Frustration and helplessness warred inside me. I had enough magic to end all this, but what good was it if I couldn’t use it in the real world when I needed it?
Before I could act, two giant boars came thundering past me. One of them hit the wolf who had clamped down on Efrain’s throat, and it tore loose, flying through the air and smacking into a tree trunk. The other boar charged straight for the wolf I’d hit with the fireball. Before he got there, the wolf leapt to its feet and streaked off through the woods.
The boars were impressive and quick, but the wolves were quicker. Even the one that Efrain had gouged jumped up and ran to the one who had hit the tree. With a furious roar, the three boars charged again. The wolf leapt out of the way, snapping at them for a moment before seeing it was hopelessly outnumbered. It turned and fled, leaving a mournful howl trailing behind as the three boars descended on the last wolf.
I tried not to look. I didn’t want to look, but I couldn’t tear my eyes away as their tusks ripped through fur skin and flesh. The wolf howled and snarled and screamed, but it was buried under their tearing teeth and slicing tusks. Sickness swept over me, and I hugged my arms around my belly, fighting for control. A sob gripped my throat, and Robin landed on my shoulder, trying in vain to comfort me.
A minute later, the boars retreated, bloody and victorious. They circled the wolf’s remains, then lifted their snouts and scented the air before shifting back to human. They started high-fiving each other and laughing about their great moments, even though blood was still running out of Efrain’s throat, down his chest.
Finally, they seemed to remember I was there.
“Nice job, little witch,” Oral said, throwing an arm around my neck. He smelled like sweat and animal, a strong and heady scent that wasn’t exactly unpleasant. The smell of blood was what turned my stomach.
I threw his arm off and spun on them. “You killed that wolf!” I said, my voice more hysterical than I wanted.
“Of course we killed it,” Efrain said, gesturing to his neck. “It would have killed us.”
“You didn’t have to kill it,” I said, drawing a shaky breath. “You could have let it run off with the others.”
Suddenly, I missed Malik with painful intensity. His safe arms, his easy smile, his simple dreams that included a peaceful family. These men danced with death as if it were a familiar face.
Efrain picked up his tattered shirt and wrapped it around his neck like a bandage. “You’ll have to fix me up good when we get out of wolf territory.”
I swallowed hard, wondering if my magic would even work now. It had been tainted, and now that I was so shaken, I didn’t know if I could heal him at all. That took love, and I was slightly horrified by all of them now.
I just wanted to curl up in Malik’s safe arms and know that someone would understand how appalled I was at the violence I’d witnessed. That wasn’t an option right now, but I vowed I would marry that boy the day I got back to our valley. I wanted adventure, but I wanted the safety of home, too.
“I can see you’re upset,” Nelson said. “But this is the way it is for us. We’re animals. Not some great and noble beasts. Nature isn’t majestic. It’s brutal. If we hadn’t killed that wolf, they would have killed us. It’s that simple.”
“You could have made peace,” I muttered.
“There hasn’t been peace between the valleys for decades.”
I knew he was right. My parents had warned me about this, the warring neighbors in the other valleys. But it hadn’t sunk in until now. I fought a wave of nausea when I thought of that wolf screaming as they sliced it apart and left it there like worthless bones. I’d known these guys were shifters, had even seen them in animal form. I’d just never realized that they were really animals, that their natures, their moral code, was so inhuman.
11
“We need to get out of the wolves’ valley,” Efrain said. “Now that we’ve gotten one of theirs, they’ll send the whole pack after us. And we can’t fight the whole pack.”
“What about my grandma?” I asked. “While you’re busy killing each other, she’s still down there. If you want to fight the whole pack, maybe I can sneak down while they’re busy and find her.”
“We don’t want to fight the whole pack,” Efrain said. “That’s what I’m saying. So let’s go.”
“No,” I said planting my feet. “This is not part of my plan. My plan is to get my grandma.”
