by Leah Blake
“I’m going to try and catch some shut-eye. Good luck today.”
Kelvin nodded. “Yeah. Oh, I heard you earned another kill scratch.”
“Don’t drool over it.”
Mik escaped the probing stare of his comrade only after he turned down a side street, deciding to take the back roads to the hotel. He didn’t stop walking, didn’t allow a single thought to pass through his mind until he was locked in his room.
Sinking onto the edge of his bed, dropping his head into his hands, he let out a long breath.
He allowed Nico to kiss him. Hell, he kissed the wolf right back and it was…fantastic. So fantastic he wanted more.
Kelvin caught him. His expression had said everything his words did not. He was confused by what he saw, and debating whether he was disgusted or simply surprised. He knew he’d be hearing about the incident soon enough. The jabs were brewing, the taunts and teases in the making.
And yet, Mik knew that was the least of his worries. The more he contemplated the mind tricks that happened in the restaurant and right before Nico kissed him, the more he realized they were definitely not tricks.
Jude had once told them in a briefing years ago that they had to take care when they fought the paranormals. If they had mates, the mates had a way of transferring into each other’s mind. There was an unseen connection, a link between them.
The last of the breath in his lungs fled his body, leaving him weak and shaky.
I’m so screwed. So, so screwed.
There was not a doubt in his mind that one of those transfers had occurred between him and Nico.
After all, Nico had labeled him “mate.”
Chapter Four
“You can’t deny that kid was cute, all flushed and glittery in the eyes. He was small, squeeze worthy,” Marco said, tossing back another beer as he kicked his bare feet on the coffee table. “You could pick him up and carry him around like a doll.”
Nico chuckled, shaking his head. “He’s not that small.”
Marco had waited up for him to return. He wanted the scoop on the man who ran after Nico, and Nico happily obliged his friend enough to keep his snout from prodding too deep. Marco didn’t know the man was Mikhail Borreagous, infamous hunter, and definitely didn’t know the kid was his mate.
He’d known for over three weeks, and by complete accident.
Nico wanted to keep it that way until he could somehow convince his enemy mate that they weren’t the bad guys.
About as easy as convincing a viper the rat isn’t food.
“Think it would be a good idea for the three of us to find some outlet while we’re hanging out here.” Marco glanced around the spacious cabin-like house. Raul Carney, their alpha back at Shadow Creek, had managed to put a nice deposit on the rustic place to house them for a month. It was part of a campground, which gave them plenty of run room without being found out. “I really need a roll in the woods.”
“Sounds about right for you.” Nico ruffled up his hair with a hand and stifled a yawn. “As nice as it’d be to chat about fucking, I need to get some rest. I’d suggest you do the same. I’m sure the lamabra from last night isn’t the only one in the area.”
“They’re usually not paired up.”
“The volume of carcasses in the woods tells otherwise. Too many bodies in too short a time, even for the rabid creatures.”
Nico slipped into his room and closed the door. His head spun with the taste of Mikhail lingering on his lips. He was surprised that the guy went along with the kiss, given their conflicting statuses. Mates responded similarly to each other, no matter what faction or race they came from. Even humans mated to paranormals experienced the same mind transfers and degree of arousal.
Nico glanced down at that blaring evidence in his jeans.
“Shit.”
His cock had been aching for weeks. It made him edgy and impatient, but somehow, logic still had a strong hold on him. Thankfully.
For now.
Regardless, he was getting sick and tired of soap or lube and his hand doing all the work. He wanted the real deal. He needed another body, his mate’s smaller frame tucked against him as he railed his tight ass.
Hell, he got the man to kiss him, and frankly, Mikhail enjoyed it. That much he gathered from the short transfer as he claimed the hunter’s mouth.
Nico chuckled as he shucked his clothes and climbed onto the bed. Tucking his hands behind his head, leaving his jutting erection to be kissed by the cool air, he stared up at the ceiling.
“Wonder what you’re going through right now.”
Knowing the hunter, he was tearing himself up.
That thought alone comforted Nico as he closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep.
