Dark Celebration 17

by Christine Feehan

  It took a moment to adjust to two minds vying for supremacy, but they merged naturally and Antonietta reached for the beast, embracing the jaguar, allowing it freedom. It sprang forward, claws unsheathed, with a chaotic need to bound across the snow-covered meadow for the trees. Byron paced easily beside her, ignoring the warnings rumbling from the female. He was not about to let Antonietta out of his sight.

  The female jaguar slowed to a walk, placing each paw delicately in the powdery snow, but moving without hesitation deeper into the woods. They were moving in the general direction of the inn, but were still several miles away. To Byron's knowledge, there were only a couple of homes in the direction they were going. Gregori's home was high in the mountains, surrounded by a grove of trees and large boulders. It was protected from weather and enemies on three sides, and even a hiker walking within yards of it wouldn't be able to spot it. Gregori had woven safeguards around it to further distort the image from any potential enemy.

  Jacques and Shea lived in the second house. It too was very secluded. Jacques still needed a space between him and the rest of the population. Shea and Savannah were close

  friends and often visited each other, but even their homes were miles apart. Jacques had built a very elegant house almost into the mountain itself, so even from the air, it was impossible to see.

  The cat lifted its head and scented the air several times. She is searching for a particular scent.

  What is it? Byron could feel the urgent compulsion in the cat, but he couldn't find the thread driving it.

  Antonietta didn't answer him right away, and when she did it was with some reluctance. She is hunting prey.

  The female jaguar pushed off with her hind feet and sprang up onto a fallen log, pausing for a moment to look toward the mountain:, toward Gregori's home, and then turned her head in the direction of the other house.

  Deep inside the body of the jaguar, Antonietta gasped. Byron! Did you feel that surge? The eagerness?

  What is she after?

  The baby. She's after Shea's baby. That means Darius's leopards are being pushed to attack Shea. Whoever it is doesn't know about me. The compulsion is directed at the cats.

  Byron reached out on the private link he shared with his childhood friend. Jacques. Hear me now. He shared the information, the feelings Antonietta was experiencing as well as their fears. We have to give this information to all Carpathians, but once we do, Shea will hear. Do you need time to break it to her gently?

  Byron hated to add to the couple's stress level. Both were terrified of the upcoming birth –and rightly so. Now they had to worry about an enemy who could manipulate animals and was doing so with the specific intent of harming their child.

  Spread the word, Byron. We must find this enemy before Shea gives birth. I fear it will be this night. There was a small silence, and then Jacques sighed. She is already fighting it, wanting to keep our son safe inside the womb.

  You are certain it is a boy?

  Yes. I have a son. He is strong and wants to come out into the world, but Shea has been holding him back. Knowing an enemy has specifically targeted our child makes it more difficult.

  She has my protection as well. I stand by your side, ready to fight.

  We thank you, my old friend. There was weariness in Jacques's voice. Please thank

  Antonietta. It must have been difficult for her to get her cat to reveal this information. Without her effort we would not know an enemy is about to strike. Shea sends her thanks as well.

  Byron shared the response with his lifemate as they both exerted pressure on the jaguar to turn back toward home. Immediately, the warning went out to all Carpathians on their common path of communication, and he felt a surge of pride in Antonietta.

  The female snarled, resisting the order. Byron moved in closer, and at once Antonietta responded, catching his thought. There were much more pleasant ways to distract the cat than fighting it. Byron quickly shifted forms. The male jaguar shouldered the female, rubbing his chin along her back, and the female sprang away from him, throwing an enticing look over her shoulder. They raced back to the house, heat overcoming the need for prey.

  By the time they shifted back to their own forms, their arms were wound tightly around one another, mouths welded together, and his hands were deftly pulling the intricate weave from her hair.

  Chapter 11

  Juliette De La Cruz paced restlessly back and forth across the kitchen tiles. Her body felt too tight for her own skin. It was impossible to control her mind as it flipped channels, a chaotic whirl from subject to subject. She couldn't seem to stay focused on anything at all– not even the fruit and melon salad she was making for tonight's celebration.

  She missed her sister and cousin. This would be her first holiday without them. She'd invited them, but as always, they'd refused to have anything to do with the De La Cruz men. It wasn't as if she blamed them, but Juliette could have used their company. Outside the window, the snowflakes drifted, turning the world around her into a peaceful, quiet realm, but her body and mind were out of control.

  It was hot. Too hot. She unbuttoned her blouse and tied the ends together in a knot beneath her generous breasts. She lifted the heavy fall of hair from her neck and paced around the small kitchen once again. If you don't come home soon, I'm going for a run. I need… She reached out to her lifemate, but she didn't know what she needed. Her body wanted his-but it always did. She just couldn't become calm.

  Deep inside, she felt her cat moving, struggling for supremacy. Juliette was part jaguar and even after the conversion, her cat was strong, but she was always able to control her. Now even her cat wanted out-wanted freedom.

