Web Master (#8 Shifter Squad)

by J. C. Diem

  I arched against him with a strangled moan as he drank my blood. His finger continued to torment me. The sensation of him sucking on my breast at the same time sent me over the edge.

  Pushing him onto his back, I slid down his body and took him in my hand. He gave me a wary look. “You’re not going to bite me there, are you?”

  “Where?” I teased and squeezed him. “You mean here?”

  His eyes closed for a second in pleasure then sprang open again when I bit into his thigh. I hit a vein and sweet, salty blood flooded into my mouth. He managed to endure the sensation of my hand moving up and down and my mouth on his flesh for only a few seconds. Then he grabbed me by the shoulders and hauled me up his body.

  Settling over him, I sank down onto him and began to move. His hands went to my hips and he watched me ride him. I’d barely recovered from my first orgasm, but I could already feel another one coming on. Our bond ensured that we shared each other’s pleasure. I felt it from both his and my perspective at the same time. He felt the sensation of himself sliding in and out of me and I felt myself clenching down around him.

  The heat that had begun from the moment we touched became scorching and spread through us like wildfire. I sped up, slamming myself onto him so hard and fast that I wasn’t sure if I was feeling pain or pleasure. Then I went over the edge again, bucking and jerking as the orgasm ripped through us both.

  Reece pulled me down until I was lying with my breasts pressed against his chest. If we’d been human, we would have been gasping for air. Our hearts beat a little faster than usual, but it was the only sign that we’d just shared such a monumental pleasure.

  ₪₪₪

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  My bed was a rumpled mess by the time the alarm went off the next morning. I cracked an eye open and glared at it. Reece reached across me to switch it off. Far more alert than I was feeling, he slapped me lightly on my bare butt. “Come on, we’d better get up or we’ll miss breakfast.”

  Right on cue, my stomach rumbled. We both knew that if we shared a shower, we’d definitely be late. He picked up the towel that he’d discarded last night and drew it around his hips. He blew me a kiss then stepped out into the hall.

  Taking a quick shower, I hurriedly dressed and joined the others downstairs. Zeus rushed over to me when I reached the ground floor. I thumped his side a few times and he followed me into the kitchen. “You can’t fool me,” I said when he avidly watched me pour cereal into a bowl. “I know you’ve already been fed.” I could smell the dog chow on his breath. His ears drooped in disappointment and he slunk off to sulk beneath the table, hoping for some scraps to fall. With Kala missing, it was unlikely that he’d be able to supplement his breakfast.

  I found a mug of coffee waiting for me in my usual spot. Flynn’s scent was all over it and I sent him a grateful look. He slanted Reece and me a sly glance. He knew perfectly well what we’d been up to all night. If Kala had been here, she’d have teased us mercilessly. It was strange to have the seat to my left empty. Our group felt incomplete without her.

  Mark glanced at the vacant chair a few times, as if he also missed Kala’s presence. She might drive him nuts, but he loved her and he worried about her when she was gone. He was tired and drawn. I assumed that the little sleep he’d gotten had been full of nightmares about spiders.

  “I’ve already packed the weapons we’ll need into the van,” he said when we finished eating. Dawn was still an hour away, but he wanted to get an early start. As always, a backup van had been left for us in the garage. We’d need the extra cargo space if we were going to be bringing the heavy golem head back with us.

  I was wearing all black right down to my combat boots. Spare ammunition for my Beretta was stuffed into my pockets for quick and easy access. Flynn and Reece were similarly dressed. We weren’t openly ready for a battle, but anyone with training would have been able to detect the slight bulge of our weapons.

  Flynn opened the side door of the van and climbed inside. I glanced in the back to see four flamethrowers and spare canisters of fuel. Kala would be busy keeping Dr. Salvador preoccupied while we battled the gigantic creepy crawly.

  Zeus sat on the floor between Flynn and me rather than jumping into the cargo area in the back. He’d spent the night on patrol and dozed with his head resting on my feet. He hadn’t seen any spiders at all, which was as strange as it was disturbing. It seemed the golem had called all of the spiders in the nearby area to Gavenport. Personally, I didn’t think this boded well for us.

