her face became threatening.

  “The plan. I’m gonna kill these fuckers and then we’re getting out of here. This is a strategic position. You’re higher than they are and because they aren’t circling us, just coming straight at us, it will give you an opportunity for a clear shot. At your one o’clock. You should see them through your scope.” With that, Jade stood and moved away from him.

  Fuck. Fuck!

  He felt so fucking helpless. Yes, he was a fucking SEAL for fuck’s sake, but he couldn’t do anything without the distinct possibility he would be dead at the end of this. Well, he could do one thing, and with that, he moved the MP5 around to his back and pulled another case close to him. He assembled his .308 Winchester and within moments, had his right eye on the scope and searched for any sign of Jade or the shifters after them.

  For long sweeps of the landscape from their eleven o’clock to their two o’clock, there was no movement. Then a streak of white caught his attention and he stopped his sight on Jade, who quickly jumped on the shifter who towered over her by feet. She wrapped her legs around his torso and with one swift movement, sliced her claws along his throat and Noah watched as the head rolled off his body and became lost somewhere in the snow.

  Jade flipped off the body and without hesitation, kicked the detached head. She had punted it so hard that the shifter who ran toward her when he heard the commotion had his skull indented. When the head dropped again onto the ground, the shifter was unrecognizable and dropped to his knees. She dispatched him in the same manner.

  Two down, three to go.

  He caught sight of a man in a knit cap, who was tall and thin, standing on the sidelines, watching Jade take care of the other shifters. Firing a warning shot, the man jerked his head to the side and searched for where the shot came from. Unable to do so, he ducked back into the trees and Noah lost sight of him.

  In the meantime, Jade had found the other two and slit their throats. They were on their knees, bleeding out. Jade said something indecipherable from his position, before she once again took care of their heads.

  When she turned back toward Noah’s position, he could tell her gaze and hearing were attuned to her surroundings. He made continuous passes over the landscape, making sure to cover her back, but he didn’t see any movement and wondered if the last guy had ran with his tail tucked between his legs.

  It wasn’t until Jade stood a few feet in front of him that his world came to an abrupt halt.

  Noah had been scanning the area around them to make sure Jade got back to him, but he must’ve missed one because he heard a crack and a grunt, but didn’t correlate those two sounds. He saw the muzzle flash, but before he could take a shot, five more shots rang out in quick succession.

  He moved his eye away from the scope as Jade jerked forward, bullets obviously entering her back and with horror, watched as they exited her chest. Blood flooded down her white tank and over the ground in front of her.

  Noah reached her as she dropped to her knees and he laid her on her back in the snow. He searched her face and when he met her gaze, he noticed she was still conscious.

  Barely.

  “Remember. Time…need time.”

  Jade closed her eyes and although he could detect the rise and fall of her chest as she breathed in her unconsciousness, he jerked back into reality. He needed to get rid of the last target.

  He scrambled over to his .308 and with measured movements, found the shifter holding his AR-15 out in front of him, searching the near blinding landscape, searching for them. Noah took a measured breath in and a measured breath out and pulled the trigger. The man’s head exploded, but it wasn’t enough. He reloaded with sure, deft movements and breathed in and out, before taking one more shot, severing the shifter’s spine in a way that had his head dangling from his body. With a sickening roll, his head lolled to the side and the tendons that kept his head in place snapped and his head rolled away from his body, which landed in the opposite direction.

  Close enough.

  Knowing they were several hundred yards from the SUV, he struggled with the pack and locked it on his back before he lifted Jade and draped her over his shoulder in a fireman’s carry. With short steps, he made his way to the SUV, praying they wouldn’t run into any other shifters on the way.

  He had the keys in his pocket from driving down from Snowfall, so when he reached the SUV, he breathed a sigh of relief and unlocked the car. He leaned Jade in the front seat long enough to drop the seats in the second and third row and put the pack down, shoving it to the far corner out of the way. They would be needing the supplies in that pack.

  He then threw some blankets on the floor before he lifted Jade and lay her down. He covered her with as many blankets and sleeping bags he could find, before closing the door, ready to drive them the fuck out of there.