  Breathe. The word was whispered in her mind. Soft. Intimate. Warm. You always forget to breathe.

  She knew she was alone in the kitchen. Her beloved lifemate, Riordan, had gone to see

  his brothers. Riordan and Juliette had traveled from South America and had arrived in the early morning hours. Riordan hadn't had a chance to see his brother, Manolito, who had been injured in a battle.

  I'm breathing. I wish you were here. There was a blatant invitation in her voice. Riordan was very good at putting the heat in her blood with one whisper of his seductive voice. «I'm making this fruit salad. You're supposed to be helping me.» Her breasts tingled and seemed heavy and aching. She had the full, curvy figure of a woman. Her waist was small, but her breasts and hips were generous and right now every square inch of her skin burned. She wanted him. Right there. That moment. He had to come back or she was going to have to throw herself in the snow to cool down.

  I am on my way. Let me make my good-byes. It must be the fruit salad you are making. I think fruit turns you on.

  Only what one can do with it. Juliette laughed, but there was little amusement in her. Her body was too edgy. The De La Cruz brothers seemed to be very sexual creatures, and she fit right in, needing Riordan, welcoming the many inventive ways he made love, but she'd never felt so edgy, so desperate.

  She ran some water and dribbled it down the valley between her breasts, glancing out the window as she did so. No one was there. She was completely alone. She scanned often as Riordan had taught her, but she still felt as if someone watched her. Juliette tried to shake off the feeling, fearing it was leftover paranoia from her days kidnapping women back from jaguar males. She would never get over the constant vigilance needed to stay safe in the jungle. Looking out the window, she scanned again, just to be certain, taking great care to track any movement in the area around the cabin-even animals-but there was no one even close to her house.

  Juliette? Jacques sent the word that someone is trying to use the leopards to attack Shea and her unborn child. Whoever is doing this is unaware of the jaguar strain running in some of the women. It is strong in you. Are you having trouble?

  Juliette sighed with relief. She could handle her jaguar if the cat was what was causing her to be so moody and edgy and paranoid. Yes. But I've been dealing with my cat all my
life and I'm in control of her. When her cat went into heat, it was especially difficult to maintain control and that could be the unexpected problem. She should have thought of that.

  Be careful, Juliette.

  She smiled to herself as she gathered up the melon peels. Of course he just had to have the last word, to give her some sort of a command. He'd spent too much time alone with his brothers in South America, or maybe the De La Cruz brothers were all just plain bossy with their women-well, okay-with everyone around them. They liked their women submissive, yet neither she nor Colby, Rafael's lifemate, were in the least bit unassuming.

  From her perspective at least, that made for a fiery and very interesting sexual relationship.

  Catching up the bowl of rinds, she carried them outside into the thick grove of trees surrounding the house. The moment she stepped into the night air, the cat inside her stirred, unsheathed claws and looked up toward the mountains-toward Jacques's residence. She reprimanded the cat with a warning snarl and pushed it ruthlessly down. The cat tried again, rubbing against her insides, spreading a fire that only Riordan could put out.

  So that's the way it is. We've been too long without our mate.

  Her hair whipped across her face with a strong gust of wind. She pulled down the thick, dark strands and tossed the rinds for the deer. Everything in her froze, the smile fading abruptly as she stared down in shocked horror at the track marks in the snow. Her mouth went dry as she took a cautious look around. Her heart began to slam hard and for one awful moment, her legs went rubbery.

  Riordan? How far away are you?

  What is it? He felt her fear more than heard it, and already he was striding through his brother's house, calling to the other men, ready to take to the air.

  Jaguar tracks. Male. How can that be? I was throwing melon scraps out for the deer and the tracks are all around the house. He was staring in the window while I was making the salad. She stayed still, almost afraid to move, her gaze quartering the area, paying particular attention to the trees.

  The Dark Troubadours brought their leopards, Juliette. His voice was soothing. Perhaps you are mistaken and one of the leopards was investigating our house.

  She brought her teeth together in a sharp snap. Don't patronize me! I know the difference. I've tracked jaguar all my life and I don't make mistakes. I know a jaguar track and I know when a male has been in the vicinity. I can scent him as well. I'm telling you one of them is here, in the mountains, and there's only one reason he'd be here.

  Get in the house. I'm on my way, coming to you now.

  No, the tracks lead away from the house. I'm going to follow him. Antonietta has the ability to shift into a jaguar as well. I don't know if any of the other women can as well, but if they can, they could be in as much danger as I am. It stands to reason that several of them carry the blood whether they can shapeshift or not. It would explain their strong psychic abilities.

  Juliette. He put warning into his voice, displeasure.

  She ignored him as if she hadn't heard him. I can't believe one of them came here with so many Carpathian males around. They must be getting desperate. What if they followed us? What if I brought this danger on these people?

  Don't panic. I'll be there soon. Go into the house. He repeated it, this time making it a command. Not all jaguar males belong to the group kidnapping females.

