by Jasmine Walt
“Red’s got to be hiding somewhere up north. I bet that Mike White guy the news mentioned was one of Red’s relatives joining in. Who the hell killed him…with my frigging gun…in my frigging town?
“And that reporter looked positively gleeful when he said Hung’s the wanted man, asking the residents of Charming to call the police if they see any signs of him. He’s probably finished his business in Charming and is in the wind, literally.” And I’ll have to come home to a burned down house, thanks to D’Raynged and his grief over losing Sultana. “I know Hung didn’t kill the female vamp.”
“They said his fingerprints were all over the gun.”
“That’s because he took it from me. He dropped it in the woods outside the arcane club when he led me out into the woods.”
Cecil’s eyes narrowed and he smirked. “To do what, lil’ Summer?” He began to laugh, easing the tension somewhat.
“Not that,” Chia snapped, making sure the arguments continued. “Shut up.” Although I sure would’ve liked to. “It’s a long story.” She let out another deep breath. “What do you think about the news saying Charming being overrun with animals? We have as many animals as the next town, even more if you count the shifters.”
“I don’t know. It’s probably some kind of spin on something. Probably one of Red’s takes on your hunting laws.”
“I don’t know, it sure seemed odd.”
“Okay, get ready,” their pilot said. “We’re landing in about ten minutes. It turned out to be a beautiful day, didn’t it folks?”
Chia glanced out the window, barely registering the breathtaking, snow-kissed landscape. “Did you leave the Jeep at the landing strip? Who’s going to drive us home? It sure won’t be me.”
“Uh,” Cecil said, glancing out the window.
“Uh, what, dawg-man?”
“Uh,” he said again.
Chia let her head fall back on the headrest. “Cecil, please. I’m not in the mood.”
“You’re not in the mood to hear good news, let alone dubious news.” Cecil glared at her.
“So tell me, already, so I can blow up and we can get it over with.”
“I can’t wait to go for a run with my boys and get away from you, you know that?”
Chia began to laugh. “We sound like kids, don’t we?” She reached for Cecil’s hand.
He squeezed it and let his next words out in a burst. “That guy you don’t want to let anyone know you care about is picking us up.”
“What?” She snatched her hand away, glancing at the pilot, hoping he’d mind his own business. “Have you been in contact with him?”
“Maybe,” Cecil said, his eyes darting back and forth.
Chia banged her head once against the headrest, then stopped when it began to throb. “Ow.”
“Take it easy. You only have a few painkillers left. We have to fill your prescription when we get back.”
“I don’t want to live on painkillers. Dag nab it. I can’t even express myself by banging my head against something.”
“Try howling. Or, here’s a great idea…adjust your attitude.” Cecil glared at her, making her feel like crap on burnt bread.
She groaned as the wheels touched down, not wanting to see Hung Durand and wanting nothing more than to feel Hung Durand, all in the same breath. Make up your goddamned mind.
They taxied to a stop and Cecil and the pilot helped her from the plane and onto the ground with minimal jostling and pain.
Chia scanned the snowy surroundings, looking for signs of the sexy male. Her Jeep sat several yards away, but no one sat inside. “He’s not here. Do you have keys?”
“Just wait,” Cecil said. “We’ve got this,” he said to the pilot. “Thanks a million for the ride.”
“Oh, you’re welcome, but you can thank Joseph Ashoroc. He paid for it.”
Chia turned to Cecil. “I thought you told me the plane ride had been donated.”
“That’s what Annette said,” Cecil remarked.
“Annette, Annette, Annette. Find another topic.” Chia’s hands would have flown into the air had she not been strapped into a sling. “Now I’m going to owe him, too? He should be owing me!” A thought whispered through her head that maybe Joseph felt some guilt and wanted to appease it by offering her the plane. Wouldn’t that be swell if someone owed me for a change? She continued her rant. “D’Raynged is pissed, Hung Durand wants my hide, Red Spotted Dick wants my job…what next?”
“Stop with the bad mood, girl, or I’m going to leave you here to cope by yourself.” Cecil slipped back into quarreling sibling mode.