  I wondered whether I should tell Mark about the absence of arachnids, but Reece mentally shook his head. He’s already stressed enough, he thought. Let’s not make it any worse for him.

  I wasn’t sure how it could possibly get worse for our boss. He was going to be facing his greatest fear today. Seeing a stone spider the size of a small truck would have been enough to frighten even the bravest of warriors. Everyone had their breaking point and I hoped Mark wouldn’t reach his today. We didn’t just love him, we needed him. His leadership was paramount to us being able to complete our missions. Once we discovered who was engineering the end of mankind, we would need his guidance to take them down. I knew myself well enough to know I wouldn’t be able to defeat my nemesis alone.

  Dawn light was just staining the sky when we pulled up in the field again. All of the cars that had clogged the road yesterday were now gone. Only a handful of police cars remained. Even the reporters had decided to leave, but they’d no doubt return soon. Everyone feared the dark on some level. It was far easier to be brave when the sun was high in the sky.

  Reece had switched his headlights off long before we’d approached the town. The cops on guard duty didn’t even know we were there as we crept across the field towards Gavenport. It would be hard to explain the flamethrowers that were slung over our shoulders, let alone the explosives that Mark had handed out to us all. Stealth was our best option for getting the job done. We didn’t want to be delayed by cops who weren’t in on our plan. Captain Darnell wasn’t here yet and we weren’t willing to wait for him to arrive.

  Mark’s eyes were wide with fear as we entered the town. There were far too many shadows for his liking. A breeze swept leaves and the dead bodies of spiders across the road in front of us, startling him badly. He almost set off a burst of flame, but managed to control himself.

  Zeus trotted along beside me with his nose to the ground. He could smell spiders everywhere. He knew it wasn’t normal for so many to be gathered in one place. My hearing was now even more acute than his. I heard the rustling of tens of thousands of legs and exchanged a look with Reece. He could hear them, as well. They were staying out of sight, but the arachnids were back and they were beginning to move in.

  “We’re completely surrounded by spiders,” I whispered to Flynn and he peered into the shadows. “They’re staying back for now, but I’m pretty sure they’re going to make an appearance soon.”

  “What is it?” Mark asked sharply, picking up on our exchange. His hearing might not be as good as ours, but he was perceptive enough to know we were keeping something from him.

  “The spiders have returned,” Reece said reluctantly.

  Mark looked around warily and held his flamethrower ready. “Where are they?”

  “They’re hiding at the moment,” I replied. “We can’t see them yet, but we can hear them all over town.”

  He muttered something that sounded suspiciously like a swearword then sent me an apologetic look. “Can you estimate how many there are?” He knew there had to be a lot if we could actually hear them moving.

  “Tens of thousands, probably,” Reece said. “Possibly more.” I suspected there were a lot more than that, but I didn’t want to add to Mark’s fear.

  We reached the center of town without incident and stopped well back from the man who was still lying in the street. He was either asleep or he was still unconscious. Mark’s expression was sick as he took in the silk that was wrapped around the vict
im’s legs. He saw the strand that led beneath the ground and nodded to himself in confirmation. As usual, he had a plan. “Based on what you described yesterday,” he said, “as soon as we go near the victim, the golem will strike.” We nodded in agreement. “Reece and Lexi, you two are the fastest. I want Reece to circle around behind the golem and wait for Lexi to trigger the trap. As soon as the spider appears, we’ll shoot at it to draw its attention while Reece jumps on it and plants the explosive.”

  “It’s my turn to blow its head off,” I said firmly. I’d watched on in horror when Reece had been speared by a fang from the three headed dog. If anything went wrong today, he could be the one to rescue me.

  Mark looked at Reece for his reaction and received a nod. “Fine. Just make sure to jump clear before the explosive goes off,” he warned me.

  “Aye, aye, Captain,” I said and snapped him a salute.