  He threw his pack into the passenger seat and when he slid into the driver’s side and buckled his seat belt, he finally had a chance to look outside.

  Well, we’re fucked.

  Too busy trekking through the snow to get Jade to safety, he failed to realize how much snow had fallen during their fight with the shifters. He turned on the SUV and flicked on the windshield wipers. It had dumped a half a foot of snow onto the ground in the past half hour and it didn’t look as though it was letting up anytime soon.

  Noah turned back to Jade, lying too still and silently in the back.

  Please don’t die.

  Chapter Nine

  Noah

  Noah allowed himself to wallow for a bit, wanting to take his anger and helplessness out on the steering wheel, but instead laid his head down on his hands and took in deep breaths until he was calm. He had no idea how long he sat there, but when the cold seeped into the cab from the wind whipping outside, he was pulled him from his pathetic musings.

  Knowing that the snow and clouds would insulate them, but not enough, he searched for the portable heaters and knew they had enough propane to heat the car for three more days. He didn’t want to set up the lights in case they were spotted. The last thing Noah wanted was to be trapped in an SUV and have shifters close in on both of them. He didn’t truly know if it would do much good since shifters mainly tracked by smell, but Noah wasn’t taking any chances of them being spotted in any case.

  Noah had to wait for Jade to reawaken after her body healed itself. He understood how lucky they were that none of the shots had been headshots, not certain she would survive something as severe as that. He wasn’t certain how she’d survived after so many bullets hit her center mass.

  He knew he should have asked more questions about their healing abilities when he had the chance, but even finding their hideout and trekking back to their cave and watching Jade dispatch those two shifters hadn’t allowed reality to set in. Jade had taken care of them so easily.

  And because the shifters were so powerful without weapons, it was preposterous to him they would have heavy weaponry, enough to bring Jade to her knees.

  But he took comfort in her words. She needed time to heal and now that they were stuck in a snowstorm, time was one thing they had an unlimited supply of.

  Noah had checked to make sure Jade was breathing steadily before he decided to go through their supplies. He pulled out three canteens, twenty-two MREs, an extra propane tank for refilling the heaters, LED lights, ten magazines for his two .45s, two boxes of .308 cartridges, two combat knives, and several extra thermal layers, all his size.

  He blinked when he realized she’d packed for his comfort and needs more
than her own. She had even packed a new package of underwear for him. And for a reason he couldn’t understand right at that moment, tears filled his eyes. He couldn’t remember the last time he cried, but laying out their supplies and glancing over at Jade, helpless and pale from her injuries, hit Noah hard. He didn’t want to lose Jade and he wasn’t fast enough to protect her.

  After everything had been laid out, he set about arranging those items they would need immediately, including a med kit that had a bottle of morphine. He would only give her a dose if she showed signs of pain. He put the non-essentials at the bottom of the pack.

  Noah debated whether he should treat her wounds or leave them be and let them heal. He’d seen many a gunshot wound over the years and although none of his fellow SEALs knew, he hated the sight of blood. On every tour, he was grateful they had a medic to deal with wounds that ranged from superficial to severe, so all he had to do was press on the wound until they’d gotten back to whatever base they were at that week.

  Suck it up, Hale.

  He opened the med kit and made sure he had gauze and tape available. With easy movements so he didn’t jar her too much, he pulled Jade up to a sitting position, resting her head on his shoulder, before he peeled off her tank top. He lowered her down, grateful that she had foregone a bra, but when he spotted the cluster of wounds on her chest, his heart threatened to beat out of his chest.

  The flesh looked angry. The edges of the wounds were jagged. Blood seeped onto her chest and he did his best to mop them up, hoping the bleeding would stop. He risked a glance at the first bullet wound she sustained on her shoulder and breathed a sigh of relief. While the area was jagged, there was no blood, just pink, angry skin where the bullet had exited.

  Knowing they would continue to bleed, he pressed two square pieces of gauze together and taped them over the wounds. He would check them every two hours or however long it took for the gauze to become completely absorbed by blood and change them out until she started to regenerate.