Darlings of Paranormal Romance (Anthology)

by Chrissy Peebles

  ***

  When I came to, Vincent had wrapped me up in his coat. The moon’s light shown on his face and I was so happy to see him. I buried my body in his embrace. “Thanks be to the Moon Goddess, it’s you.”

  “What happened?” Vincent snapped.

  His intense anger scared me and flinched. “I don’t know,” I mumbled and moved away from me as I realized my head was hurting.

  He sighed loudly. “I apologize. Tell me what happened,” he said more calmly. He positioned me up against the rock like I was a china doll, fussing over his coat I wore as he struggled to cover me completely in it.

  “Someone started talking to me, telling me to offer myself to you. It called me a dirty little whore of a wolf.” I held my head in my hands. I couldn’t stop the rising pain.

  “What’s wrong?” Vincent asked.

  “My head. Did I hit something?”

  “The rock when you fell. Let me look.” He crouched near me and examined my forehead. “You’re bleeding.” He paused for a moment, and then added, “That’s a bad gash.”

  “I think I’m going to pass out now.” My vision became to swim and images of Vincent before me multiplied.

  “Wait, hold on. Don’t do that.” He flashed his fangs suddenly at me and sank his teeth into the palm of his hand.

  My eyes widened and it was probably the only thing keeping me alert, seeing the severity of the bite. Blood shot forth and spilled over his hand.

  “Hold still and breathe please.”

  I let Vincent put his bloody hand to my temple. My eyesight danced before me and played tricks on me. I saw two rocks, then four, three full moons, then a few more. Passing out would be a good idea, I thought to myself. Passing out.

  “Emily, you’re going to feel this rush, this insanely rapid rush. Hold onto me. Here, grab my arm.”

  The minute I heard Vincent’s words, I felt my body zoom to the top of the moon and then fly back down again. My head didn’t hurt anymore and a feeling of euphoria took me over, divine, lovely bliss.

  “Wow.” I paused as another wave of energy hit me. “Wow!”

  “Keep breathing. Emily, listen to me. Channel that energy. Channel it into defending yourself. The hellhounds aren’t far now. Remember I’m on your side. If you truly are a Livonian wolf, we’ll soon now. Rein in those hormones now, my sweet. We must move!”

  He picked me up and dusted me off.

  I watched as he buttoned his overcoat around me. Another feeling was surfacing. I twitched my nose disapprovingly. “Phooey.” Playfully I smiled up at him as he wrapped his overcoat around me. “I’m not a mare, Vincent. I’m a tiger and I wanna roar. Roar.”

  “We’ll play circus later, Tiger lady.” Vincent scratched his head as he stared at me.

  I whispered the word again. “Roar.” I held up my hands like I was showing off a set of claws.

  “Oh, damn it,” I heard Vincent say.

  “What’s going on?” I screamed. My eyes widened when I witnessed that I did have claws, long ivory Wolfen claws, claws that I was showing off to the moon above.

  “Your transformation has begun I suspect.” His voice was laced with a tone of alarm as he wrung his fingers a time or two through his hair. “This is not good.”

  A second overwhelming jolt of electricity slammed into me again, more intense than before. I screamed again. I ripped Vincent’s coat from my body and this time fell into a heap at Vincent’s feet. My back arched into a high forward bend. My muscles flexed and expanded. I felt the soreness from my shifting into a wolf earlier tear past any point I thought possible. My arms, legs, calves, all my extremities increased to a well-proportioned size.

  “I’m not a werewolf,” I yelled. “The Wolf comes to me. He says when and where. But I’m not a werewolf!”

  “You’re a special type of wolf, Emily. A Livonian wolf. In Ancient Lunar Mythology, a Livonian werewolf is a virgin maiden. No harm can come to her because she is bound and protected by the Moon Goddess. She, alone, decides when she gives up her virginity. When that day comes, she may become a very powerful entity, one to be feared by any creatures outside the Golden Kingdom. Oh yes, you will be incredible, Emily. Breathe. Just breathe. And prepare for battle.”

  A rush of energy and overwhelming emotions collided. I howled at the top of my lungs. I couldn’t stop it. I huffed over and over, trying to catch my breath as Vincent’s words swam in my head. A Livonian wolf like the stories my aunt had told me? It couldn’t be true. I’d become a monster.