“Then I hope you’re planning to die,” he said. “Because they’re pissed now.”
“That’s not my fault,” I said. To my horror, my eyes started to ache with tears. Sure, last night had been fun, but today was serious. I needed Granny Golden back. The violence, leaving the valley without even attempting to find her—this wasn’t supposed to happen.
Efrain’s voice came in a soft rumble this time. “Like I said, sometimes the bravest thing to do is run,” he said. “We don’t have much time, Cayenne. We’ll go back tonight and get her.”
“When she’s already dead?” I asked, more furious that he was speaking gently to me, like he knew I was about to cry.
Nelson raised his head and sniffed the air. “He’s right,” he said. “We gotta get out of here.”
“She’ll be alive tonight,” Efrain said, his lips tightening into a grim line. “They’ll make sure of it.”
“I’ll give you a lift,” Oral said quietly, stepping up beside me. His warm hand closed over mine and he gave it a gentle squeeze. “We’re not going to leave you here to die when the wolves come.”
I nodded, my throat too tight to speak.
“What do you like to ride?” he asked, a twinkle in his eye.
I tried to answer, forcing the knot from my throat.
“She’s good on a horse,” Efrain said, and he shifted into a stallion before I could answer.
“A horse is good,” I said.
Oral crouched, and I could see him straining. Now I understood why Efrain had bragged about the ease with which he could shift. Oral’s head was jerking back and forth as he lurched a step forward.
Efrain nudged me with his big head. And even though I’d hugged on it before, that was only because I liked horses. Not because I liked him. I shoved his head away.
He snorted and pricked his ears. Distantly, I heard a howl down in the valley.
“Whatever,” I said. “I’ll ride a boar. Just shift, already.”
Oral shook his head, his eyes squeezed closed and his face turning red. Fur rippled along his arms. Nelson nudged me with his nose, then turned his head back, motioning for me to get on.
“I got it,” Oral grunted.
Another minute passed, and I heard the howls again. This time, they sounded much closer. I turned to Nelson, but before I could climb on, something tugged at my cape. When I turned back, a small grey “horse” stood there grinning at me proudly.
“You did it,” I said, smiling despite myself. “Pretty much, anyway.”
Nelson snorted, and even though he was a boar, I was pretty sure he was laughing.
I petted Oral’s head, which was shorter than Efrain’s, and his long, droopy ears. “These are some big ears.”
He nipped at my dress, tugging on the sleeve this time.
“And some pretty big teeth,” I said, regarding him again.
He lowered his head, and I grabbed on and tried to mount him. I threw my leg up, but it smacked him right on the back and fell back down instead of swinging over. I tried again, gripping the fur below his mane and throwing my leg as high as I could. A ripping sound happened somewhere in the posterior of my dress.
Efrain and Nelson were both snorting with animal laughter.
Shit, how did people do this? I tried to mount headfirst this time, gripping on with both hands and dragging myself up. I got my chest and shoulders on, then threw my leg up. Just then, Efrain decided to help me out by nudging my bottom with his big nose, and quite thoroughly, I might add. He burrowed his muzzle deep between my thighs and pushed.
“Get off my butt,” I said, swatting at him. I heaved myself up so hard that I lost my balance and started to slide over the opposite side of Oral’s back.
Okay, this was plain silly. Here was the most powerful young witch in the valley, flailing around in a completely undignified manner, trying to mount a donkey while a horse molested her. A little magic would not be wasted here.
I brought up a blast of air in time to keep my body from tumbling to the ground on the far side of Oral like a sack of oats. I scrambled upright and buried my hands in his short mane. Then I smacked Efrain’s side with a small stone just for fun.
He whinnied and bit at my boot, but I gave him a swift kick. Oral must have thought that was for him, because he bolted forward. I threw myself flat and clung to him with arms and legs—and a little more magic. We headed up the mountain Efrain had led me down, leaves and rocks tumbling under their feet and bare branches snagging at my face. I put my head down, breathing in Oral’s animal smell. He smelled like a donkey when he was in donkey form, which was comforting. After all the craziness and horror of the day, something familiar and safe was a welcome change.