“Well, I’ll be leave you two now. Got to head to the other side of Charming and fuel up.”
“Oh, I’m sorry, where are my manners? Thank you for saving me from a long, arduous journey. Safe travels.” She smiled and shook hands with the man, and Cecil did the same.
“So you do have manners,” Cecil snapped.
“Of course, I have manners. Politeness matters when you’re in public service.”
“What about friendship?”
Chia sighed. “I know, I know. Sorry, sorry, sorry.”
“You said that already and yet still you snipe at me.”
They stopped speaking and watched the plane taxi down the short runway.
After the plane departed, Chia said, “Do you have any kind of backup plan?”
“Don’t worry. He said he’d be here. Since he’s a wanted man, he couldn’t actually be sitting here, waiting to be found, could he?”
“He’s probably a hornet or a vulture or a gnat or something. He’s probably sitting in your hair.”
“Nothing quite so glamourous,” a sexy male voice said to the back of her head. “No shifting for me, I’m afraid.”
Chia felt an instant jolt of arousal. “What do you mean?” She whirled to face him, noticing the fatigue etched on his face. “How did you sneak up on us? There’s no tree cover for miles.”
“It wasn’t hard. I was hiding behind the rise back there…downwind, lest you really can detect my scent.” He stabbed his thumb behind him. “You two are yapping like a couple of dogs. All I had to do was ghost walk over here.” He shook Cecil’s hand and said, “Thanks for watching over her.”
“I’d have done it no matter what,” Cecil said.
Hung nodded, then, he tipped his head to the side to study her.
She lowered her eyes, suddenly shy and uncomfortable.
“Let me see, woman.” He placed his finger under her chin to lift her jaw, touching her cheek tenderly with his other hand. “Eye’s still bruised. Cut’s scabbed over. Looks like its healing nicely. Sorry about the scapula. I’ve kicked myself for days for not getting a good shot off. I should have protected you.”
Her heart jumped for joy at his kind regard. Endlessly suspicious, she sobered it with a practical question. “Speaking of shots, did you…”
“Nope,” Hung said, quickly stopping her line of questioning. “I’ve had other things to deal with, like not being able to get out of Charming. I didn’t kill Mike White.”
“Why can’t you leave? Didn’t get your last job done?” Her need to take out her frustrations on others got the best of her.
His lips pressed together but he didn’t explain. “Let’s get you comfortable in the truck. Love, whatever they used to brace you,” he said, eyeing her with appreciation. “It works.”
“It wasn’t done for your enjoyment.” She pulled her coat closed over her shirt, scowling and wincing from the stabs of pain.
“Easy, sugar. You should probably leave everything on display. So you don’t, you know…” He gave her a gold glinted, blue-eyed wink. “Hurt yourself.”
“Shut up, Hung.” She stalked ahead of him and Cecil.
When they reached the SUV, Hung said, “You’re in the front with me, dog.”
“He has a name,” Chia groused.
“Dog’s fine,” Cecil said. “Don’t sweat it. Don’t start again, okay?”
“
I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry. I’m taking out my frustrations on you both.”
“I’ve prepared the back as best I could for you.” He opened the door and guided Chia into the seat on the passenger side. Having lined it with pillows, he positioned his glorious, musky smelling, heat radiating body around her to adjust everything until she rested comfortably on the cushy pile. He paused, lingering, their bodies inches apart. His eyes swept over her face, examining every square inch again. His lips parted as if he wanted to say something, but then he shut them and smiled slightly. “Good that you’re still here,” he said, quietly.
“Thank you, Hung.” Her eyebrows drew together at his show of compassion. “I don’t know what to say, other than thanks.”
“Works for me,” he said, leaning to kiss her cheek.
He smelled like pine tar, fresh air, and hot man, like he’d been walking through the woods all day. She wanted to swoon, to melt into his arms, to kiss and nuzzle and roll with him on every surface of her house, but rules were rules and he didn’t follow them. The townspeople would kill her if she hooked up with Hung.
