FALL OF A BLOOD MOON (RISE OF THE ARKANSAS WEREWOLVES Book 7)

by Jodi Vaughn

  “So can you still sense him? Know how he’s feeling?”

  “Yeah, but it’s really odd.”

  “What do you mean?” Jaxon asked.

  “Lorcan has always been a hothead. That dude has a temper. I could always sense when someone had pissed him off or when someone amused him. But now it’s different. It’s like he’s not letting himself feel one way or another. Like he’s indifferent.”

  “Maybe he’s doing that to ensure Boudier thinks he’s still loyal. I would have figured Boudier would have had him killed after he helped us escape.” Jaxon cringed. “Jesus, Lucien, I’m sorry man, I didn’t mean that.”

  “No worries, man. I know what you meant. To be honest, I thought he would have had him killed too. I was worried for a while, but now I don’t know.” Lucien’s voice dropped. “Listen, I’ll try to get in touch with my mom. Maybe she’s heard from him. In the meantime, do you have someplace to stay?”

  “We’re safe. For now.” He looked at Ginny and gave her a reassuring smile. “And thanks for all your help, Lucien. I really appreciate it.”

  “Of course. We might not be blood related, but we are brothers where it counts.” Lucien ended the call.

  Chapter Nineteen

  Jaxon stared at the cell phone in his hand. It was a little after noon.

  They would have already made it across the state line into Arkansas if the roads hadn’t been blocked. But all the detours had cut into their time.

  He really couldn’t go anywhere until he heard back from Lucien concerning Lorcan.

  Lorcan would have the inside scoop, if the Were decided to change his loyalties. Right now he wasn’t sure who he could trust.

  He shoved the phone back in his pocket and walked back to Ginny, his footsteps muffled by the clumps of dark green grass.

  “So what’s the plan?” She chewed on the end of her nail and crossed her arms.

  “I’ve got a call in to someone who might help us. Right now we have to stay put. Stay hidden and out of sight.”

  He looked at the old barn with vines climbing up the windows and weeds crowding the tall double doors. The red tin roof had long faded and rusted, and he was pretty sure he saw some holes, but he couldn’t be sure until he got inside.

  Thunder rolled overhead. Ginny jumped at the boom.

  “Are you kidding me?” She looked heavenward and rolled her eyes.

  “Look on the bright side,” he said.

  “Bright side? What bright side?” She frowned.

  “At least we have someplace dry to stay instead of riding in the rain.” He grinned.

  “You can’t be serious about going in there, are you?” She arched her brow. “I don’t like hiding out in some snake infested barn.”

  “Where is your sense of adventure? The Ginny I knew didn’t let some little king snake get her rattled.” He walked over to his Harley and opened his saddlebags. He dug a round a little and then pulled out a large knife.

  “It’s not the king snake I’m worried about. I’m worried about the rattlesnake.” She pointed at the blade in his hand. “Is that why you have that knife?”

  “The knife is to cut down some of the weeds around the door.” He smiled and started hacking away at the cluster of weeds blocking the barn doors.

  A few field mice scampered out of the bushes and ran off into the safety of the woods. Once the doors were clear of the weeds, he pulled the doors open.

  The doors creaked on rusty hinges, and the scent of old hay rolled out. He peered inside the dark building. A couple of old bales of hay were stacked under one of the windows. The dirt floor was strewn with loose straw, and a ladder sat propped leading up to the attic space. He walked the perimeter of the room, kicking the bales of hay and looking in corners for any stray snakes that might be hiding.

  “How’s it look?” Ginny called out to him.

  “It’s pretty clean. Hang on and let me look up in the loft.” He braced his foot on the ladder and climbed up to the loft. The floorboards creaked under his footsteps but seemed sturdy enough. The loft was relatively clean except for a couple of old, empty barrels.

  He climbed down and walked outside to Ginny.

  “I’m going to park the bike inside.” He grabbed his Harley by the handlebars and flipped the kickstand. He walked the bike inside, parked it near the window.

  “Are you coming in or what?” He turned back to her.

