by A L Fogerty
After several hours, she stood, went into the boys’ room, and roused Sid from a deep sleep. He grunted and stirred, nodding wordlessly before he hurried out to his post.
Kayla returned to her room and collapsed onto the bed, utterly exhausted. She wanted to soothe the growing sadness that wouldn’t leave her alone.
When Kayla came out of her room the next morning, she found Felix sitting beside a small fire he’d built in the parking lot. When he saw her, he offered her a cup of tea. She took the warm cup and sipped. It was like heaven after a long, sleepless night filled with worry and sorrow.
“If we stay in a hotel like this again,” Felix started, “we should leave the horses inside. We could clear out one of the bottom rooms, and they will be safer from monsters.”
“That’s a good idea.” Kayla nibbled a piece of venison jerky. “We still have a four-day ride to the City of Ghosts,” Kayla said thoughtfully.
“It should be an easier ride the rest of the way. The land flattens between here and there.”
“But there are far more zombies, the closer we get.”
Mackenzie came out and sat beside them at the fire. “Good morning.”
“Your ability to control zombies is quite impressive,” Felix said.
“Too bad ghosts aren’t as easy to control.” Mackenzie poured herself a cup of tea. “Willa and I will need all our strength for the battle ahead.”
The others joined them at the fire, and they drank tea and ate breakfast before packing up and hitting the road. They got a late start, but no one had slept well the night before.
Kayla hoped they could make up some lost time. The longer it took to get there, the harder it would be to replenish their food. In rural environments, she could send Bane to hunt rabbits and squirrels. But the closer they got to the ghost-infested city, the harder it would become to find them.
They rode all day, and as the sun began to fade, they found an old farmhouse with a barn. The door to the barn still worked, giving the horses the chance to rest indoors for the night. Sid started a fire while Kayla and Bane slipped off into the forest to hunt. After an hour of following trails, Kayla came upon a wild turkey gobbling in the woods. She nocked an arrow and let it fly. It shot through the turkey’s heart, and the turkey fell to the ground in a heap. Kayla hurried to the bird and picked it up. Smiling happily, she carried it back to camp.
When she arrived, the rabbits Bane had caught that day were already roasting over the fire. Willa’s face lit up when she saw the turkey. Sid took it from Kayla, offering to prepare it for the group. She sat down on a log near the fire and pulled a rabbit from the spit for Bane. Her wolf had walked most of the day, only resting on Kayla’s saddle from time to time. Kayla tried to feed Bane as much as possible on long journeys. The tiny red wolf needed to keep up her stamina.
“I would like to sleep out under the stars tonight,” Kayla said. “I had my fill of musty mattresses last night.”
“I think I’ll join you,” Riddick said.
“It’s cold.” Mackenzie shivered. “I’d rather stay inside.”
After dinner, Willa and Mackenzie disappeared into the farmhouse with Felix and Sid, leaving Kayla and Riddick alone by the fire. The rabbits were gone, but the turkey was still roasting. She threw another log on the fire and settled into her furs, feeling much more at ease than she had the night before.
“You miss your mates, don’t you?” Riddick asked as the sparks of the campfire danced in the darkness.
“I do,” she said. “I miss them very much.”
“I’m sure they miss you too.” Riddick’s eyes twinkled in the firelight. “I don’t know how I could live without you if you were my mate.”
Kayla chuckled at that and shot Riddick a smirk and a side-eye. “I’m sure you’d survive.”
“I’ve never forgotten what you did for me.”
“You mean when I released you from wolf form?”
“Something happened when you released me. Something profound.”
Kayla wasn’t used to hearing Riddick use words like “profound.”
“I used the same magic on you that I did to release the rest of the pack from vampire mind control. What you’re feeling is probably just loyalty.”
“The whole pack must be dying of love for you, then.”
“I don’t think so.” Kayla snorted at the idea.
“Then you can’t discount how I feel.” He slid closer.
