Claimed by Her Panthers

by Hazel Gower

  Owen shivered. Thank God the guy was on their side.

  Desperate to get to his mate, Owen let out a vicious snarl, ducking and weaving through the crowd. Something suddenly seared his flank, and Owen rolled to the side. A heavy weight landed on top of him, and he snapped at the figure.

  “Easy there, little kitty. I promise, this will only hurt a bit, but it’ll be a lot nicer than what we have in store for most of them.”

  Owen growled, bucking the figure off. Seeing Draken close in on the Demon that had attacked, Owen spun around and headed for the girls. The moment he was within reaching distance, Owen shifted back to human form, careless of the fact that he was naked.

  “Owen,” Angelica cried as she flung herself at him.

  Damn, he had never been happier than this very moment.

  “Shhh, it’s okay. I’m here,” he crooned, rocking his hysterical mate back and forth.

  “I k-knew,” she hiccupped. “I knew you’d come. I’m so sorry. So sorry.”

  “It’s okay. I’m here now.”

  Angelica lifted her head, tears staining her beautiful face. “Where is Stephan?”

  Owen peered through the crowd, noticing things had died down. He spotted Stephan, hunched over in panther form only meters away from them. “Hang on, sweetheart. I’ll get him to shift and heal, then bring him over to you. Stay with Draken.” And those were three words he never thought he’d mutter.

  Fighting still carried on around them, but it was pointless. The major threat had been taken care of, and now it was just cleaning up the mess.

  A snarl erupted through the room, and he turned quickly to see Jenika throw herself in harm’s way to protect a fallen Draken. Shit. She received a rake of claws along her side for her efforts before the lion, Raziel, lashed out, practically gutting the Demon who had attacked. Panic fluttered in Owen’s chest until he saw Angelica right behind him, having moved with him instead of staying behind. Grabbing her hand, Owen raced to Stephan’s side.

  “Hey, buddy, need a hand?” he teased, crouching down by his best friend’s side and trying to hide his concern of Stephan’s injuries. “Gonna need you to shift back, Stephan. It’ll help jump-start your healing.”

  Looking into his friend’s eyes, Owen could tell that was easier said than done for the man. The damage he had taken was severe.

  Angelica’s small hand came to rest on his shoulder.

  “Why isn’t he shifting?” Her voice wavered at the end.

  “I thought I told you to stay with Draken?”

  Angelica sat down next to him, raising a brow. “What can I say? I’ve never been very good at listening.”

  He grunted. That was sure as hell the truth.

  “And it’s a good thing, too. Draken doesn’t look too good himself,” she added. “Owen?”

  “Stephan’s having trouble,” he sighed.

  Angelica bit down on her lip, before shuffling forward. Leaning over Stephan’s form, she whispered, “Stephan, you need to shift. I know it’s hard, but you have to. Owen and I, we need you. And you see … our baby needs you, too.”

  He opened his mouth to say something when Stephan began to shift. It was slow at first and looked extremely painful. By the time he was done, Stephan was panting from exertion.

  “N-now that’s a-an i-incentive,” he chuckled breathlessly.

  Angelica’s smile was radiant. “I thought it might be.”

  Owen cupped the back of Angelica’s neck, bringing her in for a light kiss, his other hand checking her over for any injuries. He had already had to rein in his panther when he had seen the mark on her cheek. The bruise was already coming out, and would be worse tomorrow. He hoped their mating would heal it quickly.

  A disturbance off to their left had Owen frowning. A seething Draken stood toe to toe with a furious yet cocky looking Raziel as Jenika stood just to the side of them. The Vampire’s eyes had already turned blood red as he all but spat at the lion.

  “Mine,” Raziel snarled, reaching for a stunned Jenika and pulling her flush against his body.

  “Say what?” the woman said breathlessly.

  “Get your hands off of my mate,” Draken demanded, claws once again extending.

  “Fuck off, arsehole. She’s mine.”

  Owen gaped at the scene before him. No fucking way!