* * * *
“Up, Nico. Now.”
Nico bolted onto his feet from a dead sleep and stared at Storme’s body filling the doorway. Trying to blink away sleep, he barely had time to react to the pile of clothes pitched at him before they crashed against his chest.
“Gotta go. There’s a missing person’s report that was just called in. Walked her dog an hour ago and never returned home.”
Nico was pulling on his clothes as Storme gave him the rundown. The glowing lights from the living room cast Storme in a dark shadow, evidence that night had fallen beyond the curtains. He followed the lead wolf into the living room, fastening his jeans and tugging his jacket on one arm as he moved. Marco was pulling on his boots, his eyes bloodshot and his face drawn. The guy looked like he drank himself into oblivion but couldn’t sleep it off.
“Marco, you good, bro?” Nico asked. As he drew closer to his friend, the ripe aroma of alcohol wafting off his skin stung Nico’s nostrils. “Shit, man. Hey, Storme. He’s in no shape to go out.”
“Should’ve slept instead of pounding back beers,” Storme groused, casting Marco a hard, pissed look.
Nico shook his head, pulling on his boots. “You and I can run this one. He’ll be no good to us out there. If anything, he’ll put us in danger.” Leaning close to Marco, he murmured, “Next time I catch you with a beer bottle, I’m smashing it upside your fucking head, clear?”
Marco slouched in the corner and nodded, rubbing his hands over his face. “Guys, I’m sorry. I assumed we’d have more time.”
“You know better than to assume anything in this world,” Storme snapped. He groaned. “I second Nico’s threat. Get your pansy ass in bed. You’d better be asleep when we get back. And I want a fucking five-course breakfast waiting for me when I wake up tomorrow.”
“Aye-aye, captain.”
Marco rolled onto his hands and knees and crawled over to the sofa. Nico straightened up on his feet and followed Storme into the night.
“Where did she walk the dog?”
“Along the hiking trail that brushes up against the lamabra’s feasting grounds. The cops never cordoned off the trails.” Storme grunted. “Idiots. That area should’ve been off-limits the moment those mounds of animal carcasses were discovered.”
Nico hopped into Storme’s pickup truck. Storme peeled onto the dirt road, leaving his headlights off until they reached the main street away from downtown and toward the forest. The hills were dotted with houses, and the lights from downtown left a yellow haze in the growing fog.
“Victor believes there are twelve lamabra, correct?” Nico asked. Victor Cavanough, Raul Carney’s mate and newly instated vampire king, had claimed his crazy father had created lamabra as a means of wiping out the majority of the shifter population and gaining the survivors’ trust and dependency on the vampires. The bastard had been a twisted fuck, even if only half of what he heard was true. Twelve lamabra was like facing a hoard of fifty. One was a nightmare. “And we got one.”
“That’s what Raul said. Twelve. Devon’s team managed to take one down a week ago somewhere in Delaware.” Storme turned down a tree-enclosed dirt road, leading toward the hiking trail. “They’re starting to come out of hiding as their need for sustenance grows. The la
st couple of months, they’ve been surviving on the animals. This is when we need to keep our eyes and ears open.”
“I hate these damn things. Cockroaches of the paranormal world.”
“You’re not kidding.”
Storme slowed down, coasting the large truck down the dirt slope, dimming the headlights as he went. A few minutes later, he pulled the truck into their hiding spot—a tight circle of trees thick with foliage and brush—and cut the engine.
Nico hopped out of the truck, left his jacket on his seat, and closed his door quietly. Storme was waiting for him at the tailgate, gazing out over the dense woodland. He handed Nico a torn piece of fabric.
“Where did you get this?”
“Raul contacted one of the detectives working the lamabra case and requested a sample of clothing. I picked it up before I woke you. It was brought in by her husband on request so the department could initiate search dogs.”
“This is going to be a cluster fuck, you know that? Between a rabid lamabra, a missing dog and wife, cops, search parties, bloodhounds, and more than likely hunters.” Nico growled, lifting the fabric to his nose and inhaling the scent of a woman’s perfume. Beneath the layers of floral scents and lotions, he caught the raw scent of the woman herself. He handed the cloth back to Storme, imprinting the scent in his mind. “Did the detectives give you vests with POLICE written on the side for us? Might save these poor humans a fright in the night.”