“Need anything? Oh. I’ve brought you both water. Hand one back for Chia, please.” Once Cecil had passed her a bottle of water, Hung gently shut her door, then strode around to the driver’s side.
“So,” Hung said, heading toward the one lane road to her home. “Which bad news do you want first?”
Chia winced. “The worst, I guess. Let’s get it over with.”
“I’m not sure if one is worse than another but, okay. Seems Red and Dick are responsible for casting some sort of spell, making it impossible for the shifters to shift back, once they’re turned into their animal selves.”
Chia’s stomach slid to the floor. “Are you kidding me?” Her muzzy, drug soaked brain tried its best to wrap her mind around this new development. Is that what the shamans were doing in the cave?
“Nope.” Hung studied her in the rearview mirror, no doubt wondering how much she knew. “Hence, I’m still in town, being hunted by every jackass in these parts. Your place, at least, is safe, hidden somehow. Thank fuck. Apparently there’s a reward for bringing me in.” He chuckled. “The bounty hunter has a bounty on his head. Go figure. Oh, and there’s some sort of ordinance in this town to prevent me from acting in self-defense.” His gaze grew hard in the reflective glass.
She blushed and turned away. “Yeah. I’ve been thinking about making a few changes.”
“Do ya think?” His voice held justified sarcasm.
Chia wanted to yell, “I’m doing the best I can! So I overdid it a little,” but she kept her tongue.
Hung slowed the Jeep to ease through some potholes, glancing at Chia as he did so, concern once more evident in his eyes. “Did that hurt? Still okay?”
“I’m fine, thank you.”
“So, are you saying, if I turn into my husky self, I can’t turn back?” Cecil, who’d been quiet until now, sounded shocked.
“Afraid so, mutt. People are pretty freaked. It’s lucky I changed back before the spell took hold or I’d be stuck, too.”
“What have you been doing since I was gone?”
His eyes met hers in the rearview. “This and that. Scouting. In human form. Even if I can’t shift, I still have skills. Trap detection, however, isn’t one of them. I don’t want to find them with my legs while traversing the valley glacier. Or anywhere, to tell the truth. I’ve been pretty careful.”
Chia studied his eyes. “So, have you been…um…sleeping at…”
He let out a soft chuckle. “You want to know if I’ve been sleeping with the whores, right? At the arcane club? What if I have?”
Her gut twisted, held in a knot of jealousy. “I’d think nothing of it. I’d expect nothing less.” She turned to stare at the white landscape, kissed by a pale, end of winter sun.
“Because I’m such an asshole, right?” His face hardened. “Who only thinks of himself?”
“You said it, not me.” Her lips pressed tightly together. She turned to squint at him.
“I’ve been watching your house, woman. Sleeping in your barn. On a bed of hay where I found my pants. Thank you, by the way. For, at least not shredding them.” His eyes met hers with steely regard.
Her insides turned to slush. She didn’t know whether to hug him in gratitude or tell him he trespassed on her property.
Cecil let out a laugh. “You’ve been keeping some mighty fine secrets, lil’ Summer.”
Chia wanted to stuff a sock in his mouth. She glared at him to keep quiet.
Hung continued. “You have a dog pack hanging around. They’re doing a good job guarding the perimeter, but they’re no match for a gun.” He turned to look at Cecil. “I found a dead dog far out in the field. Killed by gunshot. A boxer. Friend of yours?”
“Damn it,” Cecil said. He shook his head. “He was a good friend. Steady on his feet. Real loyal.” He swiped his eyes and looked out the window.
“I figured. I did my best to bury him but the ground’s pretty solid.”
“Thanks, man. I appreciate it. I’ll pay my respects if you tell me where to go.”
Chia watched the exchange, stunned. Who are you, Hung Durand? I’ve never seen this side of you. Or, maybe, I never wanted to.
“What’s going on in that clever mind of yours?” Hung turned his attention back to her. “You’re surprised I show signs of caring? For your information, I haven’t been back to the club since you found me there. I’m waiting to see what your next move is.”