  Flynn’s smile was rueful. “You’re as bad as Kala.”

  “She trained me well,” I said with a grin. Stay with Mark and make sure none of the spiders get near either of you, I thought to Zeus. I stopped long enough to plant a quick kiss on Reece then sprinted over to the displaced circle of dirt. I’m ready, I thought to Reece.

  Mark and Flynn moved to stand across the road from the motionless victim then Mark gave Reece a nod. In less than the blink of an eye, Reece was standing next to the prone man. Knowing what to expect this time, he snatched the human up and threw him over his shoulder. The moment the strand of silk leading into the hidden hole was disturbed, the golem burst out of the ground. Reece was racing back to the others even before the lid of the gigantic trap moved. He placed the human on the road where he’d be out of harm’s way.

  Rearing up, the gigantic arachnid pawed at the air with two of its legs. Spying me standing behind it, it tried to turn to confront me. Reece and Flynn opened fire to draw its attention back to them. Mark was frozen, staring up at it in terror. For a few moments, I was worried that his mind was going to snap. Then he pulled himself together and started shooting.

  Seemingly forgetting about me, the golem roared. It was a signal to attack and spiders boiled out from the rapidly receding shadows. Instead of biting the prone human, they veered around him. With his legs wrapped up so tightly, he wouldn’t have been able to escape even if he’d been conscious.

  Zeus snarled and barked at the arachnids that came scurrying towards him. He pounced on them and squished them beneath his paws. They shied away from his ferocity, but there were too many for him to fight alone.

  Putting his gun away, Mark switched his flamethrower on and bright fire lit the street. Zeus stayed behind him and attacked anything that came close. Reece and Flynn continued to shoot at the golem’s eyes as I took a running jump.

  Feeling me land on its back, the golem was reminded that there was another threat. It tried to buck me off, but I managed to keep my balance. A leg that was covered in long hairs swiped at me and I ducked under it. More hairs covered its body like a stone forest. They were almost my height and I had to wend my way between them as I worked my way towards its head. Contorting itself, it somehow managed to spray silk at me from an opening in its abdomen. My legs tangled together and I fell. I rolled to the side to avoid another of its legs when it stabbed towards me.

  Reece and Flynn moved in closer, shooting at its eyes to blind it. As fast as they were destroyed, they regenerated again. With one hand, I shot at the eyes that I could see. I used my other hand to tear the sticky strands away from my legs. It took fabric and skin with it, leaving bleeding welts behind that healed almost instantly.

  Free at last, I dodged another spray of silk and sprinted forward when it turned to squirt venom at me. The toxic liquid splashed harmlessly on its own back and then I was too close to its head for it to see me.

  Just being out of sight didn’t mean it had forgotten me this time. Bellowing in rage, it leaped up and down, doing its best to try to dislodge me. I dropped to my knees and hooked my arm around a strand of stone hair that was thicker than my arm. Pulling a grenade out of my pocket, I held it with my left hand then emptied my clip into the joint between the spider’s head and body. I pulled the pin and shoved the grenade into the hole. I made sure the wound sealed shut before I ran along the creature’s back and leaped to the ground.

  As I’d hoped, it spun around to follow me. I made sure to stay just ahead of it as I ran towards the middle of the park. It would be the best place to minimalize the damage that was about to be caused. I counted down in my head then put on a burst of speed a moment before the grenade went off. The force of the explosion made me stagger a few paces. Stone chips spattered my back as I skidded to a stop. I turned to find the spider’s body had reverted into an inert statue. Two of its legs were stretched out towards me, frozen in the act of trying to grab me so it could rend me apart. The head lay on the ground, mewling and squealing in rage and dribbling venom.

  “We could use some help here!” Flynn shouted and I realized our battle wasn’t yet over. The golem was down, but it wasn’t out. It still had control of its tiny minions.