She looked up at him. She knew he was trying to tell her something, and she was shutting him down.
“Riddick”—she wanted to make an excuse—”I have feelings for you too.” Her love for Jagger and Quinn had overridden it until that moment when there was no longer anything separating them. He stalked closer and slid under her blanket. She turned over and gazed at his smiling face.
“I can smell your scent,” he murmured.
“You always were good at picking up scents. Must be the wolf in you.”
He leaned in to plant a soft kiss on her lips. She wrapped her arms around his waist, inviting him to kiss her more deeply. He pulled her closer, and she rested against his chest. His hand slid down her back and over her hips.
She could feel him grow hard against her, and the stiffness of him called to her longing. She gasped and bit her lip as he grasped her breast then slipped a deft hand inside her leather vest.
“Do you want this?” he murmured.
“Yes.”
He glided between her legs, pressing his hardness against the point of her desire. She opened her mouth as pleasure flooded in. Gone were her thoughts of Jagger and Quinn. Gone was her loneliness and despair. She was with Riddick, right then and there. She wrapped her arms around his waist and slipped her hands under his leathers, gliding them over his taut flesh.
His tongue darted between her lips, moving over her tongue in a tantalizing dance. She groaned at the heat of their kiss. His fingers fumbled with the laces on her pants, loosening them enough for his hand to slip inside. There, he found her growing damp with the heat of her desire.
“By the gods, Kayla. How I’ve wanted you.”
He ran kisses down her neck as his fingers stroked her sex. He found her swollen clit, alternating between tapping and teasing. She tilted her hips to meet him, wanting what he was giving her and more.
She slipped her hand into his pants and squeezed the hard globe of his ass. His cock throbbed between her legs, and she reached for his belt. She needed him inside her.
“You want me, my beautiful queen?”
She gasped as he kissed her harder, nipping at her neck. She wanted his teeth in her skin, his claiming bite.
The prophecy said she would have all five Blackfang brothers for herself. She would take Riddick and all he had to give her—his cock between her legs and his teeth in her flesh. And she would claim him too. She would taste his blood on her lips and feel his heart beating ecstatically in her chest.
He pulled down her pants and turned her over to face the fire. She felt his cock hot against her back. He slid between her legs, stroking her wet core. He gripped her chin and turned her head back, kissing her deeply as he caressed her. His fingers played with her pussy as his cock teased her core. The sensation of him pressing against her from all sides made her tremble. His tongue flicked in and out of her mouth, and she came in a gush of desire.
In that instant, he pressed his cock inside her smooth wetness, sinking deep. Her body was so ripe with desire that it accepted him entirely. She throbbed around him, gripping his length as he glided in and out. He sucked her overwhelmed groans into his mouth, holding her chin and stroking her clit under the warmth of her furs.
He let her rest for a single heartbeat before tilting back and slapping into her from behind. His hand slid into her shirt, tweaking her breast. Her body was on high alert, rapid-fire climaxes overtaking her like bullets squeezed from one of Felix’s guns.
Riddick’s pelvis slapped against hers as he thrust deeper. She groaned, the orgasms com
ing so quickly that they took her out of herself. She lifted his wrist to her mouth, licking the veins leading into his hand. Her fangs descended. She brushed them over his skin and bit as he groaned. His teeth clamped down on her neck, and his cock grew larger and stiffer inside her just before he shot his hot seed deep into her womb.
The metallic tang of his blood filled her mouth. Her eyes dilated as their bond snapped into focus. Riddick was the charming, free-spirited rogue who’d stolen her heart months before. It had taken that long to find a way to each other, but they had, and it was as though a whirlwind of feeling caught them both and flung them toward one another in a rush.
There was so much more to the man than what he showed on the surface. Under that happy-go-lucky exterior was a loyal heart and a relentlessly courageous spirit wrapped in a mischievous intellect.