A strange, seductive warmth filled her chest and groin. “You’re waiting to see what my next move is?”
“Yes. You’re still in charge here, remember?”
Not knowing whether he spoke of her job as town manager, or something else far more deadly and intimate, she said, “Guess I’ll have to keep you posted.”
“I won’t wait forever.”
They drove the rest of the way in silence. When they rounded the bend toward her house, a pack of wolves stood by the side of the road, their golden eyes bright and focused. Spying the truck, they raced alongside, like common dogs.
“And the shifter wolves have arrived. They were preceded by foxes, coyotes, mountain goats, and if you can believe it, a hyena or two. Strange. As if you can do anything.”
She flicked her gaze at him, then, flicked it away.
“You know something, don’t you?”
“Maybe.”
“Probably the same thing I know.” When his head pivoted around briefly to look at her, she saw glimmers of the fluid turning rotation of an owl.
“You’re the snowy owl,” she accused.
“Don’t know what you’re talking about,” he said, making the last turn toward her driveway.
“Then how do you know what I know?”
“Maybe I was up there stalking those bastards. I told you. I’ve got skills.”
Her attention came to an abrupt about face when she saw her house.
Ringed with all manner of warring animals, it looked like a poorly managed zoo or a wilderness gone wrong. The dog pack lunged at the wolves as they loped toward the house. The wolves went for the dog’s throats. The mountain goats retreated in a wave of white fur and curved horns, wary, ready to kick the shit out of any predator who approached. The hyena circled, watching, waiting for some species to die so he could feed.
Cecil immediately exited, trying to keep his boys safe from the wolves. “Someone’s got to do something,” he yelled, waving his arms wildly at the wolves.
The wolves crouched, backing up, snarling, baring their flesh tearing teeth.
All eyes turned to Chia, as Hung helped her from the vehicle. Growls, yips, bleats, and whimpers indicated their displeasure.
“Ms. Petit needs rest. She’s had quite an ordeal,” Hung said crisply, helping her from the vehicle. “She has two bullet holes in her back and a concussion. Let her through.”
The yips and whimpers ceased. Eyes and ears trained on Chia. One of the wolves
rolled on her side and bared her belly in supplication.
She lifted her foot to scratch the wolf’s belly, clutching Hung to keep her balance.
Another wolf licked her hand. His golden eyes looked at her with clear regard.
Hung helped her up the front steps, nudging her in front of him. “This situation will be dealt with posthaste. But not by her. Cecil and I will devise a plan.”
“Hey!” Chia hissed in his ear. “I’m not incapacitated, you know.”
Hung gently guided her into the house. “You need rest, woman, and rest you’re going to get. Don’t even think of doing something foolish. Let me and the dog take care of things. You heal.” He looked around once he’d stepped inside the foyer. “Where’s your bedroom?”
“Going to make a move?” she snapped.
He whirled to face her. “Goddamn it, Chia, no. I’m going to make sure you get comfortable and then I’m going to leave. Stop thinking me completely without feeling.”
“Stop thinking of me as frail and incompetent.”
“I never think of you that way.” The veins in his neck pounded and pulsed. “Why on God’s green earth would I continue to take jobs in Charming? Except for my previous job, and the one I’m neglecting, the jobs that slink through Charming rarely pay that well.”
She looked at him with soft, confused eyes. “I thought you came to challenge my rules, mess with the system and make me fail.”
“What, like I’m a practical joker? A teenage prankster? I think twenty nine is too old for that kind of behavior.” He scoffed, pushing his hand through his tangled locks. “I come here hoping to get a shot at seeing you.”
“Then why do you fall into bed with whores?” Her nerves felt like frayed wires, sparking in the atmosphere.
“Because you won’t give me the time of day and I have needs.”
“Well, I have needs, too, and all my goddamned needs make it hard for me to do my job. I’m constantly distracted by my desires.” Feeling shaky and weak, she leaned against the wall.
“It’s the not getting the needs met that’s a distraction. Trust me.” Hung grinned. “When I’m not getting any I turn into a real bastard.” He kept grinning at her.