  “Vincent, the pain. Make it stop,” I yelled, and then I felt my jaw break and a massive amount of sharp teeth fill my mouth. I reached for him, seeing the length of my hands elongated and bony. My claws were five inches long if they were an inch.

  Finally Vincent’s voice came to me. “I’m here. I’m here. It’s okay,” he announced. He was immediately by my side. “Don’t fight it. It’ll only make it worst.”

  My heart flip-flopped and I clung to him. How could it get any worst? I thought. My questions sent me into a panic. Hearing Vincent’s explanation only furthered my mania, but having him near me helped to calm me some.

  “The magical elements in my blood, from my mother. That may be what triggered it or losing your virginity? Maybe that opened the door to your destiny.” Vincent speculated.

  I shook my head. I didn’t speak for fear of lashing my tongue or worst. I didn’t want to try. Vincent saw my hesitation. I groveled at his feet, undeniably nude except for a thin layer of blonde fur now covering my body. I felt like I was wearing a transparent suit of fabric, a mouth of teeth and gloves with razors attached to the end of every finger. My hair whipped around my body. It appeared it had grown several feet in length during this transformation. I debated using it to cover my body, but feared I’d only cut myself in the process.

  This can’t be happening. This can’t be happening. This can’t…

  “Riesci a capirmi?”

  My eyes locked with Vincent’s. I heard his words without seeing his lips move.

  “Sì, posso capire.” I responded telepathically, telling him I could understand his question in Italian before I realized he had spoken another language. Yes, I can understand you.

  “Dimmi di nuovo nella tua lingua. Sei un lupo mannaro o no?”

  Hearing his words, ‘Tell me again in your language. Are you a werewolf or not?’ exasperated any reason I had left. I extended my mouth and breathed outwardly. Gritting my teeth, as I wanted to do, would surely slice apart my tongue. Mentally I threw a response to him. “I’m called a Werewolf Princess because my father is a werewolf. Zeus cursed him. However, the curse wasn’t passed down to me. I don’t shift unless the Wolf comes to me and then it’s just into a wolf. No, I’m not a werewolf. Or I wasn’t. I didn’t think I was until now. I’ve never howled at the moon before. I just howled at that moon.” I pointed an unbelievably long claw at the sky. “That moon right there.”

  “This is my fault. I shouldn’t have deflowered you,” he exclaimed. He left my side and stomped around the ground, clearly upset with himself as he voiced his concerns. “I didn’t think it was true. No one has seen a Livonian werewolf in centuries. By the moon and stars, what have I done?”

  The movement of his black boots vibrating the dirt fascinated me. As I listened, I watched each foot slam into the earth, sending a cloud of dust upwards, I immediately realized the ground was baked and without any nourishment. A wasteland indeed. I also became aware that I could see Vincent’s movements. Before they were blurred. Now they weren’t. Another realization made me want to howl at the moon again. If I had access to this form when I found the demon who had been killing my pack, I wouldn’t need to call the Wolf. I could kill him myself.

  “My blood unlocked your destiny, I’m afraid. The elements of your Lunar ancestors. You have werewolf in you. Somewhere,” Vincent stated matter-of-factly. “And you were a virgin. This wolf you keep referring to. Does he have a name?”

  I shook my head and sent a respo
nse telepathically since I didn’t trust myself to speak out loud, and since I didn’t understand what he meant. “I’m sorry. What?”

  “What is the Wolf’s name?”

  I shook my head again. “He won’t tell me his name.” When I got a whiff of the first hellhound, I growled. Vincent heard me and dropped his fangs in response.

  I saw three or four hellhounds come into view and I knew we were probably surrounded. Because Vincent had pushed his back to mine to protect me, I couldn’t see how many there were. A circle of two headed black dogs with red eyes and fangs was enough for me to see. Eight. Maybe more.

  Fight.

  The Wolf’s voice ordered me. Demanding me to engage in a fight I knew I’d lose. If I was in mid-werewolf-transformation, my shift was not complete and I couldn’t begin to fight off these fiends. They growled and hissed, slowly closing the circle around us.