  You and I both know if he's here lurking around the house, he's after a woman who can shapeshift. I'm not allowing what happened to my baby sister to happen to anyone else. I'm tracking him.

  Already, she was calling up her cat for the change. Before her conversion to Carpathian, the change from human form to jaguar had been slow and painful, but it was much easier now. Before, she could call on her jaguar heritage only for short periods of time and shift, but it was always difficult, and even more so to hold that form for very long. Now she could do it effortlessly for hours on end.

  If someone is influencing the cats in an attempt to get them to attack Shea and her unborn child, it may be too dangerous for you to use that form. You said you were having trouble. He used any excuse he could think of to stall her.

  I've been restless and edgy, and yes, my jaguar has been clawing at me to let her loose, but no jaguar male could influence us that way.

  He could if he was psychic.

  I would know. I spent my life fighting them in the jungle, Riordan. In any case, I'm perfectly capable of controlling my cat. I've been doing it all my life-even when she's edgy and needs a mate.

  You better never let her loose when she needs a mate-unless you re coming to me. Now wait for me.

  She reached for her wild side, allowing her jaguar to completely take over her body. Spotted fur slid over her skin. Muscles and tendons contracted and stretched, stiletto-sharp claws sprang from her curving hands and her face elongated to accommodate the jaguar muzzle and teeth. She dropped to all fours, already running smoothly. Roped muscles and a flexible spine allowed the stocky jaguar to leap from boulder to log and even take to the tree branches when necessary.

  I forbid this, Riordan bit out, his hiss of anger sliding into her mind with a black swirl.

  Then it's a good thing no one can boss me around. Juliette had fought most of her life against the jaguar males. They kidnapped women with the ability to shapeshift and stole any child resulting in the union. Juliette had stayed in the forest working with other women to try to help, but in the end she'd lost her mother and aunt to the jaguars, and eventually they had captured Jasmine, her sister. She couldn't allow any woman to fall into their hands.

  Riordan was a strong Carpathian male and had lived for centuries in South America, adopting the Latin possessive and protective nature toward women, which compounded the already overbearingly dominant traits of his species. She knew he was furious at the idea

  she could be in danger and he wasn't with her, and he was also angry with her for her refusal to do as he ordered.

  Rafael will come with me. We will find this male.

  Good. Then I'll have backup. I suggest you hurry.

  He sent her a low growl and the impression of strangling her. Juliette ignored him and raced across the snow as lightly as possible, covering the male's tracks, scenting the forest air. Her jaguar fought her for a moment, trying to turn in the direction of the mountains, but she held the cat to its course, moving fast in an effort to overtake the male.

  How long had he been outside her house watching her make her fruit salad for the party? She had been insistent that Riordan go visit his brother since Manolito had been injured. It had never occurred to her that she might run into a jaguar male here in the Carpathian Mountains-especially with all the protective males surrounding the women and guarding them as if they were all precious treasures.

  You are a precious treasure, Juliette, although I'm considering beating you into submission.

  I would cut off body parts when you slept.

  That would be a problem. In spite of the gravity of the situation, amusement welled up between them.

  Juliette felt a surge of love. She had never thought she would find a man-least of all a very dominating one-she could love and respect. Her life had been all about fighting men, but Riordan valued and cherished her. He always put her first, even when he was attempting to order her around. And in truth, it was nice to be able to rely on someone. Riordan was totally reliable. He would come and he would bring others.

  She moved with confidence, staying low, aware the jaguar male could be luring her into a trap. Where there was one, there were often more, especially if they had come for a female-and that was likely. The male had veered toward the south, moving quickly through any open spaces, trying to stay to the trees for cover.

  I cannot detect him when I scan.

  Riordan swore. Juliette, get out of there. I'm telling you to break off and wait for us. We're so close, but you could be running into a trap.

  I cannot allow him to get near the other women. He's circling around now and headi
ng toward Rafael's house. Go back, Riordan. Colby has her brother and sister and their friends there. Panic edged her voice. She was still a distance away and she was fairly certain Riordan and Rafael were coming toward her. They would miss the jaguar male and he would have free access to the women and teens at the house.

  Colby will protect the children. She is aware of the danger and is taking precautions. Just stop where you are, Riordan coaxed.

  Juliette hesitated. What would be the best thing to do to ensure the male didn't grab anyone? She turned slightly, standing in a lower dip, lifting her head to scent the air again. Instantly the musky odor of male cat filled her lungs. Her head swung in the direction, but it was far too late. He was a mere blur, rushing at her with full speed. The much heavier male slammed into her side, cracking ribs and driving her from her feet. He was on her in a second, going for her throat, claws raking her sides, tearing deep lacerations. She tried to use her teeth, sinking them into the jaguar's leg, but for some reason, her teeth didn't really penetrate. She couldn't get a grip on him. The blood was hot, stinging and burning the inside of her mouth and muzzle.