He accepted her and her torrent of emotions, hidden and secret, as the earth accepted the rain. He saw the insecurities she kept locked up, he saw the flower of her love waiting to bloom, and he saw the woman she was meant to be. He wanted to bring her out, show her a mirror, and offer her a taste of freedom.
They flew together in the endless blue sky above the world, smiling and happy. His weightless support felt so unlike either Quinn’s or Jagger’s, with their duties and heavy emotion. Riddick was all lightness and fun. He held her heart like a treasure and filled it with joy.
When the vision of their bond faded, she licked the wound on his wrist clean. He released her from the grip of his teeth. She turned to him, wrapped in his embrace. He was such a relief, a warm contentment, a ready smile, and an easy laugh.
His respect for her was boundless, and he saw in her things she didn’t even see in herself. And she saw greatness in him too. His brothers might have discounted him sometimes, thinking him a fool, but Kayla knew the truth. It took great strength to have humor in times of darkness. Riddick’s smile was a light at the end of the tunnel, and her soul was more than ready to bask in its glow.
Chapter Five
Kayla woke entangled in Riddick’s arms, feeling the warmth of his body against hers in the chilly morning air. She smiled, burrowing her face deeper into his chest. He stirred, held her more tightly, and kissed the top of her head. He leaned back and looked down at her, flashing one of his brilliant grins. She could feel him grow hard against her stomach. Instead of wanting to push away, she felt herself pulling closer. He kissed her forehead then her lips, but their passion was interrupted by the sound of Sid’s voice.
“Get out of bed, lazybones. Unless you want me to watch.”
Sid crouched beside the fire, poking in the coals. He tossed in kindling to reignite the flame. She blushed at being discovered like that, though it was of no consequence. The brothers had been hearing their mother’s prophecy for decades. They all expected to fall in love with her and claim her as their mate at some point.
She rolled out of bed, leaving Riddick under the covers. She poured water into the kettle from her canteen, not meeting Sid’s eyes. Whistling to Bane, she went to check on the horses. Lightning grumbled through their mental link, insisting on a greater portion of oats this morning. She laughed and rubbed his forehead, kissing the spot between his eyes.
“You’ll have plenty of oats when we return to Mist Valley.” She reached into her pocket, opened her hand, and offered him the apple she’d found on a tree in the front yard. “But I found you this.”
When she returned to the campfire, Sid had sliced into the roasted turkey, declaring it cooked to perfection. He handed her a large slice of breast, and she ate it, letting the fat drip down her face as she sipped her morning tea. After that comment about watching her and Riddick in bed, she felt her face heat every time she looked at Sid. After they’d eaten breakfast and broken camp, the group prepared the horses and mounted up for their journey.
By the time they came to the outskirts of the City of Ghosts, the number of zombies had grown exponentially. They made camp in an old mansion at the edge of town, and Willa cast a thin shield around them. There wasn’t a single zombie inside, and the horses could be stabled in the large, empty garage. They cooked their dinner in the living room fireplace and slept on the beds and couches.
In the morning, they sat around a large oak table that Felix had cleaned of dust. They used porcelain plates from the pantry for their breakfast. Kayla couldn’t help but notice that the house had not been looted. The cars were all gone, but the rest of the valuables were still there, including silver forks and knives and high-quality porcelain china. She had a feeling they would find more collectibles, possibly even gold and jewelry, if they explored further.
“How many zombies can you hold back at once?” Kayla asked.
“Not more than a dozen or so.” Mackenzie tugged at one of her braids.
“I have a feeling there will be much larger groups inside the City of Ghosts.”
“Did Malik have any idea where the treasure hunters lost the spirit box?” Felix asked.
“Unfortunately, no.”
“Where did they enter the city?” Felix spread a map across the table and pointed. “We are coming in from the east, here.”
“They came in from the south.” Mackenzie pointed at the map. “Most likely here.”
“That’s several miles away,” Felix said. “We could circle around and trace their path.” Felix scratched his patchy chin, gazing at the map.