“You’re a terrible poet.”
“Don’t I know it.”
Storme chuckled. Nico just shook his head.
“Raul gave the lead detective strict orders not to shoot any docile wolves or innocent animals.”
“Docile. Next, I’ll be a lapdog. My night keeps getting better.” Nico started toward the hiking trail. “You owe me half of that five-course breakfast.”
“I’ll gladly share my steak with you.”
Nico cast his friend a look over his shoulder, more pointedly at the wolf’s crotch. “Sorry, pal. You can keep the steak.”
Storme clapped him on the shoulder as he brushed by him. “Ready?”
“Let’s maim a real beast.”
Nico and Storme shifted into their wolf forms and trotted down to the hiking path. They backtracked toward the entrance of the trail, but were forced to stop when light beams flashed through the trees a short distance away.
“Got anything?” Storme asked.
Nico shook his head before pressing his snout to the leaves-covered dirt trail. He sniffed along the path, zig-zagging in hopes of catching on to something. As the flashlight beams and calls for the lost woman drew closer, Nico snorted.
“I’m going to go down about a half mile. See if I can’t pick something up there,” Nico said.
“I’m going deeper into the forest. If there is another lamabra and it pulled her off the path near the entrance, we won’t catch anything here. Keep me apprised.”
Nico and Storme split up. Storme’s dark coat instantly melted into the shadows as he disappeared. Nico loped up the trail, keeping his nose attuned to the woman’s scent.
He reached an area of disturbed dirt and brush. He stopped running and circled the area, then stilled, listening for any sounds of a woman in distress.
Nothing.
He lowered his snout and sniffed.
A faint scent filled his nostrils. He followed the scent off the path, away from the edge of the forest, deeper toward the lamabra’s hell. He tracked the woman about a quarter of a mile in when he found a shredded dog leash. Thin patches of fur dotted the underbrush. Surprisingly, there was no blood.
As much as he hoped the dog got away, he doubted the outcome would be that pleasant. He feared the woman was as good as dead, as well.
“I found a trail. Dog leash turned dental floss.”
“Where are you?”
Nico glanced around. “About three-quarters of a mile in from the truck.”
“I’ll be heading your way. There’s a dangerous amount of activity—”
A muffled shout drew his attention away from Storme and deeper into the forest. A high-pitched whimper followed.
Nico sprang forward, running at full-speed, his paws barely touching the ground.
…not dying tonight. Hell fucking no…shit! Where is that fuck…
Nico nearly tripped over his front paws as Mikhail’s thoughts filtered into his head. A moment later, he came to a sliding halt when the forest around him disappeared and he found himself spinning in a circle on human feet, glancing down at a curled up woman between frantically scanning his surroundings. A gun jerked one way, then the other. Fear pulsed through his body. Fear and rage and…grief?
Nico forced the transfer to end. He picked up his pace again, panting with each hard lunge of his body. Over trees, under branches, over rocks and streams.
“The woman’s alive. Pinned her down. Heading toward her now. Catch my scent and follow me. I can’t tell you my location.”
“Nico, wait!”
“There’s no time!”
A painful yelp rang in his ears. His heart sped up, desperation pushing his adrenaline into overload.
Another flash transfer. This time, Mikhail had the lamabra in his sight. The beast was in a tree, preparing to attack…
The scent of his mate plowed into him as he barreled into a small clearing. He didn’t slow down. Instead, he pushed every burning muscle in his wolf’s body to the max, and crashed into Mikhail’s body as the lamabra lunged out of the tree at a speed barely visible. Mikhail cried out as he slammed into the ground with force enough to knock him unconscious.
Nico shifted into his human form, grabbed the gun from Mikhail’s slack fingers, spun—
He leaned away at the lamabra snapped dripping fangs at his shoulder, and whipped his arm around, knocking the beast on the side of the head with the butt of the gun. The beast hissed, lashed out a clawed hand, slicing it across Nico’s chest. Searing pain ignited, but he aimed the gun through his reddened haze and pulled the trigger.