  “What the hell is going on?” Jenika jerked herself out of Raziel’s hold but refused to go to Draken. “First fang-boy claims I’m his mate, now you do. So who is it, boy, and when in all this do I get a fucking say?”

  “Oh no,” Angelica whispered from beside him. “Jenika, hun. I think that they both are.”

  Jenika scrunched up her nose. “Both are what?”

  Owen found it comical when the woman’s eyes suddenly widened, her head shaking in denial. “Oh no. No way. Not happening.”

  “I don’t know what the fuck this dude’s deal is, honey, but you are my mate,” Raziel said with a nod in Draken’s direction. “My name is Raziel, and I would love to get to know you.”

  He could have sworn he saw Jenika almost take a step in the lion’s direction, before shaking herself out of whatever trance she had been in.

  “I don’t care who you think you are,” Draken snarled. “But you aren’t getting anywhere near my mate.”

  “Damn,” Stephan whispered from where he lay.

  “Are you okay?” Angelica asked, concerned.

  “Yeah.” Stephan chuckled, instantly groaning when it made him move. “Just thinking that payback is a bitch.”

  It took Owen all of a second to work out what his friends meant, and then he burst into laughter. Oh yeah, by the looks of things, Draken was about to get his just deserts.

  ****

  Stephan held back his laughter as Angelica once again fluffed his pillows and straightened his sheets as he lay back in the bed. They had all been transported here after things had been contained at the warehouse. It was some sort of infirmary the Treaty members here on the Gold Coast had set up, and Stephan had to admit it was well equipped. He swore the bed he was in had been made with clouds.

  Absently he wondered if he could press to have a king sized one made for home. With the guilt that clung to his mate, he suspected so. Though he and Owen had no intention of playing out that guilt. Angelica had acted rashly, but she had been scared, lost, and hormonal. All of which they were to blame for themselves as well.

  A smile flittered across his features as he thought of why she was so hormonal. Pregnant. Their mate was pregnant. Damn. Even the temporary stitches he had couldn’t bring him down from that one.

  “What is that smile for?” Angelica asked, a bemused expression on her face. “You have stitches, and you’re not on pain meds since you’re a Shifter. So what gives?”

  “You,” he replied simply.

  Her own smile faltered a little, and he growled. “No. No more blaming from any of us.”

  “Oh, I don’t know. I’m quite content to blame Draken for my injuries,” Jenika added happily from her bed. The woman had received a few stitches herself, but however, unlike him, she was high as a kite on meds.

  “You were the one who decided to step in front of claws.” Draken smirked down at her as a flush crept up her cheeks. “Just admit it … you wanted to save me. The thought of me getting hurt upset you.”

  “Pffft. Keep dreaming.” If it weren’t for the skip in her heartbeat, Stephan might have believed her. As it was, he hadn’t been the only one to hear the telltale sign. Draken was wearing a grin from ear to ear, as Raziel sat on Jenika’s other side mumbling under his breath.

  “You all seem to be doing much better,” came a voice from his right. Turning his head slightly, he saw a tall man, largely built with spiked blond hair and bright blue eyes.

  “Sir,” Raziel said, suddenly standing to greet the man.

  “Ah, Raziel. I hear you have found your mate.”

  Jenika snorted, but Raziel ignored her. “Yes, Sir.”

  “I’m happy for yo
u.” The man’s smile seemed genuine before he turned to address the rest of them. “Most of you don’t know me. My name is Quinn. I’m Raziel’s team leader. I was in the building with the rest of you, but I and a group of others entered from the other side. Good thing, too, as we ran into a few of the enemy trying to gain access from there. We were able to take them out before they reached the inside. However, it raises the question…”

  “What the hell were that many different paranormals doing working together?” Owen asked from beside him.

  “Exactly.” Quinn nodded, his brows furrowing. “Thing is, apart from a few indirect comments here and there, the only lead we have is that the woman was after you, Draken. Any ideas?”

  It was more question than accusation.