“It’s unlikely that it’s still where they lost it,” Mackenzie said.
“Why?” Kayla looked up and met the witch’s gaze.
“Malik suggested that the ghosts would know what it is. He thought maybe they were responsible for taking it. The good news is, if any zombie I take control of has seen the spirit box, I will know it. I can read their thoughts.”
“So, we enter from the south,” Kayla said, reiterating the growing plan. “That way we’re more likely to come into contact with zombies that might have seen the spirit box.”
“Yes. That does seem to be the best plan.” Felix nodded in agreement.
Traveling to the south entrance took half a day, and they ran into more than one group of aggressive zombies. With Mackenzie, they had no problem disposing of them. She would take control of about a dozen of them then force them to tear each other apart. If there were more than that, she used the ones she already controlled to battle the others while Willa cast an illusion around the group. Once they made it to the highway, they slowly walked into the city. A dark haze clung to the skyline. Many cities had been destroyed during the plague. Humans had turned into zombies all over the world, but in some areas, the virus had killed everyone instantly, leaving a graveyard of corpses and a city of ghosts.
The wind picked up and blew through the barren branches of the birch trees. The last of the crackling leaves swirled on the air, rising and falling like debris on a river. A shiver went down Kayla’s spine, and she pulled her cloak more closely around her. With her hands on the hilt of her sword and her bow at the ready, she scanned her surroundings for signs of movement, not that it mattered—she couldn’t kill a ghost.
“I can sense them all around us,” Mackenzie whispered. “They’re staying back and deciding what to do about us.”
“That doesn’t sound promising,” Kayla muttered.
“What are we supposed to do if you can’t find any zombies to mind control?” Felix asked.
“We’ll have to settle for plan B,” Kayla said.
“What is plan B?” Felix asked.
They hadn’t come up with a plan B.
“Run?” Kayla shrugged. If Jagger had been there, they would have made a backup plan.
Kayla heard slight grumbling off to the side then snapped her gaze around to find a herd of zombies stumbling toward them. They were in various stages of decay, but most of them were well-preserved. Their clothing was in tatters and barely staying together over fresh-looking flesh. Kayla had never seen anything like it. Usually, the clothing and the flesh decayed at the same rate.
“Why are they like that?” Kayla asked as Mackenzie cast her spell, bringing them under her control.
“It’s the effect of being around so many ghosts.” Mackenzie took a deep breath, concentrating on holding the zombies.
“Do any of them know anything about the spirit box?” Kayla asked.
“I’m reading their thoughts now.”
“What is that?” Felix pointed into the distance.
Kayla looked where he was pointing and saw what she could only describe as a tornado. As it grew closer, she knew it wasn’t just wind.
“We need to go,” Mackenzie said. “We can’t let that thing touch us.”
“What is it?” Kayla asked, turning Lightning in the opposite direction.
“It’s a ghost tornado. If it catches us, it will not be good,” Mackenzie said.
“Did you get anything from those zombies?” Kayla asked.
“Maybe. I’ll tell you later. We have to go.”
Mackenzie forced the zombies to battle each other. The party hurried around, breaking into a run. The zombies broke from their spell, and the ones still standing began to follow them. Kayla glanced behind her at the lumbering creatures still following despite Willa throwing up an illusion. They were faster than any zombies she’d ever seen. The ghost tornado was gaining speed, growing closer by the moment.
“Hurry!” Kayla yelled. Lightning galloped faster than all the others.
“We can’t let it touch us!” Mackenzie shouted.
They charged away from the path of the tornado, quickly losing the zombies, but the spirit wind was much harder to lose. Kayla kicked Lightning’s flanks, forcing him to speeds faster than they had gone on the entire trip.
The horses were tired. They’d been walking for days—so had Bane, who was falling behind. Kayla swung Lightning around and charged back to her wolf. The tornado was within a few yards of her, but she reached down and scooped up her familiar, pulling her onto the saddle.
“Kayla!” Riddick screamed.