  Fight.

  Feed, little wolf. Feed.

  The unfamiliar voice surfaced again. That had to be Vincent’s blood speaking to me. His dark side. It wanted me to kill and take the nourishment I needed.

  You can do anything you put your mind to.

  Vincent’s deep voice flowed into my mind and drowned out the chaos raging in my brain. Vincent spoke to me in Italian and I immediately understood his words. If the hellhounds were dead, they couldn’t report back to the demon. It would give us more time.

  When I heard him unsheathed his swords, I jumped into action.

  I ran as fast as I could and dove at two of the dogs. I slid underneath the first animal and sliced his stomach open with my claws, from top to bottom. His guts spilled out all over the baked earth and steam rose to the sky. The second one I impaled with my claws as he looked on in horror. Seeing a naked wolf-woman racing around the night likely was not a normal sight for him, I assumed.

  By the time I had a chance to look up, Vincent had killed three hounds and was going for two more. “Count your kills! They travel in packs of nine,” he called out telepathically.

  I flew into action, making a circle around Vincent and the remaining dogs. My two. His three. Two more for him. Seven total. That leaves two. Two more. I had two more to kill. After about four or five strides, my body completed its transformation and I felt the heaviness of being changed into werewolf form. My female form vanished and I realized I was a large mass of fur, claws, teeth, and muscles. Each movement I made as I stalked the remaining two hounds, now wide-eyed and frozen in their place, sent waves of electricity down my spine. The feeling of power and strength was orgasmic. I’d never felt anything like it. I gnashed my jaws a few times, getting Vincent’s attention.

  His sword slammed down into the skull of the second hound as he glanced my way. His smile deepened into laughter. “You want the last two, mia bella lupo?”

  I responded by shaking my fully furred body as I ran. The sensation again sent a surge of energy through every limb. My vision went red and I bounded over to the remaining hellhounds. I could already tell being a werewolf was going to be extremely enjoyable. “Hi guys, how are we doing tonight?” I asked mentally as I sliced open their throats with my claws.

  ***

  As I finished tidying up and hiding any evidence, I realized hellhounds tasted a lot like chicken and their blood reminded me of huckleberry wine. I didn’t want to tell Vincent that because he’d probably think I was crazy. I searched around the large rock where we had been, expecting to see him. Suddenly I realized he had disappeared. A twinge of panic hit me. Where was he? Had I?

  Out of nowhere, a black leopard nudged me hard in my shoulder. I heard a low, rich purr. “Emily, I’m right here.”

  “You’re kidding me,” I replied telepathically, realizing the leopard was Vincent.

  The cat raced away, starting to cover ground.

  I remained frozen. Vampires couldn’t shift. But this vampire had already shifted into a cloud of smoke and now a black leopard. What could he not do? I wondered.

  Vincent returned quickly. I heard the low purring sound again as he leaned his forehead into mine and spoke telepathically. “We have to move now. Jump in the first river you get to.”

  “You can shift too, Vinnie?” I mentally asked him.

  He blinked his dark eyelids over gleaming blue eyes. His blue eyes instantly went icy cold and he glared at me. He shook his panther head, showing me a row of razor sharp feline teeth. “Don’t call me Vinnie. My father calls me Vinnie and I hate it.”

  “Understood. I’m sorry.”

  Another smell of rotting corpses and burnt onions distracted us. We both raised our heads in unison and growled at the dark sky.

  “Come on.”

  I flew into action, running alongside Vincent at breakneck speed on my all fours.

  ***

  Once I saw the river come into view, I thought about stopping because I wasn’t sure where Vincent was. When I heard a growl at my left side, I hastened my pace and dove into the water. I thought for a moment that the water may be too shallow and I’d break my neck or that the width of the river wouldn’t be wide enough for me in my werewolf form to maneuver through safely.

  What I didn’t expect was for Vincent to shift back into his human form and drag me beneath the current. As I fought my way to the surface again, I saw the opening of the river sealing shut. I’ll drown. I’ll drown. I’ll drown. And never avenge my brother and aunt’s deaths.

  “It’s a portal, Emily. We have to keep moving. Dive down.”