They stopped at a tiny wooden shack in the woods not far over the mountain from wolf territory.
“Is this safe?” I asked as I slid off Oral’s back. He immediately shifted back into his human form, letting out a sigh of relief when he was there. The other two shifted easily as well.
“Dude, your horse was such an epic fail,” Efrain said, slugging Oral’s shoulder.
“A donkey, man, you were a donkey,” Nelson said, shoving him.
Oral laughed along with them, shoving them back, but his face went bright red.
“Is this place safe?” I asked again, interrupting their horseplay. “We’re not very far from the wolves.”
“They’re scared of us,” Efrain said, smearing blood across his broad chest as he wiped at a drop trickling between his bulging pectorals.
I bit my lip, trying not to stare. I should be disgusted. But…
Damn it, why did I use healing magic on him?’
“They don’t leave their territory,” Nelson said. “They’ll attack if we cross into their valley, but they won’t cross the border into ours.”
“They know we’ll show no mercy,” Efrain said, his chest swelling with pride.
“You’re a savage, you know that?” I said.
“I’ve been told it’s my best quality.” He swiped more blood off his chest and took a step closer. “You wanna fix us up, Little Red? As much as I enjoy standing around gossiping, I’m losing a lot of blood here.”
“Will you show mercy on me?” I asked, crossing my arms.
“Not even if you beg,” Efrain said with a smirk.
I glanced at the decrepit shack, wondering who used it. Hopefully someone with clothes. I didn’t really like being alone in the woods with three naked men who lacked basic human morals. I had magic to protect myself, of course, but I was more worried about what they might make me want to do.
My familiar stirred uneasily, sensing my discomfort.
“Then no healing magic,” I said, tossing my head. My red curls spilled over my shoulders, and my hood had come off when I was riding.
“He’s joking,” Oral said, his fingers grazing my arm. “We ain’t gonna hurt you. We know not to cross a witch.”
“I need a promise,” I said.
“I promise,” he said, his blue eyes kind and serious for once. “We can hang out at this old hunting cabin for the day, and go back in tonight when they’re busy with the eclipse.”
“I’m going to go lie down,” Efrain said, his face looking a little pale. “It’ll give us a little privacy.” He winked, but it was half-hearted. He was really bloody. I sighed and turned to follow him as he stumbled inside. I heard the creak of metal springs that sounded like a cot protesting its use.
“Your mother came looking for you,” Nelson said behind me.
“What?” I whirled around, my legs twisting up in my skirt. “My mom?”
“Yeah,” he said. “She’s a piece of work. I can see why you ran away.”
“I didn’t run away,” I said. “And my mom is amazing.”
“She sure is,” he said. “She firebombed my house.”
I blinked stupidly at him, thinking of his solid stone house that had kept the wolves at bay all night. “What?”
“Don’t worry, it has the charm on it,” he said. “She was not happy about that.”
“Or the fact that we wouldn’t hand you over,” Oral said. “Not that we could. You’d already gone.”
“Lucky we had that charm or we’d be barbecue right now.”
“My mom would never…” I trailed off. My mom totally would. She’d do anything for me, and she had a temper like me. If she thought they were holding me hostage? All bets were off.
12
The little shack was a small room with only a couple windows, which made it seem even smaller and gloomier. I left the door open to let some light in as I approached the cot. I sat down on the edge, in the tiny sliver of space left next to Efrain’s hip. “How come you’re always the one having a near-death experience?” I asked.
“Would you rather one of my brothers had gotten hurt?” he asked. “I wouldn’t.”
“I’d really rather not have a closer bond with you than I already have.”
“That’s worn off,” Efrain said. “Didn’t you notice? We’re back to fighting.”