  “I don’t know, Jaxon. I mean, are you sure it’s safe?” Another boom of thunder shook the barn and rattled the windows.

  “I’m sure. There’s nothing hiding in here to hurt you.” He held out his hand and waved her inside.

  She hesitated. But when the large, fat drops of rain began to fall, she scurried inside.

  He watched as she looked around, assessing their temporary digs.

  “It’s a long way from what you’re used to, I’m sure,” he said quietly as he pulled out a blanket from his saddlebag.

  She frowned and pointed at the thin blanket. “Do you always carry a blanket in your saddlebag?”

  “I do. It’s for when I have to work on my bike on the side of the road. Too many times I’ve had to work on my Harley lying on asphalt. Not the most comfortable thing in the world.”

  “Oh.” She relaxed and smiled.

  He caught the look in her eye. He knew what she had been thinking. That he carried it with him to be prepared to sleep with any girl he came across.

  “So we wait?” She looked at him and shivered.

  “Yeah, for now.” He shoved off his jacket and wrapped it around her shoulders. “I’m going to go out to check and make sure no one followed us. Then I’m going to cover up our tracks. I don’t want anything leading to us.”

  He grabbed a rain slicker out of his saddlebag and slipped it over his head. “If you’re cold, go stand next to the Harley. The heat from the engine will warm you up.”

  “Jaxon, be careful.”

  He smiled and walked back over to her. He placed his hands on either side of her face. His thumbs rubbed the delicate skin on her cheek. Her lips parted, giving him the invitation he sought. He bent his head and gently covered her lips with his own.

  He kissed her gently and slowly, holding time in suspension while their bodies became acquainted with each other once again. She moaned under his mouth, sending shivers racing through his body.

  God, he’d missed her.

  He hadn’t realized how much he’d missed her until this very moment. It was like he was slowly dying every day when he was away from her. But now… now, he was beginning to live again, to come back to life.

  He wasn’t going to let her go. Not in this lifetime or the next.

  Her hands slipped around his neck, and she pulled him closer. She opened her mouth under his and he slipped his tongue inside, tasting her sweetness.

  His hands went down her back. He cupped her butt and held her against his body.

  “Jaxon,” she moaned and pressed her mouth to his neck.

  Lust pulsed through his body, and his body tightened. He’d never wanted someone as much as he wanted her.

  Forcing himself, he pulled away. Disappointment washed over her face and he felt the same way. “Stay here and I’ll be right back. I promise.”

  She nodded and took a step back.

  He smiled and headed out the open barn doors. Rain pelted his head and streamed down his face. He broke into a jog down the tiny trail they’d driven up on. He carefully analyzed the road. He spotted their tire tracks. He picked up a fallen branch and ran it across the dirt treads, covering up any sign they’d been here.

  Walking back to the barn, he was careful to step in the grass and not the mud. He didn’t want to leave any muddy footprints in his path.

  Back at the barn, he turned around and swept his gaze across the surroundings.

  He didn’t smell any danger, nor did he see any. They would be safe here, if just for a while. He doubted that Boudier had the kind of manpower to search every dirt road and eve
ry path.

  He walked into the barn and shrugged out of the slicker. Ginny stood up from sitting on the Harley and looked at him with expectant eyes.

  “It’s safe. No tracks at all.” He shook out the slicker and folded it up before stowing it back in the saddlebag. He shook his head, sending water droplets flying everywhere.

  “Jaxon.” Ginny wiped the raindrops from her arms. “I’m going to smell like wet dog now.” She smirked.

  “Ha ha. Very funny.” He chortled.

  “How long do you think we’ll be here?” She put her hands on her hips and walked around the barn. She kicked a bale of hay and stepped back as if expecting a king cobra to pop out of the old straw.

  “Not sure. Lucien is trying to get some intel. It may take a while. We might be spending the night here.” He closed and secured the saddlebag and turned back to her.

  “Here?” She spread her hands and looked at the dirt floor.

  “Well, up there.” He pointed above his head to the loft. “We won’t be sleeping on dirt up there, and it’s empty and pretty clean.”