  I heard Vincent’s words assuring me, but I struggled to trust his judgment because he was dragging me down, quite literally deeper into the waters. Couldn’t I trust him?

  ***

  “Wake up, sleepy head. We have to meet Michel and the others.”

  Hearing Vincent’s low, sultry voice in my ear, I smiled to myself. Again he was right by my side. The warmth of his body ignited my desire instantly. I rolled over and gazed up at him. When I saw the sunlight shining over his shoulder, I freaked out and sat upright with a jolt. “The sun! It’ll kill you!”

  He shook his head at me as a few wisps of his black hair fell in his eyes. He pushed them away. “I’m okay. I have these.”

  Shoving his sky blue shirt off his shoulders, he turned around and showed me his back. It was covered with a series of designs that appeared to have been carved into his rippling muscles with jet black ink.

  “What are they?” I asked as I traced the designs with my fingers.

  “My tribal signatures,” he said. “They represent my current regiment in the Lunar army and the one I hope to be in someday. They protect me from the sun. Every member of the Lunar army has some signature.”

  Oh really, I thought, wondering now if I had any designs now. I shoved the notion to the back of my brain. Later. “The leopard designs I get, but dragons. Why dragons?” I gasped. “Don’t tell me you can shift into a dragon too?”

  “Okay, I won’t tell you,” he chuckled with that laugh I was growing to love. “I’ll show you instead.”

  “Oh no, you don’t.” I reached for both sides of his shirt and pulled him down upon me. My lips briefly touched his. “I’ve had enough adventure for one day,” I whispered. Seeing that I too was in my human form made me think of the werewolf transformation as a dream. It couldn’t possibly have happened, but I knew it had. I would no longer be the same.

  “Actually I can’t shift into dragon form, but I hope to be able to once I join their ranks,” he replied as his finger tenderly traced the line of my cheekbone and jaw.

  “I could see that. How is it that you can shift? I thought only wolves could do that.” His nearness sent a shiver of delight through me.

  “I don’t know really. I’ve always been able to manipulate my physical form. My mother taught me how when I was a very young and Michel helped me refine it. But I can’t shift into just anything. I have only a few shapes I can do successfully.”

  “And that of a dragon isn’t one of them?” His nearness was overwhelming and I recognized th
at it was difficult to concentrate on his words. The closeness of his presence caused my heart to beat wildly and I fought back the urge to taste his lips. Purposely I stared at the cleft in his chin as he talked.

  “No. Each form takes a great deal of concentration. I can’t do it if I’m low on blood like I was earlier before we killed the hellhounds. Being a member of the Lunar army, I can shift into the shape of a cat. I prefer the leopard. Once I’m accepted into the Order of the Dragon, then I’ll be able to work on my dragon form.” Vincent twirled a portion of my hair around his fingers and studied it. “Is every woman in your kingdom as beautiful as you are, Emily?”

  “Possibly,” I replied. “Why?” The grin on my face expanded as I leaned up close to him, ready to kiss him.

  He shrugged his shoulders, refusing to say more as he continued to play with my hair. His gaze fell to the expanse of my neck and he contemplated it for some time.

  “You’re the most incredible man I’ve ever met,” I offered, leaning closer still to him so I could breathe in his male scent. It was a dark, rich fragrance of spice like warm cinnamon or nutmeg. I wanted to drink from his fountain and possess him. “Kiss me,” I ordered. “I want to be yours, Vincent. Here in this beautiful place. It’s so unlike the dark place.”

  Quickly he sat upright, glancing away. His mood had again changed, but he did not move from my side.

  Letting the silence between us grow, I marveled at the blue water, trying to forget it was the same color as Vincent’s eyes. A few waves rolled in and splashed against the platform where we lounged in a large hammock made for two. I let my eyes trace the covered pier where we sat overlooking the beach on one side and the water on the other. The platform extended out some sixty or seventy feet from a cove surrounded by palm trees. It was breathtaking. Even in the Golden Kingdom, I had never seen anything like it. Our rivers were green and calm, and wound around mountains. This body of water must be an ocean, I surmised, recalling what my aunt had told me.

  When I glanced over at Vincent again, he was staring at me. A rush of warmth rolled over me and my mouth began to water. “Claim me,” I said.