  ₪₪₪

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  I raced back to the others to find them surrounded by a boiling mass of spiders. Their flamethrowers were holding them back, but they weren’t going to be enough to destroy them all. Zeus’ muzzle was coated in black ichor. He sent me a glance full of misery. Apparently, spiders tasted as horrible as they looked. He hadn’t been bitten by anything deadly yet, but it was only a matter of time.

  In the distance, police officers were shouting frantic questions at each other. Our battle had been far from quiet. Despite their captain’s orders, they were going to come looking for whoever had caused the explosion and gunfire.

  Mark’s fuel ran out and he bent to reach into the bag at his feet for a fresh canister. Standing, he staggered backwards when a huge spider leaped over Zeus and landed at his feet. It had to be the same type of tarantula that had given Mark arachnophobia so long ago.

  Just as he’d described, its body was almost the size of his hand and was dark brown. Inch long fangs dripped venom. Its legs and body were even hairier than the golem that was directing it. Stretched out, its legs would have easily spanned a foot. It stalked our boss with malevolent intent, somehow knowing he was far more fragile than the rest of us.

  Flynn pointed his flamethrower at it, but it had also run out of fuel. I pulled my Beretta, but Mark went into action. Showing more bravery than I thought was possible, he took two rapid steps forward and kicked the spider as hard as he could. Goo splattered his already filthy shoe as the arachnid went flying. Our boss looked astonished that he’d had the courage to attack the tarantula before it could pounce on him.

  There were far too many spiders for us to combat and we were in danger of being overrun. We had to get Mark and Zeus away before they were swarmed. Sharing my concern, Reece tossed Mark over his shoulder and grabbed Flynn by the arm. He sped back to the truck that was still blocking access to town. He’d moved so fast that they’d already arrived before they knew what he was going to do. I scooped up Zeus and the human that had been used as bait and was right behind him.

  “That was bad ass, boss,” Flynn said when Reece put them down.

  “It was, wasn’t it?” Mark said, still in a slight daze at his bravery. “Did you see that tarantula fly?” He smiled and I was pretty sure he’d survive this day with his sanity intact after all. My admiration for him grew even more. It was easy to see why the PIA had recruited him into their ranks. No matter what horrors were thrown at him, he never let it rattle him for long. He was the perfect boss for a team of young shifters.

  Hearing a couple of vehicles arriving, I placed the human on the ground. I then peeked around the truck to see Captain Darnell pull up and climb out of a patrol car. Dr. Salvador’s van pulled up behind him and Kala leaped out. She pushed her way through the worried cops and ran to join us. Seeing our filthy clothes and goo splattered shoes, she groaned in disappoin
tment. “Don’t tell me I missed the battle completely!”

  “Not quite,” Flynn said. “The golem is in two pieces, but it’s still controlling the spiders. We had to leave before they swarmed over us.”

  Captain Darnell warned his men to stay back and rounded the truck. He stopped in surprise when he saw us and the silk wrapped survivor.

  Mitchell was right on his heels. The scientist almost ran into his back when he stopped and stepped around him. “Why are you carrying flamethrowers?” he asked. His eyes widened when he saw my shredded pants. They narrowed in suspicion when he didn’t see any wounds. His stare went to the unconscious man and I smelled dread flooding off him.

  “The town is still infested with spiders,” Mark explained. “Fire seemed like the best way to deal with them.”

  “My men reported hearing gunfire and an explosion,” Captain Darnell said. He’d known about our plan and his eyebrows lifted in query, silently asking if we’d been successful.

  “We’ve taken care of the threat, but the spiders won’t disperse until we’ve removed it from Gavenport,” Mark told him in a low voice that didn’t carry to Mitchell. The bug guy still didn’t know what was really going on.

  Darnell knew he was talking about the gigantic stone golem and nodded in understanding. “What do you need?”

  “Just our van,” Mark said at normal volume. “Keep your people back and don’t let anyone enter the town. That includes you, Dr. Salvador.”

  Mitchell was disappointed, but he didn’t protest. He was aware we were dealing with something out of the ordinary, even if he didn’t know exactly what it was. “I have some medical training. I’ll take a look at the victim.”