  “Okay.” She didn’t sound so confident in his decision.

  “It’s not so bad up there.” He turned his attention to the corner of the barn where rain was dripping in from the ceiling. And turned back to her. “Plus, there are no holes in the ceiling in the loft. So it will be dry.”

  “Give me a minute before you come up.” He grabbed the blanket and a smaller bag out of the saddlebag and climbed up the ladder.

  Chapter Twenty

  Ginny took a deep breath and watched Jaxon disappear up to the loft. This was the last place she’d expected to be today. Their objective, in the middle of nowhere, was to survive, and it if meant spending the night in a dilapidated barn that housed who knew what, then she was up for the challenge.

  Something shuffled near the corner. A tiny brown mouse ran over the toe of her boot. She jumped back and screamed.

  “What’s wrong?” Jaxon’s head popped over the edge of the loft and he looked own at her.

  “Nothing. Just a stupid mouse.” She grimaced and kept her gaze on the floor, watching for any more rodents headed her way.

  “He’s more scared of you than you are of him,” Jaxon said.

  “I don’t care. Rodents are filthy and carry disease.” She scowled and looked around for any movement on the floor.

  Jaxon laughed and disappeared back into the loft.

  A few seconds later, he called out to her.

  “Okay, you can come on up.”

  She began her climb up the ladder. Though the wood creaked as she climbed, it felt sturdy enough to hold her weight.

  She scrambled over the top of the loft onto the wide plank floor and stood up.

  “Wow. This looks cozy.” The loft was awash in a soft glow of yellow light from a solar lantern that Jaxon had pulled out of his saddlebag. The blanket was spread out on the floor, and a thermos sat in the middle along with a large bottle of water.

  She met his gaze.

  He shrugged. “I figured you’d be hungry by now. I have some chili in the thermos and some chocolate chip cookies for dessert.”

  She arched her brow. “You always make a picnic when you go to work?”

  “I didn’t make it.” He laughed.

  Her stomach tightened. Some woman must have cooked for him.

  “Granny did. She always cooks for the Guardians, and when she knows we’ll be gone on a mission, she makes us take food.”

  “Oh.” She relaxed. “That’s really nice.” Then she frowned. “Who’s Granny?”

  “Granny is Jayden’s grandmother. She actually used to live in Louisiana with Jayden. But they are in Arkansas now, and she kind of looks after the Guardians as her own grandsons.”

  She eased onto the blanket and tucked her legs underneath her. A pained smile crossed her lips. “That sounds nice. I’m sure you all appreciate her.”

  “We do,” he said softly. He sat beside her.

  “What did you say her grandson’s name was?”

  “Jayden. Jayden Parker.”

  “That name sounds familiar. How long have they lived in Arkansas?”

  “Not very long. Almost a year.”

  “Maybe I heard his name from my father talking about all the Arkansas Guardians he was going to take down.” She met his gaze. “Jaxon, do you know he has a list? A list of all of Barrett’s men. He wants to destroy Barrett and all his Guardians.”

  Jaxon’s gaze hardened. “That fucker can try. But we’re not going anywhere.”

  She swallowed and looked away. “I’m sorry about Heimy and Mitchell.”

  “You know about that?” Jaxon cocked his head. His muscles tensed in his forearms and strained in his neck.

  “John came home one night bragging about what Father had ordered to be done to the Guardian Heimy.” She blinked back the tears. “John was the one who carried out the torture of the Guardians. But it was my father who ordered it.” She swallowed the lump in her throat. If Jaxon didn’t hate her before, surely he would hate her now.

  “Your husband did that to Heimy?”

  “Yes,” she whispered. “He was going to finish Mitchell, but that’s when the Arkansas Guardians showed up and found the place.” She shook her head. “When he told me about Heimy and Mitchell, he told me if I tried anything, if I tried to get away or tried to kill myself, then you would be the next werewolf they killed.” She shook her head.

  He reached over and took her hand in his. “What John and your father did had nothing to do with you. It’s not your fault. None of that is your fault.”