  Still, Draken snarled. “No. I don’t have to tell you that with my age and given who my father is, that I have a great deal of enemies. But none that would be so bold.”

  “Or so you thought,” Quinn added. “Either way, it doesn’t bode well. I’ve written up a brief for you men to take back to the Elders. They need to be informed. Something of this magnitude today could change everything for us.”

  Silence descended on the room as they all absorbed the news. Hearing it out loud like that just brought home the dangers they now faced. Reaching out, Stephan laced his fingers with Angelica, tugging her to him. He smiled as she came willingly, sitting beside him on the bed and snuggling into his side. Meeting Owen’s gaze, he saw the same promise he silently made himself. He would do anything to protect their mate and their child. She was everything to them. They were lucky to have been blessed with her as mate, and he couldn’t wait to enjoy their future together. He just hoped they all had a future.

  Epilogue

  Angelica held the back of the hospital gown as she waddled back to the ultrasound room. She was huge, bigger than she should be for eighteen weeks with twins. Because she was having Shifter babies she had to go to Shifter doctors, but apparently Shifters bred like rabbits so it was hard to get appointments. Owen and Stephan thought there were more than two, and Angelica prayed they were wrong.

  This was her first ultrasound, and Angelica was excited. She came back to the room to see both Stephan and Owen pacing. The doctor by the machine smiled as she came in. “Mrs. Deven, come and lay yourself on the lounge chair.”

  Angelica got up on the chair with her mates’ help. The doctor lifted her gown.

  “Now this will feel a little cold on you.” She squirted the gel on her stomach and then reached for her wand and moved it onto her round stomach.

  Owen and Stephan each held on to her as they all stared at the screen to see the little bodies.

  “Congratulation, Mrs. Deven, you’re having a litter … triplets.” The doctor pointed each baby out and measured them and their heartbeats. “Would you like to know the sexes?”

  Angelica gazed at her two mates and saw the eagerness. “Yes, please.”

  “Well this one here at the front is a boy. He is the biggest. The one behind him, see here … is a boy, too, and proud of it by the looks of it as he spread his legs to show me. And this one at the back and the smallest … she is a girl.”

  Angelica could feel the tears rolling down her cheeks as she watched the screen and her babies. Wow, three. She’d only just come to terms with two.

  The doctor wiped her stomach and the gel off. “Everything looks fantastic for triplets at eighteen weeks. With you being human I want you under the least amount of work. I need your stress levels down. I also need you to eat every two or so hours. With you having a litter I will need to keep a closer eye on you. Cats usually have more than one, but you’re human so I need to watch you closer. I want you with an appointment every two weeks and when we get to thirty every week. You can only fly for a couple more weeks, I say three max.”

  Angelica nodded, taking in everything. She glanced at her mates and saw their determined faces. They were going to be hell to live with. There was no way they’d let her go back to work on Monday.

  Owen and Stephan asked the doctors a bunch of questions as she slipped out, still in a daze, to get changed back into her clothes. As she came back in, dressed, the doctor handed her a script for nausea tablets and wrote down the right vitamins she needed to be taking.

  Stephan and Owen walked out each holding her hand. Owen left go to go pay, and Stephan walked her to the car. He helped her in, and she sat quiet until Owen got in.

  “So … I’m having triplets. A litter like a cat. What the hell, Owen and Stephan? You said I was human and wouldn’t turn into one of you. Well I’m sure as hell breeding like an animal.” She winced as she even heard her own screeching, and both her men winced, too.

  Owen’s hand came and rested on her arm. “Sweetheart, you need to calm down.”

  Angelica raised her eyebrow at Owen. “Really you did not just say that to me.”

  “Owen, not cool. Not a word.” Stephan shook his head. “Seriously.”

  Angelica smiled at him. At least she had one smart mate.

  The drive home was quiet, and she was thankful. Angelica felt like all she was doing lately was processing. She discovered she was quite adaptable. Her mates ushered her inside and straight to the lounge, and Angelica went with a sigh.

  “Do you need anything?” Owen asked.