Was he right? I sat with my magic, trying to feel it. I could still feel the dark tendrils in it, like wisps of smoke. That was bad enough. Besides that, though, the fact that Efrain had noticed the change in our bond before I had unsettled me. But what unsettled me more was that not only was the magic gone, but I still felt something other than mutual distrust, disgust, and irritation.
“Don’t put your spell on me again,” he said. “I’d rather die than think I love a witch.”
“You thought you loved me?”
“You stopped frustrating the hell out of me,” he said. “That’s pretty much the same thing, right?”
“But that’s all gone?” I asked.
“Every last bit.”
That made sense. Most humans didn’t have a capacity for magic. We could use it on them, and it would enter them for a short time, but it drained away. They couldn’t gather it, hold it inside, and use it like a witch. I’d healed Efrain, and my magic had entered him, but it hadn’t stayed inside him. Which meant my feelings probably had nothing to do with the magic. I was just plain attracted to this bloody beast.
“You saved my life when I froze up in the woods,” I said, touching his cheek.
“Yeah, well, I don’t make a habit of watching little girls get eaten by wolves.”
“And I don’t make a habit of watching men bleed to death like stuck pigs.” His shoulders were already spilling off the edges of the cot, so I had no choice but to lay down on his chest, shaking my curls back so they’d spill over the side of the bed instead of onto his bloody skin. By turning sideways, I managed to squeeze my hips and legs onto the bed beside him.
Efrain groaned, his arm circling me and pressing me closer to his bare body.
“We usually slit their throats so they’ll go quickly,” I said. “When we kill pigs, I mean.”
“You’re one twisted little witch,” he said.
“You’re one naked, big man,” I whispered, keenly aware of the heat of his skin burning through my dress.
“You say that like it’s a bad thing.”
“Promise you won’t take advantage of whatever I’m feeling after I share magic with you,” I said, my fingers tightening in his tufts of dark hair.
“But that’s what I do best.”
“Promise, or I’m not healing you.”
“Maybe you should be promising that,” he said. “It’s your magic. What if you take advantage of me?”
“I’m serious,” I said, tugging on his hair again. “I—I’ve never…”
<
br /> A laugh rumbled through his chest. “You’ve gotta be kidding me.”
“Sex is sacred to us,” I said. “It’s sacred to me. But obviously not to you. To you, nothing’s sacred. Not even life.”
I sat up and swung my legs off the edge of the bed.
Efrain’s thick arm circled my waist. I knew I could get away using magic, but what scared me was that I was pretty sure I could get away without it. His grip was half-hearted, his strength fading. “I won’t take advantage of you, Cayenne. I swear. Don’t go. I…I need you.”
I turned back and lay down beside him again. “You better still mean it when you’re back to full strength,” I whispered against his cheek.
“First time for everything,” Efrain muttered.
I closed my eyes and let my magic flow into him.
A few minutes later, Efrain opened his eyes and looked at me.
Oh no. I recognized that look from the night before. I couldn’t believe I’d ever thought he wasn’t handsome. His unconventional face was fascinating, beautiful. His hazel eyes shone with all the colors of a forest deep enough to get lost in.
“Hey, there, Little Red,” he said, his arm tightening around me. In one movement that was so fluid it had to be practiced to an expert level, he rolled over, pulling me under him at the same time. “That’s better.”
It did feel better. It felt so much better, so right, to be crushed under this boulder of a man. I felt small and delicate, as if he could break my bones as easily as snapping a twig but would never dream of it. He would hold me in his big hands like a baby bird, treat me as gently.
His hands gripped the frame of the cot and his hips rolled on mine, crushing me harder into the thin mattress. I sighed and arched up against him, my belly pressing against the heat of his. Efrain growled and drove me down into the bed again. With a squeal of springs, the cot gave way, and the metal frame slammed down on the wood floor with a bang.
Realms and Rebels: A Paranormal and Fantasy Reverse Harem Collection Page 44