The beast hissed again, stumbling backward but not going down. Its red eyes brightened and saliva dripped from its chin. The crazed expression intensified as Nico’s wound bled into his shirt and down his abdomen.
The beast lunged at him.
Nico stood his ground, took aim again, and this time, shot the beast right between the eyes.
He tucked the gun into his jeans at the small of his back and leaned down to Mikhail’s body. The man’s pulse beat strong, his breaths even. It took every ounce of willpower to leave his mate on the ground and search for the woman. Crouched on his haunches, he pivoted until he spotted the woman curled up in a nook of thorn bushes, rock, and a moss-covered fallen tree. The coppery scent of blood permeated the air and not his blood.
The woman recoiled when his gaze landed on her, a small dog tucked tight in her arms. Her eyes were wide, her face smeared with dirt and blood.
“You’re safe now,” Nico cooed. Slowly, keeping eye contact with the woman, he lowered to his hands and knees and started crawling toward her. The woman was terrified. He didn’t doubt she saw him come in as a wolf and turn into a man. Her world had rocked off its axis in a matter of a couple hours.
“Storme, come slowly. I killed the lamabra, but the woman is in shock.”
“She’s safe?”
“From the threat, yes. From the trauma of what she experienced? Doubt it.”
He paused in his advance when the woman whimpered, somehow sinking deeper into the bramble. Pain twisted her features, but it didn’t stop her. The dog struggled to get out of her arms. She tightened her hold. The dog yelped.
“Honey, it’s okay. I promise you, nothing is going to hurt you now. That thing”—Nico motioned to the decaying body of the lamabra, the small motion causing the wounds on his chest to burn—“is dead. It’s dead and you’re safe. The police are scouring the trails for you. Let me bring you to safety. Back to your family.”
“W-what a-are you?”
The question was barely a whisper. Her voice shook as violently as her body.
“A friend. You have nothing to fear by me. My friend and I came in search of you. To help you.” He motioned to the dog. “What’s your dog’s name?”
The woman lowered her cheek to the top of the dog’s head. “Candy.”
Nico offered a grin. “What’s your name?”
“J-Jessica.”
“Why don’t you come out of there? The bramble is going to cut your skin.”
The woman contemplated his suggestion for a long while. Storme arrived, in human form, by the time Nico had coaxed the woman out of hiding. She recoiled at the sight of his friend.
“Nico, you okay?”
“Good. A scratch.”
“This is my friend who was searching for you, as well. He’s going to bring you to the search party so you can get to a hospital.” Nico had to corral the woman into Storme’s arms, her legs barely moving. Storme scooped her off her feet, cast Nico a glance, and headed back to the trail.
As soon as Storme was out of sight, Nico hurried to Mikhail’s side. He plucked out the ear bud and dropped it to the ground, lifted him up, and draped him over his shoulder. He ignored the flaring pain in his chest to scout the immediate area.
A few dozen feet away, he found what he feared.
Two dead hunters, mauled by the lamabra.
His heart twisted at the thought of Mikhail ending up in the same state as his buddies. These guys had no idea what they were up against, and Nico would be sure to keep Mikhail from his foolish endeavors going forward.
“Prick,” Nico growled at the pile of decayed lamabra. He spit on the corpse as he stormed by, quickening his pace to get Mikhail back to the truck.
Storme caught up with him a few feet from the vehicle, grabbing his arm and forcing him to stop. His eyes glowed as his gaze shifted to Mikhail’s slack body over his shoulder.
“What the fuck are you doing?”
“I can’t leave him here,” Nico snapped, yanking his arm free. He finished the walk to the truck, pulled open the back door to the cab, and lowered Mikhail onto the seat. “The creature mauled his pals. If there’s another out there, he’s in danger, too. We don’t need the hunters breathing down our necks when we’re trying to keep people safe from Mallouch’s hellish creations.”