  “A couple of pillows would be nice to prop myself up with,” she admitted. Owen rushed to do her bidding, and she smiled. “I’m kind of thirsty, too.”

  “On it.” With a nod, Stephan left to go fetch her a drink.

  Chuckling to herself, she shrugged. There had to be some benefits to this. She wasn’t above milking it. Absently she wondered if she could squeeze a foot massage out of it, too. Couldn’t hurt to try.

  “Well don’t you look all smug,” Joel chuckled as he entered the room.

  “I figure if I have to rest I may as well get something out of it.”

  “Wise woman.” Her brother took a seat opposite her. “So I hear we have three babies on their way.”

  “How did you know?”

  He smirked. “Stephan couldn’t wait to get on the phone and tell me. On the upside, three of you, three of them. Should even it out.”

  “I know of parents who barely survive one,” she groaned. “We have three.”

  “Yeah.” Joel winced. “I was trying to make you feel better. Clearly that didn’t work.”

  “Hey, man. You hear the news?” Owen asked as he stepped into the room. As her brother went to answer, the doorbell rang. Handing her at least half a dozen cushions, Owen said, “I’ll get it.”

  It didn’t take long for her to work out who was there when her mate’s first words were, “Oh no. The doctor said no stress. You need to go.”

  Angelica threw her head back and laughed. “Owen! Let my best friend in now!”

  She heard Jenika’s murmured voice and suspected her friend was taking the opportunity to make a dig. Seconds later Jenika walked into the room, laptop in hand.

  “Um, why do you have that?”

  “Well, I wanted to see how today went. Do we know what if I’m getting nieces or nephews? Oooh, and how many?” she asked eagerly, setting the laptop up on the coffee table in front of her as she took a seat.

  “Two nephews and a niece.”

  Jenika squealed, clapping her hands. “Great! So you know what comes next?”

  Angelica frowned. “The birth?”

  “No,” Jenika sighed before her eyes light up. “Shopping!”

  Angelica giggled a little. “Oh yes.”

  Now we are getting to the fun part.

  “I figure Tweedledee and Tweedledum wouldn’t want you going out shopping, so we can do some online.” Booting her computer up, Jenika rubbed her hands together gleefully, then shouted, “Owen, Stephan! One of you get your little kitty arses in here with a credit card for your baby momma!”

  Joel cringed. “Could you not?”

  Jenika seemed to make it her life’s mission lately to be there every
day and annoy Stephan and Owen. Angelica loved seeing her best friend all the time, but couldn’t help but think Jenika was just using it as an excuse to not have to deal with her own two, very persistent, mates.

  Jenika considered her brother’s request for a moment. “Probably, but where is the fun in that?”

  Both her mates joined them, looking extremely disgruntled, though Stephan did hand over a card, one that Jenika snatched up before Angelica could reach it. Another ring of the bell cut off any comment her men were about to make.

  “It’s like central fucking station,” Owen muttered.

  The curses continued and grew in volume as he stomped back into the room. Angelica hid her grin when both Draken and Raziel followed behind her mate. While Raziel got along with Stephan and Owen to a point, she didn’t think her men really wanted anyone here at the moment. And Draken was … well, Draken.

  Her best friend barely spared either of her mates a glance as she brought up store after online store for them to look at. Jenika had been keeping her distance from both men since they had returned from the Gold Coast. At first Raziel had stayed behind, presumably to organize his move here, but Jenika hadn’t given either man the time of day.

  “What are we doing?” Raziel asked as he flopped down into one of the arm chairs.

  “We aren’t doing anything,” Jenika muttered. “My best friend and I are doing some shopping for the babies.”

  Jenika’s face softened when she mentioned the babies, and Angelica wasn’t the only one who noticed.

  “You like kids?” Raziel asked.

  Jenika shrugged. “Who doesn’t?”

  While trying to act like the matter didn’t faze her, Angelica knew for a fact her best friend loved children and wanted plenty of her own one day. In the future. In the far future.