  “But this situation that we are in is my fault, Jaxon. I killed my mother and my monster of a husband. The Packs, both Louisiana and Arkansas, aren’t just going to let me off with a slap on the wrist. There are consequences.” Fear clawed at her stomach, and she wanted to scream.

  “Come here.” He pulled her into his lap. “Let me tell you something.” He brushed her hair away from her eyes and held her gaze. “Everything is going to be okay. I know with everything you’ve been through and everything you’ve seen, it’s hard to trust someone.” He brushed his thumb across her bottom lip. “But I’m asking you to take a deep breath and trust me.”

  She blinked back the tears burning her eyes. She never cried. She’d taught herself how to push down her emotions until they were under control. Now Jaxon had her wanting to weep like a baby.

  She didn’t like it. She didn’t like not having her emotions under control.

  “Say it, Ginny. I need you to say the words.”

  She took a deep breath and then blew it out. “I trust you, Jaxon.”

  A smile broke out across his face. “See, that wasn’t so hard, was it?”

  “Harder than you know.” She punched him playfully in the arm.

  His eyes narrowed, and the corners of his lips turned up into a smirk. “Oh, yeah?”

  He pulled her close and tickled her ribs. She squealed and laughed and tried to get away.

  “Jaxon, stop.” She laughed and curled up into a ball.

  “Not yet.” He grinned and caught her arms in one of his hands and pinned them above her head. He tickled her without mercy with his free hand.

  “Jaxon!” She squealed.

  He finally stopped but continued to hold her arms above her head. He stared down at her. His playful expression shifted into another emotion.

  Her smile slid off her face as she watched his eyes dilate. She knew what he wanted. But she didn’t know if she was ready.

  “Jaxon?” She licked her dry lips and stared up at him. Her heart pounded in her chest, and her breathing quickly turned to a pant. She wasn’t sure if it was fear or desire filling her chest with butterflies.

  It had been so long since she’d been looked at like she was a woman and not something to be possessed.

  Something flickered in his eyes and he slowly pulled back and released his hold on her. He got to his feet and went to the ladder.

  “Wher
e are you going?” She sat up, her breath but a pant.

  “I need to check on something outside. I’ll be right back.” He climbed down the ladder.

  She peered down at him from her position in the loft watching him quickly exit out the large barn doors.

  * * *

  What the fuck was wrong with him?

  One minute they were playing around like old times, and the next she was looking at him with fear in her eyes.

  Didn’t she know he would never hurt her?

  He forked his fingers through his hair and walked around the outside of the barn.

  He didn’t mind the rain soaking his T-shirt and jeans. It least it cooled his body and his libido. He stopped when he got to the back of the barn and looked up at the sky and squeezed his eyes shut.

  Thunder rolled and lightning scrawled across the dark sky. The rain was coming down hard and fast now, and he knew there was no way the Louisiana Guardians would be riding in this shit. They would be holed up somewhere, waiting it out. Just like they were.

  The Louisiana Assassins… Well, they were a whole other story.

  He glanced around the perimeter and didn’t notice anything amiss. Taking a deep breath and getting his body under control, he walked back inside the barn.

  “Is everything okay?” Ginny called from the loft.

  He looked up and met her worried face. He smiled. “Everything is secure.” He glanced out the window. “With this downpour, I’m sure the Louisiana Guardians won’t be riding.”

  He reached in his saddlebag, grabbed his phone, and checked to see if he had missed Lucien’s call.

  His phone showed no calls.

  Slipping the phone back into the saddlebag he pulled out the extra set of clothes he always carried with him.

  He glanced up and noticed that Ginny wasn’t looking down. He pulled his wet shirt over his head and slung it on the seat of his Harley.

  He tugged the dry shirt over his head and then unbuttoned his jeans and slid them over his hips. He tugged on the dry jeans and then grabbed his wet clothes. He hung them over the ladder to dry before climbing up.

  “You changed clothes.” Ginny’s eyes ran down the length of him, and he shrugged.